Fred Lorenzen, one of the earliest breakout stars of the pioneer era of NASCAR, died on Wednesday at 89.
Lorenzen had battled dementia in recent years.
A 26-time winner at the highest level, now called the Cup Series, Lorenzen paired intellect and looks to break the mold of what a Stock Car racer was considered to be in the 1960s. They called him ‘The Golden Boy’ and he won two most popular driver awards during a career that spanned from 1956 to 1971.
He was the first driver to earn over $100,000 in a single season, and driving the Holman-Moody Ford factory cars, enjoyed most of his success in the most prestigious speedway races on the circuit. Lorenzen won the Daytona 500 in 1965 and collected two victories in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Arguably, Lorenzen only never won a championship because his team rarely pursued it in the pre-Modern era prior to condensed schedules.
“Fred Lorenzen was one of NASCAR’s first true superstars. A fan favorite, he helped NASCAR expand from its original roots,” NASCAR Chairman & CEO Jim France said. “Fred was the picture-perfect NASCAR star, helping to bring the sport to the silver screen — which further grew NASCAR’s popularity during its early years. For many years, NASCAR’s ‘Golden Boy’ was also its gold standard, a fact that eventually led him to the sport’s pinnacle, a rightful place in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. On behalf of the France family and all of NASCAR, I want to offer our condolences to the friends and family of Fred Lorenzen.”
Lorenzen was also called the ‘Elmhurst Express’ in reference to his Illinois hometown, in addition to ‘Fast Freddie’ and Fearless Freddie.’ There was one constant theme, however, and that was a methodical approach to racing compared to his peers.
For example, he emphasized pit crew training before it was a common practice, realizing that tangible track position could be gained or lost based on the speed of those refueling and changing tires on a car.
“(Other drivers) partied, they were out to go fast and live the life, but when my dad came in, he was business,” daughter Amanda Lorenzen Gardstrom said in a 2014 interview. “… After every time he won a race, he’d call the stock broker and want to know the best way to invest that. He insisted that his pit crew was ready to go at 7 o’clock in the morning every day — clean white suits and ready to work. They all worked, and they planned and had strategies as a team.”
Said Herb Nab, his crew chief: “Freddie was a stickler. He worried about everything. He wanted everything to be just so. He was never satisfied unless it was. Maybe that was the key to his success. He wanted perfection, and he made sure he got it.”
Prior to his NASCAR career, Lorenzen was a drag racer who turned to oval track racing in 1956 but decided to go USAC Stock Car racing after seven years, winning 12 times and collecting the 1958 and 1959 championships.
“I had an important decision to make — to stick with USAC and eventually get into the big race at Indianapolis or join NASCAR, the world’s largest auto race organization which specializes in stock-car events,” Lorenzen told the Arlington Heights Herald in July 1960. “Since stock cars are the type of racing I know the most about and since NASCAR’s prize monies are the highest anywhere, I made my change. Up to now, however, I must admit that I had begun wondering if I had made the right move and if I was actually good enough for NASCAR.”
He chose to take his self-owned car to NASCAR, and his success there eventually earned him a phone call on Christmas Eve 1960 from John Holman and Ralph Moody.
“Biggest day of my life. A miracle, that’s what it was,” Lorenzen told TNT Sports in 2009. “Everybody waits for this, but you make your own way. I earned it, I guess. That’s what Ralph (Moody) said, you’re here because they want you. They like the way you ran it, the way you drive. You don’t jump out front, you just cool it and wait, take your time.”
Again, this team focused more on the bigger paying races over chasing national points for a Grand National title. The closest they came was starting 29 of 55 races in 1963 when he won six times and eclipsed the $100,000 mark.
“Certainly, Freddie is for real, and I have nothing but praise for him,” Hall of Famer Fireball Roberts told The Charlotte News in May 1964. “He has so many things going for him as well as luck which you must have in this business. First, Freddie has the finest machinery. He also has splendid mechanics in Herb Nab and Wayne Mills, who know how to set up a car. But the man who makes this team go is Lorenzen.”
Lorenzen raced with fewer frequency in 1966 when Ford boycotted NASCAR over engine regulations. He retired that season at 32 no longer wanting to spend that much time on the road.
“I guess every athlete wants to quit when he’s on top,” Lorenzen told the crowd gathered as a retirement banquet thrown by Ford’s racing division. “I know I’m slowing down and have been a little more cautious in the last year and a half. Plus I haven’t been feeling too well lately. The ulcer is a small one, but it sure takes a lot out of you. I added up all these things and decided that now was the time to quit.”
Lorenzen did come back, sporadically, starting with the 1969 World 600, leading 47 laps before his Richard Howard Dodge suffered an engine failure. He competed 29 more times from 1970 to 1972 but never had the same prowess he enjoyed with Holman Moody.
Lorenzen, reflective of his reputation, invested his earning in real estate and the Stock Market and enjoyed a healthy life long after racing.