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) Mario Fiore (1999) Curt Chase (2000–2004) Sheba Racing (2004) John Blewett Inc. (1997-1998, 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 97 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 reserve the #76 exclusively for use by the Blewett family, effectively retiring the number except that any Blewett family owned team or driver can use it (Jimmy or John IV).[3]
The North-South Shootout, a race meet now featuring "Tour-type" Modified (similar to NASCAR Modified Tour cars, but the races are unsanctioned), SK Modified (Jack Arute owns the trademark, a Stafford Motor Speedway formula), Late Model, Super Late Model, and four-cylinder races held at various North Carolina short tracks, was renamed the John Blewett III Memorial North-South Shootout starting with the 2007 edition.
Previous rides
- John Blewett, Inc. #5 – 1992–1993 (Wall Stadium)
- John Blewett Inc. #76 – 1993–1994 (Flemington Speedway)
- Lou Vasquez #9/#5 1994–1996 (New Egypt Speedway Paved)
- Dick Barney #14 – 1995–1996, 1998–1999 (Flemington Speedway)
- John Blewett, Inc. #05 – 1997 (Flemington Speedway)
- Mario Fiore #44 – 1999 (Nascar Whelen Modified Tour)
- Curt Chase #77 – 2000–2004 (Nascar Whelen Modified Tour)
- Timmy Shinn #66 – 2002–2004 (Wall Stadium)
- John Blewett, Inc #76 2005–2007 (Wall Stadium)
- Sheba Racing #8 2004 (Nascar Whelen Modified Tour)
- John Blewett Inc. #66 2005–2007 (Nascar Whelen Modified Tour)
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 was named in his memory, the John Blewett III Memorial North-South Shootout.
- Turkey Derby (2000, 2001, 2004, 2005)
- Tour-Type Modified Division
- 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