Dave Steele

David Steele
David Steele
	National Sprint Car Hall of Fame, 2018 ; United States Auto Club Hall of Fame, 2019

David MacFarland Steele (May 7, 1974 – March 25, 2017)^[2] was an American professional racing driver who won numerous sprint car racing championships and also competed in IndyCar and NASCAR races. Steele last drove a winged sprint car in the Southern Sprintcar Shootout Series, where he won the first 5 races in series history. Steele was killed in a crash at Desoto Speedway on March 25, 2017.^[3]

He was posthumously inducted into the

National Sprint Car Hall of Fame

on the first eligible ballot in 2018.

Racing career

Sprint Cars, Midgets, and Silver Crown

Championships

Steele won three Tampa Bay Area Racing Association (TBARA) championships.^[1]

He claimed 60 wins in

USAC sprint car (26), midget (18), and Silver Crown (16) races between 1996 and 2007.^[4]^[1]

He claimed the

USAC Silver Crown Series championship in 2004 and 2005, putting him in the company of drivers such as Mario Andretti, A. J. Foyt, Al Unser, Jeff Gordon, and Tony Stewart.^[5]

Race Wins

He won the 2001 and 2003 Turkey Night Grand Prix midget car race.^[6]^[7] Other notable Turkey Night winners include A. J. Foyt, Tony Stewart, and Billy Boat.

He was also a two-time winner of the Little 500,^[1] held annually at Anderson Speedway. Throughout his sixteen starts in that race, he was a five-time pole-sitter and finished in the top 5 ten times.

Steele won the Copper Classic at Phoenix International Raceway eight times. He won the Silver Crown portion 5 times and Midget race 3 times.^[1] In 1998, he won the Night Before the 500 race.^[1]

IndyCar and NASCAR

Steele attempted to make his

Phoenix International Raceway, the second race of the season, driving for RSM Marko, then drove in the final two races of the year for Panther Racing. He failed to finish all three races. He was entered in a Panther car for the 1999 Indianapolis 500 but crashed in practice.^[8]

Steele drove in the first two races of the 2000 NASCAR Busch Series for Felix Sabates. After finishes of 23rd and 34th he failed to qualify for the next three races and Steele and the team parted ways.^[9]

Steele also competed in four

Infiniti Pro Series

races (one each in 2002 and 2003). In 2002, Steele raced for Bowes Seal Fast Racing at Michigan finishing eighth in the Infiniti Pro Series.

Death

Steele was killed in a racing accident during a Southern Sprintcar Shootout Series race at Desoto Speedway in Bradenton, Florida, on March 25, 2017. His car's front wheel struck and overrode the rear wheel of another car during the event, sending him into the wall; he was pronounced dead at the scene.^[10]

Honors

The
Lucas Oil Raceway
, starting in 2018, is now known as the Dave Steele Classic.
He was elected to the
National Sprint Car Hall of Fame
on the first ballot in 2018 under the six month rule.
He was elected to the United States Auto Club Hall of Fame in 2019.

Motorsports career results

American open–wheel racing results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Indy Racing League

Indy Racing League results
Year	Team	Chassis	No.	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	Rank	Pts	Ref
1996-97	ABF Motorsports	Lola	96	Buick	NHA	LVS DNQ	WDW	PHX	INDY	TXS	PPIR	CLT	NHA2	LSV2		NC	0	^[11]
1998	RSM Marko	Riley & Scott	22	Oldsmobile	WDW	PHX 22	INDY	TXS	NHA	DOV	CLT	PPIR	ATL			36th	17	^[12]
1998	Panther Racing	Riley & Scott	43											TXS 24	LVS 27	36th	17	^[12]
1999	Panther Racing	G-Force			WDW	PHX	INDY DNQ	TXS	PPIR	ATL	DOV	PPIR	LVS	TXS		NC	0	^[13]

Indianapolis 500

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish	Team	Ref
1999	G-Force	Oldsmobile	DNQ		Panther Racing	^[13]

Indy Pro Series

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Rank	Points
2002	Bowes Seal Fast Racing	KAN	NSH	MIS 8	KTY	STL	CHI	TXS						19th	24
2003	Brian Stewart Racing	HMS	PHX	INDY	PPIR	KAN	NSH 11	MIS	STL	KTY	CHI	FON	TXS	25th	19

