In April of 1978, a chartered plane full of USAC officials crashed just outside of Indianapolis, killing everyone on board. With American open-wheel racing already in disarray as team owners began to demand greater accountability from their sanctioning body, the plane crash only served to accelerate a battle we've come to know as the Split. What role did that plane crash play in the ultimate fracturing of CART (Championship Auto Racing Teams) from USAC? And how did that crash unsettle the ve...
Apr 29, 2025•44 min•Season 2Ep. 7
From the moment his father died behind the wheel of a race car, Alberto Ascari was haunted by loss. Against his mother's wishes, he pursued a racing career of his own and went on to become Formula 1's first-ever back-to-back World Champion with Ferrari. Still, he was unable to shake the feeling that he was following in his father's footsteps — right down to wondering if he, too, would die behind the wheel. Throughout his life, Ascari turned to superstition to make sense of the chaos....
Apr 15, 2025•48 min•Season 2Ep. 5
When we last left the Formula 1 scene, the 1977 season was underway. Over a decade had passed since the formation of the Formula One Constructors Association — an organization first formed to guarantee better starting, prize, and travel money for low-budget teams, but that had morphed into a powerful force that could challenge for control of the sport. In this special two-part feature on “Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys,” we're going to uncover everything there is to know about the FISA/FOCA ...
Apr 01, 2025•50 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Many of the defining characteristics of modern Formula 1 — two-car teams, limits on who can enter the sport, big-money broadcasting deals, and so much more — are the direct result of a decades-long battle between the Formula One Constructors Association (FOCA, which represented the teams) and the Federation du Sport Automobile (FISA, a subsidiary of the FIA). Fans have likely heard of the FISA/FOCA war, but truly understanding how it impacted the sport of Formula 1 isn't easy when there were...
Mar 18, 2025•42 min•Season 2Ep. 4
In the mid-1960s, the Chevrolet Corvair became the most reviled car in the United States of America. The automotive press loved this zippy rear-engined machine for its crisp handling and its race-y feel — but it didn't take long before the machine to become the center of hundreds of lawsuits alleging that the car was not only responsible for injuring and killing its drivers and passengers, but that General Motors had known that would happen all along. It was a huge allegation, one that at best w...
Mar 04, 2025•44 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Enzo Ferrari. Merely speaking his name aloud conjures up grandiose images of a titan of motorsport: his towering presence, the dark sunglasses obscuring his eyes. He is the man behind the legendary Scuderia Ferrari, a team that has competed in every single Formula 1 season since the sport was born in 1950, and whose legacy extended back decades even before. Even today, the inimitable Enzo still casts a broad shadow over the motorsport. We know his accomplishments as a racer, a team leader, and a...
Feb 18, 2025•43 min•Season 2Ep. 2
On May 2, 1982, the green flag flew for the NASCAR Winston 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, and among a grid of legends like Dale Earnhardt, Bill Elliott, Benny Parsons, and more was a mystery racer no one had ever heard of before: L. W. Wright. Wright managed to nab a competition license, a race car, and some positive press, but there was just one problem. He wasn't a race car driver. He was a conman with a big dream and studied confidence so strong that no one much questioned this stranger. At ...
Feb 04, 2025•36 min•Season 2Ep. 1
The AAA Contest Board was the primary sanctioning body for motorsport in the United States until 1956, but the organization that sanctioned the Indy 500 refused to allow Black drivers to compete in its disciplines. Those barriers, however, didn't stop Rajo Jack from pursuing his dream of racing competitively — and he became one of the most influential Black racers in early American motorsport history. To find out more about Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys: https://linktr.ee/deadlypassionsterr...
Sep 10, 2024•43 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Motorsport safety is an ever-evolving process, but American open-wheel was ground zero for some of the most exceptional innovations in motorsport medical history — be that in the form of a traveling medical staff, a permanent infield hospital, or a mobile medical center capable of handling severe trauma. This is the story of how IndyCar's groundbreaking safety team came to fruition. To find out more about Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys: https://linktr.ee/deadlypassionsterriblejoys Subscribe ...
Aug 22, 2024•52 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Achille Varzi is one of the most iconic pre-war racing drivers of all time — but we know so little about him outside of his fierce rivalry with Tazio Nuvolari. Why? Perhaps because Varzi nearly lost his career to a morphine addiction that saw him disappear from the public eye and be shunned from polite society. Varzi's story is as complex as his legacy, and today, we're delving in to learn more. To find out more about Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys: https://linktr.ee/deadlypassionsterrib...
Aug 06, 2024•36 min•Season 1Ep. 15
The motorsport world is full of fantastic and particular experiences, but there is one driver's life story that has always particularly fascinated me — that of Roberta Cowell. See, Cowell was a fighter pilot, a prisoner of war, and a racing driver, which alone would have been enough to build up an impressive resumé. However, she was also the first documented person to receive gender affirming surgery in the United Kingdom, making her the first known trans woman to compete in motorsport. Toda...
Jul 25, 2024•49 min•Season 1Ep. 14
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, or FIA, is one of the most powerful sanctioning bodies in all of motorsport — but its control has rarely included racing in the United States. Why, then, did the FIA step in to kill the Chaparral 2J, a car that raced OUTSIDE of its jurisdiction? Today on DPTJ, we're covering the story of Jim Hall, one of motorsport's most innovative minds, and his Chaparral 2J, the car so quick that the FIA stepped in to kill it — which, by proxy, killed...
