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This article lists the people who have been fatally injured in American Championship car racing during testing, practice, qualifying, or races since 1916, categorized into drivers, riding mechanics, and non-participants. The lists recognize "IndyCar" or "Champ Car" fatalities that have occurred in events making up the National Championship, which has been held by the following sanctioning bodies:
- American Automobile Association (1916, 1920–1941, 1946–1955)
- United States Auto Club (1956–1995)
- Championship Auto Racing Teams (1979–2003)
- Open Wheel Racing Series/Champ Car (2004–2007)
- Indy Racing League/IndyCar (since 1996)
The National Championship, which was split from 1979 to 2007, has featured regular races, non-points paying (non-championship) rounds, competitions sanctioned by entities that did not stage the National Championship in the same year (such as the Automobile Club of America), and the AAA Big car meetings held in the 1946 season.
The most recent driver to be fatally injured in an IndyCar Series event was Justin Wilson at the 2015 ABC Supply 500.
Breakdown
✝ indicates that the driver was killed in the same incident.
| Mechanician | Driver | Date of incident | Sanction | Track[note 1] | Event | Team/Owner | Car/Entry | Session |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Erick Schrader (USA)[1] |
Bob Burman (USA) ✝ |
April 8, 1916 | AAA | Grand Boulevard (Corona) | Corona Grand Prize[note 2] | Peugeot | Race | |
| Roxie Pallotti (USA)[2] |
Carl Limberg (USA) ✝ |
May 13, 1916 | AAA | Sheepshead Bay Speedway | Metropolitan Trophy | Delage | Race | |
| Dan Colombo (USA)[108] |
Aldo Franchi (USA) |
July 15, 1916 | AAA | Omaha Speedway | 150-mile race | Peugeot – Sunbeam "Peusun" | Race | |
| Marion Arnold (USA)[3] |
Andy Burt (USA) |
August 27, 1916 | AAA | Recreation Park (Kalamazoo) | 100-mile race[note 2] | Stutz | Race | |
| Bert Shields (USA)[109][note 23] |
Gil Andersen (USA) |
September 4, 1916 | AAA | Cincinnati Motor Speedway | International Sweepstakes | Stutz | Race | |
| Ralph Hetlich (USA)[111][note 24] |
Wilbur D'Alene (USA) |
October 14, 1916 | AAA | Speedway Park | Grand American Auto Race | Crawford – Duesenberg | Race | |
| Charles Swartz (USA)[113] |
Harry Horsman (USA)[note 25] |
November 10, 1916 | AAA/ACA | Santa Monica Road Race Course | Harry Horsman | Mercer | Practice | |
 Gaston Weigle (FRA)[5] |
Frank Galvin (USA) ✝ |
December 2, 1916 | AAA | Uniontown Speedway | Universal Trophy[note 2] | Premier | Race | |
| Lyall Jolls (USA)[7] |
Eddie O'Donnell (USA) ✝ |
November 25, 1920 | AAA | Beverly Hills Speedway | 250-mile race | Duesenberg | Race | |
| Harry Barner (USA)[9] |
Alton Soules (USA) ✝ |
October 1, 1921 | AAA | Fresno Speedway | San Joaquin Valley Classic | Frontenac | Race | |
| Paul Marshall (USA)[115] |
Cy Marshall (USA) |
May 30, 1930 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | George Henry | Duesenberg | Race |
| William Berry (USA)[116] |
Doc MacKenzie (USA) |
June 8, 1930 | AAA | Michigan State Fairgrounds | 100-mile race | Ambler | Ambler – Buick | Qualifying |
| Clarence Grove (USA)[25] |
Joe Caccia (USA) ✝ |
May 26, 1931 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Alvin Jones | Duesenberg "Jones & Maley" | Practice |
| Harry Cox (USA)[117] |
Bennie Benefiel (USA) |
May 25, 1932 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Alvin Jones | Duesenberg "Jones & Maley" | Qualifying |
| Bob Hurst (USA)[28] |
Bill Denver (USA) ✝ |
May 28, 1933 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Ray Brady | ? – Studebaker "Brady & Nardi" | Qualifying |
| G. L. Jordan (USA)[29] |
Lester Spangler (USA) ✝ |
May 30, 1933 | Harry Hartz | Miller | Race | |||
| Bob Hahn (USA)[30] |
Pete Kreis (USA) ✝ |
May 25, 1934 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Harry Hartz | Miller FD – Miller "Miller-Hartz" | Practice |
| Leo Whitaker (USA)[32] |
Stubby Stubblefield (USA) ✝ |
May 21, 1935 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Phil Shafer | ? – Buick "Victor Gasket" | Qualifying |
| Spider Matlock (USA)[34][note 26] |
Al Gordon (USA) ✝ |
January 26, 1936 | AAA | Ascot Speedway | 125-mile race[note 2] | Bill White | Wetteroth – Offenhauser | Race |
| Albert Opalko (USA)[119] |
Frank McGurk (USA) |
May 28, 1937 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Murrell Belanger | Stevens – Miller "Belanger-Miller" | Qualifying |
| Lawson Harris (USA)[120] |
Babe Stapp (USA) |
September 20, 1939 | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Firestone tire test | Mike Boyle | Miller FD – Miller | Testing |
This section lists people who have been fatally injured in close connection to the racing taking place at an event while not occupying a race car including participants being on the sidelines.
