So we just have to keep that, and well be all right.. The rest of the year he raced only sports cars.[2]. 18+, UK residents only, T&Cs Apply, Gamble Responsibly. Sleek, swift and deadly, they could suddenly turn around and bite a man. He is 44 and has never married. There are no visitors to Danny Ongais` world. He was there to do a job. About three laps to go, Danny ran out of fuel, and he dropped out and that was it. Ongais had virtually lived with the Thompson family, and Campbell considered him a brother. He jumped into Scotty Braytons car in the 96 Indy 500 & finished 7th after starting last at age 54! The head count was up to 94 by mid-February and is expected to be at least 100 by the end of March. That helps winnow down the applicant pool for hiring by an executive team that includes Ward, competition director Billy Vincent, operations director Max Neyron, performance director Nick Snyder, marketing vice president Mo Murray and general manager Brian Barnhart (Murray and Barnhardt also have joined within the last few months). So far as anyone knows, he has nothing to hide.''. He crashed out on a wet track at Watkins Glen after moving up early but managed a 7th place in Canada in what would be his best finish in F1.[2]. Super positive. He initially drove the #65 Interscope Racing March 83C-Chevrolet V6, however, that car was replaced with the #25 March 83C-Cosworth DFX. Officials had to cut open the car to help Ongais out. He won the American Hot Rod Association AA Gas Dragster Championship in 1963 and 1964, and in the National Hot Rod Association AA Dragster championship title in 1965. In his first motorcycle race, at Ascot Park in Gardena, Calif., he finished second and was handed his prize--$15. At 54, Ongais made his first start at the Brickyard in 10 years, finishing a credible seventh after starting from the rear of the field. But he was not an idiot going around and doing stupid things. Ongais made his CART debut during the 1979 season driving the #25 Panasonic/Interscope Racing Parnelli 6C-Cosworth DFX. Nielsen was hard-core Ongais all the way, peppering me with facts and stats to prove his case, so, naturally, I reached out to ask for his parting thoughts on Ongais. ''That`s his life, racing.''. For those of us who saw Ongais race, he was a man who thrived on sheer, raw speed. Its more about were happy and want people to know, and word spreads that this is a place thats trying to be good to its people and gunning for the very top. Ongais and Fields success with the Interscope team also extended to sports car racing, with Field also driving. And well-deserved. The times I got to know him; he was one that you always admired. Went to victory lane and did all the smiling and pictures. Weve got a lot of positivity. But then Brian is a great resource for me, for the team. Upon joining Arrow McLaren, Ward said his No. Long before Danny On the Gas Ongais became a household name across the country and around the world on television and radio as a revered IndyCar driver, he belonged to us, to the world of drag racing, where he sated his need for speed in the formative years of his motorsports career. He might show up and talk to you for a while and then youd look around and hed be gone. By the time the broadcasting of the race ended at 11:30 PM, Ongais's condition had improved and his condition was updated to stable. I think weve done a great job of that. Godspeed, racer. I got to spend time with Danny at the [Indy] Speedway, and I just watched him do his thing, and he was magnificent. Danny Ongais competed in 11 Indianapolis 500 starts, completing mostly good times between 1977 and 1996. At the age of 18, he earned a Hawaiian state title in motorcycle racing, and he went on to become a drag racing ace. Maximizing and encouraging people to bring ideas to the table is so often overlooked in motorsports,, Rossi said. Danny Ongais had a net wort estimated at $5 million dollars. Ranking the top 10 IndyCar drivers of 2021. Every so often, a guy comes along, somebody that really catches your attention, that impresses you, and, for me, he was that guy, Prudhomme said. Even his closest friends know little of In 1969, Thompson hired him to drive his new Pat Foster-built, Ford SOHC-powered Mustang Mach 1 Funny Car the blue one; Foster drove a red one and the car showed immediate promise. I thought towards the end of the run, if the fans didnt like this, they dont need to be here. Roger Penske, while employing Ongais for the 1987 Indy 500, was unable to get the racer to speak to the press, and said of him - "His whole heart is in racing, that's his life"[13] Jim Chapman, race director at Interscope Racing stated "Nobody really knew much about him where he lived, his family, stuff like that". Danny let his racing do his talking for him, thats for sure., Follow Bruce Martin on Twitter at @BruceMartin_500. Ward noted two important additions from the world of Big Data and analytics in data and strategy lead Michael Gethers (who came from Salesforce) and engineer Eric Hestekin (who arrived from Boeing Defense). He really was. And its especially true during a season with the kind of expansion that Arrow McLaren has undertaken for the 2023 season. Penske looks for three things when hiring a driver, and the ability to go fast is the last of the three. Ongais was the only native Hawaiian to compete in the Indianapolis 500. