Rufus Parnell Jones (born August 12, 1933) is an American former professional racing driver and racing team owner. He is notable for his accomplishments while competing in the

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

and the

Baja 1000 The Baja 1000 is an annual Mexican off-road motorsport race held on the Baja California Peninsula. It is one of the most prestigious off-road races in the world, having attracted competitors from six continents. The race was founded by Ed Pearl ...

desert race. In

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wor ...

, he became the first driver to qualify over 150 mph. He won the race in

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

, then famously broke down while leading the 1967 race with three laps to go in a turbine car.Biography
at the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame During his career as an owner, he won the Indy 500 in 1970–

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses ( February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events J ...

with driver Al Unser, Sr. Jones won races in many types of vehicles: sports cars,

IndyCar INDYCAR, LLC, is an American-based auto racing sanctioning body for Indy car racing and other disciplines of open wheel car racing. The organization sanctions five racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with its centerpiece the Indianapoli ...

s, sprint cars,

midget cars Midget (from '' midge'', a tiny biting insect) is a term for a person of unusually short stature that is considered by some to be pejorative due to its etymology. While not a medical term like " dwarfism", a medical condition with a number of ...

off-road vehicles An off-road vehicle, sometimes referred to as an overland or adventure vehicle, is considered to be any type of vehicle which is capable of driving on and off paved or gravel surface. It is generally characterized by having large tires with dee ...

, and stock cars. He is also remembered for bringing the stock block engine to USAC

Sprint car racing Sprint cars are high-powered open-wheel race cars, designed primarily for the purpose of running on short oval or circular dirt or paved tracks. Sprint car racing is popular primarily in the United States and Canada, as well as in Australia, N ...

as one of the "Chevy Twins" with Jim Hurtubise. He is associated with the famous Boss 302 Mustang with his wins using the engine in the 1970s. Jones' son P. J. Jones was also a diverse driver, with

and

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

starts and a championship in IMSA prototype sports cars. His other son Page Jones was an up-and-coming driver before suffering career ending (and life-threatening) injuries in a sprint car at the 4-Crown Nationals, and has been in rehabilitation, working with his father-in-law. Following the death of 1960 Indianapolis 500 winner

Jim Rathmann Jim Rathmann (July 16, 1928 – November 23, 2011), born Royal Richard Rathmann, was an American race car driver who won the Indianapolis 500 in 1960. He drove in the AAA and USAC Championship Car series in the 1949–1950 and 1952–1963 sea ...

, Jones is now the oldest living "500" winner.

Driving career

Born in

Texarkana, Arkansas Texarkana is a city in the U.S. state of Arkansas and the county seat of Miller County, on the southwest border of the state. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 29,387. The city is located across the state line from its twin city ...

, Jones' family moved to

Torrance, California Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay region of the metropolitan area. Torrance has of beachfront on the Pacific O ...

, where he grew up (and lives in nearby Rolling Hills). He was nicknamed Parnelli by his boyhood friend Billy Calder, who hoped that the Jones family would not discover their son was racing cars as a 17-year-old minor.Biography
at the Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame Jones participated in his first race in a

Jalopy A decrepit car is a car that is often old and damaged and is in a barely functional state. There are many slang terms used to describe such cars, the more popular including junk car, beater, clunker, hooptie, jalopy, shitbox, junker, and banger ...

race at Carrell Speedway in

Gardena, California Gardena is a city located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 58,829 at the 2010 census, up from 57,746 at the 2000 census. Until 2014, the US census cited the City of Gardena as the plac ...

. He developed his racing skills by racing in many different classes in the 1950s, including 15

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It or ...

wins in the NASCAR Pacific Coast Late Model Series.Biography
at the

West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame The West Coast Stock Car Hall Of Fame is a Hall of Fame for people associated with late-model stock car racing on the West Coast of the United States. Many NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series champions are inducted in the Hall of Fame. The ...

