Ned Jarrett
| Ned Jarrett | |||||||
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Ned Jarrett working for MRN
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| Born |
October 12, 1932 Conover, North Carolina, U.S. |
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| Achievements |
1961, 1965 Grand National Champion 1957, 1958 Sportsman Division Champion 1965 Southern 500 Winner Led Grand National Series in wins 2 times (1964, 1965) |
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| Awards | Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers (1998) Myers Brothers Memorial Award (1964, 1965, 1982, 1983) National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame (1972) North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame inductee (1990) International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee (1991) Oceanside Rotary Club Stock Car Hall of Fame inductee (1992) National Auto Racing Hall of Fame inductee (United States) (1992) American Auto Race Writers & Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame inductee (1992) Jacksonville, Florida Speedway Hall of Fame inductee (1993) Motorsports Hall of Fame of America inductee (1997) Talladega Walk of Fame inductee (1997) Hickory Metro Sports Hall of Fame inductee (2001) NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee (2011) |
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| Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 352 races run over 13 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 1st (1961, 1965) | ||||||
| First race | 1953 (Hickory) | ||||||
| Last race | 1966 American 500 (Rockingham) | ||||||
| First win | 1959 (Myrtle Beach) | ||||||
| Last win | 1965 Tidewater 300 (Moyock) | ||||||
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| Statistics current as of May 3, 2013. | |||||||
Ned Jarrett (born October 12, 1932) is a retired race car driver and two-time NASCAR Grand National Series champion.
He was best known for his calm demeanor and he became known as "Gentleman Ned Jarrett", yet he was an intense competitor when he put both of his hands on the steering wheel of a NASCAR Grand National stock car. He is the father of former driver Dale Jarrett and grandfather of Jason Jarrett.
Jarrett was introduced to cars early in life: his father let him drive the family car to church on Sunday mornings when he was nine years old. Ned started working for his father in the sawmill by the time he was 12, but racing was what he wanted.
Ned drove in his first race in 1952 at Hickory Motor Speedway (North Carolina). He drove a Sportsman (now XFinity) series Ford that he co-owned with his brother-in-law, and finished tenth. This did not go over well with his father. His father told him he could work on cars but not drive them. Once, his brother-in-law was sick for a race and asked Ned to fill in for him. Ned used his brother-in-law's name and came in second in that race. That worked out so smoothly that Ned drove in a few more races under an assumed name, but was finally caught by his father after winning a race. His father told him if he was going to drive to at least use his own name.
Jarrett raced in his first Grand National (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) series race at the 1953 Southern 500 at Darlington Speedway. He was out after 10 laps after the engine leaked oil.
Jarrett was the 1955 track champion at Hickory Motor Speedway.
Jarrett came in second driving in the Sportsman series in 1956, and won the 1957 and 1958 championships.
In 1959, he was looking to pursue a career in the Grand National series. He purchased a Junior Johnson Ford for $2,000. He did not have enough money to cover the check, so he waited until the bank closed to write the check, entered two races, and won them both to cover the cost of his car.
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