John Holman
(November 9, 1918 - 1975)
Ralph Moody, Jr.
(September 10, 1917 - June
9, 2004)
Holman-Moody: The Team
A Holman-Moody Thunderbird
carried Johnny Beauchamp to the first-ever
victory recorded at the new Daytona
International Speedway in 1959. That
auspicious victory was taken away and
given to eventual race winner Lee Petty after 3 days of
review, investigation and deliberation.
Although Holman-Moody may be
best remembered for providing some of the
fastest and most durable NASCAR stock
cars of the Golden Era (Holman
Moody-built Fords won 48 of 55 NASCAR
Grand National races in 1965, a record
that has never been, nor will likely ever
be broken), their contributions to
motorsports goes much deeper and is more
widespread than many fans realize. Their
innovations include fuel cells (driven
primarily by the tragic loss of
Holman-Moody driver Fireball Roberts), the full-floater
rear axle, on-board fire systems, quick
change disc brakes and square tube
frames. The 1966 Holman-Moody Ford
Fairlane "half-chassis" car
would serve as the basis for NASCAR
racecars until the debut of NASCAR's
"Car of Tomorrow". After NASCAR
banned Ford's "427 Cammer" from
Grand National competition, Holman-Moody
spearheadeed the effort to use the engine
in drag racing, building some of the most
successful altered-wheelbase dragsters of
the times (primarily Falcons and
Mustangs). In 1966 Holman-Moody Ford GT40
Mark II's finished 1-2-3 at the 24 Hours
of Daytona and at the 12 Hours of
Sebring. Their 1-2-3 finish at 24 Hours
of Le Mans is one of the most famous
victories of all-time. Holman-Moody also
made their mark in CAN-AM, sports car,
rally, and powerboat racing.
Coming Soon
Some of the most well-known
drivers of NASCAR's Golden Era drove at
one time or another for the famed
Holman-Moody shops, including:
Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison, Mario Andretti, Johnny Beauchamp,
Jimmy Clark, Mark Donohue, A. J. Foyt, Dan Gurney, Dick Hutcherson, Ned Jarrett, Bobby Johns, Junior Johnson, Parnelli Jones, Fred Lorenzen, Tiny Lund, Marvin Panch, Benny Parsons, David Pearson, Richard Petty, Peter Revson,
Fireball Roberts, Wendell Scott, Nelson Stacy, Curtis Turner, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, Darrell Waltrip, Joe Weatherly, and Cale Yarborough.
Last
updated: 05/13/08 17:40:36 Pacific Daylight Time.
|
