Boris Said Jr. (May 5, 1932 in New York City – March 24, 2002 in Seattle), better known as Bob Said, was an American racing driver from the United States. The son of a Syrian father and a Russian mother, he grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut, and attended Deerfield Academy and Princeton. He discovered sports car racing during his first year at Princeton.

Bob Said
Bob Said at Zandvoort in 1954
Born(1932-05-05)May 5, 1932
New York City, United States
DiedMarch 24, 2002(2002-03-24) (aged 69)
Seattle, Washington, United States
Related toBoris Said (son)
Formula One World Championship career
Active years1959
TeamsConnaught
Entries1
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points0
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
First entry1959 United States Grand Prix
Last entry1959 United States Grand Prix
NASCAR Cup Series career
1 race run over 1 year
First race1959 Daytona 500 (Daytona)
Last race1959 Daytona 500 (Daytona)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0

Career

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In 1951, after doing well in local races and hill climbs, he left Princeton to pursue a racing career.[1] His first race cars were a MG TD and a Jaguar XK120. In March 1953, he made his debut at Sebring 12 Hours, driving a Frazer Nash Mille Miglia to 14th-place finish. Said was the first American to win a road race in Europe after World War II, when he won a sports car race at Rouen-Les-Essarts, driving an OSCA MT4. Later that season, he notched another win at the Anerley Trophy at Crystal Palace circuit.

In 1954, Said switched to a Ferrari 500 Mondial Scaglietti, placing 3rd at Circuito di Senigallia; 2nd at Trullo d’Oro; and 9th at Syracuse Circuit.[2]

On February 21, 1955, Said set a new post-World War II speed record on the Daytona Beach and Road Course, driving a 1954 Ferrari Formula One Grand Prix car, with a two-way average speed of 170.538 mph.[3] He also made one NASCAR start, the 1959 Daytona 500, driving a Chevrolet, where he was credited with 50th after dropping out on lap 42 due to transmission failure. He participated in the first Formula One United States Grand Prix at Sebring on December 12, 1959. He spun off on the first lap and scored no World Championship points.[4]

Said was also a bobsled racer, competing in the Olympics twice, 1968 in Grenoble and in 1972 at Sapporo, Japan achieving a best result of tenth.[4] The 1968 games were notable as he competed against another racing driver-come-bobsledder, Robin Widdows.

Later he was the executive producer of a documentary entitled The Mystery of the Sphinx.

His son, Boris Said III, is a retired NASCAR driver and road course ringer.

Motorsports career results

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Complete Formula One results

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Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 WDC Points
1959 Connaught Cars / Paul Emery Connaught Type C Alta Straight-4 MON 500 NED FRA GBR GER POR ITA USA
Ret
NC 0

NASCAR

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

Grand National Series

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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 NGNC Pts Ref
1959 Buck Baker 89 Chevy FAY DAY DAY
50
HBO CON ATL WIL BGS CLB NWS REF HCY MAR TRN CLT NSV ASP PIF GPS ATL CLB WIL RCH BGS AWS DAY HEI CLT MBS CLT NSV AWS BGS GPS CLB DAR HCY RCH CSF HBO MAR AWS NWS CON N/A 0 [5]

References

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  1. ^ "Bob Said". 28 April 2022.
  2. ^ "500 Mondial Scaglietti Spyder 0454MD".
  3. ^ "Bob Said of Greenwich, CT, set a new post-World War II speed record". 11 July 2012.
  4. ^ a b Viva F1. "Formula One at the Olympics". Archived from the original on 2012-08-08. Retrieved 2012-07-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ "Bob Said – 1959 NASCAR Grand National Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
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