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker. As I have posted roles throughout this last year, Ive found a large number of youths all around the world thats interested in getting into motorsports. From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. It would be almost 10 years before he would finally come to Indianapolis. Were not where we want to be right now, but thats normal. Jim Nelson once said that what he could tell about Ongais was that "all he wanted to do was race. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. Racing teams typically face double-digit turnover after the season. Thompson and Ongais also teamed up to set nearly 300 national and international speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in a Mach 1 Mustang during the 1960s. There is one way in which Arrow McLarens transformation is noticeable. Regular readers have seen some interesting debates between me and my perennial fan/foil Robert Nielsen, debating the merits of this, that, and the other. Ongais hadnt raced since the 1986 Indy 500. At a time when a lot of cars were running in the 7.70s and .80s, Ongais first pass was a 7.57, and it didnt take them long to get into the 7.30s. I won the race. He was inducted into the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. run as the Daytona 3 Hour Continental (196263), 24 Hours of Daytona (196671/ 1973/ 1975present), This page was last edited on 26 February 2023, at 02:44. Danny Ongais cause of death was heart disease, not an accident Danny Ongais, the Hawaiian driver respected by fans and contenders alike for his speed and bravery north of a three-decade vocation, died February 26 in Anaheim. 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While Ongais was known for his blazing speed at Indianapolis and elsewhere, he also attracted attention for surviving some of the most violent crashes of his era. The time zone changes arent quite so big. When he returned to his home state, he realized that his motorsports future was limited by the dearth of racetracks there, and he crossed the Pacific to the Mainland with fellow Hawaiian Roland Leong, where they both found employment with the Dragmaster team, then one of the most successful and prolific builders of dragster chassis. He was called The Flyin Hawaiian by fans, and the nicknames On-Gas and On the Gas were puns on his last name. Ongais had a sixth sense, so he could detect the car almost before it started to move and get out of shape. Also, we have no idea about his brother and sister, and we dont know their names either. Daniel "Doc" Ongais | 2019 Daniel "Doc" Ongais October 11, 2019 Daniel "Doc" Ongais, 81, of Keaau, passed away on Friday, October 11, 2019 at Hilo Medical Center, born on June 10, 1938, in Olaa; he was a retired Motor Vehicle Operator for the United States Army as a Civilian worker (Federal Government) and worked for the Former Puna Sugar Company. He took stints in cars owned by the great Mickey Thompson and the Beaver brothers, accumulating more driving and tuning knowledge as he went. At the 1964 Winternationals, his dragster defeated a field that included heavyweights like Thompson, the Peters & Frank Freight Train, and Earl Poage. and he has been married to his wife He also competed in four Formula One races in 1977 and 1978, including two starts with Interscope, with a best finish of seventh in 1977 at the Canadian Grand Prix. ), Danny Ongais stepped up when @INDYCAR & I needed him most. Thats what we like to avoid doing because you lose a little of the human touch that way. It takes some investment.. This time they carried him away, his body broken almost beyond repair. As in any industry, networking and recruiting are cornerstones to motorsports, where big-league success is predicated as much on driver and car as the countless people who support the stars and build the machines behind the scenes for any IndyCar, NASCAR or Formula One team. Why Kyle Kirkwood is America's new IndyCar ace-in-waiting, Why Kirkwood is USA's ace-in-waiting He also finished in 10th place in points. Jim Chapman, race boss for Interscope Racing, said