HR1168 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1168 LRB098 21551 MST 60196 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to congratulate Elmhurst native Fred Lorenzen on being a 2015 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee; and

WHEREAS, Fred Lorenzen was inducted into NASCAR's Hall of Fame on May 21, 2014; he got his start in NASCAR as a mechanic with the famed Holman-Moody team in 1960, but was elevated to lead driver by the end of the year; he won 3 races in only 15 starts the following season; and

WHEREAS, Nicknamed "Fearless Freddie" and "Golden Boy", Fred Lorenzen recorded 26 wins in his NASCAR career and remains the only driver to win 20 races in his first 100 starts; he became the first driver to earn more than $100,000 in winnings in a single season, claiming $113,570 while driving for the Holman-Moody team in 1963; and

WHEREAS, Fred Lorenzen's best overall season came in 1963 when he finished with 6 wins, 21 top-5 finishes, and 23 top-10 finishes in 29 starts and finished third in the standings; in 1965, he won 2 of NASCAR's major events - the Daytona 500 and the World 600; and

WHEREAS, Fred Lorenzen is a member of numerous motorsports halls of fame including the National Motorsports Press Association's Hall of Fame, the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America; and

WHEREAS, Fred Lorenzen was one of NASCAR's first true superstars even though he was a "part-time" driver, never running more than 29 of the season's 50-plus races; he is credited with driving interest in the sport of auto racing outside of its Southern roots; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Fred Lorenzen on being a 2015 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Fred Lorenzen as an expression of our esteem and respect.