1992 Indianapolis 500

The 76th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, on Sunday, May 24, 1992. The race is famous for the fierce battle in the closing laps, as race winner Al Unser Jr. held off second place Scott Goodyear for the victory by 0.043 seconds, the closest finish in Indy history. Unser Jr. became the first second-generation driver to win the Indy 500, following in the footsteps of his father Al Unser Sr. He also became the third member of the famous Unser family to win the race.

Cold temperatures and high winds turned the race into a crash-filled, marathon day. The tone for the race was set early when pole position winner Roberto Guerrero spun out and crashed on the parade lap. The race was dominated by Michael Andretti in the debut of the Ford Cosworth XB engine. Andretti led 160 laps and was 30 seconds in front when his fuel pump suddenly failed with eleven laps to go.

Thirteen cars were eliminated in crashes during the race, and several other serious wrecks occurred during practice. Former Formula One World Champion Nelson Piquet suffered serious leg injuries in a crash on May 7. Pancho Carter and Hiro Matsushita suffered broken bones in separate crashes, and rookie Jovy Marcelo was fatally injured after a practice crash on May 15. Defending winner Rick Mears crashed during practice and during the race, while Jeff Andretti experienced the worst crash during the race itself, suffering serious injuries to his legs and feet.

Following the race, sweeping changes came about at the track, largely in the interest of safety. In addition, a noticeable "changing of the guard" followed, as the 1992 race signaled the final race for several Indy legends, including A. J. Foyt, Rick Mears, Tom Sneva, and Gordon Johncock. A race-record ten former winners started in the field.

The race was sanctioned by USAC, and was included as part of the 1992 PPG Indy Car World Series. Unser's victory was considered by some an " upset," as his somewhat inauspicious Galmer chassis was not expected to excel on ovals, and its first generation Chevy engine was starting to become a lame duck powerplant in the series. It was also a long-awaited victory for Unser, who was making his tenth Indy attempt. Unser, the 1990 CART champion, had recently confided with Paul Page that he was afraid he may never win the 500.

Offseason

A busy offseason began at the conclusion of the 1991 PPG Indy Car World Series. The biggest announcement was the return of Ford to the Indy car ranks. The Ford Cosworth XB was introduced to replace the aging DFX and the lesser-used DFS. It quickly became an engine of choice, and for 1992, was the powerplant for Newman/Haas Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing. For 1992, Ilmor introduced an updated motor (the 265-B), badged as the "Chevrolet-B", and it was fielded by Penske Racing singly. The rest of the Chevrolet teams utilized the existing Ilmor (265-A), now being referred to as the "Chevy-A".

Galles-Kraco Racing unveiled their new Galmer chassis for 1992. It met with instant success as Al Unser Jr. won the pole position for the season opener at Surfers Paradise and finished 4th. Teammate Danny Sullivan won a few weeks later at Long Beach, with Unser Jr. 4th. The chassis was expected to excel on street and road courses, but there were some doubts about its oval track abilities. Unser Jr. managed a 4th place at Phoenix, but both drivers entered the month of May at Indy with mixed expectations.

Truesports fielded their own in-house "All American" chassis for the second year in a row, this time designated the Truesports 92C, and powered by the Chevy Ilmor-A. Previously Truesports had been utilizing the Judd AV engine.

After much fanfare of a pending retirement in 1991, A. J. Foyt brushed off the idea, and returned to the cockpit. He raced in the 1992 Daytona 500, and entered as a driver for Indianapolis. It would be his record 35th consecutive Indy 500 start. A crash earlier in the season at Phoenix left him with a fractured shoulder, but it would be only a minor setback.

Team and driver switches for 1992 included most notably Bobby Rahal and Danny Sullivan, who essentially swapped rides with each other at Galles-Kraco Racing and Patrick Racing, respectively. In December, however, Pat Patrick sold the assets of Patrick Racing to Rahal and his partner Carl Hogan. The team became known as Rahal-Hogan Racing. Right off the bat, Rahal scored a victory for the re-booted team. He won the second race of the season at Phoenix, leading wire-to-wire.

Rookie driver Paul Tracy continued into his second year with Penske, and was offered his first attempt at Indy with the team.

Testing

During testing in March and April, King Racing set the early pace. On March 28, Roberto Guerrero became the first driver to run a test lap over 230 mph. Teammate Jim Crawford also ran a 230 mph lap. The Indy car testing was accompanied by a concurrent IROC feasibility test. Track management was at the time exploring the possibility of holding a stock car or IROC event at the circuit.

Goodyear arrived at the Speedway sporting a slightly new look. The logos on the tires were painted in yellow. This coincided with a change in signage for Goodyear in American auto racing, as the company brought back their classic blue and yellow logo scheme for motorsports.

