Sports
Parnelli Jones, hard-charging race driver who won the controversial Indianapolis 500 in 1963, has died
Parnelli Jones, a hard-bitten, hard-charging race driver who came out of Torrance and won the controversial Indianapolis 500 in 1963, then was the hard-luck loser four years later, died Tuesday at Torrance Memorial Medical Center after a battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 90.
At the time of his death, Jones was the oldest living winner of the Indy 500. And although he won the race at Indy — then unquestionably the biggest motor sports event in the world — only once and ran in it only seven times, he stands as one of the dominant figures of his driving era, an era that also produced A.J. Foyt, Jim Clark, Dan Gurney and Richard Petty. Indeed, Jones raced against — and beat — all of them at some point in his career.
And a busy career it was, for Jones liked to drive anything that could be raced. He won in midget cars and sprint cars, Indy cars and stock cars, sports cars and, after deciding that the demands of track racing were getting in the way of his burgeoning business interests, off-road racers.
It was at Indianapolis, though, that Jones made his name and grew his fame.
Jones got there in 1961, driving for the late San Pedro promoter/character/businessman J.C. Agajanian. He qualified fifth, finished 12th and was named co-rookie of the year with Bobby Marshman. In a portent of things to come, Australian Jack Brabham finished ninth in a Cooper Climax, a modified version of the car he drove in European Formula One races. The Cooper’s engine was mounted behind the driver.
In 1962, Jones electrified the Indy crowds, becoming the first driver to break 150 mph and winning the pole with a qualifying speed of 150.137. He was running away with the race when his car’s brakes failed at about 300 miles, but he kept going, eventually finishing seventh.
By 1963, things had changed at Indy. Gurney, at the time a Formula One regular from Costa Mesa, had convinced English car builder Colin Chapman that a rear-engine car could win the 500 if only it had a stronger power plant than the one that had been in Brabham’s Cooper. Chapman persuaded Ford Motor Co. to fulfill his V-8 engine requirements and built the first of what were to become revolutionary Lotus-Fords, pencil-thin cars that looked like spiders capering through the turns. There was one for Gurney and another for Clark.
Against these stood the traditional Indy roadsters, long-snouted brutes in which drivers sat bolt-upright behind the engines, most of them the growling four-cylinder Offenhausers that had ruled the speedway since the end of World War II. They made the rear-engine cars look almost dainty and were driven by the traditional Indy regulars — Foyt, Jones, Jim Hurtubise, Rodger Ward and others.
The Lotus-Fords were the talk of the town but Jones, in his four-year-old No. 98, “Ol’ Calhoun,” dominated the monthlong speed derby, again sitting on the pole with a qualifying speed of 151.153 mph. He dominated the race too, leading for 167 of the 200 laps around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and was comfortably ahead when the second-running Clark made his move with 30 laps left.
Clark cut Jones’ lead to 4 1/2 seconds and Jones’ car was exuding ominous puffs of black smoke, the result of a leaking oil reservoir. According to Jones, oil was spraying onto the engine and hot exhaust pipe, causing the smoke.
Some of that oil, though, was also going onto the track, creating a safety hazard.
Chapman scrambled to the officials’ stand, pleading with Chief Steward Harlan Fengler to put out a black flag for Jones, calling him to the pits. Agajanian, unmistakable in his trademark cowboy hat, urged Fengler to let Jones ride out the crisis.
Parnelli Jones smiles after he won the pole for the Yankee 300 stock car race at Indianapolis Raceway Park in April 1963.
(Associated Press)
While the argument raged, fourth-running Eddie Sachs spun, bringing out the yellow flag briefly, then spun again and crashed nine laps later. During the caution period that followed, Jones somehow gained two seconds back on Clark. And somehow, too, his oil problem stopped, the level in his car’s oil tank having fallen below the area of the leak. Jones set sail again and won easily as Clark backed off.
Said a crushed Clark, “I saw what Sachs did and I didn’t want to do the same thing. I’d skidded a bit myself.” He added, “I got beat by the yellow light. The yellow and the oil … I reduced my speed [during the caution period] and held my position. Other people went right on by, though, and Parnelli actually increased his lead.”
Jones maintained that he was simply trying to protect himself in a dangerous situation. “I saw an opening and I just gunned it and got out of there,” he said.
Even so, many considered Clark the rightful winner, arguing that the decision was simply the Indianapolis Establishment taking care of one of its own. Sachs, in fact, said on national TV that he’d spun in Jones’ oil and that Jones’ victory was “tainted.” The next day, at a gathering in a nearby motel, Jones asked Sachs to repeat what he’d said on TV. Sachs did, an argument ensued and Jones punched Sachs in the mouth, drawing blood.
