LONG BEACH, California – Johnny Rutherford came to Indy car racing after success racing midgets and sprint cars as part of USAC’s championship trail in the late 1950s and early ‘60s.

So, pardon him if he was a bit confused when told he was chosen as the honoree for this year’s Road Racing Drivers Club dinner held in conjunction with the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

“I wondered why. What did I do?” the three-time Indianapolis 500 winner joked at Thursday night’s event. “Me and the Road Racing Drivers Club? Come on.”

“Lone Star JR” was the latest racing legend honored at the RRDC event, the 10th annual dinner that drew luminaries from around the racing world, including Mario Andretti, Chip Ganassi and drivers with the same background as Rutherford – Sleepy Tripp and Ken Schrader.

“This has given me a chance to think about what I’ve done,” said Rutherford, whose only Indy car road course win among his 27 career victories came at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 1980. “I’ve had a good time. I love that all of this and the honors that have come. I had fun road racing and enjoyed my time in racing with all the different people.

Rutherford, who turned 80 in March, told stories about his career. He included yarns of his time racing for McLaren, driving for Smokey Yunick at the Daytona 500 and his time driving the famed Chaparral 2K for Jim Hall, who came from Texas to attend the dinner with his friend.

Rutherford, who was presented an original painting by noted motorsports artist Randy Owens, also told the story of when A.J. Foyt learned that Rutherford wasn’t a native Texan as his nickname leads people to believe.

“Foyt came up to me and said, ‘What do they mean, I’m the only native Texan to win the Indy 500?’” Rutherford said. “I explained to him that a sponsor had given me the nickname and I just went along with what they wanted, but I was born in Coffeyville, Kansas. The look on his face was priceless.”