Robert William Unser (February 20, 1934 – May 2, 2021) was an American automobile racer. At his induction into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1994, he had the fourth most IndyCar Series wins at 35 (behind his brother Al, A. J. Foyt, and Mario Andretti). the third oldest of four brothers. When he turned one, his family moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico where his father started a garage on U.S. Route 66.
Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
Unser debuted in 1955 at Pike's Peak, dubbed "Unser's Peak" because of his family's history of success at the hill climb. He won six straight titles from 1958 to 1963. Unser's record time was broken by Michele Mouton, so Audi approached Unser asking if he would want to attempt to take the record back. including two stock car class victories (1969 and 1974) and a single sports car class win (1963).
IndyCar career
Unser came from a family of racecar drivers. He won numerous racing championships throughout his career, including three Indianapolis 500 titles. When asked in 2008 about his potential to move from midget and sprint cars, Unser said, "I never considered Indianapolis because I didn't think I was good enough. But Rufus (Parnelli Jones) told me I was going and he got me a ride and I always be indebted to him."
thumb|left|Unser's winning car from the 1968 Indianapolis 500
Unser made his IndyCar debut in 1962 Unser's second Indianapolis 500 in 1964 ended on the second lap in the crash that killed Eddie Sachs and Dave MacDonald. Unser moved to an IndyCar owned by Bob Willke from 1966 until 1970. Teams were allowed to bolt on a wing for the first time and speeds rose significantly (the previous record speed was ). He remained on Gurney's team until 1979. Roger Penske wanted a proven winner to join his young driver Rick Mears. Unser retired during off-season testing for Pat Patrick at Phoenix. For years, Unser and Andretti did not speak to each other willingly until early 2017 when Unser announced on his YouTube channel that Andretti reached out to wish him the best after Unser got extremely sick. In 1993, Unser set a new Bonneville Salt Flats record at Bonneville Speedway of 223.709 in a D/Gas Modified Roadster that stood for 18 years.
In 2003, Unser published a book, Winners are Driven: A Champion's Guide to Success in Business and Life.
Broadcaster
thumb|right|Unser in 2013
Unser was a television broadcaster for 20 years after his retirement from racing. He was a television commentator for IndyCar races after his retirement working for NBC, ABC, and ESPN.
- National Sprint Car Hall of Fame (1997)
- Pikes Peak Hill Climb Museum Hall of Fame (1997)
- Colorado Sports Hall of Fame (2011)
- International Snowmobile Hall of Fame (2018)
- He was presented with Indy 500 Front Row Award in 1999, for being a nine-time front row qualifier (1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981).
- He was selected fourth in The Greatest 33 list of Indianapolis 500 drivers in 2011.
Personal life
Unser was the father of two sons, Bobby Jr. and Robby, and two daughters, Cindy and Jeri. Unser coached Robby for the 1998 and 1999 Indianapolis 500. Unser was later convicted of a Federal misdemeanor, "unlawful operation of a snowmobile within a National Forest Wilderness Area" (16 U.S.C. 551, 36 C.F.R. 261.16(a)), and was fined $75. Unser appealed this decision all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court,
Death
Unser died on May 2, 2021, at the age of 87 at his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico from natural causes. Pallbearers outside of the Unser family included Willy T. Ribbs, Johnny Rutherford, and Rick Galles.
