Mickey Thompson
Michael Lee "Mickey" Thompson (December 7, 1928 – March 16, 1988) was an American auto racing builder and promoter.
Mickey Thompson | |
|---|---|
The 1962 Harvey Aluminium Special Indianapolis 500 car with Thompson in the car, a Harvey representative standing on left and John Crosthwaite on the right | |
| Born | Michael Lee Thompson December 7, 1928 Alhambra, California, United States |
| Died | March 16, 1988 (aged 59) Bradbury, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Murder |
| Occupation | Race car driver |
| Known for | First American to break the 400 mph barrier |
| Spouse | Trudy Thompson |
| Children | Danny Thompson |
A hot rodder since his youth, Thompson increasingly pursued land speed records in his late 20s and early 30s. He achieved international fame in 1960, when he became the first American to break the 400-mph barrier, driving his Challenger 1 to a one-way top speed of 406.60 mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats and surpassing John Cobb's one-way world record mark of 402 mph.
Thompson then turned to racing, winning many track and dragster championships. In the 1960s, he also entered cars at the Indianapolis 500. Later, he formed off-road racing sanctioning bodies SCORE International and Mickey Thompson Entertainment Group (MTEG).
In 1988, Thompson and his wife Trudy were gunned down at their home in Bradbury, California. The crime remained unsolved until 2007, when a former business partner was convicted of the murders.