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Mark Neary Donohue Jr. (born March 18 1937 in Haddon Township, New Jersey, United States – died August 19 1975 in Graz, Austria) was an American racing driver who most notably drove in Formula One and sports cars.

Formula One Career[]

Pre-Formula One[]

Prior to racing in Formula One, Donohue was a racer in the Ford GT40, Trans-Am, Indy car, NASCAR, Can-Am and IROC racing series. The highlight of his entire career was winning the 1972 Indianapolis 500.

1971[]

While in the Indy car series, Donohue made his first appearance in Formula One, driving a Penske-prepared McLaren. He made his first appearance racing in the Canadian Grand Prix, placing 3rd place on the podium. This would be the highest finish of his Formula One racing career.

He had also qualified for the United States Grand Prix, but was unable to start the race, due to a USAC commitment.

1974[]

In 1973, Donohue had retired from Indy car after the death of his friend, Swede Savage at the Indianapolis 500. He won the 1973 Can-Am championship in a Porsche 917–30, then retired from driving entirely.

In the 1974 season, Donohue was lured out of retirement by his Indy car boss, Roger Penske. He was asked to join the Penske racing team in Formula One for the final two races of the season.

Donohue managed to finish in 12th place in the Canadian Grand Prix, but suffered a suspension failure during the United States Grand Prix which had forced him to retire to the garage on lap 27.

1975[]

For the 1975 season, Donohue was offered a full position with the Penske racing team. Although Donohue had managed to place 5th in two events, the new Penske chassis had various problems.

Near the end of the season, Penske purchased a March chassis. Unfortunately, Donohue would not be able to finish the season.

Death[]

While practicing for the Austrian Grand Prix, Donohue suffered a tyre failure that caused him to lose control of the car. His car was sent into the catch fence in the fastest corner of the track, the Voëst-Hugel corner.

A track marshal was killed by debris from the accident. Donohue's head either hit a fence post or the bottom of an advertising billboard frame alongside the track when he crashed. He appeared uninjured from the accident and was able to walk away from the accident.

Later in the day, Donohue began to suffer a headache which gradually worsened. The next day, he was admitted into the hospital in Graz. He then went into a coma from a cerebral hemorrhage and died.

Helmet Design[]

Mark Donohue Helmet

Mark Donohue's helmet

Donohue's helmet was yellow with the word "Mark" written on either side. A Sunoco logo was also located underneath those words.

Awards[]

  • International Motorsports Hall of Fame (1990 induction)
  • Sports Car Club of America Hall of Fame (2006 induction)

Formula One Statistical Overview[]

Formula One Record[]

Year Entrant Team WDC Pts. WDC Pos. Report
1971 United States Penske Racing Lola-Chevrolet* 4 16th Report
McLaren-Ford Cosworth
1974 United States Penske Cars Penske-Ford Cosworth 0 NC Report
1975 United States Penske Cars Penske-Ford Cosworth 4 15th Report
March-Ford Cosworth
  • Italic donates an entrant used in non-championship races.
  • * Classified as a Formula 5000 entrant.

Career Statistics[]

Entries 16
Starts 14
Pole Positions 0
Sprint Poles 0
Front Row Starts 0
Race Wins 0
Sprint Wins 0
Podiums 1
Sprint Podiums 0
Fastest Laps 0
Sprint Fastest Laps 0
Points 8
Laps Raced 673
Distance Raced 2,979 km (1,851 mi)

Career Results[]

Complete Formula One Results
Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Pts Pos
1971 Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of Spain 1945 1977 Flag of Monaco Flag of the Netherlands Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of Italy Flag of Canada Flag of the United States 4 16th
3rd DNS
1974 Flag of Argentina Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of Spain 1945 1977 Flag of Belgium Flag of Monaco Flag of Sweden Flag of the Netherlands Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of Italy Flag of Canada Flag of the United States 0 NC
12th Ret
1975 Flag of Argentina Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of Spain 1945 1977 Flag of Monaco Flag of Belgium Flag of Sweden Flag of the Netherlands Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of Italy Flag of the United States 4 15th
7th Ret 8th Ret
[1]
Ret 11th 5th 8th Ret 5th Ret DNS
[2]
Key
Symbol Meaning Symbol Meaning
1st Winner Ret Retired
2nd Podium finish DSQ Disqualified
3rd DNQ Did not qualify
5th Points finish DNPQ Did not pre-qualify
14th Non-points finish TD Test driver
Italics Scored point(s) for Fastest Lap DNS Did not start
18th Classified finish (retired with >90% race distance) NC Non-classified finish (<90% race distance)
4thP Qualified for pole position [+] More Symbols

External links[]

V T E F1 drivers killed while racing
1952: Cameron Earl
1953: Chet Miller
1954: Onofre Marimón
1955: Manny Ayulo
1955: Bill Vukovich
1957: Eugenio Castellotti
1957: Keith Andrews
1958: Pat O'Connor
1958: Luigi Musso
1958: Peter Collins
1958: Stuart Lewis-Evans
1959: Jerry Unser
1959: Bob Cortner
1960: Chris Bristow
1960: Alan Stacey
1961: Giulio Cabianca
1961: Wolfgang von Trips
1964: Carel Godin de Beaufort
1966: John Taylor
1967: Lorenzo Bandini
1967: Bob Anderson
1968: Jo Schlesser
1969: Gerhard Mitter
1970: Bruce McLaren
1970: Piers Courage
1970: Jochen Rindt
1971: Ignazio Giunti
1971: Pedro Rodríguez
1971: Jo Siffert
1972: Jo Bonnier
1973: Roger Williamson
1973: François Cevert
1974: Peter Revson
1974: Helmuth Koinigg
1975: Mark Donohue
1977: Tom Pryce
1978: Ronnie Peterson
1980: Patrick Depailler
1982: Gilles Villeneuve
1982: Riccardo Paletti
1986: Elio de Angelis
1994: Roland Ratzenberger
1994: Ayrton Senna
2015: Jules Bianchi
See also: List of fatal accidents
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  1. Race stopped after 29/75 Laps. Half points awarded
  2. Race stopped after 29/54 Laps. Half points awarded
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