1941 Indianapolis 500

29th running of the Indianapolis 500 February 2025 29th Indianapolis 500 Indy500winningcar1941.JPG AAA May 30, 1941 Floyd Davis and Mauri Rose (co-winners) Lou Moore Ed Shampay2011 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500 Official Media Guide Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation/IMS Public Relations 2011 Statistics 176 English https://doctorindy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2011-Indy-500-Media-Guide.pdf 4:20:36.24 115.117 mph Mauri Rose 128.691 mph Wilbur Shaw (107) Chrysler Newport Phaeton A. B. Couture Seth KleinFox Jack C. The Illustrated History of the Indianapolis 500 1911-1994 Carl Hungness Publishing 4th 1994 22 en 0-915088-05-3 Guy Vaughan 160,000Nervous, Dusty, Affable Crowd Sees Race—Well, Part of the Time https://www.newspapers.com/clip/11427050/ Lloyd H. Wilkins The Indianapolis Star 1 Newspapers.com May 31, 1941 June 2, 2017 1940 1942-45 (cancelled-WWII) The 29th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 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 World War II along with the final race under with Eddie Rickenbacker as president of the speedway. He kept the track locked during the war before selling the track in November 1945 to Tony Hulman. The race returned a year later. The 1941 race was the second, and most recent "500" to be recorded with co-winners. Floyd Davis started the race in the #16 Noc-Out Hose Clamp Special. His teammate Mauri Rose started the race on the pole position in the #3 car, but his dropped out early with spark plug trouble. Rose took over behind the wheel of the #16 car on lap 73, and drove that car to victory. Davis and Rose were credited as co-winners, and it was the first of three "500" victories for Rose. Race details Sam Hanks 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 "Gasoline Alley" garage area. George Barringer'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 both 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 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. No major 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. About a month later, the entire garage complex was demolished. At some point during summer and fall of 1941, a new Gasoline Alley garage area was built in its place.1942 Speedway Rules Unchanged https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4861702/1942_indianapolis_500/ The Indianapolis Star 18 Newspapers.com July 2, 1945 April 6, 2016Old Speedway Office Lively Place Again; Orders Pour In https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4861723/1946_indianapolis_500/ Mary E Bostwick The Indianapolis Star 3 Newspapers.com February 3, 1946 April 6, 2016 However, due to the war, the new garages would sit unused until 1946. Wilbur Shaw Two-time defending champion (and three-time winner overall) Wilbur Shaw crashed while leading on lap 152, and failed in his bid to become the first driver to three-peat at the Indianapolis 500 (and first four-time winner). As of 2025, 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 with the words "USE LAST".Wrong Wheel kept Shaw from 4th win https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-wilbur-shaw-indy/144764768/ The Indianapolis Star Donald Davidson 43 Newspapers.com May 20, 1993 August 18, 2024 However, the firefighters' water hoses are believed to have washed off the chalk message.Speedway to replace all-wooden garages https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14361478/gasoline_alley_1985/ Jep Cadou Jr. The Indianapolis Star 1 Newspapers.com April 13, 1985 October 12, 2017 Shaw inadvertently took on the bad wheel during a pit stop, which caused his crash.Stories of the 500: 1941, Wilbur Shaw Shaw never drove another competitive lap at the Speedway. He did participate in a special private tire test at the Speedway during World War II and became president of the track in 1946.The Talk of Gasoline Alley – WFNI, July 22, 2009 Floyd Davis & Mauri Rose Floyd Davis was the starting driver for the #16 car. On lap 72, Davis came in for a pit stop, and was relieved by Mauri Rose. Rose had started the race in another car and dropped out earlier. Car owner Lou Moore 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. Starting grid RowInsideMiddleOutside 13 USA 1912 Mauri Rose1 USA 1912 Rex Mays2 USA 1912 Wilbur Shaw gold W silver 215 USA 1912 Harry McQuinn36 USA 1912 Doc Williams7 USA 1912 Frank Wearne 334 USA 1912 Cliff Bergere23 USA 1912 Billy Devore41 USA 1912 Chet Miller 454 USA 1912 Ralph Hepburn42 USA 1912 Russ Snowberger47 USA 1912 Everett Saylor orange R silver 514 USA 1912 George Connor12 USA 1912 Al Miller19 USA 1912 Emil Andres 610 USA 1912 George Robson16 USA 1912 Floyd Davis45 USA 1912 Paul Russo 722 USA 1912 Kelly Petillo gold W silver27 USA 1912 Tommy Hinnershitz9 USA 1912 Mel Hansen 88 USA 1912 Frank Brisko5 USA 1912 Joel Thorne53 USA 1912 Louis Tomei 962 USA 1912 Tony Willman26 USA 1912 Overton Phillips orange R silver25 USA 1912 Joie Chitwood 104 USA 1912 Ted Horn32 USA 1912 Deacon Litz17 USA 1912 Duke Nalon 1155 USA 1912 Al Putnam orange R Indianapolis 500 rookie solid 1px darkgray gold W Indianapolis 500 winner solid 1px darkgray Did not start George Barringer (#35), car destroyed in garage fire Sam Hanks (#28), Injured in practice accident Alternates First alternate: Louis Durant orange R silverThe Talk of Gasoline Alley - 1070-AM WIBC, May 14, 2004 Failed to Qualify Shorty Cantlon Ira Hall (#38) René Le Bègue (#21) Bill Lipscomb orange R silver (#57) Roy Russing orange R silver (#22) Jean Trévoux orange R silver (#24)1941 International 500 Mile Sweepstakes http://www.champcarstats.com/races/194101.htm ChampCarStats.com 28 June 2015 Box score FinishStartNoNameChassisEngineQualRankLapsStatus11716United States 1912 Floyd Davis (Laps 1–72)United States 1912 Mauri Rose (Laps 73–200)WetterothOffenhauser121.10625200 115.117 mph221United States 1912 Rex MaysStevensWinfield128.3012200 +1:29.953284United States 1912 Ted HornAdamsSparks124.2978200 +2:52.1541054United States 1912 Ralph HepburnMillerNovi120.65328200 +3:24.555734United States 1912 Cliff BergereWetterothOffenhauser123.89013200 +3:38.866941United States 1912 Chet MillerMillerMiller121.54023200 +7:26.517415United States 1912 Harry McQuinn(Kelly Petillo Laps 98-200)A-R WeilAlfa Romeo125.4494200 +7:44.72867United States 1912 Frank WearneShawOffenhauser123.89012200 +10:06.6891845United States 1912 Paul Russo(Louis Durant Laps 100–138)MarcheseMiller125.2175200 +26:24.75102027United States 1912 Tommy Hinnershitz(George Robson Laps 121–200)AdamsOffenhauser121.02127200 +24:41.81112453United States 1912 Louis TomeiMillerOffenhauser121.07026200 +25:18.71123155United States 1912 Al Putnam(Louis Durant Laps 154–200)WetterothOffenhauser121.95120200 +35:18.57132626United States 1912 Overton Phillips orange R silver(Mel Hansen Laps 104–187)BugattiMiller116.29833187Flagged142725United States 1912 Joie ChitwoodLenckiLencki120.32929177Flagged153017United States 1912 Duke NalonMaseratiMaserati122.95117173Flagged161314United States 1912 George ConnorStevensOffenhauser123.98410167Transmission171247United States 1912 Everett Saylor orange R silverWeilOffenhauser119.86031155Crash T41832United States 1912 Wilbur Shaw gold W silverMaseratiMaserati127.8363151Crash T119823United States 1912 Billy DevoreStevensOffenhauser121.77021121Rod202562United States 1912 Tony WillmanStevensOffenhauser123.92011117Rod211142United States 1912 Russ SnowbergerSnowbergerOffenhauser120.10430107Water pump222932United States 1912 Deacon LitzStevensSampson123.4401589Oil trouble23228United States 1912 Frank BriskoStevensBrisko123.3811670Valve24536United States 1912 Doc WilliamsCooperOffenhauser124.014968Radiator251610United States 1912 George RobsonWeilDuray121.5762266Oil leak2613United States 1912 Mauri RoseMaseratiMaserati128.691160Spark plugs271922United States 1912 Kelly Petillo gold W silverWetterothOffenhauser124.417748Rod281412United States 1912 Al MillerMillerMiller123.4781422Transmission29219United States 1912 Mel HansenMillerOffenhauser124.599611Rod301519United States 1912 Emil AndresLenckiLencki122.266195Crash T131235United States 1912 Joel ThorneAdamsSparks121.163245Crash T1DNS—35United States 1912 George BarringerMillerMiller122.299180Garage fireDNS—28United States 1912 Sam HanksKurtis KraftOffenhauser118.211320Practice crash Indianapolis 500 1941 http://www.ultimateracinghistory.com/race.php?raceid=19522 Ultimate Racing History 16 January 2012 https://archive.today/20120917164937/http://www.ultimateracinghistory.com/race.php?raceid=19522 17 September 2012 live Indianapolis Motor Speedway https://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/events/indy500/history/historical-stats/race-stats/race-results/1941 2023-09-12 www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com en Note: Relief drivers in parenthesesChampCarStats.com https://www.champcarstats.com/races/194101.htm International 500 Mile Sweepstakes – May 30, 1941 gold W silver Former Indianapolis 500 winner orange R silver Indianapolis 500 Rookie All entrants utilized Firestone tires. Race statistics Lap Leaders Laps Leader1–38 Rex Mays39–44 Mauri Rose45–151 Wilbur Shaw152–161 Cliff Bergere162–200 Mauri Rose Total laps led Driver LapsWilbur Shaw 107Mauri Rose 45Rex Mays 38Cliff Bergere 10 Yellow Lights Laps* Reason5–35 Joel Thorne, Emil Andres crash in turn 1151 Wilbur Shaw crash in turn 1155 Everett Saylor crash in turn 4* – Approximate lap countsCrowd Sets Record https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-commercial-appeal/145950054/ The Commercial Appeal 12 Newspapers.com May 31, 1941 April 23, 2024Regains Lead Lost As Own Motor Fails https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star/83852114/ Indianapolis News W. Blaine Patton 1 Newspapers.com May 31, 1941 April 23, 2024Mays Led for While https://www.newspapers.com/article/corsicana-daily-sun/145950225/ Indianapolis News 11 Newspapers.com May 30, 1941 April 23, 2024 Other Notes Speedway president Eddie Rickenbacker did not attend the race, and instead listened to it on the radio.The Talk of Gasoline Alley Donald Davidson (historian) WFNI May 10, 2010 He was recovering from injuries suffered in a near-fatal plane crash a few months before the race. See also 1941 AAA Championship Car season References 1940 Wilbur Shaw 1941 Mauri RoseFloyd Davis 1946 George Robson The Indianapolis 500 was not run from 1942 to 1945 due to WWII.The 1942 race was canceled, and the next race would not be held until 1946. Category:Indianapolis 500 races Indianapolis 500 Indianapolis 500 Category:1941 in American motorsport Category:May 1941 sports events in the United States