NASCAR Hall of Fame to display Mattioli contributions
BY Rebecca Kivak (SPECIAL TO TIMES-SHAMROCK)
Published: January 31, 2012
MOUNT POCONO - NASCAR fans from all over can learn about Dr. Joseph "Doc" Mattioli's contributions to the sport as part of an exhibit in the NASCAR Hall of Fame, according to the hall's executive director.
Winston Kelley, head of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., paid his respects to the Pocono Raceway founder on Monday. Mattioli died Thursday at 86 after a lengthy illness.
Kelley said photographs of Mattioli, a member of the hall's nominating committee and voting panel, will be added to the "Honoring Our Legacy" exhibit, which spotlights those individuals who helped build the sport.
In the 1960s, Mattioli built Pocono Raceway on the site of a former spinach farm in the Poconos. Situated between the metropolitan areas of New York and Philadelphia, the track hosted its first NASCAR race in 1974, providing a major boost for the sport outside of its Southern roots.
With the legacy Mattioli leaves behind, Kelley said he thinks the raceway owner could one day be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
"I think that's definitely a possibility," he said.
"The family has agreed to provide us with Doc photographs so we can put them in our 'Honoring Our Legacy' theater so we can remember him now, and then hopefully his time will come," Kelley said.
The exhibit is located on the fourth floor of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C.
The 150,000-square foot building opened in May 2010.
Since its inception, the Hall of Fame has inducted three classes of NASCAR legends, five each year. Members of the 2012 class, inducted earlier this month, are Darrell Waltrip, Cale Yarborough, Richie Evans, Dale Inman and Glen Wood.
Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/sports/nascar-hall-of-fame-to-display-mattioli-contributions-1.1265027#ixzz1m0nyeIz3
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