Joe Sostilio (January 3, 1915 – July 9, 2000) was an auto racing driver from

Natick, Massachusetts Natick ( ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 37,006 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. west of Boston, Natick is part o ...

. He was born in

Newton Centre, Massachusetts Newton Centre is one of the thirteen villages within the city of Newton in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The main commercial center of Newton Centre is a triangular area surrounding the intersections of Beacon Street, Centre S ...

. He was a

midget Midget (from ''midge'', a tiny biting insect) is a term for a person of unusually short stature that is considered by some to be pejorative due to its etymology. While not a Medical terminology, medical term like ''dwarf'' (for a person with d ...

and stockcar driver. In 1932, at the age of 17, Sostilio won the first race he entered, driving a Model A Ford. By 1935, Sostilio had added a championship to his resume by capturing the New England Dirt Championship. He repeated as champion in 1936 and 1938. He captured the 1939 Vermont State Midget Championship. In 1941, Sostillo finished fourth in the first Midget race at the

Williams Grove Speedway Williams Grove Speedway is a half-mile dirt racing track located in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, United States. The speedway opened on May 21, 1939, it has been owned by the Hughes family for over 50 years and has hosted many of the most notabl ...

. When the war ended, Sostillo returned to the Midget ranks with the Bay State Midget Racing Association, losing the championship to Bob Blair by one point. In 1946, he piloted the Koopman

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, familiarl ...

and finished 4th in BSMRA points, competing at tracks from

Seekonk, Massachusetts Seekonk is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States, on the Massachusetts border with Rhode Island. It was incorporated in 1812 from the western half of Rehoboth. The population was 15,531 at the 2020 census. In 1862, under a U.S. ...

, to

Akron, Ohio Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Akron metr ...

. In 1947, Sostilio piloted the #54 Leader Card Offy to win the Bay State Midget title on the strength of 31 wins, 23 seconds and 12 third-place finishes. Victories from that season included the first-ever race at

Westboro Speedway Westboro Speedway, also known as Westboro Sports Stadium, was a banked and paved oval race track located in Westborough, Massachusetts Westborough is a New England town, town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population ...

, and another during the inaugural season of the

Lonsdale Sports Arena Lonsdale Sports Arena was a high-banked paved oval race track located north of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, on Mendon Road (Rhode Island Route 122) in Cumberland, Rhode Island, on the banks of the Blackstone River. The track operated from 1947 to 1 ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

. In 1948, Sostilio finished sixth in United Car Owners Association points, driving for the MacLeod Racing Team with

Johnny Thomson John Ashley Thomson (April 9, 1922 – September 24, 1960) was an American racecar driver. Thomson was nicknamed "the Flying Scot." He won several championships in midget car racing, midgets and sprint car racing, sprint cars before competing in ...

. In 1949, Sostilio turned his focus to stockcar racing, traveling from New England to

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

, for three consecutive weeks and winning the trophy each time. In

AAA AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming * AAA (video game industry) - a category of high budget video games *'' TripleA'', an open source wargame Mu ...

competition, Sostilio won seven races between 1948 and 1950 at tracks in South Bend], Akron, Miami, and

Heidelberg, Pennsylvania Heidelberg is a borough located southwest of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous ...

. Sostilio also became a frequent competitor in the California winter circuits during this time. In the early 1950s, Sostillo competed in the AAA Big Cars alongside his teammate,

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...

winner

Johnnie Parsons John Woodrow Parsons (July 4, 1918 – September 8, 1984) was an American racing driver in the AAA Contest Board, AAA and United States Automobile Club, USAC Championship Car series. He was the 1949 AAA Championship Car season, 1949 AAA List of ...

. Joe beat

Tommy Hinnershitz Thomas Paul Hinnershitz (April 6, 1912 – August 1, 1999) was an American racing driver. Hinnershitz was active through the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s on dirt, asphalt and boards, driving "big cars" (later known as sprint cars) – at that time sli ...

to win the 1953 AAA Eastern Sprint Car Championship. His career-best finish on the AAA/Champ Car circuit was a pair of 7th-place efforts at

Langhorne Speedway Langhorne Speedway was an automobile racetrack in Middletown Township, Bucks County, near the borough of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, a northern suburb of Philadelphia. According to the book ''Langhorne! No Man's Land'' by L. Spencer Riggs: "With ...

and

Darlington Speedway Darlington Raceway is a egg-shaped oval track in Darlington, South Carolina. The track has hosted a variety of racing events since its inaugural season of racing in 1950; primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The venue has a capacity of 47,00 ...

in 1954. Sostillo died on July 9, 2000, at the age of 85.

Awards

Sostilio become a Hall of Fame member when he was inducted into the

New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame The New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for racing-related people in the New England region of the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primari ...

and the

National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame The National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame is an American Hall of Fame and museum for midget cars. The Hall of Fame is located at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, and can be accessed during weekly Sunday races during the summe ...

. He was inducted in the

National Sprint Car Hall of Fame The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum is a hall of fame and museum for sprint car drivers, owners, mechanics, builders, manufacturers, promoters, sanctioning officials and media members. The museum is located in Knoxville, Iowa, the h ...

in 2011. In 2021, Joe was honored at the New England Racing Museums Legends Day event.

References

External links

Biography
at the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sostilio, Joe 1915 births 2000 deaths American military personnel of World War II National Sprint Car Hall of Fame inductees Sportspeople from Natick, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Newton, Massachusetts Racing drivers from Massachusetts AAA Championship Car drivers 20th-century American sportsmen