About Darrell Russell (dragster driver)
Darrell James Russell (September 20, 1968 – June 27, 2004) was an American National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) drag racer. He was the 2001 NHRA Rookie Of The Year. At the time, he was the third driver to win in his Professional class debut. Before becoming a driver in NHRA's Professional class of Top Fuel Dragster, Russell competed for several years in NHRA's Sportsman (amateur) class of Top Alcohol Dragster, a slower version of Top Fuel. In four seasons of competition driving Joe Amato's NHRA Top Fuel Dragster, he compiled a record of 106 round wins versus 75 losses. He won six events and was runner-up at 11 others, out of 81 events entered. Russell was the first racer to be killed at an NHRA national event since Blaine Johnson, in 1996.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.