Duane Claude Carter Jr. (born June 11, 1950), nicknamed "Pancho," is an American former open-wheel
racing driver
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...
. Best known for his participation in
Championship car racing, he won the
pole position
In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the ra ...
for the
1985 Indianapolis 500, and won the
Michigan 500 in
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
.
Racing career
Midget cars
Carter's national career began while racing in a
midget car. He won the 1972
USAC midget car championship. He won the 1972 and 1975
Hut Hundred. He had 23 midget car feature wins by the time he left the series in 1978.
Sprint cars
Carter won the 1974 and 1976 national USAC
sprint car championships. He was the first driver to win the two USAC championships – midgets and sprint cars. He has wins in three USAC divisions – midgets, sprints and Silver Crown (formerly known as dirt cars).
On May 30, 1977, Carter won two USAC Midget features, one USAC sprint feature and finished second in the second USAC sprint feature at Salem Speedway on a day the temperatures were near 100 degrees. This was one day after he finished 15th in the Indianapolis 500.
Carter ran well on dirt and pavement, but was exceptional on the paved high banks at Winchester and Salem, Indianapolis, and Dayton, Ohio. He won the Joe James/Pat O'Conner Memorial race at the half-mile at Salem, Indiana, on four consecutive occasions.
Carter was seriously injured during a testing crash at Phoenix International Speedway in November 1977. The injuries left him with a permanent disability in one of his legs that hampered his ability to perform well on road courses. He still ran very well on ovals. He made his return to racing at the end of March in 1978, winning a USAC Sprint race at the paved five-eighths mile
Indianapolis Raceway Park on Saturday night and at the high-banked half-mile
Winchester Speedway the next day – his first races back in the cockpit of a racecar.
Carter was inducted in 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 ...
in 1990,
and the
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1991.
Indycar
Carter drove his first
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 ...
in
1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
. He finished seventh, and was awarded the
Rookie of the Year. In 1981 he finished third in the
CART
A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by draught animals such as horses, donkeys, mules and oxen, or even smaller animals such as goats or large dogs.
A handcart ...
championship and captured his only
Indy Car
IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis 5 ...
win at
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (formerly named as the Michigan Speedway from 1997 to 2000) is a D-shaped oval superspeedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. It has hosted various major auto racing series throughout its existence, including NASCAR, Cham ...
. He finished third in the
1982 Indianapolis 500 behind the now-famous duel between
Gordon Johncock and
Rick Mears. In 1985, Carter drove the brand new Buick V6 engine to the pole position of the
1985 Indianapolis 500. He retired with mechanical problems after completing just six laps, becoming the first pole-sitter since
Cliff Woodbury to finish dead-last. His last year as a full-time Indy Car driver was 1990 and his last appearance in an indy car was failing to qualify for the
1994 Indianapolis 500
The 78th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 29, 1994. The race was sanctioned by United States Auto Club (USAC), and was included as race number 4 of 16 of the 1994 PPG IndyCar World ...
. In more recent years, Carter has served as a spotter for
Sam Hornish Jr.,
Vítor Meira,
Dillon Battistini,
Dan Wheldon
Daniel Clive Wheldon (22 June 1978 – 16 October 2011) was a British motor racing driver who won the 2005 IndyCar Series Drivers' Championship for Andretti Autosport, Andretti Green Racing (AGR). He won the Indianapolis 500 in 2005 Indianapol ...
,
Martin Plowman and
Adrián Campos Jr. In 2019, he was the spotter for rookie
Santino Ferrucci, who finished seventh, as the
Rookie of the Year, at the
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 ...
. This was the same as Carter in his 500 debut.
NASCAR

From 1985–1995 Carter ran 14
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States.
The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, ...
races for multiple owners. His first start was at
Darlington Raceway
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 1985, which was the
Southern 500
The Southern 500, officially known as the Cook Out Southern 500 for sponsorship reasons, is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina, United States. The race distance is and consists of 367 laps. ...
