Shirl Greer, who won the 1974 NHRA Funny Car world championship in dramatic fashion, died March 12 from complications of colon-cancer surgery. He was 75.

Greer, formerly of Warner Robins, Ga., but most recently living in Kingsport, Tenn., is best remembered for his heroic efforts at the 1974 World Finals at Ontario Motor Speedway in California, the final event of the season. Greer was locked in a tight championship battle with Don Prudhomme, Paul Smith, and Frank Hall when his Mustang Funny Car suffered a massive engine failure on a Saturday qualifying pass and the resulting fire destroyed the entire rear half of the car's body.

Fortunately for Greer, Smith and Hall failed to qualify, but Greer suffered painful burns to his hands and figured that his championship bid was through; however, overnight a multitude of people jumped in to repair the body with a patchwork of tin and fiberglass, and Greer decided to give it a go anyway. Al Hanna loaned Greer his firesuit and helmet to replace Greer's damaged equipment, and Prudhomme displayed sportsmanship by providing a set of gloves to cover Greer's burned hands.

Greer won his first-round match with Leroy Chadderton, but a blower explosion in the lights further damaged the body. Again, Greer's fellow competitors leapt into action, but before they could complete the work, Prudhomme was upset in round two by Dale Pulde to secure the championship for Greer.

Earlier that year, Greer had won his first and only NHRA national event title, at Le Grandnational in Montreal, but also used key wins at divisional races to boost his score.

Greer began his racing career in 1952 with a flathead-powered '39 Ford that he ran while serving in the Air Force. He later competed in Super Stock with a 413 Dodge and in A/FX with a Hemi-powered Dodge, campaigning under his familiar Tension name. As FX transitioned into the Funny Car class, Greer was right there with a series of Mopar entries and in 1970 even held the national record at 7.40 with a Charger-bodied entry. After a brief stint in Billy Holt's car, he built the Mustang with which he won the world championship. He campaigned his own equipment through the end of the decade before partnering with Larry Coogle in the early 1980s, then returned again to his own equipment. A mid-1980s fire at his business forced him to the sidelines for several years, but he returned to racing briefly in 1989 with an experimental B-4 overhead cam engine before retiring.

Greer is survived by wife Deborah and sons Van, Rusty, and Brian.