Pancho Carter

Duane Claude Carter Jr.^[1] (born June 11, 1950), nicknamed "Pancho," is an American retired open-wheel racing driver. Best known for his participation in Championship car racing, he won the pole position for the 1985 Indianapolis 500, and won the Michigan 500 in 1981.

Duane "Pancho" Carter
Carter at the 2011 Indianapolis 500
Born	Duane Claude Carter Jr. (1950-06-11) June 11, 1950 (age 74) Racine, Wisconsin, U.S.
Championship titles
USAC Midget (1972) USAC Sprint Car (1974, 1976) USAC Silver Crown (1978) Major victories Michigan 500 (1981)
Champ Car career
165 races run over 20 years
Best finish	3rd (1981)
First race	1974 Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis)
Last race	1992 Michigan 500 (Michigan)
First win	1981 Michigan 500 (Michigan)
Wins Podiums Poles 1 14 1
NASCAR Cup Series career
14 races run over 6 years
Best finish	38th (1986)
First race	1985 Southern 500 (Darlington)
Last race	1995 UAW-GM Teamwork 500 (Pocono)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0

Racing career

Midget cars

Carter's national career began while racing in a midget car. He won the 1972 USAC midget car championship. He won the 1972 and 1975 Hut Hundred. He had 23 midget car feature wins by the time he left the series in 1978.^[2]

Sprint cars

Carter won the 1974 and 1976 national USAC sprint car championships. He was the first driver to win the two USAC championships – midgets and sprint cars. He has wins in three USAC divisions – midgets, sprints and Silver Crown (formerly known as dirt cars).

On May 30, 1977, Carter won two USAC Midget features, one USAC sprint feature and finished second in the second USAC sprint feature at Salem Speedway on a day the temperatures were near 100 degrees. This was one day after he finished 15th in the Indianapolis 500.^[2]

Carter ran well on dirt and pavement, but was exceptional on the paved high banks at Winchester and Salem, Indianapolis, and Dayton, Ohio. He won the Joe James/Pat O'Conner Memorial race at the half-mile at Salem, Indiana, on four consecutive occasions.

Carter was seriously injured during a testing crash at Phoenix International Speedway in November 1977. The injuries left him with a permanent disability in one of his legs that hampered his ability to perform well on road courses. He still ran very well on ovals. He made his return to racing at the end of March in 1978, winning a USAC Sprint race at the paved five-eighths mile Indianapolis Raceway Park on Saturday night and at the high-banked half-mile Winchester Speedway the next day – his first races back in the cockpit of a racecar.

Carter was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1990,^[2] and the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1991.

Indianapolis cars

Carter qualifying for the 1987 Indianapolis 500

Carter drove his first Indianapolis 500 in 1974. He finished seventh, and was awarded the Rookie of the Year. In 1981 he finished third in the CART championship and captured his only Indy Car win at Michigan International Speedway. He finished third in the 1982 Indianapolis 500 behind the now-famous duel between Gordon Johncock and Rick Mears. In 1985, Carter drove the brand new Buick V6 engine to the pole position of the 1985 Indianapolis 500. He retired with mechanical problems after completing just six laps, becoming the first pole-sitter since Cliff Woodbury to finish dead-last. His last year as a full-time Indy Car driver was 1990 and his last appearance in an indy car was failing to qualify for the 1994 Indianapolis 500. In more recent years, Carter has served as a spotter for Sam Hornish Jr., Vítor Meira, Dillon Battistini, Dan Wheldon, Martin Plowman and Adrián Campos Jr. In 2019, he was the spotter for rookie Santino Ferrucci, who finished seventh, as the Rookie of the Year, at the Indianapolis 500. This was the same as Carter in his 500 debut.