no one was very familiar with him. For the 1987 season Interscope Racing teamed up with Team Penske getting Ongais in the #25 Panavision Penske PC-16-Ilmor-Chevrolet Indy V8 for the Indianapolis 500, however Ongais crashed in practice and suffered a concussion. INDIANAPOLIS Danny Ongais, the first and highest-finishing Hawaiian starter at the Indy 500, also might have been one of the hardest chargers in the races storied history. ''You`ll be lucky to win $250 the whole season here,'' he was told. Ward said the schedule was among the reasons that engineer Ryan Kelly chose to join Rossis car after multiple seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series. He was a racer, and he loved what he was doing, so it was easier for him to get back in the car.. In addition to Grace Hackenberg, Gundlach also played a role in the teams acquisition of systems engineer Lizzie Todd, who came from previous roles at Andretti and Penske. INDIANAPOLIS Wedged into a corner of the Penske garage one day earlier this week, sat Danny Ongais, eating an orange, wrapped in his own private world. Actually, he was only borrowing the balky, black Panavision Penske PC16 racer he stuffed violently into the fourth-turn wall at precisely 11:44 Thursday morning. He was 79. Longtime followers of this column are well aware of Ongais greatest quarter-mile accomplishments behind the wheel of Mickey Thompsons Mustang Funny Car in 1969, but his love of going fast was deeply rooted long before then. We have no more Information about his Father; we will try to collect information and update soon. In 1985, he also survived a spectacular barrel roll at Michigan International Speedway after hitting the back of the slower car of Phil Krueger on the backstretch. He was a good guy. Kiels team president role essentially was split between Ward and other managers. But we are sure that it is not available and his spouses name is not available. He was the only guy that spoke less at functions than I did. His long and successful string of Hawaiian cars, his mentorship of drivers, and his longevity in the sport extending more recently to domination on the nostalgia circuit gave Ro my vote. Weve had more people come to us than weve reached out to other people. The sad news of the death of the veteran racing driver was announced by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway two days later after his death. He seldom lifted no matter how crossed up and sideways the car got. In 1978 he also made one final attempt at F1. We have no more information about his spouse. His Girlfriend/boyfriends name is Not Available. When you want to build a high-powered racing team, software is really, really important, Ward said. It doesnt happen overnight. He was a force to be reckoned with when he was out there. He had refused all requests for interviews this week, and Penske himself could not get his driver to relent. This is certainly an exciting company to work for because the brand is quite well known globally, and that certainly helps from a recruitment perspective. Thompson, the onetime land speed record-holder, was campaigning a team at Indianapolis and promised to give Ongais a ride. He also raced in Formula One, in 1977-78, in six Grands Prix, recording a best result of seventh. I think people start to realize that IndyCar is a pretty fun place to be and not a bad way to go racing, Ward said. Ongais, racing at age 54 in his first 500 since 1986, finished a creditable seventh after starting from the rear of the field. In 1969, Ongais won the NHRA Spring Nationals and NHRA U.S. Nationals in the Funny Car class driving a Mickey Thompson Ford Mustang. Have Harvey and RLL formed IndyCars next winning match-up? The Flying Hawaiin led a very secretive life outside the racing world its known that Ongais had a wife but it is said h had a son who is unidentified for now. We needed to fill the car communicator role, and Alex was pretty happy with (Barnhart) previously, Ward said. While practicing for his first Indy-car race at Hanford, Calif., his car caught fire on the. ''He could take a car that was unmanageable and make it do what he wanted,'' says one observer. Its high schoolers. Next, he wants a man who will project the Penske image to sponsors and the press. Longtime IndyCar driver Danny Ongais, who earned 11 starts in the Indianapolis 500, sustained congestive heart complications and died, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced. Danny Ongais has For Penske the hiring of Ongais was an aberration, a minor breach of his own immutable rules. He was a good guy. NASCAR 2023 at Las Vegas schedule, entry list, and how to watch, NASCAR 2023 at Las Vegas schedule, entry list, and how to watch When you invest in software, you