Don Whittington

Don Whittington
Don Whittington
	Phoenix)
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	1978–1981
Teams	Whittington Bros. Racing, Kremer Racing
Best finish	1st (1979)
Class wins	1 (1979)
NASCAR Cup Series career
	10 races run over 2 years
Best finish	46th (1980)
First race	1980 Winston Western 500 (Riverside)
Last race	1981 Winston Western 500 (Riverside)

Reginald Donald Whittington

USAC National Championship

from 1957 to 1959.

Racing career

Whittington also raced in five

Winston Cup starts in 1980 and 1981. He earned a top-ten in the sport in his debut at Riverside. He also participated in the 1980 International Race of Champions

.

In 1979, the brothers purchased and operated the Road Atlanta road-racing circuit, reportedly utilizing the secluded backstretch of the course as a landing strip for aircraft.

In 1984, Don's brother Bill co-owned, with Randy Lanier and Marty Hinze, the Blue Thunder Racing Team. Don raced for the team on occasion.

The Whittington brothers also raced aircraft at the Reno Air Races, including the highly modified P-51D "Precious Metal", which set a qualifying record of 438.018 mph (704.922 km/h) in 1976. Between 1976 and 1995, they raced four different P-51 Mustangs (including a rare H model and a Rolls-Royce Griffon powered P-51XR), an F8F Bearcat and a P-63 King Cobra. While they never scored a victory, Don in Precious Metal earned three podium finishes and was top qualifier twice.

The brothers were heavily involved in the 1970s 'warbird' movement, and participated in preservation groups like the

Confederate Air Force and Valiant Air Command. They restored numerous aircraft over the years, including an FG-1D Corsair, HA-1112 (Spanish-built Bf 109), several P-51 Mustangs, and two B-17 Flying Fortresses

(including a rare B-17E recovered in Bolivia).

In 1986, Don Whittington pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in association with his brother Bill's guilty plea to income tax evasion and conspiracy to smuggle marijuana into the United States from Colombia. Don Whittington received an 18-month prison sentence.

IMSA drug smuggling scandal of the 1980s, where a number of drivers financed their racing activities with the proceeds from drug smuggling.^[4]

In 2009, Whittington sued the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation over possession of the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans winning Porsche 935. The car was given to the Speedway's museum in the early 1980s. Whittington claimed it was a loan and wanted to reclaim possession. The Speedway maintained it was a donation. On April 13, 2010, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit sided with the museum and found the evidence pointed to the car being a donation.^[5]

Currently, Whittington owns World Jet, a fixed-base operator at the Ft. Lauderdale Executive Airport.^[6]

Motorsports career results

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class pos.
1978	Whittington Bros. Racing	Bill Whittington Franz Konrad	Porsche 935/77A	Gr.5+2.0	41	DNF	DNF
1979	Kremer Racing	Bill Whittington Klaus Ludwig	Porsche 935 K3	Gr.5+2.0	307	1st	1st
1980	Whittington Bros. Racing	Dale Whittington Hurley Haywood	Porsche 935 K3	IMSA	151	DNF	DNF
1981	Kremer Racing	Ted Field Bill Whittington	Porsche 935 K3/81	Gr. 5	57	DNF	DNF
Sources:^[7]^[8]

