Biography
Dick Rathmann, whose full name was James Merwin Rathmann, was born in Los Angeles on 6 January 1926. He swapped names with his younger brother so that the brother could race despite being underage. The name Dick stayed with him for life. That brother, Jim Rathmann, went on to win the 1960 Indianapolis 500.
Rathmann raced in the AAA Championship Car series, then in NASCAR's Grand National Series from 1951 to 1955, and from 1956 he was back in USAC Championship Car racing, where he stayed until 1964.
The Indianapolis 500 counted towards the Formula One World Championship from 1950 to 1960, and Rathmann started it five times in that period: in 1950, 1956 and from 1958 to 1960. He drove a Watson in 1950 and from 1958 to 1960, and a Kurtis Kraft in 1956. His best championship position was 19th in 1956. In 1958 he started from pole position. A 15-car accident on the opening lap claimed the life of Pat O'Connor. Rathmann became the first Indianapolis pole-sitter not to complete a lap.
He was inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame in 2009. He died in 2000.
Source: Wikipedia, “Dick Rathmann”. Text licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Rates
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Best circuits
Where the most wins and podiums came.Statistics: F1DB by Marcel Overdijk and contributors, licence CC BY 4.0, prepared by Hotlap Delta.