“A.J. Foyt: Survivor, Champion, Legend – Volume II” by Art Garner promises to capture what happened after 1978—when Super Tex should have been winding down but instead kept rewriting the rulebook. Available for pre-order now through Octane Press at $39.95 (retail $46.95), this July 2026 release tackles the period most racing biographies ignore: the messy, complicated transition from cockpit to pit wall.
Volume I delivered 656 pages covering Foyt’s rise through 1977, including his four Indy 500 victories and status as the only driver to conquer Indianapolis, Daytona, and Le Mans. But the real intrigue lies ahead—his near-retirement after a terrifying 1993 practice crash involving Robby Gordon in a Foyt car, his miraculous comeback from the 1990 Road America accident that shattered both legs, and his reinvention as a team owner who captured IRL titles in 1996 and 1998.
Racing’s Most Durable Dynasty
Foyt’s longevity makes today’s veteran drivers look like rookies by comparison.
Consider this perspective: Fernando Alonso turns heads for still competing at 44. Foyt was attempting to qualify for NASCAR’s Brickyard 400 from 1994 to 1996, three decades after winning his first Indy 500. The man still holds the 1987 closed-course land speed record of 257.123 mph—a mark that’s survived the internet age, social media, and the rise of electric vehicles.
Art Garner’s exhaustive research promises the personality anecdotes that made Volume I essential reading, including stories about Foyt’s legendary temper and his habit of reportedly stuffing troublesome journalists into trash cans. These aren’t sanitized press release stories but the raw, unfiltered account of American racing’s most complex figure.
Racing fans understand statistics. Four Indy wins, 67 USAC victories, 172 major wins across four decades. But Volume II tackles the harder questions: How do you maintain relevance when your body betrays you? How do you transition from controlling the car to trusting someone else behind the wheel? For $39.95, you get answers that no highlight reel can provide—plus expected hundreds of pages of stories that prove retirement was never in Foyt’s vocabulary.
