Paul Goldsmith and Pat Patrick will be the 151st and 152nd inductees to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Auto Racing Hall of Fame.
Founded in 1952, the museum will induct Goldsmith and Patrick in conjunction with an annual meeting of the Indianapolis 500 Oldtimers.
No matter what form of racing a fan enjoys, Goldsmith is likely to be relevant. In 1954, he won the American Motorcyclist Association championship and followed a path already blazed blazed by another motorcycle superstar Joe Weatherly. Goldsmith joined Smokey Yunick in NASCAR in 1956 and the finished fourth in their second race together. Goldsmith won his first Cup race at Langhorne Speedway in his eighth start later that season.
Goldsmith was also a United States Auto Club (USAC) stock car championship in 1961 and 1962.
His open wheel achievements were rare, but Goldsmith entered six Indy 500s and finished third in the 1960 Indy 500.
E. “Pat” Patrick was more successful at Indy, but not as a driver. His fame came as an owner with three winning cars in the Indianapolis 500.
As an owner, Patrick scored 45 victories in USAC’s open wheel division and in Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) competition.
Patrick’s drivers won the 1973 and 1982 Indy 500s with Gordon Johncock behind the week. In 1989, he found his way to Victory Lane again with Emerson Fittipaldi.
Patrick’s eye for talent was great and two of the five winningest drivers in the series history were included in his stable. Mario Andretti and Al Unser Sr. were joined by other notable greats Johnny Rutherford, Wally Dallenbach Sr., Chip Ganassi, and Jimmy Vasser.
Goldsmith and Patrick will be honored on May 26, 2016.
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