1996–97 Indy Racing League

The 1996–97 Indy Racing League was the second season contested by the Indy Racing League. Tony Stewart was the champion, while Arie Luyendyk won the Indianapolis 500. The lengthy season was a result of the league abandoning the concept of ending each season with the Indianapolis 500. The 1996–97 season would ultimately consist of the two races that followed the Indy 500 in the calendar year of 1996, and all events contested in the calendar year of 1997. It also saw the introduction of a new chassis and engine package effective from January 1.

The 1996–97 season was originally scheduled to begin at New Hampshire in August 1996 and end with the Indianapolis 500 in May 1997. At some point in the summer of 1996, the consensus regarding the unusual split-calendar season was decidedly unfavorable. Omitting the normal winter offseason caused potential difficulty with driver contracts, sponsor contracts, and equipment purchasing, which all traditionally followed a calendar-based schedule. In addition, the months of November, December, and most of January were not expected to be filled with race dates, since few suitable venues (outside of Orlando) were available in warm-weather locations. It was felt the long winter gap between races was disruptive and disjointed, and came at a time of year when auto racing was traditionally on hiatus anyway.

Following the 1996 races at New Hampshire and Las Vegas, on October 9, 1996, the Indy Racing League announced that the league would revert to a calendar-based schedule for 1998. To avoid awarding four championships in less than two and a half years, all events contested in the calendar year of 1997 were added to the two aforementioned races held in 1996. Now combined, a single seventeen-month 1996–1997 championship would be awarded in October 1997.

The two remaining races in 1996 (New Hampshire and Las Vegas) were contested with the same equipment as the 1996 season. All races that took place in the calendar year of 1997, starting with the race at Orlando, were contested with all new purpose-built oval chassis from G-Force and Dallara with a radical stock block naturally aspirated 4.0 liter V8's from Oldsmobile and Infiniti. Only seven drivers competed in all ten races of this seventeen-month-long marathon schedule.

