Indy 500's most controversial finish: It ruined Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser friendship
Mario Andretti at abandoned Nazareth Speedway: ‘It’s not a happy reunion’ĭoyel: 'Andretti Curse' at Indy 500 can't possibly be real. We tried to leave that out of our lives and just be good friends. I mean he was really steering that son of a (expletive).īefore ’81 we used to have a lot of fun, me and him. He was steering it like a wild man trying to miss them. He missed all the trees and rocks going down, that son of a gun. Absolutely nothing.īut he made it! That really surprised me (laughs). If he’d had one, he could have guided it off to the side or something. He hadn’t started the engine, so he’s going down this big mountain with no engine. He went down the mountainside like you wouldn’t believe. He’s standing up, leaning over, trying to see and I snuck up behind him on mine and gave him a little push (laughs). Anyway, we were at this pretty big hill or mountain, or whatever you want to call it and Mario’s there, creeping up to the edge on his snowmobile, looking down below. That’s the best snowmobiling in the United States. We were snowmobiling in New Mexico, right on the border with Colorado. We were just too good of friends to keep going on like that." I'll quit being a (jerk) because I can be one. Right then and there, we said, "This deal has gone on too long. I said, "Mario’s here? What in the world." But he was. There was a big crowd, and someone spotted him. Last year, I was giving a little talk at the (IMS) museum, and (Andretti) came over without me knowing about it. I had to have a talk with myself and just forget about the '81 incident. I won the race, but I paid for it. The guy was too good a friend, and (expletive), we went a long time with bad feelings. But this last year, Mario and I have totally broken the deal of being mad at each other. That thing lasted, the bad feelings for almost 40 years. That lasted for a long time, but it got broken obviously in '81 (after the controversial finish to the Indianapolis 500). Mario was one of the closest friends I had in racing.
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