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. Rick Mears finished second by a margin of 0.16 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, with Johncock holding off Mears on the final lap in a historic victory. 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. Championship points for the 1982 Indy 500 were not awarded towards the CART title.
For the first and only time in Indy history, a trio of brothers qualified for the same race. Don, Bill, and Dale Whittington all made the field, however Dale crashed out before the start, and never completed a single lap in his career. Four-time winner A. J. Foyt started on the front row, celebrating his record 25th career Indy 500 start. Taken from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_Indianapolis_500
Starting Lineup:
| Row | Inside | Middle | Outside |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Rick Mears (W) |
Kevin Cogan |
A.J. Foyt (W) |
| 2 | Mario Andretti (W) |
Gordon Johncock (W) |
Bill Whittington |
| 3 | Tom Sneva |
Don Whittington |
Danny Ongais |
| 4 | Pancho Carter |
Chip Ganassi (R) |
Johnny Rutherford (W) |
| 5 | Danny Sullivan (R) |
Herm Johnson (R) |
 Héctor Rebaque (R) |
| 6 | Al Unser (W) |
Bobby Rahal (R) |
Howdy Holmes |
| 7 | Roger Mears (R) |
 Geoff Brabham |
Dennis Firestone |
| 8 | Michael Chandler |
Dale Whittington (R) |
Jim Hickman (R) |
| 9 | Johnny Parsons |
George Snider |
Tony Bettenhausen, Jr. |
| 10 | Jerry Sneva |
Chet Fillip (R) |
Gary Bettenhausen |
| 11 | Tom Bigelow |
Pete Halsmer |
Josele Garza |
Other Drivers on Entry List:
| Al Loquasto |
| Bill Alsup |
| Bill Engelhart |
| Billy Scott |
| Billy Vukovich, Jr. |
| Bob Frey |
| Bob Harkey |
| Bob Lazier |
| Bobby Olivero |
| Bobby Unser |
| Chip Mead |
| Dean Vetrock |
| Desiré Wilson |
| Dick Ferguson |
| Dick Simon |
| Gary Irvin |
| Gordon Smiley |
| Greg Leffler |
| Hurley Haywood |
| Jan Sneva |
| Jerry Karl |
| Jim McElreath |
| Joe Saldana |
| John Mahler |
| John Martin |
| Ken Hamilton |
| Larry Rice |
| Lee Kunzman |
| Leroy Van Conett |
| Mike Mosley |
| Neil Bonnett |
| Pat Bedard |
| Phil Caliva |
| Phil Krueger |
| Ray Lipper |
| Rich Vogler |
| Roger Rager |
| Rusty Schmidt |
| Salt Walther |
| Sammy Swindell |
| Scott Brayton |
| Sheldon Kinser |
| Spike Gehlhausen |
| Steve Chassey |
| Steve Krisiloff |
| Teddy Pilette |
| Tim Richmond |
| Tom Frantz |
| Tom Gloy |
| Tom Grunnah |
| Vern Schuppan |
Lap-By-Lap Summery:
Caution #1 Car #4 Kevin Cogan, Car #31 Roger Mears, Car #40 Mario Andretti, and Car #95 Dale Whittington Crashed on the Frontstretch.
Green Flag: A.J. Foyt Leads lap 1
Lap 23: Gordon Johncock Took the lead
Lap 24: Don Whittington Took the lead
Lap 26: Danny Ongais Took the lead
Lap 27: A.J. Foyt Took the lead
Lap 36: Rick Mears Took the lead
Lap 40: Caution #2 Car #16 Tony Bettenhausen Jr. Crashed on the Frontstretch
Lap 42: Tom Sneva Took the lead
Lap 45: Green Flag
Lap 60: Rick Mears Took the lead
Lap 63: Caution #3 Car #25 Danny Ongais, and Car #69 Jerry Sneva Crashed in Turn 2
Lap 64: A.J. Foyt Took the lead
Lap 65: Rick Mears Took the lead
Lap 70: Green Flag
Lap 95: Gordon Johncock Took the lead
Lap 96: Caution #4 Car #35 George Snider Tow-In
Lap 102: Green Flag
Lap 109: Rick Mears Took the lead
Lap 128: Gordon Johncock Took the lead
Lap 129: Rick Mears Took the lead
Lap 132: Caution #5 Car #94 Bill Whittington Tow-In
Lap 135: Green Flag
Lap 138: Caution #6 Car #34 Johnny Parsons Jr. Tow-In
Lap 141: Green Flag
Lap 142: Tom Sneva Took the lead
Lap 154: Caution #7 Car #53 Danny Sullivan Crashed in Turn 4
Lap 155: Rick Mears Took the lead
Lap 158: Green Flag
Lap 160: Gordon Johncock Took the lead
Lap 200: Checkered Flag Gordon Johncock Wins his Second Indy 500
Race Results:
| Finish | Driver | Laps | Status | Prize Money |
| 1 | Gordon Johncock | 200 | 162.029 | $290,609 |
| 2 | Rick Mears | 200 | 162.026 | $215,859 |
| 3 | Pancho Carter | 199 | Running | $103,559 |
| 4 | Tom Sneva | 197 | Engine | $88,309 |
| 5 | Al Unser | 197 | Running | $60,326 |
| 6 | Don Whittington | 196 | Running | $57,159 |
| 7 | Jim Hickman | 189 | Running | $59,209 |
| 8 | Johnny Rutherford | 187 | Engine | $50,329 |
| 9 | Herm Johnson | 186 | Running | $53,454 |
| 10 | Howdy Holmes | 186 | Running | $48,679 |
| 11 | Bobby Rahal | 174 | Engine | $47,989 |
| 12 | Gary Bettenhausen | 158 | Engine | $49,679 |
| 13 | Hector Rebaque | 150 | Fire | $55,116 |
| 14 | Danny Sullivan | 148 | Accident | $46,889 |
| 15 | Chip Ganassi | 147 | Engine | $45,819 |
| 16 | Bill Whittington | 121 | Engine | $43,779 |
| 17 | Michael Chandler | 104 | Gearbox | $48,269 |
| 18 | Tom Bigelow | 96 | Engine | $44,289 |
| 19 | A.J. Foyt | 95 | Transmission | $71,239 |
| 20 | Johnny Parsons | 92 | Spin | $42,919 |
| 21 | George Snider | 87 | Engine | $41,529 |
| 22 | Danny Ongais | 62 | Accident | $41,319 |
| 23 | Jerry Sneva | 61 | Accident | $40,839 |
| 24 | Chet Fillip | 60 | Accident | $40,539 |
| 25 | Pete Halsmer | 38 | Transmission | $41,269 |
| 26 | Tony Bettenhausen Jr. | 37 | Accident | $40,429 |
| 27 | Dennis Firestone | 37 | Rear End | $41,319 |
| 28 | Geoff Brabham | 12 | Engine | $42,139 |
| 29 | Josele Garza | 1 | Engine | $40,489 |
| 30 | Kevin Cogan | 0 | Accident | $44,769 |
| 31 | Mario Andretti | 0 | Accident | $44,279 |
| 32 | Roger Mears | 0 | Accident | $41,719 |
| 33 | Dale Whittington | 0 | Accident | $40,356 |
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