Johnny Parsons

John Wayne Parsons[1] (born August 26, 1944 in Van Nuys, California) is an American race car driver. He is the son of 1950 Indianapolis 500 winner Johnnie Parsons and Arza Parsons (née Mitchell). His parents divorced, and Johnny was raised with half-brothers Dana and Pancho Carter, the product of Arza's marriage with Duane Carter. The Carters grew up racing quarter-midgets in Indianapolis.[2] His first name is spelled differently than his father's. Though not his legal name, he was sometimes referred to in the media as "Johnny Parsons Jr." to distinguish him from his father.

Johnny Parsons
Parsons in 2014
Nationality	American
Born	August 26, 1944 Van Nuys, California
Retired	1996
Related to	Johnnie Parsons (father) Pancho Carter (half brother)
American Championship Car
Years active	1969-1996
Teams	Vatis Racing Hopkins Racing Wysard Racing Arciero Racing Leader Cards Racing Blueprint Racing
Starts	106
Wins	0
Poles	2
Best finish	10th in 1976 (USAC)
Previous series
1979	Super Vee
Awards
1994	National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame

Racing family

Parsons started twelve Indianapolis 500 races. His last Indy 500 start was the 1996 race. His best finish was fifth in 1977 and 1985.

Parsons finished second in the 1977 USAC National points. Parsons has also twice finished second in the USAC championship dirt cars.[2]

Parsons won 29 midget car features (as of 1994), including major wins at: the 4-Crown Nationals midget car feature twice, the 1979 Hut Hundred, and the 1986 Copper World Classic midget feature.[2] He has won two Silver Crown and five sprint car features.[2]

When Davey Hamilton decided to come out of retirement to run in the 2007 Indy 500, Parsons replaced him as the driver expert for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network's broadcasts of race activities.

Career award

• Parsons was inducted in the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1994.[2]

Racing record

Complete USAC Mini-Indy Series results

Year	Entrant	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Pos	Points
1977		TRE	MIL	MOS	PIR DNS					-	-
1979		TEX1	IRP	MIL1 4	POC 19	TEX2	MIL2 22	MIN1 21	MIN2 4	11th	250

IRL IndyCar Series

Year	Team	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Rank	Points
1996	Blueprint Racing	Lola T93	Menard	WDW 18	PHX 12	INDY 28								17th	141
1996-97	Blueprint Racing	Lola T93	Buick	NH1	LV1 28	WDW	PHX	INDY	TEX	PIK	CMS	NH2	LV2	51st	7

Indianapolis 500 results

Johnny Parsons at the 2016 Brickyard SVRA Pro-Am race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish
1969			Failed to Qualify
1973	King	Offy	Practice Crash
1974	Finley	Offy	29th	26th
1975	Eagle	Offy	12th	19th
1976	Eagle	Offy	14th	12th
1977	Wildcat	DGS	11th	5th
1978	Lightning	Offy	8th	10th
1979	Lightning	DGS	9th	32nd
1980	Lightning	Offy	7th	26th
1981	Lightning	Chevrolet	Failed to Qualify
1982	March	Cosworth	25th	20th
1983	Penske	Cosworth	23rd	22nd
1984	Penske	Cosworth	Failed to Qualify
1985	March	Cosworth	26th	5th
1986	March	Cosworth	28th	27th
1987	March	Buick	Failed to Qualify
1988	March	Cosworth	Failed to Qualify
1989	March/Lola	Cosworth	Failed to Qualify
1991	Lola	Cosworth	Failed to Qualify
1992	Lola	Buick	Failed to Qualify
1993		Chevrolet	Failed to Qualify
1994	Lola	Greenfield	Failed to Qualify
1995	Reynard	Ford-Cosworth	Failed to Qualify
1996	Lola	Menard-Buick	27th	28th

References

1. 1975 Indianapolis 500 Radio Broadcast - Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network (May 25, 1975)
2. Biography Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine at the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame