Bobby Unser

Bobby Unser
1981 Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis )
Wins Podiums Poles 35 83 52
NASCAR driver
Daytona Qualifier #2 (Daytona)
Last race	1973 Winston Western 500 (Riverside)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 2 0
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	American
Active years	1968
Teams	BRM
Entries	2 (1 start)
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
First entry	1968 Italian Grand Prix
Last entry	1968 United States Grand Prix

Robert William Unser

Unser was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the son of Mary Catherine (Craven) and Jerome Henry Unser,^[4] the third oldest of four brothers. When he turned one, his family moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico where his father started a garage on U.S. Route 66.^[3] From 1953 to 1955, he served in the United States Air Force^[3] and became a top competition sharpshooter in military matches.

Racing career

Early career

Unser began racing in 1949 in a

Unser came from a family of racecar drivers. He won numerous racing championships throughout his career, including three Indianapolis 500 titles.[6]^[12] When asked in 2008 about his potential to move from midget and sprint cars, Unser said, "I never considered Indianapolis because I didn't think I was good enough. But Rufus (Parnelli Jones) told me I was going and he got me a ride and I always be indebted to him."^[13]

Unser made his IndyCar debut in 1962

In 1972, Unser started working for

From 1979 to 1981, Unser raced in the

Unser was the center of one of the most controversial finishes in Indy 500 history at the 1981 Indianapolis 500.^[19] Unser won the pole in the No. 3 Roger Penske-owned car^[9] and led the most laps (89 laps).^[13]

On lap 149, during a caution period, Unser and Mario Andretti made their pit stops and headed back to the race. Unser passed eight cars during the caution, while Andretti passed two cars. Unser won the race by 5.18 seconds,^[19] but was stripped of it the following morning in favor of second-place finisher Andretti.^[19] Andretti drove the only other car on the lead lap at the end.^[13] After a five-month lawsuit and protest by Penske, Unser was re-awarded the win in October 1981.^[2] For his infraction, Unser was instead fined $40,000 ($134,000 in today's money). ^[20][21] Unser retired during off-season testing for Pat Patrick at Phoenix.^[13]

In his autobiography Winners are Driven, Unser expressed his beliefs that the debacle was politically motivated and that USAC disqualified him (and benefited Andretti), hoping to start a falling-out between

Unser was the 1975 International Race of Champions (IROC) champion and won the 1993 Fast Masters championship.^[2]

Unser challenged Dan Gurney to improve the performance of his 1971 USAC car, leading to the development of the Gurney flap.^[23] In 1993, Unser set a new Bonneville Salt Flats record at Bonneville Speedway of 223.709 in a D/Gas Modified Roadster that stood for 18 years.

In 2003, he published a book, Winners are Driven: A Champion's Guide to Success in Business and Life.

Broadcaster

Unser was a television broadcaster for 20 years after his retirement from racing.

Unser was announcing in the booth for his brother Al's record-tying fourth Indy 500 victory in 1987 and Al's 1985 CART championship.^[15] He also called his nephew Al Jr.'s first Indy 500 victory in the 1992 Indianapolis 500^[24] and second in 1994.^[15]

Unser also broadcast several

• Unser was selected as one of Sports Illustrated's "Top Five Athletes" in the popular magazine's first twenty years, along with the Martini & Rossi and Olsonite "Driver of the Year" awards in 1974.
• Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame (1990)
• International Motorsports Hall of Fame (1990)^[9]
• Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (1994)^[2]
• National Sprint Car Hall of Fame (1997)^[25]
• Pikes Peak Hill Climb Museum Hall of Fame (1997)^[26]
• Colorado Sports Hall of Fame (2011)^[11]
• International Snowmobile Hall of Fame (2018)
• He was presented with Indy 500 Front Row Award in 1999, for being a nine-time front row qualifier (1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981).
• He was selected fourth in The Greatest 33 list of Indianapolis 500 drivers in 2011.

Federal criminal charges

On December 20, 1996 in

Unser was the father of two sons, Bobby Jr. and Robby, and two daughters, Cindy and Jeri.[3] Unser coached Robby for the 1998 and 1999 Indianapolis 500.^[24] Bobby Unser Jr., who participated in racing before giving it up to pursue stunt car driving, music, and horse breeding, died less than two months after his father at the age of 65, as a result of complications from hip surgery.^[31]

Racing record

American open-wheel racing results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Complete USAC Championship Car results

CART

Indianapolis 500 results

Indy 500 qualifying results

Complete Formula One World Championship results

Unser participated in two Formula One World Championship Grands Prix.

(key)

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Grand National Series

Winston Cup Series

Daytona 500

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bobby Unser.

• Bobby Unser driver statistics at Racing-Reference
• Bobby Unser Photos
• The Greatest 33
• Bobby Unser at
  IMDb