Confirmed entries

Team	Chassis	Engine	Tires	No.	Driver(s)	Round(s)
Template:Flagicon ABF Motorsports	Lola T92/00	Buick	G	96	Template:Flagicon Joe Gosek  R	1
					Template:Flagicon Dave Steele  R	2
Template:Flagicon A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Lola T95/00Template:Refn DallaraTemplate:Refn G-Force	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	G	1	Template:Flagicon Scott SharpTemplate:Refn	1–5, 7
					Template:Flagicon Johnny O'Connell	5
					Template:Flagicon Paul Durant  R Template:Refn	5
					Template:Flagicon Billy Boat  R	6, 8–10
				11		5
				14	Template:Flagicon Davey Hamilton	All
Template:Flagicon Arizona MotorsportsTemplate:Refn Template:Flagicon Sinden Racing Services	Lola T95/00	Ford-Cosworth	G FTemplate:Refn	40	Template:Flagicon Marco GrecoTemplate:Refn	1–2
	Dallara	Oldsmobile InfinitiTemplate:Refn			Template:Flagicon Dr. Jack Miller  R	3–10
				44	Template:Flagicon Steve Kinser  R	5
					Template:Flagicon Allen May  R	6
Template:Flagicon Beck Motorsports	Lola T94/00	Ford-Cosworth	F	54	Template:Flagicon Robbie Buhl	1–2
	Dallara	Infiniti			Template:Flagicon Dennis Vitolo	5
Template:Flagicon Blueprint Racing	Lola T93/00Template:Refn Dallara	MenardTemplate:Refn BuickTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	F	16	Template:Flagicon Johnny Parsons	2
					Template:Flagicon Sam Schmidt  R	4–6
				27	Template:Flagicon Jim Guthrie  R Template:Refn	All
				72	Template:Flagicon Claude BourbonnaisTemplate:Refn	5
Template:Flagicon Bradley Motorsports	Reynard 95ITemplate:Refn G-Force	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	FTemplate:Refn G	12	Template:Flagicon Buzz CalkinsTemplate:Refn	1–7, 9–10
Template:Flagicon Byrd-Cunningham Racing	Reynard 95ITemplate:Refn G-Force	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn InfinitiTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	F	10	Template:Flagicon Mike GroffTemplate:Refn	1–5, 8
					Template:Flagicon Johnny Unser	6–7, 9
					Template:Flagicon Paul Durant  R	10
Template:Flagicon Chastain Motorsports	G-Force	Oldsmobile	G	77	Template:Flagicon Stéphan Grégoire	3–5, 7–10
Template:Flagicon Chitwood Motorsports	Dallara	Oldsmobile	G	17	Template:Flagicon Danny Ongais	3
					Template:Flagicon Affonso Giaffone  R	4–10
Template:Flagicon Della Penna Motorsports	Reynard 95I	Ford-Cosworth	G	4	Template:Flagicon Richie Hearn	1–2
Template:Flagicon EuroInternational	Dallara	Oldsmobile	F	50	Template:Flagicon Billy Roe  R	4–5
Template:Flagicon Galles Racing	G-Force	Oldsmobile	G	4	Template:Flagicon Davy Jones	3
					Template:Flagicon Jeff Ward  R	3
					Template:Flagicon Kenny Bräck  R	4–10
				70	Template:Flagicon Marco Greco	7–10
Template:Flagicon Hemelgarn Racing	Reynard 95I	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn Infiniti OldsmobileTemplate:Refn	F	9	Template:Flagicon Brad Murphey  R	1–2
	Reynard 95ITemplate:Refn Dallara				Template:Flagicon Johnny Unser	5, 10
				90	Template:Flagicon Lyn St. James	5
				91	Template:Flagicon Buddy Lazier	All
Template:Flagicon ISM Racing	Dallara	Oldsmobile	G	35	Template:Flagicon Jeff Ward  R Template:Refn	10
Template:Flagicon IZ Racing	Dallara	Infiniti	G	95	Template:Flagicon Tyce Carlson  R	10
Template:Flagicon Johansson Motorsports	G-Force	Infiniti	F	36	Template:Flagicon Scott Harrington  R	5
Template:Flagicon Knapp Motorsports	Dallara	Oldsmobile	F	97	Template:Flagicon Greg Ray  R Template:Refn	5–8, 10
Template:Flagicon LP Racing	Dallara	Oldsmobile	F	99	Template:Flagicon Sam Schmidt  R	8–10
Template:Flagicon McCormack Motorsports	Lola T94/00	Ford-Cosworth	G	30	Template:Flagicon Stan Wattles  R	1–2
	G-Force	Oldsmobile			Template:Flagicon Jeret Schroeder  R	3–4
					Template:Flagicon Robbie Groff  R	5–10
Template:Flagicon Metro Racing Systems	Riley & Scott	Oldsmobile	G	19	Template:Flagicon Stan Wattles  R	10
Template:Flagicon Nienhouse Motorsports	Riley & Scott	Oldsmobile	G	23	Template:Flagicon Mike Shank  R	10
Template:Flagicon Pagan Racing	Reynard 95ITemplate:Refn Reynard 94ITemplate:Refn Dallara	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn InfinitiTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	G	21	Template:Flagicon Roberto Guerrero	All
Template:Flagicon PDM Racing	Lola T93/00Template:Refn Dallara G-ForceTemplate:Refn	MenardTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	G	18	Template:Flagicon John Paul Jr.	1–5, 8–10
					Template:Flagicon Tyce Carlson  R	5–6
					Template:Flagicon Billy Boat  R	7
				28	Template:Flagicon Tyce Carlson  R	1–2
Template:Flagicon Kelley Racing – PDM					Template:Flagicon Mark Dismore	5–10
Template:Flagicon Project Indy	Reynard 95I	Ford-Cosworth	G	64	Template:Flagicon Johnny Unser	1–2
Template:Flagicon Roe Racing	Dallara	Oldsmobile	F	24	Template:Flagicon Billy Roe  R	10
Template:Flagicon Team Cheever	Lola T95/00Template:Refn G-Force	MenardTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	G	51	Template:Flagicon Eddie Cheever	All
				52	Template:Flagicon Jeff Ward  R	5
Template:Flagicon Team Menard	Lola T95/00Template:Refn G-Force	MenardTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	F	2	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	All
				3	Template:Flagicon Mark Dismore	1–2
					Template:Flagicon Robbie BuhlTemplate:Refn	4–6, 9–10
Template:Flagicon Team SABCO	G-Force	Oldsmobile	G	42	Template:Flagicon Robby Gordon	5
Template:Flagicon Team Scandia	Lola T95/00Template:Refn Reynard 95ITemplate:Refn Lola T94/00Template:Refn Dallara	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	G	7	Template:Flagicon Eliseo SalazarTemplate:Refn	1–2, 5–10
				8	Template:Flagicon Stéphan Grégoire	2
					Template:Flagicon Vincenzo Sospiri  R	5–6
				22	Template:Flagicon Stéphan Grégoire	1
					Template:Flagicon Michel Jourdain Jr.	2
					Template:Flagicon Marco Greco	3–6
					Template:Flagicon Vincenzo Sospiri  R	7–10
				33	Template:Flagicon Michele Alboreto	1–2
					Template:Flagicon Fermín Vélez  R Template:Refn	3–6
					Template:Flagicon Jimmy Kite  R	7–10
				34	Template:Flagicon Affonso Giaffone  R	2
					Template:Flagicon Alessandro Zampedri	5–6
Template:Flagicon Tempero/Giuffre Racing	Lola T93/00	Buick	G	15	Template:Flagicon David Kudrave	1
					Template:Flagicon Juan Carlos Carbonell  R	2
Template:Flagicon Treadway Racing	Reynard 95ITemplate:Refn Reynard 94ITemplate:Refn G-Force	Ford-CosworthTemplate:Refn Oldsmobile	F	5	Template:Flagicon Arie Luyendyk	All
				6	Template:Flagicon Johnny O'Connell	1–2
					Template:Flagicon Scott Goodyear	3–10
Template:Flagicon Walker Racing	Reynard 95I	Ford-Cosworth	G	50	Template:Flagicon Robby Gordon	2

