36th Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning bodyAAA
DateMay 30, 1952
WinnerTroy Ruttman
Winning EntrantJ. C. Agajanian
Average speed128.922 mph (207.480 km/h)
Pole positionFred Agabashian
Pole speed138.010 mph (222.106 km/h)
Most laps ledBill Vukovich (150)
Pre-race
Pace carStudebaker Commander
Pace car driverP.O. Peterson
StarterSeth Klein[1]
Honorary refereeRaymond Firestone[1]
Estimated attendance200,000[2]
Chronology
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1951 1953

The 36th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was a motor race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, May 30, 1952. It was the opening race of the 1952 AAA National Championship Trail and was also race 2 of 8 in the 1952 World Championship of Drivers.

Troy Ruttman won the race for car owner J. C. Agajanian. Ruttman, aged 22 years and 80 days, set the record for the youngest 500 winner in history. It was also the last dirt track car to win at Indy. Ruttman's win also saw him become the youngest winner of a World Drivers' Championship race, a record he would hold for 51 years until the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix when Spanish driver Fernando Alonso won at the age of 22 years and 26 days.

Bill Vukovich led 150 laps, but with 9 laps to go, he broke a steering linkage while leading.[3] He nursed his car to a stop against the outside wall, preventing other cars from getting involved in the incident.

In the third year that the 500 was included in the World Championship, Ferrari entered the race with Alberto Ascari driving a Ferrari 375 Indianapolis. The effort gained considerable attention, but Ascari was forced to retire after a few laps when the hub of a wheel on his car collapsed. He was classified 31st. It was the only World Championship race in 1952 that Ascari entered and did not win.

Fifth place finisher Art Cross was voted the Rookie of the Year. Though at least one rookie starter was in the field every year dating back to 1911, this was the first time the now-popular award was officially designated.

Time trials

Time trials was scheduled for four days, but rain pushed qualifying into a fifth day.

Starting grid

Row Inside Middle Outside
1 28 United States Fred Agabashian 9 United States Andy Linden 4 United States Jack McGrath
2 36 United States Duke Nalon 18 United States Sam Hanks 1 United States Duane Carter
3 98 United States Troy Ruttman 26 United States Bill Vukovich 22 United States Cliff Griffith
4 59 United States Jim Rathmann 16 United States Chuck Stevenson 2 United States Henry Banks
5 65 United States George Fonder 54 United States George Connor 7 United States Bill Schindler
6 14 United States Joe James 55 United States Bobby Ball 67 United States Gene Hartley
7 12 Italy Alberto Ascari  R  33 United States Art Cross  R  77 United States Jimmy Bryan  R 
8 34 United States Rodger Ward 37 United States Jimmy Reece  R  81 United States Eddie Johnson  R 
9 93 United States Bob Scott  R  29 United States Jim Rigsby  R  21 United States Chet Miller
10 8 United States Manny Ayulo 48 United States Spider Webb 27 United States Tony Bettenhausen
11 5 United States Johnnie Parsons  W  73 United States Bob Sweikert  R  31 United States Johnny McDowell
R Indianapolis 500 rookie
W Indianapolis 500 winner

Failed to qualify

Box score

Pos Grid No Driver Constructor Qual Rank Laps Time/Retired Points
1 7 98 United States Troy Ruttman Kuzma-Offenhauser 135.36 18 200 3:52:41.88 8
2 10 59 United States Jim Rathmann Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 136.34 7 200 +4:02.33 6
3 5 18 United States Sam Hanks Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 135.73 14 200 +6:11.61 4
4 6 1 United States Duane Carter Lesovsky-Offenhauser 135.52 16 200 +6:48.34 3
5 20 33 United States Art Cross  R  Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 134.28 26 200 +8:40.15 2
6 21 77 United States Jimmy Bryan  R  Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 134.14 27 200 +9:24.32
7 23 37 United States Jimmy Reece  R  Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 133.99 29 200 +10:35.24
8 14 54 United States George Connor Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 135.60 15 200 +12:00.61
9 9 22 United States Cliff Griffith Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 136.61 6 200 +12:23.76
10 31 5 United States Johnnie Parsons  W  Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 135.32 19 200 +13:37.78
11 3 4 United States Jack McGrath Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 136.66 5 200 +14:21.72
12 26 29 United States Jim Rigsby  R  Watson-Offenhauser 133.90 33 200 +16:05.10
13 16 14 United States Joe James Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 134.95 22 200 +16:55.65
14 15 7 United States Bill Schindler Stevens-Offenhauser 134.98 20 200 +18:48.66
15 13 65 United States George Fonder Sherman-Offenhauser 135.94 13 197 +3 Laps
16 24 81 United States Eddie Johnson  R  Trevis-Offenhauser 133.97 30 193 +7 Laps
17 8 26 United States Bill Vukovich Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 138.21 2 191 Steering 11
18 11 16 United States Chuck Stevenson Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 136.14 9 187 +13 Laps
19 12 2 United States Henry Banks Lesovsky-Offenhauser 135.96 11 184 +16 Laps
20 28 8 United States Manny Ayulo Lesovsky-Offenhauser 135.98 10 184 +16 Laps
21 33 31 United States Johnny McDowell Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 133.93 32 182 +18 Laps
22 29 48 United States Spider Webb Bromme-Offenhauser 135.96 12 162 Oil leak
23 22 34 United States Rodger Ward Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 134.13 28 130 Oil Pressure
24 30 27 United States Tony Bettenhausen Diedt-Offenhauser 135.38 17 93 Oil Pressure
25 4 36 United States Duke Nalon Kurtis Kraft-Novi 136.18 8 84 Supercharger
26 32 73 United States Bob Sweikert  R  Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 134.98 21 77 Differential
27 1 28 United States Fred Agabashian Kurtis Kraft-Cummins diesel 138.01 3 71 Turbocharger
28 18 67 United States Gene Hartley Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 134.34 24 65 Exhaust
29 25 93 United States Bob Scott  R  Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 133.95 31 49 Transmission
30 27 21 United States Chet Miller Kurtis Kraft-Novi 139.03 1 41 Supercharger
31 19 12 Italy Alberto Ascari  R  Ferrari 134.30 25 40 Wheel
32 17 55 United States Bobby Ball Stevens-Offenhauser 134.72 23 34 Gearbox
33 2 9 United States Andy Linden Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser 137.00 4 20 Oil Pump
Source:[5]

