Willard Saulsbury Holland was an American racing driver from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
18 Facts About Bill Holland
1.
2.
Bill Holland won the Indianapolis 500 in 1949 and finished second in 1947,1948, and 1950.
3.
Bill Holland was runner-up in the 1947 American Automobile Association National Championship.
4.
Bill Holland was born on December 18,1907, the son of fireman and former professional baseball player Willard Bill Holland.
5.
Bill Holland was excellent at skating and tried out for the 1932 Olympics.
6.
Bill Holland began achieving notable results in big cars during 1937.
7.
Bill Holland recorded his first win on July 30,1938, at Mineola, New York.
8.
Bill Holland won three times in 1939 and nine times in 1940.
9.
On July 20,1946, Bill Holland won the first race at Selinsgrove Speedway in an American Automobile Association-sanctioned event.
10.
Bill Holland nearly won the 1947 Indianapolis 500 as a rookie, but slowed and allowed teammate Mauri Rose to pass him seven laps from the end, mistakenly believing that Rose was a lap down.
11.
In 1949 Bill Holland led late in the race when Rose began to slowly close on Bill Holland.
12.
Bill Holland is believed to have achieved more than 40 sprint car feature wins and 150 podiums.
13.
Bill Holland participated in two World Drivers' Championship races at Indianapolis.
14.
Bill Holland finished in the top three once, and scored six World Drivers' Championship points.
15.
Bill Holland was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in November 1983 and died from complications of the disease on May 20,1984.
16.
Bill Holland had remained active throughout his life and would regularly ride a bicycle for 50 miles per day until a year before his death.
17.
Bill Holland has been inducted into the following halls of fame:.
18.
The race was 74 laps long as it was the 74th year after Bill Holland's victory opened the track.