Mario Andretti - Biography

Last Editor: Jay26217				Mario Andretti Biography -   Name : Mario Andretti Mario Andretti : 28 February 1940 Place of birth : Motovun, Croatia Birth name : Mario Gabriele Andretti Height : 5' 7Ŋ Spouse : Dee Ann Hoch

Mario Andretti Trivia -

One of the greatest and most versatile racing drivers of all-time. Mario was the 1978 Formula 1 World Champion, IROC Champ in 1980, CART Champ in 1965,66,69,84. Winner of the 1969 Indianapolis 500, 1967 Daytona 500, 1969 Pikes Peak Hill Climb, and Daytona & Sebring endurance events. 1969 Indianapolis 500 winner. 1967 Daytona 500 winner. 1978 Formula 1 World Champion. Won 52 races in USAC/CART racing competition. Won 12 races in Formula 1 competition, the most of any American driver. Only man to win the Indy 500, Daytona 500, CART title and F1 title. Moved to the United States from Italy in 1955. Has identical twin brother, Aldo. Father of race drivers Michael and Jeff, Uncle of race driver John Andretti. Used to race for Paul Newman's Newman-Haas team. Won more than $12 million dollars in prize money. Father of Michael Andretti Father of Michael Andretti and Jeff Andretti Had planned to become a welder, but at 19 years-old he falsified a drivers license so he could pass for 21 and enter an amateur motor race. Became a U.S. citizen in 1964. Like their father, both Michael and Jeff Andretti were Indy 500 Rookies of the Year, Michael in 1984 and Jeff in 1991. During a practice lap before the qualifying sessions for the 1977 Indy 500, he became the first driver to top 200 miles per hour at Indianapolis.

Mario Andretti Detailed Biography -

Born in Italy in 1940, Andretti came to the USA with his family at the age of 15, where he worked in his unclešs garage alongside his twin brother, Aldo. The brothers started out racing modifieds in 1959, and although Aldo soon stepped out of the cockpit, Mario moved up to the Indy car ranks in 1964. The following year, he claimed Rookie of the Year honors at the Indy 500, won his first Indy car race, and went on to win the USAC Indy car championship. He would claim three more Indy car titles in 1966, 1969 and 1984. Andretti raced Indy cars, Formula 1, and Formula 5000, making additional appearances in NASCAR and sports cars, and was a winner wherever he competed. He scored 109 major race victories, and is the only driver to have won the Indianapolis 500 (1969), Daytona 500 (1967), and the Formula 1 World Championship (1978). He retired from Indy car racing in 1994 with 52 victories, second only to A.J. Foyt on the all-time list, although he continued to make one-off appearances at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Andrettišs son Michael continued the family legacy in open-wheel racing, and is a co-owner of the reigning IRL IndyCar champion team, Andretti Green Racing. His nephew John also continues to compete in NASCAR. Since retiring as a driver, Mario has focused on a variety of business interests including his Andretti Winery in Napa, Calif., and the Mario Andretti Racing School, based at five different racetracks around the country.