By 1967, things had again changed at Indy. Jones had quietly retired from Indy car racing, Europeans Clark and Graham Hill had won the previous two races in rear-engine machines and nearly everyone else was driving them as well. But flamboyant car owner Andy Granatelli had another idea.
He came with a four-wheel-drive car that was as radical a departure as the old Brickyard had ever seen. For one thing, it made practically no noise. For another, the driver sat neither in front of nor behind the engine, but beside it. And the engine? It was a Pratt & Whitney turbine — basically a jet — similar to those used in many aircraft. The car, quickly dubbed “the Whooshmobile,” was born amid instant controversy. According to the rules, though, it was legal.
Granatelli talked Jones out of his brief retirement, but the car was like nothing Jones had ever driven. The gearbox was too fragile to handle the engine’s power and on qualifying day, after having gone through four of them in practice, the crew installed the last one on hand.
Jones eased to a qualifying spot, at 166.098 mph, on the outside of the second row, but on race day, there was no question where the speed lay. With a beefed-up gearbox, Jones quickly staked the turbine car to the lead when rain interrupted after 18 laps.
It was more of the same when the race was resumed the next day, and Jones was whooshing along with a 54-second lead, just short of a lap, with only four laps left.
Then, suddenly, a bearing in the gearbox failed, Jones dropped back and Foyt, threading his way through a multi-car accident on the final lap, scored the third of his four Indy victories.
And, although he would win twice more at Indy as a car owner — with Al Unser in 1970 and 71 — that was it for Jones as an Indy car driver.
Rufus Parnell Jones was born Aug. 12, 1933, in Texarkana, Ark., but lived most of his life in the Los Angeles area. As a successful driver-businessman, he resided in Rolling Hills on the Palos Verdes Peninsula.
And how did Rufus Parnell become Parnelli? According to one explanation, Parnelli was an aunt’s pet name for her young nephew. According to another, a boyhood friend teasingly called Jones Parnellie, after the girl’s name, Nellie. When an underage Jones wanted to go racing, and didn’t want his family to know about it, he dropped the “e” from Parnellie, put the name on a phony ID card and became famous as Parnelli Jones.
“Parnelli will forever be one of the best we have ever seen behind the wheel,” said Dave Allen, president of the West Region of NASCAR and the Auto Club Speedway. “It didn’t matter what he drove, he was fast! He will be missed as a friend and a true legend. My thoughts and well wishes go out to the Jones family and all the people Rufus impacted in his amazing life. Stay on the gas my friend.”
Had Jones not chosen Indy cars, he might well have become famous in stock cars. In 1963 and ’64, he was the terror of the U.S. Auto Club’s stock car division, then on a par with a fledgling NASCAR. He won seven consecutive races in that span at the Milwaukee Mile, then USAC stock car’s main track with four races a season. He ran sparingly in NASCAR’s premier Grand National division — now the NASCAR Cup Series — but still won four times.
After his retirement from Indy car racing, Jones turned to the Sports Car Club of America’s Trans-Am sedan series, won a championship there to go with his previous USAC midget, sprint car and stock car titles, and formed, with the late Vel Miletich, his longtime business partner, an Indy car team. With Andretti, Unser and Joe Leonard driving, it quickly became known as “Superteam,” dominating Indy car racing for several seasons. In off-road racing, he was a multiple winner of the Baja 1000.
His real estate and car-related businesses flourished, but not everything he touched turned to gold. When the Ontario Motor Speedway, built as “the Indianapolis Speedway of the West,” fell on hard times, he and Miletich tried to save it but couldn’t. And a Formula One team he set up for Andretti went under when Jones couldn’t attract sponsors.
A member of various racing halls of fame, Jones once said, “Indy is the World Series of auto racing. In the seven years I drove, I had a good chance at winning five times. I had some God-given talent, a will to win and a can’t-stand-to-lose attitude. Race car driving is dangerous, but you can’t be afraid. You have to rely on your own ability.”
Jones is survived by his wife, Judy, and sons PJ and Page, both of whom followed him into racing.
Sports
NBA player calls for Hawks to cancel their ‘Magic City’ strip club promotional night out of respect for women
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An NBA player has taken exception to an Atlanta Hawks promotional night, which is a nod to a famed strip club in the city.
The Hawks have “Magic City Night” scheduled for March 16 against the Orlando Magic, but a player for neither team isn’t too fond of paying tribute to a strip club, which has been famed for its late-night stories involving athletes, celebrities and more.
While the Hawks call it an ode to a “cultural institution,” San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet shared his displeasure in a letter posted on Medium.
