DUANE C "PANCHO" CARTER - 06/11/1950
nicknamed "Pancho", is a retired American race car driver. He is most famous for his participation in Indy Car races. He won the pole position for the 1985 Indianapolis 500, and won the 1981 Michigan 500. He is the son of Indy car racer Duane Carter. He was born while his parents were on the way to a race at the Milwaukee Mile. His father's nickname was "Pappy". Pappy referred to his wife's pregnancy as "little paunch," so they nicknamed the child Pancho. Carter is the half-brother of Johnny Parsons. His full brother, Dana Carter, also raced in USAC midgets, sprints and Silver Crown. He 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). He drove his first Indianapolis 500 in 1974. He finished seventh, and was awarded the Rookie of the Year. 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. Pancho was seriously injured during a testing crash at Phoenix International Speedway in November 1977. He crashed into the steel guardrail on the inside of the front straightaway. The impact crushed his pelvis and sciatic nerve in his right leg, in addition to rupturing his bladder and losing a huge amount of blood. Doctors said he probably wouldn’t walk again, let alone drive a racecar, but
1978 Indy 500
1980 Hoosier 100 Sprint car race
the second generation star was back in a sprinter at Indianapolis Raceway Park in April. 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, Ind., Speedway the next day – his first races back in the cockpit of a racecar. He drove his first Indianapolis 500 in 1974. He finished seventh, and was awarded the Rookie of the Year. In 1981 he finished third in the CART championship and captured his only Indy Car win at Michigan International Speedway. 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. From 1985–1995 Pancho ran 14 NASCAR Cup Series races for multiple owners. His first start was at Darlington Raceway in 1985, which was the Southern 500. The race was best known for Bill Elliott 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 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, driving the KCare Thunderbird (pic at top), 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. In 1990, he competed at Atlanta Motor
1976 Dayton Speedway
Final Cup start - Pocono 1995
Speedway, driving for Paul Romine; he drove for Donlavey Racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1992, drove for Donlavey Racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1992, and his final two races in Cup competition came for Triad Motorsports at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1994, where he tied his career-best finish, and Pocono Raceway in 1995. For his career he made 14 NASCAR Cup starts. He also made two Truck Series starts, with a best finish of 16th at Portland. In open wheel racing, he scored 42 sprint wins, 23 in midgets, five in dirt cars and the one Indy car triumph. Some info from Wikipedia
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