Danny Dunton

"Danny" Dunton
Personal information
Nationality  England
Date of birth 13 May 1924
Place of birth    England
Date of death    2 January 2015 (aged 90)
Current club information
Career history
Harringay Racers
Birmingham
Yarmouth
Harringay Racers
Weymouth
Bristol
Birmingham
Ipswich Witches
Belle Vue Aces
Oxford Cheetahs
Long Eaton Archers
Swindon Robins
Belle Vue Aces		 1949–1952
1953
1953
1954
1955
1955
1955
1955–1958
1959
1960–1965
1963
1964
1964
Individual honours
Individual Speedway
World Championship		 1950 (12th place)
Team honours
National Trophy Winner 1952

Dennis Clifford "Danny" Dunton (13 May 1924 – 2 January 2015) was an English international motorcycle speedway rider and promoter who reached the final of the Speedway World Championship in 1950, achieving 12th place with 5 points. As well as riding, Danny promoted Peterborough Panthers and co-promoted Oxford Cheetahs, then Oxford Rebels and finally White City Rebels.

Career summary

Dunton was born in Cholesbury, Buckinghamshire. He first took his bike in 1949 to Harringay Racers, and immediately found himself as a team member in his first meeting, a rare if not unique feat. As well as Harringay Racers, Belle Vue Aces, Ipswich Witches, Oxford Cheetahs, and Long Eaton Archers are listed as tracks where he rode as a contracted or loaned rider. In 1950, in only his second season, he qualified for the World Championship Final and finished 12th – the top three riders were Jack Young, Graham Warren and Cyril Brine.

In 1953, following a crash at New Cross, he used a wheelchair and could not walk for 4 months.

Danny Dunton retired from racing at Long Eaton at the end of 1963, having scored 127 and a half points from just 17 matches.

1965 saw him buying the Oxford promotion, later to be joined by Bob Dugard.

Following the decision of the British League promoters in November 1967 to run a second division, five promoters from the British League, Danny Dunton, Maury Littlechild, Len Silver, Ron Wilson and Reg Fearman formed Allied Presentations Limited. This company opened three tracks in 1968, Reading, Middlesbrough and Rayleigh, and constructed Crewe in 1969, followed in 1970 by Peterborough. Each track was promoted by one of the APL members and Danny Dunton’s track was Peterborough.

After he retired from riding, he served during the 1970s on the committee of the British League and then the National League as its chairman in 1981–85 and 1987, and was honoured by being made president in 1988.

Danny was active in the World Speedway Riders Association and was the honoured and respected president for the year 2005/06.

He lived for many years with his wife in Ley Hill, Buckinghamshire. He died after a long illness on 2 January 2015.[1]

World Final appearances

References

  1. ↑ "DANNY DUNTON". speedwaygb.co. 8 January 2015.

^ a b "A History of Long Eaton Speedway". Speedway Plus. 2008. http://www.speedwayplus.com/long_eaton.shtml. Retrieved on 2008-12-20.

External links