Indianapolis 500 – All-Time Lap Leaders

The list of drivers who have led at least one lap in the Indianapolis 500 has reached 239 as of the 2022 race. The list of drivers who have topped that list, however, is very short. Currently, 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon (665) holds the record for most laps led all-time. He took that distinction from Al Unser Sr. in 2022. Unser had held the record since 1987. Unser had last led laps in 1993, which was also his final Indy start.

In the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911, race winner Ray Harroun led the most lap with 83. He topped the seven drivers who led laps in the race that day. The following year, in the 1912 race, Ralph DePalma led an astounding 196 laps. The only laps he failed to lead that day were laps 1–2 and laps 199–200. DePalma’s car broke down with less than two laps to go while leading. Heartbreakingly, DePalma placed 13th. He and his riding mechanic Rupert Jeffkins made a futile effort to push the car the rest of the way. Along with the 4 laps he had previously led during the 1911 race, DePalma moved to the top of the list of all-time lap leaders in the Indianapolis 500. He would hold that record for 75 years.

Ralph DePalma added to his total, leading 132 laps during his 1915 victory. He subsequently led laps in 1919 (93), 1920 (79), and 1921 (108). By the end of his Indianapolis career, DePalma had led a record total of 612 laps to go along with his lone 1915 victory. For years, a discrepancy existed in DePalma’s total. It appears to have stemmed from his total from the 1921 race. Some box scores, and subsequent articles, listed DePalma as leading 109 laps in 1921, while more recently, it has been corrected to 108 laps. The extra lap gave DePalma an incorrect total of 613 laps led. The error persisted well into the 1980s in media guides and newspapers articles. When Al Unser Sr. was approaching the record, DePalma was reported as having 613 laps. Unser led 61 laps during the 1983 race, bringing his career total to 595 laps, thought to be just 18 short of the record.

In 1987, Al Unser Sr. took the lead with 18 laps to go, and won his record-tying fourth Indianapolis 500. At the time, it was believed that when he led that all-important 200th lap, he tied Ralph DePalma at 613 career laps led. Twelve months later when Unser led a dozen laps in the 1988 race, he was celebrated for taking over the top spot on the all-time lap leaders list. But subsequent corrections to the record suggest that Unser actually took over the top spot in 1987 – upon leading the 200th lap of that race. In any case, Unser added to his total, leading 4 more laps in 1992, and 15 laps in 1993, bringing his career total to 644. Unser entered the 1994 race, but mid-way through the month quit the team and decided to retire.

During the 2021 Indianapolis 500, Scott Dixon led seven laps and tentatively reached a total of 570 career laps led. Dixon ranked third all-time, first among active drivers, and within striking distance of Unser. He entered the 2022 race needing only 75 laps in the lead to move into first all-time. Dixon, the 2008 Indy 500 winner, five-time pole winner, and six time IndyCar champion, led 95 laps. On lap 133, he officially became the all-time lap leader in Indy 500 history. He finished the day sitting at 665 laps led. Dixon failed to lead any laps in 2023, and through the 2023 race, still sits in the top spot with 665 laps led, more than double the total of the next highest active driver (Helio Castroneves).

As of 2023, Ray Harroun, Ralph DePalma, Al Unser Sr., and Scott Dixon are the only four drivers in Indy history to sit atop the list of all-time lap leaders. Michael Andretti (431), whose best finish was 2nd in 1991, has the most laps led by a non-winner. He took over that distinction from Rex Mays in 1992.

All-time lap leaders of the Indianapolis 500. Race winners denoted in bold. Drivers active as of 2023 are denoted with ►.

