Sam Posey is a retired American racecar driver and sports broadcast journalist.

Driving career

Sam Posey started as an amateur sports car racer, and graduated to the Can Am and Trans Am. Posey raced the Sunoco Camaro for Roger Penske in 1968 in the Trans Am series. Chevrolet won the championship based on the Penske team effort. Mark Donohue was the lead driver and he won a remarkable 10 of 13 races. Posey's first race was at Bridgehampton where he finished 3rd. Other finishes were: Meadowdale, 3rd’; St Jovite, 3rd; Bryar, 6th; Watkins Glen, 2nd which was the only race that Donohue was beaten by a Camaro in 1968. Posey's car was the same Sunoco Blue with yellow lettering as Donohue. Posey sported a yellow spoiler and Donohue had a red spoiler.

In 1969, he won the Lime Rock Trans-Am in a factory Ford Mustang. In 1970, Posey was the driver for Ray Caldwell's factory-backed Autodynamics Dodge Challenger in Trans-Am, racing against Parnelli Jones

Parnelli Jones

Rufus Parnell "Parnelli" Jones , is a retired American racing driver and racecar owner. He is most remembered for his 1963 Indianapolis 500 win, and almost winning the 1967 Indy 500 in a turbine car...

, Dan Gurney

Dan Gurney

Daniel Sexton Gurney is an American racing driver, race car constructor, and team owner.The son of a Metropolitan Opera star, he was born in Port Jefferson, New York, but moved to California as a teenager...

, Mark Donohue

Mark Donohue

Mark Neary Donohue, Jr. , nicknamed "Captain Nice", was an American racecar driver known for his ability to set up his own race car as well as driving it to victories. Donohue is probably best known as the driver of the 1500+ bhp “Can-Am Killer” Porsche 917-30 and as the winner of the 1972...

 and Jim Hall in what most racing historians regard as the greatest season of professional road racing in US history. Posey also raced in the USAC

United States Automobile Club

The United States Auto Club is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, the USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapolis 500...

 Championship Car series in the 1969 and 1972-1974 seasons, with 13 career starts, including the 1972 Indianapolis 500

1972 Indianapolis 500

The 1972 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 27, 1972.Gary Bettenhausen leads 138 laps until his engine blows on lap 176. Jerry Grant gets the lead but pits for new tires on lap 188 in team mate Bobby Unser’s pit. Bettenhausen’s Penske team mate Mark Donohue...

. He finished in the top ten 8 times, with his best finish in 3rd position in 1969 at the Kent road course. He was the team driver for Caldwell's Can-Am racer which featured a monocoque aluminum construction and solid front and rear axles constructed as a space frames.

As an endurance racer, Posey appeared at the 24 Hours of Le Mans

24 Hours of Le Mans

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...

 10 times (1966, 1969–1973, and 1975–1978) and finished in the top 10 five times. His best finish was 3rd position during the 1971 competition in which he drove the Ferrari 512

Ferrari 512

Ferrari 512 S was the designation of 25 five litre sports cars built until January 1970, related to the Ferrari P sports prototypes. The V12-powered cars were entered in the 1970 International Championship for Makes by the factory Scuderia Ferrari and private teams...

M. He also won the 1975 12 Hours of Sebring

12 Hours of Sebring

The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, a former Army Air Force base in Sebring, Florida...

, teaming with three other drivers.

He participated in two Formula One

Formula One

Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...

 world championship events, the 1971

1971 United States Grand Prix

The 1971 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on October 3, 1971 at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York.__FORCETOC__-Summary:...

 and 1972 United States Grand Prix

1972 United States Grand Prix

The 1972 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on October 8, 1972 at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York.__FORCETOC__-Summary:...

, retiring from the first and finishing 12th in the second, thus not scoring any championship points. He drove Surtees

Surtees

The Surtees Racing Organisation was a race team that spent nine seasons as a constructor in Formula One, Formula 2, and Formula 5000.-History:...

 cars on both occasions, but only the first was a works-entered car.

