Omaha daily bee., 1916-11-26
RESTA WINS TITLE
FOR ANOTHER YEAR
Italian Who Captured Omaha
Race Is Declared Champion
Driver of the World.
AITKEN NEXT, RICK THIRD

fOf tne second consecutive ycal
Dario Resta has captured the title OF
champion motor driver of the world
Dario won the honor by a narrow
margin over Eddie Rickenbacher in
1915 and this year he led Johnny
Aitken by just as narrow margin.
Resta won the championship when
he piloted his blue Peugeot into first
place in the Vanderbilt cup race while
Johnny Aitken broke up in both the
Vanderbilt and the grand prix,
Johnny would still have chance to
beat Resta II he would compete i'll
the Ascot park race Thanksgiving,
but it is the narrowest kind OF
chance, and Johnny didn't think it
worth while, so he did not enter the
event.
Resta has 400 points. Aitken has
3,440 The winner of the Ascot park
race will get 700 points. II Aitken
should win this race he would raise
his point total to 4,l40. But if Resta
should earn a place in the Ascot park
classic, he would beat Johnny. And
as the prize money Is not much OF
an inducement Johnny packed his car
and beat it back for Indianapolis.
When Johnny failed to enter at AS
cot Resta Withdrew, which leaves a
rather light field, with only Ricken-
baeher and the Mercer drivers, Pullen
and Ruckstell, to provide any class.
Wins Five Races.
One peculiar thing about Resta's
victory is that he earned all his points
by capturing first places. He was
first at Indianapolis, Chicago, Omaha,
the second Chicago race and the Van
derbilt. He did not win a point in
any other race. So in every race Resta
finished he finished first. He either
won the race ,or broke down cnroute.
Aitken won four races and finished
second in two others. He also pi-
loted Howdy Wilcox's car home in
first place in the grand prix, but this
was after Wilcox had driven the ma
chine into that position and Howdy
got the credit for the race.
- Rick is Third.
Eddie Rickenbachef has third place
cinched. Eddie earned 2,2l0 points
and may add few more at Ascot
park. Eddie was first at New York
and Tacoma, second in Chicago's sec
ond race, third at New York's second
race and third at Des Moines. Eddie
also captured some more money in
races that were not championship
events, such as second place in the
fifty-n1ile race in Omaha and first
in the fifty-mile race at Des Moines.
A prize of $l3,500 will be split up
between Resta, Aitken and Ricken-
bacher for their seasons achieve
ments, and Resta will get trophy
cup.
Ralph De Palma ranked fourth with
1 1,7o0 points and Wilbur D'Alene was
fifth with 1,l20. Howdy swept into
sixth place by the grand prix victory.
His total is 1880. Earl Cooper is
seventh with 9o5 and Tommy Milton
eighth with $50. Baby Pete Hender-
son is ninth with 667 points and Frank
Calvin tenth with 645.
Class of Omaha.
The class of the field in the Omaha
classic July Is is shown by the re-
suits Of the championship race. Of
the drivers who finished among the
first ten six took part in the Omaha
event. Resta, who won the champion
ship, won the race. Riekenbacher,
who was third, took part, as did De
| Palma, who was fourth, and D'Alene,
who was fifth. Tommy Milton, who
was eighth, and Baby Pete Hender-
son, who was ninth, were the other
two. Johnny Aitken, Howdy Wilcox,
Earl Cooper and Frank Calvin did not
race here. Cooper was signed up, but
his car wet cuckoo just before the To-
cal classic.
This year there were fifteen cham
pionship races held. Next year only
eight will be held. The eight speed
ways will only be allowed one cham
pionship race each. This year Chi
cago and Indianapolis held two and
New York three. They can hold as
many events as they want to, but
only one will count for the champion
| shin.