Johnny Boyd

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Johnny Boyd (August 19, 1926 - October 27, 2003) was an American racecar driver.

Born in Fresno, California, Boyd drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series from 1954 to 1966 with 56 starts. He finished in the top ten 31 times, with his best finish in 2nd position, in 1959 at Milwaukee.

Boyd qualified for the Indianapolis 500 for the first time in 1955 but finished 29th after being involved in an accident that killed driver Bill Vukovich. In a dozen starts, his best race was in 1958, when he led 18 laps and finished 3rd. In total, he finished in the Top 10 at the 500 five times.

After 1949 Boyd had become close friends with Bob Sweikert of Hayward, California when he met him on the California racing circuit. The two often raced together, and Boyd qualified for entry in the 1955 Indianapolis 500 when Sweikert helped him overcome mechanical handling problems in Boyd's car. Sweikert won the race that day, but was overshadowed by the death of Vukovich. Boyd also raced against Sweikert in 1956 at Indy, but Sweikert was killed several weeks later in a Sprint car race. [1]

Boyd retired as a driver after failing to qualify for the Indy 500 and Milwaukee race in 1967. He died of cancer at age 77 in his hometown of Fresno.

Contents

[edit] Indy 500 results

Year Car Start Qual Rank Finish Laps Led Retired
1955 39 26 136.981 26 29 53 0 Crash BS
1956 15 12 142.337 19 30 35 0 Engine trouble
1957 6 5 142.102 10 6 200 0 Running
1958 9 8 144.023 9 3 200 18 Running
1959 33 11 142.812 16 6 200 0 Running
1960 8 13 143.770 18 27 77 0 Piston
1961 41 20 144.092 32 21 105 0 Clutch
1962 38 28 147.047 14 10 200 0 Running
1963 23 27 148.038 29 32 12 0 Oil Leak
1964 88 13 151.835 18 5 200 0 Running
1965 14 29 155.172 19 13 140 0 Gearbox
1966 28 14 159.384 21 22 5 0 Crash T1
Totals 1427 18
Starts 12
Poles 0
Front Row 0
Wins 0
Top 5 2
Top 10 5
Retired 7

[edit] World Championship career summary

The Indianapolis 500 was part of the FIA World Championship from 1950 through 1960. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with World Championship points and participation. Johnny Boyd participated in 6 World Championship races. He started on the pole 0 times, won 0 races, set 0 fastest laps, and finished on the podium 1 time. He accumulated a total of 4 championship points.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Dorie Sweikert, Along For the Ride-A Love Story, (1998, Nicholas Ward Publishing, LLC.), no longer in print, reprinted under new publisher ca. 2005, available at Coastal 181.com bookstore, catalog #S-646

[edit] External links

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