He also competed in a single NASCAR

NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

 Grand National (predecessor to Nextel Cup

NEXTEL Cup

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing . The series was originally known as the Strictly Stock Series and Grand National Series . While leasing its naming rights to R. J...

) event, the first race of the 1970 series, held on the Riverside International Raceway

Riverside International Raceway

Riverside International Raceway was a race track or road course in Riverside, California. The track was in operation from September 22, 1957, to July 2, 1989...

 road race course in Riverside, California

Riverside, California

Riverside is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, and the county seat of the eponymous county. Named for its location beside the Santa Ana River, it is the largest city in the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area of Southern California, 4th largest inland California...

.

Racing analyst

Posey went on to become an auto racing commentator for ABC Sports. While commentating the 1986 Indianapolis 500

1986 Indianapolis 500

The 70th Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Saturday, May 31, 1986. After being rained out on May 25–26, the race was rescheduled for the following weekend...

, as there was a yellow flag out near the end of the race, Posey used a two way radio to ask an impromptu question to race leader Kevin Cogan

Kevin Cogan

Kevin Cogan is a former racecar driver who drove in Formula One from to . Driving a RAM Williams in the 1980 Canadian Grand Prix, he failed to qualify, suffering the same result driving for Tyrrell at the 1981 US GP West...

. Posey was asking Cogan about his thoughts about leading the Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis 500

The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...

 at this stage. Cogan politely replied to Posey that he was "busy now," but would talk to him later. Posey understood the circumstances and told the audience if that were he, "I wouldn't want to talk to me either."

Along with the Indy 500, Sam's ABC Sports

ESPN on ABC

ESPN on ABC is the brand used for sports programming on the ABC television network. Officially the broadcast network retains its own sports division; however, for all practical purposes, ABC's sports division has been merged with ESPN, a sports cable network majority-owned by ABC's parent, The...

 duties included commentary for the CART PPG IndyCar World Series

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...

 with Paul Page

Paul Page

Paul Page is an American motorsports broadcaster who was the lead announcer for ABC Sports' coverage of CART and the IRL from 1988 to 2004. He currently is the lead announcer for NHRA.-Early life and career:...

 and Bobby Unser

Bobby Unser

Robert William "Bobby" Unser is a retired U.S. automobile racer. He is the brother of Al Unser, Jerry Unser and Louie Unser, the father of Robby Unser, and the uncle of Al Unser, Jr. and Johnny Unser...

, lasting until the end of 1995. In 1989, Posey was brought in as part of the ABC Sports broadcast team covering the 1989 Tour de France

1989 Tour de France

The 1989 Tour de France was the 76th Tour de France, a race of 21 stages and a prologue, over 3285 km in total. In the closest tour in history, Greg LeMond was behind by 50 seconds at the start of the final stage, a time trial into Paris. LeMond rode for an average speed of 54.55 km/h ,...

. Many people were surprised by Posey's knowledge and genuine enthusiasm for the sport. ABC would bring him back as the lead anchor for the 1990 and 1991 races. Posey also worked the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo as the play-by-play announcer for luge and returned for ABC's coverage of the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.

Recent years

Posey later moved to Speedvision (now known as Speed Channel

SPEED Channel

Speed , is a cable and satellite television network broadcast to various parts of North America, but primarily the United States...

). He currently does essay work for Outdoor Life Network's coverage of the Tour de France

Tour de France

The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...

 serving as the "Race Historian", and writes for Road & Track magazine.

Posey is also the author of Playing With Trains, a book on model railroading published by Random House

Random House

Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...

, and The Mudge Pond Express, an autobiography which centers around his personal racing career and love of the sport.

Noted CART journalist Robin Miller

Robin Miller (journalist)

Robin Lee Miller is an American motorsports journalist. He was an Indy car pit crew member and drove in the USAC midget series in the 1970s...

 was known for poking fun of Posey, once going so far as to say that Posey "talked much better than he ever drove."- Champ Car Magazine, October/November 1999.