NASCAR

Carter passes Eddie Bierschwale at Pocono in 1986

From 1985–1995 Carter ran 14 NASCAR Winston Cup Series races for multiple owners. His first start was at Darlington Raceway in 1985, which was the Southern 500. The race was best known for Bill Elliott locking up the Winston Million, Carter finished in 22nd. Carter began the 1986 season driving for Elmo Langley; at the 1986 Daytona 500, he and Kyle Petty were involved in a turn one accident, thus winding up in 34th place. After three races with Langley's team, he moved to driving for Roger Hamby,^[3] competing in six more races that year; he posted his best career NASCAR finish with Hamby, a seventeenth-place finish at the Michigan International Speedway. In 1990, he competed at Atlanta Motor Speedway, driving for Paul Romine;^[4] he drove for Donlavey Racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1992,^[5] and his final two races in Winston Cup competition came for Triad Motorsports at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1994, where he tied his career-best finish, and Pocono Raceway in 1995.^[6]

In 1995, Pancho also raced two Craftsman Truck Series races,^[7] driving for Enerjetix Motorsports.^[8]

Post-racing career

Carter currently acts as a spotter for Dale Coyne Racing.^[9]

Personal life

Duane "Pancho" Carter Jr. is the son of Indy car racer Duane Carter Sr. He was born while his parents were on the way to a race at the Milwaukee Mile.^[9] His father's nickname was "Pappy". Pappy referred to his wife's pregnancy as "little paunch," so they nicknamed the child Pancho.^[2] Carter is the half-brother of Johnny Parsons. Their mother, Azra divorced Johnnie Parsons, and eventually remarried, to Duane Carter Sr.^[10]

His full brother, Dana Carter, also raced in USAC midgets, sprints and Silver Crown. Dana qualified but was bumped at the 1979 Indianapolis 500. He returned in 1980, but suffered a crash in practice. After a sabbatical from racing, he was back behind the wheel in 1982. Dana died of a heart attack on May 6, 1983, the morning after finishing second in a USAC midget race Indianapolis Speedrome.^[11][12]

Carter is a graduate of California State University, Long Beach.^[3] He is married, to Carla; they have two children, and their son Cole is an aspiring racer.^[9]

Motorsports career results

American open-wheel racing

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

USAC Champ Car/Gold Crown Series

USAC Champ Car/Gold Crown results
Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Rank	Points
1974	Fletcher Racing	ONT	ONT	ONT	PHX	TRE	INDY 7	MIL	POC 15	MCH 9	MIL 12	MCH 2	TRE 9	TRE 6	PHX 9					12th	1040
1975	Fletcher Racing	ONT 2	ONT	ONT 19	PHX 8	TRE	INDY 4	MIL 6	POC 24	MCH 4	MIL 14	MCH 8	TRE DNS	PHX 8						9th	1345
1976	All American Racers	PHX 2	TRE 7	INDY 5	MIL 18	POC 14	MCH	TWS	TRE	MIL	ONT 29	MCH DNS	TWS 10	PHX						12th	920
1977	All American Racers	ONT 3	PHX 20	TWS 11	TRE 9	INDY 15	MIL 5	POC 20	MOS	MCH 10	TWS 3	MIL 2	ONT 14	MCH						8th	1420
	Alex Morales Motorsports														PHX 3
1978	Fletcher Racing	PHX	ONT	TWS	TRE	INDY 24	MOS 15	MIL 21	POC 10	MCH DNS	ATL 11	TWS 11	MIL	ONT 2	MCH 18	TRE 7	SIL	BRH	PHX 9	10th	1206
1979	Alex Morales Motorsports	ONT	TWS	INDY 20	MIL	POC	TWS	MIL												NC	0
1980	Alex Morales Motorsports	ONT 18	INDY 6	MIL 4	POC 6	MDO 7														5th	1078
1981-82	Alex Morales Motorsports	INDY 28	POC	ILL	DUQ	ISF	INDY 3													NC	0