Luke Kornet of the San Antonio Spurs reaches for the ball during the third quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Feb. 26, 2026 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Ishika Samant/Getty Images)
Kornet, a nine-year veteran and 2024 NBA champion with the Boston Celtics, called for the Hawks’ promotional night to be canceled later this month, saying that it is disrespectful to women to honor the strip club.
“In its press release, the Hawks failed to acknowledge that this place is, as the business itself boasts, “Atlanta’s premier strip club.” Given this fact, I would like to respectfully ask that the Atlanta Hawks cancel this promotional night with Magic City,” Kornet wrote in his post.
“The NBA should desire to protect and esteem women, many of whom work diligently every day to make this the best basketball league in the world. We should promote an atmosphere that is protective and respectful of the daughters, wives, sisters, mothers, and partners that we know and love.”
The Hawks boasted about the theme night in its press release, including a live performance by famous Atlanta rapper T.I., a co-branded, limited-edition hoodie and even the establishment’s “World Famous” lemon-pepper chicken wings in the arena.
A general view of signage with the State Farm Arena logo on Nov. 14, 2025, outside State Farm Arena, in Atlanta, GA. (Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire)
“This collaboration and theme night is very meaningful to me after all the work that we did to put together ’Magic City: An American Fantasy’,” said Hawks principal owner, filmmaker and actor, Jami Gertz, said in a press release. “The iconic Atlanta institution has made such an incredible impact on our city and its unique culture.”
Kornet wrote that allowing the night to continue “without protest would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community, “specifically in being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society.”
Kornet wrote that “others throughout the league” were surprised by the Hawks’ decision to have this promotional night.
“We desire to provide an environment where fans of all ages can safely come and enjoy the game of basketball and where we can celebrate the history and culture of communities in good conscience. The celebration of a strip club is not conduct aligned with that vision,” he wrote.
Luke Kornet of the San Antonio Spurs defends against the Charlotte Hornets during their game at Spectrum Center on Jan. 31, 2026 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
The Hawks have seen good reception for the promotional night, as Tick Pick reported a get-in price was initially $10 for the game and has since skyrocketed to $94.
Kornet is in his first season with the Spurs, his sixth NBA team, where he has played mainly in a bench role. He averages 7.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game across 50 contests.
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — How do you improve on the perfect ending?
Clayton Kershaw stood in the desert heat Monday, wearing a far darker shade of blue than the Dodgers do. He does not need a medal, or a chance to fail. His election to the Hall of Fame will be a formality.
In his farewell year, the Dodgers won the World Series, becoming baseball’s first back-to-back champions in 25 years. He secured a critical out. He bathed in adoration at the championship rally, and he told the fans he would be one of them this year.
“I’m going to watch,” he hollered that day, “just like all of you.”
Four months later, he was back in uniform.
He wore a dark blue jersey with red-and-white piping. As Team USA ran through its first World Baseball Classic workout, Kershaw participated in pitchers’ fielding practice and shagged fly balls during batting practice. He could have been home with his five kids, and instead he was rushing off the mound to take a throw at first base.
That November night in Toronto, as it turned out, was not the last time we would see him in uniform.
“Feels good,” he said Monday. “I wouldn’t put on a uniform for anything else. This is a special thing.”
He put the World Baseball Classic into red, white and blue perspective.
“It’s a bucket list thing for me,” he said.
He is either self-deprecating or painfully honest about his capabilities right now, or perhaps a little of both.
The last World Baseball Classic came down to Shohei Ohtani pitching to Mike Trout. This one could come down to Kershaw pitching to Ohtani.
“I think, for our country’s sake, it’s probably better if I don’t,” Kershaw said.
Former Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw fields a ground ball during a workout at Papago Park Sports Complex on Monday.
(Chris Coduto / Getty Images)
Never say never. Team USA planned to run a tremendous rotation of Tarik Skubal, Paul Skenes, Joe Ryan and Logan Webb, but now Skubal says he will pitch just once in the tournament. Skenes says he’ll pitch twice. Ryan says he won’t pitch in the first round, at least.
Kershaw might be needed beyond the role he was promised: save the team from using the current major league pitchers in blowouts or extra innings.
In 11 career at-bats against Kershaw, Ohtani has no hits. Kershaw won’t duck the assignment if gets it, but he considers it so unlikely he is happy to share his game plan publicly.
“It’s throw it, pitch away, play away, hope he flies out to left,” Kershaw said. “Don’t throw it in his barrel.
“I can’t imagine, if it comes down to USA versus Japan, with the arms that we have, that I’ll be needed. But I’ll be ready.”
