1996 Indy Racing League season

1996 American Championship Car season
Series  : Indy Racing League
Champion : Buzz Calkins Scott Sharp
Previous: 1995 (ICWS)	Next: 1996–97

The first season of Indy Racing League competition consisted of three races. Walt Disney World Speedway was completed in time to host the first race of the season, and the first ever event of the IRL. Phoenix International Raceway switched alliances from CART to IRL and hosted the second event of the season. The 1996 season concluded with the 80th Indianapolis 500.

At the conclusion of the three-race schedule, Scott Sharp and Buzz Calkins ended up tied for first place in the season championship. With no tiebreaker rule in place, the two drivers were declared co-champions.

Series schedule development

On January 23, 1995, at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort the IRL announced the dates for two of the races scheduled for the inaugural 1996 season. The Indy 200 at Walt Disney World Speedway was scheduled for January 27, 1996 and 80th Indianapolis 500 was set for May 26, 1996. On April 3, the IRL announced that Phoenix International Raceway and the then-under construction Las Vegas Motor Speedway would be on the 1996 schedule, but no dates were confirmed. Later that month, on April 13, 1995, the respective dates were finalized for Phoenix (March 24, 1996) and Las Vegas (September 15, 1996). On May 30, 1995, New Hampshire Motor Speedway officially switched alliances from CART to IRL, and scheduled their race for August 18.

The original plan was to have every Indy Racing League season end with the Indianapolis 500. Thus the IRL champion would be awarded at the conclusion of the Indy 500, and quite possibly could be the Indy 500 winner. The next season (in this case the 1996–97 season) would begin immediately after the Indy 500, and spread over two calendar years to conclude at the next Indianapolis 500. As a result, the two races at New Hampshire and Las Vegas, already announced, would in fact open the 1996–97 season. The schedule format, however, went against the traditional motorsports grain, and the idea was eventually scrapped in October. The 1996–97 season was expanded in order to bring the schedule back in sync with the rest of the motorsports world for 1998.

Controversy

In a controversial move, in July 1995, it was announced that the top 25 drivers in IRL points would secure guaranteed starting positions for the 1996 Indianapolis 500. Presumably, that left only eight positions open for at-large competitors. However, some interpreted the rule otherwise.

The IRL points system was to be staggered to adjust for the number of races each driver entered. The number of points awarded per race would be multiplied by the number of events the driver had participated in. For example, if a driver had entered all three events, the points awarded for that third race were multiplied by three. This move was supposed to be an encouragement to enter all IRL events, but it did not attract any additional teams from the rival CART series.

Initially, IRL officials hoped that competitors from the rival CART series would choose to race in the IRL events, presumably since there were no foreseen conflicts in their respective schedules. The 1996 IRL schedule was finalized by May 30, 1995. However, a couple weeks later the CART series announced their 1996 schedule, immediately with conflicting dates. The CART race at Road America was scheduled for the same day as the IRL event at Loudon, while the CART races at Rio and Australia were bookended around the IRL race at Phoenix, creating an impossible travel situation. The only CART teams that participated in any IRL events in 1996 were Galles and Walker, but neither fielded drivers who were CART regulars.

Machines

The season was contested with 1995 and older CART chassis produced by Lola and Reynard with a fixed limit on how much a team could spend on its combination. In addition, nearly every car was powered by a Ford Cosworth XB, Menard V6 or Buick V6 engine. Despite the short season, only fifteen drivers competed in all three. All races were well-attended by competitors as a legal chassis and engine combination could be acquired for well under $100,000.

1996 Indy Racing League schedule

All races running on Oval/Speedway.

Rnd	Date	Race Name	Distance	Track	Location	Pole position	Fastest lap	Most Laps Led	Winner
1	January 27	Indy 200 at Walt Disney World	200 laps 200 miles	Walt Disney World Speedway	Bay Lake, Florida	Buddy Lazier	Buzz Calkins	Buzz Calkins	Buzz Calkins
2	March 24	Dura Lube 200	200 laps 200 miles	Phoenix International Raceway	Phoenix, Arizona	Arie Luyendyk	Arie Luyendyk	Arie Luyendyk	Arie Luyendyk
3	May 26	80th Indianapolis 500	200 laps 500 miles	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	Speedway, Indiana	Tony Stewart*	Eddie Cheever	Roberto Guerrero	Buddy Lazier

* - Scott Brayton was the fastest qualifier for the 1996 Indianapolis 500, but was killed during practice. Hence, second-fastest qualifier Tony Stewart started from the pole.

