1939: A VIEW TO THE FUTURE
During 1939's opening day of qualifications, George Bailey puts together a four-lap qualifying run of 125.821 mph to land himself a starting position on the outside of the second row. He lasts only 47 laps in the race, but history again has been made. His curious-looking four-wheel-drive supercharged "slant-six" Miller is the first car ever to start in the Indianapolis 500 with its engine mounted behind the driver.
1940: SHAW FIRST TO WIN "BACK TO BACK"
Wilbur Shaw is the first driver to win the "500" in consecutive years. Driving the same imported Italian Maserati he steered to victory in 1939, the diminutive and dynamic Shaw joins Louis Meyer as a three-time winner of the "500" while also becoming the first ever to win in consecutive years. With three firsts and three seconds since 1933, Shaw now has the best record of any "500" driver.
1941: SHAW'S BID FOR "THREE IN A ROW" ENDS IN CRASH
Wilbur Shaw appears on his way to winning for a third consecutive year (and a record fourth overall), but he suffers a back injury when a collapsed right rear wire wheel sends him into the wall while he is leading at the three-quarter mark. It turns out to be his final race. The entry of America into World War II will bring racing to a halt for four years, after which Shaw will play a major role in saving the Speedway from extinction.
1941: ROSE TAKES OVER FOR DAVIS . AND WINS
After pole sitter Mauri Rose is forced out with mechanical trouble at 60 laps, he takes over (from teammate Floyd Davis) the car he drove to third place in 1940. He advances from 12th at Lap 80, to eighth by Lap 100, to second at Lap 160 and into the lead for the win at Lap 162. Because one started and the other finished, officials repeat the decision made for the similar situation in 1924 (Corum and Boyer) by naming Davis and Rose co-winners.
1946: TONY'S MIRACLE
Just six months after Terre Haute businessman Anton "Tony" Hulman Jr. has purchased the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (sadly neglected due to four years of inactivity during World War II), the 500-Mile Race is revived. Hulman goes into the event concerned that interest may have diminished in the interim. On the contrary, a massive crowd shows up, and gigantic traffic jams persist long after the race has started. George Robson wins.
1946: HEPBURN (NOVI) OBLITERATES QUALIFYING RECORDS
Race fans are thrilled four days before the race when 50-year-old Ralph Hepburn destroys the one- and four-lap qualifying records by almost 4 mph. His low-slung Kurtis chassis is powered by an ear-splitting V8 supercharged Winfield engine which has recently been renamed "Novi." The new records are 133.944 mph for four laps and 134.449 mph for one.
1948: YOU MEAN, IT HAS SIX WHEELS?
Into the 1948 starting field at a creditable 123.967 mph comes Billy Devore. The car is getting plenty of attention. Many had just laughed at it when it showed up for practice, and with good reason. It has six wheels!! The front looks normal, but in the rear are tandem axles. Former dirt track driver Pat Clancy, now owner of a small trucking company, thought the double rear axle concept for trucks might just work at the Speedway. Devore runs all day during the race and is flagged off after 190 laps in 12th place. The following year, Jackie Holmes will make the line-up at 128.087 mph but falls by the wayside with a broken driveshaft after 65 laps. By the time this unique car returns in 1950, it will have been converted into a standard four-wheeler.
1949: NALON, MAYS THRILL NOVI FANS
The increasingly large number of fans of the noisy V8 supercharged Novi racing cars are thrilled when Duke Nalon and Rex Mays start one-two and then proceed to run away with the race in its early stages. Nalon receives painful burns in a fiery accident when the right rear wheel comes off in Turn 3 after only 23 laps, and Mays pulls in to retire after 45 laps, but the fans are already warning, "Wait until next year."
