Lyn St James announced as Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee

In an announcement Friday morning in Long Beach, CA, Lyn St James has been named as a 2027 inductee for the Motorsports Hall of Fame, St James (pictured) was shocked to hear the announcement that she would be joining the nine other inductees, Ron Capps, Gary Bettenhausen, Angelle Sampey, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, Robert Yates, Harry Hartz, Steve Hinton, Rob Dyson, and Herb Fishel.

“I’m overwhelmed. I know you guys like me, and I remember running when I got on the podium in the vintage race. I was drinking milk, and I was yelling. I mean, I’m overwhelmed because this means I’m now really part of the family, you know? I mean, I’ve always felt that, and I’m never worried about it, but at the same time, I’ve never felt this was where I should be, because I’ve not won championships. I’m not Scott Pruett, I’m not Tom Floyd. I’m not Mario (Andretti). Those are the people who win championships and win races that are in the Hall of Fame.”

“I worked really hard, and I tried and did everything I could, but I just love the sport so much. So this is the most extraordinary thing that has ever happened. John, when he introduced me for the Automotive Hall of Fame, you know, because I knew all those years I worked with Ford and tried to get women to take care of their cars, and, you know, so the Automotive Hall of Fame was off, you know, off the wall. But this is me, this is my sport. This is my family, and now our family. And I can’t thank you enough.”

Lyn St James Photo courtesy of RaceSchool.com/Larry Mason

Doug Boyles, President of IndyCar, reminisced about the first time St James showed up at the Indianapolis Speedway in 1992.“Lyn showed up at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I was just four years out of school, but a massive Indy 500 fan, and I remembered the days when Janet Guthrie broke through that barrier and ran at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But nobody else had really come with that pomp and circumstance, and in 1992 Lyn showed up and I have talked about this many times since I was enamored with the challenge that she had, with the grace with which she brought it, and the racing spirit with which she brought it. She was a race car driver, first, a female second, but I probably have literally 100 photos of Lyn St James, and I stalked her the entire weekday.”

Doug Boyles Photo courtesy of Penske Entertainment/Paul Hurley

“But I so desperately wanted her, because it was going to transform our sport. She brought in a partner who was activating. She came in and just brought new fans to our sport. It was so great for our sport, and that was what really captivated me, and to see her make the Indy 500 become the first female Rookie of the Year.”

“And for you’re not gonna like this part, but for a long period of time, be the oldest person to be our rookie of the year, until Jimmy Johnson broke that just recently, which is a really cool thing to have, because you don’t expect people in their 40s to become IndyCar drivers, to become successful IndyCar drivers, and to become Rookie of the Year, and it was certainly magical.”

“I often talk about one of the greatest qualifying efforts I’ve ever seen in my life, which is one that Lyn stepped into a car that somebody else, a male, could not get up to speed. She got it up to speed in one practice session. She did the fence on the right side and continued to qualify the car for the Indy 500, running the car people said would not make the field. She is a talented racecar driver. She’s been given a platform that when she retired, she didn’t quit, she got better, and she has made a huge difference, and continues to every day. If there’s anybody that deserves to be in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, it is Lyn St James.”

St. James, Bettenhausen, and the rest of the Class of 2027 will be formally inducted into the MSHFA in March 2027 at a ceremony at the museum located at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.