Davey Hamilton
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David Jay "Davey" Hamilton (born June 13, 1962 in
Nampa, Idaho Nampa () is the largest city in Canyon County, Idaho. Its population was 100,200 at the time of the 2020 Census. It is Idaho's third-most populous city. Nampa is about west of Boise along Interstate 84, and six miles (10 km) west of Meridian. ...
) is a race car driver who competed in the
Indy Racing League The IndyCar Series, currently known as the NTT IndyCar Series under sponsorship, is the highest class of regional North American open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars in the United States, which has been conducted under the auspices of ...
IndyCar Series The IndyCar Series, currently known as the NTT IndyCar Series under sponsorship, is the highest class of regional North American open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars in the United States, which has been conducted under the auspices of ...
and
Stadium Super Trucks The Stadium Super Trucks (SST), formerly known as Speed Energy Formula Off-Road, is an American short course off-road racing series created by off-road racer and former IndyCar and NASCAR driver Robby Gordon in 2013. Sanctioned by the United State ...
. He has made 56 series starts and while never winning a race, finished second three times. He placed second in series points in the 1996–1997 season and again in 1998 season. Hamilton had been proficient in supermodified racing, as a frequent winner in various supermodified races, usually held in the northern areas of the United States.


Accident

In 2001 at the
Texas Motor Speedway Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas – the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The reconfigured track measures with banked 20° in turns 1 and 2 and banked 24° ...
,
Jeret Schroeder Jeret Schroeder (born November 13, 1969, Vineland, New Jersey, United States), is a former driver in the Indy Racing League. He raced in the 1997 and 1999-2002 seasons with 20 career starts, including the 1999-2001 Indianapolis 500. His best caree ...
lost an engine exiting turn 2. This caused him to lose control of his car and make contact with Davey Hamilton's machine. Hamilton's car slammed into the wall, nearly getting caught in the catch fence, and beginning to spin a number of times before coming to rest against the inside retaining wall. Also involved in the crash was
Sarah Fisher Sarah Marie Fisher (born October 4, 1980) is an American retired professional race car driver who competed in the IndyCar Series, Indy Racing League (IRL, now IndyCar Series) and the Indianapolis 500 intermittently from 1999 to 2010. She also ...
. Hamilton suffered such severe injuries to his legs and feet, that doctors at one time believed that amputation would be the best option for him. After the crash, Hamilton took a retirement from driving, and underwent 23 operations to reconstruct his feet and legs. He began standing after five months of the crash, and spent a year requiring the use of a wheelchair. He did, however, desire to return to racing, and in 2005, started taking steps to return to the cockpit. In 2010, after retiring from the
2010 Indianapolis 500 The 94th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 30, 2010. It was the 15th Indy 500 sanctioned by the Indy Racing League, and was the premier event of the 2010 IndyCar Series season, 2010 IZ ...
on the first lap, Hamilton referenced his 2001 crash while commenting on his early exit from the 500 by saying, "It’s the second-worst day of my racing career...and everyone knows my worst one."


Life after retirement

Hamilton became the color commentator for
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network (known typically as the IMS Radio Network or the INDYCAR Radio Network), is an in-house radio syndication arrangement which broadcasts the Indianapolis 500, the NTT IndyCar Series, and Indy Lights to ...
broadcasts in 2003. He later began driving the 2-seater IndyCar, which gives rides to VIPs and celebrities at IndyCar Series races. Hamilton partnered with the new
American Speed Association The American Speed Association (ASA) is a sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States formed in 1968. The Association was based in Pendleton, Indiana, Pendleton, Indiana, and later in Daytona Beach, Florida. The ASA sanctioned asphalt a ...
, partnering with ASA owner Dennis Huth, to take over control of the popular Southwest Tour for 2007, shortly after NASCAR terminated the popular AutoZone Elite division, which includes the popular Southwest series. The Speedco Southwest Tour series uses the same cars as the former NASCAR-sanctioned series. Hamilton also owns his own racing team, "Davey Hamilton Apex Racing." This team consists of two winged sprint drivers: his father Ken Hamilton and friend Mike Cullum. Also on the team is Davey's son DJ who races Outlaw Karts and
Go Karts Kart racing or karting is a road racing variant of motorsport with open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on f ...
. Mike's daughter Jenna rounds out the team and she drives Outlaw Karts. In 2008, Hamilton became a partner in a group that purchased
Terre Haute Action Track Terre Haute Action Track (also The Action Track) is a half-mile dirt racetrack located at the Vigo County, Indiana, fairgrounds on U.S. Route 41 along the south side of Terre Haute, Indiana. The track hosts annual United States Automobile Club ( ...
. In 2014 he co-founded King of the Wing, a national pavement sprint car series.


