Ball's parents divorced when he was a year old. He was raised by his grandmother, who enrolled him in a military academy as a teenager in an attempt to take his mind off cars and motorcycles.[2]
Racing careeredit
Ball began racing with the Arizona Roadster Association, subsequently switching from roadsters to midgets. He won the Arizona State Midget Association (ASMA) championship in 1949 and 1950. He finished fifth in the 1951 Indianapolis 500 and 32nd in the 1952 Indianapolis 500.[2]
Ball won the AAA Championship race at San Jose in November 1952.[3] On January 4, 1953, he was involved in an accident at Carrell Speedway in Los Angeles which left him with terrible head injuries. He remained in a coma, first at the UCLA Medical Center and then at home in Phoenix, but died 14 months later of an infection.[2]
For many years, one of the two championship races held at Phoenix International Raceway was a memorial race dedicated to Ball. The Bobby Ball Memorial was first run in the fall of 1954 and 1955 as a 100-mile race on dirt, sanctioned by AAA at the Arizona State Fairgrounds.[4][5] Driver Jack McGrath was killed in an accident during the 1955 race.[6] Starting in 1956, the race was sanctioned by USAC,[7] and continued as a 100-mile contest at the fairgrounds through its 1963 edition.[8] In 1964, the race moved to the newly opened Phoenix International Raceway and was run at a distance of 200 miles.[9] It continued as a 200-mile race through the 1969 edition,[10] then was run at a 150-mile distance starting with the 1970 edition, which was won by Swede Savage.[11] The October 1971 edition was won by A. J. Foyt,[12] after which, the race was renamed through sponsorship from Best Western for its 1972 edition.[13] Bobby Ball naming returned for the 1976–1978 editions, the last of which was title sponsored by Miller High Life.[14]
^"Bobby Unser Joins Filed For 14th Bobby Ball Run". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona. November 6, 1963. p. 21. Retrieved May 30, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
^Garrett, Mike (October 29, 1978). "It was in stars for Rutherford". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona. p. 11. Retrieved May 30, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
bobby, ball, racing, driver, robert, ball, august, 1925, february, 1954, american, racecar, driver, bobby, ballbornrobert, ball, 1925, august, 1925phoenix, arizona, diedfebruary, 1954, 1954, aged, phoenix, arizona, champ, career17, races, over, yearsyears, act. Robert Kay Ball 1 August 26 1925 February 27 1954 was an American racecar driver 2 Bobby BallBornRobert Kay Ball 1925 08 26 August 26 1925Phoenix Arizona U S DiedFebruary 27 1954 1954 02 27 aged 28 Phoenix Arizona U S Champ Car career17 races run over 3 yearsYears active1950 1952Best finish8th 1952First race1950 Phoenix 100 ASF Last race1952 Phoenix 100 ASF First win1952 San Jose 100 San Jose Wins Podiums Poles1 4 1Formula One World Championship careerActive years1951 1952TeamsSchroeder StevensEntries2Championships0Wins0Podiums0Career points2Pole positions0Fastest laps0First entry1951 Indianapolis 500Last entry1952 Indianapolis 500 Contents 1 Early life 2 Racing career 3 Bobby Ball Memorial 4 Complete AAA Championship Car results 5 Indianapolis 500 results 6 Complete Formula One World Championship results 7 References 8 External linksEarly life editBall s parents divorced when he was a year old He was raised by his grandmother who enrolled him in a military academy as a teenager in an attempt to take his mind off cars and motorcycles 2 Racing career editBall began racing with the Arizona Roadster Association subsequently switching from roadsters to midgets He won the Arizona State Midget Association ASMA championship in 1949 and 1950 He finished fifth in the 1951 Indianapolis 500 and 32nd in the 1952 Indianapolis 500 2 Ball won the AAA Championship race at San Jose in November 1952 3 On January 4 1953 he was involved in an accident at Carrell Speedway in Los Angeles which left him with terrible head injuries He remained in a coma first at the UCLA Medical Center and then at home in Phoenix but died 14 months later of an infection 2 Bobby Ball Memorial editMain article Bobby Ball Memorial For many years one of the two