Automotive Industry Giants Who Passed Away In 2023

Murphy was one of the first women to prove that the ladies are just as fast as men. She was way before her time, setting a land-speed record in 1963 at the Bonneville Salt Flats. Jesse Combs was officially recognized as the new record holder posthumously in 2020, breaking Murphy’s 243.33-mph record.

Murphy also set a closed-course speed record in a Dodge stock car, reaching 172.336 mph at Talladega. She was also the first woman to receive a Funny Car license from the National Hot Rod Association. She set numerous records but was kept from competing with the men. It’s a pity because we think she would have kicked some ass.

“I got really, really lucky,” Murphy said in an interview with the NHRA. “I don’t think many people have gotten the opportunity to do some of the things that I did. I don’t look at myself as anything special; it was just the time for a woman to try to drive a Funny Car, and I felt rather proud that I was the one.”

She passed away on 21 December, aged 95. While she may not have had the opportunity to do as much as she wanted, she laid the foundation for women in motorsport, which is ramping up rapidly in the modern world.