Post by frow78 on Jun 10, 2015 1:42:29 GMT -5
The 15-race 1985 cart series kicked off at Indianapolis late in the month of May. Repeat champion Danny Sullivan took his second Indy win after front-runners Danny Ongais and Phil Threshie were forced to pit with two laps to go. Jack Fadden finished a close second and Jack Turner came home third.
Josele Garza sustained minor injuries after an accident on lap 81, but fortunately was able to compete the following week. Pictured below is Garza's car after it was upended into the catchfence by Michael Chandler (Black and Orange car).
After Indy, the CART series traveled to Arizona and the Phoenix International Racetrack. Danny Ongais took the win, leading 43 of 110 laps. Sophomore driver Tom Gloy sat on the pole and led the first 65 laps, but eventually faded and finished 5th. A wreck between Eldon Rasmussen, Don Whittington and Michael Chandler brought out the only caution flag of the race.
Road America was next up on the schedule. Jim Hurtbise, oldest driver in the series (and also on his retirement tour), went to victory lane after leading the last 13 laps. Rookie standout Rich Vogler finished 3rd and Indy 500 winner Danny Sullivan finished 5th.
Next stop for the series was in Riverside, CA. Home of one of the wildest finishes ever seen in racing in 1984, Riverside proved to be just as crazy this year. Coming out of the the second turn on the first lap Jack Fadden and Danny Ongais made contact, sending Onagis' blue #15 hard into an inner guardrail. He walked away unharmed but very angry. A ten lap shootout was set up after Eldon Rasmussen blew a header with eleven to go. Tom Gloy restarted in the lead and was able to hold off Phil Threshie en route to his first win of the season.
The fourth points race was held at Michigan's 2.0 mile tri-oval. The draft proved to be the equalizer, as less-competitive drivers were able to move up the pack and battle for the lead. Tom Klausner and Tom Gloy, both in the top 5 in points, were forced to retire due to mechanical issues before the halfway point. Four drivers formed a 210-mph freight train and pulled away from the field as the race wound down. Danny Ongais, Phil Threshie, Steve Kinser and John Martin swapped the lead many times in the final laps before Ongais pulled under Threshie coming out of turn 3 on the final lap, grabbing the win by less than a quarter of a second.
Race five was at Saint Petersburg, FL. Passing proved to be sparse in the fifty lap race, and drivers tended to finish where they started. Phil Threshie started on the pole and led every lap, improving on his previous two second-place finishes. Tom Gloy finished second and Jack Fadden finished third. Eldon Rasmussen, who had been running in the top 20 as the white flag waved, suffered his 3rd mechanical failure in five races and would finish 32nd.
The CART Series traveled to the Milwaukee Mile for Race 6. Phil Threshie continued his dominance, leading 200 of 200 laps for his second victory in a row. Tom Gloy and Danny Ongais had since emerged as Threshie's main challengers for the title, they finished second and third respectively. Five cars suffered from mechanical problems this race, and yes, Eldon Rasmussen was one of them.
Race seven was a quick heat at Barber Motorsports Park, located in Birmingham, Alabama. Danny Ongais put the field away, leading all 35 laps for his third win of the year. Gloy and Threshie were 2nd and 3rd, both finishing within ten seconds of Ongais. John Martin, the 4th place finisher, was a whopping 24 seconds behind when the checkered flag waved. Ford was slowly becoming the dominant manufacturer of the series, and had five drivers finish in the top 10 at Barber.
Watkins Glen played host to race eight of the season. Danny Ongais snatched the pole with the only 59-second lap in the field. Alternatively, his teammate Chip Ganassi recorded the only 61-second lap in the field. Danny Sullivan proved to have the fast car, however, and he rocketed from 4th to grab the lead. Sullivan pulled away and led the first nine laps until he was hampered by an ignition failure and forced to go behind the wall. Pete Halsmer rammed into Teo Fabi after a late restart, causing a melee in turn one. Ongais won, and yet again Threshie and Gloy finished second and third. Rookie Ed Pimm recorded his best career finish, 8th.
