[Stuart]

Al Sr. has died at the age of 82. https://www.espn.com/racing/story/_/...is-500-dies-82

Al Unser Sr., a four-time winner of the Indianapolis 500 and three-time champion in what is now the IndyCar Series, died Thursday. Unser, who had been diagnosed with cancer 17 years ago, was 82.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway said early Friday that Unser died at his home in Chama, New Mexico, with his wife, Susan, by his side.

In addition to his four Indianapolis 500 wins, his son, Al Unser Jr., won the race twice, making them the only father and son to win the race. Al Sr.'s brother, Bobby, won the 500 three times, making them the only brothers to do so.

"My heart is so saddened. My father passed away last night," Al Unser Jr. tweeted. "He was a Great man and even a Greater Father. Rest In Peace Dad!"

Al Unser Sr. retired with 39 wins and season championships in 1970, 1983 and 1985.

"Al Unser Sr. was one of the smartest drivers I've ever raced against," Mario Andretti said on ESPN's SportsCentury series. "And I often said I wish I could've had some of his patience. I know it would have worked for me many time."

Unser began racing in 1957 and competed in his first Indy 500 in 1965. He dominated in his first Indy win in 1970 by starting from the pole and leading all but 10 of the 200 laps, beating runner-up Mark Donohue by 32 seconds. He won again the next year in the distinctive "Johnny Lightning Special" fielded by Parnelli Jones and finished second to Donohue in 1972.

He earned his third Indy win in 1978. The fourth, in 1987, was, by far, the most surprising as he entered the month of May without a ride for the race.

Unser had been dropped by team owner Roger Penske after four seasons in favor of Danny Ongais, but Ongais suffered a concussion in a practice crash and wasn't able to compete. Penske turned back to Unser, giving him a backup car that began the month as a show car on display in a hotel in Reading, Pennsylvania, where the team was based.

With his victory in 1987, Unser, then 47, became the oldest winner in Indy 500 history. He also joined A.J. Foyt as the only four-time winners of the race, a group that now includes Rick Mears and 2021 race winner Helio Castroneves.

"I will always remember Big Al welcoming me to the speedway," Castroneves told The Associated Press on Friday. "He and Johnny Rutherford were the two helping me with my rookie orientation. He will be missed."

Unser made 27 starts in the Indy 500, third most in history, and qualified once on the pole and five times on the front row. The Unser family combined for 73 career starts in the Indy 500 -- a number bettered only by the 76 starts by the Andretti family. The Unser participation spans Al (27 races), Bobby (19) and Al Jr. (19), as well as Johnny (5), Robby (2) and Jerry (1).

Al Unser Sr. retired in 1994 and remains the career lap leader for the Indianapolis 500 with 644, leading over half the laps in three of his Indy 500 victories. The closest active driver is Scott Dixon with 570 laps led.

Unser also ran five NASCAR races in his career, finishing fourth in the 1968 Daytona 500 and earning three top-10 finishes in NASCAR. He also won three times in the International Race of Champions, an all-star series that pitted the top drivers from various disciplines against one another.

Al Unser Sr. is part of a prestigious club of four-time Indianapolis 500 winners along with A.J. Foyt, Rick Mears and Helio Castroneves. James Drake/Sports Illustrated/Getty Images
The youngest of four racing brothers, Unser was born in in Albuquerque in 1939 to a family of hard-core racers. His father, Jerry, and two uncles, Louis and Joe, were also drivers. Beginning in 1926, the family began competing in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, an annual road race held in Colorado.

In 1958, Al's oldest brother, Jerry, became the first Unser to qualify for the Indianapolis 500; he was killed in a crash during practice the next year.

Al Unser Sr. was inducted into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame in 1986 and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1998. His collection of trophies and cars is housed at the Unser Racing Museum in Albuquerque.

Unser is survived by wife Susan and son Al Jr. He was preceded in death by daughters Mary and Deborah. His brother Bobby also died in May at age 87, and nephew Bobby Unser Jr. died in June at 65.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

[camerjeff]

RIP Al, I met him several times when attending the Pikes Peak Hill Climb in the 1980's. He was not only a great driver, but he always would make a point of stopping and speaking with the fans if he had the time. We always came by for some of his Wife's Chili!

Good memories. He will be missed.

[hurryinhoosier62]

My old friend Bud Brown could tell some interesting stories about Bobby and Al Unser from his days as a crew member and engine builder at IMS. The most hilarious was the one about Bobby and Al racing back to the Speedway Hotel on an incomplete I-465 from the airport.

[b-man]

Legend.

RIP Al.

[Tom Vaught]

One of the great ones. He fought the cancer a long time. RIP Al.

Tom V.

[GT182]

He was more than a Legend. RIP Al Unser Sr. You will never be forgotten.

And speaking of Mark Donahue. I was at the 67 Grand Prix in Watkins Glen with my cousin. We had pit passes and just happened to be passing Mark's trailer. He hollered to us and asked if we could give him a hand rolling out his GP car. My only regret years later was not asking for a photo and autograph. We got his car out in one piece, shook hands and left. He died in 1972 from crashing in a race. Which one? I can't remember.

[Tom Vaught]

Mark drove for Roger Penske during his racing career, as many know.
He died of Brain Injuries suffered in testing BEFORE the Austrian Grand Prix in the early 70s. He was a good one.

Tom V.

[camerjeff]

Mark Donahue was an awesome driver, I still remember hearing the fans laughing at him when he was driving the Matador in Nascar, probably at Talladega as my older brother used to take me to the races in the late 60's early 70's. The reason they were laughing was because his team ran those "fancy front disc brake" they said they were needless expense and complication! This was after he was involved in a Big wreck. He slowed down and would have missed the wreck, but about 8 other cars without disc brakes ran into him from behind. The fans were saying they didn't do him any good. He died about a year later.
Never got to speak with him, but I was only about 12 when he died. He did sign a hat I for me, I kept it for a long time, don't know what happened to it though. My mother probably threw it out when I was in the Navy.

Al was awsome, he spoke to me for quite awhile at Pikes peak a couple of times. He didn't know me at all. But there were not alot of fans there in the afternoon on a weekday.