Team and Driver Chart

Team	Chassis	Engine	No	Drivers	Notes
A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Lola T9500/T9400	Ford Cosworth XB	41/11	Scott Sharp
			11/41	Mike Groff	Walt Disney World & Phoenix only.
			14	Davey Hamilton
			41	Marco Greco	Indy 500 only.
			84	Billy Boat	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
Bradley Motorsports	Reynard 95I	Ford Cosworth XB	12	Buzz Calkins
Team Menard	Lola T9500	Menard V6	2	Scott Brayton	Won the pole for the Indy 500 but was fatally injured in a practice crash and replaced by Danny Ongais.
			3	Eddie Cheever	Wrecked practice at Phoenix.
			20	Tony Stewart
			32	Danny Ongais	Indy 500 only.
			30	Mark Dismore	Indy 500 only.
Pagan Racing	Reynard 94I/95I	Ford Cosworth XB	21	Roberto Guerrero
	Lola T9200	Buick V6	87	Billy Boat	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
Project Indy	Reynard 94I/95I	Ford Cosworth XB	64	Johnny Unser	Phoenix & Indy 500 only.
	Lola T9300		46	Rob Wilson	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
Della Penna Motorsports	Reynard 95I	Ford Cosworth XB	4	Richie Hearn
			44	Scott Harrington	Indy 500 only.
Hemelgarn Racing	Reynard 94I/95I	Ford Cosworth XB	9	Stéphan Grégoire
			91	Buddy Lazier	Wrecked practice at Phoenix.
			10	Brad Murphey	Indy 500 only.
Byrd-Cunningham Racing	Reynard 95I	Ford Cosworth XB	75	Johnny O'Connell
Galles Racing	Lola T9500	Mercedes-Ilmor	70	Davy Jones	Indy 500 only.
Walker Racing	Reynard 95I	Ford Cosworth XB	60	Mike Groff	Indy 500 only.
Team Scandia	Lola T9500/T9400 Reynard 95I	Ford Cosworth XB	33	Michele Alboreto
			90	Lyn St. James	Walt Disney World & Phoenix only.
				Racin Gardner	Indy 500 only.
			22	Michel Jourdain, Jr.	Phoenix & Indy 500 only.
			7/34	Fermín Vélez	Phoenix & Indy 500 only.
			7	Eliseo Salazar	Indy 500 only, wrecked practice at Walt Disney World.
			8	Alessandro Zampedri	Indy 500 only.
			43	Joe Gosek	Indy 500 only.
Tempero-Giuffre Racing	Lola T9300/T9200	Buick V6	25/15	Dave Kudrave	Walt Disney World & Phoenix only, did not qualify at Indy 500.
			15	Bill Tempero	Walt Disney World only but did not qualify.
				Justin Bell	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
			25	Racin Gardner	Phoenix only but did not qualify.
ABF Motorsports	Lola T9200	Buick V6	96	Paul Durant	Phoenix & Indy 500 only.
Leigh Miller Racing	Lola T9400	Ford Cosworth XB	17	Stan Wattles	Walt Disney World only, wrecked practice at Phoenix.
Blueprint Racing	Lola T9300	Menard V6	16	Johnny Parsons
			27	Jim Guthrie	Phoenix & Indy 500 only.
Byrd-Treadway Racing	Reynard 95I	Ford Cosworth XB	5	Arie Luyendyk
Zunne Group Racing	Lola T9400	Ford Cosworth XB	45	Lyn St. James	Indy 500 only.
				Randy Tolsma	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
Beck Motorsports	Lola T9400 Reynard 94I	Ford Cosworth XB	54/45	Robbie Buhl
			52	Hideshi Matsuda	Indy 500 only.
PDM Racing	Lola T9300	Ford Cosworth XB Menard V6	18	John Paul, Jr.
Delorto Motorsports	Lola T9200	Buick V6	81	Rick DeLorto	Walt Disney World only but did not qualify.
Brickell Racing	Lola T9300	Menard V6	77	Butch Brickell	Walt Disney World & Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
				Tyce Carlson	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
O'Brien Motorsports	Lola T9200	Buick V6	26	Jim Buick	Walt Disney World only but did not qualify.
Loop Hole Racing	Lola T9200/T9100	Buick V6	36	Dan Drinan	Phoenix & Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
				Tyce Carlson	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
				Andy Michner	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.
McCormack Motorsports	Lola T9300	Ford Cosworth XB	24	Randy Tolsma	Indy 500 only but did not qualify.

Race summaries

Indy 200 at Walt Disney World

• Report: 1996 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World

The first race for the new Indy Racing League was held January 27 at Walt Disney World Speedway and televised on ABC. Though no CART teams showed up, a full field of 25 cars arrived, with 20 qualifying. Buddy Lazier won the pole position with a track record 181.388 mph (19.847 seconds). Indycar rookies Tony Stewart and Buzz Calkins emerged as race leaders most of the afternoon, while former CART veterans Eddie Cheever, Scott Brayton, Arie Luyendyk, and Buddy Lazier all fell by the wayside. On lap 189, Scott Sharp and Eddie Cheever tangled and crashed in turn one, which set up a restart with 6 laps to go. Calkins and Stewart restarted together nose-to-tail, and Calkins held off the challenge to win by 0.886 seconds.

