Sam Ard: Difference between revisions

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| death_date        = {{death date and age|2017|4|2|1939|2|14}}  
| death_date        = {{death date and age|2017|4|2|1939|2|14}}  
|death_place = [[Florence, South Carolina]]
|death_place = [[Florence, South Carolina]]
| achievements      = 1983, 1984 [[Busch Series]] champion
| achievements      = [[1983 NASCAR Busch Series|1983]], [[1984 NASCAR Busch Series|1984]] [[NASCAR Busch Series]] Champion<br>Tied with [[Noah Gragson]] and [[Connor Zilisch]] for most consecutive wins in the [[NASCAR Xfinity Series]] (4 in [[1983 NASCAR Busch Series|1983]])
| awards            = 1983, 1984 Busch Series [[NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award|Most Popular Driver]] <br> Named one of [[NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers|NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers]] (2023)  
| awards            = 1983, 1984 Busch Series [[NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Award|Most Popular Driver]] <br> Named one of [[NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers|NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers]] (2023)  
| Total_Cup_Races  = 1  
| Total_Cup_Races  = 1  
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==Racing career==
==Racing career==
===Late Model Sportsman Division 1975-1981===
===Late Model Sportsman Division (1975–1981)===
Ard was a regular competitor, earning at least nine wins and scoring multiple top-five finishes.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sam Ard |url=https://www.thethirdturn.com/wiki/Sam_Ard |website=The Third Turn |accessdate=15 March 2019}}</ref>
Ard was a regular competitor, earning at least nine wins and scoring multiple top-five finishes.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sam Ard |url=https://www.thethirdturn.com/wiki/Sam_Ard |website=The Third Turn |accessdate=15 March 2019}}</ref>
In 1981, Ard finished fifth in the season-long NASCAR National Championship point standings.<ref>1982 Nascar Yearbook & Press Guide</ref>
In 1981, Ard finished fifth in the season-long NASCAR National Championship point standings.<ref>1982 Nascar Yearbook & Press Guide</ref>
Line 38: Line 38:
Ard was the runner-up in 1982 of NASCAR's Late Model Sportsman Series, winning four races and finishing out of the top ten only six times.<ref name=":0" />  
Ard was the runner-up in 1982 of NASCAR's Late Model Sportsman Series, winning four races and finishing out of the top ten only six times.<ref name=":0" />  


On the heels of that season, Ard won ten races and had twenty-three top-five finishes, and won the 1983 Busch Grand National (now Nascar [[Xfinity Series]]) points championship.<ref name=":1"/>
On the heels of that season, Ard won ten races and had twenty-three top-five finishes, and won the 1983 Busch Grand National (now [[NASCAR Xfinity Series]]) points championship.<ref name=":1"/>


He continued his dominant streak in 1984, with eight wins and twenty-four top-fives in 28 starts.<ref name=":2" /> Ard was seriously injured in a crash at the [[Rockingham Speedway]] on October 20, 1984. Despite missing the season's final race at Martinsville, Ard captured the Busch Grand National championship for the second year in a row, but was never able to race again.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=http://www.espn.com/jayski/cup/2017/story/_/id/19058368/sad-news-sam-ard-obituary|title=Jayski: Sad News - Sam Ard; obituary|work=ESPN.com|access-date=2017-04-03}}</ref>
He continued his dominant streak in 1984, with eight wins and twenty-four top-fives in 28 starts.<ref name=":2" /> Ard was seriously injured in a crash at the [[Rockingham Speedway]] on October 20, 1984. Despite missing the season's final race at Martinsville, Ard captured the Busch Grand National championship for the second year in a row, but was never able to race again.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=http://www.espn.com/jayski/cup/2017/story/_/id/19058368/sad-news-sam-ard-obituary|title=Jayski: Sad News - Sam Ard; obituary|work=ESPN.com|access-date=2017-04-03}}</ref>
He previously held the record for most consecutive top-fives in the series with 15 until [[Connor Zilisch]] broke the record in [[2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series|2025]]. Zilisch and [[Noah Gragson]] ties Ard's record for most consecutive wins in-a-row in the series with 4.


=== Winston Cup Series ===
=== Winston Cup Series ===
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{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"
|-
|-
!colspan=45| [[NASCAR]] [[Winston Cup Series]] results
! colspan="37" | [[NASCAR Cup Series|NASCAR Winston Cup Series]] results
|-
|-
! Year
! Year
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====Busch Series====
====Busch Series====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"
!colspan=42| [[NASCAR]] [[Nationwide Series|Busch Series]] results
!colspan=42| [[NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series|NASCAR Busch Series]] results
|-
|-
! Year
! Year
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{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"
|-
|-
!colspan=45| [[ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series]] results
! colspan="27" | [[ARCA Menards Series|ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series]] results
|-
|-
! Year
! Year
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[[Category:American Speed Association drivers]]
[[Category:American Speed Association drivers]]
[[Category:NASCAR drivers]]
[[Category:NASCAR drivers]]
[[Category:NASCAR Xfinity Series champions]]
[[Category:NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series champions]]
[[Category:People from Florence County, South Carolina]]
[[Category:People from Florence County, South Carolina]]
[[Category:Racing drivers from South Carolina]]
[[Category:Racing drivers from South Carolina]]
[[Category:ARCA Menards Series drivers]]
[[Category:ARCA Menards Series drivers]]

