21/05/2025
A gold ring and bracelet presented to a racing car mechanic for his role in two victories in the iconic Indianapolis 500 race, raced to victory during our Antiques & Collectors auction on May 28th.
Mike ‘Charlie’ Underwood’s winner’s ring, commemorating the Parnelli team’s 1970 triumph, featured an enamelled chequered flag and the words ‘1970 Champs’. It sold for a hammer price of £800.
The following lot was a bracelet commemorating Underwood’s role in the McLaren team’s 1974 and 1976 Indy 500 winning seasons, featuring an identity panel engraved with ‘Indianapolis 500’ and ‘Team McLaren'. It took a hammer price of £850.
The auction coincided with the excitement of the 109th Indy 500, which took place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the Sunday before the auction. Known as one of the toughest races in elite motorsports, with speeds reaching up to 240 mph, the event is one of the most anticipated annual fixtures on the global sporting calendar. Before the auction, director and auctioneer Will Gilding stated,
“We’re all revved up to offer this golden opportunity to acquire memorabilia from America’s most famous endurance race. Known as ‘the greatest spectacle in racing’, the event is famously steeped in tradition and ritual going back over a century. As a result, there are a great many collectors dedicated to acquiring items that evoke the thrill and romance of the legendary race.”
Charlie Underwood, who was based in Bitteswell, Leicestershire before relocating to the USA, started his career as a radar operator in the RAF before moving to Lotus Components in 1963. There, he became friends with David Lazenby, the well-known Formula 1 Lotus team senior mechanic and the Indy team's chief mechanic from 1964 - 1966. Charlie’s subsequent role as a senior mechanic with Team Lotus saw him heavily involved in the Indy 500 races of the mid to late 1960s, a period encompassing Scottish driver Jim Clark's famous win in a Lotus car in 1965.
Prior to his success with McLaren in the mid-1970s, Underwood returned to Indiana in 1970 with the Parnelli team, where he worked alongside the legendary Indy 500 crew chief, George Bignotti on Al Unser's winning car, in a race where Unser’s quick pit stops in a Colt 70 car with a Ford V8 engine were a noted factor in his victory.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the world’s largest spectator sporting facility with a capacity of around 350,000. Part of the ‘Triple Crown’ of motorsports achievements, which also includes the Monaco Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the event peaked at around 6.5 million TV viewers in a record-breaking 2024. It is much-loved for its customs including the annual rendition of ‘Back Home Again in Indiana’ and the winner being presented with a victory lane bottle of milk.
“As well as their powerful link to this great all-American sporting event with a global reach, this ring and bracelet have the added bonus of their connection to the fine tradition of British motorsports through Charlie Underwood,” added Will. “So, we are expecting a great deal of interest from far and wide, and we look forward to seeing where this very special memorabilia finds a new home.”
And so it proved, as the Winner's Ring is returning Stateside, being acquired by an American enthusiast, whilst a UK-based buyer bought the bracelet.
Got an item of interesting Sporting Memorabilia? Speak to our team for a free auction valuation - call (0)1858 410414 or email sales@gildings.co.uk