Top ten results

1. Buzz Calkins
2. Tony Stewart
3. Robbie Buhl
4. Michele Alboreto
5. Roberto Guerrero
6. Mike Groff
7. Johnny O'Connell
8. Lyn St. James
9. John Paul, Jr.
10. Eddie Cheever

Dura Lube 200

• Report: 1996 Dura Lube 200

Held March 24 at Phoenix International Raceway. Arie Luyendyk won the pole. On the 128th lap, Foyt Racing drivers Scott Sharp and Mike Groff (running 1st-2nd) ducked into the pits for their final stop. However, they did not see that the yellow flag had come out, and were penalized one lap for pitting while the pits were closed. Robbie Buhl suffered a broken header, which left Arie Luyendyk in the lead for the final 66 laps to victory.

Top ten results

1. Arie Luyendyk
2. Scott Sharp
3. Mike Groff
4. Richie Hearn
5. Johnny O'Connell
6. Buzz Calkins
7. Stéphan Grégoire
8. Michele Alboreto
9. Johnny Unser
10. David Kudrave

80th Indianapolis 500

• Report: 1996 Indianapolis 500

The first Indy 500 of the Indy Racing League era was held May 26 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Scott Brayton won the pole but was fatally injured in a practice crash and replaced by Danny Ongais. Tony Stewart started the race from the pole. Arie Luyendyk set the fastest qualifying lap on the second day of qualifying with track 1 and 4 lap records that still stand.

Top ten results

1. Buddy Lazier
2. Davy Jones
3. Richie Hearn
4. Alessandro Zampedri
5. Roberto Guerrero
6. Eliseo Salazar
7. Danny Ongais
8. Hideshi Matsuda
9. Robbie Buhl
10. Scott Sharp

Final driver standings

Pos Driver WDW PHX INDY Pts2 1 Buzz Calkins 1* 6 17 246 Scott Sharp 11 2 10 246 3 Robbie Buhl 3 13 9 240 4 Richie Hearn 19 4 3 237 Roberto Guerrero 5 16 5* 237 6 Mike Groff 6 3 20 228 7 Arie Luyendyk 14 1* 16 225 8 Tony Stewart 2 11 24 204 9 Johnny O'Connell 7 5 29 192 Davey Hamilton 12 17 12 192 11 Michele Alboreto 4 8 30 189 12 Lyn St. James 8 21 14 186 13 Stéphan Grégoire 16 7 27 165 14 Buddy Lazier 17 DNS 1 159 15 John Paul, Jr. 9 14 31 153 16 Eddie Cheever 10 DNS 11 147 17 Johnny Parsons 18 12 28 141 18 Scott Brayton 15 18 DNS1 111 19 David Kudrave 20 10 DNQ 80 20 Michel Jourdain, Jr. 20 13 74 Jim Guthrie 15 18 74 22 Fermín Vélez 19 21 60 23 Eliseo Salazar DNS 6 58 24 Johnny Unser 9 33 56 25 Stan Wattles 13 DNS 44 26 Davy Jones 2 33 27 Paul Durant 22 32 32 28 Alessandro Zampedri 4 31 29 Danny Ongais 7 28 30 Hideshi Matsuda 8 27 31 Scott Harrington 15 20 Racin Gardner DNQ 25 20 33 Mark Dismore 19 16 34 Joe Gosek 22 13 35 Brad Murphey 23 12 36 Marco Greco 26 9 — [[Image:Template:Country flag alias GB 22x20px}}|Template:Country alias GB]] Justin Bell DNQ 0 — Billy Boat DNQ 0 — Butch Brickell DNQ DNQ 0 — Jim Buick DNQ 0 — Tyce Carlson DNQ 0 — Rick DeLorto DNQ 0 — Dan Drinan DNQ DNQ 0 — Andy Michner DNQ 0 — Bill Tempero DNQ 0 — Randy Tolsma DNQ 0 — Rob Wilson DNQ 0 Pos Driver WDW PHX INDY Pts2

Color Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green 4th & 5th place Light Blue 6th-10th place Dark Blue Finished (Outside Top 10) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Brown Withdrawn (Wth) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Blank Did not participate (DNP) Not competing In-line notation Bold Pole position Italics Ran fastest race lap * Led most race laps Pts2 The number of points awarded per race would be multiplied by the number of events the driver had participated in.

In every race, points are awarded to drivers on the following basis:

Position	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33
Points	35	33	32	31	30	29	28	27	26	25	24	23	22	21	20	19	18	17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2

• Ties in points not broken by number of wins, etc.
• No additional points to the pole winner or the driver leading the most laps were awarded.

Note

¹ Scott Brayton, 37, won the pole for the 1996 Indianapolis 500, but was killed in a crash during practice after qualifying.

See also

• 1996 Indianapolis 500
• 1996 Indy Lights season
• 1996 IndyCar season
• 1996 Toyota Atlantic Championship season

References

Template:Indy Racing League Seasons