Unfortunately, we must share the news that Leon Duray “Jigger” Sirois passed away on September 23 at the age of 91. A native of Shelby, Indiana, Sirois wove himself into the rich folklore of the Indianapolis 500 without ever making a single race start despite attempting to qualify every year from 1969 to 1975.
His legend was born on Pole Day, May 17, 1969, when he drew first in line to qualify the No. 14 Gerhardt-Offenhauser owned by California car dealer Myron Caves. Following a long rain delay, Sirois took to the 2.5-mile oval late in the afternoon. His first three laps ranged between 160 and 162 mph, but Caves chose to wave off the final lap due to a perceived lack of speed, completely negating the run. Moments later, Arnie Knepper began his own attempt, only for rain to fall during his warmup laps and wash out all track activity for the remainder of the weekend.
Had that final lap not been waved off, Sirois would have stood as the lone qualifier of the weekend, sitting on the coveted provisional pole and potentially holding it right through Bump Day to start the race from the front. Instead, his subsequent attempts in 1969 were waved off for speed or mechanical troubles, locking him out of the field. That heartbreak led to a rule change in 1971 ensuring every car in line on opening day gets at least one guaranteed chance to make the field during the first round.
Sirois kept trying at the "500" through 1975, a run that notably included driving the sluggish Jack Adams Turbine in 1970—marking the final qualifying attempt ever made by a turbine-engine car at Indianapolis. He came agonizingly close again in 1974 as the second alternate for the race. Outside of Indianapolis, his open-wheel skills were undeniable, taking 10 USAC Champ Car starts with a best finish of fifth in 1969 at Phoenix, and finishing third in a turbine-engine car behind winner A.J. Foyt and Knepper in a rain-shortened Ted Horn Memorial USAC National Dirt Car Championship race in September 1972 at DuQuoin, Illinois.
Midget racing was where he truly shined, claiming four championships in 1961—including the UARA midget title—which earned him an induction into the National Midget Racing Hall of Fame in 2013. He remained a beloved fixture at IMS in May, known for his warmth and remarkable sportsmanship regarding the 1969 wave-off, never once blaming Caves or his crew. That grace inspired the American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association to create the annual “Jigger Award” for the year’s hard luck qualifying driver, with Sirois himself as the first recipient in 1969.
Racing was simply in his blood. His father, Earl “Frenchy” Sirois, spent 40 years as an Indianapolis 500 mechanic working on the winning machines of Lee Wallard, Sam Hanks, and Jimmy Bryan, and named his son after two-time "500" pole winner Leon Duray. The famous nickname “Jigger” came from family friend and two-time Indy 500-winning riding mechanic Jigger Johnson, a moniker also used by his older sister. Later in life, Sirois worked tirelessly to promote awareness and treatment of stuttering disorders in youth, managing his own speech impediment after receiving therapy in his mid-60s.