championship races held at Phoenix International Raceway was a memorial race dedicated to Ball The Bobby Ball Memorial was first run in the fall of 1954 and 1955 as a 100 mile race on dirt sanctioned by AAA at the Arizona State Fairgrounds 4 5 Driver Jack McGrath was killed in an accident during the 1955 race 6 Starting in 1956 the race was sanctioned by USAC 7 and continued as a 100 mile contest at the fairgrounds through its 1963 edition 8 In 1964 the race moved to the newly opened Phoenix International Raceway and was run at a distance of 200 miles 9 It continued as a 200 mile race through the 1969 edition 10 then was run at a 150 mile distance starting with the 1970 edition which was won by Swede Savage 11 The October 1971 edition was won by A J Foyt 12 after which the race was renamed through sponsorship from Best Western for its 1972 edition 13 Bobby Ball naming returned for the 1976 1978 editions the last of which was title sponsored by Miller High Life 14 Complete AAA Championship Car results editYear 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Pos Points1950 INDY MIL LAN SPR MIL PIK SYR DET SPR SAC PHX15 BAY12 DARDNQ 49th 151951 INDY5 MILDNQ LAN DAR SPR MIL DUQ DUQ PIK SYR DET DNC5 SJS11 PHX15 BAY13 13th 6201952 INDY32 MIL11 RALDNQ SPR15 MIL10 DET9 DUQ6 PIK SYR3 DNC3 SJS1 PHX3 8th 820Indianapolis 500 results editYear Car Start Qual Rank Finish Laps Led Retired1951 52 29 134 098 9 5 200 0 Running1952 55 17 134 725 23 32 34 0 Gear caseTotals 234 0 Starts 2Poles 0Front Row 0Wins 0Top 5 1Top 10 1Retired 1Complete Formula One World Championship results edit key Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 WDC Points1951 Blakely Oil Schroeder Offenhauser L4 SUI 5005 BEL FRA GBR GER ITA ESP 19th 21952 Ansted Rotary Stevens Offenhauser L4 SUI 50032 BEL FRA GBR GER NED ITA NC 0References edit Bobby Ball www champcarstats com Retrieved 2023 06 30 a b c d Gates Bob March 2 2010 Bobby Ball Could Have Been One Of America s Greats Turn 3 Media Archived from the original on August 26 2018 Retrieved January 2 2013 Ball Wins 100 Mile Race James Is Hurt Seriously The Fresno Bee 3 November 1952 Retrieved 24 July 2020 via Newspapers com Parsons Joins Big Car Race Field Here The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona October 12 1954 p 8 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Phoenix Race Finale For AAA The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona October 10 1955 p 4 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Many Greats Gone Since Last 500 Indianapolis News May 29 1956 p 43 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com New Entries In 100 Miler The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona October 10 1956 p 9 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Bobby Unser Joins Filed For 14th Bobby Ball Run The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona November 6 1963 p 21 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Top Drivers Due at PIR The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona November 15 1964 p 20 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Bobby Ball race has all but Gurney The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona November 9 1969 p 145 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Savage Gets 1st USAC Win on Last Lap Los Angeles Times AP November 22 1970 p 47 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Reynard Calvin October 24 1971 Foyt Wins Ball Memorial Arizona Daily Star Tucson Arizona p 21 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Vies for Racing Crown St Joseph Gazette St Joseph Missouri AP November 3 1972 p 16 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com Garrett Mike October 29 1978 It was in stars for Rutherford The Arizona Republic Phoenix Arizona p 11 Retrieved May 30 2021 via newspapers com External links editBobby Ball at Find a GraveRecordsPreceded byAndy Linden29 years 54 days 1950 Indianapolis 500 Youngest driver to scorepoints in Formula One25 years 276 days 1951 Indianapolis 500 Succeeded byTroy Ruttman22 years 80 days 1952 Indianapolis 500 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bobby Ball racing driver amp oldid 1177611122, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
