NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

NHRA team owner and former national event-winning Funny Car driver Don Schumacher will be among the seven inductees into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2019.

The Class of 2019 will be enshrined into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in its 31st annual induction ceremony next March in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Joining Schumacher in the hall will be popular motorsports ambassador and iconic race queen Linda Vaughn, a familiar face to NHRA fans, as well as automotive and racing pioneer Augie Duesenberg, three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti, sports car engineering genius Phil Remington, motorcycle road racing world champion Kevin Schwantz, and stock-car legend Tony Stewart.

“Deserving and dynamic are two words that come to mind when I think of the accomplished men and woman that comprise the Class of 2019,” Motorsports Hall of Fame of America President Ron Watson said. “This group has won hundreds of races and dozens of championships in competition and the hearts and adoration of millions of race fans both at and away from the track.”

Schumacher’s first career in drag racing was impressive but his second has made him one of the all-time greats. As a Funny Car pilot, “The Shoe” won the 1972 Coca-Cola Cavalcade of Stars, the 1973 AHRA World Championship, five NHRA national events and about 70 percent of his 560 match races. He retired from driving to devote more time to his business and family. Since his return more than a decade later, Don Schumacher Racing has amassed 16 NHRA world championships, including son Tony’s eight titles, and more than 300 wins. DSR was the first team to win Top Fuel and Funny Car titles in the same year, which it has done four times.

Vaughn, the “First Lady of Motorsports,” transformed the role of beauty queen into an enduring ambassadorship. It’s hard to imagine anyone more beloved by fans and racers alike in the history of the sport. The Dalton, Ga., native carved her own niche after winning the Miss Atlanta Raceway title in 1961 and Miss Pure Firebird immediately thereafter. Best known for her long association with Hurst Industries, where she became “Miss Hurst Golden Shifter” after besting 200 contestants for the title. Already recognized by the MSHFA, she was presented with the Bob Russo Heritage Award in 2004.

Previous drag racing inductees include Don Garlits (1989), Shirley Muldowney (1990), Don Prudhomme (1991), Connie Kalitta (1992), NHRA founder Wally Parks (1993), Bob Glidden (1994), Keith Black (1995), Bill Jenkins (1996), Art Chrisman (1997), Don Nicholson (1998), C. J. Hart (1999), Danny Ongais (2000), Tom McEwen (2001), Eddie Hill (2002), Ed Donovan (2003), Joe Amato (2004), Tommy Ivo (2005), Chris Karamesines (2006), Sox & Martin (2007).John Force (2008), Kenny Bernstein (2009), Dale Armstrong (2010), Ed McCulloch (2011), Ed Pink (2012), Jack Chrisman (2013), Raymond Beadle (2014), Warren Johnson (2015), Dave McClelland (2016), and Paula Murphy (2017),

For more information, visit the MSHFA at www.mshf.com.