Al Unser III

Alfred Richard Unser (born October 23, 1982) is an American former professional race car driver. Unser has competed in the Indy Lights series and Toyota Atlantics Championship. He is part of the fourth generation of the Unser family.

Al Richard Unser is the son of Al Unser Jr., and grandson of Al Unser Sr. Due to his family connections in auto racing, he has sometimes been known as "Al Unser III" or "Just Al." He is currently a Realtor in Albuquerque at Coldwell Banker Legacy.

Family connections Al Richard Unser is the son of two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr., grandson of four-time Indy winner Al Unser Sr., and grandnephew of three-time Indy winner Bobby Unser. Another granduncle, Jerry Unser, drove in the 1958 race but died from injuries suffered in a crash in 1959.

First-cousins-once-removed (Al Unser Jr.'s cousins) Robby and Johnny also drove in the Indianapolis 500. Often considered the third generation of the famous Unser racing family, Al Richard Unser is technically the fourth generation of racers to come out of the family. His great-grandfather Jerry Sr., and Jerry's brother Louis, also were racers, but neither drove in the Indianapolis 500.

During his young childhood years, he was often nicknamed "Mini Al" by the media and fans, For superstitious reasons, his father (Al Unser Jr.) insisted he not be named with the suffix "III".

Career biography Al driving an Infiniti Pro Series car at St. Petersburg in 2005.

Unser began driving go karts at age ten, but stopped racing until after earning his driver's license at age sixteen. After attending driving schools, Unser competed in the Skip Barber Western Racing Series in 2002, winning six races and earning "Rookie of the Year" honors. A year later, he posted four top-ten finishes in the 2003 Barber Dodge Pro Series.

2004 In 2004, Unser made his Toyota Atlantics debut, running in four events. His best finish was an eighth place at Montreal. Unser also ran in eight races in the 2004 Infiniti Pro Series. He posted five third-place finishes, and won the pole position at Michigan.

Around that same time, Unser's father, Al Unser Jr. temporarily retired from driving to help with his career.

2005 Unser posted three top-ten finishes in the first four races of the Infinity Pro Series season, including a fourth place at the Freedom 100 at Indianapolis. He then returned to the Toyota Atlantics, finishing the season seventh in points. He ran ten of twelve events with a best finish of fourth.

At the Indy Lights races at St. Petersburg and Indianapolis Unser competed against fellow third-generation driver Marco Andretti of the famous rival Andretti family. It was the only two times that Al and Marco raced together.

2006 In 2006, Unser drove in two Atlantics series events, but lost his ride to funding issues with his team.

2007 Unser was signed to drive for Playa Del Racing in the Freedom 100 for 2007. He drove in three other oval races, posting three top-tens in the four events.

2008 For 2008, Unser was announced as the full-time driver in the No. 12 car for Playa Del Racing in Indy Lights. After five races, controlling interest in the team was sold to former Las Vegas restaurateur Eric Zimmerman, who renamed it American Dream Motorsports. After finishing 11th position at Indianapolis, Unser was reportedly released by the new owner and replaced by Tony Turco, who brought sponsorship to the program. The team posted an entry for the Milwaukee 100 on May 31, but the car never took to the track.

Unser's father (Al Jr.) drove during several seasons for Galles Racing, and Al Richard once worked for Rick Galles' Chevrolet dealership.

Racing record

American open–wheel racing results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Barber Dodge Pro Series Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rank Points 2003 STP11 MTY18 MIL14 LAG6 POR8 CLE17 TOR14 VAN10 MOH12 MTL15 13th 38

Indy Lights

Atlantic Championship