Car Number Histories: No. 37

ATLANTA -- Bobby Isaac was better known for driving the No. 71, but he stands alone as the only driver to visit Victory Lane in the No. 37.

In 1968, Isaac switched between the two numerals, running six races in the No. 37, including a victory at Columbia.

Since then, the No. 37 has rarely been a full-time ride.

The numeral was around right from the start, as Frank Christian drove a No. 37 Oldsmobile to a sixth-place finish on the Daytona beach course in 1949.

ALSO  •  Purchase tickets for the Daytona 500!  •  Daytona countdown archive

Then Tiny Lund made his NASCAR debut in 1955, finishing 25th at LeHi, Ark. He returned for seven more races the next season, with a best of fourth at Columbia.

After driving for several teams in 1957, he went back to the No. 37 in 1958 and once again was third at Columbia in 12 starts.

For a period of time, the numeral had a few Florida appearances.

In 1959, Eduardo Dibos, a native of Lima, Peru, started the inaugural Daytona 500 and finished 19th. Joe Kelly matched that finish in 1961 and open-wheel racer Wally Dallenbach made his NASCAR debut in 1962, winding up 37th at Daytona.

Then a number of top-flight NASCAR drivers had short stints in the No. 37.

Darel Dieringer was third at Beltsville in 1965, while Bub Strickler wound up eighth at Weaverville.

Charlie Glotzbach was fourth at Atlanta in 1967, Isaac eighth at Darlington, Bobby Allison 11th at Atlanta in the fall race and Sam McQuagg drove in the Firecracker 400.

Isaac and McQuagg again shared the ride in 1968, highlighted by Isaac's win.

The next season, Don Tarr moved from the No. 0 to the No. 37 Dodge, finishing sixth at Charlotte in six starts. Tarr had a couple of top-10s the next season, then ran twice in 1971.

Californian Chuck Wahl was the next driver to climb behind the steering wheel, running a limited West Coast schedule through 1980.

	Mark Martin drove the No. 37 in 1982. Credit: Autostock

In 1975, Bruce Jacobi had three top-10 finishes in a 15-race rookie campaign.

Other drivers during the Disco Era included Roger Hamby, Dave Watson and Don Sprouse.

In 1981, Mike Alexander made 19 starts, switching between Oldsmobile and Buick, with three top 10s. Tim Richmond, fresh from open wheel, finished up the season, running the last seven races, including a ninth at Dover.

Some pretty talented drivers shared the No. 37 in 1982. Tom Sneva ran three races, a young Mark Martin finished 32nd at Rockingham, Neil Bonnett was fifth at Nashville in three starts, and Donnie Allison posted three top-10 finishes in five races.

Connie Saylor ran four races in 1984 and Roy Lee Hendrick and Joe Millikan split time in the driver's seat two years later.

Then Curtis Markham, Patty Moise, Randy Porter, Rick Carelli and Loy Allen Jr. drove the car without success over a seven-year span.

In 1995, John Andretti ran a full season in the No. 37, finishing fourth at Michigan and 18th in the final standings. The next year, Andretti was fifth at Darlington in 23 starts before switching to the No. 98.

Jeremy Mayfield finished out the 1996 season, then ran 32 races in 1997, with three top-fives and eight top-10s, earning him a spot in the No. 12.

The No. 37 was then mothballed until 2002, when Derrike Cope ran a pair of events. He expanded his schedule to 18 races in 2003.