Indy 500 1965 – the British invasion
Our photo special looks back at Jim Clark’s famous win Stateside – another victory in an epic season for the Scot
Pensive conversation between Jim Clark and Colin Chapman ahead of the start. Jimmy qualified on the front row, second to AJ Foyt – but only because the 1964 winner screwed himself up to beat Clark’s new record mark of 160.729mph. Foyt, in a Lotus 34, pulled out a speed of 161.233mph, 7mph up on his 1964 best in a front-engined Watson
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We were there…
On his third attempt Jim Clark won the annual American classic race on the rectangular Indianapolis track. In 1963 he finished a close second in a rear-engined Lotus with aluminium push-rod Ford V8 engine, in 1964 tyre trouble put him out after challenging for the lead in a Lotus with aluminium 4-camshaft Ford V8 racing engine, and this year in a Lotus 38 with the latest 4-camshaft Ford V8 engine and running on Firestone tyres everything went according to plan and he won the race at record speed, having led for 190 of the 200 laps. Qualifying trials had been held at record speeds with A. J. Foyt taking pole position at 161.233 m.p.h. for the four laps with a Lotus-Ford V8, Clark second at 160.729 m.p.h., and Dan Gurney third at 158.898 m.p.h, in a similar car. Another Lotus-Ford V8 was in the middle of the second row of the start, driven by Parnelli Jones, so it was not surprising that Lotus cars dominated the race.
Although the end of the classic front-engined 4-cylinder Offenhauser Roadster Indianapolis car was in sight in 1963, this type of car managed a win last year, but this year saw it virtually dead and buried, the highest placed to qualify being in the fifth row of the three-by-three starting grid, this same car, driven by Gordon Johncock, finishing fifth out of the eleven finishers. Slowest of the 33 starters was a rear-engined 4-cylinder Offenhauser car with a speed of 153.774 m.p.h., and among the starters were two Novi V8-engined cars and the two B.R.P.-built cars with Ford V8 engines. In three brief years Indianapolis has witnessed a complete change about in design, and Clark’s win this year with the Lotus 38-Ford V8 has established the pattern just as Cooper-Climax did in Grand Prix racing in 1959.
In the race Foyt retired with transmission trouble shortly after half-distance, Gurney went out with engine trouble at 115 miles, Masten Gregory retired one B.R.P.-Ford V8 with loss of oil pressure and Johnny Boyd retired the other one with rear-end trouble. The 4-w-d. Ferguson-Novi V8 went out with an oil leak and the Hydro-elastic B.M.C.-suspended car with rear-mounted Offenhauser engine driven by Walt Hansgen retired through overheating.
Tradtional pre-race pose. Team Lotus gave the Monaco GP a miss to focus on the Indy 500. Ford’s latest quad-cam V8 was tuned to run on methanol and offered Len Terry’s full monocoque Type 38 500bhp through a ZF two-speed transaxle ’box.
Clark led from the start, Foyt hit the front on lap two, but Jimmy steamed back a lap later – then led all the way, save for nine laps during fuel and tyre stops. The addition of the Wood Brothers stock car crew to service the works team paid off. They made full use of the gravity refuelling rig, loading Clark’s 38 with 50 US gallons in 19.8sec at the first stop, and 58 in 24.7sec at the second. Matched to Jimmy’ s pace, no one got close. Foyt was classified 15th (transmission failure).
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Scenes from practice and qualifying as Clark dials himself in.
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Stock car veteran Bobby Johns joined Clark in a second works 38 after Dan Gurney chose to go it alone in a Type 38, while Parnelli Jones fell back on an Agajanian-prepped 34
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Jim Clark is the first European driver to win the Indianapolis 500-mile race since 1916 but star of this year’s race was possibly young Mario Andretti, an Italian living in America making his first Indianapolis attempt. Driving an American-built car with rear-mounted Ford V8 engine, he made fourth fastest qualifying speed at 158.849 m.p.h. and finished third in the race, earning all the prizes for the best newcomer to the race. Colin Chapman and Jim Clark as Entrant and Driver collected well over £50,000 in prize money between them, as well as a great deal more in bonuses and goods [it was actually more than $150,000], which may explain why they turned their backs on the Grand Prix of Monte Carlo with its £700 prize money. – D.S.J., July 1965.
