Who are the 10 best Indy 500 drivers of all time?
The 2025 INDYCAR season has already delivered stellar moments, even before "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." That highly anticipated race happens Sunday with the 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500.
No race is bigger, and as a treat, Indiana fans will also have the opportunity to watch the NBA's Indiana Pacers play the third game of the Eastern Conference Finals series at home later that day.
The main event takes place at the storied Indianapolis Motor Speedway (coverage begins at 10 a.m. ET on FOX and streaming on the FOX Sports app). Ahead of all the action, we've rounded up the best drivers to grace the course.
Here are the 10 best Indianapolis 500 drivers of all time.
10 best Indy 500 drivers of all time
10. Dario Franchitti
Although he had one of the shorter Indy 500 careers on this list, Franchitti managed to compile some impressive results. He earned three victories at the track between 2007-2012. Moreover, he added three other top-10 finishes to his name despite participating in just 10 races. His best stretch was when he claimed six top-seven finishes in seven attempts from 2005 and 2012.
9. Arie Luyendyk
Luyendyk won the Indy 500 twice, but it was a mixed bag overall. He raced in the event every year from 1985 to 2002 and withdrew in 2003, but he finished outside the top 10 in 10 different races. Still, few can match the success he found, with seven top-10 finishes at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
8. Louis Meyer
The first three-time winner in the race's history, Meyer is one of the top drivers who isn't talked about nearly enough. He had a truly remarkable race in 1936, becoming just the second racer in history — and last — to win the Indy 500 from a starting position of 28th or lower. Meyer grabbed first and second, respectively, in his first two tries in Indianapolis.
7. Bobby Unser
It's not how you start, it's how you finish. Never has that been more true than with Unser, who had just one top-10 finish in his first four tries at Indy. However, Unser would eventually win the Indy 500 three times (1968, 1975 and 1981). In his last four starts, he had three top-six finishes, including winning the event on his last time at the track at age 47.
6. Johnny Rutherford
Another three-time Indy 500 winner, Rutherford claimed his victories between 1974 and 1980. Rutherford had a bit of a slow start to this race, finishing 18th or lower in each of his first nine times at the track. He then turned in four straight top-10 finishes, including winning in 1974 and 1976 and grabbing second in 1975.
5. Wilbur Shaw
As good as Rutherford's three-year stretch was, Shaw one-ups him with his bonkers four-year run. From 1937 to 1940, Shaw placed first, second, first and first. A run like that automatically vaults you into the top five in the history of the Indy 500. Before that, it had been an up-and-down race for Shaw, but you cannot overlook just how dominant he was overall, with three victories and seven top-five finishes.
4. Helio Castroneves
Castroneves is the first of four drivers on this list tied for the most wins (four) at the Indy 500. He earned his most recent victory in 2021, while his previous three wins came between 2001 and 2009. He's also one of just six drivers to claim back-to-back Indy 500 victories, doing so in 2001 and 2002. Perhaps the most remarkable part of his driving career at IMS is the fact that he owns the record for the longest span between his first and last win — 20 years.
3. Al Unser Sr.
Unser isn't just tied for the most Indy 500 wins, claiming his four in 1970, 1971, 1978 and 1987. He's also the oldest winner ever at 47 years, 360 days old, slightly edging out his brother, Bobby. In his second-to-last race at IMS in 1992, Unser finished in third, while his son, Al Unser Jr., was the winner.
2. A.J. Foyt
Foyt is undoubtedly deserving of one of the top spots on this list as the first four-time winner in the race's history, finishing in first place in 1961, 1964, 1967 and 1977. Most impressive about his career in Indy, though, is that Foyt has the most starts there of any driver (35), including racing in every single one from 1958 to 1992.
1. Rick Mears
The other driver tied for the most wins at IMS, Mears dominated in Indy. He started 11 times on the front row, with six of those times coming consecutively from 1986 to 1991 — both of which are records at the track. He has also claimed a record six pole positions at the event and is one of just 12 racers to earn back-to-back pole positions.
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