102 Stats in 102 Days Until 102nd Indy 500 – Day 73, Oldest Polesitters (April 27, 2018)

The 102nd Indianapolis 500 is 30 days away! This is the 73rd day of the 102 Stats in 102 Days Until the 102nd Indy 500 blog.

Each day from now until the Saturday before the Indianapolis 500, we’ll post a list of stats related to the race. Some are well-known statistics, while others are a little more in-depth.

Here is a look at the top 10 oldest drivers to serve as the polesitter for the Indianapolis 500. At 49 years old, Cliff Bergere was the 1946 polesitter, the oldest ever, and the first time a driver in their 40s had ever led the field to the green flag at Indianapolis. He broke the record set by Earl Cooper in 1926; Cooper was 39 years old. Arie Luyendyk is on the list three times.

Oldest Polesitters

- Cliff Bergere: 49 years, 176 days (1946 race)

- Bobby Unser: 47 years, 94 days (1981 race)

- Mario Andretti: 47 years, 86 days (1987 race)

- Arie Luyendyk: 45 years, 252 days (1999 race)

- Arie Luyendyk: 43 years, 249 days (1997 race)

- Emerson Fittipaldi: 43 years, 167 days (1990 race)

- Johnny Rutherford: 42 years, 75 days (1980 race)

- A.J. Foyt: 40 years, 130 days (1975 race)

- Arie Luyendyk: 39 years, 252 days (1993 race)

- Earl Cooper: 39 years, 181 days (1926 race)

Notes of Interest

- Rick Mears earned five of his six pole positions in his 30s. He was just six days younger than Cooper was when he started from the pole for the sixth and final time in the 1991 race; their birthdays were one day apart (Cooper on December 2 and Mears on December 3; however, the race dates fell on May 31, 1926 and May 26, 1991). At 39 years, 175 days, however, Mears is still the second oldest driver to win the race from the pole (Bobby Unser at 47 years, 94 days on the 1981 race).