PPG Indycar Series

CART IndyCar World Series results
Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Rank	Points	Ref
1979	Alex Morales Motorsports	PHX 20	ATL 9	ATL 11	INDY 20	TRE 10	TRE 8	MCH 7	MCH 14	WGL 16	TRE DNS	ONT 28	MCH 8	ATL 13	PHX 7				13th	452	[13]
1980	Alex Morales Motorsports	ONT 18	INDY 6	MIL 4	POC 6	MDO 7	MCH 3	WGL 7	MIL 22	ONT 7	MCH 7	MEX 22	PHX 19						5th	1855	[14]
1981	Alex Morales Motorsports	PHX 7	MIL 20	ATL 5	ATL 5	MCH 1	RIV 10	MIL 10	MCH 18	WGL 15	MEX 6	PHX 5							3rd	166	[15]
1982	Alex Morales Motorsports	PHX 6	ATL 10	MIL 13	CLE 19	MCH 18	MIL 6	POC 28	RIV 19	ROA 11	MCH 12	PHX 11							17th	47	[16]
1983	Alex Morales Motorsports	ATL 16	INDY 7	MIL 14	CLE 8	MCH 6	ROA 7	POC 6	RIV 7	MDO 10	MCH 15	CPL 6	LAG 25	PHX 10					10th	53	[17]
1984	Galles Racing	LBH	PHX	INDY 19	MIL	POR	MEA	CLE	MCH 6	ROA	POC 7	MDO	SAN	MCH	PHX 7	LAG	CPL 11		21st	22	[18]
1985	Galles Racing	LBH 13	INDY 33	MIL 5	POR 13	MEA	CLE 16	MCH 16	ROA	POC 12	MDO	SAN 2	MCH 10	LAG	PHX 7	MIA			18th	33	[19]
1986	Galles Racing	PHX	LBH	INDY 16	MIL	POR	MEA	CLE	TOR	MCH 3	POC 3	MDO	SAN 15	MCH	ROA	LAG	PHX	MIA	19th	28	[20]
1987	Machinists Union Racing	LBH	PHX	INDY 27	MIL	POR	MEA	CLE	TOR	MCH 20	POC 6	ROA 14	MDO 14	NAZ 17	LAG 12	MIA 14			25th	9	[21]
1988	Machinists Union Racing	PHX	LBH	INDY DNQ	MIL	POR	CLE	TOR	MEA	MCH	POC	MDO	ROA	NAZ	LAG	MIA			NC	-	[22]
1989	Leader Card Racing	PHX 7	LBH 17	INDY 22	MIL 9	DET 10	POR 9	CLE 14	MEA 13	TOR 27	MCH 26	POC 12	MDO 28	ROA 19	NAZ 18	LAG 24			13th	18	[23]
1990	Leader Card Racing	PHX 8	LBH	INDY 29	MIL 15	DET 9	POR 15	CLE 14	MEA 18	TOR 18	MCH 18	DEN	VAN	MDO	ROA	NAZ	LAG		20th	9	[24]
1991	Arciero Racing	SRF	LBH	PHX	INDY 21	MIL 14	DET	POR	CLE	MEA	TOR								26th	3	[25]
	Leader Card Racing											MCH 10	DEN	VAN	MDO	ROA	NAZ	LAG
1992	Hemelgarn Racing	SRF	PHX	LBH	INDY DNQ	DET	POR	MIL											31st	2	[26]
	Gilmore Racing								NHA 11	TOR	MCH 17	CLE	ROA	VAN	MDO	NAZ	LAG
1994	McCormack Motorsports	SRF	PHX	LBH	INDY DNQ	MIL	DET	POR	CLE	TOR	MCH	MDO	NHA	VAN	ROA	NAZ	LAG		NC	-	[27]

Indianapolis 500

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish
1974	Eagle	Offy	21st	7th
1975	Eagle	Offy	18th	4th
1976	Eagle	Offy	6th	5th
1977	Eagle	Offy	8th	15th
1978	Lighning	Cosworth	21st	24th
1979	Lighning	Cosworth	17th	20th
1980	Penske	Cosworth	8th	6th
1981	Penske	Cosworth	10th	28th
1982	March	Cosworth	10th	3rd
1983	March	Cosworth	14th	7th
1984	March	Cosworth	21st	19th
1985	March	Buick	1st	33rd
1986	Lola	Cosworth	14th	16th
1987	March	Cosworth	29th	27th
1988	March	Buick	Qualifying Crash
1989	Lola	Cosworth	32nd	22nd
1990	Lola	Cosworth	22nd	29th
1991	Lola	Buick	32nd	21st
1992	Lola	Buick	Failed to Qualify
1994	Lola	Chevrolet	Failed to Qualify