Jul 11, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 13
At the 1977 Firecracker 400, NASCAR invited two of Europe's most exceptional female racers — Christine Beckers and Lella Lombardi — to make their Cup Series debut… but its goals may not have been particularly noble. Janet Guthrie, who was also competing in that race, felt that NASCAR was attempting to end her career by paying foreign talent to take her down. Today on "Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys," we're delving into those accusations, and the drama surrounding the race. To f...
Jul 04, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 12
On June 11, 1955, Pierre Levegh's Mercedes-Benz 300SLR launched off the back of Lance Macklin's Austin Healey and into a crowd of spectators gathered for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Over 80 people were killed, with an additional 120 injured. It was a tragedy, and it was one that instantly transformed the racing world. Today on "Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys," we're delving into the complex aftermath of this horrific event in order to better understand how the global racing wo...
Jun 13, 2024•49 min•Season 1Ep. 11
We all know motorsport is dangerous, but for many years, one profession was more dangerous than the rest: Riding mechanics. These men were effectively passengers tasked with making repairs on the fly, keeping an eye on traffic, and even feeding the drivers. Unfortunately, riding mechanics had very little protection, making them especially prone to brutal injuries and deaths in big events like the Indianapolis 500. This is the history of that short-lived — and often fatal — role. To find out more...
May 28, 2024•38 min•Season 1Ep. 10
In 1907, one Paris newspaper challenged drivers and automakers to a seemingly impossible challenge: Be the first car to race from Peking, China to Paris, France. Five different teams took on the 8,000-mile adventure across brutal terrain, including the Gobi Desert and the Ural Mountains. This week on DPTJ, we're delving into the scandals, lies, cheats, and near-death experiences that comprised this race — and we're also talking to Kassia St. Clair, author of " The Race to the Future...
May 14, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 9
The Indianapolis 500 is a race that stands alone, outside the pantheon of championship-directed open-wheel racing in America — and it's one of the most coveted events for a sanctioning body to organize. In 1996, the Indy car realm had blown to pieces over access to the iconic event, and dissatisfied teams attempted to set up their own version of the 500. This is the story of the short-lived rivalry between the Indianapolis 500 and the U.S. 500. To find out more about Deadly Passions, Terribl...
May 07, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Sanctioning bodies don't just set the rules for a race series — they also determine the culture and ideologies of the series they represent. In post-war America, the two biggest sanctioning bodies of sports car racing were the SCCA and the AAA Contest Board, and they both had very distinct ideas about what should constitute a series. One faction was determined to embrace an international focus; the other wanted to keep racing strictly regional and strictly amateur. The battle between them al...
Apr 30, 2024•45 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Cheryl Glass is a name that every motorsport fan should have known. For years, any time she showed up to a race track, she was the first Black woman to have competed there. She carved a path of broken records through the Washington state area before spreading her wings to take on challenges all across America. She should have been a star. Instead, her chances to race became fewer and farther between. She got married and divorced. She tried some new cars and failed. She reported that her home was...
Apr 16, 2024•58 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Mario Andretti is, without a doubt, the finest motorsport legend that America has ever produced — but his 1978 Formula 1 World Championship was won under tragic circumstances: His teammate, Ronnie Peterson, was killed at the Italian Grand Prix. Peterson was Andretti's biggest challenger for the title. Without that competition, Andretti took the win. Today on "Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys," we're speaking with Mario Andretti himself in order to better understand just what an e...
Apr 02, 2024•55 min
In 1961, Formula 1 crowned its first-ever American World Driver Champion. Californian Phil Hill — a driver whose ulcer-ridden body should have prevented him from racing at the top levels of motorsport — never quite seemed like the prototypical race car driver. But if an American earned the highest honor in motorsport within the first 11 years of F1's existence, why don't we better remember and celebrate Phil Hill? The answer lies in the title-deciding 1961 Monza Grand Prix, a tragic, dea...
Mar 19, 2024•45 min•Season 1Ep. 4
The 1952 Watkins Glen Grand Prix should have been yet another leap toward solidifying road racing's popularity in the United States — but instead, the death of one seven-year-old-boy in a crash brought American motorsport to its knees. This is the story of Frankie Fazzary, the young boy whose death changed the tides of racing and created the automotive world we know today. This is a story that has, tragically, been forgotten. To find out more about Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys: https://lin...
Mar 05, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 3
In 1933, FIVE racers got together to fix the Tripoli Grand Prix, an African race run with a lottery system that would award three lucky fans with millions of dollars if their driver won the race. Those drivers selected one man to win the race and scoop up the prize money to be shared amongst the group in a ridiculous race that saw one uninvolved driver die so that the conspirators could make millions. Except… none of that actually happened. Today on "Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys," we...
Feb 20, 2024•46 min•Season 1Ep. 2
With five World Driver Championships to his name, Juan Manuel Fangio is an icon of Formula 1 and motorsport as a whole — but in 1958, he also turned the tides of global politics. Fulgencio Batista's dictatorship had ravaged Cuba, but in 1958, the right-wing leader decided to stage a non-championship Formula 1 race to draw in the crowds. That plan was turned on its head when Fangio was kidnapped by a group of young revolutionaries — and it was that very kidnapping that helped lead to a full-o...
Feb 06, 2024•37 min•Season 1Ep. 1
From race fixing attempts to kidnappings, the backbone of motorsport is built on scandal, intrigue, danger, and deception. Rev your engines and dive into the heart-pounding world of motorsport with Elizabeth Blackstock's captivating new podcast, Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys . Join us on an adrenaline-fueled journey through the scandalous, the intriguing, and the perilous tales that define this high-octane universe. Subscribe to the Patreon: patreon.com/deadlypassionsterriblejoys Follow DPT...
Nov 27, 2023•1 min
