Designer

The Lola Cars founder and chief designer had a profound impact on American sports car and open-wheel racing. His designs won multiple Can-Am, Indy, Formula 5000 and USRRC championships, plus an IMSA GTP title. His Lola GT was adapted by Dearborn into the world-conquering Ford GT. The Englishman built his first Broadley Special in 1956. He opened Lola, named for the Damn Yankees character, two years later. 2016 Bob Russo Award-winning owner John Mecom Jr. became a US importer in the mid-‘60s and won regularly with Lola GTs and T70s before tackling the 1966 Indianapolis 500. Graham Hill scored a debut victory for Broadley’s T90. John Surtees’ T70 captured the inaugural Can-Am championship the same year. In the 1970s, thanks to longtime importer Carl Haas, Lolas collected eight straight American championships as F5000 morphed into the revived Can-Am. Lola scored additional Indy 500 wins in 1978 (Al Unser) and 1990 (Arie Luyendyk) and dominated IndyCar in the 1980s and early ‘90s, capturing titles for Mario and Michael Andretti, Bobby Rahal, Al Unser Jr. and Nigel Mansell.