Bruce Martin Bruce Martin

Bio:

While growing up in Indiana, I developed a deep love and understanding of the Indianapolis 500, with names such as Parnelli Jones, A.J. Foyt, Jim Clark and Mario Andretti taking on legendary status. Memorial Day meant the family cookout with the voice of Sid Collins calling the race on the radio in the family backyard in Koontz Lake, Ind. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway held a certain magic, but I did not attend my first Indianapolis 500 until 1981 while I was attending Indiana University. Crammed up against the fence inside the fourth turn in the infield, seeing the colors of the cars and the high-pitched whine of the engines, I was instantly hooked. I was the sports intern at The Toledo Blade that summer and covered my first race at the 1981 Michigan 500. After graduating from IU, I began a sports writing career in North Carolina that included stops at The Gazette in Gastonia, N.C., before moving on to United Press International, National Speed Sport News, Autosport, ESPN SportsTicker and SI.com, where I am an auto racing columnist for Sports Illustrated’s website. Throughout that journey, I have won numerous awards in both the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasts Association (AARWBA) and the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA). I am a two-time winner of the Russ Catlin Award, considered one of the most prestigious awards in motorsports journalism, for best auto racing story in 1987 and 1999. I have covered every Indianapolis 500 since 1989.



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