Tommy Milton, the first two-time winner of the Indianapolis 500, was born on this day in Minnesota. Milton's achievements were all the more remarkable because he had limited vision which led to him being rejected for military service in World War One. He started driving in a circus act, recorded his first major win in 1919 and while recovering from serious burns sustained in an accident later that year, broke the world land speed record. He won the Indy 500 in 1921 and again in 1923. He went on to become Indianapolis's lead steward before poor health forced him to stand down, and dogged by illness he committed suicide in 1962.
1954
Most famous for being kicked and punched live on television by Nelson Piquet after the two had collided in the 1982 German Grand Prix, Eliseo Salazar was born in Santiago, Chile on this day. Following a relatively uninspiring three year stint in Formula One, he moved to race in Indy Cars in the 1990s, racing for AJ Foyt in the 2002 Indy Racing League.
2003
The BMW Williams team announced that Nico Rosberg and Nelson Piquet Jr would test for the team at Jerez de Frontera in the first week of December to evaluate whether either had the potential to be test drivers in 2004. Jaguar Racing also announced that it would test Red Bull backed Christian Klien and Townsend Bell at Valencia at the end of the month. Both Rosberg and Klien went on to race for Williams and Jaguar Racing while Piquet Jr secured a Renault drive in 2008.
