Cameron Neveu
Cameron Neveu
If everything had gone according to plan, Mark Donohue wouldn’t have driven this Eagle in his last-ever Indy 500—he would have been behind the wheel of a McLaren. However, during a tire test held that March at Indy, Donohue discovered that his McLaren was trailing the flock of Gurney Eagles by 7 mph. He and Penske decided to talk to Gurney, who refused to sell them a ’73 car but agreed to provide a leftover ’72 car with some upgrades. Penske crew chief Karl Kainhofer drove eight days, from their shop in Pennsylvania to Gurney’s in California, with an Econoline van and a trailer to pick up the car—in parts, as was typical at the time. Kainhofer and Donohue built the Eagle on the floor of the Pennsylvania shop in just four weeks, with Donohue sleeping in the same building as he and wife Sue processed their divorce.
Owned by Rick and Alison Dresang, this ’72 Eagle tells an unusually bittersweet story—but, as researched and passed down by the Dresangs, the tale is a reminder of the less triumphant, less glamorous side of racing.
Fun fact: The wastegate of the TEO690 Garrett turbo mounted to the 159-cubic-inch four-cylinder uses a wastegate off a Caterpillar tractor.