Troy Ruttman, aged 22, became the youngest Indianapolis 500 winner in history, a record that stood for decades.
Key Facts
- Winner
- Troy Ruttman
- Winner's age
- 22 years and 80 days
- Laps led by Vukovich
- 150 laps
- Race edition
- 36th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes
- World Championship round
- Race 2 of 8 in 1952 World Championship
- First official Rookie of the Year
- Art Cross (5th place)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Indianapolis 500 was held on May 30, 1952, as the opening round of the AAA National Championship Trail and the second round of the 1952 Formula One World Championship. Bill Vukovich dominated early, leading 150 laps, while Ferrari's Alberto Ascari drew attention as a top Formula One contender in a specially prepared car.
Troy Ruttman, driving for car owner J. C. Agajanian, won the race after Vukovich was forced out with a broken steering linkage just nine laps from the finish. Ascari retired early when a wheel hub collapsed. Ruttman's victory in the last dirt-track-style car to win at Indy made him the youngest winner at age 22 years and 80 days.
Ruttman's win set a record as the youngest winner of a World Drivers' Championship race, a mark that held for 51 years until Fernando Alonso won the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix. The race also marked the first official presentation of the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award, given to fifth-place finisher Art Cross.