30 Days in May: No. 5, Lloyd Ruby, 1972 Wynn’s Atlanta/Foyt

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

Indianapolis Motor Speedway photo

Lloyd Ruby started 11th and finished sixth in the 1972 Indianapolis 500.

30 Days in May: No. 5, Lloyd Ruby, 1972 Wynn’s Atlanta/Foyt. The Atlanta car was so named because it was built there in a facility adjoining Gene White Racing. The men behind the effort included two former Team McLaren employees, and the McLaren influence is apparent. Early on, they were dubbed “Scarlett O’Hara McLarens.”

A total of three Atlantas were built for 1972 – two going to the Gene White team for Lloyd Ruby and Cale Yarborough, with the other intended for A.J. Foyt.

Ruby practiced in both the Atlanta and a Lola, which eventually was qualified by Sam Sessions.

The 1972 race ended up being one of the better results for “Hard-Luck Lloyd” as he finished sixth, two spots behind Sessions. Yarborough was 10^th to cap a very successful day for the Gene White team.

The Atlantas soldiered on for a few more seasons. Jim McElreath practiced in the Foyt Atlanta in 1973, and it was qualified by George Snider for the 1974 Indianapolis 500. This Atlanta was distinguished by its flat, nose that was similar to the 1972 Lola.

According to oldracingcars.com, this particular Atlanta eventually morphed into the Boyd-Robeson entry that several drivers tried unsuccessfully to qualify for the 1977 500.

Eldon Rasmussen bought at least one Atlanta for the 1973 season and reworked it into his Ras-Car, which he continuously updated and campaigned for several years.

Larry McCoy also drove a Ras-Car/Atlanta at the Speedway. He and Rasmussen made their Indy debuts in the 1975 500.

The Atlanta was one of 12 marques in the 1972 Indianapolis 500, which seems rather mind-boggling today. Perhaps even more unbelievable is that eight of those chassis were brand-new.

So congratulations to Mike Underwood, Eamon Fullalove and Graeme Bartils for bringing us the Atlanta during a time when innovation ruled the Speedway.

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30 Days in May: No. 4, Johnny Rutherford, 1980 Pennzoil Chaparral/Cosworth

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

Majeske Collection

Due to the many caution periods (13 for 65 laps), Johnny Rutherford's winning speed
for the 1980 Indianapolis 500 was only 142.862 mph.

30 Days in May: No. 4, Johnny Rutherford, 1980 Pennzoil Chaparral/Cosworth. Each year, someone is tabbed as the favorite for that year’s Indianapolis 500. In 1980, Johnny Rutherford was the overwhelming choice to win. A two-time 500 winner for McLaren, Rutherford found himself out of a job at the end of the 1979 season when the team discontinued its IndyCar operation to concentrate on Formula 1.

Meanwhile, Jim Hall’s outfit was looking for a driver after Al Unser departed. Unser looked to have the 1979 Indianapolis 500 in the bag before a faulty transmission seal sidelined him after 104 laps.

With the bugs presumably worked out of the futuristic Chaparral, which introduced the ground-effects concept to IndyCar racing, Rutherford and Hall looked to be unbeatable at Indianapolis.

And they were. Rutherford was fastest in practice nearly every day, won the pole and led the most laps on his way to an easy victory to cap a dominating Month of May.

 

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Front Rows of the 1970s: 1971

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

Photo credit: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

1971 Indianapolis 500 front row: Peter Revson (pole), Mark Donohue, Bobby Unser.

1971: Peter Revson (pole), Mark Donohue, Bobby Unser

How it started: 1 Indianapolis 500 victory. Bobby Unser’s win in 1968 accounted for the only 500 win before Pat Vidan’s green flag that year.

How it ended: 4 Indianapolis 500 victories. Bobby Unser became the first to win the Indianapolis 500 in three different decades (and with three different teams) when he splashed to victory in Dan Gurney’s Jorgensen Eagle in the rain-shortened 1975 event and won in Roger Penske’s Norton Spirit in 1981 in what turned out to be his final 500 start. That meant Unser was last in his first 500 and first in his last 500. (His win in 1968 came with Leader Card.) Donohue, expected to dominate the 1971 race, got his redemption the following year, earning Penske’s first of 18 (and counting) Indianapolis 500 victories.

About the 1971 race: Before getting to the race, let’s recap practice and qualifying. Donohue’s performance in practice was literally off the charts as he was consistently lapping above 180 mph – a speed that wasn’t on at least some of the lap time-and-speed conversions. In qualifying, Donohue did shatter the one- and four-lap qualifications marks (178.607 mph and 177.087 mph, respectively) in his Sunoco McLaren, but fell short of the 180 everyone expected him to hit.

Revson, also in a McLaren (part of the McLaren works team with Denis Hulme) topped Donohue’s marks with 179.354 mph and 178.696 mph. Some sources indicate that Donohue was not happy with how his car was set up and either willingly or off-handedly provided McLaren’s Teddy Mayer some insight on what went wrong. Other sources say that Penske, always one for taking the long view, willingly offered set-up information to Team McLaren to remain in their good graces.

Of course, a great set-up works only if you have a talented driver and certainly Revson must be given credit for doing an outstanding job to edge Donohue for the pole. This gave him a bit of retribution as Revson felt that his performance in 1969 merited Rookie of the Year honors instead of Donohue.

