1996 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World
Date | January 27, 1996 |
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Official name | Indy 200 at Walt Disney World |
Location | Walt Disney World Speedway |
Course | Permanent racing facility 1.000 mi / 1.609 km |
Distance | 200 laps 200.000 mi / 321.869 km |
Weather | Dry with temperatures reaching up to 80.1 °F (26.7 °C); wind speeds reaching up to 13 miles per hour (21 km/h)[1] |
Pole position | |
Driver | Buddy Lazier (Hemelgarn Racing) |
Time | 19.847 |
Fastest lap | |
Driver | Buzz Calkins (Bradley Motorsports) |
Time | 20.954 (on lap 188 of 200) |
Podium | |
First | Buzz Calkins (Bradley Motorsports) |
Second | Tony Stewart (Team Menard) |
Third | Robbie Buhl (Beck Motorsports/Zunne Group) |
The 1996 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World was the first round of the
Report
Pre-Race
The first event for the breakaway Indy Racing League took place at
During the Firestone tire session,
On January 13, Butch Brickell broke two vertebrae in a hard crash at Turn 1, and was ruled out for the race,[8][9] although he remained entered on an updated entry list, which reflected the withdrawal of Turco's entry because of sponsorship issues.[10] Parsons had only completed six warm-up laps when a crash wiped his car out of testing, while O'Connell was only able to make his 64-lap debut on an Indy car at the last day of testing. That same day, Tony Stewart drove one of Team Menard's cars, and was announced later that day as their third driver for the season.[11] John Menard wanted to field Jim Crawford in the third car at Orlando, but he was persuaded by Cary Agajanian, USAC's vicepresident for the IRL and Stewart's legal advisor, to give the 24-year old rookie a try. Being the first driver to have conquered the USAC Triple Crown, Stewart logged a best lap of 172 mph in only his second ever Indy car test, despite unknowingly running with a much-lowered turbo boost and a chassis that had been discarded by Cheever and Brayton for handling reasons.[12][13] Stewart had been previously tapped by A. J. Foyt to drive for his team after a successful test at Phoenix in October 1995, but Foyt required him to step down from his handshake agreement to run a part-time NASCAR Busch Series schedule with Ranier-Walsh Racing, and Stewart declined the offer.[14]
Out of the track, animosities between the IRL and the IndyCar World Series (CART) had been fueled by the 25/8 Rule, perceived by CART teams as a measure to lock them out of the Indianapolis 500.[15] Tensions further escalated on December 19, when CART announced the creation of the U. S. 500, an event at Michigan International Speedway that would be held on Memorial Day, in direct opposition to the Indianapolis 500,[16] and on January 11, when A. J. Foyt filed a $5 million suit against CART for anti-competitive practices.[17] On 4 January, Oldsmobile was announced as the first engine supplier of the 4.0 V8 engine formula that the IRL was set to use from 1997.[18] Five days later, Andy Evans bought the remaining share of Dick Simon in Scandia/Simon Racing, which would still compete under that name at Walt Disney World.[19] This ownership change left A. J. Foyt as the only full-time team owner from the 1995 season to compete at Orlando.
Practice and qualifying
On Wednesday, January 24,
On Friday morning practice, Eliseo Salazar clipped the wall at the exit of Turn 3 and lost control of the car, crashing first into the front-straight inside wall, and then right side into the Turn 1 outside wall. In the second impact, a stabilizing rod went through his cockpit, penetrating his right leg. Salazar was rushed by helicopter to Orlando Regional Medical Center, where he underwent surgeries for a fractured femur and thigh injuries, being listed afterwards in stable condition. Lazier led the session with a lap at 181.800 mph, followed by Hearn and Arie Luyendyk.[23]
Lazier, who had not placed higher than 16th in his 55 previous Indy car starts, qualified on pole with a best lap of 181.388 mph. Hearn fell just short of the 181 mph mark, settling for second on his first Indy car qualifying session. Seasoned veterans Guerrero and Luyendyk qualified third and fourth, the latter using a back-up car that would be later renumbered, in front of Scott Sharp and five further rookies. As expected by the nuances of their stock block engine, Team Menard struggled in qualifying, although Tony Stewart surprised by outqualifying his more established teammates, Eddie Cheever and Scott Brayton, despite having only completed 67 laps in winter testing.
