Gregory Ray (born August 3, 1966) is an American former race car driver. After winning the SCCA national Formula Atlantic championship in 1993, he moved up to 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 ...

-sanctioned Toyota Atlantic series in 1994. In

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

he made his Indy Racing League debut driving for Thomas Knapp in an unsponsored black #97 car. He made his mark on the series a year later during qualifying for the 1998 Indianapolis 500. Driving the same, plain, black #97, he qualified second behind A. J. Foyt's driver Billy Boat. The car attracted sponsorship from local businesses and the national anti-tobacco campaign, and became known as Ash Kicker Racing. Though he failed to finish that race, he scored several good results in subsequent races and caught the eye of successful businessman and team owner

John Menard Jr. John Robert Menard Jr. (born January 22, 1940) is an American billionaire businessman, and the founder and owner of Menards, a Midwestern chain of home improvement stores. He is a former INDYCAR racing team owner, and the father of former NASCAR ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

he won the IRL championship on the strength of three victories. However, 2000 was a difficult season with only one victory. He qualified on pole for 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 ...

but subsequently finished last (33rd). In 2001 Ray and Menard had split, and his replacement Jaques Lazier won his first victory at the

Chicagoland Speedway Chicagoland Speedway is a tri-oval speedway in Joliet, Illinois, southwest of Chicago. The speedway opened in 2001 and actively hosted NASCAR racing including the NASCAR Cup Series until 2019. Until 2010, the speedway has also hosted the IndyC ...

. Things continued to go downhill from there, as Ray bounced around three separate cars in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

before starting his own team in

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, Access Motorsports, the lone team utilizing a Panoz chassis with

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...

engines. He gained sponsorship from TrimSpa but failed to light up the scoreboard and in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

, he ran a few races before giving his seat to former Infiniti Pro Series champion Mark Taylor. The team closed at the end of the year from a lack of sponsorship. Ray had 5 wins in his 74 IRL starts.

Racing career

IndyCar career

Early years

Greg Ray made his debut Indy Racing League start during the 1997 portion of the 1996-97 Indy Racing League season driving the #97 Thomas Knapp Motorsports

Dallara Dallara is an Italian race car manufacturer, founded by its current President, Gian Paolo Dallara. After working for Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and De Tomaso, in 1972 in his native village of Varano de' Melegari ( Parma), Italy he create ...

- Oldsmobile Aurora in 5 of 10 events including the

where he would finish 25th due to a water pump failure. Ray's best finish came at the True Value 500 at Texas Motor Speedway near Ray's hometown of

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

to finish 29th-place finish in points. For 1998 Ray would continue to drive Knapp's #97

- Oldsmobile Aurora with sponsorship from Mercury Outboards and

Mercury Marine Mercury Marine is a marine engine division of Brunswick Corporation headquartered in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. The main product line is outboard motors. It also produces the MerCruiser line of sterndrives and inboard motors. Some manufacturi ...

for the opening rounds of the season. However, during practice for the

Knapp's team was without a sponsor. Ray would manage to qualify second between A. J. Foyt Enterprises teammates Billy Boat and Kenny Brack and would gain race day sponsorship from Justice Brothers, Inc., True Value, The Nashville Network, and Ray's hometown track Texas Motor Speedway. In the race, Ray led for 18 laps before retiring on lap 167 due to a gearbox failure. Ray would follow up his 500 performance with a 2nd-place finish at the True Value 500 at Texas Motor Speedway where Ray acquired sponsorship from

AT&T AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile ...

but Knapp's team skipped races due to a lack of sponsorship. Ray then drove a two-race stint for A. J. Foyt Enterprises in the #11 Conseco

- Oldsmobile Aurora as a replacement to the injured Billy Boat (who beat Ray to the pole position at Indianapolis and the win at Texas) at the Pep Boys 400K at Dover Downs International Speedway where Ray would set the fastest lap before getting taken out in a crash and the

VisionAire 500K The VisionAire 500K was an Indy Racing League race held at Charlotte Motor Speedway from 1997 to 1999. During the 1999 event, three spectators were killed when debris from a crash on the track went into the grandstands. The race was stopped and c ...

Lowe's Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including ...

where Ray retired with gearbox failure. Knapp then reopened his team for the final three races of the season with sponsorship from Genoa Racing and Best Access Systems but would retire from each race.

