Astor Cup (auto race)

Start of 1915 Astor Cup race
1916 Astor Cup auto race

The Astor Cup Race was an American auto racing event, first run in 1915 at the Sheepshead Bay Speedway at Sheepshead Bay, New York. The winner's trophy (the Astor Challenge Cup) was donated by Vincent Astor, whose name and connections ensured the attendance of members of New York City's fashionable and wealthy elite.

1915

Owned by a group of Wall Street and other business investors, including Harry Harkness of Cleveland and Carl G. Fisher of Indianapolis, the Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation acquired the defunct horse racing facility known as the Sheepshead Bay Race Track (which had been owned by William Kissam Vanderbilt and Leonard Jerome's Coney Island Jockey Club). The purchase was completed in April 1915 and the first Astor Cup race was held on October 9 that year. Run over a two-mile (3 km) banked oval board track, the 350-mile (560 km) race was marred by the death of Harry Grant who died when his vehicle crashed during a practice run. Won by Gil Andersen in a Stutz, the first Astor Cup drew the top drivers from across the United States and Europe such as Ralph DePalma, Barney Oldfield, Eddie Rickenbacker, Dario Resta, Johnny Aitken and Howdy Wilcox.

1916

The 1916 race was run on October 30, 1916, with Johnny Aitken winning and setting a speed record at 104 miles per hour.[1]

The race ceased to exist after two years. Other auto races continued at the track until 1919. The Sheepshead Bay Speedway Corporation ran into financial difficulties, following the January 1919 death of Harry Harkness. The property was sold for residential real estate development.

Race results

Year Date Winning driver Car Race distance Time of race Winning speed
Miles Laps
1915 Oct 9 United States Gil Andersen Stutz 350 175 03:24:42 102.59 mph (165.10 km/h)
1916 Sept 30 United States Johnny Aitken[1] Peugeot 250 125 02:23:04.03 104.484 mph (168.151 km/h)

Astor Challenge Cup

The original cup from the 1915-16 races is now held by INDYCAR, LLC, which is a descendant of Fisher's Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and both are now owned by Roger Penske. Two cylindrical black granite bases have been added displaying the names of all the AAA, USAC, CART, and IndyCar series winners since 1909, including the winners of the ceremonial Gold Crown championship which only consisted of one race, as well as those of 1909-1915 and 1917-1919, which were not championship points-awarding seasons. The two granite bases are not permanently attached to the trophy, and are rarely seen with it when the trophy tours. This makes it possible for it to be picked up and held by its winner.

On October 12, 2011, INDYCAR, LLC announced that the Astor Challenege Cup would be presented annually as the new championship trophy for the IndyCar Series. It was first presented to Dario Franchitti on February 13, 2012, during the organisation's State of INDYCAR address at Hilbert Circle Theatre. The winning driver and team owner are each presented with a scaled replica of the trophy during official INDYCAR business meetings. Since 2012, the trophy has been presented after the final race of the season.[2]

Aster Challenge Cup recipients (IndyCar drivers champions)

Year Winning Driver Car Team Report
IndyCar National Champions
2011 United Kingdom Dario Franchitti Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2012 United States Ryan Hunter-Reay Dallara-Chevrolet Andretti Autosport report
2013 New Zealand Scott Dixon Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2014 Australia Will Power Dallara-Chevrolet Team Penske report
2015 New Zealand Scott Dixon Dallara-Chevrolet Chip Ganassi Racing report
2016 France Simon Pagenaud Dallara-Chevrolet Team Penske report
2017 United States Josef Newgarden Dallara-Chevrolet Team Penske report
2018 New Zealand Scott Dixon Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2019 United States Josef Newgarden Dallara-Chevrolet Team Penske report
2020 New Zealand Scott Dixon Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2021 Spain Álex Palou Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2022 Australia Will Power Dallara-Chevrolet Team Penske report
2023 Spain Álex Palou Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2024 Spain Álex Palou Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report
2025 Spain Álex Palou Dallara-Honda Chip Ganassi Racing report

References

  1. ^ a b "Aiken the Victor in Astor Cup Race. Drives His Peugeot at Rate of 104 Miles an Hour, Making a World's Record" (PDF). The New York Times. October 1, 1916. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
  2. ^ "Cup pays tribute to Indy car racing's heritage".

Sources

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