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American racing driver (1905–1977) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Floyd Eldon Davis (March 9, 1905 – May 31, 1977) was an American racing driver, and the co-winner of the 1941 Indianapolis 500.
| Floyd Davis | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The winning car from the 1941 Indianapolis 500 - Mauri Rose took over the car from Davis on lap 73 | |||||||
| Born | Floyd Eldon Davis March 9, 1905 Oakford, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | May 31, 1977 (aged 72) Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||
| Championship titles | |||||||
| Major victories Indianapolis 500 (1941 (co-winner)) | |||||||
| Champ Car career | |||||||
| 18 races run over 9 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 4th (tie) (1941) | ||||||
| First race | 1935 St. Paul 100 (St. Paul) | ||||||
| Last race | 1948 Atlanta 100 (Lakewood) | ||||||
| First win | 1941 Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis) | ||||||
| |||||||
Floyd Davis drove the first 72 laps of the 1941 race before being replaced by Mauri Rose, who completed the race in the lead.[1]
During the 1941 Indianapolis 500, Floyd Davis had been driving the Noc-Out Hose Clamp car for sixty laps,[1] moving from 17th to 12th place when teammate Mauri Rose, the pole sitter, began experiencing problems with his car, the Elgin Piston Pin. The films show that he wasn't too happy when at lap 72, team owner Lou Moore pulled Davis from his car and replaced him with Rose. “I was ready to go into the lead when they called me in,” Davis later joked.
That is what Rose did, winning the first of his three 500 championships, and earning Davis an asterisk in the history books as a co-winner, despite the fact that he never led a single lap in any of his races.[1] And though Davis received a 50-50 split of the prize money, he never drove in another 500, racing only sparingly in 1946 and 1948; some attributed it to disgust in having been relieved, although his serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, coupled with his age at 40, might have been just as impactful.
Davis had driven in three previous 500s, coming in 15th in 1937, 27th in 1939, and 20th in 1940.[2]
Davis is buried at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis (Section 53 Lot 320).[2]
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