The Third International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, May 30, 1913. Frenchman Jules Goux became the first foreign-born, and first European winner of the Indianapolis 500. His margin of victory of 13 minutes, 8 seconds (approximately 7 laps) over second place Spencer Wishart still stands, as of 2026, as the largest margin of victory in Indianapolis 500 history.
Race Summary
After the entries in the first two years of the Indianapolis 500 had been almost exclusively American, 1913 saw six drivers travel to the United States from Europe to enter, likely attracted by the impressive $20,000 first prize (). A total of 27 cars would meet the 75 mile per hour qualifying speed, led by Jack Tower at 88.230 mph.Indianapolis 500 Starting Grid - 1913 Official site of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The starting grid was determined by a random draw of names, and Caleb Bragg would be given the pole.
Tower's car turned over on the southwest turn on lap 51, causing him to sustain a broken leg and his riding mechanic, Lee Dunning, to break three ribs.PEUGEOT CAR WINS $50,000 AUTO RACE; France Defeats America on Indianapolis Speedway - Mercer Finishes Second New York Times, May 30th, 1913 Bob Burman started the race as the favorite, and led 41 laps early, before his car caught fire on lap 55. Burman was able to repair his car and continue, however continuing problems led to several more stops and a replacement driver, who brought the car home in eleventh (unfortunately only the top ten finishers received prize money).Jules Goux, A Frenchman, wins big Automobile race The Lewiston Daily Sun, May 31st 1913.
French-born Jules Goux, driving a car owned and manufactured by Peugeot (where his father was the factory Supervisor) would lead the race on four occasions. Bob Evans dueled with Goux, leading laps 125–135,Official Box Score 3rd Indianapolis 500-Mile Race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Friday, May 30, 1913 Official site of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but would be forced out of the race on lap 158 due to a mechanical problem. Goux would dominate the remainder of the race, leading 138 laps en route to a victory of a more than 13 minute margin, making him the first non-American winner of the 500. The car contained a four-cylinder dual overhead camshaft engine, which would serve as a model for many future entries. Goux would state after the race that his manager forced him to stay below the car's top speed, feeling the lead was safe. Spencer Wishart was the top finishing American in second, while two of the other European cars would finish fourth and fifth.
Rules at the time required the top ten drivers to finish the full 500 miles to receive prize money. This led to an interesting sight for spectators who remained after Goux's finish. Charlie Merz, in contention for second place, would have his car catch fire towards the end of lap 199. Merz, not wishing to surrender the prize money, drove the final lap on fire, while Harry Martin, his riding mechanic, crawled out on top of the hood of the still moving car to beat at the flames and release the straps that held the engine cover to allow the fire to be extinguished faster. Merz finished third. Martin would unfortunately be killed while helping test a car on the speedway less than two months later.
Champagne Urban legends claim that race winner Jules Goux consumed "six bottles of champagne" en route to victory. However, that claim is believed to be exaggerated. Instead, during Goux's six pit stops, only four bottles (each pint) were shared between himself and his riding mechanic Emil Begin, with each taking some sips, but likely not enough to become intoxicated. Other swigs were spit out using the champagne as a mouthwash.The History of the 500 - WFNI/WIBC: Episode 10, 2013 It was a hot day, and given the punishing conditions, during his first pit stop Goux was quoted as saying "Rustle me a pint of wine or I'll blow" After the race, in victory lane, Goux stated "The heat was terrible. I suffered and but for the wine, I should have been unable to drive this race." In subsequent years, AAA officials banned the consumption of alcohol during competition.Beyond The Bricks - WFNI: May 12, 2022
