List of Indianapolis 500 lap leaders
Indianapolis 500-Mile Race all-time lap leaders
Two hundred fourteen drivers have led the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, in ninety-nine races.
Career lap leader percentage rounded to hundredths of a percent.
Green indicates drivers active as of most recent race.
Rank | Driver | Laps Led |
Career Laps Run |
Career Lap Leader Percentage |
Race Wins |
Years Won | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Al Unser | 644 | 4,356 | 14.78% | 4 | 1970 | 1971 | 1978 | 1987 | |||
2 | † Ralph DePalma | 612 | 1,594 | 38.39% | 1 | 1915 | ||||||
3 | Mario Andretti | 556 | 3,040 | 18.29% | 1 | 1969 | ||||||
4 | A. J. Foyt | 555 | 4,909 | 11.31% | 4 | 1961 | 1964 | 1967 | 1977 | |||
5 | Wilbur Shaw | 508 | 2,019 | 25.16% | 3 | 1937 | 1939 | 1940 | ||||
6 | Emerson Fittipaldi | 505 | 1,785 | 28.29% | 2 | 1989 | 1993 | |||||
7 | Parnelli Jones | 492 | 1,130 | 43.54% | 1 | 1963 | ||||||
8 | Bill Vukovich | 485 | 676 | 71.75% | 2 | 1953 | 1954 | |||||
9 | Bobby Unser | 466 | 2,611 | 16.85% | 3 | 1968 | 1975 | 1981 | ||||
10 | Scott Dixon | 439 | Active driver | 1 | 2008 | |||||||
11 | Michael Andretti | 431 | 2,653 | 16.25% | ||||||||
12 | Rick Mears | 429 | 2,342 | 18.32% | 4 | 1979 | 1984 | 1988 | 1991 | |||
13 | Billy Arnold | 410 | 821 | 49.94% | 1 | 1930 | ||||||
14 | Gordon Johncock | 406 | 3,158 | 10.73% | 2 | 1973 | 1982 | |||||
15 | Louis Meyer | 332 | 1,916 | 17.33% | 3 | 1928 | 1933 | 1936 | ||||
16 | Dario Franchitti | 329 | 1,940 | 16.96% | 3 | 2007 | 2010 | 2012 | ||||
17 | Tony Kanaan | 327 | Active driver | 1 | 2013 | |||||||
18 | Hélio Castroneves | 305 | Active driver | 3 | 2001 | 2002 | 2009 | |||||
19 | Jim Clark | 298 | 682 | 43.69% | 1 | 1965 | ||||||
20 | Bill Holland | 297 | 914 | 32.49% | 1 | 1949 | ||||||
21 | Johnny Rutherford | 296 | 2,770 | 10.69% | 3 | 1974 | 1976 | 1980 | ||||
22 | Rex Mays | 266 | 1,385 | 19.21% | ||||||||
23 | Rodger Ward | 261 | 2,160 | 12.08% | 2 | 1959 | 1962 | |||||
24 | Mauri Rose | 256 | 2,326 | 11.01% | 3 | 1941 | 1947 | 1948 | ||||
25 | Dan Wheldon | 235 | 1,129 | 20.73% | 2 | 2005 | 2011 | |||||
26 | Jimmy Murphy | 220 | 907 | 24.26% | 1 | 1922 | ||||||
27 | Tommy Milton | 218 | 1,204 | 18.11% | 2 | 1921 | 1923 | |||||
28 | Jimmy Bryan | 216 | 1,411 | 15.31% | 1 | 1958 | ||||||
29 | Tom Sneva | 208 | 2,180 | 9.54% | 1 | 1983 | ||||||
30 | Frank Lockhart | 205 | 280 | 73.21% | 1 | 1926 | ||||||
31 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 193 | Active driver | 2 | 2000 | 2015 | ||||||
32 | Arie Luyendyk | 187 | 2,957 | 6.32% | 2 | 1990 | 1997 | |||||
33 | Jimmy Snyder | 181 | 495 | 36.57% | ||||||||
34 | Lee Wallard | 178 | 591 | 30.12% | 1 | 1951 | ||||||
35 | Danny Sullivan | 162 | 1,523 | 10.64% | 1 | 1985 | ||||||
36 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | 162 | Active driver | 1 | 2014 | |||||||
37 | Howdy Wilcox | 155 | 1,335 | 11.61% | 1 | 1919 | ||||||
38 | Jim Rathmann | 153 | 2,320 | 6.59% | 1 | 1960 | ||||||
39 | Tomas Scheckter | 153 | 1,691 | 9.05% | ||||||||
40 | Peter DePaolo | 152 | 738 | 20.60% | 1 | 1925 | ||||||
41 | Marco Andretti | 141 | Active driver | |||||||||
42 | † Dario Resta | 140 | 407 | 34.40% | 1 | 1916 | ||||||
43 | Sam Hanks | 140 | 1,566 | 8.94% | 1 | 1957 | ||||||
44 | Jules Goux | 139 | 773 | 17.98% | 1 | 1913 | ||||||
45 | †2 George Robson | 138 | 333 | 41.44% | 1 | 1946 | ||||||
46 | Pat Flaherty | 138 | 812 | 17.00% | 1 | 1956 | ||||||
47 | Gary Bettenhausen | 138 | 2,372 | 5.82% | ||||||||
48 | Johnnie Parsons | 131 | 1,504 | 8.71% | 1 | 1950 | ||||||
49 | Lloyd Ruby | 126 | 2,357 | 5.35% | ||||||||
50 | Bobby Rahal | 124 | 2,007 | 6.18% | 1 | 1986 | ||||||
51 | Earl Cooper | 123 | 941 | 13.07% | ||||||||
52 | Tony Stewart | 122 | 700 | 17.43% | ||||||||
53 | Joe Boyer | 118 | 536 | 22.01% | 1 | 1924 | ||||||
54 | Greg Ray | 116 | 920 | 12.61% | ||||||||
55 | René Thomas | 114 | 744 | 15.32% | 1 | 1914 | ||||||
56 | Al Unser Jr. | 110 | 3,173 | 3.47% | 2 | 1992 | 1994 | |||||
57 | Kelly Petillo | 108 | 1,283 | 8.42% | 1 | 1935 | ||||||
58 | Wally Dallenbach Sr. | 108 | 1,448 | 7.46% | ||||||||
59 | Sam Hornish Jr. | 107 | 1,346 | 7.95% | 1 | 2006 | ||||||
60 | Babe Stapp | 106 | 960 | 11.04% | ||||||||
61 | Fred Frame | 106 | 1,281 | 8.27% | 1 | 1932 | ||||||
62 | Buddy Rice | 99 | 1,047 | 9.46% | 1 | 2004 | ||||||
63 | Ted Horn | 94 | 1,944 | 4.84% | ||||||||
64 | Dave Lewis | 93 | 384 | 24.22% | ||||||||
65 | Bill Cummings | 93 | 1,229 | 7.57% | 1 | 1934 | ||||||
66 | Floyd Roberts | 92 | 883 | 10.42% | 1 | 1938 | ||||||
67 | Kenny Bräck | 89 | 885 | 10.06% | 1 | 1999 | ||||||
68 | Eddie Cheever, Jr. | 89 | 2,122 | 4.19% | 1 | 1998 | ||||||
69 | Ray Harroun | 88 | 200 | 44.00% | 1 | 1911 | ||||||
70 | Bob Sweikert | 86 | 825 | 10.42% | 1 | 1955 | ||||||
71 | David L. Bruce-Brown | 81 | 224 | 36.16% | ||||||||
72 | Danny Ongais | 79 | 1,527 | 5.17% | ||||||||
73 | Arthur Duray | 77 | 200 | 38.50% | ||||||||
74 | Will Power | 76 | ||||||||||
75 | Ed Carpenter | 74 | ||||||||||
76 | †3 Gil de Ferran | 71 | 601 | 11.81% | 1 | 2003 | ||||||
77 | Jack McGrath | 70 | 1,094 | 6.40% | ||||||||
78 | Mark Donohue | 70 | 748 | 9.36% | 1 | 1972 | ||||||
79 | Buddy Lazier | 70 | Active driver | 1 | 1996 | |||||||
80 | Frank Brisko | 69 | 1,330 | 5.19% | ||||||||
81 | Troy Ruttman | 69 | 1,472 | 4.69% | 1 | 1952 | ||||||
82 | Leon Duray | 68 | 693 | 9.81% | ||||||||
83 | Ralph Hepburn | 68 | 1,864 | 3.65% | ||||||||
84 | George Souders | 67 | 400 | 16.75% | 1 | 1927 | ||||||
85 | Eddie Sachs | 66 | 1,069 | 6.17% | ||||||||
86 | Maurício Gugelmin | 59 | 396 | 14.90% | ||||||||
87 | Harry Hartz | 57 | 996 | 5.72% | ||||||||
88 | Roberto Guerrero | 56 | 1,735 | 3.23% | ||||||||
89 | Johnny Thomson | 55 | 1,044 | 5.27% | ||||||||
90 | Robby Gordon | 53 | 1,564 | 3.39% | ||||||||
91 | James Hinchcliffe | 53 | ||||||||||
