Marvin Eugene "Tony" Bettenhausen (born September 12, 1916 in Tinley Park, Illinois – died May 12, 1961 in Indianapolis, Indiana) was an American racing driver who competed in the Indianapolis 500 rounds of the Formula One World Championship. While he failed to win the event, Bettenhausen was the only driver to start all of the eleven races that counted towards the championship (Paul Russo entered all eleven, but only started eight).
He scored 11 points, scoring one shared second place, two fourths, one shared fifth and one point for the fastest (leading) lap at the 1958 race. He also scored one front row in 1955.
Bettenhausen was one of the more accomplished drivers of his era in American open-wheeled racing. He won the National Championship in both 1951 and 1958, and was posthumously named in the "Greatest 33", a compilation of the greatest 33 drivers to compete in the Indy 500, as the only driver to not win the race as a driver or an owner.
His three sons, Gary, Mette and Tony Jr. all competed in IndyCar. Bettenhausen was killed during practice for the 1961 Indy 500, while testing a car for Russo.
Formula One Career[]
In America[]
Bettenhausen drove his first Indy 500 in 1946.
50's Indy 500s[]
Death[]
Formula One Statistical Overview[]
Formula One Record[]
| Year | Entrant | Team | WDC Points | WDC Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Blue Crown Spark Plug/Moore Wolfe |
Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 1 | 21st |
| 1951 | Mobiloil/Rotary Engineering | Deidt-Offenhauser | 0 | NC |
| 1952 | Blue Crown Spark Plug/Earl Slick | Deidt-Offenhauser | 0 | NC |
| 1953 | J. C. Agajanian | Kuzma-Offenhauser | 0 | NC |
| 1954 | Mel Wiggers Automobile Shippers/Casaroll |
Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 0 | NC |
| 1955 | H. A. Chapman | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 3 | 13th |
| 1956 | Belanger Motors | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | 0 | NC |
| 1957 | Novi Racing | Kurtis Kraft-Novi | 0 | NC |
| 1958 | Jones & Maley Cars | Epperly-Offenhauser | 4 | 17th |
| 1959 | Hoover Motor Express | Epperly-Offenhauser | 3 | 16th |
| 1960 | Lindsey Hopkins | Watson-Offenhauser | 0 | NC |
Career Statistics[]
| Entries | 11 |
| Starts | 11 |
| Pole Positions | 0 |
| Front Row Starts | 1 |
| Race Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Fastest Laps | 1 |
| Points | 11 |
| Laps Raced | 1612 |
| Distance Raced | 6,485 km (4,030 mi) |
| Races Led | 1 |
| Laps Led | 24 |
| Distance Led | 97 km (60 mi) |
Career Results[]
| Complete Formula One Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | Pts | Pos | ||||||||||||
| 1950 | 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 | 21st | ||||||||||||||||
| 5th[1] Ret |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1951 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | |||||||||||||||
| Ret | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1952 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | |||||||||||||||
| Ret | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1953 | 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | ||||||||||||||
| 9th[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1954 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | ||||||||||||||
| 15th[3] Ret |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1955 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3 | 13th | ||||||||||||
| 2nd[4] | C | C | C | C | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1956 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | |||||||||||||||
| Ret | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1957 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | |||||||||||||||
| 15th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1958 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4 | 17th | ||||||||||||
| 4th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1959 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3 | 16th | ||||||||||||||
| 4th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1960 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0 | NC | |||||||||||||
| Ret | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Key | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Meaning | Symbol | Meaning | ||
| 1st | Winner | Ret | Retired | ||
| 2nd | Podium finish | DSQ | Disqualified | ||
| 3rd | DNQ | Did not qualify | |||
| 5th | Points finish | DNPQ | Did not pre-qualify | ||
| 14th | Non-points finish | TD | Test driver | ||
| Italics | Fastest Lap | DNS | Did not start | ||
| 18th† | Classified finish (retired with >90% race distance) | NC | Non-classified finish (<90% race distance) | ||
| 4thP | Qualified for pole position | [+] More Symbols | |||
Notes[]
- ↑ Shared drive with Joie Chitwood, points shared
- ↑ Shared drive with Chuck Stevenson and Gene Hartley
- ↑ Shared drive with Duane Carter, Marshall Teague and Jimmy Jackson
- ↑ Shared drive with Paul Russo, points shared
External links[]
| v·d·e | Nominate this page for Featured Article |