30 Days in May: No. 25, Danny Ongais, 1978 Interscope Racing Parnelli/Cosworth

 

Majeske collection

Danny Ongais started second in the 1978 Indianapolis 500, led 71
laps and finished 18th after a blown engine on Lap 145

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Some cars and drivers just sum up an era at Indianapolis and are indelibly linked. While not a legend of the Brickyard like, say, A.J. Foyt or Rick Mears, if you went to the track in the late 1970s to mid-1980s, you remember Danny Ongais and the black Interscope No. 25.

Danny On the Gas was fast, fearless and spectacular (in both good and bad ways). When Tom Carnegie or John Totten piped up on the PA system that Ongais was on the track, you paused from munching your Sno-Cone and gave the 2 ½-mile oval your undivided attention.

In 1978, the Flying Hawaiian started second and led 71 laps before the engine blew. Ongais wound up 18^th with 145 laps to his credit.  

 

#ThisIsMay #Indy500 @IMS @IMSMuseum @IndyCar

30 Days in May Bonus: No. 48, Mike Mosley, 1981 Pepsi Challenger Eagle/Chevrolet

 

Majeske collection

Mike Mosley qualified in the middle of the first row for the 1981
Indianapolis 500.

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Sharp, fast and loud, 1981 was the only appearance of the Pepsi Challenger at Indianapolis. Always an innovator, Dan Gurney was trying to bring stock-block engines to Indy racing as a lower-cost alternative to the Cosworth engines, which were used by (almost) everyone else. In terms of speed, this car proved his point as Mike Mosley put it in the middle of the front row.

The sound of this screaming Eagle is almost impossible to describe. It had a distinctive roar – in some ways, perhaps, it was the Novi of its generation. In other words, if you heard it, you never forgot it. The distinctive shape and color of the Eagle made it look like a dart hurtling down the straightaway.

Consistent with the lousy fortune Mosley endured at Indianapolis, he went out after 16 laps with a radiator issue, placing 33^rd. At Milwaukee a couple of weeks later, Mosley won, going from last to first in an incredible driving display. It was the last of his five wins in Indy cars and the last for Gurney in IndyCar competition as well.

#ThisIsMay #Indy500 @IMS @IMSMuseum @IndyCar

30 Days in May: No. 24, Robbie Buhl, 2001 Purex G Force/Infiniti

 

Penske Entertainment/Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Robbie Buhl's Purex-sponsored car was one of the most colorful in
the 2001 Indianapolis 500.

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Robbie Buhl was one of the drivers who benefited from the infamous split in open-wheel racing. The former Indy Lights champion (1992) had trouble finding a good ride in CART, but the arrival of the Indy Racing League in 1996 provided an opportunity to finally show his talent.

He had success with both John Menard and Dreyer & Reinbold, winning a race for each. Buhl’s Purex machine was one of the more striking liveries of that era. In 2001, he started ninth and finished 15^th in the 500.

Buhl competed in the 500 from 1996-2003 with a best finish of sixth in 1999 driving for A.J. Foyt. As a side note, the Buhl family is quite prominent in the history of Detroit.

 

#ThisIsMay #Indy500 @IMS @IMSMuseum @IndyCar @Robbie_Buhl

Front rows of the 1970s: 1979

 

Penske Entertainment/Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Pole-sitter Rick Mears in the Gould Charge PC6/Cosworth leads the field to the
green flag for the 1979 Indianapolis 500. Next to Mears is Tom Sneva in the
Sugaripe Prune McLaren/Cosworth. On the outside is Al Unser in the
Pennzoil Chaparral/Cosworth.

In addition to the usual Month of May countdown, we’re also looking back at the front rows of the 1970s, which included some of the most accomplished drivers in the history of the Indianapolis 500.

Faithful readers of this space know that this decade is part of my personal golden age at the Speedway. I’m grateful I got to witness much of it first-hand as a boy.

Here’s a statistical look at the front-row drivers of the 1970s:

 

Driver	Indianapolis 500 poles (career)	Indianapolis 500 wins (career)
Al Unser	1	4
Johnny Rutherford	3	3
A.J. Foyt	4	4
Peter Revson	1	0
Mark Donohue	0	1
Bobby Unser	2	3
Wally Dallenbach	0	0
Mike Hiss	0	0
Gordon Johncock	0	2
Tom Sneva	3	1
Danny Ongais	0	0
Rick Mears	6	4
Totals	20	22

 

For each year, we’ll have the front row, how many Indianapolis 500 wins were represented on the front row at the start of the race, the number of Indianapolis 500 wins in the drivers’ respective careers, and a brief recap of practice, qualifying and the race.

1979 Indianapolis 500 front row: Rick Mears (pole), Tom Sneva (middle), Al Unser

How it started: 3 Indianapolis 500 victories (All by Al Unser)

How it ended: 9 Indianapolis 500 victories (Rick Mears 1979, 1984, 1988, 1991; Tom Sneva 1983; Al Unser 1970, 1971, 1978, 1987)

About the 1979 race: The year 1979 was one of transition and controversy in major open-wheel racing. A new group, Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), sprang up in the off-season. Featuring almost all the big-name drivers and teams, it held events at familiar tracks (like Phoenix and Trenton) that once were the purview of the United States Auto Club (USAC), the sanctioning body of the Indianapolis 500.

The Month of May was basically one giant headache, with lawsuits, shenanigans during time trials and an added session of qualifying – the day before the race, no less – all part of the “fun.” You can read my retrospective here.

