Rocky Moran Has Passed
Rocky Moran, 74, a winner at the 1993 Rolex 24 at Daytona with co-drivers P.J. Jones and Mark Dismore, and a three-time Indianapolis 500 starter, has passed away due to an extended battle with cancer. The Californian, whose career encompassed races with Dan Gurney’s All American Racers and who drove for A.J. Foyt, was a giant of a man, tall at more than six feet, but his gentle nature and kind spirit outside a race car are what made him beloved by all that knew him.
As Foyt told Racer, “He was a solid driver and just a super guy.” While he never raced a full INDYCAR season, he chose his rides and was chosen by team owners due to his capabilities behind the wheel and his good nature. While he did race three straight times in the Indianapolis 500 – 1988, 1989 and 1990 – Moran was best known for his sports car capabilities and his talents on road courses.
Moran made his INDYCAR debut in 1981 with Dan Gurney’s All American Racers team, competing at Watkins Glen International. He qualified a strong seventh in the No. 48 Pepsi Challenger Eagle/Chevrolet. After leading 21 laps, a win was denied when the team failed to give him sufficient fuel to make it to the end; he still took sixth place in that race, won by Rick Mears.
Moran first attempted to race the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1987, with Salt Walther’s team. He made his debut in the May classic in 1988 driving a Foyt-owned car, finishing 16th in the No. 48 Shoal/Trench Shoring March/Cosworth. His best finish came in 1989, when Moran finished 14th for Foyt in the No. 33 Shoal Classic March/Cosworth.
His final Indy 500 run came in 1990 with Gohr Racing. He was the 33rd and final qualifier and was credited with 25th place in that No. 56 Glidden Paints Lola/Buick, whose engine expired after completing 88 laps. Moran tried twice more, unsuccessfully, in 1992 and 1993, to make the 33-car field, with Menard Racing and Team Losi, respectively.
Dan Gurney didn’t forget the impressive Watkins Glen INDYCAR race that Rocky Moran drove for him and hired the driver for his team’s 1986 factory sports car program in IMSA’s GTO class driving a Toyota Celica, a move that mirrored Gurney’s choice of Moran to drive an early Toyota HF-90 prototype in IMSA GTP competition with Willy T. Ribbs. The duo scored a podium at Portland in 1991 then switched to the highly successful Eagle Mk III in the middle of the 1991 season.
As this new chassis debuted for endurance racing in 1992, Moran partnered with PJ Jones and Mark Dismore to finish fourth in 1992; in 1993 the trio gave Toyota its first overall win at the Rolex 24. Rocky Moran’s final outing came in the next race that customarily ends the 36 hours of Florida for iMSA, the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring; he and Jones took the Eagle Mk III to third place in that race.
Racing turned out to be a family affair for Moran as his son Rocky Jr. moved up the karting ranks and won races in the Toyota Atlantic Championship. Rocky Jr. also drove Indy Lights, stock cars, sports cars and he, too, had the opportunity to drive Indy cars. The pride the father exhibited as his son ran his first INDYCAR race at their home contest, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in 2015, pretty much mirrored the sunshine that regularly permeates that contest. While Rocky Jr had good practice sessions and impressed team owner Dale Coyne despite a lack of previous experience, a crash and resulting broken thumb meant he couldn’t make that Sunday race.
Rocky Moran, who took unsuspecting journalists for rides around the Long Beach circuit during media days prior to each year’s race, is survived by his wife Kayla, daughter Kelly, sons Rocky Jr and Cody, together with seven grandchildren.