Schedule

Rd	Date	Race Name	Track	Location
1	August 18, 1996	True Value 200	New Hampshire International Speedway	Loudon, New Hampshire
2	September 15, 1996	1996 Las Vegas 500K	Las Vegas Motor Speedway	Las Vegas, Nevada
3	January 25, 1997	Indy 200 at Walt Disney World	Walt Disney World Speedway	Bay Lake, Florida
4	March 23, 1997	Phoenix 200	Phoenix International Raceway	Phoenix, Arizona
5	May 26–27, 1997	81st Indianapolis 500	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	Speedway, Indiana
6	June 7, 1997	True Value 500	Texas Motor Speedway	Fort Worth, Texas
7	June 29, 1997	Samsonite 200	Pikes Peak International Raceway	Fountain, Colorado
8	July 27, 1997	VisionAire 500	Charlotte Motor Speedway	Concord, North Carolina
9	August 17, 1997	Pennzoil 200	New Hampshire International Speedway	Loudon, New Hampshire
10	October 11, 1997	1997 Las Vegas 500K	Las Vegas Motor Speedway	Las Vegas, Nevada
Sources:

All races were run on oval speedways.

File:TonyStewartIRL9697.jpg

Tony Stewart's championship car.

After the 1996 prologue-style, 3-race season that ended at the 80th Indianapolis 500, the 1996–97 season had just two further races in calendar year 1996, at New Hampshire International Speedway, a former CART venue, and a barely inaugurated Las Vegas Motor Speedway. On 9 October 1996, the IRL decided to revert to a calendar-based format for 1998, moving the intended end of the 1996–97 season at Indianapolis in May to Las Vegas in October.

For calendar year 1997, all five races from 1996 were held again, alongside three further races, contested consecutively in the summer months after the Indianapolis 500. Two new venues, Texas Motor Speedway and Pikes Peak International Raceway, was followed by IRL's first incursion in a NASCAR foothold, the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Texas and Charlotte held the first night races in Indy-car history, and became the first 1.5 mile banked oval racetracks in an Indy-car schedule since Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1983.