American open-wheel racing

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

CART PPG Indy Car World Series

CART PPG Indy Car World Series results
Year	Team	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Pos.	Pts	Ref
1979	Team McLaren	McLaren M24B	Cosworth DFX V8 t	PHX	ATL	ATL	INDY	TRE	TRE	MCH	MCH	WGL	TRE	ONT 8	MCH	ATL	PHX		NC	0	^[9]
1980	Whittington Racing	Penske PC-7	Cosworth DFX V8 t	ONT	INDY 13	MIL	POC	MDO	MCH	WGL	MIL	ONT	MCH	MEX	PHX				47th	25	^[10]
1982	Whittington Racing	March 81C	Cosworth DFX V8 t	PHX	ATL	MIL	CLE	MCH 26	MIL	POC	RIV	ROA	MCH	PHX					NC	0	^[11]
1983	Whittington Racing	March 83C	Cosworth DFX V8 t	ATL	INDY 27	MIL	CLE	MCH 20	ROA	POC 33	RIV	MDO	MCH	CPL	LAG	PHX			NC	0	^[12]
1985	Patrick Racing	March 85C	Cosworth DFX V8 t	LBH	INDY 24	MIL DNQ	POR	MEA	CLE	MCH 20	ROA	POC	MDO	SAN	MCH 20	LAG	PHX 24	MIA	NC	0	^[13]

Indianapolis 500

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish	Team
1980	Penske	Cosworth	18	13	Whittington Racing
1981	March	Cosworth	26	31	Whittington Racing
1982	March	Cosworth	8	6	Whittington Racing
1983	March	Cosworth	27	27	Whittington Racing
1985	March	Cosworth	6	24	Patrick Racing

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	31	NWCC	Pts	Ref
1980	DiGard Motorsports	55	Chevy	RSD 9	DAY DNQ	RCH	CAR																												41st	67	^[14]
	Hamby Motorsports	17	Chevy		DAY 16
	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	51	Olds					ATL 38	BRI	DAR	NWS	MAR
	Whittington Bros. Racing	51	Olds										TAL 34	NSV	DOV	CLT	TWS
		64	Chevy															RSD 35	MCH
		93	Olds																	DAY 22	NSV	POC	TAL	MCH	BRI
	Smith Racing		Chevy																							DAR 38	RCH	DOV	NWS	MAR	CLT	CAR	ATL	ONT
1981			Chevy	RSD 14																															54th	300	^[15]
1981			Olds		DAY 14	RCH	CAR	ATL	BRI	NWS	DAR	MAR	TAL	NSV	DOV	CLT	TWS	RSD	MCH	DAY	NSV	POC	TAL	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	DOV	MAR	NWS	CLT	CAR	ATL	RSD 35	54th	300	^[15]

Daytona 500

Year	Team	Manufacturer	Start	Finish
1980	DiGard Motorsports	Chevy	DNQ
1980	Hamby Motorsports	Chevy	23	16
1981	Smith Racing	Oldsmobile	13	14

Winston West Series

NASCAR Winston West Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	NWWC	Pts	Ref
1980	DiGard Motorsports	55	Chevy	RSD 9	ONT	S99	RSD	LAG	EVG	POR	SON	MMR	ONT	PHO	NA	-	^[16]

International Race of Champions

(key) (Bold – Pole position. * – Most laps led.)

International Race of Champions results
Season	Make	Q1	Q2	Q3	1	2	Pos.	Pts	Ref
1979–80	Chevy	MCH	MCH	RSD 3	RSD 12	ATL 5	8th	15	^[17]

References

^ Judge: IMS Hall of Fame can keep donated car
^ "The Untold Story of Randy Lanier, Indy 500 Star and Drug Smuggler - Maxim". 27 October 2014.
^ SPORTS PEOPLE; Whittingtons Sentenced, New York Times, January 6, 1987, Retrieved 2011-05-25
^ Siano, Joseph. Auto Racing; Paul Returns From Prison, New York Times, February 5, 1989, Retrieved 2011-05-25
^ "WHITTINGTON v. INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY FOUNDATION, INC". Leagle.com. April 13, 2010. Archived from the original on 21 April 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
^ Where are they now?: Shadow figures Archived 2011-06-28 at the Wayback Machine AutoWeek, December 31, 2008
^ "Don Whittington". Automobile Club de l'Ouest. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington – 1979 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington – 1980 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington – 1982 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington – 1983 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington – 1985 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
^ "Don Whittington – 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
^ "Don Whittington – 1981 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
^ "Don Whittington – 1980 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
^ "Don Whittington – 1980 IROC Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.

