1955 Indianapolis 500

The 39th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday, May 30, 1955. The event was race 1 of 11 of the 1955 AAA National Championship Trail and was race 3 of 7 in the 1955 World Championship of Drivers.

39th Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning body	AAA
Date	May 30, 1955
Winner	Bob Sweikert
Winning Entrant	John Zink
Average speed	128.209 mph (206.332 km/h)
Pole position	Jerry Hoyt
Pole speed	140.045 mph (225.381 km/h)
Most laps led	Bob Sweikert (86)
Pre-race
Pace car	Chevrolet Bel Air
Pace car driver	Thomas H. Keating
Starter	Bill Vanderwater^[1]
Honorary referee	Robert A. Stranahan, Jr.^[1]
Estimated attendance	150,000^[2]
Chronology
Previous Next 1954 1956

The race is notable to many as the race in which Bill Vukovich was killed in a crash while seemingly on his way to an unprecedented third consecutive Indy 500 win.

Time trials

Time trials was scheduled for four days.

Saturday May 14 – Pole Day time trials

Gusty winds, as well as the threat of rain, was observed on pole day, therefore nearly all of the competitors stayed off the track. Around the garage area, the drivers and teams agreed amongst themselves to sit out time trials for the afternoon, and instead qualify together in better conditions on Sunday. However, in the final 20 minutes, Jerry Hoyt, who had not been informed about the agreement, suddenly put his car in line, and pulled away for an unexpected qualifying attempt. His speed of 140.045 mph was not spectacular, but as the fastest (and only) car thus far of the day, he sat on the pole position. Without hesitation, Tony Bettenhausen, Sr. took to the track moments later. After two fast laps, he was slowed by a gust of wind, and qualified second. Sam Hanks and Pat O'Connor got their cars ready, but neither were able to complete attempts. The day closed with only two cars in the field, and Hoyt the surprising pole winner – to the dismay of several in the garage area.

Sunday May 15 – Second day time trials

Qualifying resumed in better conditions, and most of the drivers who stayed off the track Saturday took to the track on Sunday. Jack McGrath (142.580 mph) was the fastest qualifier, and lined up third. Hoyt's pole-winning speed from the day before ended up being only the 8th-fastest overall in the field – a record slowest ranked pole speed.

Near the end of the day, Manny Ayulo crashed due to a possible steering fault and died the following day.

Saturday May 21 – Third day time trials

Paul Russo, attempting to qualify the #18 Novi for Troy Ruttman, suffers a broken gearbox. This was the last appearance of a front-drive car at Indy.

Sunday May 22 – Fourth day time trials

Starting grid

 R  = Indianapolis 500 rookie;  W  = Former Indianapolis 500 winner

Row	Inside		Middle		Outside
1	23	Jerry Hoyt	10	Tony Bettenhausen	3	Jack McGrath
2	14	Fred Agabashian	4	Bill Vukovich  W	8	Sam Hanks
3	77	Walt Faulkner	19	Andy Linden	22	Cal Niday
4	15	Jimmy Davies	1	Jimmy Bryan	89	Pat Flaherty
5	37	Eddie Russo  R	6	Bob Sweikert	5	Jimmy Reece
6	71	Al Herman  R	48	Jimmy Daywalt	98	Duane Carter
7	29	Pat O'Connor	33	Jim Rathmann	12	Don Freeland
8	42	Al Keller  R	49	Ray Crawford  R	99	Art Cross
9	41	Chuck Weyant  R	39	Johnny Boyd  R	16	Johnnie Parsons  W
10	31	Keith Andrews  R	68	Ed Elisian	27	Rodger Ward
11	81	Shorty Templeman  R	83	Eddie Johnson	44	Johnny Thomson

Alternates

• First alternate: Len Duncan (#24, #73)^[3]

Failed to qualify

• Manny Ayulo (#88) - Fatal accident
• Tony Bonadies  R  (#36)
• Bob Christie  R  (#7)
• Elmer George  R  (#74)
• Gene Hartley (#28)
• Bill Homeier (#72, #77)
• Johnny Kay  R  (#76)
• Danny Kladis (#93)
• Russ Klar  R  (#61)
• Ernie McCoy (#69)
• Earl Motter  R (#81)
• Duke Nalon (#31)
• Roy Newman  R  (#93)
• Jiggs Peters  R  (#32)
• Paul Russo (#10, #21)
• Troy Ruttman (#18)
• George Tichenor  R  (#78)
• Johnnie Tolan  R  - Withdrew, ill
• Leroy Warriner  R  (#64)
• Spider Webb (#9)^[4]

