In 1949, Nalon claimed the pole. Considered the race favorite, his Novi turned on him on lap 24 when a broken axle sent him into the wall. Nalon escaped the resulting inferno, but the dramatic photos of others driving through the resulting wall of flame have been reproduced countless times and newsreel footage of the crash became a staple in Hollywood movies.
A pattern was established, giving way to the legend of the “Novi Jinx.” They were always fast, routinely setting track records, yet a series of mechanical failures and oddball incidents inevitably kept them from victory.
In 1953, a Novi claimed another driver. Chet Miller died in a crash during practice. That seemed to mark the death knell for the Novis as they missed the 1954 and ’55 500s.
Welch, however, hadn’t given up on his beloved creations. He commissioned Frank Kurtis to build two rear-wheel-drive lightweight machines for the 1956 race. Their swooping lines and splendid tail fins made them among the most beautiful cars of their day.
Paul Russo started 11th in one and shot into the lead on lap 12. But the new cars evidently had inherited the old “Novi Jinx.” Russo crashed while leading.
In 1957, Russo again drove to the front and led 24 laps, but finished a disappointing fourth after blowing a tire while dueling with eventual winner Hanks. By 1958, the Novi’s chassis technology had become outdated and the cars were overweight. Russo and Bill Cheesbourg struggled to qualify. The Novis missed the show completely in 1959 and ’60.
Passionate Novi lover Andy Granatelli bought the cars in 1961. He fared no better, missing the 500 in 1961 and ’62. However, in 1963, Granatelli’s work upgrading the Novis began to pay off. Jim Hurtubise dramatically qualified one in the middle of the front row and Unser qualified fifth in another.
Still, there was heartbreak on race day. Hurtubise was black flagged for an oil leak that wasn’t and Unser crashed after only two laps.
For 1964, Granatelli pulled out all stops. At the urging of Sterling Moss, Granatelli had Ferguson build an innovative four-wheel-drive chassis for the reworked, more powerful Novi engine, which according to Unser was producing more than 800 horsepower. Exceptionally fast, Unser was eliminated in the Eddie Sachs/Dave McDonald crash early in the race.
Granatelli had an improved Ferguson chassis for 1965, making it 500 pounds lighter. Unser was the driver again and he was among the fastest during practice. He was considered a pole favorite until the “Novi Jinx” prevailed. Practicing the Friday before Pole Day, Granatelli wanted a couple of more laps before ending the day. Unser unavoidably T-boned Eb Rose and the car was destroyed.
For all intents and purposes, the Novi’s heartbreaking Indianapolis saga was over. Unser qualified the older Ferguson and Hurtubise put an old Kurtis-Novi in the race but both fell out early.
In only the second time a Novi had run anywhere but Indianapolis, the other being Monza in 1957 where Tony Bettenhausen shattered the European’s sensibilities with runs of astounding speed, Granatelli entered a Novi at Atlanta in 1965. Hurtubise finished fourth with it in the last race for the beloved Novi.
“It’s a shame they didn’t do better,” said Unser. “They were good race cars. But they never could get past the mechanical problems. I don’t know why. I can only speak for my era and Granatelli’s guys were great mechanically. I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.”