Jeff Krosnoff

Jeff Krosnoff
Jeff Krosnoff
Nationality	American
Born	September 24, 1964; Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States
Died	July 14, 1996 (aged 31); Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Cause of death	Racing accident
Champ Car career
	11 races run over 1 year
Years active	1996
Team(s)	Arciero-Wells
Best finish	35th - 1996
First race	1996 Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami (Homestead)
Last race	1996 Molson Indy Toronto (Exhibition Place)

Jeffrey John Krosnoff (September 24, 1964 – July 14, 1996) was an American race car driver. A competitor in the CART PPG Indy Car World Series, he was killed in a racing accident during the 1996 Molson Indy Toronto.

Early life and career

Krosnoff was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but grew up in La Cañada, California, where he attended Flintridge Preparatory School, a private high school. He then attended the University of California, San Diego for one year beginning in September 1982. Afterward, he transferred to UCLA, where he majored in Business. Throughout his college career, Krosnoff was focused on pursuing his dream of professional racecar driving.

Krosnoff competed in Japan in Formula 3000, where he was active from 1989 to 1995. Krosnoff also competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans several times, scoring 2nd in 1994. In the 1996 season, he made 11 starts in the CART Champ Car Series, driving a Reynard-Toyota for Arciero-Wells Racing.

Death

On July 14, 1996 with 3 laps to go in the Molson Indy Toronto at Exhibition Place, Krosnoff's car made wheel-to-wheel contact with the car of Stefan Johansson, sending it into the air, over a concrete barrier, and into the catch fencing lining the street course.^[1] The fence did not deflect the car enough to keep it from hitting a tree that was inside the fencing.

The violence of the accident left the car broken in half and sent the cockpit section back across the track. Even though the paramedics were there almost immediately, Krosnoff was already dead after striking the tree. A track volunteer, Gary Avrin, was also killed in the accident when he was struck by the right front wheel of Krosnoff's then-airborne car.^[1]

Career results

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Class	No	Tyres	Car	Team	Co-Drivers	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1991	C2	36	G	Jaguar XJR-12 Jaguar 7.4L V12	TWR Suntec Jaguar	David Leslie Mauro Martini	183	DNF	DNF
1994	LMP1 /C90	1	D	Toyota 94C-V Toyota R36V 3.6 L Turbo V8	SARD Company Ltd.	Eddie Irvine Mauro Martini	343	2nd	1st
1995	GT1	27	D	Toyota Supra LM Toyota 3S-GTE 2.1L Turbo I4	SARD Co. Ltd.	Marco Apicella Mauro Martini	264	14th	8th