The 29th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an automobile racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Verizon 200, and and formerly the home of the United State ...

on Friday, May 30, 1941. The start of the race was delayed due to a fire that swept through the garage area on race morning. No persons were injured, but one car in the field was destroyed. The race rolled off with only 31 cars, and ran to its scheduled distance. This would be the final "500" prior to the United States involvement in

WWII World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. It was not known at the time, but it would be the final race organized by Speedway president

Eddie Rickenbacker Edward Vernon Rickenbacker or Eddie Rickenbacker (October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient.1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

Race details

Sam Hanks Samuel Dwight "Sam" Hanks (July 13, 1914 – June 27, 1994) was an American race car driver who won the 1957 Indianapolis 500. He was a barnstormer, and raced midget and Championship cars. Racing career Hanks was born in Columbus, Ohio and l ...

was injured in a practice crash the day before the race and withdrew. Rather than elevate the first alternate to the starting field, Hanks was credited with 33rd place.

Garage area fire

On the morning of the race a fire broke out in the garage area.

George Barringer George Barringer (May 2, 1906 – September 2, 1946) was an American racecar driver, active during the 1930s and 1940s. Barringer made 17 Championship Car starts with a best finish of second at Springfield in August 1935 and Milwaukee in August ...

's revolutionary rear-engined car was destroyed. At the time, the car was being refueled (with gasoline). In a nearby garage, another car which was owned by Joel Thorne was being worked on with a welder. The fumes caught fire from the sparks of the welding, and a huge fire broke out which burned down about a third of the southern bank of garages. The start of the race was delayed by a couple hours, and fire fighters had trouble getting to the Speedway to put out the blaze due to the heavy race day traffic. Barringer's car was withdrawn, and he was credited with 32nd finishing position. With Sam Hanks and Barringer out, the race lined up with only 31 cars. Various equipment, tools, parts, and other supplies were lost in the fire. Two other cars that did not qualify for the race were reported to have been damaged. However, all of the other cars that qualified for the race were safely evacuated, and no injuries were reported. The fire was put out, but the site smoldered throughout the day, and smoke continued to rise even after the race had safely started.

Wilbur Shaw

Two-time defending champion (and three-time winner overall)

Wilbur Shaw Warren Wilbur Shaw (October 31, 1902 – October 30, 1954) was an American racing driver. He was president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from 1945 until his death in 1954. Shaw was the automotive test evaluator for '' Popular Science'' magaz ...

crashed while leading on lap 152, and failed in his bid to become the first driver to

three-peat In North American sports, a three-peat is winning three consecutive championships. The term, a portmanteau of the words ''three'' and ''repeat'', originated with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association, during their unsuccess ...

at the Indianapolis 500 (and first four-time winner). As of 2022, no driver has ever won the Indianapolis 500 three consecutive years. Going down the mainstretch, the car lost control, and hit the outside wall, rupturing the gas tank. Shaw was drenched with fuel, and suffered a back injury which left him immobile for several minutes. Despite the fuel spill, the fuel did not ignite, and Shaw was brought to safety by the medical staff. It is believed that the morning garage fire had an effect on Shaw's efforts. At some point before the race, Shaw's crew was preparing his tires for race day, and used chalk to write notes on the spare tires. One particular wheel was determined to be out of balance, and rather than being discarded, it was labeled in

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Chalk ...

with the words "USE LAST". However, the firefighters' water hoses are believed to have washed off the chalk message. Shaw inadvertently took on the bad wheel during a pit stop, which caused his crash. Shaw never drove another competitive lap at the Speedway, although he did participate in a special private tire test at the Speedway during World War II.

Floyd Davis & Mauri Rose

Floyd Davis Floyd Eldon Davis (March 5, 1909 – May 31, 1977) was the co-winner of the 1941 Indianapolis 500. Floyd Davis drove the first 72 laps of the 1941 race before being replaced by Mauri Rose, who completed the race in the lead. He is buried at Cro ...

was the starting driver for the #16 car. On lap 72, Davis came in for a pit stop, and was relieved by

Mauri Rose Maurice "Mauri" Rose (May 26, 1906 – January 1, 1981) was an American racecar driver. He started from the pole position driving a Maserati in the 1941 Indianapolis 500, but spark plug problems put him out of the race after sixty laps. He then ...

. Rose had started the race in another car and dropped out earlier. Car owner

Lou Moore Lewis Henry Moore (September 12, 1904 Hinton, Oklahoma – March 25, 1956 Atlanta, Georgia) was an American racecar driver. He was most known during his racing career for qualifying on the pole position of the 1932 Indianapolis 500. He was lat ...

was apparently unsatisfied with Davis' performance thus far in the race, and ordered Rose to take over. Rose charged up the standings and took the lead in the #16 car, and went on to win. Both drivers were credited as "co-winners," similar to what occurred in the 1924 race. This marked the last time that one car would carry two drivers to victory at Indy.

Box score

Alternates

*First alternate:

Louis Durant Louis Durant (25 September 1910, in Topeka, Kansas – 13 February 1972, in San Bernardino, California) was an American racecar driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the ...

Failed to Qualify

Shorty Cantlon William A. "Shorty" Cantlon (October 8, 1903 – May 30, 1947) was an American racecar Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto r ...

Ira Hall Ira Hall (2 February 1892, Martinsville, Indiana – 6 February 1987, Tarpon Springs, Florida) was an American racecar driver. Hall was later elected sheriff of Vigo County, Indiana Vigo County ( ) is a county on the western border of the ...

(#38) *

René Le Bègue René Le Bègue (15 January 1914 – 24 February 1946) was a Parisian-born French race car driver in Rally and Grand Prix motor racing. In his first year of top level racing, his best showing came at the 1936 Spa 24 Hours endurance race when h ...

(#21) * Bill Lipscomb (#57) *

Roy Russing Roy is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origin. In Anglo-Norman England, the name derived from the Norman ''roy'', meaning "king", while its Old French cognate, ''rey'' or ''roy'' (modern ''roi''), likewise gave rise to ...

(#22) *

Jean Trévoux Jean Claude Marie Trévoux (born February 27, 1905 in Petit Quevilly (Seine-Inférieure) and died on October 29, 1981 in Mexico City) was a French rally and racing driver and winner of four editions of the Monte Carlo Rally. Biography Born in L ...

(#24)

Other Notes

Speedway president

Eddie Rickenbacker Edward Vernon Rickenbacker or Eddie Rickenbacker (October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient.plane crash An aviation accident is defined by the Convention on International Civil Aviation Annex 13 as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft, which takes place from the time any person boards the aircraft with the ''intention of fl ...

a few months before the race.

References

{{Indy 500 Indianapolis 500 races

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

1941 in American motorsport May 1941 sports events