Jim Guthrie (driver)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This article is about the racecar driver, for the singer-songwriter, see Jim Guthrie.
Jim Guthrie (born September 13, 1961 in Gadsden, Alabama) is a former driver in the Indy Racing League. He debuted in the Indy Racing League in 1996 with moderately successful results. When the IRL moved to purpose-built chassis in 1997, Guthrie was forced to take out a second mortgage to purchase a new chassis. With no sponsorship and the prospects of losing his house if his venture was unsuccessful, he won the second race in the new chassis at Phoenix International Raceway. He got sponsorship from Jacuzzi for the Indianapolis 500 and was able to finish the season (placing 12th in season points) winning Rookie of the Year honors and kept his house. Jim contested four races in 1998 and has not contested an IRL race since. Guthrie's win at Phoenix was viewed by many as a vindication of Tony George's "vision" for the IRL as he was an American driver with limited funding who was able to compete and win. Presently, many people cite the Jim Guthrie example to contrast how the IRL of today, where a privateer has little chance of competing, is different from the IRL of the late 90's.
Jim is now an owner in the Indy Pro Series and fields a car for his son Sean, who raced in the Star Mazda Series in 2005. The team begam with 2005 IPS star Travis Gregg at Homestead, and 2005 Star Mazda champion Raphael Matos scoring the team's first two wins at St. Petersburg (there were two races on that weekend).
[edit] Indy 500 results
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Lola | Menard-Buick | 19th | 18th |
| 1997 | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 6th | 26th |
| 1998 | G-Force | Oldsmobile | 20th | 29th |
| 1999 | Dallara | Oldsmobile | Failed to Qualiy | |
| 2001 | G-Force | Oldsmobile | Practice Crash |
 |
This biographical article related to United States auto racing is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