Fan-favorite Sanair was up next on the schedule. Danny Ongais, looking for his third win in as many races took off and led the first 100 laps without as much as a challenge from anyone else in the field. Hurley Haywood got sideways on the backstretch and slammed into the pit wall, collecting Herm Johnson, John Martin and Jack Turner. They were all done for the day. Per business as usual, Ongais, Gloy and Threshie had pulled away from the field as the race reached it's final 20 laps. Ongais held the lead, but Gloy and Threshie were trying everything they could to get by him. One driver would pull to the outside, only to lose second position as the other swept to the inside. With eight laps to go, Ongais went high to pass a lap car. Tom Gloy saw opportunity and took it, taking his car to the inside of the track and going three wide with the lap car in the middle. The lap car got loose and washed up the track into Ongais, knocking him out of the groove. Gloy took the win, leading the final eight laps. Threshie finished second, and Ongais, who had led 172 of the 180 laps, finished third.
Race 10 was at Long Beach, California. This race marked the debut of team owner Connor Root competing in his first event of the year. He subbed for team driver Chip Ganassi, who was running 33rd in points out of 33 drivers and trailed 32nd place substantially. Root was able to complete only 11 of 50 laps before he spun his #69 Buick, and consequently retired. Meanwhile, Phil Threshie was having yet another dominating performance, and he led all 50 laps for his third win of the year. Tom Gloy finished 2nd, five and a half seconds back, Danny Onagis finished third, and Indy 500 winner Danny Sullivan finished 4th. Below is a picture of Threshie (Purple and Red) leading in the early stages of the race.
Cleveland played host to Race 11 of the CART Series. Officials lengthened the race by one lap from 43 to 44 after last year's finish, in which some drivers were able to stretch their fuel for the whole race, while others were forced to pit on the last lap. However, the change was rendered unnecessary after the yellow flag flew on lap 30 for Michael Chandler's stalled car. Phil Threshie, who had qualified on the pole and led twenty six laps before the caution flew, fell back to second after his crew adjusted the rear wing on the #44 car. Danny Ongais won the battle off pit road, and held off Threshie to lead the final 18 laps and win the race. This was his fifth victory of the year.
The next race was at the 'tricky triangle', Pocono International Raceway. The track raced similar to Michigan, although the draft was not as much of an equalizing factor. Danny Ongais looked set to roll into victory lane for the sixth time until Phil Threshie, Tom Gloy, and Danny Sullivan drafted up to his bumper with ten to go. Ongais tried to put a block the cars behind him, but the line, led by Threshie, was just too strong and would not be denied. Phil Threshie, who had proved so dangerous in open air, pulled away from the pack and took the checkered flag 1/3 of a second ahead of Danny Ongais. For the first time since Road America, every car finished the race.
The CART Series traveled south of the border for race 13, which was held at the Mexico City road course. After the yellow waved for ROTY contender Raul Boesel's spin on lap 1, half the field pitted while the other half stayed out. Among those who pitted were Phil Threshie, Tom Gloy, and Jack Fadden. Danny Onagis opted to stay out, although he was one of the only notable drivers to do so. As the race continued, it became clear that some drivers would need to top off with fuel. About half of the initial group that didn't pit were forced to come in under green to get a splash of fuel. Onagis, however, was able to stretch his fuel and he crossed the finish line nearly ten seconds ahead of 2nd place finisher Hurley Haywood. Both Gloy and Threshie were unable to crack the top ten after their pit stop, and they finished 15th and 25th respectively. Backmarkers Scott Brayton, Emerson Fittipaldi, Pete Halsmer and Kevin Cogan all recorded their first top 10 of the year due to the fuel gamble.
Laguna Seca was the 14th stop on the schedule. Phil Threshie qualified on the pole, but was quickly overtaken by Danny Sullivan for the lead. It was clear Threshie had the better car, but Sullivan was constantly blocking him all over the race track. Drivers who qualified 29th-33rd were all forced to retire after encountering trouble getting into their pit stalls. This led to a season-high 6 caution flags, all which helped Sullivan stay in the lead. Threshie was running second with fifteen to go when he lost grip in turn 1 and spun into a gravel pit. This knocked him down to finish ninth. Sullivan held on to win, leading all 55 laps. Tom Gloy finished 5th, and Danny Onagis finished 11th. Going into the final race, Threshie led Onagis by a slim margin of 10 points, and Gloy by only 50. Rich Vogler and Raul Boesel were locked in a tie for ROTY honors, and Ford had already secured the manufacturers championship. All eyes were on LeMans to see who would reign as champion.