From a competition perspective, the big news was Al Unser’s beautiful and futuristic Pennzoil Chaparral/Cosworth, one of the first “ground-effects” cars in Indy racing. No other car looked remotely like it. Not surprisingly, Unser set fast time in qualifying before Tom Sneva, going for a record third-straight pole, nudged him over one spot in his Sugaripe Prune McLaren/Cosworth.

Then, dramatically, Rick Mears, with the final pole run of the day, knocked Sneva off his perch for the first of what would be a record six Indianapolis poles, all with Penske.

Al Unser dominated the first half of the race before retiring with a bad transmission seal after 104 laps. That left it to brother Bobby Unser, who replaced Sneva at Penske. Bobby Unser looked like a sure three-time winner in his Norton Spirit Penske PC7/Cosworth before his top gear failed, something that almost never happens.

Unser tried his best to hold on, but faded. Mears, driving the older PC6/Cosworth, rolled home in the Gould Charge for the first of his record-tying four Indianapolis 500 victories.

Front-row starters Mears, Sneva and Al Unser all would notch at least one Indianapolis 500 victory in the 1980s. The 1970s were truly a remarkable decade featuring some of the greatest drivers of all time. During this competitive era, all but one of the 12 front-row starters at Indianapolis won an IndyCar race during their careers. The exception was Mike Hiss, who started third in 1974.

 

 

#Indy500 #ThisIsMay @Team_Penske @IMS @IndyCar @IMSMuseum

30 Days in May: No. 23, Mel Kenyon, 1972 Gilmore Racing Coyote/Ford

 

Penske Entertainment/Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Mel Kenyon started 12th and finished 18th in the 1972 Indianapolis 500.

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Considered one of the true gentlemen in the sport, Mel Kenyon had several top finishes at Indianapolis and is rated the best USAC Midget driver in history. His longevity is particularly amazing. Some 30 years after his last start in the 500, Kenyon was still racing at age 70! Even more incredible, Kenyon was severely burned in a crash in 1965 and raced with a special glove with a device that fit in the steering wheel – indescribable determination and will.

For 1972, Kenyon drove one of the Gilmore Racing entries, with Wally Dallenbach in the other Gilmore car. While Kenyon qualified safely in 12^th, Dallenbach was bumped.

Dallenbach did, however, get to start the race as he replaced Art Pollard, who broke a leg in practice after qualifying the No. 40 STP Oil Treatment Lola/Foyt. Race Day was rather difficult for Dallenbach as his car caught fire several times during pit stops. He pressed on, finishing 15th, 18 laps down to winner Mark Donohue.

For his determination, Dallenbach won the “Extra Mile” award from the St. Pius X Council of Knights of Columbus. (I haven’t watched the Victory Banquet in many years; does this award still exist?)

Kenyon’s race was far less eventful. He ended up 18^th, going out after 126 laps with fuel injection woes. Later that season, Kenyon almost won at Michigan. He ran out of fuel while leading with just two laps to go.

 

#ThisIsMay #Indy500 @IMS @IMSMuseum @IndyCar

30 Days in May Bonus: No. 81, Sheldon Kinser, 1981 Sergio Valente Longhorn/Cosworth

 

Penske Entertainment/Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Sheldon Kinser started 23rd and finished sixth in the 1981 Indianapolis 500.

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Sheldon Kinser was a throwback to how drivers once earned an opportunity to race in the Indianapolis 500. He came up through the ranks, honing his skills on the short tracks across Indiana and the Midwest. A three-time USAC Sprint Car Series Champion (1977, 1981, 1982), the Bloomington, Indiana, native made his 500 debut in 1975, driving the Spirit of Indiana and finishing 12^th.

He was in the 500 lineup from 1975-79 before failing to qualify in 1980. Kinser, a distant cousin of Steve Kinser, returned in 1981 with Bobby Hillin’s Longhorn Racing team and Sergio Valente backing. Sergio Valente was definitely a “fancy pants” sponsor as the company produced designer jeans.

The field for the 1981 Indianapolis 500 had several colorful and interesting cars, but Kinser’s ride still managed to stand out. He finished an excellent sixth in what proved to be his final Indianapolis 500.

 

#ThisIsMay #Indy500 @IMS @IMSMuseum @IndyCar

30 Days in May: No. 22, Tony Stewart, 1999 The Home Depot Dallara/Oldsmobile

 

Penske Entertainment/Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Like Kyle Larson in 2024, Tony Stewart had a hectic schedule in 1999
as he attempted "The Double" at Indianapolis and Charlotte. 

Welcome to our monthlong countdown celebrating notable drivers and cars from the Indianapolis 500!

Tony Stewart was the first homegrown star of the Indy Racing League. His pedigree was perfect: An Indiana native who won USAC national titles in Midgets, Sprints and Silver Crown cars (all in the same season!) and was immediately adept at driving Indy cars, too, winning races and a championship in those as well.

After running in the IRL from 1996 to 1998, Stewart became a full-time NASCAR driver, appearing in the 500 just two more times (1999 and 2001). Stewart was fast right off the bat in stock cars, too, and finished his NASCAR career with three Cup titles and two wins in the Brickyard 400.

In the 1999 Indianapolis 500, Stewart finished ninth, four laps down to winner Kenny Brack. But

Stewart’s workday was just beginning because he flew from Indianapolis to Charlotte, North Carolina, to compete in the 600-mile NASCAR race that night and finished an impressive fourth.

 

#ThisIsMay #Indy500 @IMS @IMSMuseum @IndyCar @TonyStewart