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Harry Gant

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Harry Gant
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Date of Birth:
Birthplace:
Series Name
Years
Best Pts Finish
Last Race:
First Race
Last Win
Career Highlights
Awards:
Dale Jarrett
Image:DaleJarrett.jpg
Date of Birth: November 26,1956
Birthplace: Newton, North Carolina
Cup Series
Years 1984-2008
Best Pts Finish 1st (1999)
First Race 1984 Sovran Bank 500
Last Race: 2008 Food City 500
First Win 1991 Champion Spark Plug 400
Last Win 2005 UAW-Ford 500
Career Highlights
Awards: 1999 Champion
named one of the NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers
Harry Gant

Harry Phil Gant (born January 10, 1940 in Taylorsville, North Carolina) is best known for driving the number 33 Skoal Bandits car on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit.

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[edit] Nicknames

He was known as Handsome Harry Gant due to his Hollywood-style good looks, The Bandit after his longtime sponsor, and High Groove Harry after the high line he often took through the corner. A humble man, Gant often stated that he was a good race car driver, but a great carpenter.

[edit] Career prior to Winston Cup

The North Carolina native began his racing career at the old dirt track in Hickory. Harry built a hobby class car with his friends, and took turns behind the wheel. Harry became the full-time driver and won the track championship. Hickory Speedway was paved in 1967 after Ned Jarrett became the promoter. Gant excelled on the asphalt, and won his first race in the Sportsman division.

Harry won over 300 races in the NASCAR Sportsman on his way to winning three national championships in 1972, 1973, and 1974. He finished second three times in the NASCAR Late Model Sportsman (now Nationwide Series) in 1969, 1976, and 1977. He finished in the Top 10 of the final points standing in several other years.


[edit] Winston Cup Career

Harry's first full season in Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup) was in 1979. He competed for the Rookie of the Year against an extremely strong rookie field including Dale Earnhardt and Terry Labonte. The hotly contested award was decided at the final race of the season in favor of Earnhardt.

Gant finished second 10 times before winning his first Winston Cup race at Martinsville April 25, 1982, in the Virginia National Bank 500. He then went on to become runner up to Winston Cup season champion Terry Labonte in 1984.

Gant won the IROC (International Race of Champions) championship in 1985. He tied on points with Darrell Waltrip but was awarded the title on tiebreak by finishing higher in the final race: a photo-finish win over Labonte at Michigan International Speedway.

[edit] Mr. September

Gant earned the nickname "Mr. September" in 1991 after winning all four September Cup races (Darlington, Richmond, Dover and Martinsville) and two Busch races (Richmond and Dover) at age 51. The four consecutive cup victories ties the modern era record set in 1972. Harry Gant got his last cup victory on August 16,1992, at the Champion Spark Plugs 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Harry might have won his fifth straight race if his brakes hadn't faded with 9 laps left to go at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

[edit] Cup Records

He holds the record as oldest driver to win a cup race (52 years and 219 days). In his career he has collected 18 cup wins, 21 Nationwide Series wins, and 3 runner-up finishes in the Nationwide Series Championship (69, 76, and 77).

[edit] Retirement

"Handsome" Harry Gant retired from Winston Cup and Busch Series racing at the end of the 1994 season, and later ran a partial season in the Craftsman truck series in 1996. Gant also substituted for the injured Bill Elliott in the 1996 Winston Select, driving Elliott's #94 McDonald's Ford Thunderbird instead of the trademark #33 Skoal Bandit.


Harry Gant was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame on April 27, 2006.

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://thirdturn.wikia.com/wiki/Harry_Gant"