From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base
Iggy Katona
American racing driver (1916–2003)
American racing driver (1916–2003)
| Field | Value | |
|---|---|---|
| name | Iggy Katona | |
| image_size | ||
| birth_name | Egnatius Katona | |
| birth_date | ||
| birth_place | Toledo, Ohio, U.S. | |
| death_date | ||
| death_place | Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S. | |
| retired | 1977 | |
| relatives | ||
| last_series | ARCA Series | |
| years_active | 1953–1977 | |
| teams | Iggy Katona | |
| starts | 312 | |
| wins | 79 | |
| poles | 44 | |
| fastest_laps | ||
| best_finish | 1st | |
| year | 1955, 1956, 1957, 1962, 1966, 1967 | |
| prev_series | NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |
| prev_series_years | 1951–'52, 1965–'66, 1974 | |
| titles | MARC Champion | |
| MARC Champion | ||
| MARC Champion | ||
| MARC Champion | ||
| ARCA Series Champion | ||
| ARCA Series Champion | ||
| title_years | 1955 | |
| 1956 | ||
| 1957 | ||
| 1962 | ||
| 1966 | ||
| 1967 | ||
| awards | Michigan Motor Sports Hall of Fame | |
| award_years | 1982 | |
| {{Infobox NASCAR driver | embed | yes |
| achievements | 1965, 1971, 1974 Daytona ARCA 200 Winner | |
| Finished top ten in ARCA Racing Series point standings for 21 consecutive seasons (1953–1973) | ||
| The only driver ever to win a 600-lap race on a half-mile oval (Dayton Speedway) | ||
| Total_Cup_Races | 13 | |
| Years_In_Cup | 5 | |
| Best_Cup_Pos | 33rd (1952) | |
| First_Cup_Race | 1951 Motor City 250 (Detroit) | |
| Last_Cup_Race | 1974 Winston 500 (Talladega) | |
| Cup_Wins | 0 | |
| Cup_Top_Tens | 3 | |
| Cup_Poles | 0 | |
| Total_GNEast_Races | 3 | |
| Years_In_GNEast | 1 | |
| First_GNEast_Race | 1973 Toledo 100 (Toledo) | |
| Last_GNEast_Race | 1973 Mt. Clemens 100 (Mt. Clemens) | |
| GNEast_Wins | 0 | |
| GNEast_Top_Tens | 2 | |
| GNEast_Poles | 0 | |
| updated | April 28, 2013 |
MARC Champion MARC Champion MARC Champion ARCA Series Champion ARCA Series Champion 1956 1957 1962 1966 1967 Finished top ten in ARCA Racing Series point standings for 21 consecutive seasons (1953–1973) The only driver ever to win a 600-lap race on a half-mile oval (Dayton Speedway) Egnatius "Iggy" Katona (August 16, 1916 – December 4, 2003) was an American stock car racing driver from Willis, Michigan. He is most famous for his performance in the ARCA series in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, where he won six championships and 79 races, both of which stood as series records until Frank Kimmel surpassed both; first in 2005 for championships and then in 2013 for wins. Other ARCA records held by Katona include most starts (630), oldest race winner (57 years old, Daytona International Speedway, 1974) and most consecutive seasons with a win (19, from 1953–1971)
Early career
Katona started out racing motorcycles in local races in Michigan and Ohio at age 21, winning nearly every race he entered.
After a brief tour of duty in the Army during World War II, Katona turned to midget car racing. Building his own engines and chassis and with his two sons Ronnie and Jim as crew members, Katona found success on four wheels as well, including winning 14 feature races in a row at Detroit's famed Motor City Speedway dirt oval.
MARC/ARCA career
In 1952, fellow Toledoan John Marcum created his Midwest Association for Race Cars as a Northern counterpart to the Southern stock car series of the day, Bill France, Sr.'s NASCAR. Katona was a force in the series from the beginning, finishing third in the series' inaugural campaign in 1953, second in 1954, and winning the championship in 1955, 1956, and 1957. His fourth MARC championship came in 1962 driving his No. 30 Ford.
Although he developed his racing skills on the short tracks of the Midwest, Katona adapted well when the MARC changed its name to ARCA and began racing on superspeedways in 1964, winning the ARCA race at Daytona three times. He won his fifth and sixth titles in 1966 and, at the age of 51, 1967. His consistency was his biggest asset, as he finished in the top-ten in series points in 21 straight seasons from 1953–73.
References
References
- "Miscellaneous Records". ARCAracing.com.
- Radebaugh, Don. (2003-12-05). "Iggy Katona". Motorsport.com.
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
Ask Mako anything about Iggy Katona — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.
Research with MakoFree with your Surf account
Create a free account to save articles, ask Mako questions, and organize your research.
Sign up freeThis content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.
Report