92 | Joe Leonard | 52 | 1,072 | 4.85% | ||||||||
93 | Jeff Ward | 52 | 1,254 | 4.15% | ||||||||
94 | Bruno Junqueira | 52 | 734 | 7.08% | ||||||||
95 | Max Chilton | 50 | ||||||||||
96 | Deacon Litz | 49 | 1,560 | 3.14% | ||||||||
97 | Scott Goodyear | 49 | 1,460 | 3.35% | ||||||||
98 | Takuma Sato | 48 | 1 | 2017 | ||||||||
99 | Ray Keech | 46 | 400 | 11.5% | 1 | 1929 | ||||||
99 | Pat O'Connor | 46 | 768 | 5.98% | ||||||||
100 | Davy Jones | 46 | 784 | 5.86% | ||||||||
101 | Gil Anderson | 44 | 784 | 5.61% | ||||||||
102 | Jimmy Gleason | 43 | 613 | 7.01% | ||||||||
103 | Bob Burman | 41 | 718 | 5.71% | ||||||||
104 | Jackie Stewart | 40 | ||||||||||
105 | Louis Schneider | 39 | 863 | 4.51% | 1 | 1931 | ||||||
106 | John Paul, Jr. | 39 | ||||||||||
107 | Alex Tagliani | 39 | 1,543 | 2.52% | ||||||||
108 | Teo Fabi | 37 | 963 | 3.84% | ||||||||
109 | Alexander Rossi | 37 | 1 | 2016 | ||||||||
110 | Bob Carey | 36 | 200 | 18% | ||||||||
111 | Jim Hurtubise | 36 | ||||||||||
112 | Cliff Bergere | 35 | ||||||||||
113 | Paul Russo | 35 | ||||||||||
114 | Simon Pagenaud | 35 | ||||||||||
115 | Bob Swanson | 34 | ||||||||||
116 | Nigel Mansell | 34 | ||||||||||
117 | Bobby Marshman | 33 | ||||||||||
118 | Tony Gulotta | 33 | ||||||||||
119 | Art Cross | 32 | ||||||||||
120 | Duke Nalon | 32 | ||||||||||
121 | Ryan Briscoe | 30 | ||||||||||
122 | Phil Shafer | 29 | ||||||||||
123 | Mark Dismore | 29 | ||||||||||
124 | Danica Patrick | 29 | ||||||||||
125 | Fernando Alonso | 27 | ||||||||||
126 | Jacques Villeneuve | 26 | 1 | 1995 | ||||||||
127 | Jimmy Vasser | 26 | ||||||||||
128 | Jimmy Davies | 25 | ||||||||||
129 | Carlos Muñoz | 25 | ||||||||||
130 | Tony Bettenhausen | 24 | ||||||||||
131 | Lou Moore | 23 | ||||||||||
132 | A. J. Allmendinger | 23 | ||||||||||
133 | Raul Boesel | 21 | ||||||||||
134 | Alessandro Zampedri | 20 | ||||||||||
135 | George Amick | 18 | ||||||||||
136 | Johnny Boyd | 18 | ||||||||||
137 | Oriol Servià | 18 | ||||||||||
138 | Charlie Kimball | 18 | ||||||||||
139 | Kevin Cogan | 17 | ||||||||||
140 | Johnny Aitken | 16 | ||||||||||
141 | Jerry Grant | 16 | ||||||||||
142 | Robbie Buhl | 16 | ||||||||||
143 | Vitor Meira | 15 | ||||||||||
144 | Mike Conway | 15 | ||||||||||
145 | †3 Gaston Chevrolet | 14 | 1 | 1920 | ||||||||
146 | Ernie Triplett | 14 | ||||||||||
147 | Josef Newgarden | 14 | ||||||||||
148 | Russ Snowberger | 13 | ||||||||||
149 | Josele Garza | 13 | ||||||||||
150 | Billy Boat | 13 | ||||||||||
151 | Justin Wilson | 13 | ||||||||||
152 | Townsend Bell | 13 | ||||||||||
153 | J. R. Hildebrand | 13 | ||||||||||
154 | Swede Savage | 12 | ||||||||||
155 | Felipe Giaffone | 12 | ||||||||||
156 | Bertrand Baguette | 11 | ||||||||||
157 | Ralph Mulford | 10 | ||||||||||
158 | Alex Barron | 10 | ||||||||||
159 | Eddie Rickenbacker | 9 | ||||||||||
160 | Albert Guyot | 9 | ||||||||||
161 | Josef Christiaens | 9 | ||||||||||
