| Eddie O'Donnell | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Name: | Edward Francis O'Donnell | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Date: | 30 April 1887 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth Place: | Whitewater, Wisconsin, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Death Place: | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Edward Francis O'Donnell (April 30, 1887 – November 26, 1920)[1] was an American racing driver. He gained fame competing for the Duesenberg team.
O'Donnell started his career as a riding mechanic for Duesenberg racing driver Eddie Rickenbacker. When Rickenbacker left the Duesenberg team to join the Peugeot team, O'Donnell took over as driver. He served as Captain of the Duesenberg team and was highly successful on the dirt tracks and board tracks around the United States, also having raced on the road circuits. He recorded three victories during the 1915 season. In 1916 he recorded two non-Championship victories, during only the second points championship season conducted in American history.
O'Donnell was fatally injured when he and Gaston Chevrolet collided during the Beverly Hills Speedway Classic race on Thanksgiving Day 1920.[2] Chevrolet was killed as well as O'Donnell's mechanic Lyall Jolls. O'Donnell died the next morning.[3]
| Year | Car | Start | Qual | Rank | Finish | Laps | Led | Retired | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | 15 | 11 | 88.930 | 12 | 5 | 200 | 0 | Running | |
| 1919 | 10 | 5 | 97.300 | 13 | 22 | 60 | 0 | Piston | |
| 1920 | 29 | 12 | 88.200 | 14 | 14 | 149 | 0 | Oil line | |
| Totals | 409 | 0 | |||||||
| Starts | 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Poles | 0 | |
| Front Row | 0 | |
| Wins | 0 | |
| Top 5 | 1 | |
| Top 10 | 1 | |
| Retired | 2 |