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Bill Alsup (July 15, 1938 in
Bill Alsup (July 15, 1938 in Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the islan ...
– August 9, 2016) was an American race car
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organis ...
driver. He was the first Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people.
It is different from the flatbed tr ...
) Rookie of the Year in 1979 and competed in the 1981
Events January
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Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of India ...
, finishing 11th. He made 57 CART & USAC Champ Car starts in his career. His best race finish of third came 3 times and he was the 1981 CART Championship runner-up, putting in a winless but consistent season for Penske Racing
Team Penske (formerly Penske Racing) is an American professional auto racing organization, competing in the NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Debuting at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona, the organiza ...
, his only effort with a top-level team. He returned to his own team the next year and struggled until leaving Champ Car following the 1984 Sanair Super Speedway race.
CART career
Alsup made his CART debut at the Arizona Republic/Jimmy Bryan 150 atPhoenix International Raceway
Phoenix Raceway is a 1-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona, near Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually including the final championship race since 2020. ...
driving the #41 WASP Racing Mclaren
McLaren Racing Limited is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor, the second oldest active team, and the second most successful Formul ...
-Offenhauser
The Offenhauser Racing Engine, or Offy, is a racing engine design that dominated American open wheel racing for more than 50 years and is still popular among vintage sprint and midget car racers.
History
The Offenhauser engine, familiarly ...
for WASP Racing starting twenty fourth (last) and finishing eleventh. He attempted to qualify for the Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of India ...
, first driving the #67 WASP Racing McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor, the second oldest active team, and the second most successful Formul ...
-Offenhauser
The Offenhauser Racing Engine, or Offy, is a racing engine design that dominated American open wheel racing for more than 50 years and is still popular among vintage sprint and midget car racers.
History
The Offenhauser engine, familiarly ...
, but the car was not fast enough to make a qualifying run. He then attempted the #19 Sta-On Eagle 74-Offenhauser
The Offenhauser Racing Engine, or Offy, is a racing engine design that dominated American open wheel racing for more than 50 years and is still popular among vintage sprint and midget car racers.
History
The Offenhauser engine, familiarly ...
for Gehlhausen Racing but the engine failed. The final car he attempted to qualify was the #68 CAM 2 Motor Oil Penske PC7-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
for Team Penske
Team Penske (formerly Penske Racing) is an American professional auto racing organization, competing in the NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Debuting at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona, the organiza ...
. He qualified for the race but USAC officials ruled that the car used the engine from Penske teammate Bobby Unser's car and Alsup was disqualified.
He drove the remainder of the CART season for WASP Racing. He had a best finish of ninth in the second heat of the Trenton Indy at Trenton Speedway
Trenton Speedway was a racing facility located near Trenton, New Jersey at the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Races for the United States' premier open-wheel and full-bodied racing series of the times were held at Trenton Speedway.
Racing histor ...
, the Kent Oil 150 at Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track located in the town of Dix just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. It was long known around the world as the hom ...
, the first heat of the Norton Twin 125s and the Gould Grand Prix, the latter two at Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...
, and finished the season fifteenth in points to win the first CART Rookie of the Year Award.
In 1980 Alsup purchased the inventory of WASP Racing and started his own team called Alsup Racing, Alsup driving the #41 Polaroid Time Zero Penske PC7-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
. He started the season by finishing sixth in the season opening Dastun Twin 200 at Ontario Motor Speedway
Ontario Motor Speedway was a motorsport venue located in Ontario, California. It was the first and only automobile racing facility built to accommodate major races sanctioned by all of the four dominant racing sanctioning bodies: United States Aut ...
. He failed to qualify for the Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of India ...
, rebounded to finish third at the Red Roof Inns 150 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a road course auto racing facility located in Troy Township, Morrow County, Ohio, United States, just outside the village of Lexington. Mid-Ohio has also colloquially become a term for the entire north-central regi ...
, and finished the season seventh in points, earning him the CART Most Improved Driver Award.
In 1981 he drove for Team Penske
Team Penske (formerly Penske Racing) is an American professional auto racing organization, competing in the NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Debuting at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona, the organiza ...
in a Norton-Spirit sponsored car alongside teammates Bobby Unser
Robert William Unser (February 20, 1934 – May 2, 2021) was an American automobile racer. At his induction into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1994, he had the fourth most IndyCar Series wins at 35 (behind his brother Al, A. J. ...
and Rick Mears
Rick Ravon Mears (born December 3, 1951) is a retired American race car driver. He is one of four men to win the Indianapolis 500 four times (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991) and is the current record-holder for pole positions in the race with six (1 ...
. Driving for Penske in the #7 A.B. Dick Penske PC9B-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
and for himself in the #41 Polaroid Time Zero Penske PC7-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
he had a best finish of third at the Norton Michigan 500 at Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...
where he led for three laps. He also finished third at the Los Angeles Times 500 at Riverside International Raceway
Riverside International Raceway (sometimes known as Riverside, RIR, or Riverside Raceway) was a motorsports race track and road course established in the Edgemont area of Riverside County, California, just east of the city limits of Rivers ...
and at the AB Dick Tony Bettenhausen 200 at Wisconsin State Fairgrounds Park Speedway. He ended the season with a career best second in points in the CART standings but it wasn't enough to keep his ride with TEAM Penske, and he was released from the team at the end of the season.
In 1982 he was back to driving for himself using the #2 A.B. Dick Penske PC9B-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
and had a best finish of fourth at the Stroh's 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly known Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a 1.54-mile entertainment facility in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series s ...
. He dropped to eleventh in points for the season.
In 1983 he began working with Argo Racing Cars driving the #11 Alsup Racing/ Indy Car Annual Argo JM-15-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
. He failed to qualify for the Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of India ...
and soon started driving a March 83C
The March 83C is a highly successful and extremely competitive open-wheel race car, designed by and built by March Engineering, to compete in the 1983 IndyCar season. The season was a white-wash and a clean-sweep for March, winning 7 out of the 13 ...
-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
. He scored no points that year.
In 1984 he switched between a March 83C
The March 83C is a highly successful and extremely competitive open-wheel race car, designed by and built by March Engineering, to compete in the 1983 IndyCar season. The season was a white-wash and a clean-sweep for March, winning 7 out of the 13 ...
-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
and an Argo JM-15-Cosworth DFX
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
. He failed to qualify for the Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of India ...
and started his last race at the Molson Indy Montreal at Sanair Super Speedway. He once again failed to score points.
Death
Alsup died in a crane accident near Silverton, Colorado where he was a long-term resident on August 9, 2016.Racing record
SCCA National Championship Runoffs
Complete USAC Mini-Indy Series results
Formula Super Vee
SCCA/CART Indy Car Series
References
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alsup, Bill 1938 births 2016 deaths Sportspeople from Honolulu Racing drivers from Hawaii Champ Car drivers Indianapolis 500 drivers SCCA Formula Super Vee drivers Formula Super Vee Champions SCCA National Championship Runoffs participants People from Silverton, Colorado Team Penske drivers