 | |||||
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis 500 | |||||
| Sanctioning body | AAA | ||||
| Date | May 30, 1921 | ||||
| Winner | Tommy Milton | ||||
| Winning Entrant | Louis Chevrolet | ||||
| Average speed | 89.621 mph (144.231 km/h) | ||||
| Pole position | Ralph DePalma | ||||
| Pole speed | 100.750 mph (162.141 km/h) | ||||
| Most laps led | Ralph DePalma (108) | ||||
| Pre-race | |||||
| Pace car | H.C.S. 6 | ||||
| Pace car driver | Harry C. Stutz | ||||
| Starter | Thomas J. Hay[1] | ||||
| Honorary referee | David Beecroft[1] | ||||
| Estimated attendance | 135,000-150,000[2] ("last year was 125k") | ||||
| Chronology | |||||
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The9th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race was held at theIndianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday, May 30, 1921.
Ralph DePalma dominated another early running of the 500, but again failed to win. He led 109 laps, and had a two-lap lead at the halfway point. A connecting rod broke, and he dropped out on lap 112. DePalma retired with one win, and 612 laps led in the "500." His laps led record would not be matched for 66 years untilAl Unser Sr. reached it in1987.
Tommy Milton won the first of two 500 victories. He was accompanied by riding mechanic Harry Franck. The only European car to finish was a1921 Grand Prix Sunbeam driven byOra Haibe who was placed fifth.
Time trials was scheduled for five days, May 25–29. Four-lap (10 mile) qualifying runs were utilized. A short field of only 26 cars submitted entries, but only 23 cars arrived and prepared to qualify.Mervin Headley's entry was disallowed because only half the entry fee was paid.[3][4] Two other entries were no-shows.
Ralph DePalma completed his qualifying run on Wednesday May 25, at an average speed of 100.75 mph. He won the pole position as the only driver over the 100 mph mark. None of his four laps matched the track record (104.78 mph) set in 1919.
This would be the first 500 that featured the familiar starting grid of rows of cars three-abreast.
| Qualifying Results | ||||||
| Date | Driver | Lap 1 (mph) | Lap 2 (mph) | Lap 3 (mph) | Lap 4 (mph) | Average Speed (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5/26/1921 | Ralph DePalma | 100.89 | 100.53 | 100.56 | 101.00 | 100.75 |
| Row | Inside | Middle | Outside | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 |  Ralph DePalma W | 6 | Roscoe Sarles | 7 | Joe Boyer |
| 2 | 1 | Eddie Hearne | 22 | Jules Ellingboe R | 19 |  Jean Chassagne |
| 3 | 18 | Louis Fountaine R | 23 | Percy Ford R | 5 | Eddie Miller R |
| 4 | 3 | Ira Vail | 14 | André Boillot | 10 | Howdy Wilcox W |
| 5 | 16 | Ora Haibe | 9 | Albert Guyot | 21 | Bennett Hill |
| 6 | 17 | Riley Brett R | 15 | René Thomas W | 27 | Tom Alley |
| 7 | 24 | Jimmy Murphy | 2 | Tommy Milton | 8 | Ralph Mulford |
| 8 | 25 | Joe Thomas | 28 | C. W. Van Ranst R | ||
Note: Relief drivers in parentheses[8]
W Former Indianapolis 500 winner
R Indianapolis 500 Rookie
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| 1920 Indianapolis 500 Gaston Chevrolet | 1921 Indianapolis 500 Tommy Milton | 1922 Indianapolis 500 Jimmy Murphy |