Race recap

Start

Jack McGrath, starting from the outside despite the fastest qualifying time, grabbed the initial lead, but was quickly challenged by Bill Vukovich, who was looking for his third consecutive win. Vukovich took the lead on lap four, surrendering it back to McGrath on lap 15 but regaining it on lap 16. Fred Agabashian, who had finished in the top ten the previous two years spun on lap 39 and could not continue. McGrath chased Vukovich until lap 54, when he pulled over with mechanical problems. Despite getting out of the car and attempting to repair it himself, he was forced to drop out with a magneto issue.

Lap 56, Vukovich crash

With Vukovich having a considerable lead on lap 56, Rodger Ward, several laps down, flipped over twice, either due to a problem with the wind, oil, or breaking an axle. Although he landed on his wheels, the car was facing the wrong way.^[5] Al Keller, attempting to avoid Ward, turned to the inside, going close to or on to the grass, before turning hard to the right and coming quickly back up the track and contacting Johnny Boyd. Boyd's car careened into Vukovich, who appeared to be attempting to also go to the left of Ward. Vukovich made a last-second attempt to avoid Boyd to the right, but Boyd's car sent Vukovich hard into the outside barrier. Vukovich's front end also lifted into the air, causing the front to clear the barrier and the car to contact it with the rear, sending the car into a cartwheel, during which it hit several vehicles parked outside the track, and possibly a pole. The car burst into flames after it came to rest, and Vukovich died from injuries from the crash. Boyd's car also flipped but he and the other drivers escaped major injury.^[6] Driver Ed Elisian stopped his car on the infield and ran across the track in an attempt to help Vukovich.

Remainder of race

After 27 minutes of running under caution, Jimmy Bryan took over the lead of the race, but was forced to retire after ninety laps with a fuel pump issue, when the lead was taken over by Bob Sweikert. The only other driver to retire due to contact for the remainder of the race was Cal Niday on lap 170.^[7] Art Cross led the race from laps 133 to 156, but after surrendering the lead to Don Freeland was forced to retire due to mechanical trouble on lap 168. Freeland similarly was passed by Sweikert on lap 160, and retired on lap 178. Sweikert led the remainder of the race. Sweikert stated that the winds made racing difficult, and perhaps led to a decision of racing cautiously and taking advantage of other's difficulty.^[8]

Aftermath

The two deaths in the 500 were part of a particularly deadly year for motorsports, which also included four other Indy drivers dying in other races, Alberto Ascari being killed while testing a sports car at Monza, and a horrific accident at the 24 Hours of Le Mans which saw nearly 100 fatalities including Pierre Levegh who was driving at the time of the accident. Following the year the American Automobile Association ceased sanctioning auto races (including the Indy 500) and the United States Auto Club (USAC) was formed to handle sanctioning duties.^[9] It would take until 1959 for fire suits to be made mandatory for all drivers and roll bars for all cars after Jerry Unser's fatal accident at the 1959 Indianapolis 500.^[10]

