Front rows of the 1970s: 1976

 

Majeske collection

Johnny Rutherford secured his second pole in qualifying for the 1976 Indianapolis 500.
Gordon Johncock started second for the second year in a row, while Tom Sneva
was on the outside. 

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.

1976 front row: Johnny Rutherford (pole), Gordon Johncock, Tom Sneva

How it started: 2 Indianapolis 500 victories (Rutherford 1974, Johncock 1973)

How it ended: 6 Indianapolis 500 victories (Rutherford 1974, 1976, 1980; Johncock 1973, 1982; Sneva 1983)

About the 1976 race: Johnny Rutherford, driving the Hy-Gain McLaren/Offy, notched his second pole in three years, but wasn’t the fastest qualifier. That distinction belonged to Mario Andretti, who joined Tom Sneva on the Penske team after four not-great seasons with Parnelli Jones’ operation. As in 1975, Andretti missed the first weekend of time trials due to Formula 1 commitments.

Johncock again powered a new Sinmast Wildcat/DGS to the second starting spot while Sneva snagged the first of four consecutive front-row starts in the Bicentennial-themed Norton Spirit McLaren/Offy.

What could have again been a fantastic duel between Rutherford and A.J. Foyt was literally washed away as rain stopped the race for the second year in a row – this time after only 102 laps. Rutherford walked to Victory Lane to pick up his second Indianapolis 500 win.

 

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