Bienvenue en France, as they say. Race 15 was held at the historic LeMans race course, located on the Sarthe River in France. The race was shaping up to be crazy, and that feeling intensified when all three points contenders failed to get a qualifying lap in before time expired and were slotted to start the race in the 20's. Hurley Haywood, working off his momentum from Mexico, qualified on the pole alongside Jack Fadden. LeMans has a corner that causes drivers to decelerate quickly, and some drivers couldn't handle it. The corner caused many incidents all night, but the most improtant was one that happened on the first lap. Danny Sullivan came into the corner hot, unable to slow his car. He rammed into Danny Ongais, spinning the points contender into a gravel pit and causing both cars to have significant damages. Onagis was able to return to the race, but the damage he sustained was to great for him to make up any track position. His entire season was destroyed by one bonehead move. Threshie was not safe, either. Chris Kneifel made contact with him 7 laps into the race, knocking Threshie off the racing surface. He was able to continue without any damage, and the incident was rendered inconsequential. Hurley Haywood led the first 10 laps on the 8.25 mile track, but lost the lead to Jack Fadden after the first cycle of pit stops. Tom Gloy was doing the best of all three championship contenders. He entered the race with the least expectations, and at one point he actually held the points lead. However, a combination of cars crashing and having mechanical problems erased the gap Gloy had and allowed Threshie to gain positions, and in turn gain control of the points. Due to the length of the track, there were no caution flags, and despite this the race lasted over four hours. At the end of it all, Jack Fadden took home his first victory since his 1983 Indy 500 win. Tom Gloy finished 4th, Phil Threshie finished 7th, and Danny Onagis finished 17th.When the final standings came out and he was announced champion, Threshie jumped out of his car overjoyed, hugged all his crew members, and lay on the ground crying. Rightfully so. He went from a journeyman driver, who had a fluke 2nd place finish in the 1979 Indy 500, nearly retired after a string of bad finishes and DNF's- to a dominating, 4 win driver who outlasted Onagis, a two-time 500 winner and Gloy, one of the best young drivers to come out in a long time, to win the CART Series Championship. A picture of Onagis' spin is pictured below, and below that are the standings for the 1985 season. Hope you enjoyed that huge post!
Josele Garza sustained minor injuries after an accident on lap 81, but fortunately was able to compete the following week. Pictured below is Garza's car after it was upended into the catchfence by Michael Chandler (Black and Orange car).
After Indy, the CART series traveled to Arizona and the Phoenix International Racetrack. Danny Ongais took the win, leading 43 of 110 laps. Sophomore driver Tom Gloy sat on the pole and led the first 65 laps, but eventually faded and finished 5th. A wreck between Eldon Rasmussen, Don Whittington and Michael Chandler brought out the only caution flag of the race.
Road America was next up on the schedule. Jim Hurtbise, oldest driver in the series (and also on his retirement tour), went to victory lane after leading the last 13 laps. Rookie standout Rich Vogler finished 3rd and Indy 500 winner Danny Sullivan finished 5th.
Next stop for the series was in Riverside, CA. Home of one of the wildest finishes ever seen in racing in 1984, Riverside proved to be just as crazy this year. Coming out of the the second turn on the first lap Jack Fadden and Danny Ongais made contact, sending Onagis' blue #15 hard into an inner guardrail. He walked away unharmed but very angry. A ten lap shootout was set up after Eldon Rasmussen blew a header with eleven to go. Tom Gloy restarted in the lead and was able to hold off Phil Threshie en route to his first win of the season.
The fourth points race was held at Michigan's 2.0 mile tri-oval. The draft proved to be the equalizer, as less-competitive drivers were able to move up the pack and battle for the lead. Tom Klausner and Tom Gloy, both in the top 5 in points, were forced to retire due to mechanical issues before the halfway point. Four drivers formed a 210-mph freight train and pulled away from the field as the race wound down. Danny Ongais, Phil Threshie, Steve Kinser and John Martin swapped the lead many times in the final laps before Ongais pulled under Threshie coming out of turn 3 on the final lap, grabbing the win by less than a quarter of a second.
Race five was at Saint Petersburg, FL. Passing proved to be sparse in the fifty lap race, and drivers tended to finish where they started. Phil Threshie started on the pole and led every lap, improving on his previous two second-place finishes. Tom Gloy finished second and Jack Fadden finished third. Eldon Rasmussen, who had been running in the top 20 as the white flag waved, suffered his 3rd mechanical failure in five races and would finish 32nd.
The CART Series traveled to the Milwaukee Mile for Race 6. Phil Threshie continued his dominance, leading 200 of 200 laps for his second victory in a row. Tom Gloy and Danny Ongais had since emerged as Threshie's main challengers for the title, they finished second and third respectively. Five cars suffered from mechanical problems this race, and yes, Eldon Rasmussen was one of them.
Race seven was a quick heat at Barber Motorsports Park, located in Birmingham, Alabama. Danny Ongais put the field away, leading all 35 laps for his third win of the year. Gloy and Threshie were 2nd and 3rd, both finishing within ten seconds of Ongais. John Martin, the 4th place finisher, was a whopping 24 seconds behind when the checkered flag waved. Ford was slowly becoming the dominant manufacturer of the series, and had five drivers finish in the top 10 at Barber.
Watkins Glen played host to race eight of the season. Danny Ongais snatched the pole with the only 59-second lap in the field. Alternatively, his teammate Chip Ganassi recorded the only 61-second lap in the field. Danny Sullivan proved to have the fast car, however, and he rocketed from 4th to grab the lead. Sullivan pulled away and led the first nine laps until he was hampered by an ignition failure and forced to go behind the wall. Pete Halsmer rammed into Teo Fabi after a late restart, causing a melee in turn one. Ongais won, and yet again Threshie and Gloy finished second and third. Rookie Ed Pimm recorded his best career finish, 8th.
Fan-favorite Sanair was up next on the schedule. Danny Ongais, looking for his third win in as many races took off and led the first 100 laps without as much as a challenge from anyone else in the field. Hurley Haywood got sideways on the backstretch and slammed into the pit wall, collecting Herm Johnson, John Martin and Jack Turner. They were all done for the day. Per business as usual, Ongais, Gloy and Threshie had pulled away from the field as the race reached it's final 20 laps. Ongais held the lead, but Gloy and Threshie were trying everything they could to get by him. One driver would pull to the outside, only to lose second position as the other swept to the inside. With eight laps to go, Ongais went high to pass a lap car. Tom Gloy saw opportunity and took it, taking his car to the inside of the track and going three wide with the lap car in the middle. The lap car got loose and washed up the track into Ongais, knocking him out of the groove. Gloy took the win, leading the final eight laps. Threshie finished second, and Ongais, who had led 172 of the 180 laps, finished third.
Race 10 was at Long Beach, California. This race marked the debut of team owner Connor Root competing in his first event of the year. He subbed for team driver Chip Ganassi, who was running 33rd in points out of 33 drivers and trailed 32nd place substantially. Root was able to complete only 11 of 50 laps before he spun his #69 Buick, and consequently retired. Meanwhile, Phil Threshie was having yet another dominating performance, and he led all 50 laps for his third win of the year. Tom Gloy finished 2nd, five and a half seconds back, Danny Onagis finished third, and Indy 500 winner Danny Sullivan finished 4th. Below is a picture of Threshie (Purple and Red) leading in the early stages of the race.
Cleveland played host to Race 11 of the CART Series. Officials lengthened the race by one lap from 43 to 44 after last year's finish, in which some drivers were able to stretch their fuel for the whole race, while others were forced to pit on the last lap. However, the change was rendered unnecessary after the yellow flag flew on lap 30 for Michael Chandler's stalled car. Phil Threshie, who had qualified on the pole and led twenty six laps before the caution flew, fell back to second after his crew adjusted the rear wing on the #44 car. Danny Ongais won the battle off pit road, and held off Threshie to lead the final 18 laps and win the race. This was his fifth victory of the year.
The next race was at the 'tricky triangle', Pocono International Raceway. The track raced similar to Michigan, although the draft was not as much of an equalizing factor. Danny Ongais looked set to roll into victory lane for the sixth time until Phil Threshie, Tom Gloy, and Danny Sullivan drafted up to his bumper with ten to go. Ongais tried to put a block the cars behind him, but the line, led by Threshie, was just too strong and would not be denied. Phil Threshie, who had proved so dangerous in open air, pulled away from the pack and took the checkered flag 1/3 of a second ahead of Danny Ongais. For the first time since Road America, every car finished the race.
The CART Series traveled south of the border for race 13, which was held at the Mexico City road course. After the yellow waved for ROTY contender Raul Boesel's spin on lap 1, half the field pitted while the other half stayed out. Among those who pitted were Phil Threshie, Tom Gloy, and Jack Fadden. Danny Onagis opted to stay out, although he was one of the only notable drivers to do so. As the race continued, it became clear that some drivers would need to top off with fuel. About half of the initial group that didn't pit were forced to come in under green to get a splash of fuel. Onagis, however, was able to stretch his fuel and he crossed the finish line nearly ten seconds ahead of 2nd place finisher Hurley Haywood. Both Gloy and Threshie were unable to crack the top ten after their pit stop, and they finished 15th and 25th respectively. Backmarkers Scott Brayton, Emerson Fittipaldi, Pete Halsmer and Kevin Cogan all recorded their first top 10 of the year due to the fuel gamble.
Laguna Seca was the 14th stop on the schedule. Phil Threshie qualified on the pole, but was quickly overtaken by Danny Sullivan for the lead. It was clear Threshie had the better car, but Sullivan was constantly blocking him all over the race track. Drivers who qualified 29th-33rd were all forced to retire after encountering trouble getting into their pit stalls. This led to a season-high 6 caution flags, all which helped Sullivan stay in the lead. Threshie was running second with fifteen to go when he lost grip in turn 1 and spun into a gravel pit. This knocked him down to finish ninth. Sullivan held on to win, leading all 55 laps. Tom Gloy finished 5th, and Danny Onagis finished 11th. Going into the final race, Threshie led Onagis by a slim margin of 10 points, and Gloy by only 50. Rich Vogler and Raul Boesel were locked in a tie for ROTY honors, and Ford had already secured the manufacturers championship. All eyes were on LeMans to see who would reign as champion.
Bienvenue en France, as they say. Race 15 was held at the historic LeMans race course, located on the Sarthe River in France. The race was shaping up to be crazy, and that feeling intensified when all three points contenders failed to get a qualifying lap in before time expired and were slotted to start the race in the 20's. Hurley Haywood, working off his momentum from Mexico, qualified on the pole alongside Jack Fadden. LeMans has a corner that causes drivers to decelerate quickly, and some drivers couldn't handle it. The corner caused many incidents all night, but the most improtant was one that happened on the first lap. Danny Sullivan came into the corner hot, unable to slow his car. He rammed into Danny Ongais, spinning the points contender into a gravel pit and causing both cars to have significant damages. Onagis was able to return to the race, but the damage he sustained was to great for him to make up any track position. His entire season was destroyed by one bonehead move. Threshie was not safe, either. Chris Kneifel made contact with him 7 laps into the race, knocking Threshie off the racing surface. He was able to continue without any damage, and the incident was rendered inconsequential. Hurley Haywood led the first 10 laps on the 8.25 mile track, but lost the lead to Jack Fadden after the first cycle of pit stops. Tom Gloy was doing the best of all three championship contenders. He entered the race with the least expectations, and at one point he actually held the points lead. However, a combination of cars crashing and having mechanical problems erased the gap Gloy had and allowed Threshie to gain positions, and in turn gain control of the points. Due to the length of the track, there were no caution flags, and despite this the race lasted over four hours. At the end of it all, Jack Fadden took home his first victory since his 1983 Indy 500 win. Tom Gloy finished 4th, Phil Threshie finished 7th, and Danny Onagis finished 17th.When the final standings came out and he was announced champion, Threshie jumped out of his car overjoyed, hugged all his crew members, and lay on the ground crying. Rightfully so. He went from a journeyman driver, who had a fluke 2nd place finish in the 1979 Indy 500, nearly retired after a string of bad finishes and DNF's- to a dominating, 4 win driver who outlasted Onagis, a two-time 500 winner and Gloy, one of the best young drivers to come out in a long time, to win the CART Series Championship. A picture of Onagis' spin is pictured below, and below that are the standings for the 1985 season. Hope you enjoyed that huge post!
