Bill Holland, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

    

Bill Holland

American racecar driver

Date of Birth: 18-Dec-1907

Place of Birth: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Date of Death: 19-May-1984

Profession: engineer, racing automobile driver, Formula One driver

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius


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About Bill Holland

  • Bill Holland (December 18, 1907 – May 19, 1984) was an American race car driver from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who won the Indianapolis 500 in 1949 and finished second in 1947, 1948 and 1950.
  • He also was runner up in the 1947 AAA National Championship. He nearly won the 1947 Indianapolis 500 as a rookie, but slowed and allowed teammate Mauri Rose to pass him seven laps from the end, mistakenly believing that Rose was a lap down.
  • In 1949 Holland led late in the race when Rose (still teammate to Holland on Lou Moore's Blue Crown Spark Plug team) began to slowly close on Holland.
  • Moore saw what was happening out on the track and hung out a pit board ordering both drivers to hold their respective positions to the finish.
  • Rose picked up the pace, closing on Holland.
  • But with 8 laps to go, Rose suffered a magneto failure and Holland cruised to the victory.
  • When Rose returned to the pits, Moore fired Rose on the spot. On November 14, 1951, Holland was suspended from AAA Indy Car racing for one year after competing in a three-lap Lion's Charity race at Opa-locka, Florida which was a NASCAR event.
  • The American Automobile Association, at the time the sanctioning body for Indycar races, had a strict rule forbidding its drivers from participating in any races other than their own, and would blacklist violators. Holland is believed to have got over 40 sprint car feature wins and 150 podiums.
  • He won the first ever automobile race at Selinsgrove Speedway (Selinsgrove, PA) on July 20, 1946. Holland died from complications of Alzheimer's disease, and was survived by his wife Myra.He was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2005.

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