, Retrieved November 8, 2007 His first major championship was the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

region Sprint car title in 1960. The title caught the attention of promoter J. C. Agajanian, who became his sponsor. He began racing at

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

in 1961. Jones was named the 1961 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year, an honor that he shared with Bobby Marshman. Jones led early in the race and ran among the leaders until being hit in the face with a stone, bloodying his face, blurring his vision and slowing him to a 12th-place finish. In 1962, he was the first driver to qualify over 150 mph at the

, winning the pole position at a speed of . Jones dominated the first two-thirds of the race until a brake line failure slowed him, and he settled for a seventh-place finish. Parnelli Jones 20120519

In the 1963

, he started on the pole. This was the year the controversial Lotus-Ford rear-engined cars made their first appearance, and had ruffled the Indianapolis establishment. Before the race, the chief steward, Harlan Fengler, told the teams that he would black-flag any cars that leaked oil on the track, warning, ''"Don't believe me, just try me."'' With Scotsman

Jim Clark James Clark Jr. OBE (4 March 1936 – 7 April 1968) was a British Formula One racing driver from Scotland, who won two World Championships, in 1963 and 1965. A versatile driver, he competed in sports cars, touring cars and in the Indianap ...

in a Lotus-Ford closing on Jones in the waning laps, Jones' car developed a horizontal crack in the external oil reservoir. At that moment, driver Eddie Sachs crashed on the oil-slickened racing surface and brought out a yellow caution flag, slowing the field. Agajanian, Jones' car owner, argued with chief steward Harlan Fengler not to issue a black flag, insisting the oil level had dropped below the level of the crack, and that the leak had stopped. As Agajanian pleaded with Fengler, Lotus head man Colin Chapman rushed up to join the conversation and demanded that Fengler follow the rules about disqualifying cars with oil leaks. With the end of the race just minutes away, Fengler took no action, and Jones went on to win. The Lotus-Ford team, while unhappy with the obvious favoritism displayed by race officials toward Jones and Agajanian, also acknowledged Jones' clear superiority in the event. In addition, Ford officials recognized that a victory through disqualification of Clark's biggest competitor would not be well received by the public, so they declined to protest. Also that year, legendary vehicle fabricator Bill Stroppe built a Mercury Marauder USAC Stock car for Jones. Jones won the 1963

Pikes Peak International Hill Climb The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), also known as The Race to the Clouds, is an annual automobile hillclimb to the summit of Pikes Peak in Colorado, USA. The track measures and has over 156 turns, climbing from the sta ...

in the car, and broke the stock car speed record. In 1964, he won seven races (and tied for a win) on his way to the USAC Stock car crown. He won the

Turkey Night Grand Prix The Automotive Racing Products Turkey Night Grand Prix is an annual race of midget cars. It is the third oldest race in the United States behind the Indianapolis 500 and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. It has been held on Thanksgiving nig ...

midget car Midget cars, also speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on mo ...

event. Mercury decided to pull out of stock car racing after the season. The following year, Jones almost won Indy for a second time, finishing second behind Jim Clark. He won five of the nine midget car events that he entered in 1966, including the

. He finished fourteenth in the final points despite competing in only nine of 65 events. STP Turbine

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

, he drove in the

for owner Andy Granatelli in the revolutionary

STP-Paxton Turbocar The STP-Paxton Turbocar was an American racing car, designed by Ken Wallis as the STP entry in the Indianapolis 500. Rufus Parnell, who raced under the name "Parnelli Jones," drove it in the 1967 event. After leading for much of the race, a transm ...

. Jones dominated the race but dropped out with three laps to go when a small, inexpensive transmission bearing broke. After 1968, turbine-powered cars were legislated out of competitiveness. Also in 1967, as part of his stock car contract with the Lincoln-Mercury division of the Ford Motor Company, Jones drove a

Mercury Cougar Mercury Cougar is a nameplate applied to a diverse series of automobiles sold by the Mercury division of Ford from 1967 to 1997 and from 1999 to 2002. While the nameplate is most commonly associated with two-door coupes, at various times durin ...

for Bud Moore in the second-year Trans Am series. In April, Jones dueled with teammate, friend and rival Dan Gurney in a brutal , 4-hour event at Green Valley, Texas in 113-degree heat, losing by inches to Gurney. Stroppe suggested that Jones try his hand at off-road racing in front of a large crowd at a Christmas party in 1967. Jones at first said no, since he had enough of dirt. Stroppe suggested that maybe off-road racing was too hard for Jones, and the challenge started Jones' off-road career. Jones and Stroppe teamed up for the Star Dust 7/11 race across the

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

in early 1968. Jones had never driven or pre-run the

Ford Bronco The Ford Bronco is a model line of sport utility vehicles manufactured and marketed by Ford. The first SUV model developed by the company, five generations of the Bronco were sold from the 1966 to 1996 model years. A sixth generation of the mo ...