Results

Round	Race	Pole position	Fastest lap	Most laps led	Race Winner				Report
					Driver	Team	Chassis	Engine
1	New Hampshire 1	Template:Flagicon Richie Hearn	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Scott Sharp	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Lola	Ford-Cosworth	Report
2	Las Vegas 1	Template:Flagicon Arie Luyendyk	Template:Flagicon Richie Hearn	Template:Flagicon Richie Hearn	Template:Flagicon Richie Hearn	Della Penna Motorsports	Reynard	Ford-Cosworth	Report
3	Walt Disney World	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Eddie Cheever	Team Cheever	G-Force	Oldsmobile	Report
4	Phoenix	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Jim Guthrie	Blueprint Racing	Dallara	Oldsmobile	Report
5	Indianapolis	Template:Flagicon Arie Luyendyk	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Arie Luyendyk	Treadway Racing	G-Force	Oldsmobile	Report
6	Texas	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Arie Luyendyk	Treadway Racing	G-Force	Oldsmobile	Report
7	Pikes Peak	Template:Flagicon Scott Sharp	Template:Flagicon Jimmy Kite	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Team Menard	G-Force	Oldsmobile	Report
8	Charlotte	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Billy Boat	Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart	Template:Flagicon Buddy Lazier	Hemelgarn Racing	Dallara	Oldsmobile	Report
9	New Hampshire 2	Template:Flagicon Marco Greco	Template:Flagicon Vincenzo Sospiri	Template:Flagicon Eddie Cheever	Template:Flagicon Robbie Buhl	Team Menard	G-Force	Oldsmobile	Report
10	Las Vegas 2	Template:Flagicon Billy Boat	Template:Flagicon Billy Boat	Template:Flagicon Eliseo Salazar	Template:Flagicon Eliseo Salazar	Team Scandia	Dallara	Oldsmobile	Report

Race summaries

True Value 200

The True Value 200 was held on August 18, 1996, at New Hampshire International Speedway. Richie Hearn qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 1 – Scott Sharp
2. 12 – Buzz Calkins
3. 33 – Michele Alboreto
4. 10 – Mike Groff
5. 14 – Davey Hamilton
6. 21 – Roberto Guerrero
7. 40 – Marco Greco
8. 22 – Stéphan Grégoire
9. 7 – Eliseo Salazar
10. 18 – John Paul Jr.

Failed to qualify: 24-Randy Tolsma, 25-Jon Field, 64-Johnny Unser, 75-Johnny O'Connell and 96-Mike Orday

• This was Sharp's first IndyCar win.
• The win was also the first for A. J. Foyt Enterprises since A. J. Foyt won the 1981 Van Scoy Diamond Mines 500 at Pocono International Raceway.
• Tony Stewart was the class of the field leading for 165 of 200 laps, accruing a nearly 3 lap lead over second place. However, he suffered complete electrical failure after 182 laps and finished 12th.

Las Vegas 500K (1996)

The Las Vegas 500K was held on September 15, 1996, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Arie Luyendyk qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 4 – Richie Hearn
2. 22 – Michel Jourdain Jr.
3. 10 – Mike Groff
4. 21 – Roberto Guerrero
5. 33 – Michele Alboreto
6. 12 – Buzz Calkins
7. 7 – Eliseo Salazar
8. 54 – Robbie Buhl
9. 40 – Marco Greco
10. 34 – Affonso Giaffone

Failed to qualify: 96-Dave Steele

• This was the final IRL race contested with the turbocharged machines.
• Hearn's only IndyCar win. Because he and his team, Della Penna Motorsports, were switching to CART for 1997, he would not compete in any more IRL races for the remainder of the season.
• The slow pace of the race, consisting of nine cautions, caused ABC to leave just past the halfway point.
• Johnny O'Connell had a violent crash on lap 185 that resulted in him sliding upside down on the main straightaway resulting in a short red flag period.
• Johnny Parsons' final IndyCar race. He had started IndyCar races since 1969. In this race, he crashed on lap nine and finished 28th (last).

Indy 200

The Indy 200 was held on January 25, 1997, at Walt Disney World Speedway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 51 – Eddie Cheever
2. 10 – Mike Groff
3. 6 – Scott Goodyear
4. 1 – Scott Sharp
5. 91 – Buddy Lazier
6. 27 – Jim Guthrie
7. 14 – Davey Hamilton
8. 22 – Marco Greco
9. 33 – Fermin Velez
10. 2 – Tony Stewart (DNF, crash)

Failed to qualify: 4-Davy Jones

• The race was shortened from 200 laps to 149 laps due to rain.
• This was the first IRL race contested with the normally aspirated engines and new chassis.
• This was Eddie Cheever's first Indy car win.
• Buzz Calkins was leading when his engine failed on lap 145. Stewart took the lead, but crashed on the following lap. Cheever inherited the lead and the race was stopped three laps later when a downpour ensued.
• Danny Ongais' final IndyCar race. He finished 13th due to a crash after 94 laps.

