Rodger Ward won the Indianapolis 500 on May 30 with a new record average speed of 135.857 mph, earning $106,850 for 3 hours, 40 minutes, and 20 seconds of driving. He went on to win the 200 miler at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and 100 milers at Du Quoin, Illinois, and Indianapolis. In four other races he was second twice and third twice, and at season's end he had nearly twice as many championship points as defending champion Tony Bettenhausen. That record made Ward only the third driver to win both the Indianapolis 500 and the AAA National Championship in the same year; Wilbur Shaw became the first in 1939, Bob Weikert the second in 1955.

Stock Car Racing

The annual stock car race at Daytona Beach, Florida, moved from the beach to a brand new $3 million, 2-1/2-mile paved speedway on February 22. The first NASCAR Grand National Daytona 500 stock car race drew 47,000 spectators, all of whom were standing for the final 47 miles of the race as Lee Petty in an Oldsmobile and Johnny Beauchamp in a Thunderbird swapped the lead. Joe Weatherly was also running fast with them, but he was a lap down. As the three came around the final turn Beauchamp went low, Weatherly went high, and Petty took the middle. All three cars seemed to cross the finish line at the same time, leaving it to chief steward John Brunner, Sr. to determine the winner. Unfortunately, the checkered flag had flapped in Brunner's face, obscuring his view, and other officials were watching from the wrong angle to tell. Beauchamp was given the trophy, but Petty protested immediately. The Daytona News-Journal ran a request on its front page for any photographer who had a shot of the finish to come forward and amateur photographer Bob Torbal of Duluth, Minnesota, produced a key photo from the pit area. It took 61 hours for Bill France, Sr., to finally declare that Petty had won the race, by 18 inches. Petty's share of the prize purse was $18,000.

Approximately 80,000 fans saw five-time national short-track champion Jim Reed win the 10th Southern 500 at Darlington, South Carolina, averaging a record 111.836 mph in his Chevrolet Impala.

Lee Petty won a total of 11 races in 1959 (including the Daytona 500) to successfully defend his driver championship.

Sports Car Racing

In March Phil Hill and Oliver Gendebein won the 9th Annual Florida Grand Prix of Endurance in a Ferrari. Hill and his Ferrari also triumphed at the 2nd U.S. Grand Prix at Riverside, California, in October.

Stirling Moss won the revived Watkins Glen race in a Cooper Climax, in October.

Jack Brabham won the World Driver Championship.

Fatalities

England's world champion Mike Hawthorn died in a highway accident in early January, only a few days after announcing his retirement from racing.

Ed Lawrence, Henry Beamer, and Jean Behra were sports car fatalities.

Marshall Teague died while attempting a closed course speed record in a reconfigured Indy car at the new Daytona International Speedway. On February 9 he set an unofficial record of 171.821 mph in a "Sumar Special" Streamliner. His attempt the next day was aborted when a cut left rear tire forced him to pit. On the 11th, while running at an estimated 140 miles per hour, his car spun and flipped through the third turn. Teague was thrown, seat and all, from his car and died nearly instantly.

George Amick died at the end of a 100-mile Formula 1 race at the Daytona Speedway on April 5. While Jim Rathmann was taking the checkered flag, Amick was battling Bob Christie for third when, for reasons unknown, his Bowes Seal Fast Special suddenly went out of control, nosed under the inner guardrail, and rolled violently several times.

During a USAC Champ Car event at Trenton (New Jersey) Speedway on April 19, Dick Linder tried to avoid hitting Don Branson, who was spinning in front of him. His racer crashed through the guard rail and rolled over once, landing on its wheels. Linder, who was 36 years old, died of a broken neck.

Jerry Unser was running practice laps at Indianapolis when he lost control coming out of turn 4. The car spun, hit the wall, and caught fire. Unser died of burns two weeks later, on May 17. Indianapolis claimed another driver on May 19, when Ben Cortner lost control of his car during a practice run, probably due to a harsh crosswind. The car slid to the infield before shooting back across the track head-first into the outside wall.

Dale Van Johnson was killed in a third-lap crash in a non-championship race at Williams Grove (Pennsylvania) Speedway on July 19, when his car somehow got tangled up with the car of Joe Barzda, who escaped with minor inuries.

In the Year 1959

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