List of IndyCar fatalities


This article lists the people who have been fatally injured in American Championship car racing during testing, practice, qualifying, or races since 1916, categorized into drivers, riding mechanics, and non-participants. The lists show "IndyCar" or "Champ Car" fatalities that occurred in events making up the National Championship, which has been held by the following sanctioning bodies:
The National Championship, which was split from 1979 to 2007, has featured regular races, non-points paying rounds, competitions sanctioned by entities that did not stage the National Championship in the same year, and the AAA Big car meetings held in the 1946 season.
The most recent driver to be killed in an IndyCar Series event was Justin Wilson at the 2015 ABC Supply 500.

Driver fatalities

Breakdown

DecadeTotal
1910s5
1920s15
1930s14
1940s15
1950s20
1960s11
1970s4
1980s2
1990s5
2000s2
2010s2
All95

Fatalities among riding mechanics

indicates that the driver was killed in the same collision.
MechanicianDriverDate of crashSanctionTrackEventTeam/OwnerCar/EntrySession
April 8, 1916AAAGrand Boulevard Corona Grand PrizePeugeotRace
May 13, 1916AAASheepshead Bay SpeedwayMetropolitan TrophyDelageRace
July 15, 1916AAAOmaha Speedway150-mile racePeugeot – Sunbeam "Peusun"Race
August 27, 1916AAARecreation Park 100-mile raceStutzRace
September 4, 1916AAACincinnati Motor SpeedwayFirst International SweepstakesStutzRace
October 14, 1916AAASpeedway ParkGrand American Auto RaceCrawfordDuesenbergRace
November 10, 1916AAA/ACASanta Monica Road Race CourseMercerPractice
December 2, 1916AAAUniontown SpeedwayUniversal TrophyPremierRace
November 25, 1920AAALos Angeles Speedway250-mile raceDuesenbergRace
October 1, 1921AAAFresno SpeedwaySan Joaquin Valley ClassicFrontenacRace
May 30, 1930AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500DuesenbergRace
June 8, 1930AAAMichigan State Fairgrounds100-mile raceAmblerAmbler – BuickQualifying
May 26, 1931AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500Duesenberg "Jones & Maley"Practice
May 25, 1932AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500Duesenberg "Jones & Maley"Qualifying
May 28, 1933AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500? – Studebaker "Brady & Nardi"Qualifying
May 30, 1933AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500MillerRace
May 25, 1934AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500 – Miller "Miller-Hartz"Practice
May 21, 1935AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500? – Buick "Victor Gasket"Qualifying
January 26, 1936AAAAscot Motor Speedway125-mile raceWetterothOffenhauserRace
May 28, 1937AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500Stevens – Miller "Belanger-Miller"Qualifying
September 20, 1939Indianapolis Motor SpeedwayTire testTesting

Fatalities among non-participants

This section includes racers participating in an event who were killed while on the sidelines.
NameDate of crashSanctionTrackEventSessionRoleCourse of events
April 8, 1916AAAGrand Boulevard Corona Grand PrizeRacePolicemanDue to tire damage Bob Burman's racer skidded, turned over and dashed into a crowd of people, several of whom were injured. Burman, his mechanician Erick Schrader, and a policeman died.
November 18, 1916ACASanta Monica Road Race CourseAmerican Grand PrizeRaceSpectatorWith the left front wheel having collapsed, Lewis Jackson missed a slight turn. His auto slid along the roadside and struck several people, three of whom fatally. Jackson died when he was pinned against a tree.
November 18, 1916ACASanta Monica Road Race CourseAmerican Grand PrizeRaceCamera operatorWith the left front wheel having collapsed, Lewis Jackson missed a slight turn. His auto slid along the roadside and struck several people, three of whom fatally. Jackson died when he was pinned against a tree.
November 18, 1916ACASanta Monica Road Race CourseAmerican Grand PrizeRaceStreet vendorWith the left front wheel having collapsed, Lewis Jackson missed a slight turn. His auto slid along the roadside and struck several people, three of whom fatally. Jackson died when he was pinned against a tree.
December 2, 1916AAAUniontown SpeedwayUniversal TrophyRaceDriverFrank Galvin lost control of his racer, smashed through the guard rail and slammed into the press stand, injuring several of its occupants and crushing to death Hughie Hughes, who had crashed out of the race himself and was standing by the press box. Galvin, who succumbed two days later, and Gaston Weigle, his mechanician, were also killed.
May 30, 1923AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500RaceSpectatorTom Alley, relief driving for Earl Cooper, slid, rolled over and penetrated a fence, killing a 16-year-old spectator and hurting two other boys and himself.
November 29, 1923AAABeverly Hills Speedway250-mile racePre-racePhotographerAttempting a start before the race, Harry Hartz hit a photographer, a team owner, and a mechanic, killing the former two and badly injuring the latter.
November 29, 1923AAABeverly Hills Speedway250-mile racePre-raceTeam ownerAttempting a start before the race, Harry Hartz hit a photographer, a team owner, and a mechanic, killing the former two and badly injuring the latter.
October 12, 1925AAARockingham SpeedwayAutumn ClassicPracticeMechanicA broken steering knuckle caused Vic Spooner's car to overturn and strike his mechanic, who was standing in the pits. Spooner survived a concussion.
May 30, 1931AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500RaceBystanderBilly Arnold's racer lost a wheel, which flew over the retaining wall and fatally hit an 11-year-old boy who was off IMS’s property.
May 28, 1937AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500QualifyingSpectatorAfter the gas tank was punctured, Overton Phillips lost control of his burning auto and veered into the pit area where he collided with another machine, killing two attendants, one of whom died five days later, and hurting three other people including himself.
May 28, 1937AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500QualifyingSpectatorAfter the gas tank was punctured, Overton Phillips lost control of his burning auto and veered into the pit area where he collided with another machine, killing two attendants, one of whom died five days later, and hurting three other people including himself.
May 30, 1938AAAIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500RaceSpectatorHaving impacted a retaining wall, Emil Andres's racer rolled over, losing the right front wheel, which shot through the air before fatally striking a spectator standing on a truck.
April 14, 1946AAAWilliams Grove Speedway30-lap Big car raceFeature raceSpectatorA man, who was hit by a car while he was crossing the track near completion of the race, succumbed to his injuries two days later.
October 15, 1950AAACalifornia State Fairgrounds100-mile raceRaceSpectatorTony Bettenhausen ran into and climbed up the rear of Walt Faulkner's racer, flipped over and smashed through a fence, hurting four spectators, one of whom died the next day.
September 12, 1953AAANew York State Fairgrounds100-mile raceRaceSpectatorTrying to thread his way through Jimmy Bryan's spinning car and the fence, Chuck Stevenson hopped the outside wall, killing one spectator and injuring another 14.
September 6, 1954AAADuQuoin State FairgroundsTed Horn MemorialRaceMechanicRodger Ward, after losing a tire and locking wheels with Chuck Stevenson, spun into the pit area where he overturned, killing a mechanic and hurting eight other people.
May 30, 1961USACIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500RaceFirefighterA fire truck, while maneuvering in the vicinity of Eddie Johnson's parked racer, which was burning, ran over and killed a firefighter.
April 13, 1969USACHanford Motor SpeedwayCalifornia 200RaceMechanicFuel leaking from Art Pollard's car was ignited during a pit stop so that two attendants were burned, one of whom leapt back into the path of Mario Andretti's auto. The mechanic sustained head injuries and died two days later.
May 30, 1973USACIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500RaceTeam memberRushing to the scene of Swede Savage's crash, a fire truck ran into and killed a crewman for Graham McRae.
May 24, 1987USACIndianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis 500RaceSpectatorA tire which had come off Tony Bettenhausen Jr.'s racer was catapulted into the stands by Roberto Guerrero's car and fatally struck a spectator in the head.
September 2, 1990CARTVancouver street circuitMolson Indy VancouverRaceMarshalHaving pushed Ross Bentley's stalled racer out of a chicane area, three track workers jumped into the path of Willy T. Ribbs's car, which was coming around the corner. After colliding with its rear, two of them were flung through the air and sustained minor injuries. The third was hit and overrun by the left rear wheel, succumbing to head injuries several hours after being operated on.
July 14, 1996CARTToronto street circuitMolson Indy TorontoRaceMarshalBecause Jeff Krosnoff's racer had touched wheels with that of Stefan Johansson, it was catapulted into the air and fatally struck a track worker, who was positioned behind the wall lining the track, while on its way into the catch fence where it disintegrated on impact, the cockpit coming to a stop against the opposite wall. Krosnoff was killed, too. Another marshal was slightly hurt.
July 26, 1998CARTMichigan SpeedwayU.S. 500RaceSpectatorOn lap 175, Adrián Fernández slammed into the outside wall in the fourth turn. His right front wheel was torn off and hurled over the fence into the stands, killing three spectators and injuring six others.
July 26, 1998CARTMichigan SpeedwayU.S. 500RaceSpectatorOn lap 175, Adrián Fernández slammed into the outside wall in the fourth turn. His right front wheel was torn off and hurled over the fence into the stands, killing three spectators and injuring six others.
July 26, 1998CARTMichigan SpeedwayU.S. 500RaceSpectatorOn lap 175, Adrián Fernández slammed into the outside wall in the fourth turn. His right front wheel was torn off and hurled over the fence into the stands, killing three spectators and injuring six others.
May 1, 1999IRLLowe's Motor SpeedwayVisionAire 500KRaceSpectatorOn the 59th lap, Stan Wattles crashed into the outside wall in turn four, shearing off both right-side wheels. John Paul Jr.'s car hit one of them, propelling it over the fence into the stands. As a result, three spectators were killed and eight others, two of whom were children, suffered injuries. The race was abandoned before completing the necessary 104 laps to be official.
May 1, 1999IRLLowe's Motor SpeedwayVisionAire 500KRaceSpectatorOn the 59th lap, Stan Wattles crashed into the outside wall in turn four, shearing off both right-side wheels. John Paul Jr.'s car hit one of them, propelling it over the fence into the stands. As a result, three spectators were killed and eight others, two of whom were children, suffered injuries. The race was abandoned before completing the necessary 104 laps to be official.
May 1, 1999IRLLowe's Motor SpeedwayVisionAire 500KRaceSpectatorOn the 59th lap, Stan Wattles crashed into the outside wall in turn four, shearing off both right-side wheels. John Paul Jr.'s car hit one of them, propelling it over the fence into the stands. As a result, three spectators were killed and eight others, two of whom were children, suffered injuries. The race was abandoned before completing the necessary 104 laps to be official.