Robby Unser

12/1/1968 - 13/6/2021

Record updated 18-Aug-21

Son of Bobby, nephew of Al. A true-all rounder, he had success in hill-climbs, raced in the IRL, sprint & sports cars & latterly tried his hand at rallying.

Unser Jr. followed a long line of famous family members who dominated the mountain. He competed on Pikes Peak from 1976 through 1983 in the Open Wheel division. In his rookie year, using the traditional “Unser number” 92, he finished ninth in a field of nearly 50 racers. The following year, the Albuquerque native was second overall behind Bob Herring, and followed with a third-place finish in 1978. In 1985, Unser Jr. entered a rally car, a 1985 Pontiac Fiero. He finished fourth. France’s legendary female driver Michèle Mouton was first overall. In 2010, Unser Jr. made a surprise return to the Hill Climb as a spectator and said he might like to return to America’s second-oldest auto race as a driver. While he never competed again as a driver, he came back in 2011 as color commentator for the KRDO 1240-AM broadcast. “I love the mountain. I love this race,” he said at the time. While Unser Jr. never achieved the level of success of some of his other family members — Bobby Sr., uncle Al and cousin Al Jr. are all Indianapolis 500 champions — he did have nominal success as a stunt car driver. Some of his work included the 1990s hit TV show "Walker, Texas Ranger," along with various commercials. Unser Jr.’s younger sister, Jeri, was named the Hill Climb’s Rookie of the Year in 1998, and in 2003, set a record for electric vehicles. He died six weeks after his father from blood clots following surgery on a broken hip.

The Gazzette