Walt Hansgen

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:More citations needed {{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters | check | ignoreblank = y | unknown = Template:Main other | preview = Page using Template:Infobox F1 driver with unknown parameter "_VALUE_" | embed | child | subbox | name | Name | image | Image | image_size | upright | image_upright | alt | caption | birth_name | birth_date | birth_place | death_date | death_place | relations | relatives | nationality | Nationality | years | Years | teams | Teams | Team(s) | team | Team | engines | Engines | current_team | current team | Current team | 2025 Team | 2026 Team | car_number | car number | Car number | races | Races | championships | Championships | wins | Wins | podiums | Podiums | points | Points | poles | Poles | fastest_laps | fastest laps | Fastest laps | first_race | first race | First race | first_win | first win | First win | last_win | last win | Last win | last_race | last race | Last race | last_position | last position | Last position | last_season | last season | Last season | bf1_years | bf1 years | BF1 Years | bf1_races | bf1 races | BF1 Races | bf1_championships | bf1 championships | BF1 Championships | bf1_wins | bf1 wins | BF1 Wins | bf1_podiums | bf1 podiums | BF1 Podiums | bf1_points | bf1 points | BF1 Points | bf1_poles | bf1 poles | BF1 Poles | bf1_fastest_laps | bf1 fastest laps | BF1 Fastest laps | signature | signature_size | signature alt | signature_alt | website | module | module1 | module2 | module3 | module4 | module5 | record template1 | record template2 | record template3 | record template4 | record template5 | career template1 | career template2 | career template3 | career template4 | career template5 | updated | Updated }} Walter Edwin Hansgen (October 28, 1919 – April 7, 1966) was an American racecar driver. His motorsport career began as a road racing driver, he made his Grand Prix debut at 41 and he died aged 46, several days after crashing during testing for the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Racing career

A four-time SCCA Road Racing Champ, Hansgen participated in two Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on October 8, 1961, at Watkins Glen, New York. He scored a total of two championship points. In 1964 he raced the MG Liquid Suspension Special, an Offenhauser-powered car, for Kjell Qvale, at the Indianapolis 500. He finished 13th in that race. He raced there again in 1965, in the MG-Huffaker-Offenhauser, when he finished 14th.

In addition to Formula One, Walt Hansgen was a dominant road racer from the early 1950s and 1960s, winning numerous races at VIR, the famed course at Bridgehampton, and Watkins Glen through to his death at Le Mans in France in 1966.

He drove for Briggs Cunningham and John Mecom. Hansgen won the Formula Junior race at the inaugural United States Grand Prix meeting at Sebring, Florida, on December 12, 1959, driving a Stanguellini.<ref>Competition Press, December 31, 1959, Page 8.</ref> Hansgen won the Monterey Grand Prix, at Laguna Seca Raceway, on October 17, 1965, driving John Mecom's Lola T70-Ford.<ref>Competition Press & Autoweek, November 13, 1965, Pages 1, 6.</ref> He participated in several races of the 24 Hours of Daytona and Le Mans as well as the 12 Hours of Sebring endurance races. He also was notable for introducing Mark Donohue to professional road racing.

Hansgen was killed when he crashed a 7-liter Holman & Moody Ford GT 40 Mk2 sports car while driving in the rain during the Le Mans tests on April 3, 1966.<ref>Competition Press & Autoweek, July 23, 1966, Page 3.</ref> "A Ford spokesman said Hansgen's car appeared to have been aquaplaning on the wet track leaving no way for the driver to control it."<ref>Springfield Sunday Republican, April 3, 1966, Page 7.</ref> Ford crew members later said that Hansgen had continued to push hard in the damp weather, although he had been warned by team manager Carroll Smith to take it easy.<ref>Shelby GT 40, Friedman, Dave, 1995, pg. 96</ref> In Mark Donohue's book, The Unfair Advantage, it is said that Hansgen tried to drive onto an escape road, only to find out too late that a barrier had been built across it for spectator safety.<ref>The Unfair Advantage</ref>

Racing record

SCCA National Championships

Year	Class	Car	Position
1956	C Modified	Jaguar D-Type	1st
1957	C Modified	Jaguar D-Type	1st
1958	C Modified	Jaguar D-Type	1st
1959	C Modified	Lister Jaguar	1st

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1959	Template:Flagicon Brian Lister Engineering	Template:Flagicon Peter Blond	Lister Sport	S3.0	52	DNF	DNF
1960	Template:Flagicon B.S. Cunningham	Template:Flagicon Dan Gurney	Jaguar E2A	S3.0	89	DNF	DNF
1961	Template:Flagicon B.S. Cunningham	Template:Flagicon Bruce McLaren	Maserati Tipo 63	S3.0	31	DNF	DNF
1962	Template:Flagicon Briggs Cunningham	Template:Flagicon Bruce McLaren	Maserati Tipo 151 Coupé	E +3.0	177	DNF	DNF
1963	Template:Flagicon Briggs Cunningham	Template:Flagicon Augie Pabst	Jaguar E-Type Lightweight	GT +3.0	8	DNF	DNF

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	WDC	Points
1961	Momo Corporation	Cooper T53	Climax L4	MON	NED	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	ITA	USA Template:Small			NC	0
1964	Team Lotus	Lotus 33	Climax V8	MON	NED	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	USA Template:Small	MEX	16th	2
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Indianapolis 500

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish	Team
1964	Huffaker	Offy	10	13	Kjell Qvale
1965	Huffaker	Offy	21	14	Kjell Qvale

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Grand National Series

NASCAR Grand National Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60	61	62	Template:Tooltip	Pts	Ref
1964	LOH Ford	46	Ford	CON	AUG	JSP	SVH	RSD	DAY	DAY	DAY	RCH	BRI	GPS	BGS	ATL	AWS	HBO	PIF	CLB	NWS	MAR	SVH	DAR	LGY	HCY	SBO	CLT	GPS	ASH	ATL	CON	NSV	CHT	BIR	VAL	PIF	DAY	ODS	OBS	BRR 3	ISP	GLN 3	LIN	BRI	NSV	MBS	AWS	DTS	ONA	CLB	BGS	STR	DAR	HCY	RCH	ODS	HBO	MAR	SVH	NWS	CLT	HAR	AUG	JAC	NA	-	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
1965				RSD	DAY	DAY	DAY	PIF	AWS	RCH	HBO	ATL	GPS	NWS	MAR	CLB	BRI	DAR	LGY	BGS	HCY	CLT	CCF	ASH	HAR	NSV	BIR	ATL	GPS	MBS	VAL	DAY	ODS	OBS	ISP	GLN 6	BRI	NSV	CCF	AWS	SMR	PIF	AUG	CLB	DTS	BLV	BGS	DAR	HCY	LIN	ODS	RCH	MAR	NWS	CLT	HBO	CAR	DTS								NA	-	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Books

• Michael Argetsinger, Walt Hansgen, His Life and the History of Post-War American Road Racing, David Bull Publishing, 2006, Template:ISBN

External links

• Template:Racing-Reference driver
• Road Racing Drivers Club - see members bio list - biography and photograph (includes biographies of all ever invited to join Road Racing Drivers Club, living and deceased)