Parnelli Jones smiles after he won the pole for the Yankee 300 stock car race at Indianapolis Raceway Park in Brownsburg, Ind., in April 1963. TORRANCE, Calif. — Parnelli Jones, the 1963 Indianapolis 500 winner, died Tuesday at Torrance Memorial Medical Center after a battle with Parkinson’s disease, his son said. Jones was 90.Rufus Parnell Jones was born in Texarkana, Arkansas, in 1933 but moved to Torrance as a young child and never left.
Jones in 1962 became the first driver at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to qualify at over 150 mph with a four-lap average of 150.370. He was the Indy 500 pole-sitter in 1962 and 1963 and co-rookie of the year with Bobby Marshman in 1961. 2012 Indy 500 champion Dario Franchitti, of Scotland, center, along with car owner Chip Ganassi, right, and 1963 champion Parnelli Jones receive "Baby" Borg-Warner trophies during the public drivers meeting for the Indianapolis 500 auto race in Indianapolis on May 25, 2013. Jones is survived by his wife of nearly 57 years, Judy; sons PJ and Page; and six grandchildren. Both of Jones’ sons had professional racing careers.