One can't be surprised when Rick Mears says his fondest memories of the Indianapolis 500 involve his four wins there. But which of the four is his favorite?

"Each time, it got better, but mainly the fourth one (was best), because the race really went by the book," Mears told RTV6 in May 2004.

It also put him in the books. Mears is one of only three people (A.J. Foyt and Al Unser are the others) to have won the race four times.

His last Indy 500 win, in 1991, was earned in style. Michael Andretti went to the outside to pass Mears and take the lead around Lap 187. But on the next lap, Mears did the same to Andretti, and he led the rest of the way.

"We got to go head to head at the end, and passing each other at the end of the race on the outside, it just made that win much more satisfying," Mears said.

Mears said each victory was progressively sweet.

"You hear a lot of people say the first one was always one of the best, but to me, I never dreamed of being here, let alone winning," he said. "So when we won it once, that was unheard of.

"Then you start looking around and think, 'Man, not too many people have won this race.' So the odds of winning it twice are very slim. So then you win it a second time, and then you say, 'Very few have won it twice.' So the odds are getting tougher."

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