Ueal Eugene "Pat" Patrick (March 10, 1929 – January 5, 2021) was an American racing team owner. He was the founder and owner of Patrick Racing, a team that raced in Champ Cars and the Indy Racing League. Patrick was also one of the founding members of

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 ...

in 1978 and the Indy Lights series in 1986. In addition, he and LeRoy Scott were founders of Patrick Petroleum in 1962.

Early life

Ueal Patrick was born in Kentucky in 1929, and moved at a young age to

Jackson, Michigan Jackson is the only city and county seat of Jackson County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 33,534, down from 36,316 at the 2000 census. Located along Interstate 94 and U.S. Route 127, it is approxi ...

. Patrick was initially an accountant, but left the field to go into oil exploration. Striking oil on its 19th attempt, Patrick Petroleum (later known as Patrick Energy) became a financial success.

Motorsports career

Patrick started his Indy car racing career as a sponsor of the team fielded by fellow Jackson oilman Walt Michner in 1967. He became a co-owner of the team in 1970 and established Patrick Racing with LeRoy Scott, his partner in the oil business. The Patrick Racing team won the

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

and

1989 Indianapolis 500 The 73rd Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 28, 1989. Two-time World Drivers' Champion Emerson Fittipaldi of Brazil became the first foreign-born winner of the race since 1969, and fir ...

. Emerson Fittipaldi won the

IndyCar INDYCAR, LLC, is an American-based auto racing sanctioning body for Indy car racing and other disciplines of open wheel car racing. The organization sanctions five racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with its centerpiece the Indianapolis ...

title for Pat in 1989. Drivers Adrian Fernandez and Roberto Moreno finished second and third in the 2000 series, which was the last time his cars were front-runners. He ran a car for Al Unser Jr. in the Indy Racing League in 2004, but after Unser's retirement, Patrick put the team up for sale at the end of the year. Patrick resided in

, and Phoenix, Arizona, in the United States. He died in Phoenix at 91 years old.

Awards

He was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2018.U.E. Pat Patrick
at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America

References

1929 births 2021 deaths Patrick, Pat People from Jackson, Michigan {{IndyCar-bio-stub