162 | †4 Louis Chevrolet | 9 | ||||||||||
163 | Dutch Bauman | 9 | ||||||||||
164 | Graham Hill | 9 | 1 | 1966 | ||||||||
165 | Len Sutton | 9 | ||||||||||
166 | Jimmy Daywalt | 8 | ||||||||||
167 | Pancho Carter | 8 | ||||||||||
168 | Jim Crawford | 8 | ||||||||||
169 | Scott Pruett | 8 | ||||||||||
170 | Graham Rahal | 8 | ||||||||||
171 | Don Freeland | 7 | ||||||||||
172 | Roger McCluskey | 7 | ||||||||||
173 | Ira Hall | 6 | ||||||||||
174 | Cecil Green | 5 | ||||||||||
175 | Jimmy Jackson | 5 | ||||||||||
176 | Spencer Wishart | 5 | ||||||||||
177 | E. J. Viso | 5 | ||||||||||
178 | James Jakes | 5 | ||||||||||
179 | Fred Belcher | 4 | ||||||||||
180 | Cliff Durant | 4 | ||||||||||
181 | Mike Mosley | 4 | ||||||||||
182 | Buzz Calkins | 4 | ||||||||||
183 | Sam Schmidt | 4 | ||||||||||
184 | George Snider | 3 | ||||||||||
185 | Davey Hamilton | 3 | ||||||||||
186 | Scott Sharp | 3 | ||||||||||
187 | Bryan Herta | 3 | ||||||||||
188 | Adrian Fernández | 3 | ||||||||||
189 | Mario Moraes | 3 | ||||||||||
190 | Bryan Clauson | 3 | ||||||||||
191 | Caleb Bragg | 2 | ||||||||||
192 | Teddy Tetzlaff | 2 | ||||||||||
193 | Joe Dawson | 2 | 1 | 1912 | ||||||||
194 | Robert Evans | 2 | ||||||||||
195 | Paul Bost | 2 | ||||||||||
196 | Herb Ardinger | 2 | ||||||||||
197 | Dan Gurney | 2 | ||||||||||
198 | Roger Rager | 2 | ||||||||||
199 | Don Whittington | 2 | ||||||||||
200 | John Andretti | 2 | ||||||||||
201 | Robby McGehee | 2 | ||||||||||
202 | Tora Takagi | 2 | ||||||||||
203 | Jaques Lazier | 2 | ||||||||||
204 | Rubens Barrichello | 2 | ||||||||||
205 | Sage Karam | 2 | ||||||||||
206 | James Davison | 2 | ||||||||||
207 | Jean Chassagne | 1 | ||||||||||
208 | Art Klein | 1 | ||||||||||
209 | Roscoe Sarles | 1 | ||||||||||
210 | Howdy Wilcox II | 1 | ||||||||||
211 | Fred Agabashian | 1 | ||||||||||
212 | Jack Brabham | 1 | ||||||||||
213 | Bobby Allison | 1 | ||||||||||
214 | Bill Vukovich II | 1 | ||||||||||
215 | Tim Richmond | 1 | ||||||||||
216 | Gordon Smiley | 1 | ||||||||||
217 | Scott Brayton | 1 | ||||||||||
218 | Stephan Gregoire | 1 | ||||||||||
219 | Jeff Simmons | 1 | ||||||||||
220 | Mikhail Aleshin | 1 | ||||||||||
Note | Lora L. Corum* | 0 | 1 | 1924 | ||||||||
Floyd Davis* | 0 | 1 | 1941 |
- * Lora L. Corum and Floyd Davis are credited as being co-winners of the Indianapolis 500 in 1924 and 1941, respectively. However, as the winning entries in either race led only after their secondary drivers drove (and to the conclusion), Corum and Davis are not credited with leading any of those laps, nor did they lead throughout the remainder of their careers.
Lap Leaders, Individual Races
Most Laps Led
Fifty-six of ninety-eight Indianapolis 500-Mile Races have been won by the driver leading the most laps, 57.14%.
50%+ Race Laps Led, non-winning entries
Nineteen separate entries in equal years, driven by fifteen drivers, have failed to win despite leading over half a given race's completed laps.