 W  Former Indianapolis 500 winner

 R  Indianapolis 500 Rookie

All entrants utilized Firestone tires.

^1 – 1 point for fastest lead lap

Race statistics

Notes

Broadcasting

Radio

The race was carried live on the radio on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network. During the offseason, the Speedway management created the network to handle broadcasting duties in-house. The arrangement was under the flagship of 1070 WIBC-AM of Indianapolis, and featured a crew that consisted mostly of WIBC talent. WIBC landed exclusive rights of the broadcast in the Indianapolis market, which eventually would draw the ire of the other major stations in the area. In later years, the broadcast would be carried on all five stations inside the city, and they would utilize talent and crew representing each station.

Sid Collins served as booth announcer. Jim Shelton was among the turn reporters, reporting from turn 4. Gordon Graham reported from the pits and from victory lane. Like previous years, the broadcast featured live coverage of the start, the finish, and 15-minute live updates throughout the race. At least twenty stations around the county picked up the broadcast.[11]

Championship standings after the race

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1952 Indianapolis 500.
World Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 Italy Piero Taruffi 9
20 2 United States Troy Ruttman 8
1 3 Switzerland Rudi Fischer 6
18 4 United States Jim Rathmann 6
2 5 France Jean Behra 4
Source: [12]

References

  1. ^ a b 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. ^ Stranahan, Bob (May 31, 1952). "Sets Race Record Of 128 MPH After Vukovich Bid Failes". The Indianapolis Star. p. 1. Retrieved June 2, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  3. ^ "More Indy Hearbreaks". Autoweek. 62 (11): 82. May 28, 2012. ISSN 0192-9674.
  4. ^ "1952 International 500 Mile Sweepstakes". ChampCarStats.com. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  5. ^ "1952 Indianapolis 500". formula1.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  6. ^ O'Brien, J.E. (May 31, 1952). "Fate Taps Ruttman in Last 10 Minutes". Indianapolis News. p. 13. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  7. ^ Barnet, Bob (May 31, 1952). "Vukovich Hits Wall, Ruttman Hits Jackpot". The Star Press. p. 11. Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  8. ^ Davidson, Donald. (2007). "The Talk of Gasoline Alley" [Radio program]. WIBC (FM), April 30, 2007. Archived at https://web.archive.org/web/20070928124654/http://media.wibc.com/av/audio/talk_gas/2007/april30.mp3, retrieved on January 6, 2016.
  9. ^ Greuter, Henri. "1952: Ferrari at Indianapolis". www.forixautosport.com. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  10. ^ "WIBC All Night Race Party - 2007
  11. ^ Cochran, Polly (May 30, 1952). "Everyone In Reach of Radio Will Have 'Ticket' To Race". The Indianapolis Star. p. 42. Retrieved March 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  12. ^ "Indianapolis 1952 - Championship • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 1 March 2019.

External links


Previous race:1952 Swiss Grand Prix FIA Formula One World Championship1952 season Next race:1952 Belgian Grand Prix Previous race:1951 Indianapolis 500Lee Wallard 1952 Indianapolis 500Troy Ruttman Next race:1953 Indianapolis 500Bill Vukovich Preceded by126.244 .mw-parser-output .nobold{font-weight:normal}mph(1951 Indianapolis 500) Record for the Indianapolis 500 fastest average speed128.922 mph Succeeded by130.840 mph(1954 Indianapolis 500)
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