The 49th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Monday, May 31, 1965.
The five-year-old "British Invasion" of Indy racing by rear engine cars (actually mid engine), which preceded the 1964 British Invasion by the Beatles, finally broke through as Team Lotus, Jim Clark and Colin Chapman triumphed in dominating fashion with the first rear-engined Indy-winning car, a Lotus 38 powered by the DOHC Ford Indy V8 engine. With only six of the 33 cars in the field still having front engines, it was the first 500 in history to have a majority of cars as rear-engined machines.
Clark, of Scotland, had won the pole position in 1964, again started from the front row, and led 190 laps, the most since Bill Vukovich (195) in 1953. He became the first foreign-born winner of the Indianapolis 500 since 1920 when French-born Gaston Chevrolet won. Clark would go on to win the 1965 World Championship (which Indianapolis was not part of any longer). He is the only driver in history to win the Indy 500 and Formula One World Championship in the same year. Clark actually chose to skip Monaco to compete at Indy.
ABC Sports covered the race for the first time on Wide World of Sports. Charlie Brockman anchored the broadcast along with Rodger Ward.
Race background After suffering a terrible crash in January at the Motor Trend 500 at Riverside, A. J. Foyt was back behind the wheel in time for the 500. Foyt had suffered a broken back, crushed sternum, and a concussion after he lost his brakes, hit an embankment, and flipped violently in a stock car.
There would be considerable turnaround in the starting lineup, with eleven rookies making the race, the most since 1951 (twelve). The rookie class of 1965 was historically notable, including such drivers as Mario Andretti, Al Unser Sr., Gordon Johncock, Joe Leonard, and George Snider.
Rule changes Following the tragic 1964 race, this race was run relatively clean with no major accidents. Contrary to some popular belief, gasoline was not banned for the 1965 race. Instead, USAC officials crafted several calculated rule changes to effectively encourage teams to use methanol in order to be competitive.The Talk of Gasoline Alley - 1070-AM WIBC, May 15, 2007 In addition, a new minimum car weight of 1,250 pounds was also established.
For 1965, all cars were required to make a minimum of two pit stops. A pit stop was generally defined as coming to a complete stop in the respective pit box, and hooking up the fueling mechanism. Tire changes were not specifically required, and some teams in fact changed zero tires all day. On-board fuel tank capacity was reduced to 75 gallons, which also included requirements that they contain rubber bladders inside. Fuel tanks were required to be behind the driver on the left side of each car, and fuel crossover tubes were prohibited ahead of the driver. Pressurized fueling rigs were outlawed. All fueling rigs from 1965 onward had to be gravity fed, a rule that still is in effect as of 2025.
Conventional "pump" gasoline registered better fuel mileage than methanol, and gasoline-powered cars could go a longer distance before needing to refuel. Prior to 1965, the typical strategy of the gasoline-powered cars was to make one scheduled pit stop for fuel at some point after the halfway mark (lap 100). Ideally, the pit stop would come around lap 120–125 (of 200), meaning the crew needed only to refill the tank at that point about full to make it to the finish. Tires would be inspected for wear, and changed only if needed; right side tires were of the primary concern.
The methanol-powered engines had worse fuel mileage, but produced more horsepower and effectively raced faster. Methanol-powered cars in general needed to make 2–3 pit stops to complete the full 500 miles, even before the rule changes. Since cars were now required to make a minimum of two fuel stops, the advantage to using gasoline (i.e., fewer pit stops and better resulting track position) was diminished, or outright lost.
While most teams switched to methanol, the Agajanian team decided to utilize a methanol/gasoline blend. Chief mechanic Johnny Pulson and driver Parnelli Jones determined that they were effectively down on power, finished second, and attributed the fuel blend as what cost them a chance to win the race. Jones had to make a third pit stop, and was experiencing poor fuel mileage. In the final five laps, Jones was running low on fuel, and had to nurse the car to the finish line. He held off Mario Andretti for second place by just five seconds, then ran out of fuel on his cool down lap. He stalled on the backstretch, and had to be towed back to the pit area.
Time trials One other major change was implemented for time trials. The evening before pole day time trials, a new blind draw was to be used to establish the qualifying order (namely for Pole Day). Prior to 1965, no draw was used, and the qualifying order was a "first-come, first-served" line-up, queued down the pit lane and usually stretching into the garage area. Some teams would even claim their spots in line the night before. The unorganized scramble to roll the cars into a queue had often led to heated exchanges, collisions, and unfair situations.
Each entry would still be allowed up to three attempts to qualify (across all four scheduled days). Once the original qualifying draw order had been exhausted on Pole Day, if there was still time left in the day (prior to the traditional 6 o'clock gun), the track was open for qualifying on a first-come, first-served basis. A proposal to charge cars with an attempt if they got to the front of the line but elected not to go out, or went out and did not take the green flag to start the run, was rejected. Despite the addition of a qualifying draw, each car in the order was not yet guaranteed the opportunity to make an attempt during the pole round. If rain were to delay or interrupt the qualifying line on Pole Day, any cars left in the original qualifying order at the time the track closed (due to rain or at the 6 o'clock gun) were simply out of luck, and had to qualify on the next round. This technicality would be corrected in 1971.
Race schedule Race schedule – April/May 1965SunMonTueWedThuFriSat25Trenton26 27 28 29 30 1Practice 2Practice 3Practice 4Practice 5Practice 6Practice 7Practice 8Practice 9Practice10Practice11Practice12Practice13Practice14Practice15Pole Day16Time Trials17Practice18Practice19Practice20Practice21Practice22Time Trials23Bump Day24500 Open25500 Open26500 Open27Carb Day28 29Parade30Meeting31Indy 500 Color Notes Green Practice Dark Blue Time trials Silver Race day Blank No track activity
The 500 Festival Open Invitation golf tournament was held May 24–27.
Practice and Time trials The track opened for practice on Saturday May 1. On Monday May 3, Jim Clark turned a lap of 150.779 mph, the first driver over 150 mph for the month. On Tuesday May 4, chief steward Harlan Fengler lifted the speed limits, and A. J. Foyt upped his practice speed to 155 mph.
On Wednesday May 5, A. J. Foyt's Lotus-Ford wrecked on the backstretch when a magnesium hub carrier snapped. The next day, all of the Lotus-Fords and Lola cars were parked by USAC for a few days until tests and improvements could be made to the magnesium parts. Thursday's practice was cut short due to rain.
On Monday May 10, after adequate improvements, the Lotus-Fords were authorized to return to the track. Both Foyt and Clark turned laps over 158 mph. Foyt and Clark continued to top the speed charts during the week, and on Thursday, Foyt blistered the track with a new unofficial track record of 161.146 mph.Indianapolis 500: Chronicle, page 180
On the day before pole day, Ebb Rose spun in turn one in front of Bobby Unser, collecting him in the crash. Unser was driving the brand new four-wheel drive Novi car entered by Andy Granatelli. Unser's car t-boned Rose's car, and spun wildly into the outside wall. Rose was not hurt. Unser was sent to the hospital for x-rays, but was not seriously injured.
Pole Day – Saturday May 15 Pole day was a record-setting day, as drivers officially broke the 160 mph barrier. Rookie Mario Andretti was one of the first drivers to set the pace, putting in a lap of 159.406 mph, and a four-lap average of 158.849 mph. Later, Jim Clark in the Lotus 38, became the first driver to break the 160 mph barrier. His first two laps of 160.772 mph and 160.973 mph set one-lap records. His record four-lap average of 160.729 mph tentatively put him on the pole.
Defending race winner A. J. Foyt ended up as the fastest of the day, with three laps in the 161 mph range. His first lap of 161.958 mph established the new one-lap track record. His record four-lap average of 161.233 secured the pole position, his first pole at Indy.
A day after his crash during practice, Bobby Unser got in a year-old Novi back up car to qualify 8th. Nineteen cars qualified on pole day.Foyt Gets Mark at Indy Action
Second day – Sunday May 16 Strong winds kept most cars off the track. Only two drivers (Don Branson and Arnie Knepper) qualified. At the end of the first weekend of time trials, the field was filled to 21 cars.
Third day – Saturday May 22 Jim Hurtubise, who was seriously burned in a crash at Milwaukee in 1964, completed his comeback by qualifying a Novi at , the fastest of eleven qualifiers that day.
Two drivers crashed during the day, Rodger Ward and Lloyd Ruby. Ruby wrecked his already-qualified machine, but Ward was still struggling to get up to speed. Masten Gregory and Al Unser both blew engines, but were able to keep the cars off the wall.
Bobby Johns, a NASCAR regular, skipped the World 600 and entered as a teammate to Jim Clark in another Lotus. He qualified for 22nd position, third fastest of the afternoon.
At the end of the day, there was only one spot left open in the field.
Bump day – Sunday May 23 Former winner Rodger Ward failed to qualify. He suffered a crash and three blown engines during the month. He got onto the track in the final 15 minutes, but his qualifying attempt was too slow to make the field.
Bob Mathouser was the final driver in Indy history to attempt to qualify in a front-wheel drive machine, but the engine blew and he did not make the field.
Starting grid RowInsideMiddleOutside 11 A. J. Foyt 82 Jim Clark17 Dan Gurney 212 Mario Andretti 98 Parnelli Jones 66 Billy Foster 374 Al Miller9 Bobby Unser7 Lloyd Ruby 454 Bob Veith24 Johnny Rutherford16 Len Sutton 552 Jim McElreath76 Gordon Johncock 81 Mickey Rupp 694 George Snider 48 Jerry Grant 4 Don Branson 718 Arnie Knepper 59 Jim Hurtubise53 Walt Hansgen 883 Bobby Johns 25 Roger McCluskey5 Bud Tingelstad 965 Ronnie Duman88 Chuck Stevenson29 Joe Leonard 1023 Eddie Johnson14 Johnny Boyd19 Chuck Rodee 1141 Masten Gregory 45 Al Unser 47 Bill Cheesbourg
Alternates First alternate: Rodger Ward (#2)The Talk of Gasoline Alley - 1070-AM WIBC, May 14, 2004
Failed to qualify
Bob Christie (#21) Ray Furnal (#96) – Entry declined, lack of experience Paul Goldsmith (#36) Bobby Grim (#86) Norm Hall (#8) Bob Harkey (#10, #95) Skip Hudson (#96) – Failed rookie test Bob Hurt (#34) Mel Kenyon (#27) Jud Larson (#15) Ralph Ligouri (#99) Art Malone (#67) Bob Mathouser (#77, #87) Mike McGreevey (#65) Ebb Rose (#79) Paul Russo (#21) Gig Stephens Greg Weld (#19) – Failed rookie test Bob Wente (#67) Carl Williams (#33) Dempsey Wilson (#44)
Race recap The Wood Brothers from the NASCAR Grand National circuit, were invited by Ford Motor Company to work the pit stops for Team Lotus (drivers Jim Clark and Bobby Johns). Their arrival at the Speedway was quickly recognized and much reported. They were well known for their rapid pit stop work in NASCAR, and their presence immediately created a stir in the garage area. It took them only a short time to acclimatize to the open wheel championship cars' equipment.