The roots of the problem: an Indycar TL

[kinnikuniverse]

THIS is the root of the problem.
​

1970-1978 - the USAC Championship Trail, also known as Indycar or Champ Car, enters the age of professionalism as cigarette brand Marlboro becomes the title sponsor of the series.

With it comes an age of iconic drivers rolling down the Indianapolis motor speedway and other tracks across america and the world. The likes of Mario Andretti, AJ Foyt, Gordon Johncock, Tom Sneva, the Unsers, Johnny Rutherford and Mark Donohue all made their makr at the speedway, becoming champions and legends of motorsports, with Mario becoming Formula 1 world champion with Lotus in 1978.

​

However, not all was paradise in american open-wheel racing. Throughout the decade, team owners, chief among then Roger Penske and Dan Gurney, became increasingly vocal over USAC's indy-centric marketing despite the lucrative Marlboro title Sponsorship, and their desire to negotiate strong TV deals and acquiring the commercial rights in order to promote the series as a whole and not just Indy, similar to what was happening in Formula 1 at the time with FOCA. The desire to add more road courses on what was still an oval-focused series was also a strong talking point.


As tensions were at their peak in 1978, the team owners and USAC leadership agreed to meet in the 1978 off-season to discuss the future of the sport and settle the first ever collective bargaining agreement in american open-wheel racing history...

Humble Beginnings in California

​

Meanwhile, on August 4, 1971, Carol Ann Houston gave birth to a healthy baby boy in Vallejo, California. She and the father, William G. Gordon II, would name their son Jeffry.

Jeff wouldn't have known his biological father too much, for his biological parents divorced when he was only a few months old. He would spend the first few years of his life with only his mother and older sister Kim as family.

One day, his mother met and eventually married a car builder and parts supplier named John Bickford. This fateful encounter allowed Jeff to develop a passion for racing, driving a quarter midget bought by his step-father for $450. Even at an early age, young Jeff showed exceptional talent, winning 35 quarter Midget races and setting 5 track records in various dirt tracks across california, eventually taking his precocious talents national and continuing his dominance, winning the grand national championship in denver and winning the pacific northwest championship.

It was at this time, at the age of 9, that Jeff began karting...

@TheMann
@FickleCrossroad

this is the timeline i"ve thought about for a while. Hope you'll enjoy it!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Marlboro Championship trail - 70s series champions

1970 - Al Unser - Vel's Parnelli Jones Racing
1971 - Joe Leonard - Vel's Parnelli Jones Racing
1972: Mario Andretti - Vel's Parnelli Jones Racing
1973: Mark Donohue - Penske
1974: Bobby Unser - All American Racers
1975: AJ Foyt - Gilmore Racing
1976: Gordon Johncock - Patrick Racing
1977: Tom Sneva - Penske
1978: Al Unser - Jim Hall Racing



INDY 500 WINNERS

1970 - Al Unser - Vel's Parnelli Jones
1971 - Peter Revson - Mclaren
1972: Mark Donohue - Penske
1973: Gordon Johncock - Patrick Racing
1974: Johnny Rutherford - Mclaren
1975: Bobby Unser - All American Racers
1976: Johnny Rutherford - Mclaren
1977 - AJ Foyt - Gilmore Racing
1978: Al Unser - Jim Hall Racing

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Best Indy front row ever?
​

The 80s: part 1

Late 1978-1983


The first meeting between the team owners and USAC and IMS management to discuss the future of the series resulted in the first ever collective bargaining agreement and a major restructuring of the championship and the series's governance:

-A new oragnisation, Indycar Inc. [1], formed as a mean to promote Indycar racing throughout the country and governing.

-the teams forming their own union, CART [2], meant to represent their interests.

-The addition of a few road course events to add variety to the schedule, which will remain mainly ovals.

- Indycar Inc.'s first move was to get TV Deals to broadcast and promote races outside of Indianapolis. Their existing deal with ABC was expanded to also cover other major races like the Michigan 500 and the Pocono 500, and fledgling Cable channel ESPN were also brought onboard to cover the minor races of the calendar .

Next up was acquiring many race tracks that were in danger of being in disrepair or abandoned. Tracks like Texas World Speedway, Ontario Motor Speedway and Riverside International Speedway were bought and given major revamps by their new owners, while road courses like Road America and Watkins Glen were also bought in the early 80s, with the historic Glen, especially, getting some much needed relief and a new home in the Indycar series starting in 1982. [3]



On the tracks, two major developments happened:

1. Mario Andretti, after winning the Formula 1 world championship in 1978, decided to return to Indycars for Pat Patrick Racing. This news came in great fanfare, for Mario's status as F1 world champion brought a lot of new eyeballs onto the new indycar product. [4]

2. The rise of young talents. The first to make himself famous was young Rick Mears, who was a relative unknown when he got the call from Roger Penske to replace Mark Donohue in 1978. That faith would be repaid immediately, for he'd win three races in his penske debut that year before embarking in a star-making 1979 season, winning his first Indy 500 and dominating the season.

The second was an Ohio native, Tim Richmond. A late comer in motorsports, Richmond grinded and worked his way through various disciplines and lower level series before making his indy debut in 1979, scoring some impressive results, including 8th at watkins glen that year and even getting the pole at the 1980 Indy 500. While he would ultimately end up in 6th and running out of fuel at the last stretch, Johnny Rutherford gave him the ride back to the pits.

From then on, none other than Dan Gurney hired the fast ohio native to race the rest of the season, giving good performances at Milwaukee and even winning that year's michigan 500 [5]. After finishing in 3rd at the 1981 indy 500 behind Bobby Unser and winner Mario Andretti [6], Richmond would have a breakout season in 1982, beatin the odds and winning the indy 500 for Dan Gurney [7] and scoring wins at Milwaukee and the california 500 at Ontario Motor Speedway.

Finally, there was Jim Trueman and his team composed of Bobby Rahal and Willy T. Ribs. A veteran Can-Am team owner, Trueman brought Rahal back from europe to set up a new Indycar team in 1982. Bringing in his former Can-Am driver gave him a good foundation, but it was his trailblazing hiring of Ribs that helped Trusports get off the ground. Rahal would win two races en route to finishing 2nd behind Rick Mears, while Ribs would make history as the first black driver to win an Indycar race when he won at Road America [8].


All of these developments and storylines combined to make 1983 the first highly anticipated season in the new Indycar's history.

That, and two new storylines: Long time team owner Carl Haas entering the series teaming with actor Paul Newman and british chassis makers Lola, successfully poaching Mario Andretti from Pat Patrick, who strikes back by scoring perhaps the biggest coup in indycar since bringing back Mario fresh off his formula 1 world championship win: bringing none other than former 2-time F1 world champion Emerson Fittipaldi out of his prolonged hiatus and into America.

with his arrival, however, comes a new problem...​

The news of Fitiipaldi's arrival in america, in a way, was the turning point of the new Indycar's ability to draw. Not only did national coverage on ABC expanded to 8 races, but a wave of ex-Formula 1 and european drivers came into the series: Irishman Derek Daly, Aussie Geoff Brabham, Canadian Jacques Villeneuve Sr., Colombian Roberto Guerrero, Italian Bruno Giacomelli, fellow Brazilians Roberto Moreno and Raul Boesel and south african female standout Desirée Wilson came into the series on the back of Emmo's arrival.

This, along with exciting races and an unpredictable title race, made the 1983 season the most successful and most watched indycar season so far. At the end of everything, it ended up being Teo Fabi, an Italian Formula 2 journeyman driving for the upstart Forsythe racing, Who would end up shocking the north american racing scene by winning the title at the last round at Ontario motor speedway [9].

The surprise 1983 Marlboro Champion​

While publicly, the teams and drivers respectfully congratulated Fabi on his title win, in private, concerns were being made vocal about the influx of foreign talent into the series. That, combined with the ever rising costs of motorsports, were the main talking points between Indycar Inc. And CART as they entered the 1983 off-season's negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement...

Such rising costs started affecting young jeff gordon. Despite continuing his success from quarter midgets in his new ventures in Karting, winning all of the 25 races he entered, the increasing costs of racing, along with a costly move to Indiana due to his family having insurance issues, were factors in Gordon beginning to lose interest in racing and focuse on waterskiing...


Meanwhile, at around the same time, on the other side of Indiana, a young boy turned heads in the local karting scene, winning a championship in 1980 and showing lots of promise.

MARLBORO INDYCAR CHAMPIONS

1979: Rick Mears - Penske
1980: Johnny Rutherford - Jim Hall Racing
1981: Rick Mears - Penske
1982: Rick Mears - Penske
1983: Teo Fabi - Forsythe Racing

INDY 500 WINNERS

1979: Rick Mears - Penske
1980: Johnny Rutherford - Jim Hall Racing
1981: Mario Andretti - Patrick Racing
1982: Tim Richmond - All American Racers
1983: Tim Richmond - All American Racers



NOTES

[1] Basically, a new organisation that serves essentially as Indycar's FOM
[2] here, CART is just the Indycar equivalent of FOCA
[3] Ontario and Texas World were left to die IRL
[4] IRL, Mario competed part-time in Indycar, only returning full time in 1983
[5] and [7]: IRL races won by Gordon Johncock, and Richmond IRL quickly ssitched to NASCAR. Though nothing right now suggests he might not switch to stock cars down the road...
[6]: Bobby Unser's penalty stands and Mario wins it.
[8]: IRL Race won by Hector Rebaque. Also, IRL, Ribs got stuck in Formula Atlantic until switching to sports cars.
[9]IRL title won by Al Unser Sr.

Any feedback is appreciated!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

This fella did the right thing ITTL and may have saved his career. the fallout of his actions, however, would cause a massive shitstorm...
​

1984 sees Indycar Inc. And CART come up with a new collective bargaining agreement, adressing the issues that has bene plaguing the scene in the last year:

-Indycar Inc. Will invest a hefty sum of money into lower level series such as Indy Lights, Toyota Atlantics, Formula Super Vee and springt car series so as to provide relief for smaller teams and drivers qho are struggling for money.

-Each Indycar seasons, from the duration of the new CBA, will have a grid composed of a minimum of 16 full time american drivers, with a minimum of 3 of them being rookies.

Among Said rookies in 1984, three drivers made their marks almost immediately.

The first was Michael Andretti. Mario's son, who won the Formula Super Vee championship the previous year, would score multiple podiums in his debut season with the Kraco-sponsored car of Rick Galles en route to 7th in the standings, 1 point behind that year's rookie of the year: Al Unser Jr of Doug Shierson Racing.

The son of the former 3-time Indy 500 winner and Series champion Al Unser did not disappoint in his debut with the promising Domino's team, scoring his first career win at Portland after a slow start and becoming rookie of the year, finishing in 6th in the standings.

Finally, while technically not a rookie, having raced part-time in 1982 for Forsythe, Danny Sullivan from Louisville, Kentucky returned from a mid stint for Tyrell in Formula 1 and went back to the defending champions Forsythe, scoring his first career win at the Pocono 500 and Texas 500, while young Chip Ganassi would score a monumental upset, holding off Mario Andretti to win at Cleveland.

Speaking of Mario, he would battle with All-American Racer's Tim Richmond for the title all season long, with Richmond beating Mario at the Michigan 500 and Riverside in memorable scraps.

the final round at the California 500 at Ontario Motor Speedway was a race to remember, with Mario and Richmond dueling for the win all race long until Richmond passed Mario with three laps to go and homding him off for both the win and the championship, which would prove to be the ohio native's only Indycar championship.


1985 sees a crazy season with no less than 10 different winners and a title fight between Father and son. It started with Danny Sullivan winning at the season opener at Atlanta Motor Speedway, then Al unser Sr. Beating his son at Phoenix. Mario would win at Long Beach before Sullivan scores the famous spin and win at Indianapolis, and a week later, at Milwaukee, Tim Richmond qould win his last career indycar win before switching to NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports at the end of the year.

Mario would win again at Portland, then Little Al wins at Watkins Glen and Cleveland before Emerson Fittipaldi scores his third career win in Indycar at Michigan after his wins at Wakins Glen and Riverside in 1983.


Jacques Villeneuve Sr. Would make history as the first canadian indycar winner at Road America, Rick Mears dominates at Pocono and Willy T. Ribs scores his second career win at the Texas 500.

Afterwards, Bobby Rahal wins at home in Mid-Ohio as well as two in a row at Riverside and Laguna Seca before the thrilling season finale, where Little Al beat his father at Ontario to win his first ever Indycar title and Doug Shierson's only title.


1986 sees another epic title duel. This time it was between Bobby Rahal and Michael Andretti. Michael would score his first two career wins back to back at both Atlanta and Long Bsach, the latter after a tense finish holding off reigning champion Al Unser jr. However, Bobby Rahal's win at Indianapolis, coming only a few weeks after his boss Jin Trueman passed away, along with an incredible second half of the season, winning Texas 500, Mid-Ohio, Laguna Seca and the finale at Ontario allowed him to successfully mount a comeback against Michael to snap up his first ever Indycar title.

Other notable achievements in that season onclude Johnny Rutherford, replacing the now-NASCAR star Tim Richmond at All-American Racers, unexpectedly winning the Michigan 500, becoming the oldest winner in Indycar history at the time.


Rahal, now the team owner of Trusports, would repeat as champion in 1987 in a dominant performance, showing incredible consistency throughout the season.


Thanks to the new initiative by Indycar Inc., many new american talents got the chance to both compete at Indy and run full time. Drivers from various backgrounds, such as feeder series standouts Mike Groff, Robbie Buhl, Scott Brayton, Davy Jones, Dominic Dobson and Michael Andretti's cousin and brother John and Jeff Andretti, as well as sports car aces Chip Robinson, Scott Pruett and Wally Dallenbach Jr. Got to run full time, while USAC sprint car drivers managed to gain enough funding and help to run the 500 milers, including Indianapolis


However, not all was glitz and glamour in the Indycar world: in 1986, promising prospect and 1983 Michigan 500 winner John Paul Jr.'s confession and exposure of his father's drug trafficking operation, as well as Randy Lanier's subsequent arrest in 1988, caused a scandal across the racing community, and the war on drugs made its way to american motorsports, with investigations into teams and drivers's personal activities becoming rampant...





Meanwhile, away from the scandals and corruption, Jeff Gordon began racing again. This time, entering sprint car racing, becoming the youngest ever recipisnt of a USAC racing license at the age of 16 and on the brisk of a legendary career in the category.

Meanwhile, Tony Stewart would go on to win the world karting championship in 1987 before transitioning to three quarter midget car racing...


MARLBORO CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS

1984: Tim Richmond - All American Racers
1985: Al Unser Jr - Doug Shierson Racing
1986: Bobby Rahal - Trusports
1987: Bobby Rahal - Trusports-Rahal Racing


INDY 500 WINNERS

1984: Rick Mears - Penske
1985: Danny Sullivan - Penske
1986: Bobby Rahal - Trusports
1987: Al Unser - Penske

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1988 was a tumultuous year for Indycar racing. The shock testimony of John Paul Jr. Brought the war on drugs into american motorsports, and many operations were forced to shut down following convictions of drug trafficking. This also had a side effect of people starting to question the overabundance of tobacco sponsorship in motorsports, a debate that would only increase in notoriety over the coming decades.


On track, the 1988 season saw the emergence of the Ilmor chevrolet V-8 engine as the premier powerplant in Indycar, winning all but one race and getting all the pole positions, with Team Penske's Danny Sullivan grabbing the title. Also notable was the involvement of Porsche in the series, though their chassis and engine wasn't really competitive, even at the hands of 1983 champion Teo Fabi, and so, Porsche instead switched their focus to sports car racing and building a successor to the 962 to compete in WSC and IMSA. The team would be taken over by Penske's shot caller Derrick Walker in 1989.

Finally, chassis supplier March was starting to become increasingly abandoned for the Lola Chassis, and that trend would continue in 1989, with Patrick Racing and Emerson Fittipaldi taking a lola-chevy combo to victory at the Indy 500 and the title after a tense duel with Rick Mears and Penske. Only Teo Fabi managed to win with a March for Derrick Walker, scoring three wins at Michigan, Mid-Ohio and Road America.

As we headed into the last decade of the 20th century, Indycar Inc. And CART went back to the negotiating table for the new CBA. While they were satisfied with the progress and development of american drivers and the investments in lower level motorsports providing fruitful results, the big stain on american motorsports's reputation following the industry-wide drug busting prompted the parties to negotiate procedures and check-ups into the backgrounds of any aspiring team owners in order to avoid such scandals ever again.

Tobacco sponsorship was also a subject of debate, with the more conscious voices voicing their concern over advertising something that could be dangerous, whereas some of the outfits sponsored by them, especially Team Penske, refused to let tobacco sponsorship go away. In the end, they decided on keeping tobacco sponsorship in the sport, but teams who run tobacco liveries are obliged to put warnings on the dangers of tobacco usage on their cars, while teams running alcoholic beverages as sponsors are also obliged to put the "Don't drink and drive" sticker on their cars.



On the track, 1990 started with a variety of winners, with mIchael Andretti, now driving for Newman-Haas woth his father Mario, winning the season opener at Atlanta, Rick Mears winning at Phoenix and Little Al winning once again at Long Beach, now driving for Galles Racing. At Indianapolis, Arie Luyendyk stuns the field by winning the 500 for Doug Shierson.

In thr middle of the season, Michael Andretti would win at Portland and Watkins Glen and take the lead of the championship despite retiring at Cleveland, but Al Unser Jr would go on a tear in the second half of the season, going on a run of 4 consecutive wins at Toronto, Michigan, Texas and Pocono.

Michael won the next two races at Mid-Ohio and Road America to stay in the hunt, but a pitstop error costed him a chance to capitalise on Little Al's retirement at Nazareth, and Little Al would duly win at Riverside and Ontario Motor Speedway to clinch his second Indycar title.

Alos of note in 1990 is the debut of Target Chip Ganassi Racing, with Formula 1 veteran Eddie Cheever ending as rookie of the year and Patrick Racing's almost winless season, for the rumoured Alfa Romeo engine program never came to fruitition, with Alfa Romeo prefering to concentrate on their Group C car, meaning that Pat Patrick stuck with the Chevrolet engine. Despite Emerson Fittipaldi winning at Nazareth and Roberto Guerrero scoring some good results, the broken promises was enough for Emmo to leave for Penske in 1991, with Danny Sullivan, who went winless in 1990, barely losing to Bobby Rahal at Cleveland, going the other way.


Michael Andretti learned form his mistakes, and he vowed to never repeat 1990 again. And he did so with gusto in 1991. After a string of retirements to begin the season at Atlanta and Long Beach, with his cousin John Andretti winning at Atlanta for Jim Hall and Little Al dominating at Long Beach despite a questionable punt on Danny Sullivan, Michael came back to finish 4th at Phoenix before dominating the Indy 500, leading almost every lap en route to inking his name into immortality, just like his father did.

That win at Indy served as a declick for Michael, for he would absolutely dominate the rest of 1991, scoring a total of 9 wins and almost equalising AJ Foyt's record of single season wins at the season finale at Ontario where not for a spectacular drive by Arie Luyendyk, who picked up where he left off at Ikdy in 1990, winning 4 races for Granatelli at Phoenix, Michigan, Nazareth and Ontario.

Meanwhile, in the grassroots level, Jeff Gordon became the youngest driver to get a USAC license at age 16. Already, his talents became the talk of the nation, for he would become rookie of the year in 1989, then dominate the USAC National Series in 1990 and the USAC Silver Crown championship in 1991, along with an impressive debut in the NASCAR Busch series race in North Carolina speedway in 1990, qualifying second but crashing after 23 laps, along with competing in the 1991 bushc series full time with Bill Davis thanks to the money brought by Hugh Connerty.

During that year, 1991, Jeff was looking to climb up the ladder and start a career in open-wheel racing. During the 1991 Cleveland Grand Prix, he shopped himself to a few Indycar teams, but to no avail, as they all felt that he needed seasoning in Indy Lights. While Al Unser Jr and AJ Foyt suggested NASCAR, Jeff managed to find a lifeline in open-wheel racing thanks to meeting none other than Formula 1 legend Sir Jackie Stewart.

The Scotsman, who saw the huge potential in Gordon, invited the young Gordon to join his Formula Three outfit for the 1992 season. He didn't feel like relocating to Europe, and so, Gordon managed to negotiate a deal with Stewart: he would compete in the British Formula 3 series in a part-time capacity, in exchange for Stewart helping him get a seat in Indy Lights. Like that, he would only move between America and England.

After securing a part-time drive for Stewart in british F3, Gordon would then find a seat at Landford Racing, the reigning 2-time Indy Lights champions, for the 1992 season, thanks to Stewart's connections.

Meanwhile, Tony Stewart, thanks to his friend Mark Dismore, moved up to the USAC National Midget Series, where he would impress by being crowned rookie of the year. In a race in Indiana, he net and rsced against Jeff Gordon in what was the start of their legendary rivalry.​

SERIES CHAMPIONS

1988: Danny SSullivan- Team Penske
1989: Emerson Fittipaldi - Patrick Racing
1990: Al Unser Jr - Galles Racing
1991: Michael Andretti - Newman-Haas

INDY 500 WINNERS

1988: Rick Mears - Penske
1989: Emerson Fittipaldi - Patrick Racing
1990: Arie Luyendyk - Doug Shierson Racing
1991: Michael Andretti - Newman-Haas

Next Up: the 1992 Indycar Season Preview!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1992 Marlboro Championship Season Preview

Schedule

1. Valvoline 200 - Atlanta Motor speedway (O) - March 22nd
2. Jimmy Bryan Memorial - Phoenix International raceway (O) - April 5th
3. Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach (S) - April 12th
4. Indy 500 (O) - May 24th
5. Rex Mays Classic - Milwaukee Mile (O) - June 7th
6. GI Joe's 200 -Portland International Raceway (R) - June 21st
7. Budweiser Grand Prix of New York - Watkins Glen International (R) - June 28th
8. New England 200 - New Hampshire Motor Spweedway (O) - July 5th
9. Molson Indy Toronto (S) - July 19th
10. Michigan 500 (O) - August 2
11. Budweiser Grand Prix of Cleveland (R) - August 9
12. Miller Genuine Draft 200- Mid Ohio (R) - August 16
13. Texaco Halvoline 200 - Road America (R) - August 23rd (R)
14. Texas 500 - Texas World Speedway (O) - August 30
15. Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix of Pennsylvania - Nazareth Speedway (O) - September 13th
16. L.A Times 500k - Riverside International Raceway (R) - October 4th
17. California 500 - Ontario Motor Speedway (O) - October 18th


TEAMS AND DRIVERS


Texaco Halvoline Newman-Haas Racing
Lola-Ford
#1 Michael Andretti
#2 Mario Andretti

Michael Andretti won the 1991 title in oen of the most dominant seasons in recent memory, and the reigning Indy 500 and series champion is looking for the back-to-back in 1992. His father Mario, meanwhile, will do anything he can to help his son achieve his goals while looking to prove he still got it at age 52.


Marlboro team Penske
Penske-Chevrolet
#5 Emerson Fittipaldi
#4 Rick Mears
#7 Paul Tracy - 2, 4, 6, 9-11, 14, 17

Team Penske runs the oldest lineup of the entire series, but Rick Mears and Emerson Fittipaldi has won a combined 4 Indy 500s and 6 top flight open wheel racing titles (if you count the indycar title on the same level as the F1 title). Their championship credentials is more than enough to make them the main challengers for Michael Andretti and Newman-Haas this season.

Arriving from Dale Coyne is 1990 indy lights champion Paul Tracy, who will serve as the team's test driver and run a part-time program in a third Penske car at the 500 milers, his home race at Toronto and the Cleveland and Portland Grand Prixs.



Miller Genuine Draft Rahal-Hogan Racing
Truesports-Chevrolet
#12 Bobby Rahal

The two-time Indycar champion is all alone now that Scott Pruett left for Patrick Racing, taking long-time title sponsor Budweiser with him. Securing Sponsorship from Miller Genuine Draft, Rahal and his team manager Carl Hogan also revealed the new Truesports chassis upgrade, hoping to get back to victory lane more often than in 1991.

Budweiser Patrick Racing
Lola-Ford
#20 Scott Pruett

Despite two relatively slumpy seasons in a row following the 1989 championship season, Pat Patrick still has considerable influence in the sport, poaching both Scott Pruett and Budweiser from Team Rahal-Hogan and acquiring the same Lola-Ford package that won Newman-Haas and Michael Andretti the Indy 500 and the title last year. Could 1992 be the year where Pruett not only wins his first race, but also where Pat Patrick returns into title contention?


Galles Racing
Galmer-Chevrolet
#3 Al Unser Jr - Valvoline
#18 Wally Dallenbach Jr. - Kraco

Only two wins for Little Al in 1991, defending his crowns at Long Beach and Texas World Speedway. The 2-time Indycar champion will now drive the brand new Galmer chassis, developed in-house by Rick Galles with the sole purpose of winning the Indy 500 and the championship.

Wally Dallenbach Jr., who impressed with his solid, consistent outings last year, returns as Little Al's teammate. Dallenbach is a strong dark horse candidate to get his first maiden win this year.


Pennzoil Hall VDS Racing
Lola-Chevrolet
#4 John Andretti

At the season opener in Atlanta last year, John Andretti stunned the kndycar world by giving Jim Hall his first indycar win since John Paul Jr. At the 1983 Michigan 500 and scoring his first career win. This was followed by multiple top 10 finishes, including a memorable 2nd place behind cousin Michael Andretti at Michigan. Will the Jim Hall revival continue this year?



STP Granatelli Racing
Lola-Chevrolet
#9 Jeff Andretti
#77 Arie Luyendyk (500 milers only)

Speaking of revival, the Granatelli team, now run by Andy's son Vince, shocked the Indycar paddock last year qith Arie Luyendyk scoring 4 wins, all on ovals, including the Michigan and California 500.

Luyendyk, however, will only compete at the 500 milers this season, for he wants to focus on his son's Karting debut. The full time seat will be driven by 1991 Rookie of the year Jeff Andretti, formerly of Dale Coyne Racing.


Dale Coyne Racing
Lola-Ford
#19 Robbie Buhl - Mi-Jack
#39 Ross Bentley (R) (2-3, 6, 9, 11, 13, 500 milers) - Canadian Tire
#90 Eric Bachelart (R) (1, 7, 11-13, Ovals ) - Lease Plan

With both Paul Tracy and Jeff Andretti leaving, Dale Coyne brings back Robbie Buhl from Arciero racing and will run the second car with two part-timers. Canadian Ross Bentley and 1991 indy lights champion Éric Bachelart will exchange the second Dale Coyne car between each other, with all three drivers competing together at the 500 milers.



Labbatt Arciero Racing
Lola-Buick
#10 John Jones

Arciero ran three different drivers last year, with canadian John Jones ending up achieving the best results out of the three, with a highest finish of 8th place at the Michigan 500. Coming in with Labbatt sponsorship, the small Buick outfit looks to climb up the ladder.

Alumax Bettenhausen racing
Penske-Chevrolet
#16 Scott Sharp (R)

Tony Bettenhausen jr. Retires from full time racing after a string of top ten finishes in 1991, with a very impressive 5th place at Michigan his last great result. For his first year as full-time team manager, he puts his faith in reigning SCCA Trans-Am champion Scott Sharp, who has shown a great deal of promise in the pre-season testing on both ovals and road courses. Now running last year's Penske-Chevrolet combo thansk to a new partnership with the captain, This is a team to keep an eye on in 1992.


Target Chip Ganassi Racing
Lola-Ford
#6 Robby Gordon (R)
#28 Eddie Cheever

Thanks to relatively successful first two years in the sport, Target gave Chip Ganassi additional funding to provide a second car for young sports car driver Robby Gordon, two-time GTO class winner at the Daytona 24 hours and Sebring.

Eddie Cheever will still serve as the number 1 driver and also mentor young Robby under his wings to make the transition to open-wheel cars easier.



Domino's Doug Shierson Racing
Lola-Chevrolet
#30 Scott Brayton

Doug Shierson sadly cpuldn't capitalise on the 1990 Indy 500 win, and Arie Luyendyk left for Granatelli in 1991. Scott Brayton did as well as he could under these circumstences, but with Domino's withdrawl from the series as sponsor becoming increasingly likely, this year might be the end of the #30 car's existence.


Euromotorsports
Lola-Ford
#42 Mike Groff - Barilla

Antonio Ferrari, grandnephew of Enzo, soldiers on with Mike Groff behind the wheel despite the lack of ressources to be competitive.


AJ Foyt Enterprises
Lola-Chevrolet
#14 AJ Foyt (ovals only) - Copenhagen
#14 Ross Cheever (6-7, 11, 13, 16) (R) - Copenhagen
#14 Brian Till (R) (3, 9, 12) - Copenhagen
#48 Davy Jones - Duracell

AJ Foyt, now in his last ever season as a competitive driver, will compete in the ovals only this year, with his trademark #14 Copenhagen car being shared between Japan F3000 ace Ross Cheever and Indy Lights standout Brian Till on the road courses. Menawhile, Davy Jones competes in his 3rd season with the team on the back of some solid top ten finishes in 1991.


Panasonic Dick Simon racing
Lola-Buick
#11 Hiro Matsushita
#22 Raul Boesel
#23 Lyn St. James (part-time) (R)

Raul Boesel returns to Indycar Racing after a successful stint in sports cars, partnering Hiro Matsushita at the panasonic team. Sports car racer and ESPN analyst Lyn St. James will compete part-time this season, including a try at the Indy 500, becoming the first woman since Desirée Wilson to attempt to qualify for the event.


Walker Racing
Lola-Ford
#15 Scott Goodyear - Mackenzie Financials
#17 Willie T. Ribs - Molson

Derrick Walker's first year as team owner of the former Porsche team started well in 1989, with Teo Fabi scoring three wins, but the last two years hasn't been so kind to the british manager. Willy T. Ribs unfortunately showed his declining talent, but Canadian Scott Goodyear ended up being a revelation, scoring many top 8 finishes. His performances attracted many canadian sponsors to the team, giving Derrick some much needed room to run the current-spec Lola-ford package.



Della penna motorsports
Lola-Ford
#47 Jimmy Vasser (R) - Ralphs

John Della Pena, fresh off winning the Formula Atlantic title, moves up to Indycar with Jimmy Vasser, the same driver who brought him glory in the atlantics. Acquiring one of the 1991 Lola-Ford packages of Newman-Haas and with supermarket chain Ralphs financing them, this upstart team might sneak some top 10 finishes.


King Racing
Lola-Buick
#26 Dave Kudrave - Quaker State
#36 Roberto Guerrero - Skoal Bandit

From the ashes of Leader Card racing comes Kenny Bernstein's successful drag racing outfit King Racing. Veteran Roberto Guerrero, who just received American citizenship, bring shis longtime sponsor Skoal Bandit with him, giving Bernstein enough funding for a second car for Dave Kudrave, a young driver praised by none other than Dan Gurney, who competed in a few races last year for Arciero.

Hemelgarn racing
Lola-Buick
#81 Buddy Lazier - Jack's Tool Rental

Hemelgarn and Buddy Lazier keeps going for yet another season, if only to boast that they can still participate at the highest level.


P.I.G Racing (part-time)
Lola-Chevrolet
#31 Ted Prappas (R)

The smallest outfit on the grid, P.I.G Enterprise runs Ted Prappas, a driver who first made a name for hosmelf in the independent american indycar series.

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Marlboro Indycar Championship

Round 1: Valvoline 200 at Atlanta Motor speedway. March 22nd, 1992

The 1992 Indycar season started, as per tradition, in the deep south at Atlanta Motor speedway. 29 cars participated in qualifying, with Hiro Matsushita being bumped out by Arciero's John Jones for the final spot on the grid and Ted Prappas surprising everybpdy by qualifying his underfunded Lola 16th.

Michael Andretti looked to pick up where he left 1991 as he sought back to back championships, but Al Unser Jr, using the new Galmer Chassis, sntached the pope position from him in the last few minutes of qualifying. Emerson Fittipaldi and Bobby Rahal were not that far behind, thus continuing the trends of the last few seasons of Penske, Newman-Haas and Galles being the main challengers, with Bobby Rahal's outfit being the main darkhorses...or is it?



QUALIFYING RESULTS

ROW 1
Al Unser Jr
Michael Andretti

Row 2
Emerson Fittipaldi
Bobby Rahal

Row 3
Rick Mears
Mario Andretti

Row 4
Eddie Cheever
Scott Pruett

Row 5
Scott Goodyear
Wally Dallenbach Jr.

Row 6
John Andretti
Scott Brayton

Row 7
Robby Gordon
Scott Sharp

Row 8
Raul Boesel
Ted Prappas

Row 9
Jimmy Vasser
Eric Bachelart

Row 10
Davy Jones
Buddy Lazier

Row 11
Robbie Buhl
Roberto Guerrero

Row 12
AJ Foyt
Willy T. Ribs

Row 13
Jeff Andretti
Dave Kudrave

Row 14
Mike Groff
John Jones

DNQ
Hiro Matsushita

At the start, and for much of the race, Michael and Little Al raced one another for the win, while in the midfield, there was some competitive racing involving many a few daring passes.

Then, on lap 78, Michael's engine blew up, giving the lead to Little Al, but not for long, as Roger Penske pulled one of his signature pit strategies to get Fittipladi and Rick Mears up front. An unfortunate long pitstop by Little Al pretty much sealed the deal for Roger Penske, as Emerson Fittipaldi wins the first roudn of the season, with Mears in 2nd for a 1-2 and Bobby Rahal in a distant 3rd, showing the promises of the upgraded Trusports Chassis. The most notable result is Ted Prappas scoring his first point in his first ever Indycar outing.

1. Emerson Fittipaldi 20 pts
2. Rick Mears 16 pts
3. Bobby Rahal 14 pts
4. Al Unser Jr 12 pts
5. Wally Dallenbach Jr. 10 pts
6. John Andretti 6 pts
7. Mario Andretti 4 pts
8. Eddie Cheever 3 pts
9. Scott Goodyear 2 pts
10. Ted Prappas 1 pt



Round 2: Jimmy Bryan Memorial at Phoenix - April 5th, 1992


Michael kept churning out stunning qualifying laps, crushing the lap record at Phoenix, with a strong Bobby Rahal alongside him on the front row.

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Bobby Rahal

ROW 2
Mario Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 3
John Andretti
Paul Tracy

ROW 4
Scott Pruett
Rick Mears

ROW 5
Raul Boesel
Scott Goodyear

ROW 6
Al Unser Jr
Scott Brayton

ROW 7
Eddie Cheever
Robby Gordon

ROW 8
Scott Sharp
Davy Jones

ROW 9
Buddy Lazier
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 10
Jeff Andretti
Hiro Matsushita

ROW 11
AJ Foyt
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 12
Robbie Buhl
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 13
Dave Kudrave
John Jones

ROW 14
Mike Groff
Ross Bentley


Bobby Rahal utterly dominated the event, showing off the progress of the Trusports chassis. The only car on the lead lap by the final 20 laps was Eddie Cheever's Target Lola. But then, a shocking twist happens as Rahal clips the wall and breaks his right front suspension!

And just like that, from a gift of god, Eddie Cheever wins his and Ganassi's first ever Indycar win!

​

Phoenix Race Results

1. Eddie Cheever 20 pts
2. Emerson Fittipaldi 16 pts
3. Paul Tracy 14 pts
4. Al Unser Jr 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Scott Pruett 6 pts
7. Rick Mears 4 pts
8. Scott Brayton 3 pts
9. Michael Andretti 2 pts
10. Scott Sharp 1 pt


Round 3: Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach - April 12th, 1992


Michael continued his dominant qualifying form, scoring pole at the premier street race in America. However, two surprise faces starts alongside him, with Wally Dallenbach Jr. And Scott Pruett starting sexpnd and third in front of the king of the beach, Al Unser Jr. What the thousands of Indycar fnas at Long Beach wouldn't know, however, was that they would witness a classic.



ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 2
Scott Pruett
Al Unser Jr

ROW 3
Emerson Fittipaldi
Eddie Cheever

ROW 4
Mario Andretti
Bobby Rahal

ROW 5
Rick Mears
John Andretti

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
Davy Jones

ROW 7
Jimmy Vasser
Robby Gordon

ROW 8
Scott Sharp
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 9
Scott Goodyear
Brian Till

ROW 10
Ross Bentley
Lyn St. James

ROW 11
Willy T. Ribs
Dave Kudrave

ROW 12
Buddy Lazier
John Jones

ROW 13
Hiro Matsushita
Scott Brayton

ROW 14
Robbie Buhl
Ted Prappas

DNQ
Mike Groff
Jeff Andretti


At the start, Michael led and Little Al took 2nd in a three-wide pass of Pruett and Dallenbach at the first corner to get second place. As in Atlanta, Michael and Litttle Al fought for the lead, but the race quickly turned into one of attrition, as only 10 cars finished the race. Michael was not one of them, for his transmission broke up trying to defend his lead against Little Al.

From then on, it was smooth sailing for Little Al, for he would comfortably be protected by teammate Wally Dallenbach Jr, who femded off Bobby Rahal and Emmo, to win his 5th straight victory at Long Beach and get a 1-2 for Galles and their new Galmer Chassis.

​

Long Beach Race Results

1. Al Unser Jr. 20 pts
2. Wally Dallenbach 16 pts
3. Bobby Rahal 14 pts
4. Emerson Fittipaldi 12 pts
5. Scott Goodyear 10 pts
6. Rick Mears 6 pts
7. Jimmy Vasser 4 pts
8. Ross Bentley 3 pts
9. Scott Pruett 2 pts
10. Hiro Matsushita 1 pt


Up Next: Jeff Gordon's first races in British F3 and Indy Lights!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Jeff Gordon's lower Formulae adventures - Chapter 1

Jeff Gordon knew that 1992 was gonna be the most grueling year of his life.

Not that he wasn't used to traveling around. He competed in Midgets and Sprint Cars everywhere in the states, and he even went to New Zealand to compete. But not at this frantic pace. One week-end, he'd be at home in Indiana, the other, all across the country to California, and the next, flying away to England to race for Jackie Stewart.

He was gonna miss his parents and his loved ones, for sure. But he knew it was the way to go. He knew he is made of tough material. Otherwise, he wouldn't have plunged headfirst into racing.

The 20-year old young man would finally make the step up to the moment of truth for many aspiring racers: do well in Indy Lights, and you might just have a good chance at getting a full-time ride in Indycars. Jeff might have been priviledged to have Jackie and his sponsor Dupont sign him with the reigning 2-time champion team, Landford Racing, he needed to put 100% effort if he would ahve any chances of making it to Indycar. At Atlanta for the opening round, Jeff got himself acquainted with the team and his teammate, another young and hungry Californian in Bryan Herta.

In the practice and qualifying sessions, Jeff, with the help of the supportive environment at Landford, adapted well with the sophisticated machinery of open-wheel race cars, getting it on the 2nd row just behind teammate Herta and behind the two drivers expected to be their main rivals this year: Mexican Adrian Fernandez of John Martin Racing and Mark Smith of Indy Regency Racing Racing. Right behind the two Landford cars were two darkhorses to the title race: Robbie Groff and Sandy Brody.

The race quickly devolved into a race-long chase for the win between Jeff and Fernandez. A mistake by fernandez led Jeff to pass him with 20 laps to go, and he would hold on to score a debut win.

Despite scoring the pole at the next round in Phoenix, Jeff quickly found himself left in the dust by a determined Fernandez, who was simply untouchable that day.


Now, going to Long Beach, the glitz and glamour of shoreline drive didn't distract jeff one bit. Any doubts and concerns over his lack of experience on road courses were quickly proven needless, for Jeff scored his second pole position in a row and would end up holding off Groff and Fernandez to win the Long Beach GP support race.

Up next, however, came the long airplane ride to London for a 4 week stay in England. Learning a new racing culture, a new environement and a vastly different atmosphere.

Upon arriving at the Heathrow airport, Jeff was greeted by Sir Jackie Stewart and his son Paul. Heberging him in their london house, Jeff acclimated himself with the customs of britain and the team, including his teammate, Brazilian Gil de Ferran, before following them to the Thruxton Circuit for his first British F3 outing.

The Thruxton circuit is known as a true test of a driver's skill, with its deceptive corners and lack of walls. Jeff would know that firsthand upon doing his first praxtice laps around the circuit in his Camel-sponsored Reynard 923. Unaccustomed to the more refined style needed to drive a european single seater, Jeff learned the ropes the hard way, spinning many times while testing out his car's limit. Plus, it is clesr that De Ferran was the team's number 1 driver, due to his considerable experience advantage over the young american.

Thankfully, Jeff had Jackie Stewart as mentor. You cannot have a better teacher than him. The elderly Scotsman would gove Jeff precious tips, while the more active environement was a bit overwhelming at first, but it allowed Jeff to push himself just like the crewmates.

On the day of Qualifying, Jeff improved his performances, though his lack of experience on european single seaters meant that he was a bit off the pace of the leaders. He still maanged to qualify in 15th, which was really good for a complete beginner. Still, people weren't really high on the american kid who had no experience and, in their words, "couldn't turn right".

The standing start, Jeff's first ever, didn't help matters. He dropped off to 20th place already by the time they hit the first turn. What they didn't expect, however, was the sheer will and determination of Jeff Gordon. Throughout the race, he worked through the field, managing to get into 8th position before, sadly, his mechanic broke down with 3 laps to go. The young american showed them what he was made of, but he learned that those open-wheel cars sure were fragile. He also made friends with a fellow young american who competed in the series in Elton Julian.

The next race, at the legendary Brands Hatch circuit, would see Jeff actually slightly improve his performances. Qualifying 15th again, Gordon woudl however nail his standing start and drive a solid race, finishing in 8th, two places behind the points as his teammate de Ferran won the race. Returning to Thruxton, Gordon, now having learned the track, improved his qualifying by starting 10th and battling with Andre Ribeiro and Jason Plato all race long. In the end, he scored his first ever point, finishing 6th behind Kelvin Burt.

While celebrating his friend Julian's win in that race, Jackie came up to Jeff and told him that Paul (Stewart) was gonna take some times on the sidelines to nurse a wrist injury, meaning that he would have the opportunity to step up to the team's F3000 outfit at the opening round of the championship at the mythical Silverstone circuit.

If he thought the ambiance at the F3 team pushed him alot, then the F3000 outfit was even more intense! Everything was prepared to the bone, every detail meticulously managed. This was the closest he could get to the atmosphere of a Formula 1 team. Thankfully, Jackie and Paul got him accustomed, with teammate David Coulthard welcoming him and getting along well with the young american.

Onboard the Reynard 92D, Jeff practised extensively around Silverstone. He foudn the high-speed track to be right up his alley, and he would surprise a lot of people by qualifying 10th in his first ever F3000 outing.

The race began, and Jeff managed to hang in there with F3000 veterans such as Andrea Montermini, Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Karl Wendlinger. Jeff stayed close to David Coulthard all race long, concentrating on getting the car home in one piece, and Jeff would end the race in an excellent 8th place, behind Coulthard in 7th.

For Jeff, finishing that high for his first F3000 race was almost a victory for him, and the stewart team celebrated his excellent performance at the local pubs. The benefits of the drinking age being lower in the UK.

After saying his goodbyes to Jackie and Paul for now, Jeff took the flight back to Indianapolis, back to the familiar scent of hot dogs on the grill and methanol covering the air at the world famous speedway. The jet lag wasn't the only thing Jeff needed to adapt to upon returning. The much more laidback atmosphere at Landford Racing and Indy Lights acted as a shock from the hectic atmosphere at Stewart that he grew accustomed to!

Now, it was time for Jeff to rest and relax so he can be ready for the biggest race fo the Indy Lights calendar: the Indianapolis 500 support race on saturday. This will be the first tiem he'l ever race at the speedway, and he swore to tear the freaking roof down on that day.

Next up: the month of May at Indy

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1992 Indy 500 Month of May

As per tradition, the month of may is all dedicated to the Indianapolis 500, the true great american race, the crown jewel pf thr Indycar calendar. 44 entries would make attempts at qualifying among the fastest 33 and a shot at the biggest prize in motorsports: the world famous Indianapolis milk.

In the first week of practice, it would be the surprising King Racing outfit of Roberto Guerrero and Dave Kudrave who would set the pace, with Guerrero averaging 230 mph. Such speeds forced the other competitors to up their game, perhaps too much so, as Rick Mears would suffer a massive crash that would end up being a career ender after a fluid leak spread water towards his two rear wheels, causing him to spin and hit the wall hard.

Later, former F1 world champion Nelson Piquet also crashed, while Mario Andretti managed to top Guerrero's speed with a 233 mph run. In qualifying, Arie Luyendyk, racing only in the 500 milers for Granatelli racing, broke the one-lap track record with 229 mph before Guerrero hits 232 mph, blasting away multiple track records in the process.

​

Nelson Piquet driving a Menard-Sponsored Lola


Sadly, during practice before the second day of time trials, jovy Marcelo suffered a crash after going low in turn one and hitting the wall full frontal. He passed away immediately.

​

Rest in Piece


In the final day of time trials, veterans like Tom Sneva, Gordon Johncock and Pancho Carter mad eit, while Scott Goodyear and Jimmy Vasser managed to get into the race, albeit from two different means: Vasser used Della Pena's backup car to qualify, while Goodyear barely bumped away Kenji Momota and Didier Theys for the 33rd and final spot.


Meanwhile, on saturday, it was time for th eIndy 200 Indy Lights support race. Jeff Gordon and Bryan Herta were joined at Landford Racing by Brazilian Marco Greco. Jeff and Bryan managed to qualify easily for the race, with their rivals Fernandez, Mark Smith, Robbie Groff and Sandy Brody also having qualified.

​

the Indy Lights cars parked in the infield


The race started and Mark Smith went away, with Jeff, Fernandez and Brody in pursuit. Smith and Fernandez spend much of the race battling in the lead, while Jeff and Bryan were under pressure by Brody and Indy Regency's second driver Franck Freon.

Halfway through, Jeff managed to get out of the pits before Smith, while Fernandez had trouble with his front wing. Jeff then headed towards Robbie Groff, who was leading the race. From then on, Jeff and Groff dueled for the lead, with Bryan and Smith behind them. The crowd got up on their feet as Jeff and Groff delivered an exciting battle, with both drivers taking turns attacking one another in a fast and furious game of cat and mouse.

Jeff would then do a trick that Jackie Stewart taught him: the fade-in to the left, which caught Groff off-guard as he witnessed the young american in the dupont colored machine passing him on the inside at turn 4.

All seemed like smooth sailing for Jeff Gordon, and he seemed poised to make a stunning inpression at Indianapolis, the realm of the DePalmas, DePaolos, Granatellis, Parnelli Jones, Jim Clark, Graham Hill, AJ Foyt, Andrettis, Unsers...

...never mind that, here comes Fernandez! The mexican charged towards the lead, passing Herta and Groff and now attacking Jeff in the dying laps of the race! Jeff defended with all of his might, trying to block Fernandez, but the mexican used the drafting to pass Jeff at the start-finish straight!

And there ya have it, Adrian Fernandez wins the Indy 100 ina close finish against Jeff Gordon, with Bryan Herta finishing 3rd and Robbie Groff in 4th.

​

Adrian Fernandez


As fernandez celebrated on winner's circle, Jeff looked on with newfound determination in his eyes. In his mind, he thought Fernandez stole his chance at making it. For the rest of the season, he will make sure this is the last race he and everyone else will win...

And thus, the stage is set for the 76th running of the Indianapolis 500. Who is gonna come away with all the honors?

76TH INDY 500 STARTING GRID

ROW 1
Roberto Guerrero
Eddie Cheever
Mario Andretti

ROW 2
Arie Luyendyk
Gary Bettenhausen
Michael Andretti

ROW 3
Scott Brayton
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Robby Gordon (R)

ROW 4
Bobby Rahal
Emerson Fittipaldi
Al Unser Jr

ROW 5
Stan Fox
John Andretti
Éric Bachelart (R)


ROW 6
Scott Sharp (R)
Scott Pruett
John Paul Jr.


ROW 7
Paul Tracy (R)
Jeff Andretti
Dave Kudrave


ROW 8
Davey Jones
AJ Foyt
Buddy Lazier

ROW 9
Raul Boesel
Brian Bonner (R)
Lyn St. James (R)

ROW 10
Jimmy Vasser (R)
Willy T. Ribs
John Jones


ROW 11
Gordon Johncock
Ted Prappas (R)
Scott Goodyear

​

Start your engines!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1992 Indianapolis 500 miles Sweepstakes

It was that time of the year again. The biggest race in North America is on as the Indy 500 kicked off in front of yet another sold out crowd. Despite the blisteri g pace that polesitter Roberto Guerrero set in qualifying, Michael Andretti and his newman-Haas Lola-ford ended up being the fastest car the entire race, as the reigning indy 500 and series champions set an incredible pace right from the get-go, taking the lead of the race very early and looking unstoppable.

...when the race was green, that is. While accidents at Indy are common, this year's edition proved to be particularly crash-prone, even more so than usual. Over the first half of the race alone, plenty of cars ended up crashing hard into the walls, with the likes of Scott Sharp, Emerson Fittipaldi and Mario all hitting the outside wall in the first 100 laps. On lap 115, Jeff Andretti hit the wall in the worst crash of the afternoon, colliding head-on into the wall near the turn two suites. The front of the car was totaled, and Jeff suffered severe leg injuries. Meanwhile, the wheel of jeff's car struck Gary Bettenhausen and put him out of the race, as well.

​

the state of Jeff Andretti's car post-crash


The second half would see the field being shrunk down to only 17 cars, with Michael having a 30-second lead over Eddie Cheever and Arie Luyendyk. The latter got himself out of the race after he turned up into the marbles avoiding AJ Foyt.

Michael continued to lead, looking nigh unbeatavle as he now had a 28-second lead against canadian scott goodyear and Al Unser Jr, whose Galmer chassis is surprisingly quick on the super speedway. And then, Michael began slowing down...

taken moments before disaster...

​

Michael's fuel pump stopped working, and he was forced to stop in the infield with 12 laps to go, letting Goodyear and Little Al to battle for the win.

All throughout the ending, Goodyear and Little Al played the most intense game of cat and mouse, all taking turns attempting every manoeuvre in the book. Little Al, looking to etch his name alongside his illustrious father in the Indy record books, Goodyear looking to accomplish the unprecedented exploit of being the first last-to-first winner in Indy 500 history, along with being the first canadian driver to win the event.

​

the historic battle for the win


Into the final lap we go. Goodyear tucks closely behind. And then, in turn four, Little Al got loose, getting wide on the outside! This is Goodyear's chance!

At the backstraight, Goodyear gets the exit and snekas the nose of his lola into the lead, it's a drag race to the finish!

Goodyear's nose beats out Little Al's! Scott Goodyear is the 1992 Indy 500 winner! From last to first! The first canadian to win the race!



Pandemonium in the Walker Racing pits, with Derrick Walker almost sumbling while jumping over the pit wall, while Rick Galles and his crew kneeled down and looked on with stupefaction in their faces. Goodyear came back into the pits, grabbing the canadian flag and waving it proudly as he did his victory lap around the track before coming back and drink the milk at winners circle. Meanwhile, Little Al was inconsolable, outright refusing to talk to anyone standing in his way. So close, yet so far...

Eddie Cheever rounded up the podium, with teammate Robby Gordon finishing 4th and Little Al's teammate Wally Dallenbach Jr. Completes the top 5, while Lyn St. James makes history as the first woman to finish in the top 10 at Indy since Janet Guthrie in 1978.

Goodyear could hardly retain his tears

​

1992 INDY 500 RACE RESULTS

1. Scott Goodyear 20 pts
2. Al Unser 16 pts
3. Eddie Cheever 14 pts
4. Robby Gordon 12 pts (R)
5. Wally Dallenbach Jr. 10 pts
6. Bobby Rahal 6 pts
7. Raul Boesel 4 pts
8. AJ Foyt 3 pts
9. John Paul Jr. 2 pts
10. Lyn St. James 1 pt (R)

And there you have it, Scott Goodyear becomes the first ever last-to-first winner in Indy 500 history, and both Michael Andretti and Little Al comes up short. Will both find a way to bounce back at Milwaukee and the rest of the summer races? Find out next time!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1992 Marlboro Indycar championship trail part 3: Rounds 5-9

​

Round 5: Rex Mays Classic at Milwaukee Mile

June 7th, 1991

One week after Scott Goodyear's dramatic victory at the Indy 500, the Marlboro Championship Trail soldiers on at the legendary Milwaukee Mile for the Rex Mays Classic, the traditional week-end after Indy spectacular.

Before the race, a few lineup change soccured due to injuries. Rick Mears's injuries durign practice at Indy proved to be a career ender for the former 3-time Indy 500 champion and series champion. He will be replaced full time by Team Penske's test driver, Paul Tracy. Jeff Andretti, meamwhile, will be absent from the next 4 rounds to nurture his fractured legs after his crash during the 500, to be repalced on the ovals by Arie Luyendyk and on road courses by Jeff Wood.

Paul Tracy didn't waste his once in a lifetime opportunity, for he managed to put his Penske-Chevy onto the front row alongside Bobby Rahal, while Scott Brayotn surprised everyone by puttign the Doug Shierson Domino's car on the secpnd row alongside indy 500 winner Goodyear. Meanwhile, Little Al starts at a surprisingly low 13th place.

