Johnny Rutherford

Lore & Background

Rutherford's racing career began in 1959 driving modified stock cars in Dallas. He joined the International Motor Contest Association sprint car circuit in 1961, leading it for most of 1962. He later joined USAC, winning his first championship and the USAC National Sprint Car Championship in 1965. His first Indy car race win came at the Atlanta 250.

In 1973, he joined the McLaren team and won pole position at the Indianapolis 500, setting a one-lap track record of 199.071 mph, falling just shy of the 200 mph barrier. His long-awaited second career win came at Ontario Motor Speedway in 1973, followed by Indianapolis 500 victories in 1974, 1976, and 1980. In 1984 at Michigan International Speedway, Rutherford set an all-time Indy car qualifying lap speed record of 215.189 mph. His win in the 1986 Michigan 500 at age 48 made him the oldest winner of a 500-mile race, a record that still stands.

From 1973 to 1981, he recorded nine straight seasons with a victory, one of just six drivers in Indy Car history to do so.

Reader's Guide

Rutherford's Indy Car career spanned more than three decades, from the 1960s through the early 1990s. His peak period was from 1973 to 1981, when he recorded nine straight seasons with a victory. His 24th and final start at the Indianapolis 500 came in 1988. His 1980 Indianapolis 500 win in the revolutionary ground-effects Chaparral was particularly dominant. Three Indianapolis 500 wins (1974, 1976, 1980), the 1980 CART championship, 27 wins and 23 pole positions in 314 Indy Car starts. He also won in his first NASCAR Cup Series start at Daytona International Speedway in 1963, making him one of the youngest drivers ever to win a NASCAR points-paying race and only the sixth racer to win in their NASCAR debut. His three Indy 500 wins place him among the race's elite.

Did You Know?

• Rutherford was born in Coffeyville, Kansas, not Texas, despite proudly displaying the flag of Texas on his racing helmet.
• During the 1964 Indianapolis 500, Rutherford was directly behind Eddie Sachs when Sachs crashed into the burning car of Dave MacDonald, killing both drivers. Rutherford squeezed between the crash and the wall so closely that a lemon Sachs wore on a string around his neck was found inside Rutherford's engine compartment.
• Rutherford met his wife Betty Hoyer, a nurse, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1963 when he was taking his rookie test. They married two months later.
• Rutherford's art was featured on the program cover of the 2021 Indianapolis 500.