John Paul Jr. had the only incident of the session after brushing the wall in Turn 2, completing only one timed lap at 160 mph. Unlike Stewart and Groff, who were running on competitive race cars, other drivers at the bottom of the field mirrored Paul Jr.'s issues that stemmed from the lack of mileage: Johnny O'Connell had only passed his driver test during the morning practice; Johnny Parsons, without any laps at speed during winter testing, barely went over 153 mph, and David Kudrave, with no testing mileage whatsoever, put his car on the grid at just 146.353 mph, a 35 mph, 4.5 second deficit over Lazier's time.[23] On race day, he would be black flagged after just four laps.
On Friday afternoon practice, held after qualifying, Eddie Cheever and Richie Hearn collided and crashed at Turn 1, when Cheever went low and into Hearn's path. Both drivers were unhurt, but their chassis were damaged beyond repair, and had to race with spare cars. They were allowed to start at the back of the field, after taking part in a 15-minute special warm-up session. Della Penna didn't have a competitive spare car, and reached a deal with Pagan Racing to use Roberto Guerrero's back-up unit.[23] The Colombian was now due to start on the front row because of Hearn's demotion, which left Buzz Calkins as the best placed rookie in the 5th spot. Like Lazier, Scott Sharp had a much improved career-best placing in the 2nd row, having never started higher than 13th.
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Failed to qualify or withdrew
- Eliseo Salazar - for Scandia/Simon Racing
- Rick DeLorto R - for DeLorto Motorsports
- Bill Tempero - for Tempero/Giuffre Racing
Race
Packed grandstands, with a published gate of 50,742 spectators,[22] witnessed the grand opening of the Indy Racing League on Saturday. The start lacked a proper alignment, as only the first two rows and a few other drivers in the back were loosely side by side when Lazier started to accelerate entering Turn 4, and the majority saw the green flag in single file. Roberto Guerrero was caught off-guard by Lazier's getaway, and Arie Luyendyk passed him for second place entering Turn 1. On Lap 10, Tony Stewart completed his first overtake on Davey Hamilton for sixth, and had worked his way up to third when the first caution came out on Lap 18. Richie Hearn had already gained 12 positions and was running in 7th place when a sway bar adjuster broke on his car, causing him to spin at the exit of Turn 1. Stewart passed Luyendyk at the restart on Lap 24 and grabbed the lead five laps later.
Lazier began to lose pace with a loose right front upright. Just after being passed by Luyendyk for second place on Lap 37, he headed to the pits, where he lost three laps as Hemelgarn's crew tried to sort out the issue.[24] In a later pit stop, his team choose to take parts from Stéphan Grégoire's car, which had been retired from ninth place with gearbox issues in his pit stop. However, handling issues persisted, and Lazier dropped out before the halfway point. Around Lap 30, Buzz Calkins began mounting a charge towards the front, passing Scott Sharp on Lap 32, Guerrero on Lap 35 and Luyendyk on Lap 51. After the first round of pit stops, heavy traffic allowed Calkins to catch up to Stewart by Lap 55, and he took the lead on the 66th lap, just before the second round of pit stops.
While heading to the pits, Luyendyk ran out of fuel, and his car stalled while exiting the pit box, needing a push start. Calkins had a fast second pit stop, two laps after Stewart's, and was able to open a huge gap through traffic and a solid pace: on Lap 84, only Stewart (15.3 seconds behind) and Guerrero (17.2 seconds) were still on the lead lap. By the halfway mark, a cautious Stewart was 21 seconds behind Calkins, before the
driver lost all gears during his third stop, forcing him to retire.Rookie Stan Wattles was running in fourth place, having stayed largely out of trouble after passing Davey Hamilton on Lap 35. Shortly after a pit stop, on Lap 147, he spun on Turn 2 and hit the inside wall, which was labelled by him as "a rookie mistake".[24] The ensuing caution allowed Stewart to cut back the gap with Calkins. Robbie Buhl had gone longer on his third stint and was able to pit under yellow, going from eighth to third place over Michele Alboreto, Roberto Guerrero, who suffered a brief stall in his pit stop, and Hamilton. Further back, Eddie Cheever had worked his way up to ninth place, his progress having been hampered by the same handling issues that had forced his teammate Scott Brayton to retire from the race. With lapped cars in between, Calkins opened a small gap of 3 seconds over Stewart after the restart.
On Lap 178, Davey Hamilton had a sudden mechanical failure on Turn 2 and crashed out of sixth place. The race restarted on Lap 184, and Cheever, who had passed Johnny O'Connell 20 laps before, took seventh place over Scott Sharp. When Sharp tried to retake the position on Lap 189, both drivers collided, in a crash that resembled the one Cheever and Hearn had the day before, this time with Cheever being on the outside of Turn 1. Calkins made it safely through the scene, but Stewart encountered the recovery vehicles on his path, and had to swerve abruptly to the outside to avoid them. He brushed the wall at low speed and run over some debris, which caused a sliced tire and a bent front wing, but both issues went largely unnoticed and Stewart kept on running. When the race was restarted with six laps to go, Stewart began hounding Calkins for the lead, but he lost some ground shortly after because of the damages to the car. A late charge was not enough to strip the win away from Buzz Calkins, who took the checkered flag by eight tenths of a second.