Box score

Pos	Grid	No	Driver	Constructor	Qual	Rank	Laps	Time/Retired	Points^1
1	14	6	Bob Sweikert	KK500D-Offenhauser	139.99	11	200	3:53:59.53	8
2	2	10	Tony Bettenhausen (Paul Russo Laps 57-133)	KK500C-Offenhauser	139.98	13	200	+2:43.56	3 3
3	10	15	Jimmy Davies	KK500B-Offenhauser	140.27	5	200	+3:32.36	4
4	33	44	Johnny Thomson	Kuzma-Offenhauser	134.11	33	200	+3:38.91	3
5	7	77	Walt Faulkner (Bill Homeier Laps 138-161)	KK500C-Offenhauser	139.76	16	200	+5:17.17	1 1
6	8	19	Andy Linden	KK4000-Offenhauser	139.09	22	200	+5:57.94
7	16	71	Al Herman  R	Silnes-Offenhauser	139.81	15	200	+6:24.24
8	19	29	Pat O'Connor	KK500D-Offenhauser	139.19	21	200	+6:41.60
9	17	48	Jimmy Daywalt	Kurtis-Offenhauser	139.41	18	200	+7:09.81
10	12	89	Pat Flaherty	KK50B-Offenhauser	140.14	7	200	+7:46.54
11	18	98	Duane Carter	Kuzma-Offenhauser	139.33	19	197	-3 Laps
12	25	41	Chuck Weyant  R	KK3000-Offenhauser	138.06	25	196	-4 Laps
13	32	83	Eddie Johnson	Trevis-Offenhauser	134.44	32	196	-4 Laps
14	20	33	Jim Rathmann	Epperly-Offenhauser	138.70	24	191	-9 Laps
15	21	12	Don Freeland	Phillips-Offenhauser	139.86	14	178	Transmission
16	9	22	Cal Niday	KK500B-Offenhauser	140.30	4	170	Accident
17	24	99	Art Cross	KK500D-Offenhauser	138.75	23	168	Engine
18	31	81	Shorty Templeman  R	Trevis-Offenhauser	135.01	31	142	Transmission
19	6	8	Sam Hanks	KK500C-Offenhauser	140.00	10	134	Transmission
20	28	31	Keith Andrews  R	Schroeder-Offenhauser	136.04	28	120	Fuel Pump
21	27	16	Johnnie Parsons  W	KK500D-Offenhauser	136.80	27	119	Magneto
22	13	37	Eddie Russo  R	Allen-Offenhauser	140.11	8	112	Ignition
23	23	49	Ray Crawford  R	KK500B-Offenhauser	139.20	20	111	Engine
24	11	1	Jimmy Bryan	Kuzma-Offenhauser	140.16	6	90	Fuel Pump
25	5	4	Bill Vukovich  W ✝	KK500C-Offenhauser	141.07	3	56	Fatal Accident	1^2
26	3	3	Jack McGrath	KK500C-Offenhauser	142.58	1	54	Magneto
27	22	42	Al Keller  R	KK2000-Offenhauser	139.55	17	54	Accident
28	30	27	Rodger Ward	Kuzma-Offenhauser	135.04	30	53	Accident
29	26	39	Johnny Boyd  R	KK500C-Offenhauser	136.98	26	53	Accident
30	29	68	Ed Elisian	KK4000-Offenhauser	135.33	29	53	Retirement
31	1	23	Jerry Hoyt	Stevens-Offenhauser	140.04	9	40	Oil Leak
32	4	14	Fred Agabashian	KK500D-Offenhauser	141.93	2	39	Spun Off
33	15	5	Jimmy Reece	Pankratz-Offenhauser	139.99	12	10	Engine

Note: Relief drivers in parentheses^[11]

 W  Former Indianapolis 500 winner

 R  Indianapolis 500 Rookie

All entrants utilized Firestone tires.

^1 – Points towards the 1955 World Drivers' Championship

^2 – 1 point for fastest lead lap

Race statistics

Lap Leaders Laps Leader 1–3 Jack McGrath 4–14 Bill Vukovich 15 Jack McGrath 16–24 Bill Vukovich 25–26 Jack McGrath 27–56 Bill Vukovich 57 Jimmy Bryan 58 Bob Sweikert 59–88 Jimmy Bryan 89–132 Bob Sweikert 133–156 Art Cross 157–159 Don Freeland 160–200 Bob Sweikert

Total laps led Driver Laps Bob Sweikert 86 Bill Vukovich 50 Jimmy Bryan 31 Art Cross 24 Jack McGrath 6 Don Freeland 3

Yellow Lights: 30 minutes, 25 seconds Laps* Reason 40–41 Fred Agabashian spin on backstretch (1:40) 56–72 Ward, Elisian, Keller, Boyd, Vukovich crash on backstretch (27:10) 173 Cal Niday crash in turn 4 (1:35) * – Approximate lap counts^[12]^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16]

Additional stats

• Pole position: Jerry Hoyt – 1:04.27 (while Hoyt started on the pole, Jack McGrath set the fastest time but started on the outside of the first row)
• Fastest Lead Lap: Bill Vukovich – 1:03.67
• Shared Drives:
  • Car #10: Tony Bettenhausen (123 laps) and Paul Russo (77 laps). They shared the 6 points for second place.
  • Car #77: Walt Faulkner (176 laps) and Bill Homeier (24 laps). They shared the 2 points for fifth place.
• While in the lead, Bill Vukovich hit the 3-car pileup of Al Keller, Johnny Boyd, and Rodger Ward. He was killed (by fracture to the skull) when his car became airborne and went out of the course on the back long straightaway, landing upside down and on fire. His death concluded a streak of three straight years leading the most laps in the race (likely to have been four straight, 1955 inclusive), a feat unequaled since.
• Formula 1 championship debut for Keith Andrews, Johnny Boyd, Ray Crawford, Al Herman, Al Keller, Eddie Russo, Shorty Templeman and Chuck Weyant