invest in the efficiency of a lot of your people. Carrying too much speed out of the turn, the car drifted out into the grey and the back end began to slide. He competed professionally in motorcycle, sports car, CART, IndyCar, Formula One, and drag racing. RIP, my friend. The starting blast damaged the electronics, and the Funny Car final used a flag start, and Ongais defeated Prudhomme for the win. Tommy Ivo and the five-second Top Fuel run that ignited a controversy, Wheelie neat! But we are trying hard to collect all the information about him and will update you soon. He was that talented. He moved up to the National Hot Rod Association AA Dragster championship and defeated the legendary Don Prudhomme in the 1966 NHRA Nationals in the Top Fuel semifinals. He got his licks in. The Cosworth was hugely powerful, Ongais regularly appearing to dance the car on the rim of disaster on his way to eight pole positions, and when it hung together he tended to win: he racked up five triumphs that year. Staffing has been a top priority at Arrow McLaren for Ward, who says he initially was nave to how hard it is to recruit for talent right now in this sport. [9] Ongais finished 7th, having the best car early in the race. (Though Indianapolis Motor Speedway had listed Ongais as the only Indy 500 driver from Hawaii, Bill Alsup, the 11th-place finisher in the 1981 race also was born in Honolulu, but his racing career primarily was built in the continental U.S.). In the same way the rodeo champion could break anything on four legs, Ongais could tame anything on four wheels. Ongais final attempt at Indianapolis came in 1998, when he failed to qualify in a Team Pelfrey car. Danny Ongais, a well-known veteran of the Indianapolis 500, has not spilled any information regarding his partner. Ill see what I can do help you out. Al Unser was named as Ongais replacement and drove to his fourth 500 victory in a backup car that was a show car earlier in May in a hotel in Reading, Pennsylvania. Did Danny Ongais have children? A semi-serious look at the points battles heading to Pomona, T.V. [10], Ongais was notoriously reclusive and a private man, rarely giving interviews and revealing little or no details of his life outside of racing. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a14578fbd9028fa It is his and his alone. Al was doing his typical thing. In 1982, he ran on only one Indy car race, the Indianapolis 500 (which was still sanctioned by USAC). Faster than he could whip a motorcycle through a turn, Ongais became a drag racer and an instant winner. Weve really tried to stretch ourselves to find the best and the brightest no matter where they live, Scott said. How much he loves IndyCar. RIP Danny Ongais, who passed away Feb.26, 2022, in California of congestive heart failure at age 79. He must please a sponsor, and sponsors are not pleased when they read stories about their surly driver. It is in this last area that Ongais has always failed. Ongais made 11 Indy 500 starts between 1977 and 1996 and placed in the top 10 a total of four times. After starting last season with 61 employees, the Arrow McLaren payroll mushroomed in the offseason. The rides with major teams that could have been his went to less talented but more malleable men. Focusing on more diversity through a Path to the Pits internship program that identifies future talent, Scott has been struck by the interest from youth. People are hungry and people feel like were out here to do damage.. His total assets include stocks, houses, and luxury things like personal luxury boats and planes. We stayed friends over the years, and wed see each other at functions if he showed up. He was known as a fast and daring driver, but he experienced multiple crashes in his career, some resulting in injury. How Harvey found his dream team Another great driver from that era was three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Johnny Rutherford, who recalled one dramatic showdown with Ongais at Michigan International Speedway in the 1978 Norton Twin 200. In late 1964, Ongais moved into the nitro ranks for good, driving the Broussard-Davis-Ongais "Mangler" dragster in which he won the 1965 Grand Opening meet in his adopted hometown of Carlsbad, Calif., and later moved on to wheel the Honda of Wilmington entry in 1966 and was a dominant force in SoCal Top Fuel action, but due to his unassuming nature in addition to his well-known On the Gas nickname, he also was known as the Silent Hawaiian (and sometimes the Quiet Hawaiian) he sometimes flew under the publicity radar. He had previously been inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 1992. Ongais was the only native Hawaiian to compete in the Indianapolis 500. Click to reveal As good as he was on two wheels and all indications are that he was very good he was equally as good or better on four wheels and quickly won the Island Championships and Outstanding Driver of the Year awards. Wife: The blogger is not married. Ongais suffered serious injuries in a head-on crash in the 1981 Indianapolis 500, missing the rest of the season to recover. It was always wide-open throttle. (The fact that we share the same birthday albeit 16 years apart has nothing to do with it.). 