After crashing during the first day of qualifying for the 1980 Indianapolis 500 , Richmond nevertheless obtained the 19th starting position in the race . He worked his way up to the top 10 during the race , led a lap , and finished ninth as he ran out of fuel at the end of the race . To the delight of the crowd , winner Johnny Rutherford gave him a ride back to the pits . He was named the 1980 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year . " I busted up a few Indy cars right after that , " he said . " Milwaukee , Mid @-@ Ohio . . . at Michigan I cut one in two . I was afraid my racing career would come to a halt . So when I got an offer to drive stock cars , I took it , and it turned out I liked driving them better . "