Championship winner

Knapp's team then closed its doors for good due to a lack of sponsorship but Ray was signed on to drive the #2 Glidden/ Menards

- Oldsmobile Aurora and would take pole positions at the MCI WorldCom 200 at

Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix Raceway is a 1-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona, near Phoenix. The motorsport track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually including the final championship race since 2020 ...

and the

(the latter of which was cancelled due to an accident that killed three spectators). Ray would retire from the first three races before getting three wins at Radisson 200 and Colorado Indy 200 Presented by Deloitte & Touche both at Pikes Peak International Raceway and the MBNA Mid-Atlantic 200 at Dover Downs International Speedway to get the championship (Ray's only time in the top 10 in points).

Downturn

For 2000 Ray would continue to drive for Menard in the #1 Conseco/ Quaker State/ Menards

- Oldsmobile Aurora scoring six poles in the series' nine races including the

where during the IRL's split with

Chip Ganassi Racing Chip Ganassi Racing, LLC (CGR), also sometimes branded as Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, is an American auto racing organization with teams competing in the NTT IndyCar Series, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, FIA World Endurance Champions ...

, a CART team, entered a pair of cars for CART drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and Jimmy Vasser with Montoya starting second to Ray. Because of this Ray and Montoya were the favorites to win. Ray would lead 26 of the first 66 laps before crashing on lap 67 and finishing in 33rd (last) place with Montoya leading 167 of the 200 laps on his way to an easy win. Ray would go on to win the Midas 500 Classic at

Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly known Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a 1.54-mile entertainment facility in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Cup Series s ...

. However, Ray would drop to 13th in points. In

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

Ray would continue to drive for Menard in the #2

Johns Manville Johns Manville is an American company based in Denver, Colorado, that manufactures insulation, roofing materials and engineered products. For much of the 20th century, the then-titled Johns-Manville Corporation was the global leader in the ...

/ Menards

- Oldsmobile Aurora. Ray continued to be an excellent qualifier with four poles in the series' first ten races but had trouble finishing races with a win at the zMax Atlanta 500 Classic at

. Ray's relationship with Menard got even worse after the

where Ray qualified 2nd and would lead 40 laps before finishing 17th, 8 laps down. Ray split from Menard after the Belterra Resort Indy 300 at

Kentucky Speedway Kentucky Speedway is a tri-oval speedway in Sparta, Kentucky, which has hosted ARCA, NASCAR and Indy Racing League racing annually since it opened in 2000. The track is currently owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports, Inc. Before 2008 ...

while Ray's replacement, Jaques Lazier won in his second race in the car at the Delphi Indy 300 at

. Ray would drive the season ending Chevy 500 at Texas Motor Speedway returning to A. J. Foyt's team in the #11 A. J. Foyt Racing

Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...

Infiniti where Ray would start 13th and finish 8th in his only other top 10 of the year besides his Atlanta win. Starting off

without a ride Ray was hired to drive the #11 Harrah's

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ou ...

for A. J. Foyt Enterprises in place of the injured Eliseo Salazar. Ray made his 2002 debut at the

starting 31st and crashing after 28 laps and finishing in 33rd, last, place again. Ray continued to drive Foyt's #11 (later #41 when Salazar returned) through the Gateway Indy 250 at Gateway International Speedway. Ray would then drive for

Sam Schmidt Motorsports The IndyCar Series operation of McLaren (competing as Arrow McLaren due to sponsorship) is based in Indianapolis and was founded by former IndyCar driver Sam Schmidt in 2001 as Sam Schmidt Motorsports. After a series of partnerships and name ch ...

in the #20

with sponsorship from Empress Casino and

Young Chevrolet Young may refer to: * Offspring, the product of reproduction of a new organism produced by one or more parents * Youth, the time of life when one is young, often meaning the time between childhood and adulthood Music * The Young, an American roc ...

in the final two races of the season. Ray's best finish of 2002 was a 12th at the Boomtown 500 at Texas Motor Speedway in Foyt's #11 car. This led to a 23rd-place finish in points.

Fielding his own cars

Without a ride for

Ray started his own team called Access Motorsports fielding Ray in the #13 Trim Spa Panoz G Force-

. The team started out strong with a 9th-place finish at the Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi and followed that up with an 8th-place finish at the

. Ray would equal his 8th-place finish at the Kansas Indy 300 at

Kansas Speedway Kansas Speedway is a tri-oval race track in the Village West area near Kansas City, Kansas, United States. It was built in 2001 and it currently hosts two annual NASCAR race weekends. The IndyCar Series also held races at the venue until 20 ...

