Gerald Wayne "Jerry" Grant (January 23, 1935 – August 12, 2012) was a driver in the USAC

Championship Car American open-wheel car racing, also known as Indy car racing, is a category of professional automobile racing in the United States. As of 2022, the top-level American open-wheel racing championship is sanctioned by IndyCar. Competitive events ...

series. Born in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, he began racing sports cars in Northern California in the early 1960s. He raced in the 1965-1977 seasons, with 54 career starts, including the

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 ...

in 1965-1968, 1970 and 1972-1976. He finished in the top ten 13 times, with his best finish in 3rd position in 1974 at Ontario. Grant is best remembered for his bad luck at the

1972 Indianapolis 500 The 56th 500 Mile International Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, on Saturday, May 27, 1972. The race is notable in that for the first time, the cars were permitted bolt-on wings, and speeds climbed dra ...

that cost him first victory and then second place. He was leading the race comfortably over

Mark Donohue Mark Neary Donohue Jr. (March 18, 1937 – August 19, 1975), nicknamed "Captain Nice," and later "Dark Monohue," was an American race car driver and engineer known for his ability to set up his own race car as well as driving it to victories. D ...

when a punctured tire forced him to pit with 12 laps to go. In later interviews, Grant said that he had adopted a higher line for improved handling, and this may have left him vulnerable to debris on the outside of the racing line. As Donohue went past into the lead, Grant overshot his pit and stopped at his teammate

Bobby Unser Robert William Unser (February 20, 1934 – May 2, 2021) was an American automobile racer. At his induction into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1994, he had the fourth most IndyCar Series wins at 35 (behind his brother Al, A. J. Fo ...

's. His mechanics changed the tire in Unser's pit, and also refueled the car—from Unser's pit tank. Grant returned to the track and finished second to Donohue. The team of third-place finisher

Al Unser Alfred Unser (May 29, 1939 – December 9, 2021) was an American automobile racing driver, the younger brother of fellow racing drivers Jerry and Bobby Unser, and father of Al Unser Jr. He was the second of four men ( A. J. Foyt, himself, Rick ...

filed a protest, saying that Grant had used fuel from another driver's supply. The protest was upheld and Grant's final 12 laps were not counted, dropping him from 2nd to 12th. Grant was the first USAC driver to break . He accomplished the feat in qualifying at the

Ontario Motor Speedway Ontario Motor Speedway was a motorsport venue located in Ontario, California. It was the first and only automobile racing facility built to accommodate major races sanctioned by all of the four dominant racing sanctioning bodies: USAC (and now In ...

on September 3, 1972, completing a lap in 44.7 seconds. however on raceday Grant's Eagle failed to complete a lap. In addition to the controversial finish at Indianapolis in 1972, Grant suffered another famous stroke of bad luck in 1966, when his Ford GT Mk.II, with co-driver

Dan Gurney Daniel Sexton Gurney (April 13, 1931 – January 14, 2018) was an American racing driver, race car constructor, and team owner who reached racing's highest levels starting in 1958. Gurney won races in the Formula One, Indy Car, NASCAR, Can-Am, ...

behind the wheel, suffered an engine failure while leading two minutes from the end of the 12 Hours of Sebring. As at Indy, Gurney and Grant would have been awarded second place had they simply left the car where it came to rest. Instead, Gurney attempted to push the car over the finish line in violation of FIA rules, and the pair were disqualified. Later in his career, Grant was the racing representative for Champion Spark Plugs, years later he was hired by Elton Alderman, then President of Prolong Super Lubricants to be a representative. The arraignment fell apart after Alderman did not follow through as promised. Grant died August 12, 2012 from liver failure and diabetes at an

Orange County, California Orange County is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,186,989, making it the third-most-populous county in California, the sixth-most-populous in the United States, a ...

hospital at the age of 77. A memorial was held for Jerry at the Riverside International Raceway Museum in Riverside, California. Conducted by Ed Justice Jr., many of Jerry's close friends spoke, including longtime friend, co-driver and car owner,

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Indianapolis 500 results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grant, Jerry 1935 births 2012 deaths 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Deaths from diabetes Indianapolis 500 drivers People from Irvine, California Racing drivers from California Racing drivers from Seattle Trans-Am Series drivers 24 Hours of Daytona drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers