Rick Ravon Mears (born December 3, 1951 in Wichita, Kansas) is a retired American race car driver. He is one of three men to have won the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race four times (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991), and the current record-holder for pole positions in the race with six (1979, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1991). Mears is also a three-time Indycar national champion (1979, 1981 and 1982).
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Mears was raised in Bakersfield, California, and began his racing career in off-road racing. He switched to Indy Car racing in the late 1970s, making his debut for the small Art Sugai team, driving an Eagle-Offenhauser. His speed attracted the attention of Roger Penske. Although at the time Penske Racing had the services of Tom Sneva and Mario Andretti, Andretti was also racing in Formula One with Lotus at the time and Penske wanted another young driver who would focus exclusively on American racing. For 1978 Mears was offered a ride in nine of the eighteen championship races, including the Indianapolis 500.
Mears qualified on the front row at Indy, but did not lead a lap and retired at 104 laps with a blown engine. Two weeks later, at the Rex Mays 150 at Milwaukee, he bounced back to win his first race. He added another win another month later at Atlanta and rounded off the year with his first road course win at Brands Hatch as the USAC cars made their only visit to England. In 1979 the National Championship sanction changed from the USAC to Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART). At Indianapolis he won his first "500" by virtue of staying at the front of the field and taking the lead as other drivers dropped out with mechanical problems. Three wins and four seconds in the eleven CART-eligible races won Mears his first championship. His worst finish in the season was seventh in Trenton's second heat. In 1980 the ground effect Chaparral was technologically more advanced that the other chassis. Mears finished in fourth place in the points with one win, scored at Mexico City.
1981 and 1982 were two more championship seasons for Mears. Despite facial burns during a pit fire in the 1981 Indianapolis 500, Mears' ten wins in the two-year span were enough for another two Indycar championship titles. At the 1982 Indianapolis 500 he came within 0.16 of a second of adding a second Indy win. With less than 20 laps to go, during Mears' final pit stop, the crew filled the entire tank rather than giving him only the amount he needed to finish. The delay put him behind over 11 seconds behind Gordon Johncock. Mears made up the difference when Johncock suffered handling problems, but failed to secure the win. The photo-finish would stand for ten years as the closest finish to an Indy 500.
For 1983 the Penske team would acquire the Pennzoil sponsorship with its yellow paint scheme. Teammate Al Unser took the title, the team switched to the March chassis for the 1984 Indianapolis 500 after the Penske chassis proved unsuccessful in the first two races of the year. Mears scored his second Indy win that May but suffered severe leg injuries later in the year in a crash at Sanair. The March chassis, like most contemporary open-wheel racing cars, sat the driver far forward in the nose, with little protection for the legs and feet.
In 1980 Mears had tested a Formula One Brabham and he declined an offer. After 1984 he was slowed by the injuries to his right foot and the 1985, 1986 and 1987 years saw Mears win two races, both scored at the tri-oval Pocono Raceway.
In 1988, after several years using the March chassis, the Penske team utilized a new car, the PC-17, with a Chevrolet racing engine. Mears used the new car to win the Indy 500. A year later, he took a record-setting fifth pole position at Indy, but retired from the race with mechanical problems. Emerson Fittipaldi took the 500 and also beat Mears to the Championship in the last race at Laguna Seca, despite Mears winning that race. Also, that last race of 1989 set Mears apart from all other Indycar racers as he broke a tie with Bobby Rahal for race wins and became the most successful Indycar racer of the 1980s.
Fittipaldi joined Mears at Penske for 1990, but the year belonged to Al Unser, Jr., who scored six wins. 1990 would be Mears' last in the Pennzoil paint scheme as Marlboro took over as sponsor of the team.
In 1991, For the first time in his career, Mears hit the wall at Indianapolis, during a practice session. The next day, he climbed in his backup car, and shattered the qualifying record to take his record 6th pole position. Twenty laps from the end of the 500, it looked like Mears was set to be the runner-up behind Michael Andretti. However, when a subsequent yellow flag period erased Andretti's 15 second lead, Mears gained the lead as Andretti opted to pit for fuel. It would be a short-lived lead as Andretti passed Mears around the outside into the first turn. A lap later he returned into the lead, using the same move Andretti had. Turning up his turbocharger he then pulled away to win a fourth Indy 500, making him one of only three individuals to win the event four times. In August 1991 at Michigan he won his last race. At the 1992 Indy 500 Mears broke a wrist in a crash during practice and then crashed out of the race for the first time in his career as he could not avoid Jim Crawford's spinning car in turn 1. He raced only four more times in 1992 and announced his retirement from racing Indycars at the Penske team's Christmas party. He had just turned 41 years old, and nobody except for his wife, Cris, and Roger Penske himself knew about it.
As of 2010, Rick Mears continues to work as a consultant to Penske racing, the team with which he won all of his Indycar races.
