Daniel Sexton Gurney (born April 13, 1931) is a retired American racing driver, race car constructor, and team owner who reached racing's highest levels starting in 1958.
The son of a Metropolitan Opera star, he was born in Port Jefferson, New York, but moved to California as a teenager.
Gurney won races in the Formula One, Indy Car, NASCAR, Can-Am, and Trans-Am Series. Gurney is the first of three drivers to have won races in Sports Cars (1958), Formula One (1962), NASCAR (1963), and Indy Car (1967) (the other two being Mario Andretti and Juan Pablo Montoya).
In 1967, after winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans together with A. J. Foyt, he spontaneously sprayed champagne while celebrating on the podium. As owner of All American Racers, he was the first to put a simple right-angle extension on the upper trailing edge of the rear wing. This device, called a Gurney flap, increases downforce and, if well designed, imposes only a relatively small increase in aerodynamic drag. At the 1968 German Grand Prix he became the first driver ever to use a full face helmet in Grand Prix racing.
source: Wikipedia
Dan Gurney’s engineering acumen, his quest for innovative solutions, his can-do attitude and his constant drive should never overshadow his magnificent ability behind the wheel. Gurney wasn’t just one of the greatest racers America has ever produced; he is one of the greatest drivers of all time. Jimmy Clark famously described Gurney as the only rival he feared, and that is an endorsement that ...
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