Hickey: Greatest Drivers of All Time #3: Mario Andretti
In a series I am doing on the blog, I take a look at the greatest fifteen drivers in the history of motorsports, with some statistics and reasons as to why I selected them. Here are the previous drivers on the list:
#15 Jim Clark
#14 Dario Franchitti
#13 Sir Jackie Stewart
#12 Jimmie Johnson
#11 Michael Schumacher
#10 Al Unser Jr.
#9 Dale Earnhardt
#8 Juan Manuel Fangio
#7 Al Unser
#6 Alain Prost
#5 Rick Mears
#4 Richard Petty
Mario Andretti
Born: February 28, 1940 Montona, Italy
Race starts (Formula 1, Nascar, USAC and Indycar): 563
Wins: 65
Poles: 84
Indianapolis 500 Wins: 1
Daytona 500 Wins: 1
F1 Titles: 1
Indycar Titles: 1
USAC Titles: 3
Mario Andretti. That’s all I should have to say. I shouldn’t have to dwell on about his stacked resume. Like the 1969 Indianapolis 500 win, 1978 F1 World Champion, 12 Career F1 Wins, and the 1984 Indycar Champion. And yes, he created the Andretti name. His son, Michael, has long dominated Indycar with a huge number of wins and dominating performances. His son, Marco, has yet to live up to the hype, but maybe one day he can. Mario Andretti = Legend.
Stay tuned for #2. Let me know what you think.
-Matthew Hickey
Just realized you must be giving extra weight for the Indy 500 wins. If I am not mistaken Michael Andretti has more career wins than 2 people on your list, but no 500 victory. He certainly can’t be ranked greater than his father, so he must not have made the cut. I admit to not knowing as much about the drivers who are primarily NASCAR or F1. I am surprised to not see his name. A.J. has to be #1, so who is 2? Have to put on my thinking cap.