STARTING GRID

ROW 1
Bobby Rahal
Paul Tracy

ROW 2
Scott Goodyear
Scott Brayton

ROW 3
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 4
Eddie Cheever
John Andretti

Row 5
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Mario Andretti

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
Scott Pruett

ROW 7
Al Unser Jr
Arie Luyendyk

ROW 8
Robby Gordon
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 9
Buddy Lazier
Scott Sharp

ROW 10
John Jones
Éric Bachelart

ROW 11
Dave Kudrave
AJ Foyt

Row 12
Davy Jones
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 13
Robbie Buhl
Willie T. Ribs

ROW 14
Mike Groff
Hiro Matsushita

However, Tracy and Brayton couldn't really capitalise on the surprise effect, for the race ended up being a race-long duel for the win between Michael Andretti and Rahal, with Michael storming through the kead on the opening lap. Michael was in fine form, as he looked to make up for the abysmal start to the season and that heartbreaking retirement from the Indy 500 he feel he should've won.
After trading the lead between each other for much of the race, Michael managed to use the traffic to his advantage, getting past Rahal on the outside at turn four while Rahal was slowed down by Dave Kudrave. He would then pick up the pace enough to cruise the last 5 laps for his first win of the season.

Milwaukee Race Results

1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Bobby Rahal 16 pts
3. Scott Brayton 14 pts
4. Emerson Fittipaldi 12 pts
5. Eddie Cheever 10 pts
6. Mario Andretti 6 pts
7. Al Unser Jr 4 pts
8. Scott Goodyear 3 pts
9. John Andretti 2 pts
10. Raul Boesel 1 pt

Meanwhile, in Indy Lights, Jeff Gordon's quest for an Indycar seat got hit by a roadblock in the name of Adrian Fernandez, for the mexican continues his momentum from snatching the Indy 100 win from Gordon by dominating at Milwaukee, with Gordon finishing a distant 2nd place. The Indy Lights title duel between the mexican and the young phenom from California is on.


Round 6: GI Joe's 200 at Portland

June 21st, 1992

The next stop is the father's day spectacular at the Portland International Raceway, one of the rare road courses where we have enough space for more than 28 cars. 32 entries took part in the race, with Emerson Fittipaldi getting his first pole of the year, while Little Al had a much better qualifying performance in 4th, but getting outqualified by his teammate Wally Dallenbach Jr for the second race in a row.

ROW 1
Emerson Fittipaldi
Michael Andretti

ROW 2
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Al Unser Jr

ROW 3
Bobby Rahal
Eddie Cheever

ROW 4
Paul Tracy
Mario Andretti

ROW 5
Raul Boesel
Scott Pruett

ROW 6
Robby Gordon
John Andretti

ROW 7
Davy Jones
Scott Goodyear

ROW 8
Ross Cheever
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 9
Scott Sharp
Scott Brayton

ROW 10
Éric Bachelart
Willie T. Ribs

ROW 11
Roberto Guerrero
Lyn St. James

ROW 12
Ross Bentley
Jeff Wood

ROW 13
Hiro Matsushita
Dave Kudrave

ROW 14
John Jones
Andrea Montermini

ROW 15
Robbie Buhl
Buddy Lazier

ROW 16
Ted Prappas
Mike Groff


However, Emmo wouldn't have the chance at leadign the race, for Michael immediately took control and never looked back, only conceding two laps to Little Al due to pit stops. Michael has established himself once again as the man to beat this year, rebounding from his esrly season troubles.

In Indy Lights, Jeff Gordon also rebounded big time, utterly thrashing the field in a lights-to-flag dominant win to regain the top of the standings.

Portland Race Results
1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Emerson Fittipaldi 16 pts
3. Al Unser Jr 14 pts
4. Eddie Cheever 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Mario Andretti 6 pts
7. Paul Tracy 4 pts
8. Scott Goodyear 3 pts
9. Raul Boesel 2 pts
10. Scott Pruett 1 pt


Round 7: Budweiser Grand Prix of New York at the Glen

June 28th, 1992

The most prestigious and legendary road course in America is the host of the seventh round of the championship, with a sold out crowd about to witness an epic three-man battle for victory at the Glen.

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Bobby Rahal

ROW 2
Mario Andretti
Paul Tracy

ROW 3
Emerson Fittipaldi
Raul Boesel

ROW 4
Al Unser Jr
Scott Sharp

ROW 5
Scott Pruett
John Andretti

ROW 6
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Eddie Cheever

ROW 7
Robby Gordon
Scott Goodyear

ROW 8
Willie T. Ribs
Davy Jones

ROW 9
Scott Brayton
Éric Bachelart

ROW 10
Roberto Guerrero
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 11
John Jones
Buddy Lazier

ROW 12
Robbie Buhl
Dave Kudrave

ROW 13
Hiro Matsushita
Brian Till


ROW 14
Mike Groff
Ted Prappas

DNQ
Jeff Wood


As expected, Michael Andretti and Bobby Rahal got off to a good start and seemingly looked to continue their battles for victories all alone...until out of nowgere, Team Penske's flamboyant young canadian Paul Tracy flashes by like a rocket at the boot to take the lead! A double pass so epic, it prevented the ABC broadcast from going to commercial break!

Those three would fight for the win all race long, with Tracy really impressing the Watkins Glen crowd by holding his pwn with two former champions and Indy 500 winners until, sadly, his gearbox failed over halfway through the race.

This led to another duel for the win between Michael and Rahal, with Rahal piling on the pressure, using the agility of the 92-spec Trusports chassis to keep up with Michael's Lola.

And then, on the final lap, the unthinkable happened: Michael spun at the 90, giving away the race to Rahal, who finally scores his first win of the season and becoems 1992's 6th different winner in the first 7 races!

Meanwhile, Raul Boesel and Scott Sharp completed the podium, earning each other some precious points, with Sharp earning praise for his stellar driving durign the week-end for Bettenhausen.

In Indy Lights, Adrian Fernandez came back to the winners circle, winning in front of Bryan Herta and Jeff Gordon to gain grounds on Jeff in the standings.

​

Picture of Paul Tracy batlting for the lead at the esses





Watkins Glen Race Results
1. Bobby Rahal 20 pts
2. Raul Boesel 16 pts
3. Scott Sharp 14 pts
4. Michael Andretti 12 pts
5. Wally Dallenbach Jr 10 pts
6. Mario Andretti 6 pts
7. Robby Gordon 4 pts
8. Emerson Fittipaldi 3 pts
9. Al Unser Jr 2 pts
10. Davy Jones 1 pt


Round 8: new england 200 at new hampshire

July 5th, 1992

ROW 1
Bobby Rahal
Michael Andretti

ROW 2
Eddie Cheever
Robby Gordon

ROW 3
Scott Goodyear
Al Unser Jr

ROW 4
Emerson Fittipaldi
Mario Andretti

ROW 5
John Andretti
Paul Tracy

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
Scott Sharp

ROW 7
Mike Groff
AJ Foyt

ROW 8
Scott Pruett
Davy Jones

ROW 9
Jimmy Vasser
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 10
Scott Brayton
Arie Luyendyk

ROW 11
Dave Kudrave
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 12
Willy T. Ribs
Robbie Buhl

ROW 13
Buddy Lazier
John Jones

Row 14
Hiro Matsushita
Éric Bachelart

In the first ever Indycar race in New Hampshire on this independence day week-end, Bobby Rahal would dominate proceedings, the Trusports chassis proving very quick around the short oval as he once again defeated Michael in a duel for the win, while Paul Tracy ends up in 4th in.a great drive from 10th, while Scott Pruett had the drive of the day by finishing 6th from 13th.

In the Indy Lights race on saturday, Jeff Gordon sadly retired from engine failure as Adrian Fernandez dominated the event, regaining the lead in the standings.

New Hampshire Race Results
1. Bobby Rahal 20 pts
2. Michael Andretti 16 pts
3. Scott Goodyear 14 pts
4. Paul Tracy 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Scott Pruett 6 pts
7. Mario Andretti 4 pts
8. Al Unser Jr 3 pts
9. Wally Dallenbach Jr 2 pts
10. Scott Sharp 1 pt


Round 9: Molson Indy Toronto

July 12th, 1992

At the Exhibition Place in downtown Toronto, we have officially reached the halfway point of the season, and it is clear that Michael Andretti and Bobby Rahal are the favorites for this year's title, with Al Unser Jr not far behind, though the recent slump of results indicates that a tough second half of the season is awaiting. Jeff Andretti came back from his injury and returns to the Granatelli seat.




ROW 1
Bobby Rahal
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Michael Andretti
Paul Tracy

ROW 3
Mario Andretti
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 4
Raul Boesel
Scott Pruett

ROW 5
John Andretti
Al Unser Jr

ROW 6
Scott Goodyear
Eddie Cheever

ROW 7
Scott Sharp
Scott Brayton

ROW 8
Robby Gordon
Brian Till

ROW 9
Willy T. Ribs
Jeff Andretti

ROW 10
Jimmy Vasser
Buddy Lazier

ROW 11
Davy Jones
Ross Bentley

ROW 12
John Jones
Dave Kudrave

ROW 13
Robbie Buhl
Roberto Guerrero

Row 14
Hiro Matsushita
Mike Groff

As is the story of this season, Michael had a rocket start, showing why he considers Toronto his second home as once again, he battled Rahal for the win, and this time, Michael gets a crucial win to gain ground on Rahal in the standings, while Wally Dallenbach Jr ends up on the podium for Galles and Brian Till scores his first ever point for AJ Foyt.

The Indy Lights race on saturday was a chaotic affair, with only 8 cars finishing the race. Jeff Gordon was among the late retirees of the race, but the Landford Racing honors were saved as Bryan Herta won the race from Mark Smith and Sandy Brody, while Adrian Fernandez only finished 6th, which emant that the gap between the mexican and him is still within reach for Gordon.

Toronto Race Results
1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Bobby Rahal 16 pts
3. Wally Dallenbach Jr 14 pts
4. Mario Andretti 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Scott Goodyear 6 pts
7. Al Unser Jr 4 pts
8. Robby Gordon 3 pts
9. Eddie Cheever 2 pts
10. Brian Till 1 pt

TOP 8 AFTER 9 ROUNDS

1. Bobby Rahal 14 0 14 6 16 0 20 20 16 106 pts


2. Michael Andretti 0 2 0 0 20 20 12 16 20 90 pts

3. Al Unser Jr 12 12 20 16 4 14 2 3 4 87 pts​

4. Emerson Fittipaldi 20 16 12 0 12 16 3 0 0 79 pts

5. Scott Goodyear 2 0 10 20 3 3 0 14 6 58 pts

6. Eddie Cheever 3 20 0 0 10 12 0 0 2 57 pts


7. Wally Dallenbach Jr. 10 0 16 10 0 0 2 14 52 pts

8. John Andretti 6 10 0 0 2 10 0 10 10 48 pts​

To Be Continued...

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1992 Marlboro Indycar Championship Trail: rounds 10-14

ROUND 10: Marlboro Michigan 500

August 2nd, 1992

The Indycar circus arrives at the second 500 miler of the season at the Michigan International Speedway. Bobby Rahal has a slight lead over Michael Andretti and Al Unser Jr, but Michael has the advantage after qualifying, with him and father Mario locking up the front row for Newman-Haas, while Rahal starts a disappointing 12th and Little Al a meager 15th.

August 2nd, 1992


ROW 1
Mario Andretti
Michael Andretti

ROW 2
Eddie Cheever
Arie Luyendyk

ROW 3
Robby Gordon
Paul Tracy

ROW 4
Emerson Fittipaldi
Raul Boesel

ROW 5
Scott Goodyear
Davy Jones

ROW 6
Scott Pruett
Bobby Rahal

ROW 7
Scott Brayton
John Andretti

ROW 8
Al Unser Jr
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 9
Scott Sharp
Buddy Lazier

ROW 10
AJ Foyt
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 11
Roberto Guerrero
Dave Kudrave

ROW 12
Lyn St. James
Jeff Andretti

ROW 13
Ross Bentley
Éric Bachelart

ROW 14
Jimmy Vasser
Robbie Buhl

ROW 15
John Jones
Mike Groff

ROW 16
Ted Prappas
Hiro Matsushita


From the get go, the Newman-Haas team looked set to have a dominant race, for they ran 1-2 with Michael on pace to lap everyone when mechanical issues took him out once they reached the 50-laps marker. Mario would then comfortably lead while Paul Tracy and Scott Goodyear fought their way to the front, pushing each other to within distance of Mario when the elder Andretti also had to retire due to mechanical issues.

From then on, it became an all-canadian battle for the win, with Tracy seemingly getting the better of the Indy 500 winner when the caution flag flew when Scott Brayton crashed with 20 laps to go.

At the restart, Goodyear pushed through the traffic and caught up with Tracy, and after a few laps of dueling, the Indy 500 winner would take first place on a nice inside slingshot pass after drafting Scott Sharp, using whatever was left of his tires and fuel tank to score his second career win and start an unexpected bid for the 500 mile Grand Slam!

Will Scott Goodyear achieve the 500 mile Grand Slam?
​

Raul Boesel rounds up the podium, continuing his post-Indy run of good form, while Little Al from 15th manages to survive the attrition-filled race to finish in an excellent 4th and gain some precious points and take advantage of Michael and Rahal's retirements.

In the Indy Lights race on saturday, Jeff Gordon was back on winners circle and defeats Adrian Fernandez and Robbie Groff to win it and get cllser to Fernandez in the standings.

Michigan Race Results

1. Scott Goodyear 20 pts
2. Paul Tracy 16 pts
3. Raul Boesel 14 pts
4. Al Unser jr 12 pts
5. Scott Pruett 10 pts
6. John Andretti 6 pts
7. Buddy Lazier 4 pts
8. Wally Dallenbach Jr 3 pts
9. Scott Sharp 2 pts
10. Scott Brayton 1 pt


Round 11: Budweiser Grand Prix of Cleveland

August 9th, 1992

ROW 1
Emerson Fittipaldi
Michael Andretti

ROW 2
Bobby Rahal
Paul Tracy

ROW 3
Al Unser Jr
Raul Boesel

ROW 4
Scott Pruett
Mario Andretti

ROW 5
Scott Sharp
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 6
Robby Gordon
Scott Goodyear

ROW 7
Jeff Andretti
John Andretti

ROW 8
Scott Brayton
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 9
Eddie Cheever
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 10
Davy Jones
Ross Cheever

ROW 11
Hiro Matsushita
Éric Bachelart

ROW 12
Buddy Lazier
Ross Bentley

ROW 13
Lyn St. James
Dave Kudrave

ROW 14
Ted Prappas
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 15
John Jones
Mike Groff

ROW 16
Jeff Wood
Robbie Buhl

At the infamously chaotic Airport track, this year's race had surprisingly little drama, with Emerson Fittipaldi dominating from pole on his Penske, while Michael finished in front of Little Al and Rahal to gain some grounds on them in the standings.

The real action occured at Indy Lights, where many daring passes and intense battle for top 5 positions guaranteed spectacle to the Cleveland citizens. Jeff Gordon, starting in 12th, took advantage of the chaos to score the fastest laps of the race and overtake Sandy Brody in the dying laps of the race to win his second in a row and pass Fernandez on top of the standings.

​

CLEVELAND RACE RESULTS

1. Emerson Fittipaldi 20 pts
2. Michael Andretti 16 pts
3. Al Unser Jr 14 pts
4. Bobby Rahal 12 pts
5. Mario Andretti 10 pts
6. Raul Boesel 6 pts
7. Scott Pruett 4 pts
8. Robby Gordon 3 pts
9. Scott Sharp 2 pts
10. Scott Goodyear 1 pt


Round 12: Miller Genuine Draft 200 at Mid-Ohio

August 16th, 1992

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Paul Tracy

ROW 2
Emerson Fittipaldi
Mario Andretti

ROW 3
Eddie Cheever
Al Unser Jr

ROW 4
Scott Goodyear
John Andretti

ROW 5
Bobby Rahal
Scott Pruett

ROW 6
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Raul Boesel

ROW 7
Robby Gordon
Scott Sharp

ROW 8
Davy Jones
Brian Till

ROW 9
Scott Brayton
Ted Prappas

ROW 10
Dave Kudrave
Jimmy Vasser


ROW 11
Buddy Lazier
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 12
Willy T. Ribs
Robbie Buhl

ROW 13
Éric Bachelart
Jeff Andretti

ROW 14
Hiro Matsushita
John Jones

DNQ
Mike Groff

​

The second leg of the Ohio tour sees Michael taking on the Penske cars of Emmo and Tracy almost single-handledly in an epic handicap match. Eventually, that double assault tactic worked for the Captain, for Michael's Ford Cosworth engine would bail out on him late in the race to give the 1-2 to Penske. Al Unser Jr finishes on the podium and actually gains lots of points following Michael and Rahal retiring, while Scott Sharp, starting from 14th, gets another top 5 finish for Bettenhausen and establishes himself as the favorite for rookie of the year!

Meanwhile, in Indy Lights, Jeff Gordon goes from 8th to Victory lane as he defeats Robbie Groff and Adrian Fernandez to increase his tally at the top of the standings, starting to get one hand on the trophy.

Scott Sharp, reigning SCCA Trans-Am Champion, impressing in his first year in Indycar

​

Mid-Ohio Race Results
1. Emerson Fittipaldi 20 pts
2. Paul Tracy 16 pts
3. Al Unser Jr 14 pts
4. John Andretti 12 pts
5. Scott Sharp 10 pts
6. Raul Boesel 6 pts
7. Mario Andretti 4 pts
8. Wally Dallenbach Jr 3 pts
9. Scott Pruett 2 pts
10. Ted Prappas 1 pt


Round 13: Texaco Havoline 200 at Road America

ROW 1
Paul Tracy
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Michael Andretti
Bobby Rahal

ROW 3
Mario Andretti
Scott Goodyear

ROW 4
Scott Pruett
Al Unser Jr

ROW 5
Wally Dallenbach Jr
John Andretti

ROW 6
Robby Gordon
Raul Boesel

ROW 7
Scott Brayton
Scott Sharp

ROW 8
Jimmy Vasser
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 9
Eddie Cheever
Jeff Andretti

ROW 10
Dave Kudrave
Jacques Villeneuve Sr

ROW 11
Roberto Guerrero
Davy Jones

ROW 12
Buddy Lazier
Ross Bentley

ROW 13
Eric Bachelart
Ross Cheever

ROW 14
Lyn St. James
Mike Groff

DNQ
Hiro Matsushita
Ted Prappas

The road racing heart of Indycar racing was again witness to an epic race the likes of which only the combo of indycars and road america can deliver. Jacques Villeneuve Sr. Subs in for John Jones at Arciero due to Jones injuring himself after a crash at Mid-Ohio, while another Caandian, Paul Tracy, starting from pole for the first time in his indycar career, battled with the newman-haas cars in the early goings of the race, but a tight pass on Michael at canada corner went awry and he went into the gravel, rejoining the race and never really getting close to the top 10.

The battle then turned into Michael vs Emmo, with Little Al and Rahal also in the chase for the lead. Emmo spent a good part of the race in the lead, while Michael, Unser and Rahal battled each other for podium spots, with Little Al and his Galmer chassis taking the fight to Michael.

And then, late in the race, the Chevy Ilmor engine in the back of Emmo's penske suddenly went up in smoke at the Backstraight! Roger Penkse couldn't believe it!

And Little Al would pass Michael to take the lead, and use the Galmer's grip to pull away just enough from his title rivals to win at Road America and suddenly take top spot in the standings heading into the third 500 miler of the season at Texas World Speedway!

The Indy Lights race on saturday was also full of drama, as Jeff Gordon and Adrian Fernandez battled for the win all race long until Gordon missed a pass at turn 3 and ended up in the gravel, but Bryan Herta put his big man boots on and managed to snatch the win from Fernandez to help his teammate Gordon stay on top of the standings!

Little Al with a huge win
​

Road America Race Results
1. Al Unser Jr 20 pts
2. Bobby Rahal 16 pts
3. Michael Andretti 14 pts
4. John Andretti 12 pts
5. Mario Andretti 10 pts
6. Wally Dallenbach Jr 6 pts
7. Raul Boesel 4 pts
8. Scott Pruett 3 pts
9. Robby Gordon 2 pts
10. Davy Jones 1 pt



Round 14: Texas 500 at Texas World Speedway

August 30th, 1992

Texas World Speedway is the theater of huge title implications with only 4 races to go including this one, the Texas 500.


ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Bobby Rahal
Mario Andretti

ROW 3
Al Unser Jr
Eddie Cheever

ROW 4
Robby Gordon
Scott Sharp

ROW 5
Scott Pruett
John Andretti

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 7
Paul Tracy
Scott Goodyear

ROW 8
Arie Luyendyk
Scott Brayton

ROW 9
Jimmy Vasser
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 10
Buddy Lazier
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 11
Ross Bentley
John Jones

ROW 12
Lyn St. James
Jeff Andretti

ROW 13
Hiro Matsushita
AJ Foyt

ROW 14
Davy Jones
Dave Kudrave

ROW 15
Robbie Buhl
Éric Bachelart

ROW 16
Mike Groff


The typical attrition at a 500 miler started early, with Paul Tracy crashing as he attempted to catch the leaders from a less than ideal starting position. Then, in a big twist in the title race, Bobby Rahal also hit the wall and retired on lap 29.

Emmo and Michael were the main rivals in the race, while Little Al, regaining his Indy form, kept himself in the hunt, patiently waiting to strike.

Emmo would then retire from transmission failure, which prompted the leaders to pit. Little Al managed to get out in front of Michael. Michael, after a long period of trying, managed to snatch the lead from Unser, and tried his best to hold him off. But the pressing that Little Al put on him would bite him as he went wide and broke his suspension on the wall late into the race!

Al Unser Jr's gamble paid off, and he would retain his crown in Texas and get in the drivers seat in the standings with only 3 races to go!

in Indy Lights, Jeff Gordon got pole and the fastest lap, but he faced fierce competition from Mark Smith, and the latter would snatch the win away from Gordon to score his first win of the season. However, with Adrian Fernandez facing trouble all race long and only finishing 7th, Jeff, with his second place finish, increases the cushion between him and the mexican in the standings. The championship is slowly but surely coming within Jeff's grasps.


Texas 500 Race Results

1. Al Unser Jr 20 pts
2. Scott Sharp 16 pts
3. Scott Pruett 14 pts
4. Scott Goodyear 12 pts
5. Mario Andretti 10 pts
6. Wally Dallenbach Jr 6 pts
7. Arie Luyendyk 4 pts
8. Roberto Guerrero 3 pts
9. Buddy Lazier 2 pts
10. John Jones 1 pt

TITLE RACE AFTER 14 ROUNDS

Al Unser Jr 167 pts

Bobby Rahal 134 pts

Michael Andretti 120 pts

Will Little Al complete the comeback in the last 3 rounds?​

The last 3 rounds of the season are next. To be Continued...

 

[kinnikuniverse]

1992 Marlboro Indycar Championship Trail


Round 15: Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix of Pennsylvania at Nazareth

September 13th, 1992

Three rounds left in the 1992 Marlboro Championship, and the title race is looking as exciting as ever. Al Unssr Jr, on the back of two huge wins at Road America and the Texas 500, leads the standings with 33 points in front of Bobby Rahal and 47 in front of Michael Andretti, but he will have his worl cut out for him, for Galles Racing never managed to find the right setup for the Galmer chassis this week-end at Nazareth, starting at a disappointing 13th place, while Michael scores the pole and Rahal starts mot further behind in third.

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Bobby Rahal
John Andretti

ROW 3
Mario Andretti
Scott Goodyear

ROW 4
Scott Brayton
Eddie Cheever

ROW 5
Paul Tracy
Scott Pruett

ROW 6
Wally Dallenbach Jr
AJ Foyt

ROW 7
Al Unser Jr
Raul Boesel

ROW 8
Robby Gordon
Scott Sharp

ROW 9
Davy Jones
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 10
Buddy Lazier
Robbie Buhl

ROW 11
John Jones
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 12
Dave Kudrave
Robert Guerrero

ROW 13
Éric Bachelart
Jeff Andretti

DNQ
Mike Groff
Hiro Matsushita

At the start, Michael and Rahal got a great start and looks set to duel for that oh so precious win in the first few laps...but Paul Tracy, starting 9th, storms through the front at the bullring to join the fight, taking over the lead of the race at the mid-point after dropping elbows on Rahal and Michael. The race was now on!

The three stooges offered a great show for the Nazareth fans in their three-way battle for supremacy, with the fans solidly behind the hometown hero Michael.

Eventually, Bobby Rahal, using patience as a virtue, managed to use a clever pit strategy to gain the lead of the race late into it on lap 157. The former 2-time Marlboro champion would then successfully hold off the hard charging Michael and Tracy to score a big win, while Al Unser Jr, despite his best efforts, was nowhere to be seen with his struggling Galmer car, narrowly missing out on a top 10 finish to Scott Pruett.

Nazareth Race Results

1. Bobby Rahal 20 pts
2. Michael Andretti 16 pts
3. Paul Tracy 14 pts
4. Scott Goodyear 12 pts
5. Mario Andretti 10 pts
6. Raul Boesel 6 pts
7. Emerson Fittipaldi 4 pts
8. Robby Gordon 3 pts
9. Eddie Cheever 2 pts
10. Scott Pruett 1 pt

TITLE RACE WITH 2 ROUNDS TO GO


Al Unser Jr 167 pts

Bobby Rahal 154 pts

Michael Andretti 136 pts

Round 16: L.A Times 500k at Riverside

Ocotber 4th, 1992

The beautiful Riverside International Raceway, owned and refurbished into a sleek, modern facility by Dan Gurney, is the penultimate round of the championship. Michael got the pole, narrowly beating Paul Tracy for it, while Bobby Rahal starts in 6th and little Al in 8th.

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Paul Tracy

ROW 2
Emerson Fittipaldi
Scott Goodyear

ROW 3
Mario Andretti
Bobby Rahal

ROW 4
John Andretti
Al Unser Jr

ROW 5
Scott Pruett
Eddie Cheever

ROW 6
Ross Cheever
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 7
Raul Boesel
Robby Gordon

ROW 8
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Scott Sharp

ROW 9
Ted Prappas
Éric Bachelart

ROW 10
Scott Brayton
Davy Jones

ROW 11
Roberto Guerrero
Dave Kudrave

ROW 12
Willy T. Ribs
Buddy Lazier

ROW 13
Hiro Matsushita
John Jones

ROW 14
Robbie Buhl
Mike Groff


Michael Andretti, with his season on the line, delivered a masterclass of road racing at the raceway, flying around in his Lola-Ford as if it was nobody's business, with father Mario comfortably behind him for a Newman-Haas 1-2. With Bobby Rahal completing the podium and Al Unser Jr. Finishing in a disappointing 8th, that meant that 13 points now separate Little Al from Michael in third spot in the standings as we head to the final round of the season, in only a few miles from Riverside at the Indianapolis of the west, the Ontario Motor Spweedway, for the California 500.

Michael and Paul Tracy at the start of the race​

Riverside Race Results

1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Mario Andretti 16 pts
3. John Andretti 14 pts
4. Eddie Cheever 12 pts
5. Bobby Rahal 10 pts
6. Raul Boesel 6 pts
7. Wally Dallenbach Jr 4 pts
8. Ross Cheever 3 pts
9. Al Unser Jr. 2 pts
10. Robby Gordon 1 pt


Al Unser Jr 169 pts

Bobby Rahal 164 pts

Michael Andretti 156 pts

BONUS CHAPTER: Jeff Gordon's lower formulae adventures - the finale.

The bullring. That's what they called Nazareth Speedway.

A tight, suffocating oval track, paved on top of a former dirt track, this track is a true test of a driver's abikity to navigate through traffic. The subtle elevation change heading into the backstraight has fooled many a driver, including Jeff Gordon. During practice, Jeff clipped the wall at turn 4, and many were wondering if he would still perform in a backup car in qualifying and the race.

On friday qualifying, Adrian Fernandez got the pole, while Jeff, in his backup car, initally could only do 4th. And then, John Christoff amd the rest of the Landford crew made soem last-minute adjustments to the car, and Jeff flew all over the track, pulling off a tnatalising lap to snatch pole position from Fernandez for the race on saturday.

24 Indy Lights cars took center stage at Nazareth, woth Jeff and Fernandez leading the way. The bullring's unique characteristics played many tricks on the young and ineperienced drivers, with many crashes happening.

Up front, Jeff was put under all kinds pf pressure by his title rival Fernandez. Whether it was the various attempts on the inside, the intense race to the perfect pitstop leading to Jeff and Fernandez almost colliding or Jeff starting to play dirty in his blocking, the fierce duel between the two brought the pennsylvania Fans on the edge of their seats.

And there it was. At turn four. Fernandez attempts on the inside...but he lifts the feet off the accelerator! It was a bait! Jeff looks like he's about to go wide....

But Jeff avoids the wall, and manages to shut fernandez down! Fernandez, surprised, almost lost control of his car. Gordon survives the bait!

And Jeff would then gas it and score the fastest lap of the race en route to a crucial win in the title race! Now, only 26 points separated Jeff and Fernandez. All Gordon needed was a podium at Riverside and Fernandez finishing in 5th of less, and the title is his.

At the Riverside circuit, Robbie Groff dominated proceedings, scoring pole, fastest lap and the win in a dominant lights to flag win over Bryan Herta, but the focus was on Jeff and Fernandez, who both had trouble in quali, only starting in the 4th row together. During the race itself, Jeff and Fernandez dueled each other as they moved up to the top 5 positions, with Gordon in 5th acting as the aggressor against the Mexican in 4th.

Eventually, Jeff attempted a big outside pass on Fernandez at the banked last turn, but Fernandez kept his lone and squeezed him out, with the momentum from the manoeuvre sending Jeff clipping his suspension into the wall. This gamble did not pay off. Fernandez proved that he hadn't forgotten Jeff's dirty blocking at Nazareth, and he repayed him in kind.

With the Mexican finishing in 4th, this meant that the gape was now 14 points heading into the final round at Ontario.

Adrian Fernandez, earlier in the season.​

At the Indianapolis of the west, Jeff Gordon had goosebumps. There he was, potentially winning the title in front of his home state, his home crowd. And what better way to start by gettign the pole?

However, once again, Adrian Fernandez started alongside him, like an annoying bug that just won't die. The stage was set for an exciting opening act to the final round of the 1992 Indycar season.

And the moment the green flag, waved by Jim Swintell, waved to signal the start of the race, Gordona nd Fernandez went at each other's throat. The Landford and John Martin teams pulled out all the stops to give the title to their respective drivers, each pitstop meticulously calculated and exectued with laser precision and blistering speed. each lap saw Gordon and Fernandez taling turns attempting to psyche each other out with baits and drafting.

Fernandez gained the lead using a nice switch-up into the inside at the back straight, and he looked as if he was gaining groind on Jeff. But then, traffic arrived.

Jeff, sensing this as now or never, then attempted to go on the outside at the exit on turn 4...but then immediately switched to the inside as they exited to the front straight to regain the lead!

This wild dance of madness gave the southern Californian crowd the kind of entertainement that they craved, and they roared up on their feet everytime Gordon annd Fernandez passed in front of the grandstands.

Feranndez started being more aggressive in his driving, looking to bait Jeff into a mistake in the last laps, but Jeff was completely focused, only looking ahead. He could see it. The championship trophy. The Indycar seat. The Indy 500.

And Jeff Gordon, the 21-year old young man from Vallejo, California, beats Adrian Fernandez to both the finish line and the 1992 Indy Lights championship at Ontario.

Celebrations ensued in the stands amd in the Landford Racing pits. This is the third consecutive Indy Lights title for the small independent team founded in 1981, a series record. Jeff did a parade lap aroudn the circuit to thank the Californian crowd for supporting him throughout this season and race before heading into victory lane to start the title celebrations.

Jeff Gordon celebrating his 1992 Indy Lights title


After the long night of partying with teammates, crew chief, friends and family, however, comes the toughest part: finding an Indycar seat. Jeff, being the ambitious young man that he is, knows his worth and his talent, and he makes it clear that he won't just sign with the first random backmarker team that would give him a ride. And thus, the hunt for a decently competitive Indycar seat for the 1993 season was on.

But that is a story for another day. This sunday, October 18th, 1992, is the day of Reckoning for the 1992 Marlboro Indycar Championship, and Gordon has first class seats to witness the thrilling culmination of the racing season.

​

1992 To Be Concluded...

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Round 17: California 500 at Ontario Motor Speedway


it all has come to this: the Indianapolis of the west, Ontario Motor Speedway in Ontario, California. The stage for the thrilling season finale of the 1992 Marlboro Indycar Championship Trail.

Al Unser Jr - 169 pts. Seeking his third Indycar title in an incredible late-season charge.

Michael Andretti - 156 pts - looking for the back-to-back.

Bobby Rahal - 164 pts. former two-time Indycar champion as driver-owner, now has an outside shot at winning his third.

The cool fall temperatures and the sunny disposition of the skies are the perfect backdrop for this day of reckoning, and Michael and Rahal start together on the front row, while Al Unser Jr starts in 4th alongside Emerson Fittipaldi.

STARTING GRID
 

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Bobby Rahal

ROW 2
Emerson Fittipaldi
Al Unser Jr

ROW 3
Scott Goodyear
Scott Pruett

ROW 4
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Mario Andretti

ROW 5
Paul Tracy
John Andretti

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
Roberto Guerrero

ROW 7
Eddie Cheever
Robby Gordon

ROW 8
Scott Sharp
Scott Brayton

ROW 9
Willy T. Ribs
Davy Jones

ROW 10
Arie Luyendyk
AJ Foyt

ROW 11
Lyn St. James
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 12
Robbie Buhl
Éric Bachelart

ROW 13
Buddy Lazier
Jeff Andretti

ROW 14
John Jones
Dave Kudrave

ROW 15
Hiro Matsushita
Ted Prappas

ROW 16
Ross Bentley
Mike Groff

As the green flag waved, Bobby Rahal took over the lead of the race on the outside at turns 1 and two, while Scott Pruett had a rocket start in the Budweiser Lola-Ford of Pat Patrick, overtaking Goodyear, Little Al and Emmo for 3rd place. The first quarter fo the race would see Michael and Rahal pulling away from the field and fighting each other for the lead, passing each other in each and every lap. The Rahal-Hogan team did a tremendous job with the setup of the Trusports chassis, with Rahal being faster in the corners than Michael's Lola-Ford, albeit the Texaco car is waybfaster on the straights. Scott Pruett and Emerson Fittipaldi, meanwhile, are doing their best to keep up with the leaders. The Budweiser lola looked really strong holding off the Penske of the Brazilian veteran.


Amidst the typical attrition of a 500-mile race, the biggest accident occured when Eddie Cheever and Davy Jones punted each other out of the race on lap 62, prompting a full course yellow. Michael, Rahal and Emmo profited to get into the pits, while Pruett and Little Al stayed out to stretch their fuel tank...however, controversy occurs as Indycar officals judged that Michael and Rahal passed the safety car, imposing a stop-and-go penalty for them and giving the lead to Pruett, Emmo and Little Al. Protest by Carl Hogan and Carl Haas fell on deaf ears, and the two championship contenders went back into the pits, clearly angered.

Things would go from bad to worse for Rahal, as he was forced to enter the pits again after noticing a fuel leak in his car. Unable to stop the leak, the Rahal-Hogan team had no choice but to retire, ending Rahal's title bid in rather anticlimatic fashion.

Back on track, Emmo managed to pass Pruett for the lead, and when it was time for their pitstops, Emmo managed to come out still in the lead in a tight pit stop race against Pruett, while Littel Al, who pitted at the same time as them, saw frustration with his pit crew, who mistimed their choreography and costed Little Al positions for his title bid.

Trouble for the 2-time series champion​

For the middle portion of the race, Emmo flew away from Pruett, the gap ever increasing lap after lap, while Michael managed to fight his way back into 3rd place and battling with Pruett for 2nd. However, Michael knew that he needed to win this race if Little Al stayed in his current 6th position, for Little Al would win the title if they stayed put.

Semsing that, Carl Haas then ordered Mario Andretti, running in 9th behind Wally Dallenbach Jr, to pick up the pace and attack Little Al. Quickly dispatching Dallenbach, Mario went on the offensive, gaining grounds on Little Al, while Rick Galles ordered Dallenbach to hold off Mario.


