Jerry Karl was a former driver in the USAC

United States Automobile Club

The United States Auto Club is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, the USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapolis 500...

 and CART

Champ Car

Champ Car was the name for a class and specification of open wheel cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race...

 Championship Car series. Starting out in midget car racing

Midget car racing

Midget cars, also Speedcars in Australia, are very small race cars with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four-cylinder engines.-Cars:Typically, these cars have 300 to 400 horsepower and weigh...

 and sprint car racing

Sprint car racing

Sprint cars are high-powered race cars designed primarily for the purpose of running on short oval or circular dirt or paved tracks. Sprint car racing is popular in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa....

, he made his Champ Car debut in 1969 and qualified for his first Indy 500 in 1973

1973 Indianapolis 500

The 57th Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Wednesday, May 30, 1973. The race was held over three days due to rain and 2 major accidents. After 133 laps , rain halted the race, and Gordon Johncock was declared the winner....

 driving an Eagle chassis powered by a twin-turbo Chevrolet

Chevrolet

Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...

 V8 engine fielded by legendary car owner Smokey Yunick

Smokey Yunick

Henry "Smokey" Yunick was an American mechanic and car designer associated with motorsports. Yunick was deeply involved in the early years of NASCAR, and he is probably most associated with that racing genre...

. He raced for another team in 1974, but returned to drive for Yunick in 1974 and finished 13th at Indy. In 1980 he entered the CART series and began modifying his own McLaren chassis that he dubbed the McLaren-Karl. In the final race of the 1980 season at Phoenix International Raceway

Phoenix International Raceway

Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...

, Karl and his chassis ran at the front of the field in second place until engine trouble dropped him back to 9th. In total, Karl raced in the 1969-1984 seasons, with 74 combined career starts, including the 1973-1975, 1978, and 1980-1981 Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis 500

The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...

. He finished in the top ten 8 times, with his best finish in 7th position in 1974 at Ontario Motor Speedway

Ontario Motor Speedway

The Ontario Motor Speedway, located in Ontario, California, east of Los Angeles, was the first and only automobile racing facility built to accommodate major races sanctioned by all of the four dominant racing sanctioning bodies: IndyCar Series and USAC for open-wheel oval car races; NASCAR for a ...

. He later owned a racing products distributor in Wellsville, Pennsylvania

Wellsville, Pennsylvania

Wellsville is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 242 at the 2010 census.-History:Wellsville changed very little visually during the twentieth century; the borough's appearance has remained that of a nineteenth-century community, complete with brick sidewalks...

. He died at the age of 66 due to a road car crash in Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

 on February 16, 2008.

