Motorsports legend Don Schumacher dead at 79 due to complications from his battle with lung cancer

Don Schumacher, the successful NHRA team owner and pioneer of drag racing, has died at the age of 79 after privately battling lung cancer.

NHRA.com announced his death on Thursday, saying the Motor Sports Hall of Famer succumbed to “illness-related complications.”

Born in Michigan and raised in Chicago, Schumacher became a drag racer and helped found the Funny Car class, winning about 70 percent of the 560 contests in which he raced, according to the Hall of Fame.

But it is as a car owner that he is perhaps best remembered. He has earned 19 NHRA world championships and 362 Wally trophies, in addition to the five he won driving a Funny Car.

Despite having one of the most decorated careers in NHRA history, Schumacher took a break from the sport in the early 1970s to build his family's electrical company, which he built into a global company.

Don Schumacher won the 1973 Funny Car title in his Stardust Plymouth Cuda

Don Schumacher's Star Dust Barracuda funny car is pictured at the 1969 Winter Nationals

When he returned as a car owner in 1998, it was his son Tony who became the family's most celebrated driver, winning 86 events.

Schumacher will also be known for his safety innovations, such as a roof-mounted escape hatch that allows drivers to avoid being burned in a car fire. He also developed a lever on the brake lever that allowed drivers to activate an in-car fire suppression system without taking their other hand off the steering wheel.

Schumacher's grandfather was an avid fisherman and golfer who managed benefits for Riley Hospital for Children in Indiana for seven years.

He also developed the family's auto parts brand, DSR Performance.

Schumacher previously battled cancer in 2015, but was able to return to the track, much to the delight of the drivers.

“This is the best therapy,” said Antron Brown, the first African-American champion in drag racing history and one of 25 different drivers on the Schumacher team. “You can see the smile on his face and the joy in his heart for being a part of this sport of NHRA drag racing.”

Antron Brown (right) became the first African-American driver to win the world title in 2015, and he did so while competing for Don Schumacher's NHRA team (left).

When Schumacher returned to drag racing as a car owner in 1998, it was his son Tony (pictured) who became the family's most celebrated driver, winning 86 events.

“I love what I do, and I will continue to do what I do,” Schumacher said that same year. 'I'm a businessman, and that's what I do. I like racing. I love the sport of NHRA. I love my companies. I love my family. I love what I do in life.'

Schumacher's death sparked an outpouring of grief on social media.

NHRA announcer Alan Reinhart described Schumacher as a revolutionary figure in the sport.

“Even though he has scaled back his personal involvement in recent years, this is a huge blow,” Reinhart wrote of X. “His influence will be felt for generations to come. And the company he built will continue to deliver the sport.”