INDIANAPOLIS — Racing's Wally Dallenbach has died.
An IndyCar winner and longtime series official, Dallenbach died Monday. He was 87.
Dallenbach made 13 starts in the Indianapolis 500 between 1967-1979. His best finish was fourth, in 1976 and 1977.
He qualified in the middle of the front row in 1974, his best Indy 500 start.
Dallenbach, an East Brunswick, New Jersey native, started his driving career in drag racing on the East Coast before switching to oval racing in midgets and sprint cars.
He joined INDYCAR in 1965 at Langhorne Speedway. His final start was in Phoenix in 1979 at Phoenix.
Dallenbach became the first competition director and chief steward of Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) in 1980 and was chief steward until 2004.
“Wally Dallenbach made a huge contribution to our sport for five decades as a driver and official,” a joint statement from INDYCAR and Indianapolis Motor Speedway said. “He was a talented competitor behind the wheel, who always raced hard but clean. That sense of fairness and decency extended to his legendary tenure as chief steward of CART, where he was respected and liked by all for his steady, sensible officiating. Wally’s many contributions to racing safety, especially a traveling medical team, will resonate long into the future. He was one of the true good guys of open-wheel racing, and our thoughts and sympathies are with his family.”
Dallenbach is a member of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame, Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Hall of Fame.
Dallenbach is survived by three children. Dallenbach’s wife, Peppy, passed away in 2023.
