1941 Indianapolis 500

1941 Indianapolis 500

The 29th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, May 30, 1941.

Floyd Davis was the starting driver for the #16 car. On lap 72, Davis came in for a pit stop, and was relieved by Mauri Rose. Rose had started the race in another car and dropped out earlier. Rose went on to stay in the #16 car, and went on to win. Both drivers were credited as "co-winners," similar to what occurred in the 1924 race.

Sam Hanks was injured in a practice crash the day before the race and withdrew. He was credited with 33rd place.

On the morning of the race a fire broke out in the garage area. George Barringer's revolutionary rear-engined car was destroyed. At the time, the car was being refueled (with gasoline). In a nearby garage, another car which was owned by Joel Thorne was being worked on with a welder. The fumes caught fire from the sparks of the welding, and a huge fire broke out which burned down about a third of the southern bank of garages. The start of the race was delayed by a couple hours, and fire fighters had trouble getting to the Speedway to put of the blaze due to the heavy race day traffic.

Barringer's car was withdrawn, and he was credited with 32nd finishing position. With Hanks and Barringer out, the race lined up with only 31 cars.