Former team boss Shierson passes away.
Former Champ Car team owner Doug Shierson, who fielded the well-known Domino's Pizza sponsored entry for drivers such as Danny Sullivan and Al Unser Jr between 1982 and 1990 has lost a lengthy battle with cancer.
Shierson guided Tom Gloy and Jacques Villeneuve (Uncle of 1997 F1 World Champ Jacques) twice to consecutive Toyota Atlantic Championship victories between 1979 and 1981 before jumping to CART in 1982 with a March chassis, Domino's Pizza sponsorship and driver Howdy Holmes.
Former Champ Car team owner Doug Shierson, who fielded the well-known Domino's Pizza sponsored entry for drivers such as Danny Sullivan and Al Unser Jr between 1982 and 1990 has lost a lengthy battle with cancer.
Shierson guided Tom Gloy and Jacques Villeneuve (Uncle of 1997 F1 World Champ Jacques) twice to consecutive Toyota Atlantic Championship victories between 1979 and 1981 before jumping to CART in 1982 with a March chassis, Domino's Pizza sponsorship and driver Howdy Holmes.
Holmes stayed with the team for two full seasons, scoring a best result of fourth in Milwaukee that first season and taking 14th and 13th in the overall standings. However it was not until Shierson hired promising youngster Danny Sullivan for 1984 did the team rise to prominence.
In his first full CART season, Sullivan began the year with Shierson's own chassis but soon ditched it for a more reliable Lola-Cosworth and scored his maiden CART win at Cleveland. Further wins at Pocono and the long-forgotten Saniar Speedway and the Domino's car wound up fourth in the overall standings.
One year later, another youngster in the shape of Al Unser Jr scored two wins for the Shierson team and came within one point of taking the title, eventually losing out to his father Al Unser Sr on a memorable day in Miami's Tamiami Park.
Unser Jr stayed with Shierson for a further two seasons, scoring a victory at Miami in 1986 and finishing fourth and third in the overall standings in 1986 and 1987. However after a winless '87 campaign, Unser Jr moved to Rick Galles' squad and Brazilian Raul Boesel joined the team.
Although Boesel was a steady campaigner, he never finished higher than third (at Indianapolis in 1989) and was replaced by Arie Luyendyk for 1990.
In what turned out to be the final year for the Shierson team, Luyendyk brought them arguably their finest moment as he took victory in the Indy 500 as the nine-year relationship with Domino's drew to a close.
After shutting the doors on his race team, Shierson stayed with Champ Car for several more years before retiring to his North Carolina home.