An accomplished artist and painter, Posey was once interviewed by motorsports artist, Beacham Owen for an article on CanAm

CanAm

The Canadian-American Challenge Cup or Can-Am, was an SCCA/CASC sports car racing series from 1966 to 1986.-History:Can-Am started out as a race series for Group 7 sports racers with two races in Canada and four races in the United States of America . The series was initially sponsored by Johnson...

 racing for the Daily News of Los Angeles in Southern California. Posey was driving a Chevy powered Lola CanAm car for Dana Chevrolet at the time. Posey now suffers from Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...

, which has attenuated his activities in recent years.

Posey is the voice for the pre-race build-up montage slotted between the Acura Pre-Race Show and the actual race coverage for each Formula 1 race shown on the Speed Channel. Posey also comments on recent Formula 1 races and the championship in a segment called "Posey's Perspective" as part of the Formula 1 Debrief show (also featuring Bob Varsha

Bob Varsha

Bob Varsha is one of the on-air personalities for Speed Channel. Varsha is presently the host of the network's live Formula One coverage. In 2002 and 2003, Varsha was the host of SPEED's Champ Car coverage. Rick DeBruhl took over Varsha's Formula One host chair for that period. In 2004, Varsha...

, David Hobbs, Steve Matchett

Steve Matchett

Steve Matchett is currently a commentator for American TV network Speed Channel on its various Formula One programs...