On Race Day, Donohue shot away from the field and dominated the early going before dropping out after 66 laps with a shattered gearbox. Revson stayed in the fight most of the race while Bobby Unser was eliminated when he crashed trying to avoid Mike Mosley, who hit the wall coming out of Turn 4.

That left it to Al Unser to take home the Borg-Warner Trophy. In typical Al Unser fashion, he stayed near the front all day, drove a heady, steady race and beat Revson to the checkered flag by 22.48 seconds.

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30 Days in May: No. 3, Bobby Unser, 1981 Norton Spirit Penske/Cosworth

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

 

Photo credit: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Bobby Unser started on the pole and won the 1981 Indianapolis 500.

30 Days in May: No. 3, Bobby Unser, 1981 Norton Spirit Penske/Cosworth. In 1981, Bobby Unser started from the pole and was victorious in what would be his final Indianapolis 500, becoming the first driver to win in three different decades. Another bit of trivia: Bobby Unser finished last in his first Indianapolis 500 and finished first in his last Indianapolis 500.

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Front rows of the 1970s: 1970

 

In addition to the usual Month of May countdown, we’re also recounting 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.

 

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1970 front row: Al Unser (pole), Johnny Rutherford, A.J. Foyt.

1970 front row: Al Unser (pole), Johnny Rutherford, A.J. Foyt

How it started: 3 Indianapolis 500 victories. At this point, only Foyt had won the race, and based on numerology alone, you could make a case he was the favorite to win in 1970 because he had previously been victorious in 1961, 1964 and 1967 – every three years.

How it ended: 11 Indianapolis 500 victories. When it comes to total Indianapolis 500 career wins, no front row is more successful than the one from 1970. Foyt added a fourth victory in 1977. Unser was just starting his climb to 500 glory in 1970 with his first win, then added another in 1971 and 1978 before joining Foyt in the exclusive four-time winners’ club in 1987. Rutherford had to wait a little longer. He hooked up with McLaren for 1973, taking the pole, and won in 1974 and 1976 before adding his third in Jim Hall’s Chaparral in 1980 – a ride that Unser left after the 1979 season.

About the 1970 race: Unser dominated from the pole, leading 190 laps in one of the most beautiful and striking creations ever at the Speedway in his Johnny Lightning P.J. Colt/Ford. Rutherford, in the Patrick Petroleum Eagle/Offy (aka “Geraldine”) lost out on the pole by one-hundredth of a second. He got the jump on Unser at the start, but Unser quickly dispatched him. Foyt, in his Sheraton-Thompson Coyote/Ford, was 10^th, five laps down.

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30 Days in May: No. 2, Billy Vukovich, 1973 Sugaripe Prune Eagle-Offy

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

Majeske Collection

Billy Vukovich started 16th and finished second in the
1973 Indianapolis 500.

In 1973, Billy Vukovich was second behind Gordon Johncock, the highest finish for the son of a former winner to that point. Sugaripe Prune entries were mainstays at the Speedway throughout the 1970s, with Mike Mosley, Wally Dallenbach and Tom Sneva all driving for the team after Vukovich departed following the 1974 season. 

Majeske Collection

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30 Days In May: No. 1 Joe Leonard, 1973 Samsonite Parnelli/Offy

 

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

Majeske photo collection

Joe Leonard finished 18th in the 1973 Indianapolis 500.

For 1973, Joe Leonard had a brand-new Parnelli chassis designed by Maurice Philippe as well as the same sponsor (Samsonite) and number (1, for winning the 1972 national championship) he had the previous year. For whatever reason, unlike in 1972, Leonard had a tough time getting up to a comfortable speed in qualifying. He waved off twice, then accepted a somewhat precarious 189.954 mph average on his third strike on the second day of time trials.

A.J. Foyt found himself in a similar predicament as his four-lap average of 188.927 was the 29^th fastest of the 30 cars that qualified after the first weekend. (Leonard was 28^th.)

Fortunately, each had a backup car and started working up to speed during the next week of practice, Foyt in the No. 84 Gilmore Racing Coyote (which was handed over to George Snider at literally the last minute) and Leonard in the No. 41 Samsonite Parnelli.

As it turned out, enough cars qualified a bit slower to give Leonard and Foyt a little breathing room.

On Race Day, Leonard was able to dodge the melee created by Salt Walther’s horrendous crash on the first lap. When the race finally resumed two days later after persistent rain, Leonard overcame a spin but was sidelined by a bad hub after 91 laps and finished 18^th.

Sadly, the 1973 500 was Leonard’s last race at Indianapolis. He suffered devastating foot and ankle injuries during the 1974 California 500 at Ontario Motor Speedway and never raced again. His injury also signaled the end of the Vel’s Parnelli Jones “Super Team” with Al Unser and Mario Andretti. Expected to dominate USAC racing starting in 1972, Leonard’s national championship that year was one of the few major highlights.

Jan Opperman replaced Leonard at Indianapolis and Pocono in 1974, but essentially the operation became a two-driver team that started to dwindle even further. Unser and Andretti were together for 1975’s three 500-mile races, but then it was down to just Unser for 1976 with sponsorship from American Racing Wheels. For 1976, Andretti joined Roger Penske’s team, running some USAC races while he pursued a World Championship in Formula One.

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