Rule changes

For 1992, new pit rules were implemented by USAC. At the onset of a caution flag, the pit road was immediately closed, and cars were required to pack up behind the pace car first. The next time around, if officials deemed the field was properly bunched up, the pits would open for all competitors. In addition, a 100 mph speed limit was applied to the pits during caution periods. These rules reflected regulations that NASCAR had experimented with in 1991, and were in the interest of safety for drivers and crew members.

Race schedule

Practice – week 1

Saturday May 2

King Racing teammates Jim Crawford and Roberto Guerrero quickly established themselves as the cars to beat during the first week of practice. The two drivers fielded a pair of Lola V-6 Buicks, an engine that many thought was finally beginning to show its potential after years of development. On opening day, Crawford broke the unofficial track record with a lap of 229.609 mph. Several rookies finished their rookie tests, including Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser, Lyn St. James, and the most noteworthy of the rookies, former Formula One world champion Nelson Piquet.

Sunday May 3

Fabrizio Barbazza crashed in turn 1 midway through the day during a refresher test. He was not injured. Late in the day, Al Unser Jr., driving the new Galmer chassis, blew a motor. Michael Andretti led the speed chart for the afternoon at 226.187 mph.

Monday May 4

Roberto Guerrero upped the speed for the month, becoming the first driver to practice over 230 mph at the Speedway. His lap of 230.432 mph early in the session, however, lasted only a couple hours. Teammate Jim Crawford upped the speed, and by the end of the day, posted a 233.433 mph lap. Meanwhile, Nelson Piquet was comfortably getting up to speed, running a top lap of 226.809 mph.

Tuesday May 5

Several incidents occurred on Tuesday, during a cool, windy day. Scott Brayton, Buddy Lazier, and Paul Tracy each suffered separate spins/crashes. Rookie Lyn St. James was finding speed difficult, running a 217.097 mph, her fastest lap of the month, nowhere near the top of the charts. Guerrero continued King Racing's dominance, turning in another 230 mph practice lap.

Wednesday May 6

Crawford and Guerrero led the speed chart once again, with Crawford over 233 mph for the second time. The biggest story of the day, however, was the massive crash by Rick Mears. Late in the afternoon, Mears entered turn two, and a fluid leak sprayed water over the back wheels. The car broke out into a spin, and he crashed hard into the wall in turn two. The car flipped over and remained upside down while sliding down the backstretch. Mears suffered a minor foot fracture and an injury to his wrist.

Thursday May 7

The second major crash in two days occurred, this time involving Nelson Piquet. In turn four, Piquet's car did a reverse spin, and hit the wall head-on with the nose. Piquet suffered serious injuries to both legs, and was immediately admitted to the hospital for surgery. Piquet withdrew and would require nearly a year of rehabilitation. Piquet had been acclimating himself quite well to the Speedway, but was reportedly frustrated with the frequency of caution lights during the practice sessions. A metal piece of debris was reported on the backstretch, prompting USAC to turn on the yellow. Piquet, in the middle of a "hot lap", momentarily ignored the yellow light, and raced through turn three and the north chute. In turn four, he lifted off the throttle quickly to enter the pits, at which time the car snapped out of control.

Roberto Guerrero was back at the top of the speed chart, running his fastest lap of the month, 232.624 mph.

Friday May 8

The final day of practice before the run for the pole position saw four drivers over 231 mph. Mario Andretti led the chart for the day, at 233.202 mph. Arie Luyendyk was second, while Crawford and Guerrero were close behind. Al Unser, Sr. was named as a replacement for Nelson Piquet's entry, and Gary Bettenhausen suffered damage when his engine blew, causing a lazy spin in turn 1.

Time trials – weekend 1

Pole Day – Saturday May 9

Rain kept the cars off the track until noon, and persistent "weepers" plagued the rest of the afternoon. During the first practice session, Jim Crawford's hopes for a pole position were set back when he blew an engine and spun.

Several yellows for moisture and debris dragged out the 60-minute practice session until 3:15 p.m. Roberto Guerrero (232.090 mph) set the fastest practice lap of the day.

Qualifying finally began at 4 p.m. Arie Luyendyk was the first car out, and he did not disappoint. He set a new one-lap track record of 229.305 mph, and grabbed the provisional pole position with a four-lap record of 229.127 mph. A hectic round of time trials followed, as drivers scrambled for their shot at qualifying before the 6 p.m. gun. At 4:50 p.m., Gary Bettenhausen set a one-lap record of 229.317 mph, but his four-lap record was shy of the pole. Among the other drivers securing a starting position were Bobby Rahal, Emerson Fittipaldi, Paul Tracy, and Al Unser Jr. Scott Goodyear also put a Walker Racing team car in the field, taking a run of 219.054 mph.

