Frank Mundy

Frank "Rebel" Mundy (born June 18, 1918 in Atlanta, Georgia, as Francisco Eduardo Menendez – died May 15, 2009)[2] was an American stock car racer. He competed in the American Automobile Association (AAA) stock cars, winning the 1955 national championship, before the series changed to United States Auto Club (USAC) sanction.[3] He also raced in NASCAR's Grand National (now NASCAR Cup Series) and won three races under that sanction.

Frank "Rebel" Mundy
Official headshot of Frank Mundy (1950s)
Born	Francisco Eduardo Menendez June 18, 1918 Atlanta, Georgia
Died	May 15, 2009 (aged 90)
Cause of death	Complications of a fall[1]
Achievements	1955 AAA Stock Car national champion
NASCAR Cup Series career
52 races run over 5 years
Best finish	5th (1951)
First race	1949 Race No. 1 (Charlotte)
Last race	1956 Old Dominion 400 (Martinsville)
First win	1951 untitled race (Columbia)
Last win	1951 untitled race (Lakeview)
Wins Top tens Poles 3 24 4

Mundy attempted to qualify for the 1954 Indianapolis 500 but did not make the field.

Career

Before starting a racing career, Mundy was a daredevil who performed at the 1939 New York World's Fair.[4] During World War II, he served as a personal driver for General George S. Patton, where he would gain valuable driving experience for NASCAR.[3]

NASCAR

In 1948, he moved to Daytona Beach, Florida to pursue a career in motorcycle racing. While at a gas station owned by Bill France Sr., he befriended France and was later invited to a 1947 meeting at the Streamline Hotel to form NASCAR; Mundy helped hold the flash for the photographer while taking a group photo.[4]

Mundy started at the pole position only to find himself finishing the race in 82nd place at the 1951 running of the Southern 500. His career average start would eventually become 11th while his career average finish would become 17th place.[2] Mundy would race 3,583 laps in his career – the equivalent of 3,184.6 miles (5,125.1 km).[2] Out of the 3583 laps that he completed in his career, Mundy would only lead 458 (12%) of them.[2] His career spanned 1949 to 1956.[2]

One of his accomplishments was winning the 1955 running of the Southern Illinois 100.[3] Frequently seen in rides owned by Carl Kiekhaefer, Mundy's seven-year career would involve him racing in classic races like the 1956 Southern 500 where he finished in 38th place out of 70 competitors. He would also be seen racing at Lakeview Speedway in Mobile, Alabama.

AAA/USAC Stock Cars

In 1952, Mundy began racing in American Automobile Association (AAA) and USAC Stock Car after disassociating with NASCAR following an argument with France; he did not return to NASCAR until 1955.[5][6]

He won the 1955 AAA national stock car championship.[7] Studebaker and Oldsmobile were Mundy's preferred manufacturers for NASCAR rides.

Personal life

Mundy was born Francisco Eduardo Menendez in Atlanta, where he grew up in an orphanage; he adopted the Frank Mundy name when he began racing.[5]

After his racing career ended, Mundy worked for Penske Racing as a pit crew member.[8][9]

His widow Mae Mundy would survive him after his death in 2009.[3]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Grand National Series

NASCAR Grand National Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	51	52	53	54	55	56	NGNC	Pts	Ref
1949	Rice Racing	4	Cadillac	CLT 30																																																								10th	370	[10]
		5	Olds		DAB 3	HBO
		44	Cadillac				LAN 4	HAM	MAR	HEI
		2	Ford								NWS 22
1950	Buddy Elliott	44	Cadillac	DAB 37																																																								23rd	275.5	[11]
			Olds		CLT 11							CLT 8	HBO	DSP	HAM 7	DAR
		90	Lincoln			LAN 6	MAR	CAN	VER
	Nash Motor Co.	37	Nash							DSP 25	MCF
		44	Olds														LAN 32	NWS
	Nash Motor Co.		Nash																VER 22	MAR	WIN	HBO
1951	Perry Smith	23	Studebaker	DAB	CLT 34	NMO		HBO 2	ASF	NWS 28	MAR 2	CAN 7	CLS 8	CLB 1*	DSP 23	GAR	GRS 7	BAI 3	HEI 30	AWS 4	MCF 23	ALS	MSF 50	FMS 33	MOR 23	ABS 13	DAR 82	CLB 17	CCS	LAN	CLT 26	DSP	WIL	HBO	TPN 21	PGS					JSP 5	ATL 4	GAR	NMO 1*																5th	1963.5	[12]
			Chevy				GAR 11
	Ted Chester	7	Olds																																		MAR 1*	OAK	NWS	HMS
1952				PBS 6	DAB	JSP	NWS	MAR	CLB	ATL		LAN 30	DAR 10	DSP	CAN	HAY	FMS	HBO	CLT																																									209th	0	[13]
			Plymouth								CCS 15
	Walt Chapman	121	Hudson																	MSF 11	NIF	OSW	MON	MOR	PPS	MCF	AWS	DAR	CCS	LAN	DSP	WIL	HBO	MAR	NWS	ATL	PBS
1956	Carl Kiekhaefer	30	Chrysler	HCY	CLT	WSS	PBS	ASF 2																																																				24th	1856	[14]
		300B							DAB 43	PBS	WIL	ATL 16	NWS	LAN	RCH	CLB	CON	GPS	HCY	HBO	MAR	LIN	CLT	POR	EUR	NYF	MER	MAS	CLT	MCF	POR
		500B	Dodge																													AWS 6				CHI 5	CCF	MGY	OKL
		502																															RSP 3	PIF	CSF
		300	Chrysler																																					ROA 14	OBS	SAN	NOR	PIF	MYB	POR
		27	Dodge																																												DAR 38	CSH	CLT	LAN	POR	CLB	HBO	NWP	CLT	CCF
		50																																																							MAR 9	HCY	WIL

Indy 500 results

Year Car Start Qual Rank Finish Laps Led Retired 1954 41 DNQ N/A 11 N/A 0 0 Did Not Qualify Totals 0 0

Starts 0 Poles 0 Front Row 0 Wins 0 Top 5 0 Top 10 0 Retired 0

References

1. "Full Throttle Cranial Cavity - death_cause". Archived from the original on 10 December 2009. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
2. "Racing Reference". Retrieved 26 March 2010.
3. "Legends of NASCAR". Retrieved 26 March 2010.
4. Spencer, Reid (September 30, 2015). "NASCAR Celebrates Latino Contributions". WPTZ. Chip Ganassi Racing. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
5. Badie, Rick (May 17, 2009). "Frank Mundy, NASCAR pioneer, dies at 90". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
6. "Frank Mundy Joins Field For 150-Miler". The Arizona Republic. January 18, 1956. Retrieved January 17, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Romano, Chris (December 24, 2009). "For Auld Lang Syne, 2009". Speed Style magazine. Archived from the original on 29 November 2010. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
8. http://www.oldracingcars.com/driver/Frank_Mundy
9. "Penske Profile - Tim Lombardi". Team Penske. April 10, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
10. "Frank Mundy – 1949 NASCAR Strictly Stock Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
11. "Frank Mundy – 1950 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
12. "Frank Mundy – 1951 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
13. "Frank Mundy – 1952 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
14. "Frank Mundy – 1956 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved October 26, 2017.