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Winston Cup Series

NASCAR Winston Cup Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	NWCC	Pts	Ref
1985	Ellington Racing	1	Chevy	DAY	RCH	CAR	ATL	BRI	DAR	NWS	MAR	TAL	DOV	CLT	RSD	POC	MCH	DAY	POC	TAL	MCH	BRI	DAR 22	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT	CAR	ATL	RSD				88th	97	[28]
1986	Langley Racing	64	Ford	DAY 34	RCH	CAR 23	ATL 38	BRI	DAR	NWS	MAR																								38th	706	[29]
	Hamby Racing	17	Chevy									TAL 18	DOV	CLT	RSD	POC 28	MCH 17	DAY 28	POC	TAL 40	GLN 31	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT	CAR	ATL	RSD
1990	Romine Racing	29	Ford	DAY	RCH	CAR	ATL	DAR	BRI	NWS	MAR	TAL	CLT	DOV	SON	POC	MCH	DAY	POC	TAL	GLN	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT	CAR	PHO	ATL 32			90th	67	[30]
1992	Donlavey Racing	90	Ford	DAY	CAR	RCH	ATL	DAR	BRI	NWS	MAR	TAL	CLT	DOV	SON	POC	MCH	DAY	POC	TAL	GLN	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT 32	CAR	PHO	ATL			82nd	67	[31]
1994	Triad Motorsports	78	Ford	DAY	CAR	RCH	ATL	DAR	BRI	NWS	MAR	TAL	SON	CLT	DOV	POC	MCH	DAY	NHA	POC	TAL	IND	GLN	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT DNQ	CAR	PHO	ATL 17	60th	112	[32]
1995				DAY	CAR	RCH	ATL DNQ	DAR	BRI	NWS	MAR	TAL	SON	CLT	DOV	POC 35	MCH	DAY	NHA	POC	TAL														63rd	58	[33]
	Cave Motorsports																					IND DNQ	GLN	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT	CAR	PHO	ATL

SuperTruck Series

NASCAR SuperTruck Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	NSTSC	Pts	Ref
1995	Enerjetix Motorsports	99	Chevy	PHO	TUS	SGS DNQ	MMR 28	POR 16	EVG	I70	LVL	BRI	MLW	CNS	HPT	IRP	FLM	RCH	MAR	NWS	SON	MMR	PHO	49th	349	[34]

References

1. "Pancho Carter". www.champcarstats.com. Retrieved 2023-05-19.
2. His biography Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine at the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame
3. "Pancho Carter Joins NASCAR Stock Car Circuit". Boca Raton News. May 25, 1986. p. 11. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
4. "Carter rejoins NASCAR circuit". The Telegraph-Herald. Dubuque, IA. October 4, 1990. p. 3B. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
5. "Driver By Driver". The Charlotte Observer. Charlotte, NC. October 12, 1993. p. 7B. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
6. "Pancho Carter - NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
7. NASCAR biography, racing-reference.info
8. "Carter will drive local NASCAR truck". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, WA. March 9, 1995. p. C3. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
9. Shaffer, Jan (May 24, 2013). "Where Are They Now? Pancho Carter". Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Archived from the original on September 16, 2013. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
10. "Non-Support Warrant Out for J. Parsons". The Terra Haute Tribune. October 27, 1960. p. 29. Retrieved September 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. Miller, Robin (May 7, 1983). "Dana Carter dies of heart attack (Part 1)". The Indianapolis Star. p. 29. Retrieved September 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Miller, Robin (May 7, 1983). "Dana Carter dies of heart attack (Part 2)". The Indianapolis Star. p. 28. Retrieved September 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Pancho Carter – 1979 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
14. "Pancho Carter – 1980 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
15. "Pancho Carter – 1981 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
16. "Pancho Carter – 1982 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
17. "Pancho Carter – 1983 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
18. "Pancho Carter – 1984 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
19. "Pancho Carter – 1985 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
20. "Pancho Carter – 1986 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
21. "Pancho Carter – 1987 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
22. "Pancho Carter – 1988 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
23. "Pancho Carter – 1989 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
24. "Pancho Carter – 1990 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
25. "Pancho Carter – 1991 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
26. "Pancho Carter – 1992 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
27. "Pancho Carter – 1994 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
28. "Pancho Carter – 1985 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
29. "Pancho Carter – 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
30. "Pancho Carter – 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
31. "Pancho Carter – 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
32. "Pancho Carter – 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
33. "Pancho Carter – 1995 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
34. "Pancho Carter – 1995 NASCAR SuperTruck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 17, 2023.

External links

• Pancho Carter driver statistics at Racing-Reference

Sporting positions
Preceded by Graham McRae	Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year 1974	Succeeded by Bill Puterbaugh