LAKELAND, Fla. — One of the most recognizable faces in motorsports history, Bernie Little, owner of the Miss Budweiser unlimited hydroplane team passed away April 25 in Lakeland, Florida as a result of complications related to pneumonia. He was 77.

Little is survived by his wife, Jane; two sons, Bernie Little Jr. and Joe Little; a daughter, Becky Ham; a sister, Catherine Moore; and four grandchildren.

Little was a colorful, passionate and dedicated racer of boats. His record is unsurpassed with 134 race victories, 22 World Championships and 14 APBA Gold Cups. Little had been the most successful team owner in the history of unlimited hydroplane racing.

Little's teams were sponsored by Anheuser-Busch for more than 40 years, representing one of the most successful owner/sponsor relationships in the high-powered world of motorsports.

A force in hydroplane racing since 1963, Little completed 40 consecutive seasons of competition after entering 354 Unlimited hydroplane races. Little's Miss Budweiser finished in the top three a total of 230 times. At the conclusion of the 2002 season, the Miss Budweiser team was presented with the first Bernie Little World High Points Championship Trophy, which was renamed in 2001 in Little's honor.

A native of McComb, Ohio, Little was a resident of Lakeland, Fla. As a youth growing up in the Depression era of the 1930's, he operated a morning and evening newspaper route and found time to polish cars, shovel snow and caddie at the golf course on the weekends.

After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, Little and his wife settled in Florida and began building a dynasty in aircraft and automobile sales. He opened an automobile dealership, and he performed as a stunt pilot with the "All-Miami Air Show."

Later, Little started leasing airports and eventually selling and leasing airplanes. It was during this time that Little entered Unlimited hydroplane racing with his first boat, Tempo.

In 1972, Little purchased his first Anheuser-Busch distributorship in Lakeland. He later purchased two additional distributorships and turned all three into major successes.

In addition to Little's unprecedented racing accomplishments, he had received several honors both in and out of the sport of Unlimited hydroplane racing. The Unlimited Racing Commission (URC) honored Little in 1985 for his dedication to the sport with the inaugural Gar Wood Award. He was elected "Owner of the Year" 12 times by the URC; named to the Unlimited

Hydroplane Hall of Fame in 1980 and the APBA Honor Squadron in 1981; and was inducted into the Hancock County (Ohio) Hall of Fame in 1988, the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 1982, the Stan Sayres Hall of Fame in Seattle in 1980, and the Sun Dome Walk of Fame in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 1992.

Little also was the recipient of the Unlimited Racing Commission's Historical
Award in 1992; was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame in Novi, Mich., in
1994. Little received the prestigious Horatio Alger Award in 1994. The Award is bestowed annually to ten outstanding Americans who have achieved success despite having to overcome difficult childhood circumstances and have become adults who exemplify hard work, honesty, and service to others.