The 1959 USAC Championship Car season (officially the 1959 USAC National Championship Trail) [1] consisted of 13 races, beginning in Daytona Beach, Florida on April 4 and concluding in Sacramento, California on October 25.

The USAC National Champion and Indianapolis 500 winner was Rodger Ward.

During the pre-season, Marshall Teague was fatally injured in a crash at Daytona.

In the first race of the season at Daytona, 34-year-old George Amick was killed in an accident on the last lap.

On July 19 at Mechanicsburg in the Indianapolis Sweepstakes non-championship race Van Johnson was killed in an accident; he was 32 years old.