Paul Durant (born September 26, 1959), is a former American racecar driver from

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. He first excelled in modified stock car racing, winning a number of regional championships. He then competed in the USAC Silver Crown Series in 1994. Following the founding of 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 o ...

in 1996, he competed in the series' second ever race at the Phoenix International Raceway but broke on the first lap. Two months later, he competed in 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 ...

, qualifying the oldest car in the field, a 1992

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powered by a stock-block Buick V6 engine in the 24th position. He moved up from 24th to 18th in 9 laps before his engine failed.A Conversation with Paul Durant
The Auto Channel, June 25, 2003 The following year he took over

A. J. Foyt Enterprises A. J. Foyt Racing, officially and historically known as A. J. Foyt Enterprises, is an American racing team in the IndyCar Series and formerly NASCAR. It is owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner, 1972 Daytona 500 winner, 1967 24 Hours of Le ...

' #1 car late on bump day and qualified in the final position with only 12 laps of practice in the car. He crashed on lap 111 of the race and was credited with 21st. Later that season he drove at

Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas Motor Speedway, located in Clark County, Nevada in Las Vegas, Nevada about 15 miles northeast of the Las Vegas Strip, is a complex of multiple tracks for motorsports racing. The complex is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which is ...

for Byrd-Cunningham Racing and finished 26th after a mechanical issue on lap 62. He drove in the first race of the

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

season at Phoenix for Cobb Racing but suffered an engine failure 99 laps in. He failed to qualify for the

1998 Indianapolis 500 The 82nd Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 24, 1998. This was the first Indianapolis 500 fully sanctioned by the Indy Racing League after the IRL relied on USAC to sanction the 1996� ...

in the same car and his entry failed to arrive at the race the following week at

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 ...

despite being entered. He currently lives in Denver, Colorado.

Racing record

American Open Wheel

( key)

IndyCar

Indy 500 results

References

External links

Paul Durant at ChampCarStats.com
1959 births Indianapolis 500 drivers IndyCar Series drivers Living people Racing drivers from San Diego USAC Silver Crown Series drivers {{IndyCar-bio-stub A. J. Foyt Enterprises drivers