Legendary motorsports broadcaster Bob Jenkins died Monday after a battle with cancer. He was 73.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway made the announcement Monday afternoon about the former voice of the Indy 500, who was inducted to the speedway’s hall of fame in 2019.
Jenkins attended his first Indy 500 in 1960 and said he had only missed two races since — 1961 and 1965. His love of motorsports helped pave his broadcasting career, including five decades with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network, including being the chief announcer from 1990-98.
His most famous call came in the 1992 race between Al Unser Jr. and Scott Goodyear.
“The checkered flag is out, Goodyear makes a move, Little Al wins by just a few tenths of a second, perhaps the closest finish in the history of the Indianapolis 500,” Jenkins said on the radio.
The .043-second margin of victory is the tightest in the race’s 105-year history.
He was often heard as ESPN’s lead voice on all things motorsports, including serving as the voice of the network’s NASCAR races and being the host of “SpeedWeek.” He paired with Larry Nuber and later Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons in the booth as race coverage spanned to ABC Sports in the 1990s.
Jenkins’ career took an IndyCar focus in the early 2000s. He became the play-by-play voice for IndyCar coverage on the Versus network (later NBCSN) in 2009, but retired from the full-time role after the 2012 season to take care of his wife, Pam, who died of brain cancer later that year.
“I grew up a fan of all racing - but especially the Indy 500. Just like Bob Jenkins,” IMS president Doug Boles wrote in a statement. “Bob helped lead the transformation that allowed race fans to enjoy the sport from their living rooms and it fueled amazing growth in auto racing.”
“But through all the successes, Bob Jenkins never changed from what he truly was at heart. A race fan,” Boles’ statement continued. “His humility and ability to always remain a fan - even when he was a top commentator in the sport - is why race fans around the world loved watching or listening to a race called by Bob Jenkins. He was one of us!”
Jenkins, who survived colon cancer, announced last February that he was undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment for brain cancer.
“I don’t have a large family,” Jenkins said on IMS’ “Behind the Bricks” YouTube show. “I have a niece and a nephew, but I consider the first people I should tell is my family, and my family is my race fans.”
Many members of the racing community took to social media Monday evening to express their gratitude for Jenkins’ life and work. Indianapolis Motor Speedway posted a tribute video honoring the esteemed motorsports figure.
“Bob Jenkins considered himself an Indianapolis 500 fan who got lucky,” a tweet from the speedway read. “Indianapolis Motor Speedway fans consider themselves lucky to have Bob’s voice ringing through the grandstands for decades.”
“While his voice on race day will be missed, his legacy at IMS will last forever.”
