Johnny Ray (racing driver)

John Ray (March 25, 1937 – January 27, 2020) was an American stock car racing driver. The father of Kevin Ray, he was a competitor in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series.[1]

Johnny Ray
Born(1937-03-25)March 25, 1937
Eastaboga, Alabama
DiedJanuary 27, 2020(2020-01-27) (aged 82)
NASCAR Cup Series career
8 races run over 3 years
Best finish22nd (1974)
First race1974 Winston 500 (Talladega)
Last race1976 Daytona 500 (Daytona)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0

Career

Ray began his career at the top level of NASCAR competition, the Winston Cup Series (now the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series) in 1974, making his debut at Alabama International Motor Speedway (now Talladega Superspeedway); he finished 41st of 50 cars in the event. He went on to race seven more times in the series between 1974 and 1976; his best finish came at Talladega later in 1974, when he finished 22nd.[2] In 1975, Ray, a trucker by profession, set a world speed record for semi-trailer trucks, 92 miles per hour (148 km/h), at Talladega.[3]

Accident

Ray entered the 1976 season planning to compete for Rookie of the Year honors in the Winston Cup Series.[3] Competing in the 1976 Daytona 500, the second race of the season, Ray crashed on the 112th lap, skidding in oil before being hit by Skip Manning.[3] Extricated from his wrecked Chevrolet, Ray was taken to Halifax Medical Center, where he was found to have no vital signs and was initially declared dead; last-ditch resuscitation efforts managed to revive Ray.[4] While he survived the accident, and competed in some local events in Alabama over the next few years,[5] he never participated in NASCAR competition as a driver again.[4]

Post-accident career

Following his recovery, Ray went on to own cars driven by Dale Earnhardt,[6] Johnny Rutherford,[7] and Chuck Bown during the late 1970s;[8] he also owned a team in the 1990s for his son, Kevin Ray, competing on a limited basis in the NASCAR Busch Series and the ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Supercar Series.[4]

Ray, wife Kay, and son John Jnr own John Ray Enterprises LLC, a trucking company established in 1991, after originally starting in 1972 and selling in 1988, the family reacquired the company in 1991 after the new owners went bankrupt. After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the Ray family began driving one of the John Ray Enterprises tractor-trailers around Talladega Superspeedway before the track's Cup races.[9]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Winston Cup Series
NASCAR Winston Cup Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 NWCC Pts
1974 Davis Racing 84 Dodge RSD DAY RCH CAR BRI ATL DAR NWS MAR TAL
41		 NSV DOV CLT RSD MCH DAY BRI NSV ATL POC TAL
22		 MCH DAR RCH DOV NWS MAR CLT CAR ONT 80th 4.57
1975 Blackwell Racing 77 Chevy RSD DAY RCH CAR BRI ATL NWS DAR MAR TAL
48		 NSV DOV CLT RSD MCH
24		 DAY
30		 NSV POC TAL
40		 MCH DAR DOV NWS MAR CLT RCH CAR BRI ATL ONT 73rd 226
1976 Champion Racing 10 Ford RSD
31		 105th 67
Blackwell Racing Chevy DAY
28		 CAR RCH BRI ATL NWS DAR MAR TAL NSV DOV CLT RSD MCH DAY NSV POC TAL MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR NWS CLT CAR ATL ONT

References
  1. Rogers, Joey (January 27, 2020). "Former NASCAR driver and Alabama-native John Ray passes away". cbs42.com. Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
  2. Johnny Ray - NASCAR Sprint Cup Results. Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Accessed 2013-02-26.
  3. "Ray's condition serious after three-car wreck". Gadsden, AL: The Gadsden Times, February 16, 1976, p.7.
  4. Schmitz, Brian. (February 11, 1995) "Kevin Ray Is Following His Father's Career Track". Orlando, FL: Orlando Sentinel. Accessed 2013-02-26.
  5. "Goodwin takes flag at Gadsden Raceway". Gadsden, AL: The Gadsden Times, June 13, 1977, p.10.
  6. Adamson, Scott. (February 20, 2011) "Dale Earnhardt: Remembering a legend". Anderson, SC: The Anderson Independent-Mail. Accessed 2013-02-26.
  7. "Five Racing Events Flood Southeast". Spartanburg, SC: Spartanburg Herald-Journal, March 13, 1977, p.B5.
  8. Johnny Ray (owner) - NASCAR Sprint Cup Results.Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Accessed 2013-02-26.
  9. "Sad News - John Ray". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. January 27, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
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