The Tragedy of Greg Moore

people often regard your vilner as one of the greatest talents to ever grace Formula One a driver that can push a car Beyond the Edge and still find a way to make a dance with him a driver who carried a sense of personality and gathered and dared him to everyone who set eyes upon him a driver who if you look at his stats on the surface of things doesn't tell you the full story six wins what's the big deal well watch him drive and you'll see what the big deal was listen to those who raced with him and they'll tell you there was no equal when Jill was killed what's qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix it shocks the motor racing world and for a lot of people the best talent in their world of motor racing had been taken away from them he remains one of Canada's most beloved Heroes and serves as an inspiration for many a driver in that Nation three years after his passing a young man from Maple Ridge was about to begin his journey in go-karts signing up at the Westwood karting Club as the 99th member and being bestowed with the number 99 which would become synonymous with his name in the years to come his name was Greg Moore he was a slightly goofy looking kid but he had a natural ability for sports specifically hockey and racing he was given his first go-kart at the age of six running around in his father's car dealership whilst also playing as a goalie in hockey he eventually moved up to proper competition cards at the age of 10 but by the time he turned 14 he was given a choice continue playing hockey or drive expensive cars and circles for two hours the second option sounded more exciting and thus opted for that truthfully Greg could have made something of himself playing hockey he won the Maple Ridge athlete of the Year twice and also won the British Columbia hockey Provincial Championship but at that stage he'd grown tired of dealing with hockey pucks and the Relentless training schedule that came with It ultimately racing was where his heart lay in hockey the game could be won or lost outside of your control whereas in racing you are in control most of the time and he had a real knack for car control a trait learned when his father pulled the old trick off sending him out on a wet track with dry weather tires which FYI is not very fun he was relentless on him one time Greg forgot his neck race for racing they packed up and went home without ever turning a lap in practice if Greg tried showboating in a corner his father would say do that again and we're leaving seemed a little rancid but his father was a race driver himself he knew that the best way to make a racing driver swim is to drown him first and ultimately this tough love approach worked to his benefit coupled with the sixth sense and innate driving ability he was racking up wins all the time in the 1989 North American Enduro kart racing championship of the longest freaking name ever he spun off in the rain and fell half a lap behind the leaders he came back to win the race and it was there where they knew that he had a future in the sport he continued to win in cards before being enrolled in a racing school in shannonville Ontario everyone there was deeply impressed with the skill levels despite being way younger than his competitors and ended up beating hundreds of other drivers to win the Top Gun series The cinched it they had to get Greg into a racing car so they bought a formula forward from the UK and so Greg would make his car racing debut in a Canadian Formula Ford Championship immediately he was on the pace getting second in his first ever car race before winning the next one he was greater than Gucci and on a shoestring budget but he was already scaring people around the paddock with his ability behind the wheel these guys didn't even turn up with a proper trailer never mind everything else a top team would have and Greg was still showing them up he finished fourth in the standing stopped by simmer's Fortune whilst running up front but nonetheless got rookie of the year he moved up to formula 4 2000 for the next year where he was pretty quick at the start of the championship but once they got to round four in Las Vegas good bye he was the champion that year and the Rookie of the Year obviously and for the next season he was going to need a new challenge back then this would have been formula Atlantic but the series organizers looked at Greg and said uh-uh ain't no way we're letting a three-year-old race in our Series so the Moors called up the Indie light series The sit below indica and asked can our sun racing your series please they'd never had a driver younger than 18 raced in this series before but obviously they saw something beyond the scrawny little kid wearing ringless glasses he might have looked like a math tutor but What mattered was the bulging trophy cabinet that showed that this math tutor could really really drive that allowed him entry onto the grid he was still developing his skills on road courses but on the ovals he was wicked fast almost too fast for the material that he had the first season of Indie lights in 1993 was definitely a learning year but he learned plenty and those who knew knew that he was quick the next year in 1994 Greg started off by dominating in the first round and would win another two races that year but the family-run team which was already on a shoestring budget was finally running out of money not even the prize money was making up for the shortcomings the family home was mortgaged and even after more help from family members they barely finished the 94 season if they wanted to continue they needed some more funding and luckily Moore attracted the attention of players and that was kinda groundbreaking because they were typically very Pro Quebec if your name didn't sound insultingly French and you weren't born within 10 square feet of the center of Quebec you were not going to be considered they already had Claude Bourbonnais that they didn't really need anyone else but Greg was Canadian and he was extremely fast so they decided to back the winning horse Moore now had a full season of sponsorship and was now running at Forsyth racing and in 1995 he absolutely destroyed everybody in the 12 races that