He is the brother of Roger Mears, father of off-road racer, Clint Mears, and the uncle of NASCAR driver Casey Mears.
| Year | Team | Wins | Points | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Art Sugai | 0 | 390 | 16th |
| 1977 | Art Sugai/Theodore Racing | 0 | 555 | 20th |
| 1978 | Penske Racing | 3 | 2171 | 9th |
(key)
| Year | Team | Series | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Team Penske | USAC | PHX 5 |
ONT |
TWS |
TRE |
INDY 23 |
MSP 2 |
MIL 1 |
POC |
MIS 22 |
ATL 1 |
TWS2 9 |
MIL2 2 |
ONT2 9 |
MIS2 |
TRE2 |
SIL 2 |
BRH 1 |
PHX2 |
9th | 2171 |
| 1979 | Team Penske | USAC | ONT |
TWS |
INDY1 1 |
MIL |
POC |
TWS2 |
MIL2 |
NR2 | 0 | |||||||||||
| CART | PHX 2 |
ATL1 2 |
ATL2 5 |
TRE 5 |
TRE2 7 |
MIS 4 |
MIS2 5 |
WGL 2 |
TRE3 1 |
ONT 2 |
MIS3 3 |
ATL3 1 |
PHX2 3 |
1st | 4060 | |||||||
| 1980 | Team Penske | CART | ONT 21 |
INDY 5 |
MIL 5 |
POC 12 |
MDO 9 |
MIS 4 |
WGL 2 |
MIL 2 |
ONT2 3 |
MIS 3 |
MEX 1 |
PHX 7 |
4th | 2866 | ||||||
| 1981 | Team Penske | CART | PHX 4 |
MIL |
ATL 1 |
ATL2 1 |
MIS 3 |
RIV 1 |
MIL2 2 |
MIS2 1 |
WGL 1 |
MEX 1 |
PHX2 8 |
1st | 304 | |||||||
| 1982 | Team Penske | CART | PHX 1 |
ATL 1 |
MIL 3 |
CLE 4 |
MIS 15 |
MIL 12 |
POC 1 |
RIV 1 |
ROA 5 |
MIS2 25 |
PHX2 2 |
1st | 294 | |||||||
| 1983 | Team Penske | CART | ATL 8 |
INDY 3 |
MIL 3 |
CLE 7 |
MIS 4 |
ROA 17 |
POC 3 |
RIV 19 |
MDO 9 |
MIS2 1 |
LSV 13 |
LS 21 |
PHX 17 |
6th | 92 | |||||
| 1984 | Team Penske | CART | LBH 21 |
PHX 18 |
INDY 1 |
MIL 2 |
POR 10 |
MEA 10 |
CLE 4 |
MIS 3 |
ROA 4 |
POC 2 |
MDO 5 |
SAN DNS |
MIS2 |
PHX2 |
LS |
LSV |
5th | 110 | ||
| 1985 | Team Penske | CART | LBH |
INDY 21 |
MIL 3 |
POR |
MEA |
CLE |
MIS 30 |
ROA |
POC 1 |
MDO |
SAN |
MIS2 2 |
LS |
PHX |
MIA |
10th | 51 | |||
| 1986 | Team Penske | CART | PHX 19 |
LBH 20 |
INDY 3 |
MIL 3 |
POR 16 |
MEA 19 |
CLE 4 |
TOR 8 |
MIS 12 |
POC 8 |
MDO 17 |
SAN 18 |
MIS2 8 |
ROA 3 |
LS 17 |
PHX2 20 |
MIA 3 |
8th | 89 | |
| 1987 | Team Penske | CART | LBH 9 |
PHX 20 |
INDY 23 |
MIL 21 |
POR 3 |
MEA 17 |
CLE 7 |
TOR 10 |
MIS 21 |
POC 1 |
ROA 9 |
MDO 4 |
NZR 3 |
LS 3 |
MIA 5 |
5th | 102 | |||
| 1988 | Team Penske | CART | PHX 22 |
LBH 8 |
INDY 1 |
MIL 1 |
POR 6 |
CLE 23 |
TOR 6 |
MEA 3 |
MIS 13 |
POC 23 |
MDO 3 |
ROA 12 |
NZR 7 |
LS 5 |
MIA 2 |
4th | 129 | |||
| 1989 | Team Penske | CART | PHX 1 |
LBH 5 |
INDY 23 |
MIL 1 |
DET 5 |
POR 8 |
CLE 5 |
MEA 4 |
TOR 5 |
MIS 7 |
POC 2 |
MDO 6 |
ROA 3 |
NZR 2 |
LS 1 |
2nd | 186 | |||
| 1990 | Team Penske | CART | PHX 1 |
LBH 6 |
INDY 5 |
MIL 2 |
DET 4 |
POR 5 |
CLE 8 |
MEA 2 |
TOR 12 |
MIS 14 |
DEN 7 |
VAN 4 |
MDO 7 |
ROA 3 |
NZR 2 |
LS 4 |
3rd | 168 | ||
| 1991 | Team Penske | CART | SRF 3 |
LBH 4 |
PHX 5 |
INDY 1 |
MIL 15 |
DET 5 |
POR 6 |
CLE 17 |
MEA 3 |
TOR 20 |
MIS 1 |
DEN 8 |
VAN 6 |
MDO 6 |
ROA 15 |
NZR 15 |
LS 5 |
4th | 145 | |
| 1992 | Team Penske | CART | SRF 2 |
PHX 8 |
LBH 9 |
INDY 26 |
DET |
POR 7 |
MIL 16 |
NHM 4 |
TOR |
MIS 16 |
CLE |
ROA |
VAN |
MDO |
NZR |
LS |
13th | 47 |
Total: 3 championships, 26 victories
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish | Note | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Eagle | Offy | Did not qualify | Sugai | ||
| 1978 | Penske | Cosworth | 3rd | 23rd | Engine Failure | Penske |
| 1979 | Penske | Cosworth | 1st | 1st | Running | Penske |
| 1980 | Penske | Cosworth | 6th | 5th | Running | Penske |
| 1981 | Penske | Cosworth | 22nd | 30th | Pit lane fire | Penske |