While Little Al would eventually be passed by John Andretti in the Pennzoil Jim Hall Lola, he still stayed in 6th place, for a huge surprise struck the Penske crew as Emmo's Chevy Ilmor engine, just like at Road America, blew up in smokes as we headed into the late race!

Thus, Scott Pruett inherited the lead, with a red hot and motivated Michael Andretti pounding on him with pressure and aggresive passing attempts! Mario, meanwhile, was sandwiched between the two Galles Racing cars, with Little Al deliberately slowing him down so that Dallenbach can pass him.

Michael was aggressive and did all he could, but Scott Pruett simply was on a whole other planet, for the 32-year old former IMSA champion was delivering the performance of his life, holding off Michael and even increasing his gap! The back-to-back looks to be slipping from Michael's grasps...

And then, on lap 178, Dallenbach made his move...but Mario sneaks in front of him as he attempted to pass him on the outside at the front straight, catching him off-guard! Dallenbach, surprised, lost his cool and spun into the pit wall!

This brought a much needed full course yellow for the Newman-Haas squad, with Michael now right behind Pruett and Mario now stalling an increasingly nervous Little Al, now all alone and the master of his destiny!


As the flag waved green for the last laps of the race, Michael attempted to pass Pruett once more. Lap after lap, turn after turn, the texaco lola snaked around the Budweiser Lola's back, but to no avail. Pruett held on, and once again started pulling away from Michael.

And then, on the last 5 laps, Michael received a message from Carl Haas. He was ordered to stay put, for daddy passed Little Al!

Indeed, Mario passed Littel Al on the backstraight with a nice move only a driver of his pedigree and experience knows the secret of.

That meant that Michael would win the title with only 1 point difference from Little Al!

As such, Unser put the pedal to the metal and desperstely attempted to pass Mario, squeezing every ounce of juice left of his tires and engines to get his third indycar title...

Scott Pruett crosses the finish line to score his first ever Indycar win and Patrick Racing's first win in two years, with Michael Andretti coming in 2nd and Scott Goodyear rounding the podium.

Finally, the Newman-Haas pits jumped around in celebration as Mario Andretti successfully fended off Al Unser Jr to give the title to his son, making it back-to-back titles for Newman-Haas, the first team to go back-to-back since Bobby Rahal in 1986 and 1987

Scott Pruett scores his first Indycar win



California Race Results

1. Scott Pruett 20 pts
2. Michael Andretti 16 pts
3. Scott Goodyear 14 pts
4. Paul Tracy 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Mario Andretti 6 pts
7. Al Unser Jr 4 pts
8. Robby Gordon 3 pts
9. Scott Sharp 2 pts
10. Scott Brayton 1 pt


TITLE RACE FINAL STANDINGS

Michael Andretti 172 pts

Al Unser Jr 171 pts

Bobby Rahal 164 pts

Three generations of Andretti celebrates the title
​

And thus, Michael Andretti becomes the first driver to win back-to-back titles since Bobby Rahal, etching his name in the Indycar history books. The passing of the torch finally happened, with Michael and Little Al leading Indycar into the 90s, along with promising new talents like Scott Goodyear, Scott Pruett, Rookie of the year Scott Sharp and Paul Tracy further establishing themselves and hot prospects coming in. Will the 1993 season be just as good as this one? Will 1992 Indy Lights champion Jeff Gordon find a good seat?

Find out next time in "1993: The Duel"

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Jeff Gordon - The Test

Bastards. The Both of them.

Jeff had been busy in the winter calling people, sponsors, friends of peopl in the indycar world...The 1992 Indy Lights champion, naturally, wanted an Indycar seat, but not any seat. He knows he has the talent to be competitive, so he will not settle for a backmarker.

As such, he read every motorsports magazine, heard every discussion in Indiana, every report on ESPN, and made calls to any upper-mid tier Indy teams. Everytime, he was rejected, saying the same things: he didn't bring enough money, their lineup was full, he was too young, too inexperienced...

Two excellent opportunities came, however: Derrick Walker was looking for a driver to replace the declining and underwhelming Willy T. Ribs. That was Jeff's top priority, for Walker had a breakout year, winning both the Indy 500 and the Michigan 500 with Scott Goodyear, and they received lots of additional funding to run a competitive package for 1993.

The phone call went pretty well, with Derrick seeming like a nice man and willing to give him a chance. The Scotsman, who previously worked with Brabham and Penske, had the reputation of using unproven talent. After all, Scott Goodyear was previously just seen as a decent, if unremarkable driver, at Doug Shierson before becoming an overnight star after winning the Indy 500 and the Michigan 500 last year.

But then, on an episode of ESPN Speedworld, he saw that Walker signed John Andretti to drive the 17 car for the next three seasons. Jeff felt betrayed by this shocking news, tossing his pencil in frustration. Then, he received a phone call from one Bruce McCaw, a Seattle-based communications magnate who is entering Indycar next season. Jeff thought that the operation sounded promising: well-funded, a big sponsor in Visa and using the potent Galmer-Chevrolet of Galles Racing that almost won the championship as well as a decent crew of mechanics.

Bruce McCaw, founder and Owner of Pacwest Racing​

Hopes of entering the series with them quickly fell apart, however, when McCaw politely announced that he was gonna go with some Brazilian guy named Gugelmin as their driver, because he brought more money than Jeff with Hollywood cigarettes.


Hanging up in disappointment, Jeff facepalmed as he took in all this info. When hecalemed down, however, he realised one thing: With John Andretti gone, that means the Jim Hall seat was available!

As such, Jeff gave the Hall office at GM a phone call...

A few weeks later, here he was, at Sonoma Raceway, for the test organised by the Hall VDS team to find out who will get to drive the #4 Lola-Chevrolet for the 1993 season. Jeff would have to face a formidable opponent to get the seat:

Teo Fabi, 1983 Indycar champion and former Indy 500 polesitter, has been seeking a seat after spending last year driving for Toyota in the World Sportscar Championship. With someone as experienced and renowned as him, Jeff knew he was facing a steep challenge. Especially since the first step was at a road course.

As they drove around the twisty grand prix circuit of Sonoma onboard last year's Lola T92/00-Chevrolet, it was clear that Fabi was the more experienced and skilled on road courses. Jeff, having to be used to the sheer soeeds and G Forces an Indycar makes, was initially slower than Fabi, as expected. However, he kept pushing and pushing the more laps he completed, and it gotten to the point where he started making laptimes that got closer and closer to Fabi's.

At Ontario Motor Speedway, however, Fabi and Jeff were much closer in laptimes. It heated up even more when Fabi managed to hit 230, which many thought would be hard to beat. That is underestimating Jeff Gordon, however. The kid pushed the car to its limit, managing.to get the engine up to 233, the smae top speed as Indy pole sitter Roberto Guerrero, at the backstraight before hitting 235 heading into the front straight, putting a lap time that Fabi simply couldn't match.


Sweating like a pig, Jeff was greeted by the team's crew, who gave both hima nd Favi some much needed water and a towel. After a few friendly discussions between the drivers and the crew chiefs, Jeff went back home in Indiana, eagerly awaiting the final verdict and watching Speedworld for any updates.

And then, one morning, the phone rang. With his heart pounding, Jeff picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Is this Jeff Gordon speaking?"

"Yes..."

"Hi, Jeff! It's Jim Hall..."

Late February 1993 : Ontario Motor Speedway.

The bright, Yellow flash heading down the front straight passed by almost at the speed of sound, its V8 turbo engine screaming across the desert as it glided into the first two turns like a leaf in thin air. Jim Hall looked on, his glasses reflexting the bright California sun as the Lola T93/00 passed him by again. Losing a talented driver like John Andretti, who brought the team its first win since 1983 and back to regular top 5 finishes, was a hard blow, and he knew that the decision he took a few days ago would decide if the team will continue on this run of momentum in 1993.

As the #4 Pennzoil machine arrived in the pits, the engine slowly purred down in volume until, with one flock of the switch, it went dead. The crew pushed the car back into its container, cleaning it and putting the thick, grey blanket over it tonpreserve its freshness. The driver, whose face was obscured by his helmet, approached a smiling Jim Hall, who looked on with satisfaction.

"I'll be honest with you." Jim said. "There are other drivers i considered. Some are faster, more reliable and more experienced. Solid, proven hands that could drive that thing like it's nothing."

The driver then removed his helmet, wiping the sweat off his short hair.

"But I like you, kid...I like you a lot...something tells me you're gonna be better than all of them. It ain't a question of if, it is a question of when...You'll give it your 110%. That's what i expect from everyone in this team. The pit crew, the mechanics and, above all, the driver."

"I will, sir." Jeff said, all smiles.

"I know you will..." Jim responded, patting the young man's shoulder. "...And please, stop it with that "Sir" crap. Call me Jim. I ain't Penske!"

TO BE CONTINUED...

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Marlboro indycar 1993

Schedule

1. Valvoline 200 - Atlanta Motor Speedway (O) - March 21st
2. Jimmy Bryant Memorial - Phoenix International Raceway (O) - April 4th
3. Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach (S) - April 18th
4. Indianapolis 500 (O) - May 30th
5. Rex Mays Classic - Milwaukee Mile (O) - June 6th
6. Budweiser Grand Prix of New York at the Glen - Watkins Glen International (R) - June 13th
7. GI Joe's 200 - Portland International Raceway (R) - June 27th
8. New England 200 - New Hampshire (O) - July 11th
9. Molson Indy Toronto (S) - July 18th
10. Marlboro Michigan 500 (O) - August 1st
11. Budweiser Grand Prix of Cleveland (S) - August 8th
12. Miller Genuine Draft 200 - Mid-Ohio (R) - August 15th
13. Texaco Havoline 200 - Road America (R) - August 22nd
14. Texas 500 - Texas World Speedway (O) - August 29th
15. Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix of Pennsylvania- Nazareth (O) - September 12th
16. L.A Times 500K - Riverside (R) - September 19th
17. California 500 - Ontario Motor Speedway (O) - October 3rd.

Texaco-Havoline Newman-Haas
Lola T93/00-Ford Cosworth XB
#1 Michael Andretti
#2 Mario Andretti

After barely scrapping by the title in 1992, Newman-Haas and Michael Andretti have only one goal in mind in 1993: a third consecutive title, an achievement that hasn't been done in Indycar racing since Ted Horn in the late 40s. With the backing of Ford and the ever reliable Lola chassis, it looks as if we might just witness history. However, pre-season testing saw the team actually end in 2nd behind their main competitors this year.

Marlboro Team Penske
Penske PC-22-Chevrolet Ilmor
#7 Paul Tracy
#5 Emerson Fittipaldi

The Captain retains Emerson Fittipaldi and Rick Mears's replacement Paul Tracy, and continue on with their longstanding partnership with Chevrolet and Ilmor, but that's about the only thing similar to last year. The team's chief designer, Nigel Bennett, offers a radical departure from previous Penske Chassis of years gone by with the PC-22. With bigger wings on the ovals and a more rigid suspension system, PT and Emmo took the pre-season testing by storm, easily outshining all the other teams. Only Newman-Haas could rival them, which gives us perhaps a preview of what's to come this year.

​

Miller Genuine Draft Team Rahal-Hogan
Trusports 93C-Chevrolet Ilmor
#12 Bobby Rahal

A frustrating, anticlimatic end for Rahal's title challenge at the 1992 finale prompted him, Carl Hogan and Steve Horne to spemd the entire winter working on the 1993 Trusports chassis. The results, however, judging from pre-season twsting, seems to indicate that more work needs to be done, for they only achieved 4th overall in both Ovals and Road Courses. With ressources starting to run a bit low, Rahal's driver-owner operation might need to cut down on their ambitions in future seasons.

​

Budweiser Patrick Racing
Lola T93/00-Ford Cosworth XB
#20 Scott Pruett

An up-and-down season for Pat Patrick ended on a high note with Scott Pruett winning the season finale at Ontario, and the team looks set to ride the momentum heading into the new season. Armed again with the current Lola-Ford package that Newman-Haas is using, the former sports car ace looks to add more Ws on his resume.

Galles racing
Galmer G93-Chevrolet Ilmor
#3 Al Unser Jr - Valvoline
#18 Wally Dallenbach Jr - Kraco
#94 Adrian Fernandez (R) (part-time) - Tecate - Galmer G92

Little Al's brave late season charge saw him barely lose out on the title by only one point. The team, however, was throughly satisfied with the Galmer's performance, and they feel they have made the new chassis, the G93, easier to set up than last year's, which will help them tremendously this year.

Wally Dallenbach comes back on the abck of an exemplary job as Little Al's number 2, while Indy Lights runner-up Adrian Fernandez makes his debut in a part-time capacity, driving last year's Galmer Chassis

​

Target chip ganassi racing
LolaT93/00-Ford Cosworth XB
#28 Eddie Cheever
#6 Robby Gordon

A breakthrough season for the young Target outfit, for Eddie Cheever scored his and the team's first win at Phoenix and a podium at Indianapolis, while rookie Robby Gordon, despits a few mistakes, earned Indy rookie of the year honors by finishing 4th. This outfit are the main darkhorses this year, according to many experts.

Panasonic Dick Simon Racing
Lola T93/00-Buick
#11 Raul Boesel
#22 Hiro Matsushita
#90 Lyn St. James (part-time) - Lola T92/00

Raul Boesel had the best season of his Indycar career in 1992, with a best finish of 2nd place at Watkins Glen firmly making him Dick Simon's number 1 driver. As usual, Hiro Matsushita is here to provide the lucrative Panasonic sponsorship and ESPN analyst and Sports car racer Lyn St. James will compete part-time.

​

Pennzoil Hall VDS Racing
Lola T93/00-Chevrolet Ilmor
#4 Jeff Gordon (R)

With John Andretti leaving, many expected Jim Hall to hire drivers from a similar pedigree. However, the longtime veteran team owner surprised everyone by going with a rookie, a first since John Paul Jr. In 1983. While Jeff Gordon is no ordinary rookie, being 1992 Indy Lights champion and possibly the most hyped prospect in american racing since Michael and Little Al, questions remains over his lack of experience on both road courses and having to handle significantly more horsepower than he is accustomed to in Indy Lights and British F3 and F3000. Nonetheless, the young man from Vallejo, California turned heads with his performances at pre-season testing, and a media following is slowly forming around him.

AJ Foyt Enterprises
Lola-T93/00-Chevrolet Ilmor
#14 Davy Jones - Copenhagen
#48 Davey Hamilton (Ovals) (R) - Duracell
#48 Ross Cheever (3, 6-7, 11-13, 16) - Duracell
#48 Ross Bentley (10, 500 milers) - Duracell - #87 Canadian Tire Lola T92/00 for the 500 milers

AJ Foyt, in his first full time year as team owner, will use a similar set up as he did last year, with Davy Jones now driving the full time #14 car and a handful of drivers splitting duties in the #48. Ross Cheever comes back to do almost all the road courses save for Toronto, which clashes with an All Japan F3000 round on the same date. Ross Bentley, who will compete in the 500 milers for Foyt this season, will substitute for the younger Cheever in his home country. Finally, sprint car ace Davey Hamilton makes his debut in the series as the #48's oval specialist

Walker Racing
Lola T93/00-Ford Cosworth XB
#15 Scott Goodyear - Mackenzie Financials
#17 John Andretti - Molson
#68 Willy T. Ribs (500 milers) - Lola T92/00-Ford

Following the sacking of the declining and underwhelming Willy T. Ribs, Derrick Walker signed one fo the breakout drivers of the past 2 seasons in John Andretti to a three-year deal. With Indy 500 winner Scott Goodyear alongside John, and increased funding from additional Canadian Sponsors, Walker will run the current-spec Lola-Ford package, while Ribs, who will spend the season mainly with Dan Gurney's IMSA outfit, will drive last year's Lola-Ford package for the 500 milers only.

Alumax Bettenhausen racing
Penske PC-22-Chevrolet Ilmor
#16 Scott Sharp
Scott Sharp had a very impressive rookie season, with a highest finish of 2nd place at the Texas 500 and earning rookie of the year honors. The Bettenhausen outfit is looking to confirm that they are a team on the rise, with an upgrade in their relationship with Roger Penske allowing them to run the PC-22.

Visa Pacwest Racing
Galmer G92-Chevrolet
#30 Mauricio Gugelmin (R)

A brand new outfit for this year, Bruce McCaw, a communications expert from Seattle, Washington, opens up his new Indycar team witha solid foundation, securing sponsorship from Visa and renting one of the 1992-spec Galmer chassis from Galles Racing. Mauricio Gugelmin comes from Formula 1, where he was part of the famed 1-2 finish for Leyton House March at the 1990 French Grand Prix behind winner Ivan Capelli. He brings lots of money from Brazilian cigarette maker Hollywood.

Craftsman Tools Arciero-Wells Racing
Penske PC-21-Chevrolet
#10 Mark Smith (R)

Lotsof change sat Arciero after a woeful 1992. In comes Indy Lights standout Mark Smith as well as a new partnership with Roger Penske, running the PC-21-Chevy from the Captain. Results in the pre-season testing drastically improved, with Smith looking like a spoiler in the works for the top teams.


King racing
Lola T92/00-Chevrolet Ilmor
#26 Scott Brayton- Quaker State
#36 Dave Kudrave - Mac Tools

Roberto Guerrero left the team despite scoring the pole at Indy last year, meaming that the Skoal Bandit money is now gone. Scott Brayton comes in to drive the Quaker State car, while Dave Kudrave has Mac Tools as new sponsor.

Barilla Euromotorsports
Lola T91/00-Ford Cosworth XB
#42 Mike Groff
#45 Andrea Montermini (R) (Road Courses)

Antonio Ferrari continues with Mike Groff, and this time, at the request of Barilla, they brough in Italian F3000 journeyman Andrea Montermini to tag along for the road courses.