. Jones hit a dry wash at full speed, which broke the wheels and blew out the front tires. Jones would later have a guest appearance in the original film '' Gone in 60 Seconds'' featuring him and his Bronco which was stolen in the plot. Jones had become hooked on off-road racing. In 1968, Jones headed a super-roster of seven drivers signed by Andy Granatelli to drive STP Lotus 56 turbine cars in an unprecedented single-team assault on the Indianapolis 500. The deaths of Jim Clark and Mike Spence, plus a serious injury to Jackie Stewart, whittled the entry to four. Jones, testing his reworked 1967 car in practice, was dissatisfied with the car's performance compared to the newer "wedge"-shaped Lotus 56 turbines, and had concluded the car was unsafe. He stepped out of the car, which was subsequently assigned to Joe Leonard, who promptly wrecked the car in practice. Jones retired from driving IndyCars, but later admitted, "If I hadn't already won Indy, they could never have kept me out of that car." Jones entered the 1968 NORRA Mexican 1000 (now

). Jones led until the marker. The Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame describes Jones' racing style: "Jones and Stroppe had to find a way to keep their vehicles in one piece. During races Jones would push the vehicles at maximum speeds until they gave way, with Stroppe telling him at top volume the entire time to take it easier on the vehicle." Jones had a special car fabricated that looked like a Bronco, but had racing parts that could withstand rigorous jarring that off-road vehicles endure. Jones named the vehicle "Big Oly" after his sponsor

Olympia Beer The Olympia Brewing Company was a brewery in the northwest United States, located in Tumwater, Washington, near Olympia. Founded in 1896 by Leopold Friederich Schmidt, it was bought by G. Heileman Brewing Company in 1983. Through a series of ...

. Jones used the vehicle to lead the Mexican 1000 from start to finish in a new record time of 14 hours and 59 minutes. Jones had major wins in the 1973 season. He won his second Mexican 1000 in 16 hours and 42 minutes. He also won the 1973

Baja 500 The Baja 500 is a Mexican off-road motorsport race on the Baja California Peninsula that is sanctioned by SCORE International. The course has remained relatively the same over the years with the majority of events being a loop race starting and fi ...

and

Mint 400 The Mint 400 is an annual American desert off-road race which takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was resumed in 2008 after a 20-year hiatus. The race was for both motorcycles, until 1977, and four-wheel vehicles ( buggies, cars and trucks) s ...

off-road events. Jones had a major accident at

SCORE International SCORE International (Southern California Off Road Enthusiasts) is an off-road racing sanctioning body in the sport of desert racing. Founded by Mickey Thompson in 1973, SCORE International was purchased from Sal Fish in late 2012. and is run b ...

's 1974 Baja 500, and stepped away from full-time off-road racing to become a race car owner. "Big Oly" was sold in May 2020 for $1.7 million. Jones raced SCCA Trans Am sedans owned by Bud Moore: Mercury Cougar (1967) and Ford Mustang (1969—1971). Parnelli's dominance of the extremely competitive 1970 season brought Ford the manufacturer's championship.

Driving career summary

Jones retired with six

wins and twelve pole positions, four wins in 34

starts, including the 1967 Motor Trend 500 at Riverside,NASCAR stats at racing-reference.com
/ref> 25 midget car feature wins in occasional races between 1960 and 1967, and 25 career sprint car wins. His fifteen wins is eighth on the all-time in NASCAR Pacific Coast Late Model history. In 1993, Jones took part in the

Fast Masters Fast Masters was a made-for-television auto racing series, broadcast on ESPN in 1993, featuring notable drivers over the age of 50, most of whom were retired from professional racing at the time. The Fast Masters series was a summer-long eliminatio ...

. He advanced to the final championship round and placed 6th overall.

Car owner

Jones started Vel’s Parnelli Jones Racing, which won the

again as an owner in 1970 and 1971 with driver

Al Unser Alfred Unser (May 29, 1939 – December 9, 2021) was an American automobile racing driver, the younger brother of fellow racing drivers Jerry and Bobby Unser, and father of Al Unser Jr. He was the second of four men ( A. J. Foyt, himself, Rick ...

driving the

Johnny Lightning Johnny Lightning is a brand of diecast model cars launched in 1969 by Topper Corporation (owner of the "Topper Toys" brand), similar to the hugely successful Mattel's Hot Wheels cars. Their claim to fame at that time was that they were extremel ...

special. The team also won the 1970, 1971, and 1972 USAC National Championships. Jones owned the Parnelli

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

race team from late 1974 to early 1976, although it achieved little success. Jones returned to off-road racing as owner of

Walker Evans Walker Evans (November 3, 1903 – April 10, 1975) was an American photographer and photojournalist best known for his work for the Farm Security Administration (FSA) documenting the effects of the Great Depression. Much of Evans' work from ...

