Janet Guthrie Career Highlights


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Indianapolis 500, 1978


    Championship (Indianapolis) Cars

  • Ninth, Indianapolis 500, 1978, out of 92 entrants, 33 starters

  • Fifth, Bettenhausen 200, Milwaukee, 1979

  • Qualified 4th to A.J. Foyt, Danny Ongais, and Johnny Parsons,
    Pocono 500, 1979

  • Set fastest time of day on opening day of practice, Indianapolis 500,
    May 1977; set fastest time of any driver the second weekend
    of qualifications, May 1977

  • Holder of women's world closed-course speed record from 1976,
    raised to 191.002 mph while qualifying for Indy 500, 1978.
    First woman to enter the 500 and pass the rookie test (1976).
    First woman to qualify for and race in the Indianapolis 500
    (1977, 1978, 1979)


NASCAR Winston Cup Stock Cars  (currently called Sprint Cup, the top level in NASCAR)

  • 1977 NASCAR Winston Cup rookie season of 19 races. Finished in top 12 ten times. Best finish 6th.
    (Chevrolet Laguna)

  • Top rookie at Rockingham, Charlotte, Richmond, Bristol, and at the Daytona 500, 1977

  • Out-qualified Bill Elliott, Ricky Rudd, Richard Petty, David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Neil Bonnett, and
    Johnny Rutherford, Talladega 500, Aug. 1977. Qualified and/or finished ahead of Bill Elliott in 7 out of
    the 10 races in which both ran; qual. and/or fin. ahead of Dale Earnhardt in 2 out of the 3 in which both
    ran; qualified and/or finished ahead of Johnny Rutherford in all 3 races in which both ran, 1977-78

  • First woman ever to compete in Daytona 500; finished 11th (1980) and 12th (1977)

  • Led Times 500 at Ontario, California, Nov. 1977

  • First woman to compete in a NASCAR superspeedway race, Charlotte World 600, May 1976
    (finished 15th out of 40 starters)

Other

  • Drove for Peugeot factory team in endurance races (SCCA USEC and IMSA Firehawk) in
    1985 and 1986.
    First SSB, "Longest Day" 24-Hour, June 1985

  • Drove two Trans-Am races in 1978; 4th in Category II at Watkins Glen and 4th overall at Mexico City
    (Turbo Porsche Carrera)

  • Fifty-one races with own Toyota Celica B Sedan, 1973-75. Constructed, prepared and maintained it

  • North Atlantic Road Racing Champion, 1973 (Celica)

  • First overall, New York 400, Bridgehampton, 1971 (Camaro)

  • First in class, Sebring 12-Hour, 1970 (Under 2 Liter Prototype) and 1967 (GT-6)

  • Successful finishes in nine consecutive runnings of the Daytona 24-Hour, Sebring 12-Hour, and
    Watkins Glen 500

  • Prepared and campaigned own Jaguar XK 140, 1963-67