Indianapolis 500 firsts

Contents

Wins, Leaders and Race Competition

Race Average Finishing Speeds

Year First Achiever(s) Notes
1911 Winning driver Ray Harroun Retired from racing competition upon victory
Winning owner Nordyke & Marmon Company Withdrew from racing competition upon victory
1913 Rookie winner (excluding first race) Jules Goux First to win in first career start, excluding first race
Non-American winner  
European winner  
French winner  
1916 Multiple-winning owner(s) Peugeot Winning owners, 1913, 1916
1922 Winner from pole position Jimmy Murphy  
Owner/Driver winner  
Race and Grand Prix winning car Duesenberg 1921 GP Won 1921 French Grand Prix
1923 Two-time winner Tommy Milton Winner, 1921, 1923
1924 Co-winners Lora L. Corum
Joe Boyer
Corum starting, Boyer finishing
1924 Repeat-winning owner(s) Duesenberg  
1925  
1926 Rain-shortened race winner Frank Lockhart Race concluded by rain at 160 laps, 400 miles (640 km), with Lockhart holding a two lap lead
1936 Three-time winner Louis Meyer Winner, 1928, 1933, 1936
1939 Repeat-winning driver
Repeat-winning car
Wilbur Shaw
Maserati 8CTF
 
1940
1947 First-and-second place finish by teammates Mauri Rose Rose victorious
Bill Holland Holland second
Three consecutive-winning owner Lou Moore  
1948  
1949  
1952 Rookie of the Year award winner Art Cross First awarded in 36th running of the race
1965 Race and World Championship winner, and in same year Jim Clark  
British winner  
Rear-engined winning car Lotus 38 Team Lotus, entrant
1966 Race and Monaco Grand Prix winner Graham Hill Winner, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1968, and 1969 Monaco Grand Prix
1967 Race and 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, and in same year A.J. Foyt Dan Gurney, Le Mans teammate and co-driver
1969 Race and Daytona 500 winner Mario Andretti Winner, 1967 Daytona 500
Race and 12 Hours of Sebring winner Winner, 1967, 1970, and 1972 12 Hours of Sebring
1972 Race and 24 Hours of Daytona winner Mario Andretti Winner, 1969;
First year competed after winning 1972 24 Hours of Daytona
Wing-mounted winning car McLaren M16 Entered by Roger Penske, driven by Mark Donohue
1977 Four-time winner A.J. Foyt Winner, 1961, 1964, 1967, 1977
Female competitor Janet Guthrie Qualified 26th
1989 South American winner Emerson Fittipaldi  
Brazilian winner  
1990 Dutch winner Arie Luyendyk  
1992 Female Rookie of the Year Lyn St. James Finished 13th
1993 Two-time Race and two-time World Championship winner Emerson Fittipaldi Winner, 1972 and 1974 World Championships;
Winner, 1989
1995 Canadian winner Jacques Villeneuve  
1999 Swedish winner Kenny Bräck  
2000 Colombian winner Juan Pablo Montoya  
2001 Rookie and sophomore winner Hélio Castroneves First to win in first two career starts
2002
2005 Female leader Danica Patrick Led 19 laps; Lap 192, latest
2008 New Zealand winner Scott Dixon
2009 Three females both starting and finishing Race Danica Patrick
Sarah Fisher
Milka Duno
Danica Patrick finished 3rd, becoming the highest finishing female in race history.
2011 Winner only having led the last lap Dan Wheldon Took lead from J.R. Hildebrand on the final lap.
Year Speed
Barrier
Race Winner Average Speed Notes
(mph) (km/h)
1911 70 mph Ray Harroun 74.602 129.060 First race
1914 80 mph René Thomas 82.47 132.72  
1922 90 mph Jimmy Murphy 94.48 152.05 Victory in 1921 French Grand Prix winning car
1925 100 mph Peter DePaolo 101.127 162.748 First race completed in under 5 hours
1937 110 mph Wilbur Shaw 113.580 182.789 Last two-seat winning car
1949 120 mph Bill Holland 121.327 195.257  
1954 130 mph Bill Vukovich 130.840 210.567  
1962 140 mph Rodger Ward 140.293 225.780  
1965 150 mph Jim Clark 150.686 242.506  
1972 160 mph Mark Donohue 162.962 262.262  
1986 170 mph Bobby Rahal 170.722 274.750 First race completed in under 3 hours
1990 180 mph Arie Luyendyk 185.981 299.307 Current race record average speed

Qualifications

Pole Position

Year Speed
Barrier
Driver Speed Notes
(mph) (km/h)
1911 N/A Lewis Strang No full lap First race; grid determined by entry date
1915 90 mph Howdy Wilcox 98.90 159.16 First year, grid position determined by qualification speed
1919 100 mph René Thomas 104.780 168.627  
1925 110 mph Leon Duray 113.196 182.171  
1927 120 mph Frank Lockhart 120.100 193.282  
1939 130 mph Jimmy Snyder 130.138 209.437  
1954 140 mph Jack McGrath 141.033 226.971 Engine augmented with nitromethane additive, then legal
1962 150 mph Parnelli Jones 150.370 241.997  
1965 160 mph A.J. Foyt 161.233 259.479  
1968 170 mph Joe Leonard 171.559 276.097 Turbine-engined car
1972 180 mph Bobby Unser 195.940 315.335 17 mph (27 km/h) increase in pole record speed, largest margin to date
190 mph
1978 200 mph Tom Sneva 202.156 325.339  
1984 210 mph 210.029 338.009  
1989 220 mph Rick Mears 223.885 360.308  
1992 230 mph Roberto Guerrero 232.482 374.144  

†- During time trials, Bill Vukovich II turned his first lap at 185.797 mph (299.011 km/h), to set the one-lap track record, and was the first driver to officially break the 180 mph (290 km/h) barrier. He, however, crashed on his second lap, and did not complete the four-lap qualifying run. Later in the afternoon, Joe Leonard qualified a four-lap average of 185.223 mph (298.088 km/h) to break the four-lap 180 mph (290 km/h) barrier. Later in the day, however, Bobby Unser qualified even faster, over 190 mph (310 km/h), and became the first pole position winner to break 180 mph (290 km/h) and 190 mph (310 km/h) for his four-lap average.

Miscellenia

References

Indianapolis 500 Chronicle, John Pope, copyright 1999
2005 Indianapolis 500-Mile Race Program
2006 Indianapolis 500-Mile Race Program