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Indianapolis 500 Winners
Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Winning Drivers and Teams

Broken Barriers Winner's Average Speed for 500 Miles

Indianapolis 500

Over its history, the Indianapolis 500 has been completed with average speeds from 74.602 miles per hour in 1911 to 190.690 miles per hour in 2021. This section breaks down each ten mile per hour increment and what driver brought home the victory to break the barrier.

Broken Speed Barriers
Barrier Winner, Engine (speed, year)
70 mph Ray Harroun, Marmon (74.602 mph, 1911)
80 mph Rene Thomas, Delage (82.474 mph, 1914)
90 mph Jimmy Murphy, Miller (94.484 mph, 1922)
100 mph Peter DePaolo, Duesenberg (101.127 mph, 1925)
110 mph Wilbur Shaw, Offenhauser (113.580 mph, 1937)
120 mph Bill Holland, Offenhauser (121.327 mph, 1949)
130 mph Bill Vukovich, Offenhauser (130.840 mph, 1954)
140 mph Rodger Ward, Offenhauser (140.923 mph, 1962)
150 mph Jim Clark, Ford (150.686 mph, 1965)
160 mph Mark Donohue, Offenhauser (162.962 mph, 1972)
170 mph Bobby Rahal, Cosworth (170.722 mph, 1986)
180 mph Arie Luyendyk, Chevy Indy (185.981 mph, 1990)
190 mph Helio Castroneves, Honda (190.690 mph, 2021)