30 Days in May: No. 18, Mike Mosley, 1983 Kraco March/Cosworth

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

Photo credit: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Mike Mosley appeared to be a good bet to win the pole for the 1983 Indianapolis 500
until rookie Teo Fabi set "A New Track Record" in qualifying.

30 Days in May: No. 18, Mike Mosley, 1983 Kraco March/Cosworth. Along with Bobby Unser and Johnny Rutherford, Mike Mosely was one of my favorite drivers as a young boy. Unlike Unser and Rutherford, Mosley never found the right combination to vault him to Indy glory. It wasn’t due to lack of determination (twice he was badly injured at Indianapolis from crashes caused by mechanical failure) or certainly driving talent. Twice Mosley started last in IndyCar races and won, both at Phoenix and Milwaukee, considered “driver’s tracks.”

In 1983, Mosley was consistently among the fastest in practice and appeared to have the pole locked up until an unknown rookie named Teo Fabi stunningly broke the track record. In what was to be his last 500, Mosley wound up a fitting 13^th after a spin and contact in Turn 1.

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