Indianapolis 500 - The 1980s

the road to indie glory has always been built with innocence and experience each brick offering a glimpse of a young rebel willing to take a chance or a wise veteran winning one more lap one more new ideas and innovations made racing a brain game engineering some of the most amazing action in 500 history fast speeds dynamic duels and fantastic finishes personify the greatest spectacle in racing an incredible journey like this can only happen once a time when the past and future battle for racing supremacy this is the 80s a decade for the ages [Music] at the dawn of a new decade ground effects and aerodynamics are hot topics dan gurney uses a wind tunnel to give birth to his latest creation but the envy of gasoline island is the car affectionately called the yellow submarine well it was the first true ground effects car in other words they they we were we were heading that direction but the cars and that had preceded in usac were flat bottom cars they had no shape to the bottom to give them aerodynamic assists you know or to create the downforce that's in effect what the car was was was like a section of airplane wing turned over the state-of-the-art chassis built by jim hall represents the future of racing it's one of a kind it's the chaparral [Music] after an impressive maiden voyage one year ago the chaparral is the car to beat in 1980 all the pieces are back in place except for driver al enzer it was one of those oh deals that myself and the team didn't see eye to eye on things so i elected to leave and i always said if you're not happy with where you're at you should leave and so jim hall and i just separated it you know it was a shame but yet i'm still not sorry today johnny rutherford is more than happy to fill the void left by answer and fortunately i took my chief mechanic steve roby from mclaren with me and so i set the car up the way i liked it and we started going fast immediately and it was it was really a dream the car was so good we had quick time every day of the month but once and uh it was uh it was just seemed like an omen you know we dominated bipolar it's clear the chaparral and the pennzoil team had no equal if there ever has been a sure thing at indy the chaparral was in rutherford sits on the pole for the speed over 192 miles an hour roger penske's trio of talented drivers grabbed three of the next five spots tom sneeva qualifies eighth but a practice accident totals his phoenix chassis and sends him to the back of the field one of the right side wheels broke and it put us into the wall destroyed the car and we only had one so we were forced to start the race uh in our backup car which was an old mclaren the class of 1980 features a new crop of racers 10 rookies made the show roger rieger's the fastest and tim richmond quickly learns that indy plays no favorites on the final day of qualifying frane keeps janet guthrie off the track and out of the race her run and ending comes to an end some of hollywood's biggest stars show up for the greatest spectacle in racing but beyond the pre-race pageantry are 33 men focused on 500 miles and one trophy rain swinney waves the green dynamic advantage the chaparral is clearly the class of the field rutherford leads the first 15 laps point rutherford with no problems whatsoever and running any place on the racetrack that he wants he switches off the lead in turn three while cautions and pit stops shuffle the field tom stever bolts into the top ten lap 73 and the rookie richmond leads but not for long schneider darts pass and completes an incredible journey from worst to first that's a real battle between the two it is like that as they go off down the main stretch flap 140 rutherford leads neva sits in second ready to sink the yellow submarine that car was just head shoulders above everybody and uh you know as long as he stayed out of trouble um you know there's no touching him after his last pit stop on lap 171 rutherford begins to reel in snivel rutherford pouring on this team as they go by me now still about eight car lengths behind there in turn three rutherford chaparral gobbles up sniva's march in a matter of laps when the 12th caution of the day comes out that sets up one last dash for the checker when we had that last caution and he was behind me uh green flag came out and i kind of let it have his head and run for a little while and i pulled away steadily because we were faster bright yellow pennzoil number four johnny rutherford almost three-fourths of the way through this race johnny rutherford is driving a magnificent race and a beautiful race car handling beautifully he's knowing about everything he pleases with the sun shining and lady luck smiling rutherford has just 20 laps to reach indie glory he just seems to be at extreme ease well he had to be labeled as the favorite going into this event and it looks like he's going to bring home the victory number four the pennzoil chaparral his hands in the air johnny rutherford wins the 1980 indianapolis 500 mile race rupperberg leads 118 laps and crosses the bricks 30 seconds ahead of sniva after his car runs out of fuel rookie of the year tim richmond hitches a ride back to the pits on the chaparral but victory lane is reserved for jr and the pennzoil team it's a great sense of accomplishment and feeling to have won the race or succeeded anytime you race but especially so at indianapolis despite starting dead last tom steva turns in an impressive second place finish the greatest improvement ever by a driver in indianapolis i did a great job driving that day the crew did a great job we got the most out of a three-year-old car and took advantage of all the rules to finish second yeah i hadn't started way back before like that so it was an experience but when people ask me what your best race ever was and that is the one i tell them about after the chaparral's impressive joint john barnard's aerodynamic innovations quickly spread across gasoline island a record 105 entries arrive at indy in 1981 it was a period of refinement in terms of construction the most significant thing of the 80s period was the discovering of the technical abilities to develop the aerodynamics improved design with an emphasis on technology would make this one of the most competitive maze and 500 history [Music] a week after rain interrupts qualifying bobby enzer grabs his second indy pole the northern spirit clocks the first 200 average in three years tom sniva is the quickest driver in the field but his brand new march chassis arrives too late for the polo so sniva starts 20th the march was uh just you know evolution number two of ground effects and it was a little better than anybody had seen at that time and so you know we had a little advantage that way obviously the 81 field features 10 rookies including indie legacies jeff brabo and tony bettenhausen mexico's jose lee garza garners the most attention after qualifying sixth the 1969 champ mario andretti starts 32nd the weather and his formula one obligations keep him from qualifying gentlemen [Music] is untouchable at the start his penske cosworth builds a three-second lead over rutherford and floyd [Music] [Applause] tom sniver slithers his way through traffic and takes over the lead on lap 33 the english-built march looks to be the real deal rick mears is the other penske car in the top five he pits on lap 58. apparently one of the crew members is on fire he is running around dancing around he needs help they're looking for help for him rick mears is out of the car apparently a fire on rick mirror's car as he comes in for a routine pit stop the nozzle had jammed open and he he threw the um the nozzle on the ground but in the process of throwing it on the ground it sprayed the fuel in the air and then subsequently caught fire when i was sitting there at first you know i saw a big you know splash on the dash and suddenly a wave of fuel ran down over my visor and about then i thought man we're in trouble and i know sooner i got that thought out you know through my mind and it ignited invisible methanol flames engulf the pit the fire sparks mayhem and the crew scatters for help i turned around to get a fire extinguisher and then i just as i turned around luckily i was i was turned around because instead of my face getting burnt my front of my getting burnt my backside and back got burnt everybody's trying to to help and it's just it's it's panic you can as many times as you talk about what we need to do if something happens you don't realize it when it happens it's panic the sheer panic i watched on video and replay and from time ignited to the time i was put out was probably only about 30 some seconds but i mean it seemed like 30 minutes at the time mears and six crew members suffer severe burns the incident prompts officials to re-examine safety conditions in the fifth back on the track teammates gordon johncock and mario andretti battle for the lead danny angaius runs fifth we've had a terrible accident in turn number three one of the cars has hit the outer wall there are pieces of race car everywhere the car is in flames but there is a fire truck there a number of the safety officials were up against the wall they quickly dove down the embankment to get out of the way fans fear the worst the car disintegrates down the short chute with the cockpit gone the driver is eerily exposed he survives but suffers broken legs arms and internal injuries after a 30-minute caution it's still patrick racing running one two but enzor is on the prowl bobby under moves out and around mario andretti and does it right at the line so andretti will be scored in second place on this lap but it is bobby unser that has moved into second place and he is now beginning his pursuit of gordon johncock unsurprised john [Applause] he's got him just oh boy what a tremendous race this is when the leaders pit rookie jose lee garza leads 13 laps a strong day running up front earns him top rookie honors and another car hits the wall right in front of me a car is under the wall right in front of me and it is gordon smiley in number 60. smiley came in contact with the wall going into turn number four he has stopped right in front of me there is damage to the left side of the race car but gordon appears to be okay unlock 150 andretti leads unser into the pits but bobby is the first down black traffic separates the two when the race resumes bobby runs away for 30 laps but a series of cautions close the gap what a tremendous race this is it's just like a split race right now as bobby yesterday as a lead by about three car leaks right up to the wall up the back straps bobby unser has the advantage on gordon john he pulls away from john koch as they head towards turn three one more time bobby unser followed closely by gordon johncock one and two on the racetrack ten laps to go just two seconds separate unser from the patrick fair gordy's engine twits just six laps from the finish now andretti moves up the challenge for the lead but the sdp special runs out of laps bobby unser the northern spirit car number three accepts the twin checkered flag from dwayne sweeney bobby under has won the indianapolis 500. bobby unser becomes the third straight indy driver to start first and finish first that wasn't an easy win either hunzer lost his radio drink holes and suffered a brief methanol fire while driving but victory lane quickly erases those problems when everybody is working together as a good team a driver knows it the team knows it everybody knows that they're working together we had it that year despite an incredible jump from 32nd to second mario andretti is frustrated with his finish when bobby and i came out of the pits together he picked up something like almost 11 cars on me point is it was unfair that he gained that much advantage there and he wasn't penalized for it after the race car owner pat patrick files a protest the claims unser passed several cars under the yellow after pinning a violation of the blend rule well you know it's one of those deals that that bobby understood the rules and he didn't break the rules the blending line was off of turn two and that's what he did we all did the same thing in other words it wasn't something that he pulled out of his hat and said well i'm smarter than you we all did it from the united states auto club posts the official results the next morning andretti is shown as the winner unzir is docked one lap for the infraction when i got the news this morning uh just right after eight o'clock from jim mcgee i i just didn't know what to say and uh it's going to take a while for me to get all my thoughts together as andretti poses with the borgwarner trophy roger penske appeals the decision it will now take months of litigation to resolve the dispute i thought i was probably in the wrong court because i was in indianapolis with the judges but when they looked at all the data it was determined that the officials had all the information if they wanted to call it they should have called the violation in october the usac appeals panel rescinds unser's penalty replacing it with the 40 thousand dollar fine 138 days after the race bobby unsers declared the official winner of the 1981 indianapolis 500. quite honestly i'll say it i think there was a lot of political intimidation on the other side that i think played a big part here they forgot to write a rule about it and so i did it what i did was a legal thing what i did was right it's just that they had a misinterpretation of what they thought the rules were there's no way that can ever wash ever ever ever because they could say well we don't have enough proof that he pass the cars they could have said anything at all except that so that one i'm afraid i'm gonna take with me the rest of my life an influx of rookies migrated to the brickyard at the start of the decade and 1982 is no different the legends of the brickyard are not ready to slow down just yet a battle is brewing between innocence and experience [Music] 81 champ bobby unser will not defend this title instead he'll tutor sophomore jose lee garza filling under seed at team penske is kevin kogan on full day kogan sets a new record for the lap at 204 miles an hour but kogan's happiness is short-lived teammate rick mears is next out it is a new track record the google charge crashes hogan's run by three miles an hour mears is on the pole for the 207 average team penske starts 1-2 four-time winner aj foyt celebrates his 25th straight indy 500 on the outside of row one [Applause] veteran gordon slam is killed instantly when his car strikes the turn three wall head on [Applause] 11 rows of three are perfectly aligned all eyes are on racing's greatest prize we've got an accident on the main straightaway kevin coven is against the wall crogan's car suddenly veers out of control and hits flight with nowhere to go and freddie spears hogan's machine races stop and the blame game starts well i don't know anyone right in my damn left front what are you talking about well all i know is uh we were moving down nicely and started to accelerate and the car just moved to the right there's the tire mark on the right side of my car i don't know what happened this is what happens when you have children doing the man's job up front we didn't find anything with kevin's car but clearly something strange happened there i'm not sure to this day what when what actually went wrong you know the minute you see it exactly what happened and then you step back and you want to hear the excuses oh yeah i went right through it i was the pieces were flying i was probably a roll or about three rolls behind me something like that four rules i forget where i started but uh it wasn't a pretty sight freud's crew fixes a bent rod and he returns to action the green flag is out and it's a drag race between rick mears and aj point aj point leads to turn one for the first time in his grand career hoyt leads the first lap of the 500 super tex leaves mirrors in his wake but only momentarily rick mears pulls alongside point on the main straight away cuts him off in the first turn there's a slower car in front of point ron carroll you got it paul point did cut him off rick mirrors drops back down maybe 25 yards learning a south shoot right now heading over to turn two car 14 is flawless for the first half of the race a fifth win is in sight the problems played quite on lap 95 the helmet is off the head soccer's off he just took a hammer and really walloped something probably you know it says apply blunt instrument and you know that'll do whatever to take care of whatever the problem is the feisty point is persistent but his car calls it quits with a bad transmission mirrors takes over the top spot and has no equal he was on it i mean there was nobody quicker as an oval driver clapped 160. gordon johncock takes the lead the stp wildcat quickly becomes a contender i had a bad car at first in fact if it hadn't been for a yellow rick mirrors would have lapped me but a yellow saved me where we could come in and make adjustments on the car and then as we as the race went on uh we made more adjustments on the car then the car become really drivable and look at that wildcat fly as fortune john cox is leading rick pierce he got him on a back stretch and he's leading him into the first turn and he's building up on that lead gordon john and car number 20 the sdp oil treatment special rick fears and then tom stevens they head into turn two back and forth with each other several times throughout the day and i really didn't have any problem getting buying uh when i needed to but then toward the end i saw him he was going to be one of the guys up front we're going to have to contend with with 20 laps to go it's now a two-car race johncock versus meers the sly veteran against the young speedster the crowd on their feet here in turn three mirrors just can't get around gordon john he shut the door again got the horsepower up but he's leading going to the floor lap 183 mirrors makes his final stop beers has to lock the brakes up he almost rear-ended a car that was slowing in the pitch now screams down into his pit area waiting waiting waiting down the horses around he's on his way the fuel nozzle stayed in the car way too long and we filled it up it it didn't need to stay in as long as it did but he went out with a full tank of gas and we did put too much fuel in it in my in my opinion we did and and that's what cost us the the race because we could have stopped five laps earlier and we were still right john makes his final pit stop three laps later the patrick crew executes a time stop to perfection and jordy maintains his lead there he his goes is ecstatic they're calling it their greatest stop in the day maybe of their decades court could be on his way to another win despite a full tank a few