32 seat vacated by the late Scott Brayton, Danny Ongais made his last start in the Indy 500 with Team Menard (IndyCar). But there are teams in this paddock that have been investing in software heavily for a decade, and now you want to play catch up in a year. People get to see how much enthusiasm Zak brings. He would retire at Michigan and Miami and fail to qualify at Nazareth. We have an ethos here where we dont necessarily want to do things the way theyve always been done in the IndyCar world. Burny Mattinson cause of death: How did Burny Mattinson die? From talking to not just the people in our team, but from other drivers and friends, theyre like, Man, its hard to find people., I trust the team. WebDanny Ongais, the only Hawaiian to drive in the Indy 500 and one of the most versatile drivers of his era, died Feb. 26 of congestive heart complications in Anaheim Hills, In 1962, Ongais was part of Leongs dragster crew at the Winternationals, where they won the Long Distance and Best Appearing awards. That victory came one year after Thompson tried to enter Ongais into the 1968 Indianapolis 500, but Ongais was denied because he had almost no experience in open-wheel race cars. But were also pretty realistic that you cant rob Peter to pay Paul, so were not always going to be able to hire from motorsports and especially other IndyCar teams. Weve got intense bits of the season. [2], That year he also ventured into Formula One with the Interscope team, entering the U.S. and Canadian Grands Prix at the end of the season in a year-old Penske PC4. Before his championship run with Penske, Ward spent more than 12 years as an aerodynamicist and engineer with the Red Bull F1 team. He did things that guys like me only dream about doing. We were running a race and about 25 laps from the end, there was a caution. And I found her in a magazine and just reached out to her., ST. PETE PRIMER:Schedules, start times and how to watch the 2023 IndyCar season opener, PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS: Its crowded at the top with Ganassi and Penske drivers. Our paths didnt cross a lot away from the track, but when they did, he was a quiet, easygoing guy totally different and opposite outside of the car. Sadly, Ongais crashed in practice and suffered a concussion that sidelined him. Yet he hides everything. The recruitment pitch to join the Arrow McLaren IndyCar team started with the 21st century social media version of a corporate headhunters cold call. Ongais and Field teamed up with success in Formula 5000 and the IndyCar Series in the late 1970s. He and renowned innovator Mickey Thompson set nearly 300 national and international speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in a Mach 1 Mustang during the 1960s. The 1970 season didnt go as well, haunted by parts attrition and at least one fire that burned Ongais. Whether its grabbing a badass mechanic out of World of Outlaws and introducing them to IndyCar. ''He just doesn`t want to let anyone into his life,'' says the friend. 39 on the list of the Top 50 Racers in 2000, the same year that he served as the NHRA California Hot Rod Reunion grand marshal and was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. All we can do is look across what corporations and companies are doing when people tell us we could do better in one space or another, she said. Ongais stared at the money in his hand as if it were something a passing bird had just dropped there. Ongais crashed in practice and suffered a concussion in 1987 at Indianapolis while driving for Team Penske, forcing him to miss the race. Its been a time of tremendous growth for the team, and most of that growth has come since the end of last season, Ward told NBC Sports as many of the new team members scurried past him with fresh parts and data during a break from preseason testing at The Thermal Club in Southern California last month. That was the same year that Ongais became an Indy car winner. First, Penske has said many times, he wants a team player. His death was announced by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway two days later. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. No one even knew much about him, let alone his age. I think the vibe is fantastic. [8] Later in the season, Interscope Racing set up a partnership between themselves and Patrick Racing giving Patrick March 83C-Cosworth DFXs. Copyright 1996-2023, NHRA. Driving for Mickey Thompson, he once put two dragsters into the finals, turned one of them over to Thompson and then beat his mentor. He was a motorcycle champion in Hawaii when he decided to come to the mainland United States and go racing. What a likable guy in every way. Driving for Parnelli Jones, he crashed. How much does an F1 car weigh in 2023 and what's included in the limit? We came together with a big hug. Danny Ongais, a Hawaii native, died Saturday of heart complications in Anaheim Hills, California, according to a news release from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Ongais Indy 500 career ended with him leading in four races for 79 total laps. Drag racing, that's been my life, but for Danny, it was just part of where he wanted to go, and he sure got there.. His expansive Rolodex comes in handy but hasnt been key in expanding to a third car. Danny Ongais passed away on February 26, 2022 at the age of 79. Ongais also survived a spectacular barrel roll at the Michigan 500 at Michigan International Speedway when he ran into the slower car of Phil Krueger on the backstretch. Weve got to take care of our people through those hard stretches, but for the most part, its a little less time away, the travels not quite so far. No information regarding his funeral ceremony has come out yet from the side of his family. Weve expanded our operations pretty significantly, she said. Ongais also began drag racing in the early 60s and became one of the top straight-line competitors in America into the early 1970s. Its a big focus to get the McLaren brand out in the world and do good content, which I think were probably the leading team in that sense now. The guys in IndyCar racing called him The Ghost from the Coast. , (Be sure to read the end of this column for more from Prudhomme, who says some very kind and impressive things about Ongais.). On the starting line, his rival`s car broke, spilling its oil. I mean, listen I've done well in drag racing, and I've driven Top Fuel and Funny Car, but so had Danny, but he even went two or three steps further, driving an Indy car and hauling ass and in IMSA cars. He did his own thing. In Sundays Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Gundlach and Hackenberg (a damper specialist who also works on pit stops) will begin their third year together in the engineering department of Arrow McLaren as the team enters its most critical season yet in trying to become a perennial powerhouse championship contender. Ward said McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown, who also oversees the F1 team, attended more IndyCar races last year and will continue to be a more constant presence this year as the team ramps up. A fearless figure on the racing circuit, Ongais was nicknamed "On-Gas" and "The Flyin' Hawaiian."[1]. One long-running debate we had was: Who was Hawaiis greatest drag racer?, I was/am still solidly in the Roland Leong camp. Although Ongais won more Indy car races than any other driver that year, a combination of mechanical problems and low finishes in other races meant he would only finish 8th in the 1978 USAC Indy car championship. How much does an F1 car weigh in 2023 and what's included in the limit? Pole-sitter Scott Brayton suffered fatal injuries in a post-qualifying practice crash, and team owner John Menard hired Ongais as the replacement driver. Ongais qualified 27th and finished 4th. Ongais was known to be a hermit and quiet man who did not give many meetings and uncovered the least about his life outside of bullying. He proved it again in that race and got the job done.. Honda reveals Civic Type R pace car for IndyCar events, Ranking the top 10 IndyCar drivers of 2021, The top 10 IndyCar drivers of 2021 That 1978 season also included Ongais starting in the middle of the first all-200-mph front row at Indianapolis, between pole-sitter Sneva and rookie Rick Mears. NASCAR 2023 at Las Vegas schedule, entry list, and how to watch, F1 Bahrain Grand Prix: How to watch on TV in the USA on ESPN, F1 Bahrain Grand Prix: How to watch on TV in the USA on ESPN Ongais died from congestive heart failure in Anaheim Hills, California, on February 26, 2022, at the age of 79. Thats the way he drove, too. 2 at 11:30 a.m. Casual attire; flowers and lei are welcomed He is survived by wife, Patricia P. Ongais of Keaau; daughters, Deneen (Nathan) Ongais Louie of Hilo, Renee (Clarence) Ongais-Salvador of Mt. Ongais next drove in CART during the 1983 CART/PPG World Series season, first appearing at the 1983 Indianapolis 500. 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