Indy 500 results

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish
1970 1970 Indianapolis 500 The 1970 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Saturday, May 30, 1970.Following in the footsteps of his brother, Bobby, Al Unser dominates the 500, leading 190 laps, matching Jim Clark's total in 1965, and the most since 1953, when Bill Vukovich led all but five laps in the race...	Gerhardt Gerhardt Gerhardt is a masculine name of German origin. It can refer to any of the following:-As a first name:* Gerhardt, a Dutch musician* Gerhardt Boldt, German soldier and writer* Gerhardt Laves, American linguist...	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	Failed to Qualify
1971 1971 Indianapolis 500 The 1971 Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 29, 1971. ABC television broadcast the race for the first time in same-day tape delay....	Gerhardt Gerhardt Gerhardt is a masculine name of German origin. It can refer to any of the following:-As a first name:* Gerhardt, a Dutch musician* Gerhardt Boldt, German soldier and writer* Gerhardt Laves, American linguist...	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	23rd
1972 1972 Indianapolis 500 The 1972 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 27, 1972.Gary Bettenhausen leads 138 laps until his engine blows on lap 176. Jerry Grant gets the lead but pits for new tires on lap 188 in team mate Bobby Unser’s pit. Bettenhausen’s Penske team mate Mark Donohue...	Gerhardt Gerhardt Gerhardt is a masculine name of German origin. It can refer to any of the following:-As a first name:* Gerhardt, a Dutch musician* Gerhardt Boldt, German soldier and writer* Gerhardt Laves, American linguist...	Offy	Failed to Qualify
1973 1973 Indianapolis 500 The 57th Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Wednesday, May 30, 1973. The race was held over three days due to rain and 2 major accidents. After 133 laps , rain halted the race, and Gordon Johncock was declared the winner....	Eagle	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	28th	26th
1974 1974 Indianapolis 500 The 58th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 26, 1974. Johnny Rutherford, in his eleventh attempt, won the race from the 25th starting position, the farthest back since Fred Frame in 1932....	Eagle	Offy	19th	19th
1975 1975 Indianapolis 500 The 1975 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 25, 1975.Wally Dallenbach Sr. had a twenty-second lead when he retired on lap 162 with a burned piston. Johnny Rutherford lost the inherited lead to Bobby Unser when he pitted. On lap 171 the yellow came out for rain and the two...	Eagle	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	20th	13th
1976 1976 Indianapolis 500 The 1976 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 30, 1976.Rain stopped the race on lap 102. Two hours later, the race was about to be restarted, but the rain fell again. Officials called the race at that point and Johnny Rutherford was declared the winner...	Eagle	Offy	Failed to Qualify
1977 1977 Indianapolis 500 The 1977 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 29, 1977.Gordon Johncock led 129 laps and had a 16 second lead on A.J. Foyt one lap after final pit stops when his crankshaft broke. Foyt became the first driver to win four times. Tom Sneva broke the barrier in qualifying, and...	Vollstedt Vollstedt Vollstedt is a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany....	Offy	Failed to Qualify
1978 1978 Indianapolis 500 The 1978 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 28, 1978. For the first time, Mary Fendrich Hulman, widow of Tony Hulman, delivered the command for drivers to start engines....	McLaren	Offy	28th	14th
1979 1979 Indianapolis 500 The 1979 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 27, 1979.The month was filled with controversy on and off the track. A court injunction was issued after USAC denied entries by the start-up CART series. During time trials, several cars were disqualified due to illegal wastegate...	McLaren	Offy	Failed to Qualify
1980 1980 Indianapolis 500 Results of the 1980 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 25, 1980.-Recap:After failing in its 1979 debut, Jim Hall's radically new Chaparral chassis is driven to easy victory by Johnny Rutherford. Tom Sneva becomes the first driver to place second after starting last. He also...	McLaren	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	28th	21st
1981 1981 Indianapolis 500 The 65th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 24, 1981. A hectic month of May was interrupted several times by rain. Bobby Unser took the checkered flag as the winner, with Mario Andretti second...	McLaren	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	31st	15th
1982 1982 Indianapolis 500 The 66th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 30, 1982. Gordon Johncock, who had previously won the rain-shortened 1973 race, was the winner...	Purcell Purcell Henry Purcell was an English composer.Purcell may also refer to:*Purcell, Indiana, an unincorporated community in Johnson Township, Knox County, Indiana*Purcell, Missouri, a city in Jasper County, Missouri, United States...	Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...	Failed to Qualify
1983 1983 Indianapolis 500 Results of the 1983 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 29, 1983.-Recap:Three-time runner up Tom Sneva is stuck behind the lapped car of Al Unser, Jr., who is helping protect the lead of his father Al Unser despite being shown the blue "move-over" flag...	Wildcat	Cosworth Cosworth Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries...	Failed to Qualify
1984 1984 Indianapolis 500 Results of the 1984 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 27, 1984.-Recap:An exciting first half turns dull as defending champion Tom Sneva and Mario Andretti fall out late with mechanical trouble, leaving Rick Mears the winner by over two laps. Rookies Roberto Guerrero, Al Holbert,...	Penske Penske Racing Penske Racing is a racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series and NASCAR. They also previously competed in road racing, and Formula One. Penske Racing is a division of Penske Corporation, and is owned and chaired by Roger Penske...	Cosworth Cosworth Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries...	Practice Crash
1985 1985 Indianapolis 500 The 69th Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis, United States on Sunday, May 26, 1985. Due to a dramatic spin by eventual race winner Danny Sullivan, the race is known in auto racing lore as the "Spin and Win".-Recap:...	March March Engineering March Engineering was a Formula One constructor and manufacturer of customer racing cars from the United Kingdom. Although only moderately successful in Grand Prix competition, March racing cars enjoyed much better achievement in other categories of competition including Formula Two, Formula Three,...	Cosworth Cosworth Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries...	Failed to Qualify

External links

• Karl Racing Enterprises