Speedy Thompson

Alfred Bruce "Speedy" Thompson (April 3, 1926, in Monroe, North Carolina – April 2, 1972, in Charlotte, North Carolina) was an American stock car racer in the NASCAR Grand National series from 1950 to 1971, capturing 20 wins along the way.

Alfred "Speedy" Thompson
Speedy Thompson is adoring his fans after winning the 1960 National 400 in Charlotte
Born	(1926-04-03)April 3, 1926 Monroe, North Carolina, U.S.
Died	April 2, 1972(1972-04-02) (aged 45) Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
Cause of death	Heart attack resulting in racing crash
Achievements	1957 Southern 500 Winner
Awards	Inducted in the National Motorsports Press Association's Hall of Fame and Georgia Automobile Racing Hall of Fame
NASCAR Cup Series career
197 races run over 14 years
Best finish	3rd (1956, 1957, 1958 and 1959)
First race	1950 Vernon Fairgrounds race
Last race	1971 World 600 (Charlotte)
First win	1953 Central City Speedway race
Last win	1960 Capital City 200 (Richmond)
Wins Top tens Poles 20 105 19

Racing career

He made his debut in 1950 and won two of the seven races he competed in 1953 in the #46 Buckshot Morris Oldsmobile (including the 1953 Wilkes 160). Thompson made 15 starts in 1955 and made a serious attack on the Championship the next year, competing in 42 races in Carl Kiekhaefer's factory-backed Chryslers and Dodges, winning eight times and finishing third in points. 1957 saw a switch to Hugh Babb's and his own Chevrolet's and another third-place result, capturing only two victories that year. Speedy drove his own Chevy for the entire 1958 season, and another third place was the reward for his four victories in 38 starts.

In 1957, he set the 500-mile speed record for stock cars with an average speed of 100.1 mph.^[1] This record was quickly broken by other drivers and by Speedy himself. In 1959 he became a charter member of the "Pure Record Club" along with Fireball Roberts, Elmo Langley, and Richard Petty who set the fastest qualifying speed in each make of automobile competing.^[2]

Another third place in points came in 1959 from 29 starts in a variety of different cars, this time with no wins. 1959 would be his last full-time effort in the series (participating in 24 different racing events including the 1959 Hickory 250) and he left Grand National after the 1962 season, choosing to race at late models at local North Carolina short tracks. He returned to NASCAR's top series, then called the Winston Cup, in 1971 for the World 600 where he finished 16th.

Death

During a late model race on Easter Sunday, April 2, 1972, at Metrolina Fairgrounds in Charlotte, Thompson had a seizure on the 21st lap, causing him to crash into a rail. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital, one day before his 46th birthday.^[3][4] The medical examiner said that he died of natural causes, an acute coronary occlusion.

Awards

He was inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association's Hall of Fame and the Georgia Automobile Racing Hall of Fame.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

