HARRY GANT - 01/10/1940
was known as 'Handsome Harry' due to his Hollywood-style good looks, 'The Bandit' after his longtime sponsor Skoal Bandit, 'Mr. September', and 'High Groove Harry' after the high line he often took through the corner. A humble man, Gant often stated that he was a good race car driver, but a great carpenter. Prior to his wins, Gant was sometimes referred to as the "bridesmaid" for always coming in second. Another nickname that was given to him by Darrell Waltrip was "The Answer To Every Trivia Question", because he holds many Xfinity Series records. Gant made his first Cup start in 1973 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, finishing eleventh after starting 17th in the #90 Truxmore Industries Ford. His first full season in Winston Cup was in 1979. He competed for the Rookie of the Year against Dale Earnhardt and Terry Labonte. After starting out the 1981 season driving for various teams, he moved to the #33 Skoal Bandit Pontiac, which was owned by Hal Needham and Burt Reynolds; and even though he didn't get a win he finished third in the points on the strength of 13 top five finishes. Gant finished second 10 times before
winning his first NASCAR Cup race at Martinsville April 25, 1982. He would start third and lead 167 laps on his way to a convincing win beating Butch Lindley by over a lap. He finished fourth in the points this season. In 1984 Gant posted three win and finish second to Terry Labonte in the points chase. He also won the Southern 500. Gant won the IROC (International Race of Champions) championship in 1985 along with winning three Cup races and finishing third in the points. 1986-1888 Gants teams had it's struggles and went winless. Gant won one race in each of 1989 and 1990. Gant earned the nickname "Mr. September" in 1991 after winning all four September Cup races (Darlington, Richmond, Dover and Martinsville) and two XFinity races (Richmond and Dover) at age 51. Dominating at the next race, Harry might have won his fifth straight race if his brakes had not faded with 9 laps
Cup Series - 1977 Charlotte
left to go at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Gant got his last Cup victory on August 16, 1992 at Michigan. He started 24th and struggled all day but and with 100 miles to go he moved into the lead during green flag pit stops. Gant stretched his fuel on this series of stops; and paced himself the remainder of the ran to claim the victory on fuel mileage. This would also be the last win for the Oldsmobile model and would also be the last win for a car with tobacco sponsorship. Shortly afterward tobacco sponsorship and advertising was prohibited. Gant holds the record as the oldest driver ever to win a NASCAR Cup
race 52 years,219 days) and as the oldest driver ever to collect his first career Cup victory (42 years and 105 days). He is the second oldest driver to win in the Xfinity Series after Dick Trickle. In his career he has collected 18 Cup wins in 474 starts. He finished second in the Cup points in 1984 and 3rd in 1981 & 1985. Gant was a very successful Xfinity Series racer. He ran in 128 races; but posted 21 wins and 52 top 5 finishes. Some info from WikiPedia
"Harry Gants Last Ride" - Atlanta 1994
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