year he won 10 of them wrapping the championship up in fine style and being the Talk of the Town and now the slith Greg with only one place to go nah not formula one I'm talking about Real Racing here we are of course talking about IndyCar more specifically indica or cart in the late 90s cars that were absolute monsters cars that would exceed 240 miles an hour once you were running at that speed every single input had to be my news because it was very easy to lose control you were basically on a wire with those things and my god did they sound good and this was where Greg was headed start of the 1996 season Homestead Miami more qualified six on debut which was very good but then he was penalized for making an illegal overtake on fangio which was very ungood he served his penalty and was bumped back a lap race pretty much over except no one told him that he was dancing around everybody as he climbed up through the field he passed leader Jimmy Vassar to get back on the lead lap and eventually came home to finish in seventh place sure not exactly a win but everyone watching knew that this could be special the Forsyth team he was driving for was running Mercedes-Benz engines and the man who ran it Norbert Howe immediately legal liking to her he knew just how special great was and bear in mind this was the same man who was providing Asians to Mika freaking hackenan for sure it was a good comeback it was a good drive but was this just a one-off the next race proved that no it wasn't for a second race he qualified in fourth and with a handful of laps to go he was actually leading the race he was looking set to take his first IndyCar win and then his engine dies it was an absolute gut punch and it kind of typified his season sure there was the good result here and there but amidst all of the Heartbreak and near-misses everyone realized the potential of this kid you didn't need to look at his results because what you saw on track said enough he finished that year in ninth place but obviously they wanted to do better 1997 had to be better despite having blistering speed and always looking worthy to win every race he was in up until June 1997 he hadn't won one the Milwaukee Mile changed that thanks to cunning's strategic cause and Greg's ability to somehow save fuel while it's also going through the corners faster than anyone else he held off the rapid Michael Andretti punched the air in celebration and won and he bet up that performance by winning the next race in Detroit Belle Isle in doing so he became the youngest driver to take a win in that Series this combined with the way he would dance with the car the flay he boasted and his tremendous personality made him a fan favorite he still carried the number 99 throughout his entire career and always wore red gloves no matter what he drove a source of Canadian Pride something that still carries on to the stage he was instantly recognizable he was on a high but the remainder of that season was a disaster in the last eight races he only finished once a second placing at Mid-Ohio otherwise he was beset with engine failures and other drivers ramming him into walls I must be honest though sometimes he didn't make the mistake of throwing himself into the shadow realm which is decidedly unhealthy but who cares maybe 1998 would be Third Time Lucky started that year off with a bang pole position in the opening race and although he didn't win that race his results for the first half of the Season were still strong and they were consistent and one of those good results came in Rio with a handful of laps to go he was chasing down Alex Zanardi the reigning Champion he was looking everywhere to pull off a move he was chasing chasing but when zanadi was blocked by admire Greg was right on him he ducked to the outside sent it deep swept around took the leaves it was a stunning move one still talked about today and one that led to Frank Williams to make a phone call to Moore's agent he wanted Greg in a Formula One car but Greg wanted to honor his contract with Forsyth Frank did still have eyes on him though as did so Jackie Stewart who also had his own Formula One team at the time and jean-tart who then was spearheading Ferrari was a big fan too Greg was highly regarded in American open wheelers but he was just as highly regarded and formula one circles too thanks to his win in Rio he was now leading the championship he was looking to replicate the feet accomplished two years ago when Countryman Jack fielner won the title maybe Canada had another champion on their hands here well no mechanical failures destroyed his season and for his teammate Patrick carpontier things weren't much better but Greg overdriving to compensate for these bad results did not help matters either he was growing frustrated he knew he had it in him to be the champion but the act of ending up in the barrier surrounded by bits of what used to be his race car is an unhealthy way of going about trying to win that said however frustrated he was he was still a character off the track part of what made him a fan favorite together with Max Pappas stereo Franchitti and Tony Kanan they formed what will be known as the brat pack a group characterized by racing their damn scooters in The Paddock and Other Stories that cannot be told I like my videos to remain monetized but for however mischievous and fun he was off the track he remained serious whenever he was on it the us-500 the wish.com rival to the Indy 500 and the chip ganasi cars were schooling everybody with five laps to go no one really stood much of a chance Alex zanadi and Jimmy Vassar were exchanging positions back and forth and on rude true taker 1-2 but pretty soon they were about to get one hell of a headache [Music] more so I've gone through to Pastor Nadi and Vassar they kept trying to push him back behind but Greg kept faster at Bay and won the us-500 he used the draft to his Advantage brilliantly but he never let it Vanquish him in what was a dismal second half of the Season he showed just how freaking good he was but for however jubilant they were in Victory this race was a harrowing reminder of the dangers of the sport on lap 175 Adrian Fernandez hit the wall causing his front right wheel to fly off into