Rank | Year | Driver | Laps Led |
Race Percentage |
Final Pos |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1912 | Ralph DePalma | 196 | 98.0% | 11 |
2 | 1967 | Parnelli Jones | 171 | 85.5% | 6 |
3 | 1987 | Mario Andretti | 170 | 85.0% | 9 |
4 | 1992 | Michael Andretti | 160 | 80.0% | 13 |
5 | 1931 | Billy Arnold | 155 | 77.5% | 19 |
6 | 1952 | Bill Vukovich | 150 | 75.0% | 17 |
7 | 2006 | Dan Wheldon | 148 | 74.0% | 4 |
8 | 1994 | Emerson Fittipaldi | 145 | 72.5% | 17 |
9 | 1947 | Bill Holland | 143 | 71.5% | 2 |
10 | 1972 | Gary Bettenhausen | 138 | 69.0% | 14 |
11 | 1977 | Gordon Johncock | 129 | 64.5% | 11 |
12 | 1990 | Emerson Fittipaldi | 128 | 64.0% | 3 |
13 | 1962 | Parnelli Jones | 120 | 60.0% | 7 |
14 | 1924 | Earl Cooper | 119 | 59.5% | 2 |
15 | 1927 | Frank Lockhart | 110 | 55.0% | 10 |
16 | 1921 | Ralph DePalma | 108 | 54.0% | 12 |
17 | 1941 | Wilbur Shaw | 107 | 53.5% | 18 |
1985 | Mario Andretti | 2 | |||
19 | 1975 | Wally Dallenbach | 96 | 55.2% | 9 |
Notes
Lap Leader records
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Led opening lap and final lap: 20 entries among 18 drivers
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Most laps led by rookie Nine drivers have led one quarter (50 laps / 125 miles) or further race distance in their first year of competition. | ||||||
Laps | Percent Race Led |
Year | Driver | Start Pos |
Final Pos | |
167 | 83.5% | 2000 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 2 | 1 | |
143 | 71.5% | 1947 | Bill Holland | 8 | 2 | |
138 | 69.0% | 1913 | Jules Goux | 7 | 1 | |
102 | 51.0% | 1914 | René Thomas | 15 | 1 | |
95 | 59.4% | 1926 | Frank Lockhart | 20 | 1 | |
85 | 42.5% | 2002 | Tomas Scheckter | 10 | 26 | |
77 | 38.5% | 1914 | Arthur Duray | 10 | 2 | |
52 | 26.0% | 2001 | Hélio Castroneves | 11 | 1 | |
51 | 25.5% | 1927 | George Souders | 22 | 1 |
Latest lead change Races with final lead change taking place at or within five laps of finish | |||
Lap | Year | Winner | Passed |
200 | 2006 | Sam Hornish, Jr. | Marco Andretti |
2011 | Dan Wheldon | J. R. Hildebrand | |
199 | 1912 | Joe Dawson | * Ralph DePalma |
1989 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Al Unser, Jr. | |
1999 | Kenny Bräck | Robby Gordon | |
2012 | Dario Franchitti | Scott Dixon | |
198 | 1961 | A.J. Foyt | Eddie Sachs |
1986 | Bobby Rahal | Kevin Cogan | |
2013 | Tony Kanaan | Ryan Hunter-Reay | |
197 | 1960 | Jim Rathmann | Rodger Ward |
1967 | A.J. Foyt | Parnelli Jones | |
2014 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | Helio Castroneves | |
2015 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Will Power | |
2016 | Alexander Rossi | Carlos Munoz | |
196 | 1995 | Jacques Villeneuve** | Scott Goodyear** |
* DePalma became a U.S. citizen in 1920. | |||
** Scoring for lead position changed, without on-track overtake occurring, due to official disqualification of Goodyear after lap 195. |
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Autolite Pacemakers Club
In 1964, Autolite created the "Pacemakers Club," which recognized drivers who had led at least one lap during the Indianapolis 500. It quickly rose in stature and popularity, and became a highly sought-after honor associated with the Indianapolis 500. After changes in sponsorship, the organization was renamed the Leaders Circle Club.
The qualifications were simple, and driver who had led at least one lap during race, whether living or already deceased, were recognized as members. At its inception, 102 drivers were listed as members. A total of 56 were deceased at the time, and 46 were living.
Honorees receive a jacket, and are honored at a banquet in their honor. The number of new members inducted at the banquet varies annually, as it is solely based on the previous year's first-time lap leaders. Some years can have as few as one or zero new members inducted, while other years have had as many as 4-5. The "club" is still active as of 2012.
References
- IMS Official Statistics: List of Lap Leaders
- Compilations of Indianapolis Star and Indianapolis News breakdowns of individual 500-mile (800 km) races
- Indianapolis 500 Chronicle, Rick Popely, June 1998