External links

Don Whittington driver statistics at Racing-Reference
RARA stats from airrace.org
World Jet Archived 2016-04-21 at the Wayback Machine

Sporting positions
Preceded by Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Didier Pironi	Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1979 with: Klaus Ludwig Bill Whittington	Succeeded by Jean Rondeau Jean-Pierre Jaussaud

[1] Judge: IMS Hall of Fame can keep donated car

[maxim-2] "The Untold Story of Randy Lanier, Indy 500 Star and Drug Smuggler - Maxim". 27 October 2014.

[3] SPORTS PEOPLE; Whittingtons Sentenced, New York Times, January 6, 1987, Retrieved 2011-05-25

[4] Siano, Joseph. Auto Racing; Paul Returns From Prison, New York Times, February 5, 1989, Retrieved 2011-05-25

[7thCircuitDecision-5] "WHITTINGTON v. INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY FOUNDATION, INC". Leagle.com. April 13, 2010. Archived from the original on 21 April 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2010.

[6] Where are they now?: Shadow figures Archived 2011-06-28 at the Wayback Machine AutoWeek, December 31, 2008

[7] "Don Whittington". Automobile Club de l'Ouest. Retrieved August 18, 2023.

[MSportStats-8] "Don Whittington Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved August 18, 2023.

[9] "Don Whittington – 1979 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.

[10] "Don Whittington – 1980 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.

[11] "Don Whittington – 1982 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.

[12] "Don Whittington – 1983 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.

[13] "Don Whittington – 1985 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 17, 2023.

[14] "Don Whittington – 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.

[15] "Don Whittington – 1981 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.

[16] "Don Whittington – 1980 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.

[17] "Don Whittington – 1980 IROC Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.

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v t e Winners of the 24 Hours of Le Mans
Nine-time	Tom Kristensen
Six-time	Jacky Ickx
Five-time	Derek Bell Frank Biela Emanuele Pirro
Four-time	Sébastien Buemi Yannick Dalmas Olivier Gendebien Henri Pescarolo
Three-time	Woolf Barnato Rinaldo Capello Luigi Chinetti Marcel Fässler Brendon Hartley Hurley Haywood Phil Hill Al Holbert André Lotterer Klaus Ludwig Allan McNish Kazuki Nakajima Benoît Tréluyer Marco Werner
Two-time	Fernando Alonso Earl Bamber Timo Bernhard Tim Birkin Ivor Bueb Romain Dumas Ron Flockhart Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Gérard Larrousse JJ Lehto Manuel Reuter André Rossignol Raymond Sommer Hans-Joachim Stuck Gijs van Lennep Jean-Pierre Wimille Alexander Wurz
One-time	Aïello Alboreto Amon Ara Attwood Baldi Bandini Barilla Barth Benjafield Benoist Bianchi Bloch Blundell Bouchut D. Brabham G. Brabham Brundle Calado Chaboud Clement Cobb Conway Davis de Courcelles Dickens Duff Dumfries Duval Étancelin Fontés Foyt Frère Fuoco Gachot Gené Giovinazzi González Gregory Guichet Gurney Hamilton Hawthorn Hélary Herbert Herrmann G. Hill Hindmarsh Hirakawa Howe Hülkenberg Jani Johansson Jones Kidston Kobayashi Krages Lagache Lammers Lang Léonard Lieb López Marko Martini Mass McLaren Mitchell-Thomson Molina J. Nielsen N. Nielsen Nuvolari Oliver Ortelli Pier Guidi Pironi Riess Rindt Rockenfeller Rodríguez Rolt Rondeau J. Rosier L. Rosier Rubin Salvadori Sanderson Scarfiotti Schuppan Sekiya Shelby Smith Tandy Trémoulet Trintignant Vaccarella Veyron Walker Wallace Warwick Weidler Whitehead B. Whittington D. Whittington Winkelhock