Chesterfield Indy Regency
Lola T92/00-Chevrolet Ilmor
#31 Robbie Groff (R)

Robbie Groff, Mike Groff's brother, makes his debut along with his Indy Lights team Indy Regency. While not much is expected of this promoted outfit, it is still nice to see new american talent in Indycar.

Hemelgarn Racing
Lola T92/00-Buick
#81 Buddy lazier - Jack's Tool Rental

Buddy Lazier surprised many by sneaking into the points in 1992. He hopes to keep it going this year.

Della Pena Motorsports
Lola T92/00-Ford Cosworth XB
#47 Jimmy vasser - Ralphs

The 1991 Formula Atlantic champions had an okay year in 1992, with the expected growing pains from the promotion to Indycar. They hope for an improvement this year.

Dale Coyne Racing
Lola T91/00-Buick
#19 Robbie buhl - Mi-Jack
#39 Éric Bachelart - Lease Plan

Dale Coyne soldiers on with Robbie Buhl and Éric Bachelart as the drivers this year, hoping to continue sneaking points finishes.

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Marlboro Indycar 1993


Round 1: Valvoline 300 - Ontario Motor Speedway

March 21st, 1993

It was that time fo the year again. The labor of winter and the rigorous testing is now over, and it is now the moment of truth for the teams and drivers competing in the 1993 Marlboro Indy Car World Series season. However, it won't be at the traditional grounds of the opening round in Atlanta, for a massive snowstorm engulfed the state of Georgia with 35 inches of snow. Qucikly acting, the opening race would be hastily moved to Ontario Motor Speedway in California, with the distance being increased to 300 miles.

The Atlanta snowstorm of 1993

​

Michael Andretti, looking for a three-peat, puts his Newman-Haas Lola-ford on pole position, with Emerson Fitfipaldi and Paul Tracy not far behind, already giving the fans at Ontario and the millions watching on TV a preview of what was to come this year, while John Andretti and Robby Gordon confirms Walker and Ganassi's statuses as the main dark horses...


Yet the main attraction for the california fans, and certain members of the media, wasn't even on Michael's quest for a three-peat or the hectic last-minute switch from the snow-filled Atlanta to the wamr and sunny weather of California. It was the arrival of Jeff Gordon on the big stage. The local boy from up north in Vallejo got a standing ovation from the home crowd during the drivers parade, and the specialised magazines and local press hyped up his top prospect status earned from his 1992 Indy Lights title run. The hype only heightened in qualifying, where he showed off what he could do on the super speedways by qualifying 12th, beating none other than former 2-time series champion Bobby Rahal and Al Unser Jr, nonetheless. Such pressure would kill a young man his age, but Jeff was build different. And with Jim Hall, himself a superstar in his heyday, guiding him and giving him tips on how to handle the pressure, he was in good hands.


ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Paul Tracy
John Andretti

ROW 3
Robby Gordon
Mario Andretti

ROW 4
Scott Goodyear
Raul Boesel

ROW 5
Jimmy Vasser
Scott Pruett

ROW 6
Mark Smith
Jeff Gordon

ROW 7
Bobby Rahal
Al Unser Jr

ROW 8
Scott Brayton
Eddie Cheever

ROW 9
Robbie Buhl
Scott Sharp

ROW 10
Davy Jones
Davey Hamilton

ROW 11
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Mauricio Gugelmin

ROW 12
Dave Kudrave
Buddy Lazier

ROW 13
Robbie Groff
Mike Groff

ROW 14
Éric Bachelart
Hiro Matsushita


Already, a surprise for this opening round of the season, as Robby Gordon got off to a great start and passed PT and the Andretti cousins to gain second place, even matching the pace of Emmo as the race dwindled down to an epic three-way battle for the win between him, the brazilian veteran and Michael.

Michael wasn't one to abandon quickly, however, and he would have a great scrap against Robby for second before passing him at turn 4 exit to go after Emmo.

Further back, Al Unser Jr sadly had to retire due to electrical issues, while Bobby Rahal climbed up the ranks. Starting in a mediocre 13th, he clawed his ways through the flaws of the trusport chassis to get up into the top 6 and fight the like sof John Andretti, Eddie Cheever and the young Jeff Gordon. Rahal's battle with the young man got the California crowd rooting for their home boy and the old heads of the racing scene turning their heads at Jeff's feisty performance, not afraid at all at taking it to Rahal.

Back up front, Michael and Emmo battled for the win, trading places in daring overtakes, with the most spectacular being Michael goign three-wide with Emmo and backmarker Dave Kudrave to gain the lead and the win, starting off his three-peat bid with a bang. Robby Gordon wasn't too far away in third, but alas, he couldn't match the pace of the Texaco Lola and the Marlboro Penske, contenting himself with a well-deserved podium finish.

Mario Andretti beats out his nephew John for 4th, while Rahal ends a outstanding drive in 6th. Finally, Jeff Gordon ends his first ever Indycar race in a solid 9th place for Jim Hall.

Artist's rendition fo the battle for the win at the 1993 opening round in Ontario.​

Valvoline 300 Race finishers

1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Emerson Fittipaldi 16 pts
3. Robby Gordon 14 pts
4. Mario Andretti 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Bobby Rahal 6 pts
7. Eddie Cheever 4 pts
8. Raul Boesel 3 pts
9. Jeff Gordon 2 pts
10. Scott Goodyear 1 pts
11. Davey Hamilton
12. Scott Sharp
13. Wally Dallenbach Jr
14. Davy Jones
15. Al Unser Jr
16. Scott Brayton
17. Dave Kudrave
18. Mark Smith

​

Round 2: Jimmy Bryant Memorial - Phoenix International speedway

April 4th

The Arizona desert is unforgiving, and Michael Andretti learned that the hard way during practice. As he was doing his flying lap, his car spun and hit the wall in a blistering impact, a large fireball emitting from the percuted back of the car. While Michael came out of this crash alive, his back was severely impacted, and he will have to miss both the week-end's race and the upcoming Grand Prix at Long Beach, although he will thankfully most likely be cleared for Indy.

Michael's crash in Practice​

With Michael missing for the race, it meant the race was more open for the taking, as exemplified with reigning Indy 500 champion Scott Goodyear taking pole position for Walker ahead of a ressurgent Mario, while Jeff Gordon further improves his qualifying by sitting in 8th besides Bobby Rahal.


ROW 1
Scott Goodyear
Mario Andretti

ROW 2
Emerson Fittipaldi
John Andretti

ROW 3
Paul Tracy
Raul Boesel

ROW 4
Bobby Rahal
Jeff Gordon

ROW 5
Jimmy Vasser
Robby Gordon

ROW 6
Mark Smith
Scott Brayton

ROW 7
Al Unser Jr
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 8
Scott Pruett
Eddie Cheever

ROW 9
Davey Hamilton
Buddy Lazier

ROW 10
Scott Sharp
Davy Jones

ROW 11
Lyn St. James
Dave Kudrave

ROW 12
Robbie Buhl
Mauricio Gugelmin

ROW 13
Éric Bachelart
Robbie Groff

ROW 14
Mike Groff
Hiro Matsushita


Unfortunately for Goodyear, his run in the lead would be short-lived, for he would hit the wall on lap 10, barely when the race started, while his countryman Paul Tracy would showcase the huge potential that he and his Penske PC-22 had. The young Ontarian from West Hill would deliver perhaps the most dominant showing in Indycar in quite a long time, pulling off a daring three-wide pass on Mario and his teammate Fittipaldi and lapping the entire field twice en route to a star-making first win.

Mario Andretti, at the venerable age of 53, finishes in a brilliant 2nd place, while Jimmy Vasser of minnows Della Pena would stun the Indycar world by beating Al Unser Jr for the final podium spot, while Little Al himself would barely hold onto 4th against a very impressive Jeff Gordon, who scores his first career top 5 in only his second ever race.

PT, moments before his three-wide pass on Mario and Emmo.​

Phoenix Race Finishers

1. Paul Tracy 20 pts
2. Mario Andretti 16 pts
3. Jimmy Vasser 14 pts
4. Al Unser Jr 12 pts
5. Jeff Gordon 10 pts
6. Robby Gordon 6 pts
7. Scott Pruett 4 pts
8. Dave Kudrave 3 pts
9. Mark Smith 2 pts
10. Mauricio Gugelmin 1 pt
11. Hiro Matsushita
12. Éric Bachelart
13. Lyn St James

ROUND 3: Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

The glitz and glamour of Hollywood took over Ocean Boulevard as the Indycars headed towards the Monaco of the west coast. The Newman-Haas team hired the services of 1983 Indycar champion and F1 veteran Teo Fabi to replace Michael for this race. Paul Tracy rode his momentum to his second career pole position, while John Andretti carried the andretti's honor in Michael's absence by qualifying 2nd on his Molson Walker Racing Lola. Jeff Gordon, racing once again in front of his home state, starts the race in 11th place, while Bobby Rahal and the trusports's woes continued as he qualifies outside of the 8th row in 16th place.

April 18th, 1993

ROW 1
Paul Tracy
John Andretti

ROW 2
Emerson Fittipaldi
Scott Goodyear

ROW 3
Scott Sharp
Mario Andretti

ROW 4
Teo Fabi
Al Unser Jr

ROW 5
Raul Boesel
Eddie Cheever

ROW 6
Jeff Gordon
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 7
Robby Gordon
Mark Smith

ROW 8
Scott Pruett
Bobby Rahal

ROW 9
Adrian Fernandez
Mauricio Gugelmin

ROW 10
Scott Brayton
Davy Jones

ROW 11
Jimmy Vasser
Dave Kudrave

ROW 12
Robbie Buhl
Andrea Montermini

ROW 13
Ross Cheever
Éric Bachelart

ROW 14
Lyn St. James
Buddy Lazier

DNQ
Robbie Groff
Mike Groff
Hiro Matsushita

The story of the race was Bobby Rahal's insane charge through the field. Rahal managed to squeeze the best out of the underperforming trusports chassis and somehow claw his way through the attrition-filled race to finish as runner-up behind a dominant PT, the canadian finally ending Al Unser Jr's 5-year reign in the streets of Long Beach. Meanwhile, taking advantage of the attrition and John Andretti suffering from damaged parts late in the race, Jeff Gorodon kept his cool and would continue turning heads, lifting the home crowd on their feet as he got on the podium for the first time in his career, a career start that was almost too good to be true for the 22-year old...

Bobby Rahal with potentially the drive of the year, finishing ahead of the impressive rookie Jeff Gorodn in the Pennzoil Lola of Jim Hall​

RACE FINISHERS

1. Paul Tracy 20 pts
2. Bobby Rahal 16 pts
3. Jeff Gordon 14 pts
4. Teo Fabi 12 pts
5. John Andretti 10 pts
6. Robbie Buhl 6 pts
7. Scott Pruett 4 pts
8. Wally Dallenbach Jr 3 pts
9th. Eddie Cheever 2 pts
10th. Mark Smith 1 pt
11th Robby Gordon
12th. Raul Boesel
13th. Emerson Fittipaldi
14th. Ross Cheever
15th. Éric Bachelart
16th. Lyn St. James
17th Buddy Lazier
18th. Andrea Montermini



During the month of April, Roger Penske was conducting his grand plan of entering a third car for the Indy 500. He had one man in mind for thsi job. An icon of motorsports, firmly considered the best in the world, a man who previously tested for him during the off-season.

Him and Emerson Fitfipladi had their eyes on booking Ayrton Senna to drive at the Indy 500 ever since that test. Senna, ever the extraordinary racing talent that he is, was right on pace with Emmo and PT during that testing session, and he was only racing on a race-by-race basis for McLaren. He was willing, the pieces were in place and Senna to Indy seemed like a formality at this point...

And then, Ron Dennis learned about this. Furious, he banned Senna from competing at Indianapolis, thus killing those plans for a third car dead.

...or so people thought. With their longstanding relationship with Chevrolet, along with their NASCAR team led by Rusty Wallace running Pontiacs allowed the Captain to execute his plan B. The phone call was made, and after some negotiating, the terms have been agreed, the papers were signed, and the second option for the third Penske car at Indy was signed.

No doubt, it was the second best thing to do after Senna, and it would most certainly bring as many eyeballs as Senna would, albeit with a different audience. For the man in question, it would be a brand new experience, and quite a strange one, indeed. It will not only be the first time he will skip his home race in Charlotte, but it will also be the first time he will race with a number other than his beloved #3 since 1983...

​

To Be Continued in the Month of May 1993...

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Month of May 1993​

Racing fever has arrived at the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and this year's Indy 500 has generated a lot of hype thanks to the announcement of NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt driving the third Penske car, becoming the first NASCAR driver to compete at the event since Cale Yarborough in the 70s. The 5-time Winston Cup champion had been testing extensively with the PC-22 in beteeen cup races in April to prepare for this event, and many media menbers who were there during the testing said that Dale was almost on the same pace as Emerson Fittipaldi and Paul Tracy, announcing a formidable trident that might take the speedway by storm should things go right. Dale was seen photographed alongside his good friend Al Unser Jr of Galles Racing. However, that friendship is gonna be put aside come race time, both assured.

Dale Eanrhardt, embarking on a new experience​

Among the favorites, outside the Penske trio, is the Newman-Haas lineup, with Michael Andretti coming back from the back injury he suffered at Phoenix. Questions remain over his fitness heading into the month, but Michael and the team are confident in their ability to bounce back.

Finally, Jeff Gordon will achieve his dream of taking part in the greatest spectacle in racing. The young rookie impressed a lot of people in the first three rounds of the season, already showing he can keep up with the big names in the sport, expertly guided by his team owner jim hall. In an interview with Racer magazine, The young man is said particularly enthusiastic having to race against the NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt.

Meanwhile, off-track, Indycar Inc. Has announced a major development concerning the track's safety features. Due to the death of Jovy Marcelo and the various crashes thatbended in serious injuries last year, Indycar Inc. Announced that they will implement a new type of foam barrier at the track. Known as the SAFER Barrier, it is currently being studied and tested at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for 3 years now, with implementation targeted for next year, with the long term goal being applying this new type of barrier on all tracks that the Marlboro Indycar World Series will race on in the future



PRACTICE
The first day of practice began the same as last year, with the Dick Simon Racing squad going out first. Raul Boesel was the firdt to complete a lap, while later, 1991 Indycar rookie of the year Jeff Andretti, now driving for the upstart Pagan Racing at the 500 milers, entered the warm-up lane in turn three too fast, and almost sent his Interstate Battery Lola ramming into Scott Brayton's Quaker State car.

Mario Andretti set the fastest lap of the first day with 222.124 MPH. Later on, the Penske trio of Paul Tracy, Emerson Fittipaldi and Dale Earnhardt, entered the melee on Monday May 10th, with PT being the fastest followed by Emmo, while Dale, despite taking a few laps to get up to speed with an open-wheel car, managed to be 6th fastest. By the end of the day. Nelson Piquet, still driving for Menard, managed to be 9th fastest.

Things heated up on Tuesday, when Eddie Cheever of Ganassi clocked ik at 225 mph. Michael Andretti finally began his return from injury, getting into the upper-midfield with 218 mph. Jeff Gordon, in his first Indy 500, got his Pennzoil car comfortably in the midfield, shosing flashes of pace on a few laps where he got to 220 mph.

Jeff Gordon during practice​

Time Trials

Time trials proper began on saturday may 15th. Mario got the provisional pole at 223.214 mph, but Cheever got the best out of his Target Lola, clocking in at 223.967 mph to clinch the pole. Dale Earnhardt got up to 220.851 mph, getting 10th place and becoming the fastest rookie qualifier this year.

Eddie Cheever of Ganassi, 1993 Indy 500 polesitter

​

The second day of time trials was for drivers who were waved off in the first day. Jeff Gordon comfortably qualified in the midfield, while on Bump Day, Bobby Rahal, 1986 winner, tried as he might with the Trusports 93C and his backup car, the 92C, he simply couldn't get it up to speed, and in the biggest surprise of the month, Rahal would DNQ fron Indianapolis.

Woes for Rahal.​

The stage was now set for the greatest spectacle in racing once more. As we go back home again in Indiana, who will come out of this great american race the victor?

77th Indianapolis 500 Starting Grid

ROW 1
Eddie Cheever
Mario Andretti
Raul Boesel

ROW 2
Scott Goodyear
Al Unser Jr
Scott Pruett

ROW 3
Paul Tracy
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 4
Dale Earnhardt (R)
Scott Brayton
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 5
Nelson Piquet
John Andretti
Mauricio Gugelmin (R)

ROW 6
Jeff Andretti
Jeff Gordon (R)
Robby Gordon

ROW 7
Jimmy Vasser
Buddy Lazier
Lyn St. James

ROW 8
Scott Sharp
Al Unser Sr.
Davey Hamilton (R)

ROW 9
Davy Jones
Hiro Matsushita
Robbie Stanley (R)

ROW 10
Mike Groff
Robbie Groff
Willy T. Ribs

ROW 11
Robbie Buhl
Stan Fox
Dave Kudrave


DNQ
Bobby Rahal
Adrian Fernandez (R)
Éric Bachelart
Didier Theys
Jeff Wood
Stéphan Grégoire (R)
Jim Crawford
Gary Bettenhausen
Mark Smith (R)

​

Start your Engines!

 

[kinnikuniverse]

The 77th Indianapolis 500 mile sweepstakes is GO!!​

At the green flag, polesitter Eddie Cheever and Raul Boesel drag-raced down the frontstretch, with Mario Andretti dropping back into third. Boesel got the edge, and grabbed the lead into turn 1. The entire field circulated through the first lap cleanly, and started to pick up the pace. Boesel began lapping the backmarkers on lap 8, meanwhile Andretti moved past Cheever to take second place. On lap 16, Rookie Robbie Stanley, reigning 2-time USAC Silver Crown champion, spun exiting turn 2. He flat-spotted his tires, but did not make contact. He drove back to the pits, and re-entered the race.

Robbie Stanley in the #27 Menard Lola.​

Under the caution, most of the leaders pitted. Dale Earnhardt stayed out, and inherited the lead, making the sold out crowd cheer loudly, especially the NASCAR fans who travelled to Indy to see their idol race in open-wheel cars.

