Wally Campbell
Wally Campbell ( July 16, 1926 – July 17, 1954) of Trenton, New Jersey was a stock car, midget, and sprint car racer. He was the 1951 NASCAR Modified champion and the 1953 AAA Eastern Division Sprint car rookie of the year. Campbell was killed practicing for an AAA Midwestern Division sprint car race at Salem, Indiana on July 17, 1954. He was one day past his 28th birthday.
Career highlights
Campbell began his stock car career at Flemington Fairgrounds in New Jersey in 1947 where he promptly rolled the car over. By the end of 1947 he was the champion of the newly formed American Stock Car Racing Association (ASCRA). He finished 6th in points in 1948, then won the title in both 1949 and 1950. 1951 brought the NASCAR Modified title and in 1952 he finished second in points to Buck Baker in the NASCAR Speedway Division. In 1953 he won five AAA sprint car races after getting a late start in August. He attempted qualifying at Indianapolis in 1954 but was sent home to get "more experience". He made two AAA Championship Car race starts later that year at Langhorne Speedway and Darlington Speedway but failed to finish in both races. He was leading the AAA Eastern Division in points at the time of his death.
Awards
He was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2011.[1]
References
- ↑ "13 Inductees set as Class of 2011 for National Sprint Car Hall of Fame". National Sprint Car Hall of Fame. Retrieved 8 July 2011.