Racing record
American open-wheel racing results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)
Complete USAC Championship Car results
CART
Indianapolis 500 results
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
|-
! Year
! Chassis
! Engine
! Start
! Finish
|-
| 1963
| Kurtis 500K
| Novi
| 16th
| 33rd
|-
| 1964
| Ferguson P104
| Novi
| 22nd
| 32nd
|-
| 1965
| Ferguson P104
| Novi
| 8th
| 19th
|-
| 1966
| Huffaker 66
| Offy
| 28th
| 8th
|-
| 1967
| Eagle 67
| Ford
| 8th
| 9th
|-
| 1968
| Eagle 68
| Offy
| 3rd
| 1st
|-
| 1969
| Lola T152
| Offy
| 3rd
| 3rd
|-
| 1970
| Eagle 67
| Ford
| 7th
| 11th
|-
| 1971
| Eagle 71
| Offy
| 3rd
| 12th
|-
| 1972
| Eagle 72
| Offy
| 1st
| 30th
|-
| 1973
| Eagle 73
| Offy
| 2nd
| 13th
|-
| 1974
| Eagle 74
| Offy
| 7th
| 2nd
|-
| 1975
| Eagle 74
| Offy
| 3rd
| 1st
|-
| 1976
| Eagle 74–76
| Offy
| 12th
| 10th
|-
| 1977
| Lightning Mk1/77
| Offy
| 2nd
| 18th
|-
| 1978
| Eagle 78
| Ford Cosworth DFX
| 19th
| 6th
|-
| 1979
| Penske PC-7
| Ford Cosworth DFX
| 4th
| 5th
|-
| 1980
| Penske PC-9
| Ford Cosworth DFX
| 3rd
| 19th
|-
| 1981
| Penske PC-9B
| Ford Cosworth DFX
| 1st
| 1st
|}
Indy 500 qualifying results
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%; text-align:center"
! Year
! Att #
! Date
! Time
! Qual<br />Day
! Car #
! Laps
! Qual<br />Time
! Qual<br />Speed
! Rank
! Start
! Comment
|-
| 1967
| 4
| 05-13
| 4
| 1
| 6
| 4
| —
| 164.752
| 9
| 8
|
|-
| 1968
| 6
| 05-18
| 6
| 1
| 3
| 4
| —
| 169.507
| 3
| 3
|
|-
| 1969
| 12
| 05-24
| 12
| 2
| 1
| 4
| 3:32.1600
| 169.683
| 3
| 3
|
|-
| 1970
| 24
| 05-16
| 24
| 1
| 3
| 4
| 3:33.6400
| 168.508
| 8
| 7
|
|-
| 1971
| 17
| 05-15
| 17
| 1
| 2
| 4
| 3:24.7600
| 175.816
| 3
| 3
|
|-
| 1972
| 13
| 05-14
| 16:49
| 1
| 6
| 4
| 3:03.7300
| 195.940
| 1
| 1
|
|-
| 1973
| 19
| 05-12
| 13:28
| 1
| 8
| 0
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
|-
| 1973
| 29
| 05-12
| 17:20
| 1
| 8
| 4
| 3:01.6500
| 198.183
| 2
| 2
|
|-
| 1974
| 14
| 05-11
| 11:40
| 1
| 48
| 4
| 3:14.4100
| 185.176
| 8
| 7
|
|-
| 1975
| 16
| 05-10
| 13:14
| 1
| 48
| 4
| 3:08.4100
| 191.073
| 3
| 3
|
|-
| 1976
| 1
| 05-15
| 14:36
| 1
| 3
| 1
| —
| —
| —
| —
| align=left | PULLED OFF
|-
| 1976
| 34
| 05-16
| 13:15
| 2
| 3
| 4
| 3:11.9800
| 187.520
| 5
| 12
|
|-
| 1977
| 6
| 05-14
| 11:44
| 1
| 6
| 1
| —
| —
| —
| —
| align=left | PULLED OFF
|-
| 1977
| 32
| 05-14
| 16:48
| 1
| 6
| 4
| 3:02.0700
| 197.726
| 2
| 2
|
|-
| 1978
| 30
| 05-20
| 17:07
| 2
| 48
| 4
| 3:04.9400
| 194.658
| 10
| 20
|
|-
| 1979
| 17
| 05-13
| 14:08
| 1
| 12
| 4
| 3:09.5600
| 189.913
| 4
| 4
|
|-
| 1980
| 23
| 05-10
| 14:16
| 1
| 11
| 4
| 3:09.4800
| 189.994
| 3
| 3
|
|-
| 1981
| 19
| 05-16
| 11:36
| 1
| 3
| 4
| 2:59.5100
| 200.546
| 2
| 1
|
|}
Complete Formula One World Championship results
Unser participated in two Formula One World Championship Grands Prix.
(key)
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%"
! Year
! Entrant
! Chassis
! Engine
! 1
! 2
! 3
! 4
! 5
! 6
! 7
! 8
! 9
! 10
! 11
! 12
! WDC
! Points
|-
|rowspan="2"| 1968
!rowspan="2"|Owen Racing Organisation
!BRM P126
!Rowspan="2"|BRM P101 3.0 V12
| RSA
| ESP
| MON
| BEL
| NED
| FRA
| GBR
| GER
|style="background:#FFFFFF;"| ITA<br />
| CAN
|
|
! rowspan="2"|NC
! rowspan="2"|0
|-
!BRM P138
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| USA<br />
| MEX
|}
NASCAR
(key) (<span style="font-size:85%">Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.</span>)
Grand National Series
Winston Cup Series
Daytona 500
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"
|-
! Year
! Team
! Manufacturer
! Start
! Finish
|-
| 1969
| Smokey Yunick
| Ford
|align=center| 4
|align=center style="background:#EFCFFF;"| 42
|}
References
External links
- Bobby Unser Photos
- The Greatest 33