Jim Rathmann (racing driver)

Jim Rathmann (born Richard Rathmann July 16 1928 from Alhambra, CA) is a former American race car driver who won the Indianapolis 500 in 1960. After starting in the middle of the first row, Rathmann ran up front all day long. From the midway point on, Rathmann and fellow driver Rodger Ward were locked in a neck and neck duel for first. Tire wear became an issue as the race wore on and Rathmann was able to keep his wheels fresh long enough to outrace Ward to the finish. The race featured the most recorded lead changes in 500 history.

He drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series in the 1949-1950 and 1952-1963 seasons with 42 starts, including the 1950 Indianapolis 500 in each of those seasons. He had 6 victories in addition to his Indy 500 win.

Jim Rathmann's actual name is Richard Rathmann. Born Richard, he and his older brother James (now known as Dick Rathmann) switched names so that he could enter a race while underage. For what was supposed to be a short time, he adopted the name "Jim" and his brother adopted the name "Dick." The name change stuck for life.

Since retiring, Rathmann has run car dealerships. He is currently the oldest and longest-ago living winner of the Indy 500.

NASCAR Career

Rathmann also drove in 3 NASCAR Strictly Stock/Grand National races from 1949 to 1951, competing in one race in each of those years. He debuted in 1949 at Langhorne. Starting 13th in the race, Rathmann slid to 32nd by the end of the race. He recovered in 1950, when Rathmann raced at the pretigious Daytona Beach Road Course. Starting 17th in the event, Rathmann finished a career-best 12th, two laps down. In his final race, coming in 1951, Rathmann started a career-best 9th at Detroit. However, he finished 52nd and never raced in NASCAR again. NASCAR Stats from Racing-Reference.info

Indy 500 results

Year Car Start Qual Rank Finish Laps Led Retired 1949 68 21 126.516 29 11 175 0 Flagged 1950 76 28 129.959 24 24 122 0 Flagged 1952 59 10 136.343 7 2 200 0 Running 1953 2 25 135.666 28 7 200 1 Running 1954 38 28 138.228 21 28 110 0 Crash T4 1955 33 20 138.707 24 14 191 0 Flagged 1956 24 2 145.120 3 20 175 3 Rings 1957 26 32 139.806 31 2 200 24 Running 1958 2 20 143.147 15 5 200 0 Running 1959 16 3 144.433 4 2 200 19 Running 1960 4 2 146.371 4 1 200 100 Running 1961 4 11 145.413 13 30 48 6 Magneto 1962 44 23 146.610 21 9 200 0 Running 1963 16 29 147.838 32 24 99 0 Magneto Totals 2320 153

Starts 14 Poles 0 Front Row 3 Wins 1 Top 5 5 Top 10 7 Retired 4

F1 career summary

The Indianapolis 500 was considered part of the Formula One schedule from 1950 through 1960. Drivers competing at Indy during those years were credited with F1 points and participation. Jim Rathmann participated in 10 Formula One races. He started on the pole 0 times, won 1 race, set 1 fast lap, and finished on the podium 4 times. He accumulated a total of 29 championship points. This total is the largest number of F1 points earned by a driver at Indianapolis.