Pat O'Connor (racing driver)

Pat O'Connor
Born	October 9, 1928; North Vernon, Indiana, United States
Died	May 30, 1958 (aged 29); Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	American
Active years	1953–1958
Teams	Deidt, Kurtis Kraft, Schroeder
Entries	6 (5 starts)
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	0
Pole positions	1
Fastest laps	0
First entry	1953 Indianapolis 500
Last entry	1958 Indianapolis 500

Pat O'Connor (October 9, 1928 – May 30, 1958) was an American racecar driver. He was killed in a 15-car pileup, after sustaining a fatal head injury after rolling his car and catching fire on the first lap of the 1958 Indianapolis 500.

He was on the cover of Sports Illustrated in May 1958, adding to the legend of the Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx.

1958 Indianapolis 500

Dick Rathmann and Ed Elisian started the race on the front row, with Jimmy Reece on the outside of the front row. Elisian spun in turn 3 of the first lap and collided with Rathmann's car, sending them both into the wall, and starting a 15-car pileup.

According to A. J. Foyt, O'Connor's car hit Reece's car, sailed fifty feet in the air, landed upside down, and burst into flames. Although O'Connor was incinerated in the accident, medical officials said that he was probably killed instantly from a fractured skull.[1]

Widely blamed for the accident, Elisian was suspended by USAC for the accident (reinstated a few days later), and was shunned by many in the racing community.

Following the accident, race officials announced that they would change the starting procedure, abandoning the single-file trip down pit lane that was used in 1957 and 1958. Also, for the 1959 Indy 500, metal roll bars welded to the frame behind the driver's head were mandated, and helmets were required to pass safety certification by Speedway medical officials.[2]

Complete AAA/USAC Championship Car results

Year	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Pos	Points
1952	INDY	MIL	RAL	SPR	MIL	DET	DUQ DNQ	PIK	SYR	DNC	SJS	PHX		-	0
1953	INDY DNQ	MIL DNQ	SPR	DET	SPR	MIL	DUQ DNQ	PIK	SYR	ISF 7	SAC	PHX 8		32nd	110
1954	INDY 21	MIL 5	LAN DNQ	DAR 10	SPR DNQ	MIL 19	DUQ DNQ	PIK	SYR DNQ	ISF DNQ	SAC DNQ	PHX DNQ	LVG 9	25th	200
1955	INDY 8	MIL 18	LAN 5	SPR DNQ	MIL 26	DUQ 9	PIK	SYR 4	ISF 5	SAC 5	PHX 5			7th	800
1956	INDY 18	MIL 11	LAN DNQ	DAR 1	ATL 17	SPR 5	MIL 21	DUQ DNQ	SYR 13	ISF 2	SAC 15	PHX DNQ		11th	680
1957	INDY 8	LAN DNQ	MIL 4	DET	ATL	SPR DNQ	MIL 3	DUQ 8	SYR 2	ISF 10	TRE 1	SAC 15	PHX 2	4th	1,250
1958	TRE 13	INDY 29	MIL	LAN	ATL	SPR	MIL	DUQ	SYR	ISF	TRE	SAC	PHX	-	0

Indianapolis 500 results

Year	Car	Start	Qual	Rank	Finish	Laps	Led	Retired
1954	35	12	138.084	24	21	181	0	Spun T2
1955	29	19	139.195	21	8	200	0	Running
1956	7	3	144.980	4	18	187	39	Flagged
1957	12	1	143.948	2	8	200	7	Running
1958	4	5	144.823	5	29	0	0	Crash T3
Totals						768	46

Starts	5
Poles	1
Front Row	2
Wins	0
Top 5	0
Top 10	2
Retired	2

World Championship career summary

The Indianapolis 500 was part of the FIA World Championship from 1950 through 1960. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with World Championship points and participation. Pat O'Connor participated in 5 World Championship races. He started on the pole once but scored no World Championship points, as his best finish was eighth (twice).

Awards

He was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1995.

References

Indy 500 deadly accidents, 1958 Archived 2013-11-10 at the Wayback Machine
we feel the blues when we lose Archived 2007-02-02 at the Wayback Machine

External links

Pat O'Connor at Find a Grave

Preceded by Keith Andrews	Formula One fatal accidents July 6, 1958	Succeeded by Luigi Musso

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] Indy 500 deadly accidents, 1958 Archived 2013-11-10 at the Wayback Machine

[2] we feel the blues when we lose Archived 2007-02-02 at the Wayback Machine