Kershaw’s average fastball velocity dropped to 89 mph last season, but he led the majors in winning percentage. He could eat innings for some team — maybe even the Dodgers, with Blake Snell and Gavin Stone all but certain to be unavailable on opening day.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, right, celebrates with teammates after the Dodgers defeated the Toronto Blue Jays for the 2025 World Series title.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
But, even with his success last year and even with the joy of wearing a uniform once again, he insists he isn’t interested in pitching beyond the WBC.
“I don’t want to,” he said. “You can’t end it better than I did last year. I had a great time last year. It was an absolute blast and honor to be on that team. I think that was the perfect way to end it. Honestly, I don’t know if I would have enough in the tank to pitch for a full season again. I’m really at peace with that decision.
“This is kind of a weird one-off thing, but you can’t really turn down this opportunity. It wasn’t easy to get ready for this, with no motivation for a season, but I actually am in a pretty good spot with my arm. I’ll be fine. If they need me, I’ll be ready.”
Kershaw said he has kept in touch with his old Dodgers teammates, with some connecting on video calls from the weight room or clubhouse at Camelback Ranch. He arrived in the Phoenix area two days before the workout, but he skipped a trip to Camelback Ranch.
“I’ve thought about it,” he said. “I miss the guys. I think it’s probably just better, at least for this first year, for me mentally to just stay away, just for spring training.”
Kershaw said he would be at Dodger Stadium for the championship ring ceremony March 27.
He is content with what he calls “Dad life.” He and his wife, Ellen, just welcomed their fifth child, and Dad life includes lots of shuttles to baseball and basketball practice.
“I run an Uber service,” Kershaw said.
This wouldn’t be a Dodgers story these days without some reference to the team’s big spending so, for what it’s worth, Kershaw spent some time Tuesday chatting with Skubal, who will be the grand prize on the free-agent market next winter, or whenever the likely lockout might end.
That’s a rational explanation, Kershaw says, for Skubal pitching just once in the WBC.
“Everybody knows the situation he is in, contract-wise,” Kershaw said. “Any innings we can get out of him is a huge bonus to this team. He’s great. Super competitive. We’re honored to have him.”
Should we assume Skubal will be pitching for the Dodgers next season? Kershaw laughed.
“No comment,” he said, then walked away to get ready for the first game of his post-retirement life.
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Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley sounded off on the frenzied reactions to the U.S. men’s hockey team getting invited to the White House by President Donald Trump.
Trump talked to the Olympic gold medal-winning team immediately after they defeated Canada in overtime last weekend. He said they would be invited to his State of the Union address and added that he needed to invite the women’s team as well or he would be “impeached.”
Charles Barkley sits courtside against the Minnesota Timberwolves during an NBA Cup game at Mortgage Matchup Center on Nov. 21, 2025. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
Trump critics took the joke as a shot at the women’s team, which sparked questions from NHL and Professional Women’s Hockey League reporters as the players returned to their respective club teams.
“I’m proud of the United States men. I’m proud of the United States women. You should have invited both of them to the White House, but it shouldn’t have been disrespect, misogyny,” Barkley said on the “Steam Room” podcast. “Like, yo, man, why do y’all have to mess everything up? Everything isn’t Democrat, Republican, conservative, liberal. That’s why we got this divided, screwed up country. Stop it man. Because, you know, the public, they’re idiots. They’re fools. They can’t think for themselves. I know y’all say stuff to trigger them. Y’all say stuff and y’all know they’re going to be fools.”
Barkley lamented that the average person would get riled up over the supposed controversy.
The U.S. team poses for a group photo after defeating Canada in the men’s ice hockey gold medal game at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Milan, Italy, on Feb. 22, 2026. (Luca Bruno/AP Photo)
“We don’t have to fall for stupidity. But we do – that’s my point. These people out here are stupid. They need something to trigger them. Just because they want us to be stupid. We don’t have to be stupid. He should have invited both teams to the White House. Simple as that. Guys who didn’t want to go shouldn’t have to explain why they didn’t go.”
The former Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets and Phoenix Suns star made clear he would go to the White House regardless of whether Trump was in office.
“I’ve said this before, I’m not a Trump guy. But if I got invited to the White House, I would go. I’m not a Trump guy – I want to make that clear. But I respect the office,” Barkley said. “He’s the president of the United States. But if guys don’t want to go, I understand that too. It doesn’t have to be a talking point. It doesn’t have to be un-American.
Megan Keller (5) celebrates with a flag alongside Cayla Barnes (3) of Team United States after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime during the women’s gold medal match against Canada on Day 13 of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milan Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 19, 2026. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
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“I just wish y’all would stop falling for the stupidity.”
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