| Name | Date of incident | Sanction | Track[note 1] | Event | Session | Role | Course of events |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Speer (USA) |
April 8, 1916 | AAA | Grand Boulevard (Corona) | Corona Grand Prize[note 2] | Race | Police officer | Due to tire damage, Bob Burman's racer skidded, turned over and dashed into a crowd of people, several of whom were injured. Burman, his mechanician Erick Schrader, and a police officer died.[1] |
| Harold Edgington (USA) |
November 18, 1916 | ACA | Santa Monica Road Race Course | American Grand Prize | Race | Spectator | With his left front wheel buckling, Lewis Jackson missed a slight turn. His car slid along the roadside and struck several people, three of them fatally. Jackson died being pinned against a tree.[4] |
| Leslie Jenkins (USA) |
Camera operator | ||||||
| Lena Juratsch (USA) |
Street vendor | ||||||
 Hughie Hughes (UK) |
December 2, 1916 | AAA | Uniontown Speedway | Universal Trophy[note 2] | Race | Driver | Frank Galvin lost control of his racer, smashed through the guard rail and slammed into the press stand, injuring several of its occupants and crushing to death Hughie Hughes, who had crashed out of the race himself and was standing by the press box. Gaston Weigle, Galvin's mechanician, was also killed. Galvin died two days later.[5] |
| Bert Shoup (USA) |
May 30, 1923 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Spectator | Tom Alley, who was relief driving for Earl Cooper, slid, rolled over and penetrated a fence, killing a 15-year-old spectator and hurting two other boys and himself.[121] |
| Russ Hughes (USA) |
November 29, 1923 | AAA | Beverly Hills Speedway | 250-mile race | Pre-race | Photographer | Attempting a start before the race, Harry Hartz hit a photographer, a team owner, and a mechanic, killing the former two and severely injuring the latter.[122] |
| George Wade (USA) |
Team owner | ||||||
| Dan Shaw (USA) |
October 12, 1925 | AAA | Rockingham Speedway | Autumn Classic | Practice | Mechanic | The car driven by Vic Spooner veered into the pits where it fatally struck his mechanic before hitting the steel railing, being sent into the air, landing besides the track and catching fire. Spooner survived a concussion.[123] |
| Wilbur Brink (USA) |
May 30, 1931 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Bystander | Billy Arnold's racer lost a wheel, which cleared the retaining wall and killed an 11-year-old boy who was off the speedway's property.[124] |
| Otto Rohde (USA) |
May 28, 1937 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Practice | Pit attendant | Overton Phillips lost control of his burning car, the gas tank of which had been pierced. Spinning into the pit area, it collided with another machine and inflicted fatal injuries on two attendants, one of whom died four days later, with three other people being hurt including Phillips.[119][125] |
| George Warford (USA) | |||||||
| Everett Spence (USA) |
May 30, 1938 | AAA | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Spectator | The tire and rim came off a wheel of the racer driven by Emil Andres, traveled through the air and fatally struck a spectator who was seated on a truck in the infield.[126] |
| Sam Stovall (USA) |
April 14, 1946 | AAA | Williams Grove Speedway | 30-lap Big car race | Feature race | Spectator | A spectator who had been hit by a car while he was crossing the track near completion of the race died of his injuries two days later.[40][127] |
| Peter Stupurak (USA) |
October 15, 1950 | AAA | California State Fairgrounds | 100-mile race | Race | Spectator | Tony Bettenhausen ran into and climbed up the rear of Walt Faulkner's racer, flipped over and smashed through a fence, hurting four spectators, one of whom died the next day.[128] |
| Lawrence Syrell (USA) |
September 12, 1953 | AAA | New York State Fairgrounds | 100-mile race | Race | Spectator | Trying to thread his way through Jimmy Bryan's spinning car and the fence, Chuck Stevenson hopped the outside wall, killing one spectator and injuring another 14.[129] |
| Clay Smith (USA) |
September 6, 1954 | AAA | DuQuoin State Fairgrounds | Ted Horn Memorial | Race | Mechanic | Rodger Ward lost a tire, locked wheels with Chuck Stevenson and spun into the pit area where he overturned, killing a mechanic and hurting eight other people.[130] |
 William Craig (USA) |