Return to racing

In 2005, Hamilton started courting sponsors and perusing the paddock in an effort to return to racing. After settling several personal and business issues, he landed a ride for the
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
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 ...
, driving for
Vision Racing Vision Racing was a racing team in the Indy Racing League founded in 2005 when Tony George purchased the assets of the defunct Kelley Racing and hired his stepson Ed Carpenter to be the driver. The team has previously raced in the Izod IndyCa ...
. Qualifying 20th, Hamilton placed 9th after the race was ended early on lap 166 due to rain. For 2008, Hamilton re-signed with Vision Racing. He finished 14th in the 2008 Indianapolis 500. For the 2009 season, he drove for
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Dreyer & Reinbold Racing is an automotive racing organization that competes in the IndyCar Series and Nitro Rallycross. The team is owned by Indianapolis BMW, Infiniti, Volkswagen, Mini, and Subaru dealer Dennis Reinbold. Off the track, Dreyer & ...
, and was the only one of the team's four drivers to qualify during the first weekend of qualifications. However he crashed out of the race on lap 79. In
2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
, Hamilton competed in the
2010 Indianapolis 500 The 94th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 30, 2010. It was the 15th Indy 500 sanctioned by the Indy Racing League, and was the premier event of the 2010 IndyCar Series season, 2010 IZ ...
for
de Ferran Dragon Racing DS Penske (formerly Dragon Racing) is an American auto racing team that is involved in many areas of motorsport. Dragon Racing was founded in 2007 by Jay Penske and Stephen J. Luczo. The team competed in the IndyCar Series from 2007 until 2014 ...
. He was involved in an incident with
Tomas Scheckter Tomas Scheckter (born 21 September 1980) is a South African former racing driver best known for his time in the IndyCar Series. Early years Scheckter was born in Monte Carlo to 1979 Formula One World Champion Jody Scheckter and his first wife ...
on the first lap of the race, and was classified in 33rd, last place. Hamilton's final season of races would be 2011. He finished 24th in the
2011 Indianapolis 500 The 95th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday May 29, 2011. The race was part of the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series season. The track opened for practice on May 14 and time trials were held from M ...
. He also raced in the Twin 275's at Texas for unfinished business. His final start would be at the tragic 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas. Hamilton was fortunate enough to escape the major accident on lap 11 that killed
Dan Wheldon Daniel Clive Wheldon (22 June 1978 – 16 October 2011) was a British motor racing driver who won the 2005 IndyCar Series season, 2005 IndyCar Series Drivers' Championship for Andretti Autosport, Andretti Green Racing (AGR). He won the Indiana ...
, but the race was abandoned, and the results were scratched from official record. When the new chassis and engine package was introduced for the 2012 season, Hamilton was unable to secure a car for the 2012 Indianapolis 500 due to a lack of available rides. In 2013, Hamilton joined the
Stadium Super Trucks The Stadium Super Trucks (SST), formerly known as Speed Energy Formula Off-Road, is an American short course off-road racing series created by off-road racer and former IndyCar and NASCAR driver Robby Gordon in 2013. Sanctioned by the United State ...
, serving as a substitute for
Jimmy Vasser James Vasser Jr. (born November 20, 1965) is an American former racing driver. Vasser won the 1996 CART IndyCar championship with Chip Ganassi Racing, and scored ten victories in the series. Vasser was the last American to win the CART champio ...
at
Honda Indy Toronto The Grand Prix of Toronto (known for sponsorship reasons as the Honda Indy Toronto) is an annual Indy Car race, held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Originally known as the Molson Indy Toronto, it was part of the Champ Car World Series from 1986 t ...
; Hamilton started first in the event, but engine trouble forced him to finish seventh. In 2014, he made his season debut at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, where he placed 8th in the first race and 9th in the second race.


Personal life

Davey has a son named Davey Jay Hamilton Jr. (D.J.) who was born on March 15, 1997 in Idaho. D.J. is also a racing driver, racing in sprint cars and Stadium Super Trucks. He also has a daughter named Hailey. Hamilton is a
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
.


Career results


American open–wheel results

(
key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position)


Indy Lights


CART IndyCar


IndyCar Series / Indy Racing League

: 1 ''Races run on same day.'' : 2 ''Non-points-paying, exhibition race.'' : 3 ''The Las Vegas Indy 300 was abandoned after
Dan Wheldon Daniel Clive Wheldon (22 June 1978 – 16 October 2011) was a British motor racing driver who won the 2005 IndyCar Series season, 2005 IndyCar Series Drivers' Championship for Andretti Autosport, Andretti Green Racing (AGR). He won the Indiana ...
died from injuries sustained in a 15-car crash on lap 11.''


Indianapolis 500


Stadium Super Trucks

(
key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...
) (Bold – Pole position. ''Italics'' – Fastest qualifier. * – Most laps led.)


References


External links


Davey Hamilton RacingIndyCar Driver Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, Davey 1962 births Living people People from Nampa, Idaho Racing drivers from Idaho Indianapolis 500 drivers IndyCar Series drivers Stadium Super Trucks drivers Motorsport announcers USAC Silver Crown Series drivers Dragon Racing drivers De Ferran Motorsports drivers Indy Lights drivers A. J. Foyt Enterprises drivers Arrow McLaren SP drivers Vision Racing drivers Dreyer & Reinbold Racing drivers