In the pits, Raul Boesel was among those who pitted, and in the process, the crew was able to remove a hot dog wrapper that was blocking the radiator inlet. As Boesel was exiting his pit stall, he was momentarily blocked when Scott Goodyear pulled out of his stall. Further down the lane, Mario Andretti slowly pulled out of his pit box, and was ahead of Boesel. Both cars entered the warm up lane together. Boesel was going much faster and slipped by Andretti in the warm up lane. Boesel was unaware and was not informed by the officials that Mario had crossed the blend line first.

After the field went back to green on lap 21, the black flag was displayed for Boesel. A controversial stop-and-go penalty was assessed to Boesel. Confusion hovered over the reason for penalty. Owner Dick Simon was initially informed it was for speeding in the pits, but then it was changed to passing under the yellow. Boesel darted into the pits to serve the penalty, and fell all the way back to the rear of the field. He lost a lap in the process.

trouble for Boesel​

With Al Unser, Sr. leading on lap 31, Wally Dallenbach Jr, suffering from a pushing condition, went high in turn three and smacked the outside wall. A piece of the suspension pierced through the side of the tub, and narrowly missed puncturing his leg. Nelson Piquet, who returned to Indy after his bad crash in 1992, dropped out with a blown engine.

Mario Andretti led the field back to green on lap 36, Eddie Cheever ran second, and Emerson Fittipaldi third. Mario led comfortably for the next 15 laps. On lap 47, the leaders approached traffic, and Cheever passed Andretti to take the lead into turn one. Michael Andretti began showing strength, passing Fittipaldi for third, then closing in his father in second. The Andrettis would follow each other closely as they got closer and closer to Cheever, with Michael drafting his father all along.

Father and Son charging together​

On lap 56, the Andrettis made their move, sandwiching Cheever between them in a three-wide double team, shich allowed Michael to go through to 1st place on the outside. It wouldn't be for long, however, for the leaders to do their scheduled green flag pit stops. Michael's was notable, for he overshot his pit stall, and his crew had to wheel hom back to service him, costing him 40 seconds and making him fall donw in 6th place, while Mario inherited the lead.

​

On lap 128, Jeff Andretti and Dave Kudrave crashe dout together at turn three, prompting Mario to enter the pits...when the lane was closed! Mario was assesesed a stop and go penalty, thus putting him out of race contention.


On lap 182, the caution came out when Lyn St. James Stalled on turn 4. This led to a three-way showdown between Michael, Emmo and Eddie Cheever for the win. Michael had a nice restart, but Emmoe was right behind him. The two would play a deadly game of cat and mouse, with Michael desperately trying to hold on to the finish line. Emmo attempted to go on the outsid eat turn 4, but Michael squeezed him out as legally as he could, prompting emmo to back off and lose speed, with Cheever taking advantage to pass the Brazilian.

Michael amd Emmo battle for the win​

Michael could breath a sigh of relief, and he would cruise the last 3 laps on the way to his second ever Indy 500 victory, with Cheever and Emmo completing the podium.

Raul Boesel ends in 4th, Whike a disappointed Mario ended in 5th. Scott Brayton with the drive of the day, getting his Quaker State king Racing Lola in 6th place, ahead of Dale Earnhardt, who wins rookie of the year honor by winning a memorable three-way scrap agaisnt Al Unser Jr and the rookie Jeff Gordon. Dale would later praise the latter in the post-race interview, saying that the kid's got real talent.

Finally, Davey Hamilton scores his first career point and impresses for AJ Foyt.

Sadly couldn't find an appropriate picture.​

Race results
1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Eddie Cheever 16 pts
3. Emerson Fittipaldi 14 pts
4th. Raul Boesel 12 pts
5th. Mario Andretti 10 pts
6th. Scott Brayton 6 pts
7th. Dale Earnhardt (R) 4 pts
8th. Al Unser Jr 3 pts
9th. Jeff Gordon (R) 2 pts
10th. Davey Hamilton (R) 1 pt

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Marlboro Indycar World Series - Mid-Season report.

After another spectacular Indy 500 that sees Michael Andretti come back from injury and holding off Emerson Fittipaldi and Eddie Cheever for his second Indy win, The Marlboro championship trail heads out to the traditional post-Indy stop at the Milwaukee Mile for the Rex Mays Classic. The most notable news heading into the race was the Rahal-Hogan team dismissing their in-house Trusports Chassis for a Lola T93/00 following Bobby Rahal's DNQ at Indianapolis. The former 2-time Indycar champion and 1986 Indy 500 winner expressed his disappointment: "Obviously, it is a tough decision to make, we've spent a lot of money developing the old chassis, and it gave us a good title push last season, but when it's not working anymore, then you have to make a change."

Bobby Rahal in his new Lola chassis.


​

The biggest surprise at Milwaukee, however, was Dick Simon's Raul Boesel putting his Lola-Buick on the pole, while Michael Andretti starts only 7th on the grid. The Brazilian also was the fastest in the warm-up, which means there is a high chance that he might score his first career indycar win this afternoon.

Round 5: Rex Mays Classic - Milwaukee Mile

ROW 1
Raul Boesel
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Scott goodyear
Paul Tracy

ROW 3
Mario Andretti
John Andretti

ROW 4
Michael Andretti
Robby Gordon

ROW 5
Bobby Rahal
Scott Pruett

ROW 6
Scott Sharp
Adrian Fernandez

ROW 7
Jimmy Vasser
Jeff Gordon

ROW 8
Mark Smith
Eddie Cheever

ROW 9
Wally Dallenbach Jr
Al Unser Jr

ROW 10
Dave Kudrave
Buddy Lazier

ROW 11
Scott Brayton
Davy Jones

ROW 12
Éric Bachelart
Mauricio Gugelmin

ROW 13
Robbie Buhl
Robbie Groff

ROW 14
Mike Groff
Davey Hamilton

DNQ
Hiro Matsushita

At the start, Boesel managed to pull away from the penskes and enters the first 45 laps of the race in the lead. The #11 Dick Simon Panasonic Lola is flying, but Scott Goodyear in theWalker Mackenzie Lola is matching his pace, and the 1992 Indy 500 winner passed the Brazilian on lap 46. The two would offer a refreshing duel for the indycar fans, as for once, it wasn't Penske and Newman-Haas fighting for the lead.

In the first pit stops, Goodyear pitted later than Boesel, and Robby Gordon, who was also hard charging, gained the lead durign Goodyear's pit stop, but had to conceded the lead bacl to Goodyear. However, Goodyear didn't hold onto the lead for long, for Paul Tracy caught up with him with fresh tires and looked set to win the race...


...only to unexpectedly crash at the turn two exit! Boesel inherited the lead on lap 142, but as the laps counted down, Michael Andretti, who was saving his tires and fuel all race long, put on the working boots and charged through the field, catching up with Boesel with only 20 laps to go.


What would follow would be a deadly game of cat and mouse, as Michael attempted to go both sides and overtake the Brazilian. Boesel, using his veteran savvy, used up all pf his strength to hodl off Michael, and with the reigning 2-time champion hot on his tail, Raul extracted all the juices left in his tires and fuel tank to pull away just enough to meet the checkered flag and score a very dramatic first career Indycar win for both himself, the Buick engine and the Dick Simon team!

one of the most consistent drivers in Indycar finally has his day​

Bobby Rahal, starting 9th in his new Lola, offered a much better performance and got 4th place ahead of Al Unser Jr and John Andretti, while Jeff Gordon, a bit off the oace of the leaders, finished nonetheless in 9th thanks to the attrition.

Milwaukee race results

1. Raul Boesel 20 pts
2. Michael Andretti 16 pts
3. Emerson Fittipaldi 14 pts
4. Bobby Rahal 12 pts
5. Al Unser Jr 10 pts
6. John Andretti 6 pts
7. Scott Brayton 4 pts
8. Jimmy Vasser 3 pts
9. Jeff Gordon 2 pts
10. Robbie Groff 1 pt

​

Round 6: Budweiser Grand Prix of New York at the Glen


ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Paul Tracy
Scott Sharp

ROW 3
Bobby Rahal
Scott Pruett

ROW 4
Al Unser Jr
Robby Gordon

ROW 5
Mario Andretti
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
Mark Smith

ROW 7
Mauricio Gugelmin
Eddie Cheever

ROW 8
Robbie Groff
Jeff Gordon

ROW 9
Scott Brayton
Dave Kudrave

ROW 10
Davy Jones
Ross Cheever

ROW 11
Adrian Fernandez
Scott Goodyear

ROW 12
Robbie Buhl
John Andretti

ROW 13
Andrea Montermini
Buddy Lazier

ROW 14
Hiro Matsushita
Mike Groff

DNQ
Éric Bachelart

A controversial race filled with penalties from start to finish. At the green flag, Emerson Fittipaldi jumped the start from the outside of the front row, beating pole-sitter Michael Andretti to the line by almost two car lengths. Instead of waving off the start, official assessed Fittipaldi a stop-and-go penalty. Later in the race, Paul Tracy was penalized for breaking the 80 mph pit road speed limit (clocked at 93 mph), and Michael was accused of blatant blocking. Wally Dallenbach took the lead on lap 28. In the closing laps, Galles Racing teammates Dallenbach and Al Unser Jr. were running 1st-2nd. On lap 49, Unser challenged Dallenbach for the lead, but spun into the run-off on turn one. On a restart with four laps to go, Robby Gordon, driving for Ganassi, tried to pass Dallenbach for the lead, but was squeezed down and had to back off. Moments later, Gordon spun out with a cut tire. Dallenbach went on to win the race, his first ever win in Indy car competition, 15 years after his father, Indycar chief stewart Wally Dallenbach Sr, last won a race. The celebrations between father and son in the pits after the race almost made interviewer Gary Gerould cry tears of joy.

The race is also notable for Mauricio Gugelmin's excellent performance in the Galmer G92-Chevrolet, finishing in an impressive 4th for the brazilian rookie.

Wally Dallenbach Jr. With an emotional first win at the Glen. Will there be more surprise winners to come?​

Watkins Glen results

1. Wally Dallenbach Jr 20 pts
2. Raul Boesel 16 pts
3. Scott Pruett 14 pts
4. Mauricio Gugelmin 12 pts
5. Bobby Rahal 10 pts
6. Al Unser Jr 6 pts
7. Adrian Fernandez 4 pts
8. Robby Gordon 3 pts
9. Paul Tracy 2 pt
10. Scott Goodyear 1 pt


Round 7: GI Joe's 200 at Portland

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Emerson Fittipaldi

ROW 2
Scott Sharp
Paul Tracy

ROW 3
Mario Andretti
Mark Smith

ROW 4
Jeff Gordon
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 5
Al Unser Jr
Robby Gordon

ROW 6
Raul Boesel
John Andretti

ROW 7
Eddie Cheever
Scott Pruett

ROW 8
Bobby Rahal
Scott Goodyear

ROW 9
Scott Brayton
Ross Cheever

ROW 10
Lyn St. James
Hiro Matsushita

ROW 11
Robbie Groff
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 12
Dave Kudrave
Davy Jones

ROW 13
Adrian Fernandez
Andrea Montermini

ROW 14
Ross Bentley
Robbie Buhl

ROW 15
Buddy Lazier
Mike Groff

ROW 16
Éric Bachelart
Brian Till


The annual father's day spectacular at Portland, with its massive grid and beautiful green scenery, saw Michael Andretti and Emerson Fittipaldi duel all race long for the win. After trying to outfox each other in the pits, Emmo and Michael settled it on the track, with Emmo, ever the sly veteran, took advantage of an early brake from Michael at the esses at the backstraight to get him heading into the final hairpin, and Emmo would then cruise to his first win of the season.

Michael Andretti and Emerson Fittipaldi dueling for the win at Portland​

Race Results

1. Emerson Fittipaldi 20 pts
2. Michael Andretti 16 pts
3. Paul Tracy 14 pts
4. Bobby Rahal 12 pts
5. Al Unser Jr 10 pts
6. Mario Andretti 6 pts
7. Raul Boesel 4 pts
8. Robby Gordon 3 pts
9. Mauricio Gugelmin 2 pts
10. Eddie Cheever 1 pt



Round 8: New England 200

ROW 1
Michael Andretti
Raul Boesel

ROW 2
Scott Goodyear
Paul Tracy

ROW 3
John Andretti
Mario Andretti

ROW 4
Scott Pruett
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 5
Bobby Rahal
Jeff Gordon

ROW 6
Jimmy Vasser
Scott Sharp

ROW 7
Emerson Fittipaldi
Robby Gordon

ROW 8
Al Unser Jr
Davy Jones

ROW 9
Mauricio Gugeomin
Eddie Cheever

ROW 10
Robbie Groff
Mark Smith

ROW 11
Davey Hamilton
Robbie Buhl

ROW 12
Scott Brayton
Buddy Lazier

ROW 13
Mike Groff
Dave Kudrave

ROW 14
Hiro Matsushita
Éric Bachelart

The Loudon oval is the theater of an incredible one-man effort by Michael Andretti to hold off the two penskes. Throughout the grueling new england heat, Michqel and Tracy, who had become the main two contenders for the title, exchanged the lead many times and delivering some tight little passes that bordered on the edge of legality.

Finally, Michael, with only 4 laps to go, dived into the inside of Tracy at turn 3 and, in an exemplary display of car control, managed to make it stay in its line at turn four to complete the overtake. Tracy looked for any opportunities, but Michael held on and scored a precious win for his three-peat ambitions.

The two title rivals, moments before Michael passed Tracy.​

Race results

1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Paul Tracy 16 pts
3. Emerson Fittipaldi 14 pts
4. John Andretti 12 pts
5. Robby Gordon 10 pts
6. Scott Pruett 6 pts
7. Bobby Rahal 4 pts
8. Al Unser Jr 3 pts
9. Jimmy Vasser 2 pts
10. Davey Hamilton 1 pt

Round 9: Molson Indy Toronto

ROW 1
Emerson Fittipaldi
Paul Tracy

ROW 2
Bobby Rahal
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 3
Scott Sharp
Raul Boesel

ROW 4
Al Unser Jr
Eddie Cheever

ROW 5
Michael Andretti
Scott Goodyear

ROW 6
Jeff Gordon
Robby Gordon

ROW 7
Mario Andretti
John Andretti

ROW 8
Scott Pruett
Mauricio Gugelmin

ROW 9
Jimmy Vasser
Davy Jones

ROW 10
Scott Brayton
Ross Bentley

ROW 11
Dave Kudrave
Mark Smith

ROW 12
Adrian Fernandez
Andrea Montermini

ROW 13
Buddy Lazier
Hiro Matsushita

ROW 14
Robbie Buhl
Robbie Groff

DNQ
Mike Groff
Éric Bachelart

In the streets of Exhibition place in Toronto, it was an all penske domination, and with Michael Andretti retiring mid race from a wastegate peoblem, the marlboro cars would cruise their way to victory lane, with Emmo retiring from a blown Chevy Ilmor engine, allowing Paul Tracy to win at home and catch up with Michael on top of the standings.

The real exciting news of that week-end, however, was the announcement of Honda joining Indycar for the first time ever. After their tremendous success in Formula 1 in the past, the Japanese giants looks to take on a new challenge, and are actively looking for an Indycar team to enter the series with for 1994. This announcement, along with Al Unser Jr's impending free agency after he announced that he won't be resigning with Galles in 1994, officially kickstarts the silly season.

​

Coming soon, in an Indycar chassis near you


TORONTO RACE RESULTS

1. Paul Tracy 20 pts
2. Wally Dallenbach Jr 16 pts
3. Bobby Rahal 14 pts
4. Al Unser Jr 12 pts
5. Robby Gordon 10 pts
6. Raul Boesel 6 pts
7. Mario Andretti 4 pts
8. Scott Goodyear 3 pts
9. Scott Pruett 2 pts
10. Jimmy Vasser 1 pt

Round 10: Michigan 500

ROW 1
Mario Andretti
Michael Andretti

ROW 2
Eddie Cheever
Raul Boesel

ROW 3
Paul Tracy
Scott Goodyear

ROW 4
John Andretti
Jeff Gordon

ROW 5
Robby Gordon
Lyn St. James

ROW 6
Scott Brayton
Hiro Matsushita

ROW 7
Willy T. Ribs
Scott Sharp

ROW 8
Emerson Fittipaldi
Bobby Rahal

ROW 9
Al Unser Jr
Buddy Lazier

ROW 10
Scott Pruett
Robbie Groff

ROW 11
Davey Hamilton
Wally Dallenbach Jr

ROW 12
Ross Bentley
Mauricio Gugelmin

ROW 13
Davy Jones
Buddy Lazier

ROW 14
Mark Smith
Jimmy Vasser

ROW 15
Jeff Andretti
Dave Kudrave

Row 16
Éric Bachelart
Robbie Buhl

In the complete opposite of Toronto, the Marlboro Michigan 500 was a perfect week-end for the Newman-Haas team, while Team Penske suffered from mechanical issues. Mario and Michael Andretti lcoked up the front row, and never looked back, dominating proceedures in one of the most one-sided oval races in recent memory. Michael took the win and goes one win ahead of Paul Tracy in the standings.

Meanwhile, Jeff Gordon, after falling back down to earth with a string of subpar performances, finishes in a well-deserved 6th place, defeating the likes of John Andretti and Al Unser Jr for the top 6 finish.

the newman-haas crew hard at work

​

A tough stretch for the rookie from Vallejo, California, but a good top 6 finish at Michigan.



Results

1. Michael Andretti 20 pts
2. Mario Andretti 16 pts
3. Eddie Cheever 14 pts
4. Raul Boesel 12 pts
5. Scott Goodyear 10 pts
6. Jeff Gordon 6 pts
7. John Andretti 4 pts
8. Al Unser Jr 3 pts
9. Bobby Rahal 2 pts
10. Willy T. Ribs 1 pt


And Thus, silly season begins, two surprise winners, and an exciting duel between Michael Andretti and Paul Tracy for the title starts to form as the 1993 Marlboro Indycar World Series heads into its second half.

Coming up next: Our protagonist Jeff Gordon's own mid-season review, with a behind the scenes look into his first Indycar season so far...