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

Grand National Series

NASCAR Grand National 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	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	51	52	53	54	55	56	NGNC	Pts	Ref
1950	Bruce Thompson		Plymouth	DAB	CLT	LAN	MAR	CAN	VER	DSP	MCF	CLT	HBO	DSP	HAM	DAR	LAN	NWS	VER 21	MAR	WIN	HBO																																						–	–	[5]
1951	Leland Colvin	25	Olds	DAB 17																																																								75th	120	[6]
			Plymouth		CLT 30	NMO	GAR	HBO	ASF	NWS	MAR	CAN	CLS	CLB	DSP	GAR	GRS	BAI	HEI
			Studebaker																	AWS 5	MCF	ALS	MSF	FMS	MOR	ABS	DAR	CLB	CCS	LAN	CLT	DSP	WIL	HBO	TPN	PGS	MAR	OAK	NWS	HMS	JSP	ATL	GAR	NMO
1952	Bruce Root	21	Ford	PBS	DAB	JSP	NWS	MAR	CLB	ATL	CCS	LAN	DAR 19	DSP	CAN	HAY	FMS	HBO	CLT	MSF	NIF	OSW	MON	MOR	PPS	MCF	AWS																																	37th	656	[7]
	Sam Knox	51	Ford																									DAR 14	CCS	LAN	DSP	WIL	HBO	MAR	NWS	ATL	PBS
1953	Buckshot Morris	12	Olds	PBS	DAB	HAR	NWS	CLT	RCH	CCS	LAN	CLB	HCY	MAR	PMS	RSP 2	LOU	FIF	LAN	TCS	WIL 6	MCF	PIF	MOR	ATL	RVS	LCF	DAV	HBO	AWS	PAS	HCY		CCS 1																										11th	2958	[8]
	Bob Pronger	46	Olds																														DAR 7
	Buckshot Morris																																		LAN 3	BLF	WIL 2	NWS 1	MAR	ATL
1954		12		PBS	DAB 20	JSP	ATL	OSP	OAK	NWS	HBO	CCS	LAN	WIL	MAR	SHA	RSP 27	CLT	GAR	CLB 4	LND	HCY 9	MCF	WGS	PIF 21	AWS 18	SFS	GRS	MOR	OAK	CLT	SAN	COR																											23rd	1480	[9]
			Buick																															DAR 10	CCS	CLT	LAN	MAS	MAR	NWS
1955	Griffin Motors Racing	87	Olds	TCS	PBS	JSP	DAB	OSP	CLB	HBO	NWS	MGY	LAN	CLT 17	HCY																					MAS 2	RSP 11	DAR 45	MGY	LAN 23																				15th	2452	[10]
	Don Oliver	5	Olds													ASF 6	TUS
	Frank Christian	14	Chevy															MAR 18	RCH	NCF 24	FOR	LIN	MCF	FON	AIR
		71	Olds																							CLT 15
	Thomas Racing	92	Buick																								PIF 13	CLB	AWS	MOR	ALS	NYF	SAN	CLT	FOR
	Ike Kiser	34	Ford																																						RSP 17	GPS
	DePaolo Engineering	297	Ford																																								MAS 1*	CLB
	Carl Kiekhaefer	30	Chrysler																																										MAR 1	LVP
		20																																													NWS 7
	DePaolo Engineering	297	Hudson																																													HBO 21
1956	Mauri Rose	25	Chevy	HCY 30	CLT 17	WSS	PBS	ASF																																																				3rd	8328	[11]
	Carl Kiekhaefer	500	Dodge						DAB 71	PBS	WIL 10					CLB 1*		GPS 15			MAR 2*	LIN 11											RSP 2			CHI 4	CCF 1	MGY 4	OKL 11	ROA 18	OBS	SAN	NOR			POR
			Chrysler									ATL 2
		501	Dodge										NWS 18*																																MYB 5
		00	Chrysler											LAN 37
		300	Dodge												RCH 3
		300C	Chrysler														CON 1*		HCY 1**	HBO 2*			CLT 1*	POR	EUR	NYF 7	MER	MAS 19	CLT 1*	MCF 1*	POR	AWS 26		PIF 7	CSF
	DePaolo Engineering	296	Ford																																									PIF 5
	Carl Kiekhaefer	57	Chrysler																																												DAR 2	CSH 19
			Dodge																																														CLT 7
		67																																																LAN 3	POR	CLB
		300	Chrysler																																																		HBO 3	NWP 18	CLT 6		MAR 4	HCY 1*	WIL 3*
		500B	Dodge																																																					CCF 4
