Today In NASCAR History

1923: Johnny Beauchamp, a two-time winner in NASCAR’s top series, is born. The Harlan, Iowa, native, who died in 1981, is forever linked to two pivotal moments in NASCAR Hall of Famer Lee Petty’s career. In 1959, Beauchamp was declared the winner of the first Daytona 500, but the ruling was reversed three days later, handing the win to Petty. Two years later, Beauchamp and Petty crashed in a Daytona 500 qualifying race, with both cars sailing out of the speedway. The wreck effectively ended the NASCAR careers of both men.

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.