Bill Vukovich II
Encyclopedia
William John Vukovich, Jr. (born March 29, 1944, Riverside, California
), better known as Bill Vukovich II is a former driver in the championship car division of USAC and CART
series.
He was named the 1968 Indianapolis 500
Rookie of the Year, a result of his 7th place finish. Vukovich raced in the 1965-1982 seasons, with 158 combined career starts, including the Indianapolis 500
in 1968-1977, 1979-1980. He finished in the top ten 85 times, with one victory in 1973 at Brooklyn. He also had 23 National midget car
victories in his career, and drove for part of his career in Christopher J.C. Agajanian
's midget car.
and the father of Billy Vukovich III
, both of whom were killed in racing accidents.
Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, and the county seat of the eponymous county. Named for its location beside the Santa Ana River, it is the largest city in the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area of Southern California, 4th largest inland California...
), better known as Bill Vukovich II is a former driver in the championship car division of USAC and CART
Champ Car
Champ Car was the name for a class and specification of open wheel cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race...
series.
He was named the 1968 Indianapolis 500
1968 Indianapolis 500
-Race schedule:- Time Trials :1968 was the second and eventually the final year the controversial turbine cars were running in the 1968 race classic. Turbine cars were entered by STP and by Carroll Shelby...
Rookie of the Year, a result of his 7th place finish. Vukovich raced in the 1965-1982 seasons, with 158 combined career starts, including the Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...
in 1968-1977, 1979-1980. He finished in the top ten 85 times, with one victory in 1973 at Brooklyn. He also had 23 National midget car
Midget car racing
Midget cars, also Speedcars in Australia, are very small race cars with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four-cylinder engines.-Cars:Typically, these cars have 300 to 400 horsepower and weigh...
victories in his career, and drove for part of his career in Christopher J.C. Agajanian
Christopher J.C. Agajanian
Joshua "J.C./Aggie" Agajanian was an influential figure in American motorsports history. He was a promoter and race car owner.- Early life :...
's midget car.
Racing family
Bill II is the son of 2-time Indy 500 Winner, Bill VukovichBill Vukovich
Bill Vukovich was a Serbian American automobile racing driver. He won the 1953 and 1954 Indianapolis 500 plus two more American Automobile Association National Championship races...
and the father of Billy Vukovich III
Billy Vukovich III
William John Vukovich III , better known as Billy Vukovich III or Bill Vukovich III was an American race car driver. He was a three time starter of the Indianapolis 500...
, both of whom were killed in racing accidents.
Indy 500 results
Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish |
---|---|---|---|---|
1968 1968 Indianapolis 500 -Race schedule:- Time Trials :1968 was the second and eventually the final year the controversial turbine cars were running in the 1968 race classic. Turbine cars were entered by STP and by Carroll Shelby... |
Shrike | Offy | 23rd | 7th |
1969 1969 Indianapolis 500 Results of the 1969 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Friday, May 30, 1969.-Race schedule:-Jigger Sirois:On pole day, Saturday May 17, rain threatened to wash out the afternoon. At the time, the rules did not specifically provide for rain delay extensions during the pole round... |
Laycock | Offy | 26th | 32nd |
1970 1970 Indianapolis 500 The 1970 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Saturday, May 30, 1970.Following in the footsteps of his brother, Bobby, Al Unser dominates the 500, leading 190 laps, matching Jim Clark's total in 1965, and the most since 1953, when Bill Vukovich led all but five laps in the race... |
Brabham | Offy | 30th | 23rd |
1971 1971 Indianapolis 500 The 1971 Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 29, 1971. ABC television broadcast the race for the first time in same-day tape delay.... |
Brabham | Offy | 11th | 5th |
1972 1972 Indianapolis 500 The 1972 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 27, 1972.Gary Bettenhausen leads 138 laps until his engine blows on lap 176. Jerry Grant gets the lead but pits for new tires on lap 188 in team mate Bobby Unser’s pit. Bettenhausen’s Penske team mate Mark Donohue... |
Eagle | Offy | 18th | 28th |
1973 1973 Indianapolis 500 The 57th Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Wednesday, May 30, 1973. The race was held over three days due to rain and 2 major accidents. After 133 laps , rain halted the race, and Gordon Johncock was declared the winner.... |
Eagle | Offy | 16th | 2nd |
1974 1974 Indianapolis 500 The 58th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 26, 1974. Johnny Rutherford, in his eleventh attempt, won the race from the 25th starting position, the farthest back since Fred Frame in 1932.... |
Eagle | Offy | 16th | 3rd |
1975 1975 Indianapolis 500 The 1975 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 25, 1975.Wally Dallenbach Sr. had a twenty-second lead when he retired on lap 162 with a burned piston. Johnny Rutherford lost the inherited lead to Bobby Unser when he pitted. On lap 171 the yellow came out for rain and the two... |
Eagle | Offy | 8th | 6th |
1976 1976 Indianapolis 500 The 1976 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 30, 1976.Rain stopped the race on lap 102. Two hours later, the race was about to be restarted, but the rain fell again. Officials called the race at that point and Johnny Rutherford was declared the winner... |
Eagle | Offy | 9th | 31st |
1977 1977 Indianapolis 500 The 1977 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 29, 1977.Gordon Johncock led 129 laps and had a 16 second lead on A.J. Foyt one lap after final pit stops when his crankshaft broke. Foyt became the first driver to win four times. Tom Sneva broke the barrier in qualifying, and... |
Coyote Coyote (chassis) The Coyote was a brand of racing chassis designed and built for the use of A.J. Foyt's race team in USAC Championship Car racing including the Indianapolis 500. It was used from 1966 to 1983 with Foyt himself making 141 starts in the car winning 25 times. George Snider had the second most starts... |
Foyt | 23rd | 17th |
1978 1978 Indianapolis 500 The 1978 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 28, 1978. For the first time, Mary Fendrich Hulman, widow of Tony Hulman, delivered the command for drivers to start engines.... |
Eagle | Offy | Failed to Qualify | |
1979 1979 Indianapolis 500 The 1979 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 27, 1979.The month was filled with controversy on and off the track. A court injunction was issued after USAC denied entries by the start-up CART series. During time trials, several cars were disqualified due to illegal wastegate... |
Watson | Offy | 34th | 8th |
1980 1980 Indianapolis 500 Results of the 1980 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 25, 1980.-Recap:After failing in its 1979 debut, Jim Hall's radically new Chaparral chassis is driven to easy victory by Johnny Rutherford. Tom Sneva becomes the first driver to place second after starting last. He also... |
Watson | Offy | 30th | 12th |
1981 1981 Indianapolis 500 The 65th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 24, 1981. A hectic month of May was interrupted several times by rain. Bobby Unser took the checkered flag as the winner, with Mario Andretti second... |
Watson | Offy | Failed to Qualify | |
1982 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... |
Lightning | Cosworth Cosworth Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries... |
Failed to Qualify | |
1983 1983 Indianapolis 500 Results of the 1983 Indianapolis 500 held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 29, 1983.-Recap:Three-time runner up Tom Sneva is stuck behind the lapped car of Al Unser, Jr., who is helping protect the lead of his father Al Unser despite being shown the blue "move-over" flag... |
Eagle | Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918... |
Failed to Qualify |