Chris Kneifel (born April 23, 1961 in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

), is a former driver in the

CART A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people. It is different from the flatbed tr ...

Championship Car series. He raced in the 1982-1984 seasons with 19 career starts, including the 1983 and 1984

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

, and finished in the top ten 6 times. He was the last driver to start the Indianapolis 500 with a qualifying speed under . In 1984,

Jacques Villeneuve Jacques Joseph Charles Villeneuve ( born 9 April 1971) is a Canadian professional racing driver and amateur musician who won the 1997 Formula One World Championship with Williams. In addition to Formula One (F1) he has competed in various ot ...

originally qualified for the final starting position at just over , but withdrew after being injured in a practice crash. Kneifel, the next fastest car at just under , started in his place. Earlier in his career, Kneifel raced in the Formula Ford and Formula Atlantic Series. After CART, he was the 1985

Trans-Am The Trans-Am Series is a sports car racing series held in North America. Founded in 1966, it is sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). Primarily based in the United States, the series competes on a variety of track types includin ...

Rookie of the Year. Later he transitioned to

American Le Mans Series The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The American Le Mans' hea ...

endurance racing. He capped his career by teaming with Ron Fellows, Frank Freon, and

Johnny O'Connell Johnny O'Connell (born July 24, 1962) is the most successful GM factory racing driver from the United States. He currently drives for Cadillac in the Pirelli World Challenge, winning the 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 GT driver's championship. Caree ...

to win the 2001

24 Hours of Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layou ...

. From 2001–2004, he served as the Chief Steward (Race Director) for CART. Standing at 6 feet 6 inches (2 meters), Kneifel was one of the tallest racing drivers in IndyCar racing history.

Racing record

SCCA National Championship Runoffs

24 Hours of Le Mans results

External links

Official website
1961 births Living people Indianapolis 500 drivers Champ Car drivers Atlantic Championship drivers Trans-Am Series drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers 24 Hours of Daytona drivers American Le Mans Series drivers Racing drivers from Chicago SCCA National Championship Runoffs participants {{US-autoracing-bio-stub Corvette Racing drivers