page_title: 1982 Indianapolis 500
section_title: Finish
hierarchical_section_title: 1982 Indianapolis 500 / Race running / Finish
caption_attribution_description: English: Gordon Johncock (#20) leads Rick Mears (#1) in the closing stages of the 1982 Indianapolis 500.
context_page_description: The 66th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 30, 1982. Gordon Johncock, who had previously won the rain-shortened 1973 race, was the winner. Polesitter Rick Mears finished second by a margin of 0.160 seconds, the closest finish in Indy 500 history to that point.
  In racing circles, the 1982 race is largely considered one of the best 500s in history, although it was marred by the fatal crash of Gordon Smiley during time trials. Johncock and Mears dueled over most of the final 40 laps. Johncock pulled out to a sizeable lead after his final pit stop on lap 184. But Mears dramatically began closing the gap in the waning laps. Johncock held off Mears on the final lap in a historic victory, as the raucous crowd drowned out the loud roar of the engines. The race is also remembered for a controversial crash at the start triggered by Kevin Cogan, which took out Mario Andretti, damaged the car of A. J. Foyt, and caused the crash of two other cars.
  Officially the race was part of the 1981-82 USAC season, however, most of the entrants took part in the 1982 CART PPG Indy Car World Series.
context_section_description: On a restart with 40 laps to go, Gordon Johncock came up to speed faster and passed Rick Mears for the lead on the backstretch. Most of the balance of the field was eliminated, or running several laps behind. Johncock was unable to pull away and the two cars ran nose to tail for the next 20 laps, with Mears handling better in the turns but Johncock able to find enough speed at the end of the straightaway to keep Mears from passing. Both drivers needed to make one final pit stop to make it to the finish.
  With 18 laps to go Mears ducked into the pits. Racing down the pit lane, he found himself suddenly trapped behind the slower car of Herm Johnson. Mears locked up the brakes and bumped into Johnson's back wheel. The incident cost Mears several seconds. In his pit box, the Penske crew proceeded to fill his car full with 40 US gallons (150 L) of fuel, more than enough needed to make it to the finish. No tires were changed, and no repairs were necessary from hitting Johnson's car.
  Two laps later, Johncock dove into the pits. He precariously diced around the slower car of Jim Hickman and slid into his pit box. The Patrick Racing crew conducted a timed pit stop. The team calculated the amount of fuel needed to make it to the finish. When enough fuel had flowed into the car, a pit crew member tapped the fuel man on the back with a stick, and he disengaged. Johncock pulled away, with a pit stop many seconds quicker than that of Mears.
  Back on the track, Johncock held a lead of more than eleven seconds.  It seemed he was cruising to his second Indy victory. However, his car's handling was starting to suffer. The light fuel load he took on was exacerbating a pushing condition.
  Meanwhile, Mears' fully fueled car was heavier, and handling much better. He started closing in, more than 1 second per lap. Johncock started driving very low in the turns, trying to alleviate the pushing condition. It became clear in the waning laps that Mears was dramatically closing in on the lead. Such a circumstance was nearly unprecedented in Indy 500 history, occurring only once before in the 1937 race. With only six other cars left running, traffic was not a factor.
  Mears closed to under 3 seconds with three laps to go. With two laps to go, the margin was less than 1 second. With one lap to go, Mears pulled alongside on the mainstretch. The cars took the white flag side by side but Johncock refused to give up the lead. Once again pulling slightly ahead at the end of the straightaway, he "chop-blocked" Mears in the first turn and stayed ahead. Mears lost considerable momentum but began to reel Johncock back in down the backstretch. In turn three, Johncock drove so low that he hit a bump on the inside of the track and nearly lost control. As they exited turn four, Mears tried to slingshot pass Johncock for the win. Johncock held off the challenge and won by 0.160 seconds, the closest-ever in Indy 500 history to date. Mears lost by just over one car length. It would stand as the closest finish in race history for ten years.
  In Victory Lane, Johncock admitted to having been worried about his car's deteriorating handling as he watched Mears get larger and larger in his mirror. He said that he had had no intention of backing off in turn one on the last lap and was prepared to go through the corner side by side if necessary. Mears, when interviewed by Bill Flemming after the race, seemed less disappointed about finishing second than thrilled to have been a part of the most dramatic finish in Indy history. Mears had noticed that Johncock's handling was going away, quipping that Johncock "had 'er everywhere but straight", and praised him for the ability to overcome such a challenge. Mears also conceded that Johncock's block in turn one was not a dirty move and admitted that "it was [Johncock's] corner." In interviews in later years Mears said that he would not change the result of the race even if he could, although he jokingly claimed to have watched the tape over and over again "to see if this time I get by Gordy."
caption: Gordon Johncock leads Rick Mears in the closing stages of the race.
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