Editor's Note: From Tuesday, May 19 to Saturday, May 23, FOX Sports will count down the top five Indianapolis 500 drivers of all time.
INDIANAPOLIS -- Putting together a list of the top five Indianapolis 500 Drivers of all time is nearly as daunting as winning the race itself. There have been 756 different drivers plus two relief drivers that have participated in the 98 previous Indianapolis 500s. Of those drivers, only 69 different drivers have won the race, 18 have won it more than once, just 10 have won it three times and three of the very best have won it a record four times.
The history of the Indianapolis 500 also runs over 11 decades - from Ray Harroun's first victory in 1911 to Ryan Hunter-Reay's spectacular win in the 2014 Indy 500. Many of the great drivers and deeds of Indy 500s from yesteryear have faded with the passing of time so it's completely subjective to give an accurate appraisal of drivers from the pre World War II era.
Out of that group are legendary names such as Louis Meyer, the first driver to win the Indianapolis 500 three times - 1928, 1933 and 1936; Tommy Milton, the first driver to win the race more than once when he drove to victory in 1921 and 1923; Peter DePaolo, the first driver to win the race at an average speed of more than 100 mph with his 1925 win - the first under five hours at 101.127 mph in a Duesenberg.
There are also many impressive drivers in that era that never won the race but were tremendous drivers at the Indy 500, including three-time pole winner Rex Mays, who finished second at Indy twice. In the years immediately after the war, Bill Holland never finished lower than second from 1947-1950, winning the race in 1949 - a four-year streak that is impressive by today's standards. Ted Horn never won the Indianapolis 500 but had a remarkable career from from 1936 to 1948 (no Indy 500s from 1942-45 because of World War II) where he finished no lower than fourth. During that span he finished fourth four times, third four times and second in 1936. But Horn never found his way to victory lane at Indy.
However, there is one driver from that era that belongs on this list and he was Indiana's own Wilbur Shaw of Shelbyville.
Success at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway came quickly for the "Hoosier Hotshot" as he started 32nd and finished fourth in his rookie year of 1927. But it would take 10 years before Shaw was able to make it to victory lane. He came close with second-place finishes in 1933 and 1935.
Shaw found the path to victory in the Indianapolis 500 in 1937 leading 131 of the 200 laps. That began a remarkable four-year run that including a second-place finish to race winner Floyd Roberts in 1938 and back-to-back victories in 1939 and 1940. He was the first driver to win the race in consecutive years.
He led 107 laps in the 1941 race and was a contender for a record fourth Indy 500 win before he crashed in Turn 1 on Lap 151. Shaw was injured in that crash after a defective wheel had been placed on his car.
On December 7, 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States entered World War II the following day. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was shut down during the war years and Shaw was hired by the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company to test synthetic rubber. When he arrived at the speedway, he was shocked to see how a once proud facility had fallen into disrepair and dilapidation.
When the war ended in 1945, Shaw left his greatest mark on the Indianapolis 500 by saving the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from extinction.
Famed World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker was the owner of the speedway at the time but was more focused on his role as founder and president of Eastern Airlines. Rickenbacker had padlocked the speedway and focused all of his efforts on the war. Shaw contacted Rickenbacker and was told the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was scheduled for demolition and a housing subdivision would be built on the land.
Shaw began a campaign to save the speedway, including contacting major auto manufacturers in the United States to provide financial backing. All declined.
Shaw then met with a wealthy Terre Haute, Indiana businessman who was a former Yale University Track and Field star named Tony Hulman. His company was famous for making "Clabber Girl Baking Powder" and Hulman had attended the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911 with his father as a young boy.
According to reports, despite the weeds growing through the cracks of the brick pavement and the rapid deterioration to the facility, Hulman agreed to purchase the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from Rickenbacker for $750,000 in November 1945. Hulman sold the concession rights for 15 years for $1 million.
Because of his diligent work in saving the speedway, Shaw was appointed president and had complete day-to-day control over the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Hulman, a very private man at the time, preferred to stay in the background.
Fans filled the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Memorial Day 1946 for the first Indianapolis 500 since 1941. Instead of racing in the event, Shaw was now in charge of the Indy 500. Under Shaw's leadership the Indianapolis 500 became the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing."
Hulman poured money into improvements, and Shaw delivered the world's greatest automobile race to enthusiastic crowds, which grew in number by the year.
The tandem of Hulman and Shaw brought tremendous success to the event in an era when post-war prosperity boomed in the United States.
Tragically, Shaw was killed in a plane crash near Decatur, Indiana on October 30, 1954, just one day before his 52nd birthday.
If not for Shaw's efforts, the Indianapolis 500 would have ended after 1941. His remarkable career as an Indy 500 driver is only surpassed by his contributions of saving the Indianapolis 500 for generations to come.
And he remains the last native Hoosier to win the "World's Greatest Race."
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