Phoenix 200

The Phoenix 200 was held on March 23, 1997, at Phoenix International Raceway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 27 – Jim Guthrie
2. 2 – Tony Stewart
3. 14 – Davey Hamilton
4. 22 – Marco Greco
5. 77 – Stéphan Grégoire
6. 10 – Mike Groff
7. 21 – Roberto Guerrero
8. 12 – Buzz Calkins
9. 18 – John Paul Jr.
10. 16 – Sam Schmidt

Failed to qualify: 17-Danny Ongais and 54-Robbie Buhl

• Guthrie's only IndyCar win. He stretched his fuel over the final 82 laps and the $170,100 payout allowed him to settle off his debts from getting a second mortgage.
• Kenny Bräck and Sam Schmidt made their IndyCar debuts in this race. Bräck led 24 laps, but crashed on lap 146 and finished 11th. Schmidt crashed on lap 176, but finished 10th.

Indianapolis 500

The Indianapolis 500 was scheduled for May 25, 1997. Rain postponed the start until the following day: Monday, May 26. After 15 laps were run on Monday, rain fell again, halting the race, and postponing it for another day. It was resumed and run to conclusion Tuesday, May 27. Arie Luyendyk qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 5 – Arie Luyendyk
2. 6 – Scott Goodyear
3. 52 – Jeff Ward
4. 91 – Buddy Lazier
5. 2 – Tony Stewart
6. 14 – Davey Hamilton
7. 11 – Billy Boat
8. 3 – Robbie Buhl
9. 30 – Robbie Groff
10. 33 – Fermin Velez

Failed to qualify: 1-Scott Sharp, 1-Johnny O'Connell, 18-John Paul Jr. and 36-Scott Harrington

• On lap 199, the caution came when Stewart brushed the wall and it was expected that the race would end under caution. However, the green flag and the white flag came out simultaneously without warning to start the final lap and caution lights were still displayed around the track, causing confusion if the race was really restarted.
• Treadway Racing's cars finished 1st and 2nd, making it the first time since 1962 with Leader Card Racing that a team finished 1st and 2nd.
• The starting grid was expanded from 33 to 35 cars due to the 25/8 rule (which guaranteed the top 25 cars in the IRL standings a starting position, provided they meet a minimum speed) causing cars outside the fastest 33 to qualify. As a result, Lyn St. James and Johnny Unser were added to the rear of the field.
• A crash during the pace lap on Monday caused all of row 5 (Stéphan Grégoire, Affonso Giaffone and Kenny Bräck) to retire.
• Sharp was injured in a practice crash and replaced by O'Connell, who then was injured in practice. Paul Durant successfully qualified via the 25/8 rule (see above) and finished 21st.

True Value 500

The inaugural True Value 500 was held June 7, 1997, at Texas Motor Speedway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 5 – Arie Luyendyk
2. 1 – Billy Boat
3. 14 – Davey Hamilton
4. 6 – Scott Goodyear
5. 2 – Tony Stewart
6. 51 – Eddie Cheever
7. 7 – Eliseo Salazar
8. 97 – Greg Ray
9. 8 – Vincenzo Sospiri
10. 10 – Johnny Unser

Failed to qualify: 10-Mike Groff, 36-Scott Harrington, 50-Billy Roe, 77-Stéphan Grégoire and 90-Lyn St. James

• Boat was initially declared the winner due to a scoring error. Luyendyk came into victory lane to protest, but was slapped by A. J. Foyt. The error was eventually realized and Luyendyk was declared the winner. Foyt still has the original trophy.
• Stewart appeared to be on his way to his first win when his engine blew, causing him to then crash, on lap 207.
• Points leader Groff was injured in practice. Unser drove in his place to a 10th-place finish.
• In the aftermath of the scoring error, USAC was removed as sanctioning body and the IRL went in-house.

