Ed Elisian

Ed Elisian

Born	December 9, 1926(1926-12-09)
Died	August 30, 1959(1959-08-30) (aged 32)
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	American
Active years	1954–1958
Teams	Stevens, Kurtis Kraft, Watson
Races	5
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
First race	1954 Indianapolis 500
Last race	1958 Indianapolis 500

Ed Elisian (real name: Edward Gulbeng Eliseian; December 9, 1926 Oakland, California – August 30, 1959 Milwaukee, Wisconsin) was an American racing driver, mainly competing in the National Championship. He died in a crash at the Milwaukee Mile.

In the 1955 Indianapolis 500, he stopped his car in a futile attempt to help Bill Vukovich when Vukovich's car crashed and burned during the race. He is one of only two drivers in Indy 500 history to stop a non-damaged car to help another driver, the other being Gary Bettenhausen. He received a sportsmanship award for his efforts, as well as the wrath of the car owner.

In the 1958 Indianapolis 500, Dick Rathmann and Elisian started the race on the front row, with Jimmy Reece on the outside of the front row. Elisian spun in turn 3 of the first lap, and collected Rathmann, sending them both into the wall, and starting a 15-car pileup. According to A. J. Foyt, Pat O'Connor's car hit Reece's car, sailed fifty feet in the air, landed upside down, and burst into flames. Although medical officials said that O'Connor was probably killed instantly from a fractured skull, he was incinerated in the accident, in full view of fans and drivers. Widely blamed for the accident, Elisian was suspended by USAC for the accident (reinstated a few days later), and was shunned by the racing community. Rumors spread that Elisian tried to lead the first lap in order to pay gambling debts owed to a syndicate.

In June, 1958, Elisian was involved in a multi-car sprint car crash at New Bremen Speedway in Saint Marys, Ohio, which claimed the life of Jim Davis. While absolved of blame in the incident, Elisian's unpopularity with drivers deepened.

In August 1959, Elisian entered the USAC Indy car 200-mile (320 km) race at the "Milwaukee Mile," known in those days as Wisconsin State Fair Park. Driving a metallic green Watson-style roadster owned by Ernie Ruiz, he crashed on lap 29 when he spun in oil from A. J. Foyt's engine. The car hit the wall, rupturing the fuel cell, and rolled over. Some sixty gallons of fuel caught fire, and took over 9 minutes to extinguish, resulting in the death of the driver.

Indy 500 results

Year Car Start Qual Rank Finish Laps Led Retired 1954 27 31 137.794 29 18 193 0 Flagged 1955 68 29 135.333 29 30 53 0 Stopped BS 1956 10 14 141.382 25 23 160 0 Stalled 1957 83 7 141.777 12 29 51 0 Timing gear 1958 5 2 145.926 2 28 0 0 Crash T3 Totals 457 0

Starts 5 Poles 0 Front Row 1 Wins 0 Top 5 0 Top 10 0 Retired 4

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	WDC	Points
1954	H.A. Chapman	Stevens	Offenhauser L4	ARG	500 18 *	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	SUI	ITA	ESP			NC	0
1955	Westwood Gauge / Wales	Kurtis Kraft 4000	Offenhauser L4	ARG	MON	500 30	BEL	NED	GBR	ITA					NC	0
1956	Hoyt Machine / Fred Sommer	Kurtis Kraft 500C	Offenhauser L4	ARG	MON	500 23 †	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	ITA				NC	0
1957	McNamara / Kalamazoo Sports	Kurtis Kraft 500D	Offenhauser L4	ARG	MON	500 29	FRA	GBR	GER	PES	ITA				NC	0
1958	John Zink	Watson Indy Roadster	Offenhauser L4	ARG	MON	NED	500 28	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	POR	ITA	MOR	NC	0

* Indicates shared drive with Bob Scott.

† Indicates shared drive with Eddie Russo.