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FILE - In this May 13, 2001, file photo, race driver Michael Andretti, of Nazareth, Pa., gets a hug and a kiss from his mother, Dee Ann Andretti, after his qualification run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis. Dee Ann Andretti, the wife of legendary driver Mario Andretti and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in motorsports, died Tuesday, July 3, 2018. She was 76. Dee Ann Andretti mostly stayed in the background and raised their three children while her husband became one of the world's most successful and famous race car drivers. (AP Photo/Tom Strattman, File)

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FILE - In this Feb. 26, 1967, file photo, Mario Andretti, of Nazareth, Pa., holds up his trophies with his wife, Dee Ann, after he won the Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona Beach, Fla. Dee Ann Andretti, the wife of legendary driver Mario Andretti and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in motorsports, died Tuesday, July 3, 2018. She was 76. Dee Ann Andretti mostly stayed in the background and raised their three children while her husband became one of the world's most successful and famous race car drivers. (AP Photo)

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FILE - In this May 30, 1969, file photo, Mario Andretti receives congratulations and a kiss from his wife, Dee Ann, after he won the Indianapolis 500 auto race in Indianapolis, Ind. Dee Ann Andretti, the wife of legendary driver Mario Andretti and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in motorsports, died Tuesday, July 3, 2018. She was 76. Dee Ann Andretti mostly stayed in the background and raised their three children while her husband became one of the world's most successful and famous race car drivers. (AP Photo/File)

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FILE - In this Jan. 16, 2018, file photo, Mario Andretti is shown at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Dee Ann Andretti, the wife of legendary driver Mario Andretti and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in motorsports, died Tuesday, July 3, 2018. She was 76. Dee Ann Andretti mostly stayed in the background and raised their three children while her husband became one of the world's most successful and famous race car drivers. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

Motorsports matriarch Dee Ann Andretti dies at 76

By Associated Press All Regions

PUBLISHED 1:52 PM ET May. 09, 2019

Dee Ann Andretti, the wife of famed driver Mario Andretti and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in motorsports, has died. She was 76.

Andretti died Tuesday, a few weeks after suffering a heart attack. Grandson Marco Andretti announced her death on social media , posting: "RIP Grammy Andretti. You will be missed." The IndyCar Series later confirmed her death.

Mario Andretti and Dee Ann Hoch met while she was teaching English to the Italy-born Andretti in Nazareth, Pennsylvania. They were married a few months later, in November 1961.

Dee Ann Andretti mostly stayed in the background and raised their three children while her husband became one of the world's most successful race car drivers.

She is survived by her husband, sons Michael and Jeff, daughter Barbie Dee and seven grandchildren.

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