Motorsports icon Shirley Muldowney, the first Top Fuel driver in NHRA
history to win multiple championships, leads the list of inductees into
the International Motorsports Hall of Fame's 2004 class.
The
2004 International Motorsports Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take
place on Thursday, April 22, 2004 in Talladega, Ala. Muldowney joins
former CART champion Bobby Rahal, former NASCAR president Bill France Jr.,
Charles "Red" Farmer, who was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers,
and former hydroplane racer Bill Muncey as part of the 2004 induction
class. The five-member class brings the number of inductees into the
International Motorsports Hall of Fame to 106 members.
"When
I was 14 years-old in Schenectady, N.Y., I could have never imagined this
growing into what it has," Muldowney said. "I look back at this and the
past 40 years seems like a cakewalk. I've had such a wonderful time. The
more time I look back on it, I realize what a wonderful life I've had. I
hope the young racers of today get to experience what I have and know what
30 years of racing is like. The wins are great, but the people you meet,
places you go and friends you make along the way are what makes this so
special."
Muldowney,
who was named No. 5 on NHRA's 50 Greatest Drivers List in 2001, pioneered
the way for females in the auto racing world. The Burlington, Vt. native
was the first female to obtain a Top Fuel license. In 1975, she became the
first female to advance to a final round, scoring a runner-up finish at
the Spring Nationals near Columbus, Ohio to Marvin Graham. A year later,
Muldowney earned the first of her 18 career NHRA victories when she
defeated Bob Edwards in the final round at the Columbus event.
In
1977, Muldowney made motorsports history, becoming the first female driver
to win a major motorsports championship, winning three races en route to
the 1977 NHRA Top Fuel championship. In 1980, the Michigan resident became
the first Top Fuel driver in NHRA history to win multiple championships.
In 1982, she advanced to seven of the 12 final rounds at NHRA national
events, winning four races, including the prestigious U.S. Nationals at
Indianapolis, on the way to winning her final NHRA championship.
Also
in 1982, Muldowney and Top Fuel driver Lucille Lee met in the first
all-female final round in NHRA history, with Muldowney taking the win,
5.711 seconds at 233.16 mph to Lee's 6.052 at 207.85.
Muldowney
went Hollywood in 1982 when her life story was chronicled in the film
"Heart Like A Wheel". Actress Bonnie Bedelia portrayed Muldowney, while Beau
Bridges played Muldowney's racing counterpart Connie Kalitta.
Muldowney
suffered a near-fatal crash on June 29, 1984 during qualifying at Sanair
Int'l Dragstrip in Canada, resulting in many surgical procedures to allow
her to walk again. The rehabilitation process took 18 months before
Muldowney returned to the drag strip in 1986.
In
1989, Muldowney became the first female member of the exclusive Cragar
Four-Second Club when she clocked a run of 4.974 at 284 on Sept. 15 at
Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pa. Later that year at Firebird Raceway
near Phoenix, she earned her final NHRA victory when she used a
starting-line reaction to defeat Darrell Gwynn.
In
January 2003, Muldowney announced that she would compete in six races
during her 'Last Pass - 30 Years in Top Fuel - 1973-2003' tour. At Route
66 Raceway in September, Muldowney clocked a career-best performance when
she blasted her signature pink dragster to a quarter-mile run of 4.579 at
327.66 during qualifying. Muldowney will make the final start of her
storied career on Sunday, Nov. 9 during the 2003 NHRA season-finale at
Pomona (Calif.) Raceway.