At 5:34 p.m., Roberto Guerrero took to the track. He set new all-time one- and four lap track records on his way to the pole position.
*Lap 1 – 38.762 seconds, 232.186 mph (new 1-lap track record)
*Lap 2 – 38.707 seconds, 232.516 mph (new 1-lap track record)
*Lap 3 – 38.690 seconds, 232.618 mph (new 1-lap track record)
*Lap 4 – 38.692 seconds, 232.606 mph
*Total – 2:34.851, 232.482 mph (new 4-lap track record)
Following the run, Guerrero ran out of fuel, and stalled on the backstretch. The next car out to qualify was Danny Sullivan, who had already left the pits. The resulting yellow light condition halted qualifying for several minutes, and precipitated Sullivan to pull off the track and get back in line to qualify later.

After Guerrero was towed back to the pits, Rick Mears took to the track, shaking off his accident earlier in the week. Mario Andretti squeezed himself onto the front row, with one lap over 230 mph. A. J. Foyt was the final car of the day. After three laps in the 226 mph range, the engine quit on the final lap, and Foyt aborted the run.

Since the original qualifying order had not yet exhausted before the 6 p.m. close, pole qualifying was to be extended into the next day. Among the cars still in line were Jim Crawford, Michael Andretti, Eddie Cheever, and Danny Sullivan, who could not get back in line in enough time after refueling.

Second Day – Sunday May 10

With a handful of cars still eligible for the pole, Roberto Guerrero was forced to wait through the night to see if his pole run would hold up. Teammate Jim Crawford was still considered a threat, but another engine failure in the morning practice set the team back. Eddie Cheever bumped his way into the front row with a 229.639 mph run. Michael Andretti qualified for the second row.

Crawford's crew, scrambling to install a new motor, wheeled the car out to the pits yet unfinished, with parts in hand. Two crew members were actually sitting in the engine bay, working on it, as others pushed it towards the qualifying line. They were unable to finish the engine work in time, and Crawford missed out on his chance for the pole position. Moments later Roberto Guerrero was officially awarded the $100,000 PPG pole award.

Late in the day, the field filled to 27 cars. Al Unser, Sr., A. J. Foyt and Raul Boesel all made runs. Crawford finally put his car in the field, but despite the 228.859 mph average (6th fastest overall), his status as a second day qualifier forced him to line up 21st.

Practice – week 2

Monday May 11

A light day of activity saw Jeff Wood and Jovy Marcelo the fastest among non-qualified cars. Scott Pruett did a light spin, but made no contact.

Tuesday May 12

Rain closed the track early at 2:25 p.m. Jovy Marcelo was the fastest among non-qualified cars, at 216.534 mph.

Wednesday May 13

Increased activity was seen at the track. Lyn St. James was still struggling in the 212 mph range in her Cosworth. St. James' contract for Ford Motor Company had prevented her from driving the more powerful Chevrolet so far during the month.

Thursday May 14

Ted Prappas led the non-qualified cars at 221.212 mph. Dick Simon Racing announced that an agreement had been made for Lyn St. James to utilize Philippe Gache's back up car, a Lola/Chevrolet. St. James was quickly over 218 mph.

Friday May 15 – Fatal crash of Jovy Marcelo

At 4:07 p.m., rookie Jovy Marcelo went low in turn one, and spun into the outside wall. The car slid along the wall, then came to rest in turn two. His car suffered major front end damage, and Marcelo was found unconscious. At 4:35 p.m., Marcelo was pronounced dead at Methodist Hospital of a basal skull fracture. It was the first driver fatality at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since the fatal accident of Gordon Smiley exactly ten years earlier on May 15, 1982.

The final full day of practice, meanwhile, saw Tony Bettenhausen Jr. run the fastest lap of the week for non-qualified cars, 221.033 mph. Didier Theys was second at 220.146 mph in a John Andretti back-up car.

Time trials – weekend 2

Third Day – Saturday May 16

The third day of time trials saw three cars added to the field. Tom Sneva joined as a third driver for Menard Racing, and Pancho Carter's month came to an end when he broke his arm in a turn 2 crash.

Lyn St. James ran her fastest laps of the month and became the second female driver to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. Her third lap of 220.902 mph was also a closed-course record for a female racing driver. She also became the oldest rookie driver in the history of the race, at age 45. Brian Bonner and Mike Groff (a teammate to Scott Goodyear) also completed runs, filling the field to 30 cars. Tom Sneva and Gordon Johncock were among those who waved off attempts.

Bump Day – Sunday May 17

The final day of qualifying saw heavy track action. Several cars went out early on to qualify, but only Kenji Momota and Dominic Dobson finished their runs. At 2:45 p.m., in his third and final attempt, Tom Sneva put his car safely in the field at 219.737 mph. At that point, the field was filled, with Jimmy Vasser (218.268 mph) on the bubble.

