| Jim Rathmann | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | Royal Richard Rathmann July 16, 1928 Alhambra, California, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | November 23, 2011 (aged 83) Melbourne, Florida, U.S. | ||||||
| Championship titles | |||||||
| Major victories Race of Two Worlds (1958) Indianapolis 500 (1960) | |||||||
| Champ Car career | |||||||
| 38 races run over 14 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 2nd (1957) | ||||||
| First race | 1949 Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis) | ||||||
| Last race | 1963 Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis) | ||||||
| First win | 1957 Milwaukee 200 (Milwaukee) | ||||||
| Last win | 1960 Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 3 races run over 3 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 89th (1950) | ||||||
| First race | 1949 Race 4 (Langhorne) | ||||||
| Last race | 1951 Motor City 250 (Detroit) | ||||||
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| Formula One World Championship career | |||||||
| Active years | 1950, 1952 – 1960 | ||||||
| Teams | Wetteroth, Kurtis Kraft, Moore, Epperly, Watson | ||||||
| Entries | 10 | ||||||
| Championships | 0 | ||||||
| Wins | 1 | ||||||
| Podiums | 4 | ||||||
| Career points | 29 | ||||||
| Pole positions | 0 | ||||||
| Fastest laps | 2 | ||||||
| First entry | 1950 Indianapolis 500 | ||||||
| First win | 1960 Indianapolis 500 | ||||||
| Last win | 1960 Indianapolis 500 | ||||||
| Last entry | 1960 Indianapolis 500 | ||||||
Royal Richard "Jim" Rathmann (July 16, 1928 – November 23, 2011), was an American racing driver who competed primarily in Championship Cars. Rathmann is best known for winning the Indianapolis 500 in 1960, emerging victorious after a race-long duel with Rodger Ward - as recently as 2023, a panel of fans and historians voted Rathmann's victory as the greatest '500' of all time. In Europe he is well-known for winning the 1958 Race of Two Worlds.
Rathmann and his older brother swapped names while teenagers. As a 16-year-old going by the name of Dick Rathmann, he wanted to start racing. To enter races, he borrowed his older brother's I.D. and assumed the identity of "Jim Rathmann."[1] The name change stuck for life in public circles.