Sal Tovella (August 13, 1928 â March 10, 2019) was an American racecar driver who competed in USAC Stock Car. He also competed in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Convertible Series, and the ARCA Menards Series. His racing career spanned from the 1950s into the 1980s.
Tovella was born August 13, 1928. Tovella grew up on the North Side of Chicago.
Tovella began his racing career at Chicago's Soldier Field racetrack in the early 1950, initially competing there in the Hurricane Hot Rod Association. The association, run by promoter Andy Granatelli, featured occasionally-staged action in order to provide an entertaining product for spectators. He won his first feature at the Soldier Field track in a June 21, 1952, 22-lap race in which he steered his 1949 model Ford car to victory before a reported 18,846 spectators. Tovella was long a fixture on the Soldier Field track. He won the track's own stock car title during its 1952 season. During the track's 1963 season, Tovella again took the track's title after coming out on top of a intensely-contested season-long rivalry with Bob Chapman. He clenched the track's 1963 late model stock car championship title thanks his "double-points" 100-lap victory in a race on June 29, 1963. He drove a '63 Chevy II during the track's 1963 season. Tovella competed in Soldier Field stock car races by a variety of organizing leagues, including a 1967 race organized by the International Motor Contest Association.
The cars Tovella raced varied over his career, with Tovella, at different times, driving cars manufactured by several brands (including Ford, Chevrolet, Edsel, Plymouth, Dodge, and Oldsmobile).
Tovella was long a top racer in USAC Stock Car racing. Despite having had his first start for a USAC race in 1957, during the 1963 season, he was named the USAC "Rookie of the Year". Tovella secured his first victory in the USAC in a July 30, 1966 race at the Mosport International Raceway; a race in which his '65 Plymouth won a 50-lap race on the -long road course, and prevailed over Billy Foster and Roger Regeth. Tovella won several USAC races at the Milwaukee Mile. His first victory at the track occurred on August 10, 1975, with a memorable finish over Ramo Stott, Roger McCluskey, Butch Hartman, and Larry Moore. In the race, Tovella steered a '72 Plymouth which had been prepared for the race by his brother, Fred. This 1975 victory was his second USAC Stock Car victory. Tovella's final of six USAC victories came in 1980 at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds Racetrack.
Tovella also competed in several NASCAR races, including NASCAR Grand National Series races. He competed in fourteen NASCAR events. This included a 1956 NASCAR Grand National Series race at Soldier Field, which he had to withdraw from due to break problems (coming in 16th place). Tovella raced in the Daytona 500 for five consecutive seasons, competing in the 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, and 1964 iterations). He placed 14th in the 1961 iteration, marking most successful Daytona 500 appearance.
On June 9, 1968, Tovella won what ultimately prove to be the final stock car race held at Soldier Field.
In 2012, Tovella was inducted in the Illinois Stock Car Hall of Fame.
After retiring from racing himself, Tovella founded the International Racing Association in October 1981. The league served as a sanctioning body for races featuring USAC/ARCA-style automobiles, and used the marketing motto "The Return of Real Racing". The league operated full racing season calendars between 1982 and 1985.
Tovella long lived in Chicago, later living in Addison, Illinois. For most of his life, he operated a used car sales business, Sal's Auto Sales. The business was long located in Chicago on Milwaukee Avenue, but later relocated to Elmhurst, Illinois.
Tovella died on March 10, 2019, at the age of 90. His funeral was held at Russo's Hillside Chapels. He was entombed at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillsdale, Illinois.