At 3:50 p.m., Gordon Johncock bumped Vasser, which put Kenji Momota on the bubble. Vasser turned right around and re-qualified in a back-up car. Vasser's speed of 222.313 mph established him as the fastest rookie qualifier. The move put Scott Goodyear (219.054 mph) on the bubble.

In the final hour, after showing promise during practice, Didier Theys' third and final qualifying attempt ended with a blown engine. Likewise Tony Bettenhausen could not get up to speed and waved off. With six minutes left until the 6 o'clock gun, Ted Prappas took to the track. He bumped Scott Goodyear out by 0.089 seconds. Johnny Rutherford made one last futile attempt to qualify, but was too slow to bump his way in.

Carburetion Day – Thursday May 21

The final practice session saw Mario Andretti (226.409 mph) as the fastest car of the day. Ford Cosworth XB teams swept the top four spots. Pole-sitter Roberto Guerrero was fifth fastest, and Bobby Rahal was the fastest of the Chevrolet powered machines. Al Unser Jr. practiced a disappointing 25th speed rank. There were eight cautions during the two-hour session, but none for accidents.

Rahal-Hogan Racing with driver Bobby Rahal and chief mechanic Jim Prescott won the Miller Pit Stop contest.

During the week leading up to the race, Walker Racing announced that Scott Goodyear would replace Mike Groff in the team's qualified car. Goodyear, the team's primary driver, was bumped on the final day of time trials. The switch required the #15 car to be moved to the rear of the field, and Goodyear would start 33rd on race day.

Starting grid

: Guerrero crashed during the second parade lap, and did not start the race. Gache also spun on the parade lap, and drove to the pits and missed the start. He joined the field on lap 3.
: Scott Goodyear and Mike Groff were teammates for Walker Racing. Goodyear was the full-time primary driver (entered in a 1992 chassis), and Groff the second team driver (entered in a 1991 chassis). Due to a lingering oil pressure problem, and the hectic nature of the abbreviated pole day time trials session, Goodyear and Groff temporarily swapped cars to qualify, in order to take advantage of the favorable draw. At the close of qualifying, the team pre-planned to swap the drivers back to their original cars, and Goodyear and Groff would move to the rear of the field. However, at the close of qualifying, Groff had qualified 26th, but Goodyear was bumped. As expected, and as planned, Goodyear took Groff's place behind the wheel in the primary car. The driver switch required the car to be moved to the rear of the field (33rd).

Alternates

*First alternate: Mike Groff (#75/#17) – qualified 26th, but turned the car over to teammate Scott Goodyear

Failed to Qualify

* Kenji Momota (R) (#88) – bumped
* Didier Theys (#38) – blew an engine during qualifying
* Tony Bettenhausen Jr. (#16/#61) – too slow
* Mark Dismore (#66/#93) – too slow
* Johnny Parsons (#30) – too slow
* Johnny Rutherford (W) (#17) – too slow
* Pancho Carter (#81) – crashed in practice; suffered broken arm
* Hiro Matsushita (#11) – crashed in practice; suffered broken leg
* Nelson Piquet (R) (#27) – crashed in practice; suffered serious leg injuries
* Jovy Marcelo (R) (#50) – crashed in practice; fatally injured
* Fabrizio Barbazza (#30/#42) – practiced, but did not make a qualifying attempt

Race recap

Pre-race

A cold front entered the Indianapolis area the evening before the race, bringing misty rain and cold temperatures. Race morning dawned at , with winds gusting to . The resulting wind chill was as low as . Mary F. Hulman gave the starting command at 10:51 a.m., and the pace car, driven by Bobby Unser led the field on the way to the first parade lap. John Paul Jr.'s car experienced engine issues on the grid, but at the last second, he hastily pulled away to join the field. The cold weather made for precarious conditions for the drivers, as it would be increasingly difficult to warm up the slick tires.

As the field entered the backstretch on the second parade lap, polesitter Roberto Guerrero gunned his machine to warm up the tires. The back end whipped around, and the car spun into the inside wall. The suspension was damaged enough that he could not continue, and he was out of the race before the green flag. Moments later, Philippe Gache lost control on cold tires, and spun lazily into the apron of turn 4. The incidents delayed the start by about five minutes.

Without the polesitter in the race, second place starter Eddie Cheever was charged with leading the field to the green flag.

First half

In turn one, outside runners Michael and Mario Andretti split Cheever on the inside and outside. Michael took the lead, with Mario behind him in 2nd. Michael Andretti blistered the track to set a new record for the first lap at 210.339 mph. After only four laps of green flag racing, however, Éric Bachelart

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