' 1976 SCORE truck, and Evans won the championship. They teamed up for the 1977 CORE Class 2 championship. Jones owned vehicles that took class wins at the Baja 500 and Baja 1000. His USAC Dirt Car won two championships and the Triple Crown three times.

Documentary

Jones starred in the one-hour documentary ''Behind the Indianapolis 500 with Parnelli Jones''. Narrated by

Bob Varsha Robert August "Bob" Varsha (born April 21, 1951) is an American broadcast journalist who specializes in covering motorsports. He is best known for being the lap-by-lap commentator for Formula 1 and CART series races for ESPN, ABC Sports, and Spee ...

, the film takes viewers behind the scenes of the Indianapolis 500, through the eyes and experiences of Parnelli Jones. In addition to Parnelli,

Rick Mears Rick Ravon Mears (born December 3, 1951) is a retired American race car driver. He is one of four men to win the Indianapolis 500 four times (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991) and is the current record-holder for pole positions in the race with six (197 ...

Mario Andretti Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an Italian-born American former racing driver. One of the most successful drivers in the history of motorsports, Andretti is one of only two drivers to have won races in Formula One, IndyCar, t ...

Bobby Unser 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. F ...

, Al Unser Jr., P. J. Jones, Chip Ganassi, and others are interviewed throughout. The film was selected for the 2016 Sun Valley Film Festival, which Parnelli and Bob Varsha attended.

Career awards

Jones is inducted in over 20 Halls of Fame including: *the Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame (1976) *the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame (1985) *the International Motorsports Hall of Fame (1990) *the National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame (1990) *the

National Sprint Car Hall of Fame The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum is a Hall of Fame and museum for sprint car drivers, owners, mechanics, builders, manufacturers, promoters, sanctioning officials and media members. The museum is located in Knoxville, Iowa, the h ...

(1991) *the

Motorsports Hall of Fame of America The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycle ...

(1992)Parnelli Jones
at the

*the

(2002)

Businessman

Jones owned and operated several successful businesses. He owned Parnelli Jones Inc., which operated 47 retail Parnelli Jones Tire Centers in four states. Parnelli Jones Enterprises was a chain of Firestone Racing Tires in 14 Western United States. Parnelli Jones Wholesale was a reseller which sold and distributed shock absorbers, passenger car tires, and other automotive products to retail tire dealers. In addition, Parnelli Jones has several wheel manufacturers companies since the beginning of the 70s, z.b. Rebel Wheel co, US Mags and American Racing Equipment.

2007 Ford Mustang Limited Edition

Saleen, Incorporated Saleen Automotive, Inc., commonly known as Saleen (/səˈliːn/), is an American manufacturer of specialty high-performance sports cars and high-performance automotive parts. Saleen is headquartered in Corona, California, US. On June 26, 2013 Sal ...

, in Irvine, California, produced a limited edition (500 unit) 2007 Saleen S302 PJ commemorating Parnelli's 1970 SCCA Ford Mustang Boss 302 racer. This limited-production mustang comes with a stroked out version of the stock Mustang GT 281 c.i. engine. With the new displacement reaching 302 c.i. the new engine power rating is and 390 lb/ft of torque. Other special performance enhancements to this car include a special Watts-Link suspension unique to the 1970 Boss Mustang used by Parnelli Jones.

Complete USAC Championship Car results

Indianapolis 500 results

References

External links

*
VPJ Racing Collection WebsiteThe Greatest 33
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Parnelli 1933 births Formula One team owners Living people People from Texarkana, Arkansas Racing drivers from Arkansas Indianapolis 500 drivers Indianapolis 500 polesitters Indianapolis 500 Rookies of the Year Indianapolis 500 winners International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees NASCAR drivers Trans-Am Series drivers National Sprint Car Hall of Fame inductees Off-road racing drivers Sportspeople from Torrance, California IndyCar Series team owners Racing drivers from California USAC Stock Car drivers