. The race was best known for
Bill Elliott
William Clyde Elliott Sr. (born October 8, 1955), also known as "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville", "Million Dollar Bill", or "Wild Bill" is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the Superstar Racing Experienc ...
locking up the
Winston Million, Carter finished in 22nd. Carter began the 1986 season driving for
Elmo Langley; at the
1986 Daytona 500, he and
Kyle Petty
Kyle Eugene Petty (born June 2, 1960) is an American former stock car racing driver and current racing commentator. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of racer Adam Petty, who was killed in a crash duri ...
were involved in a turn one accident, thus winding up in 34th place. After three races with Langley's team, he moved to driving for
Roger Hamby,
competing in six more races that year; he posted his best career NASCAR finish with Hamby, a seventeenth-place finish at the
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (formerly named as the Michigan Speedway from 1997 to 2000) is a D-shaped oval superspeedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. It has hosted various major auto racing series throughout its existence, including NASCAR, Cham ...
. In 1990, he competed at
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway (currently known as EchoPark Speedway for sponsorship reasons, formerly known as the Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Hampton, Georg ...
, driving for
Paul Romine; he drove for
Donlavey Racing at
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway (known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009 due to sponsorship reasons) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Concord, North Carolina. It has hosted various major races since it ...
in 1992, and his final two races in Winston Cup competition came for
Triad Motorsports at
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway (currently known as EchoPark Speedway for sponsorship reasons, formerly known as the Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Hampton, Georg ...
in 1994, where he tied his career-best finish, and
Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway (formerly known as the Pocono International Raceway in early years) is a tri-oval track in Blakeslee, Pennsylvania. The track has held a variety of events since its opening in 1969, including NASCAR, IndyCar Series, and IMSA GT ...
in 1995.
In 1995, Pancho also raced two
Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck-based stock car racing, s ...
races, driving for
Enerjetix Motorsports.
Post-racing career
Carter currently acts as a spotter for
Dale Coyne Racing
Dale Coyne Racing (DCR) is an American professional open-wheel racing team that currently competes in the IndyCar Series and Indy NXT. The team was founded in 1984 and is owned by former driver Dale Coyne. From 1995 to 2000, the team was known ...
.
Personal life
Duane "Pancho" Carter Jr. is the son of Indy car racer
Duane Carter Sr. He was born while his parents were on the way to a race at the
Milwaukee Mile
The Milwaukee Mile is a oval race track in the central United States, located on the grounds of the Wisconsin State Fair Park in West Allis, Wisconsin, a suburb west of Milwaukee. Its grandstand and bleachers seats approximately 37,000 spectat ...
.
His father's nickname was "Pappy". Pappy referred to his wife's pregnancy as "little paunch," so they nicknamed the child Pancho.
[His biography]
at 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 ...
Carter is the half-brother of
Johnny Parsons. Their mother, Azra divorced
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 ...
, and eventually remarried, to Duane Carter Sr.
His full brother, Dana Carter, also raced in USAC midgets, sprints and Silver Crown. Dana qualified but was bumped at the
1979 Indianapolis 500. He returned in
1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
, but suffered a crash in practice. After a sabbatical from racing, he was back behind the wheel in 1982. Dana died of a heart attack on May 6, 1983, the morning after finishing second in a USAC midget race at the
Indianapolis Speedrome
The Indianapolis Speedrome is the oldest operating figure 8 track in the United States as it opened in 1941. It is believed by many historians that this is the first figure 8 track where cars intersect.
The Speedrome is home to the World Figu ...
.
Carter is a graduate of
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
.
He is married, to Carla; they have two children, Dane and Cole which spot for Paul Miller Racing’s IMSA entries and also spot for Andretti Autosport’s Indy car and rally cross entries.
Motorsports career results
American open-wheel racing
(
key) (
Races in bold indicate pole position)
USAC Champ Car/Gold Crown Series
PPG Indycar Series
Indianapolis 500
NASCAR
(
key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Winston Cup Series
=Daytona 500
=
SuperTruck Series
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Pancho
1950 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Brownsburg, Indiana
Racing drivers from Indiana
Champ Car drivers
Indianapolis 500 drivers
Indianapolis 500 polesitters
Indianapolis 500 Rookies of the Year
NASCAR drivers
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame inductees
American Speed Association drivers
California State University, Long Beach alumni
USAC Silver Crown Series drivers
A. J. Foyt Enterprises drivers
Sportspeople from Racine, Wisconsin
Racing drivers from Wisconsin