Louis "Lou" Lazarro (January 7, 1935 – May 1, 2000) was an American Modified racing driver. Equally adept on both dirt and asphalt surfaces, he raced from Daytona to Canada, and is credited with over 250 feature wins in a career that spanned six decades.[2][3]
| Lou "the Monk" Lazzaro | |
|---|---|
| Born | Louis P. Lazzaro January 7, 1935 Utica, New York |
| Died | May 1, 2000 (aged 65) |
| Debut season | 1952 |
| Car number | 4 |
| Championships | 10 |
| Wins | 250+ |
| Finished last season | 2000 |
| Championship titles | |
| 1968, 1971 All-Star Racing League Champion 1969, 1971, 1972 NASCAR NY Modified Champion[1] | |
Racing career
Known as "the Monk" to his fans, Lou Lazzaro started racing in 1952 at the Columbia Speedway near Utica, New York, when the driver of a Hobby class car he was crewing refused to help fix the car after a wreck. Lazzaro claimed his first Hobby class feature event win in 1955 at the Brewerton Speedway NY, and by 1959 had joined with 3 other friends to field his signature maroon and white Modified, aptly numbered "4".[4][5][6]
The quartet garnered their first Modified feature win the next year at Victoria Speedway NY.[7] Lazzaro went on to capture the 1962 and 1964 track championships at the venue, and over his career claimed four championships at the Fonda Speedway NY, three at the Utica-Rome Speedway NY, and one at the Albany-Saratoga Speedway NY. The Monk also competed successfully at the Daytona International Speedway FL, the Syracuse Mile NY, and the Weedsport Speedway NY.[4][8][9]
Lou Lazzaro suffered a stroke while racing at the Fonda Speedway on April 29, 2000, from which he did not recover. He was inducted into the Eastern Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame, the New York State Stock Car Association Hall of Fame, and the Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame.[1][2][4]