| 1982 | Penske | Cosworth | 1st | 2nd | Running | Penske |
| 1983 | Penske | Cosworth | 3rd | 3rd | Running | Penske |
| 1984 | March | Cosworth | 3rd | 1st | Running | Penske |
| 1985 | March | Cosworth | 10th | 21st | Gear linkage | Penske |
| 1986 | March | Cosworth | 1st | 3rd | Running | Penske |
| 1987 | March | Cosworth | 3rd | 23rd | Ignition | Penske |
| 1988 | Penske | Chevrolet | 1st | 1st | Running | Penske |
| 1989 | Penske | Chevrolet | 1st | 23rd | Engine failure | Penske |
| 1990 | Penske | Chevrolet | 2nd | 5th | Running | Penske |
| 1991 | Penske | Chevrolet | 1st | 1st | Running | Penske |
| 1992 | Penske | Chevrolet | 9th | 26th | Crash | Penske |
| Year | Att # | Date | Time | Qual Day |
Car # | Laps | Qual Time |
Qual Speed |
Rank | Start | Comment |
| 1977 | 85 | 05-22 | 16:02 | 4 | 90 | 1 | — | — | — | — | PULLED OFF |
| 1977 | 96 | 05-22 | 17:21 | 4 | 90 | 2 | — | — | — | — | WAVED OFF |
| 1978 | 10 | 05-20 | 12:13 | 1 | 71 | 4 | 2:59.9300 | 200.078 | 4 | 3 | |
| 1979 | 34 | 05-13 | 16:39 | 1 | 9 | 4 | 3:05.8200 | 193.736 | 1 | 1 | |
| 1980 | 1 | 05-10 | 11:05 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3:12.0100 | 187.490 | 7 | 6 | |
| 1981 | 34 | 05-16 | 13:41 | 1 | 6 | 2 | — | — | — | — | PULLED OFF |
| 1981 | 53 | 05-16 | 15:52 | 2 | 68 | 4 | 3:05.5500 | 194.018 | 10 | 22 | |
| 1982 | 2 | 05-15 | 11:09 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2:53.9100 | 207.004 | 1 | 1 | |
| 1983 | 7 | 05-21 | 11:39 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2:56.2110 | 204.301 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1984 | 2 | 05-12 | 12:25 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 2:53.2040 | 207.847 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1985 | 29 | 05-11 | 17:10 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2:51.5950 | 209.796 | 10 | 10 | |
| 1986 | 9 | 05-10 | 12:40 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 2:46.0300 | 216.828 | 1 | 1 | |
| 1987 | 3 | 05-09 | 11:19 | 1 | 81T | 4 | 2:50.2390 | 211.467 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1988 | 23 | 05-14 | 13:58 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2:44.2350 | 219.198 | 1 | 1 | |
| 1989 | 20 | 05-14 | 14:09 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 2:40.7970 | 223.885 | 1 | 1 | |
| 1990 | 6 | 05-13 | 16:57 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2:40.5600 | 224.215 | 2 | 2 | |
| 1991 | 16 | 05-11 | 12:51 | 1 | 3T | 4 | 2:40.6330 | 224.113 | 2 | 1 | |
| 1992 | 21 | 05-09 | 17:48 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 2:40.2890 | 224.594 | 10 | 9 |
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jerry Sneva |
Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year 1978 With Larry Rice |
Succeeded by Howdy Holmes |
| Preceded by Al Unser |
Indianapolis 500 Winner 1979 |
Succeeded by Johnny Rutherford |
| Preceded by Tom Sneva |
Indianapolis 500 Winner 1984 |
Succeeded by Danny Sullivan |
| Preceded by Al Unser |
Indianapolis 500 Winner 1988 |
Succeeded by Emerson Fittipaldi |
| Preceded by Arie Luyendyk |
Indianapolis 500 Winner 1991 |
Succeeded by Al Unser, Jr. |
| Preceded by None |
PPG Indycar World Series Champion 1979 |
Succeeded by Johnny Rutherford |
| Preceded by Johnny Rutherford |
PPG Indycar World Series Champion 1981-1982 |
Succeeded by Al Unser |
|
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