1982 Indianapolis 500

1982 Indianapolis 500

The 66th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 30, 1982. Gordon Johncock, who had previously won the rain-shortened 1973 race, was the winner. Rick Mears finished second by a margin of 0.16 seconds, the closest finish in Indy 500 history to that point.

In racing circles, the 1982 race is largely considered one of the best 500s in history, although it was marred by the fatal crash of Gordon Smiley during time trials. The race is also remembered for a controversial crash at the start triggered by Kevin Cogan, which also took out Mario Andretti, and two other cars.

Officially the race was part of the 1981-82 USAC season, however, most of the entrants took part in the 1982 CART/PPG Indy Car World Series. Championship points for the 1982 Indy 500 were not awarded towards the CART title.