, the Emerson Indy 250 at Gateway International Speedway, and the Chevy 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. In addition, Ray would have 5th place qualifying efforts at the SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond International Raceway and the Belterra Casino Indy 300 at

. Ray would finish 15th in points despite missing three races. In

Ray looked to be in good shape after a respectable 2003 season. Ray acquired sponsorship from Renovac for the opening rounds on his #13 Panoz G Force-

and would have a 2nd place start at the Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi. But prior to the

the team was without sponsorship but Ray was able to get sponsorship from Rent-A-Center due to the company being based in Ray's home town of Plano, Texas. After Indianapolis Ray fielded his own cars without sponsorship at the Bombardier 500 at Texas Motor Speedway and the SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond International Raceway getting a 7th-place finish at Texas. But soon a lack of sponsorship caught up to Ray as he had to withdraw from the following race, the Argent Mortgage Indy 300 at

. Ray would quietly finish 23rd in points and the team closed up shop at the end of the season. Ray soon afterwards retired from racing after being unable to find a drive for the 2005 season.

Other racing

SCCA career

Ray started off his career by driving in various divisions of the SCCA by first attending SCCA driving schools in September 1991. By 1992 Ray is competing in several SCCA-sanctioned Formula Ford 2000 series. In that season Ray had 7 podium finishes and set a track record lap for a Formula Ford 2000 car at

Sears Point Raceway Sonoma Raceway (originally known as Sears Point Raceway from 1967 to 1980 and 1982 to 2002, Golden State International Raceway in 1981 and Infineon Raceway from 2002 to 2012) is a road course and dragstrip located at Sears Point in the southern ...

and would take the series championship. In 1993 Ray moved up to the Formula Atlantic series and would take the championship in series in dominating fashion.

CART career

In 1994 Ray moved to

's version of the Atlantic championship, the Player's/ Toyota Atlantic Championship continuing to drive the same car he won the 1993 championship with. Ray would dominate this series also with wins at

, Mosport International Raceway, and the

Milwaukee Mile The Milwaukee Mile is a oval race track in the central United States, located on the grounds of the Wisconsin State Fair Park in West Allis, Wisconsin, a suburb west of Milwaukee. Its grandstand and bleachers seats approximately 37,000 specta ...

. Ray would have seven other podium finishes, six pole positions, and eight fastest laps with the championship. By

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...

Ray was competing in the PPG/ Firestone Indy Lights Championship Powered by Buick driving for Team KOOL Green in the #27

KOOL Kool may refer to: People * Kool (surname), surname of Dutch origin * Robert "Kool" Bell (born 1950), American bassist and founder of Kool and the Gang * Roger Kool (1954–2005), Singaporean DJ (Roger Kiew) * Kool DJ Herc (born 1955), Jamaican� ...

Lola-

Buick V6 The Buick V6, popularly referred to as the 3800 in its later incarnations, originally and initially marketed as ''Fireball'' at its introduction in 1962, was a large V6 engine used by General Motors. The block is made of cast iron and all use tw ...

. Ray's best race of the season came at the race at the

where Ray started 4th and finished in 2nd place. Ray would finish in 12th place in the overall championship.

IROC career

After winning the 1999 Pep Boys Indy Racing League championship Ray drove a Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, representing the Pep Boys Indy Racing League. Ray had a best finish of 7th at the race at

Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...

and would also start 2nd at the

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an automobile racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Verizon 200, and and formerly the home of the United Sta ...

race. Ray would finish in 11th place in the championship.

Racing record

SCCA National Championship Runoffs

American open–wheel racing results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

American Continental Championship results

Atlantic Championship

Indy Lights

IndyCar Series

: ''¹ The 1999

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

was cancelled after 79 laps due to spectator fatalities. Ray had qualified for the pole position.''

Indianapolis 500

External links

GregRayRacing.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ray, Greg 1966 births Racing drivers from Dallas Indianapolis 500 drivers Indianapolis 500 polesitters Indy Lights drivers IndyCar Series champions IndyCar Series drivers Atlantic Championship drivers IndyCar Series team owners International Race of Champions drivers Living people SCCA National Championship Runoffs winners U.S. F2000 National Championship drivers Arrow McLaren SP drivers A. J. Foyt Enterprises drivers Andretti Autosport drivers