John Blewett III
| John Blewett III | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
October 25, 1973 Howell Township, New Jersey, United States |
| Died |
August 16, 2007 (aged 33) Thompson, Connecticut, United States |
| Related to | Jimmy Blewett (brother) |
| NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour | |
| Years active | 1995–2007 |
| Teams |
Dick Barney (1995–1996, 1998–1999) Mario Fiore (1999) Curt Chase (2000–2004) Timmy Shinn (2002–2004) Sheba Racing (2004) John Blewett Inc. (1997, 2005–2007) |
| Starts | 164 |
| Wins | 10 |
| Poles | 4 |
| Best finish | 3rd in 2001 and 2003 |
| Previous series | |
| 1996–1998 | NASCAR Camping World Truck Series |
| Awards | |
| 1992 | Rookie of the Year |
John Richard Blewett, III (October 25, 1973 – August 16, 2007), from Howell Township, New Jersey, was a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour driver.[1]
Career
Blewett started racing go karts at the age of 10. In 1996, at age 22, he won the coveted NASCAR's Northeast Regional Championship, falling only a few points shy of the National Title. During his career he recorded 96 wins between 1993 and 2007, including track championships at Flemington Speedway, Wall Township Speedway, New Egypt, as well as New Hampshire. In 2006, he was honored during the motorsports show in Atlantic City as the northeasts Winningest Pavement Driver, for that year, as tallied by Area Auto Racing News.
Death and Memorial
On August 16, 2007, while competing in a Whelen Modified race at Thompson Speedway, Blewett lost his life in a crash where he spun and was hit in the driver's door.[2] On August 18, 2007 Wall Township Speedway held a Special Memorial for John. Fans, family, and friends attended the Speedway to pay their final respects. On the final lap of the scheduled 40 lap modified event, 1990 NASCAR Whelen Modified Titlist Jamie Tomaino piloted the famed #76 for a solo lap in John's honor. Three months later, at the season ending Turkey Derby, the Speedway decided to retire the #76.[3] However, his brother can use the #76 (as he did) in the 2011 Turkey Derby at Wall, winning the Tour Type feature.
The North-South Shootout, a Tour-type Modified race held at Caraway Speedway (since 2011, previously held at Concord Motorsports Park), was renamed the John Blewett III Memorial North-South Shootout starting with the 2007 edition.
Previous rides
- John Blewett, Inc. #5 - 1992–1993
- John Blewett Inc. #76 - 1993–1994
- Lou Vasquez #9/#5 1994–1996
- Dick Barney #14 - 1995–1996, 1998–1999
- John Blewett, Inc. #05 - 1997
- Mario Fiore #44 - 1999
- Curt Chase #77 - 2000–2004
- Timmy Shinn #66 - 2002–2004 (Small Block Modified)
- John Blewett, Inc #76 2005–2007 (Small Block Modified)
- Sheba Racing #8 2004
- John Blewett Inc. #66 2005–2007
Accomplishments
- Rookie of the Year (1992)
- Thanksgiving Classic (1993)
- Race of Champions (1995)
- NASCAR Northeast Regional (1996)
- Challenge of Champions (1996, 1997)
- North-South Shootout (2003, 2005) (after his death, the race became the John Blewett III Memorial North-South Shootout)
- Turkey Derby (2000, 2001, 2004, 2005)
- Garden State Classic (2003,2004,2006)
Track titles
- Flemington Speedway (1996, 1997)
- New Hampshire International Speedway (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006)
- New Egypt Speedway (1996)
- Wall Township Speedway (2006)
References
External links
- John Blewett III driver statistics at Racing-Reference
- Official MySpace
- Thompson Speedway Race Results
- Blewett III Profile at RaceHub