the grandstands and this incident killed three people death wasn't especially common in cars but it wasn't altogether rare either just two years prior Jeff grossnov and track official Gary avarin were killed in a crash in Toronto Greg's father Rick told him that this was just a part of racing that he had to accept that at any moment life can be taken away by what you loved most the dangers of the sport as apparent in 98 as they were in 96. the year he was focused on however was 99 he done the slogan fine in 99 Miami Pole Position race win bang out of the gate a great start but it was just that a great start once the season got going it was apparent that the Mercedes engine used by Forsyth was just not competitive anymore Honda was the engine to have it was now Greg's fourth year in the category and having no Championship to his name was growing very soon he needed a platform with which he can unequivocally show what he could do like he did back in 1995 where he destroyed the Indie lights field and he knew in order to do that his future was likely no longer with Forsyth before the year was up he signed with Penske a team that as it would turn out next year would be the top team they were however reeling from a lack of form and in September that year tragedy during practice for the Laguna's sake around the Uruguayan Prodigy Gonzalo gotchi Rodriguez was killed when he crashed head-on at the corkscrew some say that the throttle jammed others say it didn't but either way the dangers of the sport once again rising to the surface for Greg he had to remain focused he still had a championship to complete with Forsyth and while the Mercedes engine was useless on the road courses on the ovals it was still a weapon and so was he and the last race of the year was in Fontana California a million dollar prize fund to the winner it didn't get off to the best of stars whilst riding a scooter in The Paddock he was hit by a pickup truck and suffered a broken bone in his right hand lacerations in his fingers and a scraped right hip he missed qualifying but his attitude was ah suck it up he'll be fine we'll let him start the race despite the fact that racing with 15 stitches on your finger on a track where 230 miles an hour was the norm and you are pulling jet fighter g-forces out there Greg insisted that he would be fine as part of sports in Canada you're just used to playing hurt like back in his hockey days and even in karting all the way through Indie lights up to the Top Flight of American open wheelers he will be starting the race from position 26 and he joked with his friend Tony Kanan who is in 10th that uh give me a couple of laps and I'll be up there with you he wasn't joking after two laps he was right there Greg was charging up the field determined to go out on a high with Forsyth with players the people that gave him his chance in racing couple of laps later Richie Hearn spun off and slammed into the barrier on the back straight he walked away fine but if it were any faster if he had hit that axis Road at a slightly different angle it might have been different you never think about the consequences when you're racing especially in these days of improved safety I'll be fine that's what all the drivers say nothing's gonna happen to me on lap 9 the race got back underway and while exiting turned two Greg spun off oh oh an enormous crash oh my God he spun off in exactly the same place that Reggie earned it but his car hit the axis Road at an angle and he hit it fast it threw the car into the air and he hit the wall at a sickening angle he was thrown head first into a barrier and the Crash registered 154 G those watching knew immediately at 1 21 Pacific time he was pronounced dead the scene at the speedway was won a profound morning the sport had just lost one of its favorite Sons it was the end of a championship and a new Champion was crowned but there was no celebration the flags were flown at half mast and many stayed behind in prayer in the time following the crash the number 99 was retired from cart in Delights and formula Atlantic and the infield at Fontana was paved so that an accident like Greg's could never happen again he was posthumously inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame and BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2000 the Greg Moore Foundation was set up in his legacy and the go-kart track where he honed his craft as a young kid was renamed in his honor tributes came in from all across the world his loss was particularly present in his home nation of Canada where he is still revered to this day drivers Across the Nation still donning the red gloves that he wore with pride for a lot of people his loss still hurts it wasn't just that we lost a gifted racing driver we lost a great human being someone who the paddock adored a crowd favorite someone who family above everything else a great character too but a true freaking racer when he was on the track someone whose talents made world-class racing drivers around him Proclaim how the hell did he do that he has been named amongst the greatest drivers never to have raced in Formula One none of this Acclaim is sentimental either more was held to this regard before his passing who knows how many championships he would have won would he have gone to formula one would he have gone to NASCAR all these questions we ask of his potential yet at the age of 24 he was gone before he really had a chance to spread his wings and left his win tally at five this led many who never watched him to question what's all the hype about it's almost exactly like it is with another Canadian the one mentioned at the very start of this piece numbers can help you quantify where a driver sits on a spreadsheet but On Any Given Sunday both stats don't matter it's what happens on the track that counts and it's where you see the ones that truly stand out the ones that defied belief and make the impossible possible giovionov did that Greg Moore did that foreign [Music]

Channel: Josh Revell

Views: 293,008

Keywords: indycar, cart, champ car, greg moore, gilles villeneuve, greg moore racing, greg moore racing driver, greg moore cart

Id: TLleGdxOII8

Length: 18min 17sec (1097 seconds)

Published: Thu Jul 13 2023