Every May, the world’s greatest drivers, the biggest teams, and the most powerful machines on the planet descend on Indianapolis for one reason which is to win the greatest race in motorsports.
But the Indianapolis 500 has never cared about favorites.
For over a century, the Brickyard has chewed up sure things and spit them out, turned long shots into legends, and sent the most dominant cars of their era home empty-handed.
It’s a 500-mile race where a $6 part can end a season, where a rookie running on fumes can outsmart the entire field, and where a driver without a ride at the start of the month can be drinking milk in Victory Lane by the end of it.
That’s what makes May in Indianapolis unlike anything else in sports.
The following moments aren’t just racing history, they’re proof that at the Indy 500, the only thing you can count on is the unexpected.
Take a look below at the The 10 Biggest Upsets and Surprises in Indianapolis 500 History.
1. A.J. Foyt Upsets the Dominant Parnelli Jones — 1964
Widely considered the gold standard of Indy 500 upsets. After a rain delay pushed the race back a day, Parnelli Jones entered as the overwhelming favorite. He had won the race the year before and his car was clearly the class of the field. Jones led the race in dominant fashion, building a massive advantage over the field. Then — with just three laps remaining — his oil tank failed and he was forced to stop. A.J. Foyt, who had been patiently running in second, inherited the lead and won his second Indianapolis 500. The win cemented Foyt as one of the all-time greats of the race and stands as the ultimate example of why no lead is safe at Indianapolis until the checkered flag falls over the Yard of Bricks.
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