Penske Not Protesting Fittipaldi’s No. 2 Finish at Indy

Roger Penske chose to count his blessings, and his winnings, here Monday rather than make an issue of the disputed second-place finish in Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.

Penske’s three-car team dominated the race, leading for 192 of the 200 laps and winning it for the second straight year. Rick Mears succeeded teammate Al Unser as champion in winning for the third time. Unser, himself a four-time winner, finished third.

For a while after the race, however, Unser had been listed in second place, while Emerson Fittipaldi and his team argued against what they said was an unfair two-lap penalty assessed late in the race for passing during a caution period. Fittipaldi said that Rich Vogler had waved him by after Vogler had illegally passed him.

Three hours after the race, Fittipaldi’s objection was upheld, the penalty was rescinded and he was restored to second place, bumping Unser to third. When that was announced, a spokesman for Penske said that a protest was under consideration.

When the official standings were posted here Monday morning, however, there were no protests and Penske played the gracious, grateful winner, acknowledging that a late pit stop by Unser had dropped him a lap behind Mears and Fittipaldi, the only drivers who completed 200 laps.

“This is the biggest success our team has ever had (in 20 years),” Penske said. “It started at the beginning of the month, and we sustained it all the way through.

“But yesterday could have been the biggest disappointment of my life. Something could have happened.”

In fact, something did happen. Early leader Danny Sullivan went out after hitting the wall on the 102nd lap, leaving the race to his teammates. Mears stepped into the domination Sullivan vacated, running ahead for 89 laps, and Unser logged 12 laps as the leader.

“Leading 192 laps, that tells you you had the race under control,” Penske said.

Mears won a record $804,853 from a record purse of $5.02 million when winnings were announced at the annual Victory Dinner.

Al Unser added $228,403 to the Penske winnings, and Sullivan, who was 23rd, earned $214,378.

That adds up to $1,247,634 for the Penske team.

Fittipaldi earned $335,103, a difference of $186,700 from what he would have earned if he had been left in seventh place.

Billy Vukovich III was named rookie of the year at the Victory Dinner. Vukovich, who finished 14th, was the only one of five rookies still running at the end.

Only minor changes showed up in the official standings Monday:

--Rocky Moran of Pasadena, in A.J. Foyt’s third car, was credited with an additional lap, which moved him up a spot, ahead of Rich Vogler, into 16th place.

--Steve Chassey was penalized two laps--one had been announced previously--for passing while the yellow light was on but remained in 24th place.