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Andy Granatelli

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Sports Executive

The Resume

    (March 18, 1923-December 29, 2013)
    Born in Dallas, Texas
    Birth name was Anthony Granatelli
    President/CEO of STP fuel and oil additives
    Former Race Car driver
    Vice chairman of NASCAR
    President of Hurricane Racing Association, Inc.
    Designed and owned cutting-edge cars raced at the Indianapolis 500
    Gained notoriety by re-introducing the Novi engine
    Best known entries were his turbine-powered cars in 1967 and 1968
    Drivers included Richard Petty, Parnelli Jones, Gordon Johncock, Al and Bobby Unser.

Why he might be annoying:

    He titled his autobiography 'They Call Me Mr. 500.'
    This despite the fact that he drove the speedway just once, crashing in the qualifying rounds in 1948 (He broke both shoulders and lost 11 teeth).
    He billed himself as Antonio the Great, an Italian rocket-car driver, at the Chicago garage he ran.
    He was famous for his Hurricane events, geared towards drivers who were experts at surviving roll-over and end-over crashes.
    He would hand out STP hats and T-shirts during public appearances.
    He made his pit crews wear flamboyant white coveralls with the oval STP logo scattered all over them, and once wore a suit jacket with the same STP-laden design.
    USAC banned his Turbine car after Parnelli Jones led 197 laps of the 200-lap race until a gear bearing failed.
    He famously gave Mario Andretti a kiss on the cheek in Victory Lane after his 1969 win before the 'Festival Queen' could, which is rumored to have began the infamous Indianapolis 500's 'Andretti curse.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He grew up poor in Chicago.
    He first worked as an auto mechanic, modifying engines into racing-quality equipment at speed shops.
    As chief driver and engineer for Studebaker Racing, he set 400 speed records.
    In less than a decade, he boosted STP's annual sales from $2 million to $100 million.
    Cars he sponsored twice won the Indianapolis 500.
    He promoted hot rod and stock car races throughout the Midwest with one of the biggest quarter mile crowds ever, 89,560 people at Soldiers’ Field in Chicago.
    At 62, he drove a street-legal 1982 Camaro more than 241 mph at a test track (he said it was the car he used to commute to work every day).
    He allegedly attended every Indianapolis 500, whether as a participant or as a spectator, from 1946 to 2012 (he did not attend in 2013 and died later that year).
    He was inducted into 19 engineering and motor-sports halls of fame, including, in 2002, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's.
    His kissing Andretti is one of the most iconic images to come out of the Indianapolis 500.

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying