1996 Indy Racing League

Race #3 - Indianapolis 500

The Indy Racing League made their 3rd and final stop of 1996 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in Speedway, Indiana, for the Indianapolis 500.

Buddy Lazier led the field to the green and would lead the first nine laps as the track known as "The Brickyard" turned out to be the crown jewel of the season as many had predicted. Wrecks, car failures and lost championships was all felt during the two hundred lap event. Buzz Calkins entered the event with a one point lead over Tony Stewart, but a wreck just before the halfway make knocked Calkins out of the race while Tony Stewart was involved in multiple cautions and trailed the field for much of the race.

Up front, Buddy Lazier would dominate much of the day but he too would be knocked out of a wreck, handing the lead over to Danny Ongais. Once in the lead, Ongais would swap it briefly but for the remaining forty laps, he would hold off all challengers and go on to score a huge upset, winning in his series debut. Crossing the line in 3rd, Robbie Buhl would become the 1996 Indy Racing League Champion.

Other Noticeables:
Danny Ongais scored his 1st win of the year,
Ongais led 3 times for 65 laps, including the final 40 laps,
It was the 1st win of his career in the Indy Racing League in his 1st start,
Danny Ongais(1st), Mark Dismore(5th), Scott Harrington(6th), Marco Greco(7th), Eliseo Salazar(8th), Davy Jones(9th), Hideshi Matsuda(20th), Alessandro Zampedri(25th), Brad Murphey(26th), Joe Gosek(29th) and Racin Gardner(31st) made their Indy Racing League debuts,
Robbie Buhl, who finished 3rd, is the 1996 Indy Racing League Champion, winning the title by 7 points over Tony Stewart

1.32-Danny Ongais (65 laps led)
2.21-Roberto Guerrero (1 lap led)
3.54-Robbie Buhl (13 laps led)
4.45-Lyn St. James
5.30-Mark Dismore (4 laps led)
6.44-Scott Harrington
7.41-Marco Greco
8.7-Eliseo Salazar (11 laps led)
9.70-Davy Jones (44 laps led)
10.33-Michele Alboreto-1 lap
11.60-Mike Groff-1 lap (2 laps led)
12.22-Michel Jourdain Jr.-1 lap
13.16-Johnny Parsons-3 laps
14.20-Tony Stewart-3 laps
15.96-Paul Durant-4 laps
16.91-Buddy Lazier-64 laps (Accident) (55 laps led)
17.5-Arie Luyendyk-64 laps (Accident)
18.27-Jim Guthrie-65 laps (Accident)
19.11-Scott Sharp-74 laps (Accident)
20.52-Hideshi Matsuda-74 laps (Accident)
21.64-Johnny Unser-76 laps (Accident)
22.9-Stephan Gregoire-77 laps (Accident)
23.3-Eddie Cheever Jr.-97 laps (Accident)
24.75-Johnny O'Connell-103 laps (Piston)
25.8-Alessandro Zampedri-118 laps (Accident) (5 laps led)
26.10-Brad Murphey-120 laps (Accident)
27.12-Buzz Calkins-120 laps (Accident)
28.18-John Paul Jr.-120 laps (Accident)
29.43-Joe Gosek-152 laps (Camshaft)
30.4-Richie Hearn-153 laps (Header)
31.90-Racin Gardner-163 laps (Valve)
32.14-Davey Hamilton-174 laps (Gearbox)
33.34-Fermin Velez-182 laps (Header)

Buddy Lazier-1-9
Davy Jones-10-27
Alessandro Zampedri-28-32
Eliseo Salazar-33-41
Davy Jones-42-55
Buddy Lazier-56-68
Davy Jones-69-74
Buddy Lazier-75-81
Mark Dismore-82-85
Robbie Buhl-86-93
Buddy Lazier-94-97
Davy Jones-98-103
Buddy Lazier-104-125
Robbie Buhl-126-130
Danny Ongais-131-154
Roberto Guerrero-155
Danny Ongais-156
Mike Groff-157-158
Eliseo Salazar-159-160
Danny Ongais-161-200

19 Lead Changes among 9 drivers

Caution Flags: 15 for 60 laps
Lap 51 (Car #21 Spin Backstretch),
Lap 64 (Car #20 Spin Turn 2),
Lap 69 (Cars #9 and 33 Spin Backstretch),
Lap 74 (Cars #64 and 8 Spin Turn 2),
Lap 81 (Cars #75 and 21 Spin Turn 4),
Lap 86 (Cars #70, 75 and 5 Spin Turn 2),
Lap 97 (Car #96 Spin Frontstretch),
Lap 103 (Cars #96, 3 and 60 Accident Frontstretch),
Lap 120 (Car #64 Spin Backstretch),
Lap 125 (Cars #11, 9, 52, 20, 70, 64, 60 and 22 Accident Turn 4),
Lap 135 (Car #44 Spin Turn 1),
Lap 144 (Car #60 Spin Turn 3),
Lap 156 (Cars #20 and 96 Spin Backstretch),
Lap 162 (Car #33 Spin Backstretch),
Lap 180 (Car #96 Spin Turn 1)

Margin of Victory: 4.445 Seconds

Time of Race: 4 Hours, 32 Minutes and 5 Seconds