John J. Wood is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 former racing driver. He began his career in sports car racing

Sports car racing

Sports car racing is a form of circuit auto racing with automobiles that have two seats and enclosed wheels. They may be purpose-built or related to road-going sports cars....

, then ventured briefly into open wheel racing from 1978 to 1980, then returned to sports cars.

After finishing 5th in the USAC Formula Super Vee

Formula Super Vee

Formula Super Vee was a type of open-wheel motor created to act as a platform for the promotion of VW products, playing much the same role in the 1970s as formulae such as Formula Renault play today. The idea for Formula Super Vee is generally attributed to Josef Hopen, who worked as the Special...

 standings in 1978 with a win at Trenton Speedway

Trenton Speedway

Trenton Speedway was a racing facility located near Trenton, New Jersey at the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Races for the United States' premier open-wheel and full-bodied racing series of the times were held at Trenton Speedway.-Racing history:...

, Wood moved up to the CART

Champ Car

Champ Car was the name for a class and specification of open wheel cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race...

/USAC Championship Car series in 1980 with Mergard Racing. He made his debut at the Ontario Motor Speedway

Ontario Motor Speedway

The Ontario Motor Speedway, located in Ontario, California, east of Los Angeles, was the first and only automobile racing facility built to accommodate major races sanctioned by all of the four dominant racing sanctioning bodies: IndyCar Series and USAC for open-wheel oval car races; NASCAR for a ...

 and finished a respectable 12th place. He then failed to qualify for the 1980 Indianapolis 500

1980 Indianapolis 500

Results of the 1980 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 25, 1980.-Recap:After failing in its 1979 debut, Jim Hall's radically new Chaparral chassis is driven to easy victory by Johnny Rutherford. Tom Sneva becomes the first driver to place second after starting last. He also...

. He returned in July to race on the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a road course auto racing facility located in Troy Township, Morrow County, Ohio, United States, just outside of the village of Lexington...

 but crashed out on the first lap. He then failed to qualify for the fall race at the Milwaukee Mile

Milwaukee Mile

The Milwaukee Mile is a -long oval race track in West Allis, Wisconsin that seats about 40,000 spectators. It operated as a dirt track until 1953. The track was paved in 1954....

 and his Champ Car adventure was over.

He returned to sports car racing, including both the World Sportscar Championship

World Sportscar Championship

The World Sportscar Championship was the world series run for sports car racing by the FIA from 1953 to 1992.The championship evolved from a small collection of the most important sportscar, endurance and road racing events in Europe and North America with dozens of gentleman drivers at the grid,...

 and the Trans Am Series. Although he never won a major race, he competed in the 24 Hours of Daytona

24 Hours of Daytona

The 24 Hours of Daytona, currently known as the Rolex 24 Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on a combined road course, utilizing portions of the NASCAR tri-oval and an infield...

several times.

External links

• John Wood at ChampCarStats.com