Dick Thompson (racing driver)
Removed red link
| ← Previous revision | Revision as of 00:42, 23 April 2026 | ||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Short description|American racing driver (1920–2014)}} |
{{Short description|American racing driver (1920–2014)}} |
||
[[Image:DrDickThompsonTheFlyingDentistVIR2007.jpg|thumb|right|Dr. Dick Thompson in 2007]] |
[[Image:DrDickThompsonTheFlyingDentistVIR2007.jpg|thumb|right|Dr. Dick Thompson in 2007]] |
||
'''Richard Knight Thompson, Jr.''' (July 9, 1920 – September 14, 2014) was an American racecar driver. A [[Washington, D.C.]] dentist by trade, he is known as "The Flying Dentist". He won numerous [[Sports Car Club of America]] (SCCA) championships and was inducted into the |
'''Richard Knight Thompson, Jr.''' (July 9, 1920 – September 14, 2014) was an American racecar driver. A [[Washington, D.C.]] dentist by trade, he is known as "The Flying Dentist". He won numerous [[Sports Car Club of America]] (SCCA) championships and was inducted into the Corvette Hall of Fame. Thompson brought credibility to the Corvette as a world-class sports car.[http://www.corvettemuseum.com/library-archives/hof/thompson.shtml Biography] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111014063923/http://www.corvettemuseum.com/library-archives/hof/thompson.shtml |date=2011-10-14 }}; [[National Corvette Museum]]; Retrieved October 22, 2007 Active from the late 1950s until the 1970s, Thompson raced for several notable racers, including the factory Corvette team for [[John Fitch (driver)|John Fitch]] and [[Briggs Cunningham]]. |
||
Thompson started racing in 1952 in one of the first 12-hour races at [[Sebring International Raceway]].[http://www.vintageracecar.com/pages/thismonth.cgi?magid=8&magiid=9 Interview: Dr. Dick Thompson] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060924011308/http://vintageracecar.com/pages/thismonth.cgi?magid=8&magiid=9 |date=2006-09-24 }}; John Wright; October 2007 ''Vintage Racecar Journal''; October 22, 2007 He drove to the track in his [[MG Cars|MG]] [[MG T-type#TD|TD]], and co-drove the car to an eighth-place finish. He caught Corvette engineer [[Zora Arkus-Duntov]]'s eye in 1956, when Thompson was the only driver to compete in a production Corvette. He won the SCCA championship in his Corvette in 1956, 1957, 1960, 1961 and 1962 in Classes A, B and C. He was selected to test drive a new Corvette Grand Sport at Sebring in December 1962. In 1963, he drove a [[Chevrolet Corvette|Corvette]] Grand Sport to victory at [[Watkins Glen International]]. He took third place that year at [[Daytona International Speedway]] and won the GT class in 1970. |
Thompson started racing in 1952 in one of the first 12-hour races at [[Sebring International Raceway]].[http://www.vintageracecar.com/pages/thismonth.cgi?magid=8&magiid=9 Interview: Dr. Dick Thompson] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060924011308/http://vintageracecar.com/pages/thismonth.cgi?magid=8&magiid=9 |date=2006-09-24 }}; John Wright; October 2007 ''Vintage Racecar Journal''; October 22, 2007 He drove to the track in his [[MG Cars|MG]] [[MG T-type#TD|TD]], and co-drove the car to an eighth-place finish. He caught Corvette engineer [[Zora Arkus-Duntov]]'s eye in 1956, when Thompson was the only driver to compete in a production Corvette. He won the SCCA championship in his Corvette in 1956, 1957, 1960, 1961 and 1962 in Classes A, B and C. He was selected to test drive a new Corvette Grand Sport at Sebring in December 1962. In 1963, he drove a [[Chevrolet Corvette|Corvette]] Grand Sport to victory at [[Watkins Glen International]]. He took third place that year at [[Daytona International Speedway]] and won the GT class in 1970. |
||
