Mario is the answer, but Scott Pruett should be a name in the discussion as well. Pruetts racing resume boasts (wins) in nearly every major racing series including NASCAR, CART, IMSA GTO/GTU/GTP, SCCA Trans Am and IROC, where hes accumulated 10 major championships over the past 27 seasons. From his first title in 1981 at the World Karting Championship to his latest Rolex 24 At Daytona victory, Pruett is still a force to be reckoned with in world of racing. In 10 full season of sports car racing since 1986, Pruett has never finished below second in the series' championship race. He has a record SEVEN victories in the 24 Hours at Daytona. He spent 11 years racing in CART (Indy Cars) with 145 starts, two wins, five poles, and fifteen podiums (top three finishes). He was Indianapolis 500 Co-Rookie of the Year in 1989. Again, Mario was the best, but Pruett is very underrated.
I vote Mario. Respect for AJ Foyt too. Speaking of AJ Foyt. There was a quote in the paper last weekend, before Daytona. I can't remember it exactly, but the jist of it was they asked AJ what he thought about Tony Stewart. His response included something about, "...if he doesn't get any fatter." They then asked Tony for a response to what AJ said. Tony's response, "Hello Pot, Kettle here." LOL! Back on topic...
Agreed. Without his nearly catastrophic testing wreck at WPB in the Lola-Judd and his lengthy recovery soon after he won RoY at Indy in 1989, who knows where he might have ended up (not that he's in a bad place now).
I mentioned Gurney in an earlier post, but had forgotten about Pruett! I was not a fan of his when he was in IMSA (he was brash, and I was a Chevy fan!), but he's had a great career and he was always a threat in CART. Another person I forgot was Al Holbert: 4 top-10 finishes in NASCAR 4th at Indy (1984) LeMans winner 3X, numerous other GTP / Sportscar wins and domination He was a great racer, and always a class act. Again, as an IMSA fan, I loved Chevy (and later Nissan), but it was hard not to like the guy. Finally, lest I forget my favorite F1 pilot of all time - Gilles Villeneuve. Drag raced, won a championship in snowmobiles, raced CanAm, then of course his Formula Atlantic / F1 career. Not long enough to be considered best cross format of all time, but you can't get too much different than snowmobiles and F1 cars!!