, and Will Buxton) on the Speed Channel.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	WDC	Points
1971 1971 Formula One season The 1971 Formula One season included the 22nd FIA Formula One World Championship season, which commenced on March 6, 1971, and ended on October 3 after eleven races.-Season summary:...	Team Surtees Surtees The Surtees Racing Organisation was a race team that spent nine seasons as a constructor in Formula One, Formula 2, and Formula 5000.-History:...	Surtees Surtees The Surtees Racing Organisation was a race team that spent nine seasons as a constructor in Formula One, Formula 2, and Formula 5000.-History:...  TS9	Cosworth Cosworth Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries...  V8	RSA 1971 South African Grand Prix The 1971 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Kyalami Circuit on March 6, 1971. The race, which was the first round of the 1971 Formula One season, was won by Mario Andretti who was driving for the Ferrari team.-Report:...	ESP 1971 Spanish Grand Prix The 1971 Spanish Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Montjuïc circuit on April 18, 1971. It was the second round of the 1971 Formula One season....	MON 1971 Monaco Grand Prix The 1971 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Monaco on May 23, 1971.- Race report :Qualifying was extremely wet and so it was Friday morning times that really counted for the grid - for Mario Andretti this was particularly unfortunate as his car was stranded out on the track at this...	NED 1971 Dutch Grand Prix The 1971 Dutch Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Zandvoort on June 20, 1971. Due to heavy rain, the track was treacherously wet and slippery, giving a large advantage to "wet-weather men" Ickx and Rodriguez, who also happened to be equipped with highly suitable cars and...	FRA 1971 French Grand Prix The 1971 French Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at the Circuit Paul Ricard on 4 July 1971.- Race report :The race was taking place for the first time at the brand new Paul Ricard circuit in the mountains outside Marseille. Jackie Stewart gained pole position - helped by extensive tyre...	GBR 1971 British Grand Prix The 1971 British Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Silverstone on July 17, 1971.- Race report :On one of the fastest circuits on the calendar, horsepower counted for everything...	GER 1971 German Grand Prix The 1971 German Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Nürburgring on 1 August 1971.The race returned to the Nürburgring after a year at the Hockenheimring after the safety was improved on the track. The race distance was shortened to 12 laps. Notable driver changes included Vic Elford, who...	AUT 1971 Austrian Grand Prix The 1971 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Österreichring on August 15, 1971.- Race report :Jo Siffert took a surprise pole position from Jackie Stewart and led away at the start from Clay Regazzoni and Jacky Ickx. The front two drew away from the pack, where Regazzoni was duelling...	ITA 1971 Italian Grand Prix The 1971 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Monza on September 5, 1971. This race is often referred to as the fastest Formula One race of all time, with a record average speed of 242.615 km/h , a record that was not broken until 32 years later at the 2003 Italian Grand Prix at...	CAN 1971 Canadian Grand Prix The 1971 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Mosport Park on September 19, 1971. Jackie Stewart took the win in the awful conditions and the race was stopped after 64 laps due to the weather...	USA 1971 United States Grand Prix The 1971 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on October 3, 1971 at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York.__FORCETOC__-Summary:... Ret		NC	0
1972 1972 Formula One season The 1972 Formula One season was the 23rd FIA Formula One season. It featured the 23rd World Championship of Drivers, the 15th International Cup for F1 Manufacturers and numerous non-championship Formula One races. The World Championship season commenced on January 23 and ended on October 8 after...	Champcarr Inc.	Surtees Surtees The Surtees Racing Organisation was a race team that spent nine seasons as a constructor in Formula One, Formula 2, and Formula 5000.-History:...  TS9B	Cosworth Cosworth Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries...  V8	ARG 1972 Argentine Grand Prix The 1972 Argentine Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at the Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez on January 23, 1972.- Classification :- Notes :* Pole Position: Carlos Reutemann - 1:12.6* Fastest lap: Jackie Stewart - 1:13.66...	RSA 1972 South African Grand Prix The 1972 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Kyalami on March 4, 1972.- Classification :-Standings after the race:Drivers' Championship standingsConstructors' Championship standings...	ESP 1972 Spanish Grand Prix The 1972 Spanish Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Jarama on May 1, 1972.- Classification :- Notes :* Pole Position: Jacky Ickx - 1:18.43* Fastest Lap: Jacky Ickx - 1:21.01* Last Race: Alex Soler-Roig-Standings after the race:...	MON 1972 Monaco Grand Prix The 1972 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Monaco on May 14, 1972. This was the last race on the original Monaco circuit, before the swimming pool was installed and the tunnel was lengthened...	BEL 1972 Belgian Grand Prix The 1972 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Nivelles on June 4, 1972.- Classification :-Standings after the race:Drivers' Championship standingsConstructors' Championship standings...	FRA 1972 French Grand Prix The 1972 French Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Charade Circuit on July 2, 1972.Due to cutting the corners, a stone thrown from Emerson Fittipaldi's Lotus hit Helmut Marko in the eye during the 1972 French Grand Prix, ending his F1 career. The stones also had caused ten deflated tyres,...	GBR 1972 British Grand Prix The 1972 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Brands Hatch on July 15, 1972. It was won by Brazilian driver Emerson Fittipaldi driving a Lotus 72D.- Classification :-Standings after the race:Drivers' Championship standings...	GER 1972 German Grand Prix The 1972 German Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Nürburgring on July 30, 1972.- Classification :- Notes :* Pole position: Jacky Ickx - 7:07.0* Fastest lap: Jacky Ickx - 7:13.6...	AUT 1972 Austrian Grand Prix The 1972 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One held at Österreichring on August 13, 1972.- Classification :-Standings after the race:Drivers' Championship standingsConstructors' Championship standings...	ITA 1972 Italian Grand Prix The 1972 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Monza on September 10, 1972.- Classification :- Notes :* Pole Position: Jacky Ickx - 1:35.65* Fastest Lap: Jacky Ickx - 1:36.3...	CAN 1972 Canadian Grand Prix The 1972 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Mosport Park on September 24, 1972.- Classification :-Standings after the race:Drivers' Championship standingsConstructors' Championship standings...	USA 1972 United States Grand Prix The 1972 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on October 8, 1972 at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York.__FORCETOC__-Summary:... 12	NC	0

External links

• Sam Posey, MyF5000.com