With his win, Calkins became the first American driver (and the only one to date) to win his first Indy car race, in a feat only equalled in modern Indy car racing by Formula 1 world champions
Results
Box Score
Race Statistics
- Average Speed: 128.325 mph (206.519 km/h)
- Lead changes: 6 among 6 drivers
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Standings after the race
- Drivers' Championship standings
Pos | Driver | Points |
---|---|---|
1 | Buzz Calkins | 35 |
2 | Tony Stewart | 33 |
3 | Robbie Buhl | 32 |
4 | Michele Alboreto | 31 |
5 | Roberto Guerrero | 30 |
- Note: Only the top five positions are included for the standings.
Broadcasting
The first race as part of the
Mike King and newcomer Vince Welch were the pit reporters.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network | ||
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Booth Announcers | Pit/garage reporters
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Mike King Vince Welch | |
sources:[25] |
Television
The race was carried live flag-to-flag coverage in the United States on ABC Sports.
Paul Page served as host and play-by-play announcer. Bobby Unser and Danny Sullivan served as color commentators.
ABC Television | |
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Booth Announcers | Pit/garage reporters
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Host/ |
Jack Arute Gary Gerould |
References
- ^ "1996 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World weather information". Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
- ^ Siano, Joseph (January 27, 1996). "Camaraderie Is Watchword On Eve of First Indy 200". New York Times. Retrieved July 1, 2009.
- ^ "Indianapolis race cars unveil Walt Disney World Speedway". Indy Racing League. November 28, 1995. Archived from the original on February 16, 1997. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Chief Steward "Pleased" With IRL Test Week At Disney World". Indy Racing League. December 8, 1995. Archived from the original on February 16, 1997. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Indy 200 At Walt Disney World Tentative Entry List". Motorsport.com. December 6, 1995. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Kinser, Luyendyk test at Walt Disney World Speedway". Motorsport.com. November 30, 1995. Archived from the original on January 10, 2019. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
- ^ "PDM'S Dynamic Duo Finds Success After Learning From Legends". Motorsport.com. November 10, 1998. Archived from the original on January 10, 2019. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
- ^ "Lazier cracks unofficial Disney World mark again". Motorsport.com. January 13, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Kunzman on Hemelgarn tests: 'Hard to have better'". Motorsport.com. January 14, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Tentative entry list (Updated)". Motorsport.com. January 16, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "USAC triple champ Stewart named to IRL ride for Team Menard". Motorsport.com. January 19, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Agajanians an Indy Steering Committee". Los Angeles Times. May 22, 1998. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
- ^ "Stewart's road nearly winds into Victory Circle". The Indianapolis Star. January 28, 1996. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
- ^ "Phoenix: Tony Stewart preview". Motorsport.com. April 18, 2006. Retrieved March 30, 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Indy Racing League announces incentives for 1996 participants". Motorsport.com. July 3, 1995. Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "IndyCar Announces US 500 on Memorial Day". IndyCar Racing Magazine. December 19, 1995. Archived from the original on June 25, 1997. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "A. J. Foyt Is Suing CART". The New York Times. January 11, 1996. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Oldsmobile Aurora V8 to race in 1997 Indianapolis 500". The Free Library. January 4, 1996. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
- ^ "WDWS testing begins Tuesday; Evans buys out Scandia/Simon". Motorsport.com. January 9, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "WDW rookie orientation notes - 96-01-24". Motorsport.com. January 24, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ "Mike Groff on Twitter: "Jeff Sinden was hired by AJ to run the car at WDW (...)"". January 30, 2020. Archived from the original on January 31, 2020.
- ^ a b "Hearn fastest on first official Disney World practice day". Motorsport.com. January 25, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ a b c "WDW Trackside Notes - 96-01-26". Indy Racing League. January 26, 1996. Archived from the original on February 16, 1997. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ a b "IRL: WDW race notes". Motorsport.com. January 27, 1996. Archived from the original on January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
- ^ "User Comments - the 1996 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World".
- 1996 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World Radio Broadcast, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network
External links
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1996 season
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Next race: 1996 Dura Lube 200 |
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Indy 200 at Walt Disney World | Next race: 1997 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World |