All smiles now, but Clark had to quell pre-race doubts about racing at Indy in 1965, particularly because his mother was worried about his well-being. The morning after his win, he phoned Ford exec Leo Beebe to thank him for making a convincing case to race
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Chapman raises his arms in characteristic delight to welcome Clark into Victory Lane as the winning Type 38 trundles towards him. A big pay day – but this landmark win meant more than just prize money
IMS
49th Indianapolis 500
500 Miles, 200 laps, May 31st 1965
1st: J. Clark (Lotus-Ford V8) 242.504 k.p.h. (150.686 m.p.h.)
2nd: R. Parnelli Jones (Lotus-Ford V8)
3rd: M. Andretti (Brawner-Ford V8)
4th: A. Miller (Lotus-Ford V8)
5th: G. Johncock (Offenhauser-Roadster)
6th: M. Rupp (Rear-engined Offenhauser Sp.)
7th: D. Branson (Rear-engined Ford V8)
8th: R. Johns (Lotus-Ford V8)
9th: A. Unser (Lola-Ford V8)
10th: E. Johnson (Offenhauser-Roadster)
11th: L. Sutton (Rear-engined Ford V8)
Fastest lap: A. J. Foyt (Lotus-Ford V8), on lap 91, at 253.705 k.p.h. (157.646 m.p.h.)
Lotus’s band of brothers
Colin Chapman, Jim Clark and Team Lotus reshaped Formula 1 in their own image during the 1960s. But their 1965 Indy 500 win was at least as significant for US racing. Here, we name and salute the individuals who saw it over the line
1. David Lazenby
Chief mechanic/crew chief. Ex-RAF. Worked on Elite’s production line. Thence to Lotus Components. Indy chief mechanic from 1964-66. Founded Hawke, of (mainly) Formula Ford fame, in 1969.
2. Graham Clode
Mechanic. Joined Formula 1 squad in 1964. Swiftly seconded onto Indy programme. Principal task in 1965 was to oversee team’s number two car, driven by NASCAR’s Bobby Johns.
3. Peter Jackson
Upholsterer by trade, his burgeoning Specialised Mouldings company was transforming the sport via its expertise of glass-fibre. Attended Indy as an enthusiast – but got (willingly) roped-in.
4. Bill McCrary
The suited character is something of a mystery – even the man next to him, Bob Sparshott, draws a blank. However we think it is Bill McCrary, an Indianapolis resident and head of the Firestone Racing Division.
5. Bob Sparshott
Mechanic. The youngster, at just 22, with the Beatles mop-top – which AJ Foyt threatened to chop off! Landed with the jobs nobody else wanted, including pitboard duty next to the unnervingly low pitwall.
6. Allan Moffat
Go-fer. Canadian-born. Held the stick that grasped the cup of water for Clark at pitstops. Ended storied driving as a four-time Australian touring car champion
– all with/for Ford.
7. Jim Smith
Mechanic. True blue Aussie. Joined in 1964. Handed number one role on Clark’s car for 1965. Repaid Chapman’s faith. But, dismayed by prospects – and pay –
left soon afterwards. He returned to his first love: the sea.
8. Colin Chapman
Founder, engineering genius and driving force of Lotus. At Indy ’65, Chapman met Andretti for the first time and the seed was sown for a later great Lotus partnership.
9. Mike Underwood
Mechanic. Aka ‘Charlie Chins’. Another ex-RAF alumnus who joined Lotus Components. Was Clark’s number one until Chapman decreed otherwise. Promoted to Indy chief mechanic in 1967.
10. Jim Clark
Very strong candidate for being the greatest racing driver of all time; 1965 was peak Clark and the season has to be high on the list for the greatest ever by one single driver. The Indy win is why.