Rank	Driver (# of race wins)	Total Laps led
1	► Scott Dixon (1)	665
2	Al Unser Sr. (4)	644
3	Ralph DePalma (1)	612
4	Mario Andretti (1)	556
5	A.J. Foyt (4)	555
6	Wilbur Shaw (3)	508
7	Emerson Fittipaldi (2)	505
8	Parnelli Jones (1)	492
9	Bill Vukovich (2)	485
10	Bobby Unser (3)	440
11	Michael Andretti	431
12	Rick Mears (4)	429
13	Billy Arnold (1)	410
14	► Tony Kanaan (1)	352
15	Gordon Johncock (2)	339
16	Louis Meyer (3)	332
17	Dario Franchitti (3)	329
18	► Hélio Castroneves (4)	326
19	Jim Clark (1)	298
20	Bill Holland (1)	297
21	Johnny Rutherford (3)	296
22	Rex Mays	266
23	Rodger Ward (2)	261
24	Mauri Rose (3)	256
25	Dan Wheldon (2)	235
26	Jimmy Murphy (1)	220
27	Tommy Milton (2)	218
28	Jimmy Bryan (1)	216
29	Tom Sneva (1)	208
30	Frank Lockhart (1)	205
31	Juan Pablo Montoya (2)	193
32	Arie Luyendyk (2)	186
33	Jimmy Snyder	181
34	Lee Wallard (1)	178
36	► Ryan Hunter-Reay (1)	171
35	► Simon Pagenaud (1)	169
37	Danny Sullivan (1)	162
38	Howdy Wilcox (1)	155
39	Tomas Scheckter	153
40	Jim Rathmann (1)	150
41	Peter DePaolo (1)	148
42	► Ed Carpenter	146
43	► Will Power (1)	145
44	► Marco Andretti	144
45	Dario Resta (1)	140
	Sam Hanks (1)	140
	Jules Goux (1)	139
	George Robson (1)	138
	Pat Flaherty (1)	138
	Gary Bettenhausen	138
	Johnnie Parsons (1)	131
	Lloyd Ruby	126
	Bobby Rahal (1)	126
	Earl Cooper	123
	Tony Stewart	122
	Joe Boyer (1)	119
	Greg Ray	116
	René Thomas (1)	114
	Al Unser Jr. (2)	110
	Kelly Petillo (1)	108
	Wally Dallenbach	108
	Sam Hornish Jr. (1)	107
	Babe Stapp	106
	Fred Frame (1)	106
	Buddy Rice (1)	99
	Ted Horn	94
	Dave Lewis	93
	Bill Cummings (1)	93
	Floyd Roberts (1)	92
	Kenny Bräck (1)	89
	Eddie Cheever (1)	89
	Ray Harroun (1)	88
	► Takuma Sato (2)	87
	Bob Sweikert	86
	► Alex Palou	83
	► Pato O’Ward	82
	David Bruce-Brown	81
	► Alexander Rossi (1)	81
	Danny Ongais	79
	Arthur Duray	77
	Troy Ruttman (1)	72
	Gil de Ferran (1)	71
	Jack McGrath	70
	Mark Donohue (1)	70
	Buddy Lazier (1)	70
	Frank Brisko	69
	Leon Duray	68
	Ralph Hepburn	68
	George Souders (1)	67
	Eddie Sachs	66
	► Felix Rosenqvist	61
	Maurcio Gugelmin	59
	Harry Hartz	57
	► Rinus VeeKay	57
	Roberto Guerrero	56
	Johnny Thomson	55
	James Hinchcliffe	54
	Robby Gordon	53
	Joe Leonard	52
	Jeff Ward	52
	Bruno Junqueira	52
	Max Chilton	50
	Deacon Litz	49
	Scott Goodyear	49
	► Connor Daly	47
	Ray Keech (1)	46
	Pat O’Connor	46
	Davy Jones	46
	Gil Anderson	44
	Jimmy Gleason	43
	► Marcus Ericsson (1)	43
	► Josef Newgarden (1)	43
	Bob Burman	41
	Jackie Stewart	40
	Louis Schneider (1)	39
	John Paul Jr.	39
	Alex Tagliani	39
	Teo Fabi	37
	Bob Carey	36
	Jim Hurtubise	36
	Cliff Bergere	35
	Paul Russo	35
	► Álex Palou	35
	Bob Swanson	34
	Nigel Mansell	34
	Oriol Servia	34
	Bobby Marshman	33
	Tony Gulotta	33
	Art Cross	32
	Duke Nalon	32
	Ryan Briscoe	31
	Phil Shafer	29
	Mark Dismore	29
	Danica Patrick	29
	Carlos Muñoz	29
	► Graham Rahal	28
	Fernando Alonso	27
	Jimmy Vasser	26
	Jimmy Davies	25
	Tony Bettenhausen	24
	Lou Moore	23
	A. J. Allmendinger	23
	Jacques Villeneuve (1)	22
	Raul Boesel	21
	Alessandro Zampedri	20
	George Amick	18
	Johnny Boyd	18
	Charlie Kimball	18
	Kevin Cogan	17
	Johnny Aitken	16
	Jerry Grant	16
	Robbie Buhl	16
	Vitor Meira	15
	Mike Conway	15
	► Santino Ferrucci	15
	► Colton Herta	15
	Gaston Chevrolet (1)	14
	Ernie Triplett	14
	Zach Veach	14
	Russ Snowberger	13
	Josele Garza	13
	Billy Boat	13
	Justin Wilson	13
	Townsend Bell	13
	► J.R. Hildebrand	13
	Swede Savage	12
	Felipe Giaffone	12
	Bertrand Baguette	11
	Ralph Mulford	10
	Graham Hill (1)	10
	Alex Barron	10
	Eddie Rickenbacker	9
	Albert Guyot	9
	Josef Christiaens	9
	Louis Chevrolet	9
	Dutch Bauman	9
	Len Sutton	9
	Jimmy Daywalt	8
	Pancho Carter	8
	Jim Crawford	8
	Scott Pruett	8
	Don Freeland	7
	Roger McCluskey	7
	Zachary Claman DeMelo	7
	Spencer Pigot	7
	Ira Hall	6
	Cecil Green	5
	Jimmy Jackson	5
	Spencer Wishart	5
	Steve Krisiloff	5
	E.J. Viso	5
	James Jakes	5
	► Callum Ilott	5
	Fred Belcher	4
	Cliff Durant	4
	Mike Mosley	4
	Buzz Calkins	4
	Sam Schmidt	4
	Sebastien Bourdais	4
	Oliver Askew	4
	Sage Karam	4
	George Snider	3
	Davey Hamilton	3
	Scott Sharp	3
	Bryan Herta	3
	Adrian Fernández	3
	Mario Moraes	3
	Bryan Clauson	3
	► Stefan Wilson	3
	Caleb Bragg	2
	Teddy Tetzlaff	2
	Joe Dawson (1)	2
	Robert Evans	2
	Paul Bost	2
	Herb Ardinger	2
	Dan Gurney	2
	Roger Rager	2
	Don Whittington	2
	John Andretti	2
	Robby McGehee	2
	Tora Takagi	2
	Jaques Lazier	2
	Rubens Barrichello	2
	James Davison	2
	Robert Wickens	2
	Jimmie Johnson	2
	Jean Chassagne	1
	Art Klein	1
	Roscoe Sarles	1
	Howdy Wilcox II	1
	Fred Agabashian	1
	Jack Brabham	1
	Bobby Allison	1
	Bill Vukovich II	1
	Tim Richmond	1
	Gordon Smiley	1
	Scott Brayton	1
	Stephan Gregoire	1
	Jeff Simmons	1
	Mikhail Aleshin	1
	L.L. Corum (1)	0
	Floyd Davis (1)	0

