No matter the race, the goal is to start as far forward as possible. Nobody needed to tell Johnny Rutherford that in 1974, and he knew the mission on race day was to move forward quickly.

When he was forced to qualify the car on Day 2 of qualifications for the Indianapolis 500, he set the second-fastest speed in May.

Eventually starting the race from inside Row 9 after qualifying a speed of 190.446 mph, he was determined to get to the front for a chance to win in his Team McLaren M16C/D.

In Johnny’s first Indy 500 triumph with McLaren, he dedicated the win to his father.

“He is my number one fan, and we won it,” Johnny said. “This is his race.”

Leading a race high 122 laps, here’s a breakdown of the 58th Running of the Indianapolis 500.

Opening Laps

Multiple cars began the race with troubles for their respective cars and forced to retire including leader Wally Dallenbach, followed by Mario Andretti, Gary Bettenhausen and many others battling attrition.

At the same time, Johnny Rutherford was aggressively moving his way forward through the pack, passing car after car and found himself up to 11th by Lap 2.

A.J. Foyt took over the lead on Lap 3, after the leader’s retirement from the race.

Lap 24

The M16 was purring on all cylinders, allowing Johnny to drive to the limit and pass all the way up to third by Lap 23.

Shortly after taking over the third position, on Lap 24, Johnny was able to pass Bobby Unser into the second position. Not long after, the No. 3 car made its first pit stop of the race in 15.8 seconds.

Lap 62

Following the first caution of the 1974 Indy 500, the leaders were on pit lane to change tires and add fuel to their cars.

A.J. Foyt stopped in pit stall, had issues with the right-rear tire and ultimately took 53.1 seconds before being able to leave. A visibly frustrated Foyt lost the lead as Johnny had another quick pit stop and was able to overtake the No. 14 on pit lane.

Lap 90

Still leading the race by a healthy margin, Johnny was called to pit lane.

Just as the McLaren M16 dove into the pits, a caution flag waved as a crashed car was stopped on track. Perfect timing for Johnny to be on pit lane, he waved off his crew while getting fresh tires in exactly 21 seconds.

Lap 115

Under another caution flag due to an incident on the race course, all drivers were called to pit lane. Johnny, still leading the field, was the first on pit lane.

A few swipes with a cloth to clean his visor, four tires and fuel were added to the car. The pit crew continued to impress with another stop under 21 seconds, this time at 19.6. As the No. 3 car exited the pits, A.J. Foyt stayed out on course and was able to overtake immediately as the field went to green as they entered Turn 2.

Lap 131

Attrition was the word of the race, seeing cars from all across the field drop out due to mechanical issues.

Foyt continued to lead the field, followed by Johnny in second and Bobby Unser in third.

On Lap 131, Al Unser dropped out of the race due to a mechanical failure, bringing out the yellow flag once again.

Knowing the No. 14 of Foyt required one additional stop than Johnny and McLaren team, all was happy with the car and crew on pit lane. When Foyt decided to enter the pits under the caution for fuel only, Johnny was able to regain the lead.

Teddy Mayer, McLaren’s general manager, said under the yellow, “We still have to make two more stops and so does A.J. We are probably 10 or 15 seconds ahead (of A.J. on the racetrack), so if our stops are the same and our speed is the same, then we will be the winners.”

On the restart on Lap 138, A.J. Foyt was able to close the gap quickly, with Johnny buried in traffic, and was able to make the pass for the lead.

Lap 141

The fight was on.

Exiting Turn 4, Johnny quickly closed the gap on Foyt and was on the rear of his competitor’s car. Entering Turn 2 on the following lap, a puff of smoke started coming from the rear of the No. 14 car, and Johnny quickly backed off.

By the end of the lap, Foyt was being blacked flag for dropping oil on the racetrack, allowing Johnny to take over the lead on Lap 141.

While attempting to pass two lapped cars later in the race, Johnny narrowly was able to speed by a spinning Duane Carter, Jr. in his No. 11 car in Turn 1. A close call, no doubt, and continued Johnny’s good fortune in the race.

Lap 176

After maintaining and then stretching out his lead over Bobby Unser, the only two cars on the lead lap at this point of the race, Johnny made his final pit stop.

Less than 25 laps remain in the 200-lap race and Johnny waves off his team for a drink of water. The focus is on one thing and one thing only: winning.

A 25.4-second pit stop was a long one by McLaren’s standards that day, but the team ensured it was full of fuel to make it to the checkered flag.

Shortly after the pit stop, the TV network ABC interviewed Johnny’s wife, Betty, on pit lane and asked her what was going through her mind.

“My gum is getting awfully tired,” Betty Rutherford said with a smile on her face.

An 18-second lead over Bobby Unser allowed Johnny to pace himself at the front of the field.

Closing Laps

“It should be a very rewarding day for the McLaren team from Colnbrook, England,” said Jim McKay. “One lap to go!”

At the age of 36-years-old, Johnny Rutherford crossed the start-finish line to win his and the McLaren team’s first Indianapolis 500-mile race.

A celebratory pit lane saw Johnny receiving claps and fists in the air as he passed by teams on his way to Victory Circle at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Once out the car, he received a kiss from his wife Betty and was asked by ABC, “Did you know you were going to win?”

“I had a sneaky hunch,” Johnny said. “You know, we had so much trouble during the month and it’s contrary to any time I’ve been here before.”

“The car felt very good, it was well prepared, and I knew that I was ready mentally and physically to get out there and try to do the job. When we started moving up very quickly, right off the bat, I knew that we had a pretty good chance.”