SERIES: Remembering John Andretti

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emailBy Marshall Pruett | August 20, 2020 9:54 AM

The death of John Andretti on January 30 struck a heavy blow to legions of fans who cherished his versatile driving skills and humanitarian efforts.

As we prepare to hold the first Indianapolis 500 in decades without Andretti, some of his closest friends, former teammates, car owners, confidants, family, and more came together in the days following his loss to share stories about the man whose career spanned IndyCar, NASCAR, IMSA, USAC, the NHRA, and other racing exploits that took him from the short tracks of Australia to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Andretti’s incredible work to raise millions of dollars for Riley Children’s Hospital, and his raw, candid advocacy for colon cancer screening to keep others from meeting his cruel fate, are also central topics explored by many of our guests.

With a life so full of adventures, the 16-part Remembering John Andretti series follows a timeline that weaves interviews looking back on his early days as an up-and-coming driver to his final days where helping others remained a top priority.

We start with esteemed reporter and author Mark ‘Bones’ Bourcier, who covered Andretti’s first forays into short-track racing in 1981.

Remembering John Andretti, Ep 1, with Bones Bourcier
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 2, with Cary Agajanian

We welcome Cary Agajanian with Part 2 of the Remembering John Andretti series. After meeting John in 1984, Agajanian would become a fixture as Andretti’s ever-present friend, lawyer, and advisor throughout the rest of his life.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 3, with Erik Wensberg

We welcome Erik Wensberg with Part 3 of the Remembering John Andretti series. BMW’s former program manager gave John his first big pro racing break in 1986 with the brand’s IMSA GTP program, and watched as Andretti passion for driving was demonstrated for BMW in smaller, more obscure series.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 4, with Davy Jones

We welcome Davy Jones with Part 4 of the Remembering John Andretti series, who looks back to 1986 as he partnered with John in the factory BMW IMSA GTP program and went on to race with–and against–Andretti in the years that followed in IMSA and IndyCar.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 5, with Mike Curb

We welcome Mike Curb with Part 5 of the Remembering John Andretti series. The famed record producer and label owner gave John his first shot in IndyCar and the Indy 500 in 1987, and shares the story of how they found each other and took on the establishment with one of CART’s smaller teams.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 6, with Mario Andretti

We welcome Mario Andretti with Part 6 of the Remembering John Andretti series, who chronicles the all-family Porsche 962 effort at the 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans where John made his debut at the French endurance racing classic alongside Mario and Michael Andretti.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 7, with Jim Busby

We welcome Jim Busby with Part 7 of the Remembering John Andretti series. The veteran sports car team owner takes us back to IMSA in 1989 where John scored one of his biggest victories at the Rolex 24 At Daytona in Busby’s Porsche 962, and fought to earn respect from his iconic teammate Bob Wollek over a season of GTP endurance racing.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 8, with Derrick Walker

We welcome Derrick Walker with Part 8 of the Remembering John Andretti series as the former head of Porsche’s IndyCar team details John’s return to open-wheel racing in 1990.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 9, with Jim Hall II

We welcome Jim Hall II with Part 9 of the Remembering John Andretti series, who shares stories of looking after his father’s IndyCar program and working with John, who earned a famous win on debut in 1991 at Surfers Paradise.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 10, with Jack Clark

We welcome Major League Baseball all-star Jack Clark with Part 10 of the Remembering John Andretti series. Of all the crazy things John attempted in his career, driving Clark’s NHRA Top Fuel dragster in 1993 was the wildest of all.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 11, with Bryan Herta

We welcome Bryan Herta with Part 11 of the Remembering John Andretti series. As an Indy 500 rookie in 1994 with the A.J. Foyt Racing team, Herta was fortunate to have John as a veteran teammate to learn from–all while Andretti was preparing to do the first ‘Double’ by racing at Indy and NASCAR’s Charlotte 600 on the same day.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 12, with Jeff Burton

We welcome Jeff Burton with Part 12 of the Remembering John Andretti series where he details a friendship that began in 1994 as rookies on the NASCAR Cup trail.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 13, with Kyle Petty

We welcome Kyle Petty with Part 13 of the Remembering John Andretti series. Petty brings us back to 1994 and John’s arrival at Petty Enterprises where two of the sport’s biggest families came together in NASCAR and made indelible memories.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 14, with Dennis Reinbold

We welcome IndyCar team owner Dennis Reinbold with Part 14 of the Remembering John Andretti series where he details their long friendship and the partnership with Richard Petty to run John at the 2009 Indy 500.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 15, with Anders Krohn

We welcome Anders Krohn with Part 15 of the Remembering John Andretti series where he recounts partnering with John and Jarrett Andretti at the 2012 Rolex 24 At Daytona and all the assumptions he quickly abandoned on John’s farewell to endurance racing.
Remembering John Andretti, Ep 16, with Dave Wilson
We close our 16-part Remembering John Andretti feature with his friend, radio host Dave ‘The King’ Wilson, who shares stories of their charitable efforts that have raised millions of dollars for Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis.








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