Note: L.L. Corum (1924) and Floyd Davis (1941) are in the record books as co-winners of the Indianapolis 500. But neither driver led a lap in their respective careers.

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Lap Leader Records & Statistics

Most Laps Led – Single Race (All-time)

• 198 — Billy Arnold (1930) winner
• 196 — Ralph DePalma (1912) finished 11th
• 195 — Bill Vukovich (1953) winner
• 190 — Jim Clark (1965) winner
• 190 — Al Unser Sr. (1970) winner

Most Laps Led – Single Race (Non-winner)

• 196 — Ralph DePalma (1912) finished 11th
• 171 — Parnelli Jones (1967) finished 6th
• 170 — Mario Andretti (1987) finished 9th
• 160 — Michael Andretti (1970) finished 13th

Most Laps Led – Single Race (Rookie)

• 167 — Juan Pablo Montoya (2000) winner
• 143 — Bill Holland (1947) finished 2nd
• 138 — Jules Goux (1913) winner

Most consecutive laps led

• 198 — Bill Arnold (1930) laps 3-200
• 196 — Ralph DePalma (1912) laps 3-198

Most consecutive laps led from the start

• 92 — Emerson Fittipaldi (1990) laps 1-92
• 81 — Frank Lockhart (1927) laps 1-81

Fewest laps led by the race winner

• 1 — Dan Wheldon (2011)
• 2 — Joe Dawson (1912)
• 5 — Josef Newgaren (2023)
• 9 — Juan Pablo Montoya (2015)

Most races led, career

• 15 — Tony Kanaan (2002-2008, 2012-2018, 2022)

Most consecutive races led, career

• 8 — Will Power (2013-2020)

Most lead changes (single race)

• 68 — 2013
• 54 — 2016
• 52 — 2023
• 38 — 2022
• 37 — 2016

Most different leaders (single race)

• 15 — 2017
• 15 — 2018
• 14 — 2013
• 14 — 2023

Fewest lead changes (single race)

• 1 — 1930
• 2 — 1912
• 2 — 1916

Fewest different leaders (single race)