Samsonite 200

The inaugural Samsonite 200 was held on June 29, 1997, at Pikes Peak International Raceway. Scott Sharp qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 2 – Tony Stewart
2. 77 – Stéphan Grégoire
3. 14 – Davey Hamilton
4. 51 – Eddie Cheever
5. 12 – Buzz Calkins
6. 22 – Vincenzo Sospiri
7. 6 – Scott Goodyear
8. 91 – Buddy Lazier
9. 17 – Affonso Giaffone
10. 30 – Robbie Groff

Failed to qualify: 3-Robbie Buhl and 27-Jim Guthrie

• This was Stewart's first IndyCar win.
• Scott Sharp returned in this race and qualified on the pole position. However, he crashed on the first lap and re-injured himself, missing the rest of the season.
• This was the first race for the IRL as the sole sanctioning body and sole operator of race control

VisionAire 500

The inaugural VisionAire 500 was held on July 26, 1997, at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 91 – Buddy Lazier
2. 1 – Billy Boat
3. 6 – Scott Goodyear
4. 17 – Affonso Giaffone
5. 4 – Kenny Bräck
6. 51 – Eddie Cheever
7. 2 – Tony Stewart
8. 77 – Stéphan Grégoire
9. 70 – Marco Greco
10. 7 – Eliseo Salazar

• Greg Ray's car was run in conjunction with Richard Childress Racing for this race.

Pennzoil 200

The Pennzoil 200 was held August 17, 1997, at New Hampshire International Speedway. Marco Greco qualified on the pole position.

Top 10 results

1. 3 – Robbie Buhl
2. 22 – Vincenzo Sospiri
3. 5 – Arie Luyendyk
4. 7 – Eliseo Salazar
5. 4 – Kenny Bräck
6. 21 – Roberto Guerrero
7. 18 – John Paul Jr.
8. 1 – Billy Boat
9. 51 – Eddie Cheever
10. 30 – Robbie Groff

Failed to qualify: 10-Mike Groff and 97-Greg Ray

• This was Buhl's first IndyCar win.
• Mike Groff was injured once again in practice and missed the remainder of the season.
• Entering the season finale at Las Vegas, Tony Stewart led Davey Hamilton by 10 points.

Las Vegas 500K (1997)

The Las Vegas 500K was held on October 11, 1997, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Billy Boat qualified on the pole.

Top 10 results

1. 7 – Eliseo Salazar
2. 6 – Scott Goodyear
3. 3 – Robbie Buhl
4. 27 – Jim Guthrie
5. 28 – Mark Dismore
6. 33 – Jimmy Kite
7. 14 – Davey Hamilton
8. 19 – Stan Wattles
9. 77 – Stéphan Grégoire
10. 70 – Marco Greco

• This was Salazar's first and only IndyCar win.
• Tony Stewart won the championship by six points over Hamilton by virtue of finishing 11th to Hamilton's 7th.
• On lap 201, Roberto Guerrero lost control on the back straightway and flipped through the grass.
• By virtue of Arie Luyendyk finishing 25th due to engine failure and Scott Goodyear finishing 2nd, Goodyear was able to leapfrog from 9th in the season standings to 5th for the final season standings.

