| Birth name | John Gibson Boyd |
|---|---|
| Birth date | August 19, 1926 |
| Birth place | Fresno, California, U.S. |
| Death date | October 26, 2003 (aged 77) |
| Death place | Fresno, California, U.S. |
| Years | 1952, 1954–1967 |
|---|---|
| Total champ races | 55 |
| Years in champ | 15 |
| Best champ pos | 6th – 1956 |
| First champ race | 1954 Langhorne 100 (Langhorne) |
| Last champ race | 1966 Hoosier Grand Prix (IRP) |
| Champ wins | 0 |
| Champ podiums | 5 |
| Champ poles | 3 |
| Years | – |
|---|---|
| Teams | Kurtis Kraft, Epperly |
| Races | 6 |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Points | 4 |
| Poles | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First race | 1955 Indianapolis 500 |
| Last race | 1960 Indianapolis 500 |
Johnny Boyd[1] (August 19, 1926 – October 26, 2003) was an American racecar driver.
Racing career
Born in Fresno, California, Boyd drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series from 1954 to 1966 with 56 starts. He finished in the top-ten 31 times, with his best finish in second position, in 1959 at Milwaukee.
Boyd qualified for the Indianapolis 500 for the first time in 1955 but finished 29th after being involved in an accident that killed driver Bill Vukovich. In a dozen starts, his best race was in 1958, when he led 18 laps and finished 3rd. In total, he finished in the top-ten at the 500 five times.
After 1949, Boyd had become close friends with Bob Sweikert of Hayward, California when he met him on the California racing circuit. The two often raced together, and Boyd qualified for entry in the 1955 Indianapolis 500 when Sweikert helped him overcome mechanical handling problems in Boyd's car. Sweikert won the race that day, but was overshadowed by the death of Vukovich. Boyd also raced against Sweikert in 1956 at Indy, but Sweikert was killed several weeks later in a Sprint car race.[2]
Boyd retired as a driver after failing to qualify for the Indy 500 and Milwaukee race in 1967. He died of cancer at age 77 in his hometown of Fresno.
Awards
In 1966, Boyd was inducted into the Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame.[3] He was named to the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2010.
Indianapolis 500 results
| Year | Car | Start | Qual | Rank | Finish | Laps | Led | Retired |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | 39 | 26 | 136.981 | 26 | 29 | 53 | 0 | Crash BS |
| 1956 | 15 | 12 | 142.337 | 19 | 30 | 35 | 0 | Engine trouble |
| 1957 | 6 | 5 | 142.102 | 10 | 6 | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 1958 | 9 | 8 | 144.023 | 9 | 3 | 200 | 18 | Running |
| 1959 | 33 | 11 | 142.812 | 16 | 6 | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 1960 | 8 | 13 | 143.770 | 18 | 27 | 77 | 0 | Piston |
| 1961 | 41 | 20 | 144.092 | 32 | 21 | 105 | 0 | Clutch |
| 1962 | 38 | 28 | 147.047 | 14 | 10 | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 1963 | 23 | 27 | 148.038 | 29 | 32 | 12 | 0 | Oil Leak |
| 1964 | 88 | 13 | 151.835 | 18 | 5 | 200 | 0 | Running |
| 1965 | 14 | 29 | 155.172 | 19 | 13 | 140 | 0 | Gearbox |
| 1966 | 28 | 14 | 159.384 | 21 | 22 | 5 | 0 | Crash T1 |
| Totals | 1427 | 18 | ||||||
| Starts | 12 |
|---|---|
| Poles | 0 |
| Front Row | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Top 5 | 2 |
| Top 10 | 5 |
| Retired | 7 |
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(key)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Sumar / Chapman Root | Kurtis Kraft 500D | Offenhauser L4 | ARG | MON | 500 29 | BEL | NED | GBR | ITA | NC | 0 | ||||
| 1956 | Bowes Seal Fast / Bignotti | Kurtis Kraft 500E | Offenhauser L4 | ARG | MON | 500 30 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | ITA | NC | 0 | |||
| 1957 | Bowes Seal Fast / Bignotti | Kurtis Kraft 500G | Offenhauser L4 | ARG | MON | 500 6 | FRA | GBR | GER | PES | ITA | NC | 0 | |||
| 1958 | Bowes Seal Fast Racing | Kurtis Kraft 500G | Offenhauser L4 | ARG | MON | NED | 500 3 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | POR | ITA | MOR | 16th | 4 |
| 1959 | Bowes Seal Fast / Bignotti | Epperly Indy Roadster | Offenhauser L4 | MON | 500 6 | NED | FRA | GBR | GER | POR | ITA | USA | NC | 0 | ||
| 1960 | Bowes Seal Fast Racing | Epperly Indy Roadster | Offenhauser L4 | ARG | MON | 500 27 | NED | BEL | FRA | GBR | POR | ITA | USA | NC | 0 |
References
- ^ "Johnny Boyd". www.champcarstats.com. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
- ^ Dorie Sweikert, Along For the Ride-A Love Story, (1998, Nicholas Ward Publishing, LLC.), no longer in print, reprinted under new publisher ca. 2005
- ^ "Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame | Home". Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame | Home. Archived from the original on 2017-07-31. Retrieved 2017-02-02.