Latest revision as of 22:52, 29 November 2025

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Samuel Julian Ard (February 14, 1939Template:Spaced ndashApril 2, 2017) was an American professional stock car racing driver. He won two NASCAR Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series championships, in 1983 and 1984. Ard also made one NASCAR Winston Cup start. He retired from driving after being injured in late 1984 and became a car owner. He had Parkinson's disease later in life and died in April 2017 at age 78.[1]

Racing career

Late Model Sportsman Division (1975–1981)

Ard was a regular competitor, earning at least nine wins and scoring multiple top-five finishes.[2] In 1981, Ard finished fifth in the season-long NASCAR National Championship point standings.[3]

Late Model Sportsman / Busch Grand National Series

Ard was the runner-up in 1982 of NASCAR's Late Model Sportsman Series, winning four races and finishing out of the top ten only six times.[4]

On the heels of that season, Ard won ten races and had twenty-three top-five finishes, and won the 1983 Busch Grand National (now NASCAR Xfinity Series) points championship.[5]

He continued his dominant streak in 1984, with eight wins and twenty-four top-fives in 28 starts.[6] Ard was seriously injured in a crash at the Rockingham Speedway on October 20, 1984. Despite missing the season's final race at Martinsville, Ard captured the Busch Grand National championship for the second year in a row, but was never able to race again.[7]

He previously held the record for most consecutive top-fives in the series with 15 until Connor Zilisch broke the record in 2025. Zilisch and Noah Gragson ties Ard's record for most consecutive wins in-a-row in the series with 4.

Winston Cup Series

Ard made his first and only Winston Cup Series start on September 23, 1984, at Martinsville. He started 27th in the 31-car field but lasted just one lap before a steering failure ended his day.[8]

Post-racing career

After retiring as a driver, Ard became an owner, fielding cars for several drivers, most notably Jimmy Hensley and Jeff Burton, who claimed his first Grand National win driving Ard's car.[7]

Later life and death

Ard battled Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.[9] His family often received donations and aid from the racing community to help him. In 2006, drivers Kevin Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. led a charge to donate a substantial amount of funds for the care of Ard and his family. After tying Ard's Nationwide Series single-season victory record in 2008, Kyle Busch announced that he would give $100,000 to aid Ard's family with his care and mounting medical expenses in his honor.[10]

Ard died on April 2, 2017, at the age of 78.[11]

Personal life

Ard served in the Vietnam War as a member of the U. S. Air Force. He married his wife Jo in 1961, and they had four children.[12]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

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

Winston Cup Series

NASCAR Winston Cup 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 <templatestyles src="Template:Tooltip/styles.css" />NWCCScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Pts Ref
1984 Zervakis Enterprises 02 Chevy DAY RCH CAR ATL BRI NWS DAR MAR TAL NSV DOV CLT RSD POC MCH DAY NSV POC TAL MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR
31 		CLT NWS CAR ATL RSD 104th 01 [8]

1 Ard's team was a post-entry for the race and thus did not receive points.[13]

Busch Series

NASCAR Busch 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 <templatestyles src="Template:Tooltip/styles.css" />NBSCScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Pts Ref
1982 Thomas Brothers Racing 00 Olds DAY
3 		RCH
21 		MAR
1 		DAR
6 		HCY
2 		SBO
1 		CRW
3 		RCH
2 		LGY
2 		DOV
17 		HCY
2 		CLT
12 		ASH
3 		HCY
3 		SBO
2 		CAR
5 		CRW
2 		SBO
1 		HCY
5 		LGY
3 		IRP
28 		BRI
9 		HCY
2 		RCH
3 		MAR
1 		CLT
2 		HCY
18 		MAR
6 		2nd 4448 [4]
Chevy BRI
20
1983 Olds DAY
6 		RCH
1 		CAR
12 		HCY
3 		MAR
1* 		NWS
1* 		SBO
25 		GPS
9 		LGY
7 		DOV
3 		BRI
9 		CLT
32 		SBO
11 		HCY
3 		ROU
4 		SBO
15 		ROU
4 		CRW
7* 		ROU
3 		SBO
4 		HCY
1* 		LGY
7 		IRP
3 		GPS
6 		BRI
1* 		HCY
5 		DAR
2 		RCH
5 		NWS
5 		SBO
1* 		MAR
1* 		ROU
1 		CLT
1 		HCY
2 		MAR
1* 		1st 5454 [5]
1984 DAY
4* 		RCH
1* 		CAR
1* 		HCY
3 		MAR
9 		DAR
4* 		ROU
3 		NSV
2* 		LGY
1* 		MLW
1* 		DOV
1* 		CLT
6 		SBO
1* 		HCY
4 		ROU
3 		SBO
1* 		ROU
3 		HCY
3 		IRP
2 		LGY
2 		SBO
5 		BRI
2 		DAR
2 		RCH
11 		NWS
1* 		CLT
3* 		HCY
5 		CAR
33 		MAR 1st 4552 [6]

ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series

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

ARCA Permatex SuperCar 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 <templatestyles src="Template:Tooltip/styles.css" />APSCScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Pts Ref
1983 Thomas Brothers Racing 10 Olds DAY
36 		NSV TAL LPR LPR ISF IRP SSP FRS BFS WIN LPR POC TAL MCS FRS MIL DSF ZAN SND NA - [14]

References

<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />

  1. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  3. ↑ 1982 Nascar Yearbook & Press Guide
  4. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  5. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  7. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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External links

Preceded byTemplate:S-bef/checkTemplate:Succession box/check NASCAR Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Champion
1983–1984 Template:S-ttl/check 		Template:S-aft/check Succeeded by

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