NASCAR

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

Busch Series

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	NBSC	Pts	Ref
1999	Team SABCO	82	Chevy	DAY	CAR	LVS	ATL	DAR	TEX	NSV	BRI	TAL	CAL	NHA	RCH	NZH	CLT	DOV	SBO	GLN	MLW	MYB	PPR	GTY	IRP	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	CLT	CAR	MEM	PHO DNQ	HOM	NA	-	^[14]
2000	Team SABCO	82	Chevy	DAY 23	CAR 34	LVS DNQ	ATL DNQ	DAR DNQ	BRI	TEX	NSV	TAL	CAL	RCH	NHA	CLT	DOV	SBO	MYB	GLN	MLW	NZH	PPR	GTY	IRP	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	CLT	CAR	MEM	PHO	HOM	88th	155	^[15]

ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series

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

ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde 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	ABMSC	Pts	Ref
1999	Team SABCO	01	Chevy	DAY	ATL	SLM	AND	CLT	MCH	POC	TOL	SBS	BLN	POC	KIL	FRS	FLM	ISF	WIN	DSF	SLM	CLT 16	TAL 11		68th	355	^[16]
1999		02																						ATL 40	68th	355	^[16]
2000		01		DAY 11	SLM	AND	CLT	KIL	FRS	MCH	POC	TOL	KEN	BLN	POC	WIN	ISF	KEN	DSF	SLM	CLT	TAL	ATL		98th	175	^[17]

References

^
FloRacing
.
^ "Motorsport Memorial - Dave Steele". Motorsport Memorial. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
^ "David Steele Killed In Sprint Car Crash". Speed Sport. March 25, 2017. Archived from the original on April 23, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
^ Dave Steele Ready for Orlando Archived June 7, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Motorsport.com, January 18, 1999, Retrieved December 30, 2011
^ Hoffman Racing names Steele, Coons for 2007 Archived June 7, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Motorsport.com, December 19, 2007, Retrieved December 30, 2011
^ Solorzano, Tony. Steele Puts a Stop to Kahne's Plan; Auto racing: Upset victory in Turkey Night Grand Prix prevents last year's runner-up from following in Stewart's footsteps at Irwindale Speedway. Archived March 9, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times, November 23, 2001, Retrieved December 30, 2011
^ Paternie, Patrick C. FAST CAT IN THE HAT; Dave Steele wins the 2003 Turkey Night Midget Grand Prix, AutoWeek, December 8, 2003, Retrieved 2011-12-30^{[dead link]}
^ David Steele, Champ Car Stats, Retrieved December 30, 2011
^ Dave Steele, Racing Reference, Retrieved December 30, 2011
Indianapolis Star. Archived from the original
on March 26, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2017.

^ "Dave Steele – 1997 Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

^ "Dave Steele – 1998 Pep Boys Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

^ ^a ^b "Dave Steele – 1999 Pep Boys Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

^ "Dave Steele – 1999 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

^ "Dave Steele – 2000 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

^ "Dave Steele – 1999 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

^ "Dave Steele – 2000 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

External links

Dave Steele driver statistics at Racing-Reference

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dave_Steele&oldid=1181653889"

[FloRacingAug2020-1] 
FloRacing
.

[mem-2] "Motorsport Memorial - Dave Steele". Motorsport Memorial. Retrieved March 31, 2023.

[3] "David Steele Killed In Sprint Car Crash". Speed Sport. March 25, 2017. Archived from the original on April 23, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2017.

[4] Dave Steele Ready for Orlando Archived June 7, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Motorsport.com, January 18, 1999, Retrieved December 30, 2011

[5] Hoffman Racing names Steele, Coons for 2007 Archived June 7, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Motorsport.com, December 19, 2007, Retrieved December 30, 2011

[6] Solorzano, Tony. Steele Puts a Stop to Kahne's Plan; Auto racing: Upset victory in Turkey Night Grand Prix prevents last year's runner-up from following in Stewart's footsteps at Irwindale Speedway. Archived March 9, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times, November 23, 2001, Retrieved December 30, 2011

[7] Paternie, Patrick C. FAST CAT IN THE HAT; Dave Steele wins the 2003 Turkey Night Midget Grand Prix, AutoWeek, December 8, 2003, Retrieved 2011-12-30^{[dead link]}

[8] David Steele, Champ Car Stats, Retrieved December 30, 2011

[9] Dave Steele, Racing Reference, Retrieved December 30, 2011

[10] Indianapolis Star. Archived from the original
on March 26, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2017.

[11] "Dave Steele – 1997 Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

[12] "Dave Steele – 1998 Pep Boys Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

[RR1999IRL-13] "Dave Steele – 1999 Pep Boys Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

[14] "Dave Steele – 1999 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

[15] "Dave Steele – 2000 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

[16] "Dave Steele – 1999 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

[17] "Dave Steele – 2000 ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 6, 2017.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]