1957	Hugh Babb	46	Chevy	WSS	CON	TIC	DAB 8	CON 3	WIL 3	HBO 2	AWS 2	NWS 16	LAN 3	CLT 20	PIF 15	GBF 14	POR	CCF 9	RCH 17	MAR 11	POR	EUR	LIN 5	LCS 5	ASP																																			3rd	8580	[12]
	Speedy Thompson																									NWP 8	CLB 5	CPS	PIF 4		RSP 4	CLT 4	MAS 22	POR	HCY 23	NOR 9	LCS 1**	GLN	KPC	LIN 2	OBS		DAR 1*	NYF	AWS 18	CSF	SCF	LAN 31	CLB 19		CLT 17	MAR 28	NBR 6	CON 6	NWS 4	GBF 2
	Whitey Norman	1A	Ford																											JAC 13
	Bobby Keck	96	Chevy																																							MYB 12
	Dick Beaty	34	Ford																																															CCF 15
1958	Speedy Thompson	46	Chevy	FAY 9	DAB 48	CON 3	FAY 19	WIL 20	HBO 3	FAY 3	CLB 1	PIF 1	ATL 19	CLT	MAR	ODS	OBS	GPS 17	GBF 4	STR	NWS 14	BGS	TRN 9	RSD	CLB 11	NBS 6	REF 5	LIN 26	HCY 3	AWS 3	RSP 5	MCC	SLS	TOR	BUF	MCF 3	BEL 7	BRR 7	CLB 1	NSV 16	AWS 4	BGS	MBS 15		CLT 2	BIR	CSF	GAF 5	RCH 1*	HBO 19	SAS 29	MAR 2	NWS 3	ATL 29						3rd	8792	[13]
	Steve Pierce	1	Chevy																																									DAR 14
1959				FAY	DAY 16	DAY 10	HBO 13	CON 5	ATL 4	WIL 21			NWS 17*	REF 2	HCY 6*	MAR 19	TRN				PIF 14	GPS 15	ATL 26	CLB																																				3rd	7684	[14]
	Don Angel	3	Ford								BGS 13
	Bruce Thompson	2	Chevy									CLB 13						CLT 4	NSV	ASP						RCH 10	BGS	AWS 14			CLT 24	MBS 22	CLT	NSV													CON 8
		12	Chevy																						WIL 24
	Doc White	41	Ford																										DAY 11	HEI
	Gerald Duke	92	Ford																																AWS 37	BGS	GPS	CLB
	W. J. Ridgeway	22	Chevy																																				DAR 14	HCY	RCH	CSF		MAR 5
	W. H. Watson	61	Pontiac																																								HBO 18
	Beau Morgan	15	Ford																																										AWS 13	NWS 15
1960	Bruce Thompson	2	Chevy	CLT 5	CLB																																																							25th	5658	[15]
	Matthews Racing	94	Ford			DAY 9	DAY	DAY 62	CLT	NWS	PHO	CLB
	Wood Brothers Racing	20	Ford										MAR DNQ	HCY	WIL	BGS	GPS	AWS	DAR	PIF	HBO	RCH	HMS
	Donlavey Racing	90	Ford																					CLT 25	BGS	DAY	HEI	MAB	MBS	ATL 12	BIR	NSV	AWS	PIF	CLB	SBO	BGS	DAR 39	HCY	CSF	GSP	HBO	MAR	NWS	CLT DNQ
	Wood Brothers Racing	21	Ford																																										CLT 1	RCH 1*	ATL 4
1961	Beau Morgan	16	Ford	CLT	JSP	DAY	DAY	DAY	PIF	AWS	HMS	ATL	GPS	HBO	BGS	MAR	NWS	CLB	HCY	RCH	MAR	DAR	CLT	CLT 17	RSD	ASP	CLT 41	PIF	BIR	GPS	BGS	NOR	HAS	STR	DAY	ATL	CLB	MBS	BRI	NSV	BGS	AWS	RCH	SBO	DAR	HCY	RCH	CSF	ATL	MAR	NWS									62nd	1564	[16]
	Wood Brothers Racing	21	Ford																																																	CLT 11	BRI	GPS	HBO
1962	Holman-Moody	15	Ford	CON	AWS	DAY	DAY 23	DAY 17	CON	AWS	SVH	HBO	RCH	CLB	NWS	GPS	MBS	MAR	BGS	BRI	RCH	HCY	CON	DAR	PIF	CLT	ATL	BGS	AUG	RCH	SBO	DAY	CLB	ASH	GPS	AUG	SVH	MBS	BRI	CHT	NSV	HUN	AWS	STR	BGS	PIF	VAL	DAR	HCY	RCH	DTS	AUG	MAR	NWS						42nd	2522	[17]
	Petty Enterprises	41	Plymouth																																																				CLT 9	ATL
1971	Junior Fields	91	Chevy	RSD	DAY	DAY	DAY	ONT	RCH	CAR	HCY	BRI	ATL	CLB	GPS	SMR	NWS	MAR	DAR	SBO	TAL	ASH	KPT	CLT 16	DOV	MCH	RSD	HOU	GPS	DAY	BRI	AST	ISP	TRN	NSV	ATL	BGS	ONA	MCH	TAL	CLB	HCY	DAR	MAR	CLT	DOV	CAR	MGR	RCH	NWS	TWS									–	–	[18]

Daytona 500

Year	Team	Manufacturer	Start	Finish
1959	Steve Pierce	Chevrolet	31	10
1960	Matthews Racing	Ford	17	62
1962	Holman-Moody	Ford	33	17

Convertible Division

NASCAR Convertible Division results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	NCC	Pts	Ref
1959	Bruce Thompson	2	Chevy	DAY	FAY	RCH	HCY	MRL	CLT	HBO	DAR	CLB	AWS	BGS	MAR	CLB 5	GPS	CLT	69th	168	[19]