Points standings

Pos Driver NHS1 LVS1 WDW PHX INDY TMS PPR CHA NHS2 LVS2 Pts 1 Template:Flagicon Tony Stewart 12* 21 10* 2* 5* 5* 1* 7* 14 11 278 2 Template:Flagicon Davey Hamilton 5 11 7 3 6 3 3 16 17 7 272 3 Template:Flagicon Eddie Cheever 15 25 1 12 23 6 4 6 9* 21 230 3 Template:Flagicon Marco Greco 7 9 8 4 16 26 13 9 20 10 230 5 Template:Flagicon Scott Goodyear 3 17 2 4 7 3 16 2 226 6 Template:Flagicon Arie Luyendyk 13 20 12 22 1 1 15 21 3 25 223 7 Template:Flagicon Roberto Guerrero 6 4 17 7 27 13 18 17 6 14 221 8 Template:Flagicon Buddy Lazier 19 24 5 21 4 17 8 1 12 31 209 9 Template:Flagicon Eliseo Salazar 9 7 24 7 12 10 4 1* 208 10 Template:Flagicon Buzz Calkins 2 6 11 8 11 19 5 21 28 204 11 Template:Flagicon Stéphan Grégoire 8 26 19 5 31 2 8 15 9 192 12 Template:Flagicon Jim Guthrie  RY  23 13 6 1 26 21 Wth 12 24 4 186 13 Template:Flagicon Robbie Buhl 22 8 18 8 16 1 3 170 14 Template:Flagicon Mike Groff 4 3 2 6 12 Wth 14 Wth 169 15 Template:Flagicon John Paul Jr. 10 15 18 9 Wth 11 7 12 163 16 Template:Flagicon Affonso Giaffone  R  10 13 32 20 9 4 18 15 159 17 Template:Flagicon Mark Dismore 20 17 28 11 11 19 11 5 158 18 Template:Flagicon Billy Boat  R  7 2 19 2 8 23 151 19 Template:Flagicon Kenny Bräck  R  11 33 18 14 5 5 20 139 20 Template:Flagicon Robbie Groff  R  9 15 10 13 10 18 135 21 Template:Flagicon Vincenzo Sospiri  R  17 9 6 20 2 22 134 22 Template:Flagicon Scott Sharp 1 16 4 16 Wth 22 119 23 Template:Flagicon Dr. Jack Miller  R  15 20 20 24 16 23 19 29 114 24 Template:Flagicon Johnny Unser Wth 22 18 10 21 13 19 107 25 Template:Flagicon Tyce Carlson  R  11 23 19 14 24 84 26 Template:Flagicon Fermín Vélez  R  9 14 10 25 82 27 Template:Flagicon Jimmy Kite  R  20 15 23 6 76 27 Template:Flagicon Sam Schmidt  R  10 34 23 18 22 27 76 29 Template:Flagicon Greg Ray  R  25 8 17 22 30 73 30 Template:Flagicon Jeff Ward  R  16 3 17 69 31 Template:Flagicon Stan Wattles  R  16 18 8 63 32 Template:Flagicon Michele Alboreto 3 5 62 33 Template:Flagicon Richie Hearn 14 1* 59 34 Template:Flagicon Billy Roe  R  15 22 13 55 35 Template:Flagicon Jeret Schroeder  R  14 19 37 36 Template:Flagicon Michel Jourdain Jr. 2 33 37 Template:Flagicon Robby Gordon 14 29 27 38 Template:Flagicon Brad Murphey  R  18 27 25 39 Template:Flagicon Alessandro Zampedri 35 12 24 40 Template:Flagicon Johnny O'Connell 12 Wth 23 40 Template:Flagicon Paul Durant  R  21 26 23 42 Template:Flagicon Danny Ongais 13 22 42 Template:Flagicon Lyn St. James 13 22 44 Template:Flagicon Steve Kinser  R  14 21 45 Template:Flagicon Dennis Vitolo 15 20 46 Template:Flagicon Mike Shank  R  16 19 47 Template:Flagicon David Kudrave 17 18 48 Template:Flagicon Juan Carlos Carbonell  R  19 16 49 Template:Flagicon Joe Gosek  R  21 14 50 Template:Flagicon Allen May  R  22 13 51 Template:Flagicon Johnny Parsons 28 7 52 Template:Flagicon Claude Bourbonnais 30 5 – Template:Flagicon Dave Steele  R  Wth 0 – Template:Flagicon Scott Harrington  R  DNQ 0 – Template:Flagicon Davy Jones Wth 0 Pos Driver NHS1 LVS1 WDW PHX INDY TMS PPR CHA NHS2 LVS2 Pts

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 (2 points) Italics Ran fastest race lap * Led most race laps (1 point) DNS Any driver who qualifies but does not start (DNS), earns all the points had they taken part.  RY  Rookie of the Year  R  Rookie

• Ties in points broken by number of wins, followed by number of 2nds, 3rds, etc., and then by number of pole positions, followed by number of times qualified 2nd, etc.

See also

• 1997 Indianapolis 500
• 1997 Indy Lights season
• 1997 CART season
• 1997 Toyota Atlantic Championship season
• http://www.champcarstats.com/year/1996-97.htm
• http://media.indycar.com/pdf/2011/IICS_2011_Historical_Record_Book_INT6.pdf (p. 148–149)