They only made one AJ Foyt and some would argue that the fact the mold blew apart after he came out of it is a good thing for the rest of us. During the height of his career, Foyt was less a race car driver and more a force of nature, capable of getting into and excelling in pretty much anything with four wheels. He won LeMans, he won Daytona, he won the Indy 500, he racked up stock car wins, and sports car wins, and dirt track wins, and he did it all with a kind of internal fire and unapologetic competitive spirit that seems not to exist anymore. People mention names like Tony Stewart but even as good as he was in his prime, he wasn’t AJ Foyt, nor would he claim to be.

This 1981 Sports Illustrate story entitled, “Get Out Of The Way, Here Comes A.J.” is fantastic and it is fantastic because it is not a piece of hero worship. It is a great look at the guy and his legacy, warts and all. While it must have been amazing to work for the guy, we’re not sure we’d have jumped at the chance to work on AJ Foyt’s cars during the time that he was at his zenith or especially after. Those had to have been some ugly weekends when he did not win. We’re guessing that he had some pretty colorful things to say about the performance of said crew when the car was not working up to snuff. It had to have been epic in every sense of that word.

This is a look into the mind and psyche of a guy who was claiming that retirement had been approaching quickly. He of course raced through the 1980s and is still alive and kicking today. A fantastic read and look at the greatest American race car driver of all time.

Click here to read this 1981 Sports Illustrated profile of AJ Foyt – You’ll Love It