Al Unser was an American race car driver who was active in the USAC Champ Car and CART series from 1964 to 1993.http://www.racing-reference.info/driver/Al_Unser His four wins at the Indianapolis 500 are tied with A.J. Foyt and Rick Mears for the most career victories in the race.http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/indy500/history/stats/racesummaries/ When he won the 1987 Indianapolis 500 five days before his 48th birthday, he passed his brother Bobby Unser to become the oldest winner in race history.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Unser_al.html

Unser was the Indy Car champion in 1970, 1983 and 1985.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html He won his final title in the last race of the season, finishing the event in fourth place to edge his son Al Unser Jr. by one point in the final series standings.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html His older brother Bobby also won the Indianapolis 500 three times and Unser Jr. would win the race twice.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Unser_al.html

Unser was born on May 29, 1939 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to a family of race car drivers.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Unser_al.html His father Jerry and his uncles Louis and Joe all competed in the Pikes Peak Hil Climb, an annual road race held in Colorado.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Unser_al.html His oldest brother Jerry was killed in 1959 during a practice crash before the Indianapolis 500.http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Unser_al.html Unser's brother Louie suffered from multiple sclerosis but served as his mechanic in his first Indianapolis 500 race in 1965.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html

On August 9, 2006, Unser was arrested after police officers claimed he tried to drive through a roadblock near his home set up by SWAT team officials during a police chase.http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/2006-12-13-unser-trial_x.htm Unser was acquitted after a jury trial.http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=9OhRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=FnIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6605,2192642&dq=al+unser+sr&hl=en

Unser started 27 Indianapolis 500 races, second behind Foyt and Mario Andretti.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html He won the race in 1970, 1971, 1978 and 1987.http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/indy500/history/stats/racesummaries/ His 644 career laps led in the Indianapolis 500 are a race record.http://www.cbssports.com/autoracing/history/indianapolis/indyrecords He won a combined 40 races in USAC Champ Car and CART competition in a 28-year career.http://www.racing-reference.info/driver/Al_UnserUnser was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1991 and the International Motor Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html Unser won the Pikes Peak Hil Climb in 1964 and 1965.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html He also won the Hoosier Hundred dirt sprint car race four consecutive years.http://espn.go.com/classic/s/add_unser_al.html

"He's one of the top five racers who has ever lived. Nobody had race savvy like Al Unser in his prime.” - Mario Andretti in an interview with ESPN.com.

”I always said if the day came when I wasn't producing the right way, if I wasn't happy, I'd get out. The time has come. A driver has to produce 100 percent. You can't just come in and strap one of these cars on and expect to give answers to the team that they need. I finally realized that it just wasn't there, and I wasn't producing like I should.” - Al Unser Sr. in an interview with ESPN.com on his retirement.

”It means everything to Dad. They called him retired and washed up and all that. He's far from that. I've got goose bumps. I'm ecstatic for Dad.” - Al Unser Jr. after finishing fourth to his dad in the 1987 Indianapolis 500.