1992 Indianapolis 500

1992 Indianapolis 500

The 1992 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 24, 1992.

Recap

A cold, windy, near-winterish day turned the race into a wreck-filled, marathon-long afternoon, with the pre-race pace lap crash by polesitter Roberto Guerrero setting the tone for the event. This year also marked Ford's return to Indy racing, with the incredibly powerful Cosworth XB. This engine powered Michael Andretti to a one-lap lead of the entire field, but with just 11 laps remaining, the fuel pump failed and the Lola rolled to a stop. After a tense duel, Al Unser Jr. beat Scott Goodyear to the win by 0.043 seconds, the closest finish ever. Goodyear had started the race in 33rd place, the second second-place-finishing driver to do so, after taking over Mike Groff's car at the behest of sponsors, while Unser had started 12th. The distance between Goodyear and Unser on the starting grid turned out to be more than enough to swing the result. Oddly, had Goodyear managed to inch past Unser, he might still not have been registered as the winner. Unser's Galmer-Chevrolet had to have its timing transponder placed in the nose rather than the side-pod, the standard location in all the other cars, so Goodyear's Lola could have had its nose in front of Unser's Galmer, but its transponder would have still been behind. This potential discrepancy between the visual and computerized results was quickly resolved by specifying a standard transponder placing. Lyn St. James became the second woman to race at Indianapolis. She also took Rookie of the Year honors.

Results

Failed to Qualify: Fabrizio Barbazza (#30/#42), Tony Bettenhausen, Jr. (#16/#61), Pancho Carter (#81), Mark Dismore (#66/#93), Mike Groff (#17), Jovy Marcelo (#50), Hiro Matsushita (#11), Kenji Momota (#88), Johnny Parsons (#30), Johnny Rutherford (#17), Didier Theys (#38)

Notes

* This was three-time Formula One World Champion Nelson Piquet's first attempt at the Indy 500, however he suffered a heavy crash in practice that left him with very serious leg injuries. He did however return the next year, qualifying 13th and finishing 32nd with engine problems.
* Filipino rookie Jovy Marcelo was killed in a practice crash prior to qualifying.
* As of 2008, this is the closest finish in Indy 500 history. Unser Jr. beat Scott Goodyear by 0.043 seconds.

Trivia

*Among the facility improvements that year were Energy absorbing attenuator at pit entrance and a new maintenance facility outside turn 4.
*Lyn St. James became the second female driver to compete in the Indianapolis 500, and the first female to win the Rookie of the Year Award.
*The air temperatures at the race that year were extremely low, in the 40's and 50's (Fahrenheit). This caused a multitude of wrecks due to low grip.
*Pole sitter Roberto Guerrero (#36 Quaker State Lola/Buick) crashed out of the race before it even started during the pace laps. The car jumped loose coming out of Turn 2 and pitched him into the inside wall. He was credited with a DNS (Did Not Start) as a result.
*In addition, the #44 of Philippe Gache spun out before the start (but didn't hit anything).
*Scott Goodyear actually was bumped from the field during qualifying. His team, Derrick Walker Racing, put two cars into the field, one for Goodyear and one for Mike Groff. At the close of qualifying, Goodyear (the team's primary driver), was bumped. Before the race, Walker replaced Groff with Goodyear as the driver for the lone car in the field. Due to the rules, the car had to start from the 33rd (last) position.
*Due to many accidents during the race, the average speed for the winner was the lowest since 1958.

Quotes

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network

" Al Unser, Jr. has the lead, one more turn to go...here they come, coming to the finish line, Bob Jenkins, who's gonna win it?!"
:- Bob Lamey, calling the fourth turn of the final lap of the race.

"The checkered flag is out...Goodyear makes a move!...Little Al wins by just a few tenths of a second!...perhaps the closest finish in the history of the Indianapolis 500!":- Bob Jenkins, calling the final straightaway of the race.

ABC Sports

"They make the turn for home now! On the mainstretch, Scott Goodyear closes in...he looks for a place to come by! Scott Goodyear tries him...but no!"
"I believe that's the closest finish in Indy history, closer than the race ten years ago when Gordon Johncock beat Rick Mears!"
"Ten years ago, when Little Al was new to this track...And now, Al Unser, Jr. is a winner at the Indianapolis 500...":- Paul Page and Sam Posey, calling the final straightaway of the race, and immediately after.

External links

* NYTimes: [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CEFD6113DF930A35754C0A964958260 SPORTS PEOPLE: AUTO RACING; Indy 500's Finish Was Even Closer] July 3, 1992
* [http://www.champcarusa.com/andrettibreak.html Video of Michael Andretti's break down with 11 laps to go]

Indy 500 Walker
Previous_race = 1991
Previous_winner = Rick Mears
This_race = 1992
This_winner = Al Unser Jr.
Next_race = 1993
Next_winner = Emerson Fittipaldi


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