With over 38 years of success in both Indycar racing and other disciplines, it’s hard to place just one year in the career of AJ Foyt on a pedestal above the rest. If we were forced to however the one consideration may be 1967, a year which saw Super Tex conquer Europe for the first time, as well as yet another 500 success at the Brickyard.

Prior to the 1967 Indianapolis 500, AJ Foyt had endured two difficult seasons by his comparatively high standards. At the end of a 1964 campaign that saw him pick up a fourth USAC championship Foyt made the decision to part ways with crew chief George Bignotti to instead start his own car and chassis project alongside his father Tony, with the Foyt designed Coyote making it’s debut for the 1966 season. The campaign however proved to be a disaster for Foyt, as teething troubles with the Coyote chassis saw him either mired in the mid-pack for the majority of the season, leaving the two time 500 winner 13th in the points standings with just a pair of third place finishes to his name. As well as the issues with his machine, Foyt also saw his two years hampered by high profile incidents which had taken its toll on his health; the most infamous of which being a vicious barrel-roll at Riverside which was so severe that doctors had declared him dead at the scene of the accident. By 1967 however both Foyt and the Coyote were at full health, and left Super Tex more prepared then ever in his bid for a third 500 crown.

The 1967 Indianapolis 500 was arguably the most eagerly anticipated running of the 500 up until that point. The rear-engine revolution which had begun at the Speedway in 1961 had taken full effect, with no front engined roadster appearing on the starting grid for the first time in the race’s history, whilst the European based machines which had proven so successful at the speedway during the mid-sixties gave way to more technologically advanced and powerful American based machines. Although Foyt had put the improved Coyote fourth on the grid, his exploits were overshadowed those of the STP-Turbine of Parnelli Jones. Jones had qualified alongside Foyt on the second row of the field, but amidst rumours of his Granatelli team sandbagging during the qualifying session speculation was rife that the #40 machine would be the car to beat come race day.

Of course much more will be written about the exploits of the turbine at a later date, but come race day the hype surrounding the day-glo machine was beginning to be justified, by lap 25 it had built up a 25 second lead over it’s nearest rivals, a figure which had stretched to a whole lap by the time the race had reached the half-way point. Such was the dominance of the turbine that the only driver to lead laps in the race was Foyt himself, taking the lead on two occasions whilst the turbine was force to make pitstops for fuel and tyres. Entering the later stages of the race’s Foyt’s race had started to turn just as lonely as that of Jones’ up-front, a race long battle with Dan Gurney came to an end when the New Yorker was forced to retire with a broken piston, whilst third placed Al Unser was running two laps down following a succession of slow pit-stops. Knowing that his chances of winning were slimming by the minute, Foyt began to up his pace, looking to place pressure on both Jones and turbine’s unproven reliability, Foyt had harbored doubts all month long about the gearbox in the Turbocar, figuring that it wouldn’t be able to withstand the tremendous strain of all the torque the turbine engine was producing On lap 197 Foyt’s prayers were answered, as to the shock of everyone on pitlane the turbine began to slow on the back-stretch, grinding to a halt just on the entrance of pit-road. Foyt’s plan had worked, and as the Texan entered his final lap seemed set for 500 victory.

There was however to be one final twist. As Foyt entered the backstretch for the final time Bobby Grim suffered a suspension failure and lost control, hitting the wall. Chuck Hulse and Carl Williams collided, trying to avoid Grim. Bud Tinglestad and Larry Dickson spun trying to avoid Hulse and Williams. The start finish straight was littered with cars, with Foyt just behind the wreck with little to warn him of what was ahead. Backed by a pre-race premonition of a last lap wreck, Foyt instinctively backed off, slaloming his way through the wrecked cars to take the checkered flag in the most unlikely of fashion. The win was Foyt’s third success at the speedway, as well as making him the first, and subsequently, only man to win the 500 in both front and rear engine machines.

Indy however would not be the last success that Foyt would have during the year. Impressed by his Indy performance, Foyt was approached by 500 rival Dan Gurney to join forces with him at that year’s 24 hours of Le Mans, driving a Ford GT40 prepared by Carol Shelby. Despite having little knowledge about the Circuit De La Sarthe and members of the media predicting that the two drivers’ rivalry would have detrimental effects on their machine, the duo went on to dominate the race, making Foyt only one of two men ever to win the Daytona 500, Le Mans 24 hours as well as Indy in their career. The following weekend Foyt had been expected to participate in the 1967 Belgian Grand Prix, entering a Eagle Westlake prepared by his Le Mans partner Gurney. For unknown reasons Foyt failed to attend the race, forcing Super Tex to miss what would have been his first and only Formula One start.

Foyt’s win in 67 may have been overshadowed by the turbine, but is also in itself a great story of desire, intuition and luck from one of the best the speedway has seen, and added to his Le Mans triumph as well as a fifth USAC title it helped to cement 1967 as one of the greatest year’s of Foyt’s career.

For today’s video we take a look back at AJ’s 1967 success, along with insight from the man himself.