• 2 — 1930
• 2 — 1965

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Drivers who led late but failed to win

Led Lap 199 (1 lap to go)

• Marco Andretti (2006) — finished 2nd (passed by Sam Hornish Jr.)
• J.R. Hildebrand (2011) — finished 2nd (hit wall in turn 4, passed by Dan Wheldon
• Marcus Ericsson (2023) — finished 2nd (passed by Josef Newgarden)

Led Lap 198 (2 laps to go)

• Ralph DePalma (1912) — finished 11th (connecting rod failure)
• Al Unser Jr. (1989) — finished 2nd (crashed in turn 3)
• Robby Gordon (1999) — finished 4th (pitted for fuel)
• Scott Dixon (2012) — finished 2nd (passed by Dario Franchitti)
• Alexander Rossi (2019) — finished 2nd (passed by Simon Pagenaud)
• Álex Palou (2021) — finished 2nd (passed by Hélio Castroneves)

Latest pass for the win

Taking into account the actual distance (in feet or miles) to the finish line irrespective of laps, the latest passes for the lead to win the Indianapolis 500 are as follows. Distances indicated are approximate and unofficial.

450 feet to the finish line (2006)
Rookie Marco Andretti was leading the race and took the white flag to lead lap 199. Out of turn four on the final lap, on the frontstretch Sam Hornish Jr. passed Andretti and edged him out for the win. Hornish’s car nosed ahead approximately 450 feet before they reached finish line, and he won by 0.0635 seconds.

900 feet to the finish line (2011)
Rookie J.R. Hildebrand took the lead with 3 laps to go while other drivers pitted for fuel. Hildebrand was trying to stretch his fuel to the finish. He took the white flag and led lap 199. He held about a 4-second lead. In turn four on the final lap, he came up on the lapped car of Charlie Kimball. Kimball’s car was slowing, and sputtering, low on fuel as well. Hildebrand tried to pass Kimball on the outside in turn four, but got up into the “marbles” and smacked the outside wall. His car slid down the frontstretch along the wall towards the finish line. About 900 feet before line, Dan Wheldon drove by Hildebrand’s wrecked car to take the lead and take the victory. Hildebrand continued to slide down the mainstretch, and he slid across the finish line to place second.

1.4 miles to the finish line (2023)
After three red flags for late-race incidents, the race restarted with one lap to go. Defending winner Marcus Ericsson led Josef Newgarden and Santino Ferrucci as the green and white flags came out for what was effectively a 1-lap shootout to decide the winner. Ericsson held the lead going into turn one, but coming off of turn two, Newgarden got a run. He pulled alongside and passed Ericsson for the lead on the outside down the backstretch. Newgarden weaved back and forth down the frontstretch – the so-called “Dragon” maneuver – and held off Ericsson at the finish line by 0.0974 seconds. It was the third last-lap pass for the win in Indy history.

2.8 miles to the finish line (1999)
Robby Gordon led lap 198, and ran out of fuel in turn four on the 199th lap. Gordon immediately ducked into the pits coming out of turn four. Kenny Bräck passed Gordon for the lead near the entrance to the pit area. He went on to officially lead the 199th lap (white flag), and completed the final lap for the victory.

3.4 miles to the finish line (1989)
Al Unser Jr. led lap 198, and led Emerson Fittipaldi on the backstretch on the 199th lap. In turn three, Fittipaldi passed Unser on the inside, the two cars touched wheels, and Unser crashed into the outside wall. Fittipaldi continued, taking the white and yellow flags, completed the final lap, and secured the victory.

3.5 miles to the finish line: (1912)
Ralph DePalma led the 198th lap at which point his car had begun to misfire. Holding a 5-lap lead over second place, DePalma tried to nurse his car around the final two laps. The car quit down the backstretch going into turn three. A broken connecting rod had blown a hole through the crankcase. The car coasted for a little way, and somewhere at the north end, DePalma and his riding mechanic Rupert Jeffkins began pushing the car around the track. They made their way down the frontstretch but the effort was ultimately futile. Second place Joe Dawson made up the margin, and passed DePalma to take the lead. Dawson officially led the 199th and 200th lap for the victory, the only two laps he ever led. DePalma wound up in 11th place.

3.7 miles to the finish line: (2019)
Simon Pagenaud and Alexander Rossi battled for the lead in the closing laps. On lap 199, Pagenaud passed Rossi for the lead down the backstretch, near the entrance to turn three. Pagenaud then led at the white flag, and held on to win by 0.2086 seconds.

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