May 30, 1960 | USAC | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Spectator | A makeshift 30-foot (9.1 m) scaffold, which had privately been erected in the infield, toppled from the flatbed truck it was attached to during the parade lap before the start of the race, when the people occupying the structure leaned forward to watch the field drive by. They either fell or jumped to the ground where other attendants were hit by tumbling bodies or debris. Two spectators were killed, 82 sustained injuries.[131][132] |
| Fred Linder (USA) | |||||||
| John Masariu (USA) |
May 30, 1961 | USAC | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Safety worker | After a fire on Eddie Johnson's racer had been put out, a fire truck which was retreating from the scene backed over and killed a safety worker who was clearing a path for the vehicle.[133] |
| Ralph Heger (USA) |
August 20, 1966 | USAC | Illinois State Fairgrounds | Tony Bettenhausen Memorial | Qualifying | Stage manager | A scheduled performance by the Green Berets required a rope to be stretched from a platform mounted on the roof of the grandstand to the infield across the track. Shortly after a tow truck had tautened the rope, the structure came loose and plunged into the reviewing stand, crushing to death a stage manager. Two photographers who had occupied the platform fell to their deaths, 38 people were injured by debris.[134][135] |
| Robert Lockwood (USA) |
Photographer | ||||||
| Dale Mueller (USA) | |||||||
| Red Stainton (USA) |
April 13, 1969 | USAC | Hanford Motor Speedway | California 200 | Race | Mechanic | Fuel leaking from Art Pollard's car was ignited during a pit stop, causing burns to two attendants, one of whom leapt back into the path of Mario Andretti's car and was struck. The mechanic died of his injuries two days later.[136][137] |
| Armando Teran (USA) |
May 30, 1973 | USAC | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Team member | Rushing to the scene of Swede Savage's crash, a fire truck hit and killed a crewman for Graham McRae on pit lane.[93] |
| Lyle Kurtenbach (USA) |
May 24, 1987 | USAC | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indianapolis 500 | Race | Spectator | A tire which had come off Tony Bettenhausen Jr.'s racer was catapulted into the stands by Roberto Guerrero's car and fatally struck a spectator in the head.[138] |
 Jean Patrick Hein (CAN) |
September 2, 1990 | CART | Vancouver street circuit | Molson Indy Vancouver | Race | Marshal | Having pushed Ross Bentley's stalled racer out of a chicane area, three track workers rushed into the path of Willy T. Ribbs's car, which was coming around the corner. Two of them were hurt when colliding with the car's rear. The third sustained fatal injuries when he was hit and overrun by the left rear wheel.[139][140] |
| Gary Avrin (CAN) |
July 14, 1996 | CART | Toronto street circuit | Molson Indy Toronto | Race | Marshal | After Jeff Krosnoff's racer had touched wheels with that of Stefan Johansson, it was catapulted into the air and fatally struck a track worker who was positioned behind the wall lining the track while on its way into the catch fence where it disintegrated on impact, the cockpit coming to a stop against the opposite wall. Krosnoff was killed, too. Another marshal was slightly hurt.[100] |
| Kenneth Fox (USA) |
July 26, 1998 | CART | Michigan Speedway | U.S. 500 | Race | Spectator | On lap 175, Adrián Fernández slammed into the outside wall in turn four. His right front wheel was torn off and hurled over the fence into the stands, killing three spectators and injuring six others.[141] |
| Sheryl Laster (USA) | |||||||
| Michael Tautkus (USA) | |||||||
| Barry Mobley (USA) |
May 1, 1999 | IRL | Lowe's Motor Speedway | VisionAire 500K | Race[note 3] | Spectator | On lap 59, Stan Wattles crashed into the outside wall in turn four, shearing off both right-side wheels. John Paul Jr.'s car hit one of them, propelling it over the fence into the stands. As a result, three spectators were killed and eight others, two of whom were children, sustained injuries. The race was abandoned before completing the necessary 104 laps to be official.[142][143] |
| Jeffrey Patton (USA) | |||||||
| Randy Pyatte (USA) |
- The name of the track at the time of the fatal incident is displayed.
- Non-championship event
- The race was abandoned and voided after the fatal crash.
- Having stopped in the pits, Scarborough died of heat exhaustion a little later.[58]
- The Formula Libre-classified car featured streamlined fenders over the wheels and a canopy enclosing the driver.[70]
- The current, last, or best known name of the track is displayed.
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