Broadcasting

Radio

The race was carried live on the IMS Radio Network. Sid Collins served as chief announcer. The broadcast was carried by 237 affiliates in all 48 states, as well as Armed Forces Radio. The broadcast was dedicated to the memory of Wilbur Shaw, who was killed in a plane crash in October.

Luke Walton reported from the north pits for the third year. Charlie Brockman, in his fourth appearance on the network, conducted the winner's interview in victory lane.

All five of the major radio stations in the Indianapolis area carried the broadcast. The broadcast was notable as it reported the fatal crash of Bill Vukovich.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network
Booth Announcers	Turn Reporters	Pit/garage reporters
Chief Announcer: Sid Collins Analyst: Gordon Graham Driver Expert: Mauri Rose Statistician: Charlie Brockman	South Turns: Bill Frosch Backstretch: Jack Shapiro North Turns: Jim Shelton	Luke Walton (north) Greg Smith (south) Charlie Brockman (victory lane)

Championship standings after the race

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1955 Indianapolis 500.

World Drivers' Championship standings

	Pos	Driver	Points
	1	Maurice Trintignant	11 1⁄3
	2	Juan Manuel Fangio	10
31	3	Bob Sweikert	8
1	4	Nino Farina	6 1⁄3
1	5	Eugenio Castellotti	6
Source: ^[17]

• Note: Only the top five positions are included.

See also

• 1955 AAA Championship Car season

References

1. Fox, Jack C. (1994). The Illustrated History of the Indianapolis 500 1911-1994 (4th ed.). Carl Hungness Publishing. p. 22. ISBN 0-915088-05-3.
2. Cadou Jr., Jep (May 31, 1955). "Vukovich Killed In Pileup". The Indianapolis Star. p. 18. Retrieved June 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
3. The Talk of Gasoline Alley – 1070-AM WIBC, May 14, 2004
4. "1955 International 500 Mile Sweepstakes". ChampCarStats.com. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
5. Goldstein, Richard (July 7, 2004) Rodger Ward, 83, Two-Time Indianapolis 500 Winner (obituary). New York Times. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
6. The Rex Dean Accident Report: The Race and Accident. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
7. Indianapolis 500 Historical Stats from website of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
8. Burgess, Dale (May 31, 1955) "Bob Sweikert Wins 500 Mile Race" Associated Press. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
9. Oreovicz, John (May 23, 2016) Indy at 100: The '50s golden era ESPN.com. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
10. Wren, Adam (May 25, 2016) Driving Forces: Danger and Safety at the Indy 500 Indianapolis Monthly. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
11. "International 500 Mile Sweepstakes – May 30, 1955". ChampCarStats.com.
12. Cadou Jr., Jeb (May 31, 1955). "1st Home-Town Victory Scored Since Shaw's". Indianapolis Star. p. 1. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. 
13. Nesbits, Bob (May 31, 1955). "NewsBits (Part 1)". The Terra Haute Tribune. p. 10. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. 
14. Nesbits, Bob (May 31, 1955). "News-Bits (Part 2)". The Terra Haute Tribune. p. 11. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. 
15. Barnet, Bob (May 31, 1955). "500 Play-by-Play, Memorial Day, 1955 (Part 1)". Indianapolis News. p. 8. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. 
16. Barnet, Bob (May 31, 1955). "500 Play-by-Play, Memorial Day, 1955 (Part 2)". Indianapolis News. p. 9. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. 
17. "Indianapolis 1955 - Championship • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 18 March 2019.

External links

• – Official Site
• 1955 Indianapolis 500 Radio Broadcast, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network: Re-released by "Speedway Audio" – WIBC-AM (2004)
• 1955 Indianapolis 500 at RacingReference.info (Relief driver statistics)
• 1955 Indianapolis 500 Film - Oklahoma Historical Society Video and Film Archives

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