weighing him down mears manages to cut into john cox lead here's gordon johncock but not too far behind him as rick mears rick has got the pedal to the middle as they say he's trying to catch courtney johncock can he do it it really surprised me i didn't i didn't think we'd be able to catch him and when i started seeing that we were gaining a second a lap and then you know knowing how many laps were left i thought you know there's possibility here you know we can still reel him in and i knew that he was getting there you know fast but there was i was driving practically down on the bottom in the grass to allow myself enough room coming out of the corner you know because if i'd have stayed out high and i'd had to back off the throttle coming out of the corner rick would have driven right under me with no problem whatsoever he is getting much closer it's gonna be a shootout i think in that particular time i probably was giving him the splits but once he was close and he was catching it he didn't need a lot of coaching at that point he knew exactly what he had to do with two laps to go meers makes his move it's a drag race they're side by side john and bears bears on the inside john bears voice down the little line run john cuts him up i caught him going into turn four on the white flag lap i thought well why wait you know so i had i had some momentum on him and i just went ahead and pulled out i couldn't see him so i i cut down low and when i did that then he had he was right behind me and he had a lot of dead air which shoved him wide coming out of turn one i don't think there was anybody on the track that was any harder to get by going into a corner he'd get into a corner about as deep as anybody alive mears loses momentum but gives it one last shot it's a battle to the bricks [Music] gordon johncock off the fourth turn mirrors his right behind him johncock beerus makes a try john wins it by last [Applause] what a finish i'm sure in this 66 running they have never seen a finish like that the fantastic finish is the closest in 500 history i was worried i mean let's put it that way there there was no question about it i had to drive the car everywhere on the racetrack i had a got into a pushing problem you know with about 10 laps to go is why he caught me so fast and the more i went the worse he caught and i just had to use up all the apron uh to be able to stay full throttle coming out of the corner to keep from driving into the vents johncock returns to victory lane after a bittersweet visit in 1973 i remember thinking that during the race i remember thinking you know if we can't win it i hope he does because at 73 you know the year he won was just a terrible year and he really didn't get to enjoy or appreciate what the race was all about and winning it so in that respect i was i was glad to see he got it but i mean still would rather want but he did a great job he stood on the gas and he was you know hanging on for dear life that last couple of laps everything was happy moments about winning in 82 you know we didn't have any disasters of any kind and we just worked together good through the race you know was able to come out on top if there is one constant at indy it's changed in 1983 new rules drivers teams and cars posed plenty of questions the answers would come throughout a very surprising month of may [Music] in another attempt to slow speeds usac officials reduced boost and called for two inches ground clearance this all but eliminated aerodynamic side pod skirts fifteen cars struggle to meet the new standards sparking plenty of controversy the march chassis is the popular choice in the fifth the mass production of the car makes it easy for nearly everyone to be competitive drivers seem to be able to get them up to speed a lot easier than than some of the tried and true drivers at the time were having trouble and the march chassis just brought was such a superior chassis it made made driving a lot easier rain postpones qualifying until the second weekend mike mosley briefly holds the top spot then italian rookie teo fabi stuns the speedway faithful it is a new track record bobby puts the skull bandit on the pole with new one and four lap records he is the first rookie call center in 33 years i think is the most important race in the world i've never been so fast like a pindy and it takes few days to get used to the speed racing's next generation continues to embark upon the brickyard this year it's 21 year old al unser jr the son of the three-time champ is anxious to run with the big boys we had been in the top 10 most of the month so you know we just go out and give it the best shot i was disappointed i didn't get the pull i was disappointed i wasn't on the front row little l starts fifth and for the first time in speedway history a father and son will compete in the indy 500. competing against your son is a lot different than competing against your brother and it taught me a lot you know i had to concentrate in a different way and i had to totally uh not think of him as my son i could only think of the car that he was running i was running against the car not my son the green flag flies and we're racing in indianapolis bobby jumps into the lead mirrors into second place mike mosley drops back to third tail bobby's leading him quickly he's got quite a great lead going into the north short shoot very few people thought that tayo fabi would lead the first lap but it looks like he's going to after leading the first 24 laps bobby's memorable may ends when the o-ring fails during his second pit stop the yellow light just winked on in the first turn come in ron carroll and car 66 johnny parsons lost it coming through the first turn spins mario andretti right behind him had no place to go and ready car three smashes into him it's yet another ugly indy for mario andretti his inaugural run with newman haas racing ends when he runs into a spinning johnny parsons on lap 80. after a miserable month even tom steva is surprised when he takes the lead on lap 147. i'm thinking you know i should be able to make the two o'clock tee time no problem i mean we hadn't run more than 20 miles at a time without something happening and and there was a lot of friction among the team and so it was one of those days where you maybe weren't as optimistic about finishing the race as some other times that you'd been involved tom stephen must have the strongest engine under the sun in the back of that car i mean he has got about a 50 car length lead already on outlets or seniors in four the gas man instantly becomes the class of the field as he builds a 25 second advantage over unser and rick mears you know when we had to do it and when the pressure was on everybody worked together and uh you know we had a great race let's go to the first turn ron carroll why did it it's mike mosley up against the wall paul mike mosley coming through this first turn simply lost steven narrowly avoids mosley and darts into the pits anzu senior comes in and brings the crowd to its feet with an 11-second pit stop al is 30 laps from his fourth indy win allenzer acknowledges the green with a burst of speed and leads tom stephen out of the first turn on the restart a left under junior runs between his first place father and second place sniva i'll never forget under the yellow he was able to drive past a bunch of cars to position himself between me and his dad and uh and i i that didn't seem right and i i could never understand why the officials let that happen clearly the quicker car steven makes attempt after attempt to get by young answer but fails i wanted dad to win and so i was gonna i was gonna try to be the infamous lapped car that gets in the way you know that that lap car that it gives you a headache and so on and so uh i wanted it i wanted to give tom a headache and so i did well little al may be helping dad as tom steva comes alongside tries to get by little al but little else slams the door on him [Music] you're talking about the biggest race in the world you've never won it and uh you know you're getting a little frustrated with the blocking situation that was happening and and so it was uh it took some real good emotional control to uh to try to bite your tongue and hold off he wasn't blocking see that was the press that was neva and the press he was using the air to you and it does affect your car when you use the you know in front of somebody but you know moving around is when you really block now then i think it was fair racing when you go back and you think about you know those situations it happens so fast and it's over so fast you know i don't think that in any case that there was anything there other than you know fair play he had burned off the heavy load of fuel and so i said well give him the signal turn up the booth and he can't little al was holding him back he turned up the booth you passed the allow here comes tom sniva moving out trying to get alongside al unser jr as he chases his dad al senior and sniva does it lap 191 it's time to go sniva passes little al in turn one then aims for the elder unzir i was scrubbing the front end pretty bad so i was a victim by that time he was he was quicker than i was here at the last and that's what it takes they flashed by essen it slows the tail as sets his sights on the checkered flag it was quick it was quick through the corners and if you're quick through the corners it makes you look like you're going faster when when you're down the end of the straightaway when you talk about nice guys you talk about tom steva and there are many people in the stands who had hoped that he would pull off a victory someday and he's very close the texaco star tom stavis screams for the line the double checkered flag and tom sneema has won the indianapolis 500 his first victory ever at indianapolis the bride's made no more tom sniva finally finishes first at indy and it's one of those deals when you win everything's pretty well gone right and it seems you know like you did your homework and and everything it doesn't seem as hard as as it was to run second all those times i mean he'd blown up so many engines that year that month there's no way and of course the only day that they hold together it's race day and he did a great job and as i say on his day the right car really really tough to be boy he used up all the racetrack there was to get around it and it was like i say to follow him in practice or even in the race was it was quite a treat the win is the seventh for chief mechanic george mcgohan schneva also brings the march chassis its first of many 500 victories with the victory at indy it's almost when you did it it you know that's what you're supposed to be trying to do and it wasn't until as time goes on you realize how big a thing winning indy is [Music] three years since its debut at ending the march chassis is now the car to beat at the brickyard the demand sparks mass production and gives every contender hope when that happened is the entire level of racing the quality of the racing and the intensity of it just went like that because now any team could come in and have competitive equipment if you had the resource hey you can have the best thing you can have something as good as roger penske's got or anybody else and that was that really kind of made it democratic all of a sudden as a series that you know you had access to whatever it took to win [Music] the 1984 indy 500 features a record 117 enters most of them marches even top teams like patrick and penske are now dropping their own designs for the english-built chassis the 84 year was significant in the sense that it was a march chassis and the year before we ran a penske chassis and it was totally unsuccessful it was it was a bad car it wasn't a good car our new car just wasn't getting the job done and you know that's one of the great things about roger penske just you know even though his name is on the car he wants to win as bad as anybody else does he put that car aside and said let's go get a march you know this one's not getting it done [Music] tom sniva breaks five track records with an historic poll run the gas man is the first to break the 210 mile an hour barrier that was an emotional time there's adrenaline flow i mean you had that's the toughest four laps in racing by far and i think everybody will agree with that it's a new track record [Applause] but it was just a challenge it was you and uh and uh you know everybody's following the same set of rules and it was just you know it was a lot of fun trying to get a little more out of the car than anybody else could teammate howdy holmes and penske pilot rick mears join steva on the front row row two features mario andretti and his son michael the 21 year old qualifies fourth the same spot his father started from in 1965. normally you're really intimidated but because everything was going so smooth i got a little cocky to be honest with you i think it was a little too cocky and because it went way easier and it was like this is not bad this isn't that hard after a short racing sabbatical two-time formula one world champion emerson philippolving qualifies 23rd for his first 500. i was good group but very small team but there was not the pressure to go to indianapolis to win was exactly what i need i need to go to indianapolis to learn indianapolis and the only problem that i had the car was pink must be the only pink car in the annapolis but i had a lot of fun i had a lot of fun the field of 33 features 29 march chapters near streets to a superb start and leads the first 24 laps michael andretti moves past tom steve a ronnie pick him up you are right it is rick mirror's admit michael and ready tom steeple back to third place young andretti wastes no time striding his stuff the newcomer stays up front all day in the beginning of the race i went right to the front i was battling mirrors and and sniva for the lead there and the car was incredible so it was like wow this is like a dream it was fun doing it because like you know you're racing the best you know the best maybe they ever wasted indianapolis and and you're running right there with them and you're working you're the first time you've been there so yeah i mean that was a special time with quick pit stops and an even quicker car mirrors doesn't hesitate to re-take the lead drops down inside and ready as they're in heavy traffic going to three larry they're side by side rick mears gets by andretti scott brayton cuts him off but right now it's mirrors andretti sniva goes low and andretti at the short shoot he's trying to make a move and take second they're in four midway through the race we really had that race under control mirrors was long gone and to me that really was a day for us for we if we executed there was no question that we would win that race i mean when you have a guy like me who had that place well figured out is probably one of the best you knew you could always win all you had to do was in the car a horrible crash has occurred here in turn four we do not know the car involved the spun coming off of turn number three hit the inside retaining wall very hard the car flipped over several times and it is now upside down with the driver still in it journalist turned driver patrick badard survives an incredible crash after his car explodes into pieces down the back stretch it was one of the most terrific i mean you couldn't find the car he basically couldn't see the car it looked like a bomb it went off and it just looked like you know you looked over in the grass there in a short shoot between three and four and it looked like somebody didn't pick up after a big picnic sniva's texaco special is the only car that can compete with meers's pennzoil z7 a battle bruise when the race resumes on lap 168. tom sniva appears to be without power the car slowed as he came out of turn number three the rest of the drivers accelerate as the green comes out he was in second place but obviously something wrong with tom schneva with sniva out mears is now two laps up on second place he can almost taste the milk everything worked very well and uh you know it was kind of surprising it just shows the depth of the team uh to be able to you know pick up a car that uh the other some of the other teams have been using for a while and and for our kind of first experience with it be able to pick it up and and beat them at their own game with it it just shows the strength of the team it really was a tribute to um a lot of good people in the team that really you know tackled a mission that was on the surface mission impossible to come out with the pc-12 throw it away go get matches and everything you had to do to get those things ready six years in a row he's lit this 500 he will win his second today coasting to victory rick mears in four their twin checkered flags waiting for rick mears of bakersfield california he raises his hand in the air as he screams over the line rick mears has won his second indianapolis 500-mile race 119 of the 200 laps to earn his second in the win the first one was in fluke you know you get the second bill it puts you in another class another league or however you want to say it you know to have multiple wins and [Music] you know it just it was exciting because i'd learned from the 79 by then you know what that race meant to win that race so it was very exciting to get that cycle rick just a great great driver used his head real well never he was probably one of the best at figuring out where the limit was and he was easy on equipment got the most out of it and followed along and didn't say much and you know drove the wheels off it roberto guerrero finishes second in his indy debut the colombian shares top rookie honors with michael andretti who finishes fifth [Music] after seven straight indy wins for the cosworth engine and a long march to victory lane with the chassis of choice the march cosworth package looks unbeatable again in 1985. the only problem is that the ultra-competitive combination leaves nothing to the racing imagination cars were just stuck like glue and you know you were driving around indianapolis basically with your foot to the floor and anybody could do it and it was just a matter of who could trim out the car the most and and still get around the place quickly it was really down to the team and the drivers they could exploit the maximum amount of those cars because your competitor could look at your car he's got one just like it and he he could do just about anything he could that you could do 1985 marks the first attempt by teams to overthrow the march khazra dynasty and bring racing back to the future [Music] while the odds favor a cosworth engine on world egg it's an american-made buick v6 that steals the show scott brighton turns a lap in excess of 214. then pancho carter goes even faster earning his first indie poll buick starts one two cosworth fills out the field while marches occupy the front row mario andretti puts his faith in the lola and starts sports a smooth fast start the green flag is how poncho carter accelerates jumps back and now the field heads for the first turn when the green drops so do the buicks carter and braden can't keep up with bobby ray hall's cosworth pancho carter's down to the inside smoke coming off badly that number six valvoline buick he's down to the yellow line he may be headed for the pits i lapped 19 both buicks have bitten the death mario andretti grabs the lead for the next 250 miles it looks like over a decade of disappointments might come to an end for the 1969 champ then along comes danny sullivan kenny sullivan has mario andretti and his sights in four he sure does it's only a separation of about two car lengths on lap 118 the penske newcomer makes his move earlier than anyone expects he gets right up on mario as the footage will show and he wants to take him and he's got to take him in one he's just no messing around this has got to be done now and he didn't say anything to us he just went after mario sullivan darts out pulls alongside mario andretti it's a drag race down the main stretch i've got him but it is danny sullivan gets [Applause] i tried to correct it a little bit but then the front end kind of bit and of course the fear is you don't want to go to the wall front nose first and so then i just gradually turned back and lost control of the car and spun jumped on the brakes and of course was yelling at myself about uh you know you finally get in the lead of the indianapolis 500 and you've blown it again everything happened just a split second and i figure i'm just going to stay where i am and just trying to favor as much of the inside as i can without spinning myself and as it turned out we were just like i said just have deals looking after us and we must have missed each other by just a couple of inches then all of a sudden the smoke kind of cleared and there were the turn two suites and everything was right there so i just took my foot off the brake i came on the radio attorney and said pitt this time hit this time and he came back to me saying yeah yeah yeah it's me it's me i'm okay i'm okay and i looked right into the pete parrot and the guy says what did he say because i just didn't i didn't equate that that was him without live television sullivan's crew has no idea that their driver caused the caution he comes in not much has said he says on the back straight something like he's okay and everything and his car's okay and we come in europa pit stop send him back out later on as we got down to the final stages races then we got a little bit more he spun and he kept on going didn't he really god and it wasn't until we looked back and saw the footage in the garage that we really i anyway certainly hadn't appreciated what had happened i had to try to mentally just okay it happened it's done we're still in the race we're in second place we're back a little ways for mario let's just get back in the game we have two cars crashing here and the first turn both have them up against the wall both try one driver is out of the car we have debris all over the track before the crowd can catch its prep sullivan dodges danger four laps later and then i thought when i got through that i thought you know we're having a pretty good day here this is this is kind of going our way the yellow punches the field on the restart sullivan sets up for another run at mario he started to pick up the pace and didn't say anything but he just started getting quicker and quicker and he honed up on mario and you know we we talked to him asked him how things were going everything was playing and he's driving like a dog it's a great race only two car lengths sullivan slightly below the line as they come off before could he pass mario andretti on the straightaway danny sullivan hesitates behind mario andretti now tucks in right behind him pulls out alongside on the main stretch begins to roll past andretti all right daddy sullivan this time sullivan can see this time and goes by very smoothly mario's ready now dropping about five karmic spine sullivan turns up the boost and leaves the beatrice lola in his mirror we've got a car up into the wall in turn number three sliding down the short shoot a late caution singles hope for andretti he has four laps to make his move and then when i looked behind me too and i saw um i think county holmes was behind me and then michael and then mario and i thought well mark you know that group's not going to slow mario down at all he'll he'll be through there like like you know so quick it's going to be a shoot-out right down to the end there and four heading to the green the question can the lulla handle well enough to catch danny sullivan the answer is no despite a superb run by andretti sullivan's march cosworth slips away on the restart this is danny's day the indianapolis 500 has a new champion as danny sullivan has won the 69th indianapolis 500. the spin and win for sullivan personifies the changing of the guard identity well i figured when i got to the penske operation i got into the top team in motivation but i figured also that this is where the work was really cut out for me because these guys demand a lot from me expect a lot for me but in the same token they give a lot in return and i knew that if i gave 110 they would we'd come up with a result and the proof's in the pudding here we are to have danny win that race it was terrific because he really brought a lot of credibility to the team and to the sport because he was well known on from new york to l.a a guy from louisville kentucky kind of a road racer made good in you know the tough guy sport in indianapolis collins harry landing earns accolades as 1985's best rookie with a seventh place finish the 70th running of the 500 features several historic changes the most prominent the reconstruction of the famed garage area gone are the green barn doors and the cozy confines in its place 96 brand new garages they'd seen many years and you could tell you know and their names written on the side of the walls and the doors didn't fit that well and as i say they were hot and you couldn't do anything in them but hey that was that was indy and uh may that was part of the flavor of it it kind of separated the cars and the fans a little bit but not much andy is even though the the fence was very close to the garages before to keep the people out i think you know things change and times change and it was time for a change there the cars and the people outgrew the garage team penske is always a threat to make history at indy a formidable lineup of mirrors sullivan and enzer all have a shot at the pole the rocket stuns the qualifying crowd for the lap of 217 miles an hour meers bumps sullivan off the pole and takes back the track records it's the third pull for the two-time champ that was probably one of my favorite things to do was qualify at indy you've got to deal with four laps instead of just the best of two you've got to deal with i was at 16 corners and if you blow one you've blown all all four laps so that's where the pressure comes in of not making a mistake but you've got to be on that limit rain dampens race day and the day after mother nature prompts officials to reschedule the race till the following saturday [Music] the 1983 champ tom steva loses control of his machine on the face lap and hits the wall the gas man's day is over before it begins the race is red flag the delay prompts the restless crowd to perform the latest stadium craze the wave the wave kept on going to the fans over here where i am just went nuts where that happened then it jumped the next wave and a thing would clear over to where hattie bell is down that back stretch they're having a great time here at the speed when now we just get some dog-gone cars to run gentlemen restart your engine they will tell you the outside of the front row is the place to start and michael andretti prove it andretti is firm the race finally gets going michael andretti leaps into the lead the cracow car runs up front for 42 laps and i think a really my best shot at winning race and twice i got myself in a position where i'm leading and i pit and the yellow comes out and i lose a lap two times in the race and because of that we didn't win but i think again we had the fastest car in the race and i just it was bad luck where we were pitting one lap too early twice and he caught us to spin in the pitch chuck marlow well it didn't create a yellow on the track but h.a point in an attempt to slow down and get into his pit area just in a loop the car really sashayed we have sideways stripes down here i can't tell whether he did make wall contact or not after becoming the only driver to turn 10 000 miles at indy aj foyt's day ends early when he spins in the fifth as the race wears on a dogfight develops between mirrors bobby ray hall and kevin gogan here comes bobby ray hall the true sport budweiser march down to the inside at heavy traffic he's put two cars between himself and rick mayers and kevin gogan is closing on rick mares now so we may have a battle per second indeed the battle is for second position here comes ray hall he has the lead but kevin cogan now is right on the rear wing of rickmers hogan is really on the move randy lanier will be the car that he passes and then clear sailing between himself and the leader rahul i had a great race with rick and of course kevin came on strong and drove the wheels off that thing but it was it was a great race and the three of us really dominated the event no lead is ever safe at ending black traffic and fuel could determine the outcome of this race by time i got by them i just used up the right front and and that and then they had the momentum on me they'd caught me at the same time and had the momentum and just you know just went on buying in just a matter of hanging on and making the best of what we had bobby ray hall has done it he's gotten by rick mares now he wants to get by randy lanier they're all together in a group near's down low ray hall up high kruger goes high golden on the outside of rickmars tries to go inside he can't do it unbelievable racing kevin kogan takes second place in the fourth turn rick drops back to third absolutely tremendous with just 14 laps to go bobby ray hall takes over the lead but now kevin hogan challenges jerry kevin kogan takes the laurel down inside the yellow line it is still ray hall colgate now smears it is coconut in front now it's coke and ray hall and mirrors and you can throw a blanket over the 3-0 kevin colgan is a contender all day but gets the best seat on the house on lap 188. kogan just bited his time turned up the wick and he's moved out to a seven car length advantage with about 10 laps to go it was clear that we were going to have to chase um kevin down because he was you know he looked like he was going at the wall every corner i mean he was taking an extremely high line but he pulled it off he drove brilliantly off of the fourth turn looks like ari lion dyke in the fourth turn as the yellow flag comes out the question is will the race end under yellow and if it doesn't will these three drivers battling for the lead have enough fuel to go in the distance mirrors and ray hall have a new lease on life the caution sets up another fantastic finish kevin cogan picks up the pace and they are flying at indianapolis the first three are right together bobby ray hall charges down the inside and ray hall comes past kevin cogan ray hall stomps on the accelerator he's built a big lead by turn one you know we had the car uh to do it you know we forget the fuel in fact uh we had you had these very crude fuel lights at the time that all they did was they flickered and i remember just you know just screaming at the car like i'm riding a horse and saying don't leave me don't leave me don't leave me and of course it didn't raehole has the lead coke in second third they're in the straight away the final roar of the racing engine bobby ray hall accelerates and bobby ray hall has won his first indianapolis 500. i remember crossing the finish line but i don't remember people say well what'd you do i don't really know you know that was you know the race was over it was it was one of those great feelings but you didn't know whether to feel relief or happiness or what you just knew you had all these emotions come over you ray hall is the first winner to celebrate in a brand new raised victory lane that rotates for the crowd to see [Applause] but the win is also an emotional one for the true sports team the 500 is the last for car owner jim truman who succumbs to cancer two weeks later everybody knew nobody wanted to say well this is probably the last 500 jim's going to be at certainly all of us knew that you know i mean he you know he had contracted he had contracted cancer in 84 and only radical treatment had kept him alive as long as it had and then finally just caught up with him and we wanted to go and win and wanted to win for jim but i think obviously we all felt a huge loss because especially for me jim was he could be my father he could be my friend he could be my confidants he could be my buddy kevin cogan settles for second meers third it's the closest 1-2-3 finish in 500 history for the first time in history abc will broadcast the 500 live to a national television audience when practice begins for the 1987 may classic eight former winners return to tame racing's greatest trap but notably absent is al enzer the three-time champ is without a ride for the first time in 20 years but a lot can happen between the first practice and the last lap the flying hawaiian danny angaius replaces bigal at team penske but that's not the only change on the captain's ship chevy powers the team instead of the dominant cosworth anytime i change like it came along i always embraced it and it because i that's how you you get an advantage by doing something other than what the other guys are doing and you know sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't but that's how you you know unless you change something you don't know after a week of practice team penske still struggles to find speed the crew tries pairing the new motor with three different chassis before ultimately heading back to the shop penske's problems continue when angaius suffers a concussion in a practice crash angaius must sit out the race the captain's first call is to al unser penske called me and asked me if i'd run the car and i said heck yes i didn't have to take a second guess about that one because it is a team that is capable of winning the thing about al unser he wasn't going to run a car that wasn't a decent car and i take my hat off to him and he was certainly you know would have been the very first guy you would call mario andretti has no problems with his chevy lola the 1969 champ is fast all monday and takes the pole with ease rick mears recovers and puts a year old march on the front row unser must wait until next week we made the decision very quickly that our car wasn't going to make it and we had a very good car you know back in reading we had a cosworth in it at that point and the old story is we took the car it was a show car to sheridan hotel you know brought it to indy from the hotel lobby to the qualifying line alenser makes the show and starts 20th gentlemen start your engines mario andretti begins to accelerate the green flag is out mario and lady picks up the lead followed by rick pierce and bobby hall from the very start it's clear that mario is the man to beat andretti needs 170 about the first 177 laps mario andretti coming down this long back straight away we clocked him a few moments ago running laps at around 203 he is by far the clash of the field as he streaks on down passes al unser senior now he looks to set up davy jones on the inside mario and 20 having a field day so far attrition shrinks the field but big al is still in the hunt his carved up the sleeper runs third mario is slowing down we didn't lose it because anyone made any mistakes it was just fate it was just you know engine very new and they found out later obviously as to why but it's fair enough we did our job and i think uh and that goes a long way just when it seems like everything is going mario's way an electrical malfunction takes him out of contention roberto guerrero inherits the lead and is one lap up on the field guerrero's final stop seems to be just a formality on his way to the checkered flag [Music] roberto guerrero is in they top it they've disengaged he stalls the engine now back the inertial starter it is in roberto guerrero fires again it catches quickly luckily they push him off and both gets fully now it does engage now it doesn't and al unser picks up the lead of the race as guerrero stops on the pitch al unser picks up the race the crowd comes to a stand guerrero sits silently in the pits jobless two weeks earlier allenzer leads the indy 500 with just 18 laps remaining mario andretti's car is all but stop in the middle of turn number four the yellow flag flies that means roberto guerrero will move up behind al unser and we will see a sprint to the finish at the indianapolis 500. i says oh my lord this can't happen and he gets to make up a whole lap see and comes in behind me well al's experience was was gonna pay uh pay for the win right that that's why i had him in the car and there's no question roberto would have had a tough tough time getting by under senior when the green flies on lap 196 guerrero sifts through traffic but he'll never catch miguel and it showed the strength of al he you know he was his typical self in running strategy stand touch position and be there when i need to be there at the end to win the race and he did are we looking at another four-time winner in the making alex or senior had not led here since 1983. he's going to win his fourth indianapolis 500 he's got one more turn to negotiate and he'll be home free the chances of me winning that day you know everybody will say it was a million to one well those kind of deals come true once in a while and there it was i knew i had the best driver in 87 that he could win that race if we gave him the right car and he certainly did and history is matched as the twin chicken flags come out for our second fourth time winner of the indianapolis 500 al unser yes it really surprised us you know all of us it did me i know you know it's one of those story book races that comes true and really made me happy in one of the most amazing stories in 500 history unzeren team penske beat the odds to win indeed with the euros march cosworth and it shows the depth of the team to be able to take a different package and work it right along side by side with the the others and to be able to handle the the job at hand you know just just shows the strength of the guys the experience and the approach the team had going back to reading pulling those cars out of showrooms i mean there literally were show cars and putting them into race and trucking them back to indianapolis in time to re-qualify there's a lot more than luck in there but certainly there's a touch of it that that year [Applause] unser's miraculous may certifies his legendary career at 47 years old he also becomes the oldest winner of the 500. al unser deserves compliments as a race driver i've always admired him for his savvy as a race driver in the race i think he's as clever as astute as any race driver i've ever raced against it's a good day for the entire endzor family little ale comes home fourth his best indeed it was a long hard day it was a long hard month and and so i didn't like any of it didn't like any of it the only thing that made it worthwhile was dad winning and that was it and for the second time in four years guerrero is a bridesmaid of ending chances of a win shattered on his last pit stop uh it's a shame you know i came in the pits and i couldn't get the car out of gear so i knew we were having a little bit of trouble i was hoping we'd get it done as soon as possible and but when the car dropped the engine just died so it's disappointing 1988 marks the 20th race of indy for roger penske in that time the captain has won six five hundreds including three of the last four you've got to say we own the place um yeah i mean i don't know anybody else can be better no one's got a better record winning is super important to him and everybody would say well that's important to me too but he radiates that desire probably more than most i've seen so it's infectious it makes you it motivates you and it prioritizes you this maze top priority is another trip to victory lane and with penske's potent one two three punch of mirrors under and sullivan the team hopes to make this a race to remember after the chassis struggles of 1987 team penske takes no chances and runs a brand new pc17 designed by nigel bennett you know as soon as we unloaded that thing off the truck it was quick wherever we went so you know qualifying you know we pretty much felt that it was going to be uh the poll was going to be between one of them the three of us defending champ allenzer is first out and clocks to 214. danny solomon follows with an impressive 216 but the fastest driver of the bunch has yet to turn a wheel as i came in i told him what the car was doing and what the track was doing so it helps the next guy and sullivan did the same thing with rick probably see and so it having good working teammates like that it's a plus i was fortunate by being the third one out that i got that input back that feedback it's a new track record meers becomes the first band to break 220 miles an hour and in doing so shatters his old track records it's a 500 first as team penske sweeps the front row with the three drivers that we had and to think that we could put all three on the front row that was to me you know one of the greatest races to see start with those three cars remember we had the polished wheels there were the flat wheels that day and and to see those cars come down was it was terrific and listen uh it was it was a great feat for all three drivers because any one of them could have sat on that pole it was just the way it worked out gentlemen start your english [Applause] look at danny sullivan breaking through on the inside who will pull the lead jerry it's danny sullivan sullivan is first mirrors a second alex or his third we got a wreck just down below us into the uh the wall here at turn two it appears to be scott brighton and roberto guerrero just into the wall below us we've got a yellow here also tony bettenhausen involved a three-car incident delays sullivan supremacy but when the race resumes danny sprints back into the lead and takes control mears falls back and goes one lap down interesting as the race started you know mir said jesus car is i can't hardly drive it and we had to take all the wheels back and take the flush wheels off and remount the open wheels to get the car so he can drive it in the race people don't know that so we had our most of our guys back changing tires rick mears got the lap back he got around his teammate daddy sullivan so rick mayer is now back in the hut all three penske cars are on the lead left could it be one two three at the end miers regains his winning stride and passes sullivan to get back on the lead lap a perfectly timed caution a few laps later puts the rocket back into contention oh we've got to crash in number one it is daddy sodom and he's hit the outside wall after dominating the first 90 laps of the race sullivan's day ends in the turn one wall there wasn't anybody that could touch us that day and for a race car driver to get his car so right on a day and dominate so much in the first part of the race and then have something break on the car is just the most frustrating feeling i think that you can have because you knew it was right there for you on the bright side unzir takes over the lead and becomes indy's all-time lap leader big al chases an unprecedented fifth 500 win but his other teammate is within striking distance if you don't have a total balanced car and your other competitors do the next one to you then then they just go by you and rick uh fell back they couldn't get the car to work and all of a sudden they did saying that and here come rick actually you know your teammate is your your biggest opponent your teammate's your biggest rival and he's the the man that you want to beat so when the green flag drops it's every man for himself as that race evolved i remember i said rick just just take the easy hours ahead of you don't uh we got plenty of time and uh that just about that time he ran down into three got by al and he said al's awful racing today he said i think i've gotta i gotta move on here rick mears who has gone into the lead passing allen's earth mirrors of answers shed their teammate ties and battle wheel the wheel for the lead these are teammates fighting for the lead rick mears has got it now he's got one man in between so al senior has to back off a little they're really going at it that's one of those examples of having 500 miles to get assorted it was a struggle it looked like it was going to be a long day you know early on but then you know we were able to get the car back uh where we need to be both mirrors and under vehicles are stacked up behind some slower traffic they'll try to pass on the straight away when they have a lead change loop washington come by right now and on the inside is al unser and jerry he's going to pick up that lead or is he oh yes no rick beers holds him off al answer now he may make the lead change in number two no there goes spears what a great move [Music] after taking the lead on lap 123 meers holds off unser and never looks back the rocket is on his way to becoming a three-time indie champ rick was probably one of the smartest and talented men to get sit back and he never quit thinking and between roger penske and rick mears they made it happen [Music] a late yellow means no last second drama the 500 ends under caution for the first time in 40 years has mirrors clinches another in the wind each win it just just got better and better um you know you hear a lot of people say well that you know the first win is always you know the best but to me it's kind of the other way around each one of them got better for me because like i said i never dreamed of going there let alone winning you know rick deserved that win that was one of his you know one of his best drives and again that really capsulized when you think about the 80s to come back and have the wins you know during during the 80s and with with three great drivers in the complete team effort mirrors comes from one lap down to win and cements penske's in the dynasty that's actually one of the exciting things about the race you can be down the lap or nearly two laps and still come back and win if you've got the car and you've got you've got the the combination of car driver and team you can do that roger penske celebrates his two decades of dominance with a record seventh in the win making him the most successful car owner in 500 history i think 74 percent or 75 of all the laps our 27 cars ran there we finished which which was amazing and then to see the results on polls also the results from a winning perspective kind of set the 80s special for our team it was a super team there was a lot of good stuff from front of the door to the back it wasn't just one lucky piece that turned out to win it was a whole support system in design and the driver caliber really did a good job a hard charging emerson philippine turns in his best indie performance to finish second after suffering serious injuries in 1987 jim crawford returns and is the only non-penske driver to lead the race the inspired effort results in a sixth place finish [Music] indy and speed have always been synonymous and the 80s are no different the average pole speed had jumped by more than 20 miles an hour since 1980. driving-wise it was really not a lot of difference you know the limit is the limit and and that's the whole idea of this business is you take it to