Starting grid Entries were required to complete one lap in excess of 75 mph in order to qualify. However, starting positions were determined by blind draw held the night preceding the race. DriverFar InsideInside CenterOutside CenterFar OutsideTime(mph)Row 1 Caleb Bragg Albert Guyot Billy Leisaw Robert Evans 1:43.0587.341:51.4680.751:55.3678.021:49.7482.01Row 2 Don Herr Harry Grant Jules Goux Teddy Tetzlaff1:48.6482.841:58.4875.961:44.6286.031:52.1480.26Row 3 Bill Endicott Harry Endicott Billy Knipper Ralph DePalma1:45.0285.701:57.8876.351:52.1480.261:57.9676.30Row 4 Théodore Pilette Gil Andersen Willie Haupt Charlie Merz1:59.1775.521:48.9282.631:51.4980.721:46.5684.46Row 5 John Jenkins Vincenzo Trucco Spencer Wishart Howdy Wilcox1:48.64382.841:49.8481.941:49.7781.991:50.4881.46Row 6 Bob Burman Ralph Mulford Louis Disbrow Joe Nikrent 1:46.9384.171:51.4080.791:48.7582.761:54.0878.89Row 7 Jack Tower Paul Zuccarelli George Clark 1:41.9388.231:44.8685.831:58.5675.91
Box score FinishNo.DriverEntrantChassisEngineCylDispl(in3)ColorQual(mph)RankGridLapsTime/Status116 Jules Goux Peugeot Peugeot Peugeot4448blue/white86.03372006:35:05.00222 Spencer Wishart(Ralph DePalma) Mercer Automobile Company Mercer Mercer4300yellow81.991319200 +13:08.4032 Charlie Merz(Earl Cooper) Ideal Motor Car Company Stutz Wisconsin4400white/red84.46616200 +13:44.2549 Albert Guyot Sunbeam Motor Car Company Sunbeam Sunbeam6368gray80.75182200 +27:53.95523 Théodore Pilette E.C. Patterson Mercedes Knight4251gray/white75.522713200 +45:08.00612 Howdy Wilcox(Frank Fox) Frank Fox Pope-Hartford Pope-Hartford4390gray81.461520200 +48:21.55729 Ralph Mulford E. J. Schroeder Mercedes Mercedes4449gray80.791722200 +53:00.50831 Louis Disbrow(H. J. Kilpatrick) J. I. Case T. M. Company Case Case4449gray/red82.761023200 +54:04.00935 Willie Haupt (Lee Oldfield) Mason Motor Company Duesenberg Duesenberg4350dark tan80.721915200 +1:17:30.101025 George Clark (Tom Alley) Tulsa Auto Manufacturing Company Tulsa Wisconsin4340red/black75.912627200 +1:21:09.25114 Bob Burman(Hughie Hughes) Keeton Motor Company Keeton Wisconsin4449green/white84.17721190Flagged123 Gil Andersen(Earl Cooper) Ideal Motor Car Company Stutz Wisconsin4400white/red82.631114187Camshaft gears135 Robert Evans (Lee Oldfield) Mason Motor Company Duesenberg Duesenberg4350dark tan82.01124158Clutch1417 Billy Leisaw(Lee Oldfield) Will Tompson Buick Buick4318orange/black78.02223148Loose rods1519 Caleb Bragg(Ralph DePalma) Mercer Automobile Company Mercer Mercer4424yellow87.3421128Pump shaft1610 Billy Knipper(Harry Grant) Henderson Motor Car Company Knipper Duesenberg4350azure blue80.262011125Clutch1727 Teddy Tetzlaff Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini4444red/green81.30168118Drive train1832 Joe Nikrent (Eddie Hearne) J. I. Case T. M. Company Case Case4449gray/red78.89212467Burned bearing196 Jack Tower Mason Motor Company Duesenberg Duesenberg4350dark tan88.2312551Crash T12028 Vincenzo Trucco Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini4444red/green81.94141839Loose gas tank211 Harry Endicott(Ed Madden) Nyberg Auto Company Nyberg Nyberg6377red76.35231023Transmission2245* Paul Zuccarelli Peugeot Peugeot Peugeot4448blue/white85.8342618Main bearing2321 Ralph DePalma Mercer Automobile Company Mercer Mercer4340yellow76.30241215Burned bearing2426 Harry Grant Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini4444red/green75.9625614Gas tank2518 John Jenkins Schacht Motor Car Company Schacht Schacht4299red/white82.8491713Crankshaft268 Don Herr Ideal Motor Car Company Stutz Wisconsin4400white/red82.84857Clutch shaft2733 Bill Endicott J. I. Case T. M. Co. Case Case6448gray/red85.70591Drive shaft
Indianapolis 500 Rookie
Note: Several sources claim Zuccarelli's entry to have carried the numerical designation #15. Photographs taken of entries qualified for the 1913 race, however, exhibit #45 prominently displayed on the Peugeot's front-facing engine grill.
Race statistics
Lap Leaders Laps Leader1 Caleb Bragg2–3 Bob Evans4–14 Jules Goux15–55 Bob Burman56–95 Jules Goux96–102 Gil Andersen103–124 Jules Goux125–135 Gil Andersen136–200 Jules Goux
Total laps led Laps Leader Jules Goux 138 Bob Burman 41 Gil Andersen 18 Bob Evans 2 Caleb Bragg 1
Race details For 1913, riding mechanics were required.
Notes
Works cited Indianapolis 500 Chronicle, 1999, Rick Pope 2006 Indianapolis 500 Official Program
References