the limit and then you find out why you know what it is that's keeping you from going on and you try to correct that you try to improve it and and that's just the nature of the beast that's how you go forward a newly paved brickyard ensures that the cars will be even faster and more records will fall but one thing stays the same penske is the team to be [Music] [Applause] [Music] like father like son 1989 brings mario and michael andretti together as teammates for newman haas racing alongside of i think just being the first father-son team and all that i think it brought a lot more attention to it which allowed more sponsors wanting to be involved in it and i think it was something new and exciting [Music] danny sullivan breaks his arm in practice and ruins any chance of another penske front [Music] for row on full day allenzer breaks five records and four laps then around two o'clock it's time for the rocket it is a new track record mirrors turns a series of laps at 224 and earns a record fifth indie poll to a lot of people as expected but i don't think we ever expected it we knew what it took you know it took a lot of dedication a lot of work for a lot of people to make it happen and uh and some lady luck on your side too the drivers we had just were great qualifiers and meers was one of the very very best he seemed to be able to dig down deep when it came time to qualify and make it happen and you saw that many many times while emerson fittipaldi's machine looks like a penske entry his pc 18 belongs to patrick racing the brazilian qualifies third i love indianapolis i adapt myself to the style of indianapolis and not just driving but the procedure to be there the three weeks tremendous pressure going out every day in the morning in the afternoon but you have to be patient godspeed on the way a perfect start on the line it is even as they come to you jerry three or four and quickly on the outside ever since he takes the lead emerson got a quality got the quick start from the outside he's got a 20 car length advantage telepolis enormous lead quickly separates the halves from the have-nots a crash coming out of turn four the car has gone into the pit area i believe it hit the abutment separating the track and the pit road it is well out of my view the car went into the pit area and is stopped there right now evan cogan spins in turn four and hits the pit road attenuator miraculously kogan escapes the horrific crash without a strike back on track fitter folding sorts through the back markers at the halfway point only three cars remain on the lead left it was like a place for that grace and it was going faster than the the penske team i mean i dominated the race the car was looking left one to the end of the race lap 113 mears is the last of three penske drivers to retire from the race a bad engine ends the captain's chances of a three-piece ammo's first true test of the day comes on lap 150 a yellow allows second place michael andretti to take a shot of the leader michael andretti rather is his fastest and the strongest it appears at this point he went to the inside and just flew by emerson fedopaldi like he was sitting still and he still maintains that lead michael's lowla chevy rockets ahead and for a while it looks like fate might be kinder to the younger andretti michael andretti slowing down the crowd just came up with a big roar he's down below the white lie there's smoke coming out of the rear of the automobile he's just about halfway through the short shoot bad luck bites again the large plumes of smoke signal the end of michael's day that was the best the car was handling all day and i thought this is it we're gonna do it and uh engine went up and smoked i mean it was just a bummer that year i mean i should have won the championship but i should have won indianapolis i should have should have should have but that was the start of my big disappointments in me for sure tarot palm rock brings out the yellow on lap 181 second place allenser jr stays out while emo ducks in for his final stop he's down off the jacks 13.1 seconds another splendid stop for fit apolly but he slows on the pit road his force pits away from us hits the clutch it engages and he goes back onto the course philippa nearly ruins his race but recovers ammo's next challenge comes on the restart with little al ready to pounce down to the white line now junior looks for the outside line he goes to the outside almost wheel the wheel al junior tries him he can't get it ammo uses lap traffic to distance himself from unser but junior's lighter fuel load is giving fit a quality fit and i was getting great knowledge i had everything turned down most of the day i was using the cars down the straightaways to get me draft everything as long as emo didn't get more than 15 seconds in front of me we were great here comes alex junior on the inside he's got it he's got it he's got him going through three but does alexer jr have enough fuel he didn't stop these two guys fina paulding and al junior giving us one of the great races of recent time i got traffic he he passed me and when i was behind junior i said well that's not fair i have to win this race i dominate the whole race i have to go back in the lead it's another dramatic duel of indy the last race of the decade will go down to the wire to me was the most exciting um last few laps of any race i raced before slower traffic in front of someone now trying to get to the outside to pass ammo right behind him emma moves to the outside down in front of harry bell moves very i was worried about getting by the two guys on my right and so i finally got by the one in time to get up and make the arc for the corner because both of us were down too tight to run any kind of lap speed and make that left but i was still too tight to make the corner and so i lifted and when i lifted him showed up they're side by side ammo on the inside alcott and traffic goes high they catch wheels oh dude you're into the wall hard emerson final pony keeps on going they touched wheels al junior into the wall and emerson vinnipavi will lead them back to the yellow flag i mean we're dicing all the way down on the straight and uh he you know he pushed me down and i said no way i'm going to back off and i'm sure our lancer junior's mind was going the same he's not going to back off and we both went side by side on time soon i was very lucky that my car got sideways and i just touched junior's side parts side of his car and then he lost it what a finish emerson came around and out didn't and really the first thought uh you know at that time is you know is everybody okay and you know is the car okay february keeps his car off the wall and takes the checkered flag under the yellow there was a gesture given by allens or junior as emo passed by on the racetrack certainly some disappointment and frustration from al unser jr only al linzer jr's pride is hurt when he climbs from his damaged car just five turns from victory little al takes second i was upset i was disappointed i was everything but he you know he drove a great race he was the winner of the 1989 indy 500. what if i was to flip him off i mean i'm uh 27 or 28 years old i'm flipping off a two-time world champion when al walked out and gave me thumbs up it wouldn't have been me i would have throwed everything there was at him but it's heartbreaking to see your son come that close and have it go away [Music] at age 42 fittipaldi becomes just the fourth driver to win indianapolis and a formula one world title the brazilian becomes the first foreign-born driver to win in 20 years i remember after he first ran a couple ovals he said you know there's a lot to this he said i'm gonna have to do you know my homework and i knew i could tell by the way he was thinking he was a he was a man that was going to be figuring it out and obviously he had the credentials to do it unbelievable you know when you think that here's a multiple world champion who showed up at india's first year in a pink car run by a team that was you know weekend warriors at best and i give tremendous credit for that because a lot of people wouldn't they'd get they'd let their pride get in the way of that i was very emotional i mean uh what was the time of my career that i i had much more experience i enjoy more win and win in general was fantastic to me i mean to roll into that situation and then my memory went back to jim clark mid-50s when the baton house volkovic i mean all the big names from indianapolis i remember to watch documentary in brazil from the 50s part of the naps that was the only thing i could watch in brazil and everything was like a videotape of how that wins all that great champion i was there among one of the indie winners of fantasy [Music] the 1980s delivered hope for the future and made legends immortal both father time and lady luck played significant roles in shaping the series but ultimately the field of 33 had the last word from the look of the cars to the names of the drivers a lot has changed over 10 years but the excitement has not in the end incredible innovations and dynamic drivers dominated the brickyard but every 500 still provided the unique drama that makes nd the greatest spectacle in races and the 1980s a decade for the ages

Channel: Chad Smith

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Id: auekcS9lVvU

Length: 94min 2sec (5642 seconds)

Published: Fri Jan 14 2022