| Race details | |
|---|---|
| 1st round of the1996–1997 Indy Racing League season | |
 | |
| Date | August 18, 1996 |
| Official name | True Value 200 |
| Location | New Hampshire Motor Speedway |
| Course | Permanent racing facility 1.058 mi / 1.703 km |
| Distance | 200 laps 211.6 mi / 340.5 km |
| Weather | Temperatures reaching up to 82.9 °F (28.3 °C); wind speeds up to 8.9 miles per hour (14.3 km/h)[1] |
| Pole position | |
| Driver |  Richie Hearn (Della Penna Motorsports) |
| Time | 21.719 |
| Fastest lap | |
| Driver | Tony Stewart (Team Menard) |
| Time | 22.884 (on lap 179 of 200) |
| Podium | |
| First | Scott Sharp (A. J. Foyt Enterprises) |
| Second | Buzz Calkins (Bradley Motorsports) |
| Third |  Michele Alboreto (Team Scandia) |
The1996 True Value 200 was the first round of the1996–1997 Indy Racing League.[2] The race was held on August 18, 1996, at the 1.058-mile (1.703 km)New Hampshire International Speedway inLoudon, New Hampshire. This race was dominated, but not won, byTony Stewart, who passed Arie Luyendyk on lap 15 and led 165 laps until he suffered an engine computer failure, with 18 laps to go and a nearly three-lap lead.1996 Indy Racing League co-championScott Sharp went on to win the race.
Due to the Indy Racing League's original wish to end every season at the Indianapolis 500, New Hampshire would host the 1996–1997 season opener on August 18, a race that had been counter-scheduled byCART atRoad America, with the Texaco/Havoline 200 to be held on the same day. During the 11-week hiatus between seasons, some of the drivers in the series competed in CART Indy Car events.Eliseo Salazar took part in four races withDick Simon Racing, teaming the week after Indy withMichel Jourdain Jr. at Milwaukee, and at Portland. Afterwards, Salazar raced in Michigan, where he finished 11th, and Mid-Ohio, while Jourdain did so at Detroit. On the other hand,Richie Hearn raced in Toronto, withRobbie Buhl taking part in theIndy Lights event, andStan Wattles in his regularAtlantic Championship ride.
Tony Stewart also competed in fourNASCAR events, scoring his first top-10 in hisTruck Series debut atIndianapolis Raceway Park, andScott Sharp grabbed another win in his secondIMSA GT outing of the year atSonoma Raceway, withJohn Paul Jr. in third place. Previously, Sharp was one of four IRL regular competitors who took part in the24 Hours of Le Mans, alongMichele Alboreto,Fermín Vélez andMark Dismore, whose car managed to finish the race. Indy 500 runner-upDavy Jones was one of the overall winners.
Pre-season testing started at the brand-newLas Vegas Motor Speedway, whose inaugural event in September would be headlined by the IRL. 20 drivers took part in a 3-day test on June 26–28, with 12 regular drivers being joined byMark Dismore, who had driven withTeam Menard at Indianapolis.[3][4][5] Dismore had been signed on a permanent basis, replacing the lateScott Brayton.Richie Hearn set a first unofficial track record with a 222.359 mph lap, and nine drivers went over 210 mph.[5] In that test, theBrickell Racing car prepared byPDM Racing continued its role as a 'mule' forUSAC's drivers test.
A short-lived run byJoe Gosek[3] was followed byAndy Michner, who passed a refresher test, and byDave Blaney, the reigningWorld of Outlaws sprint car champion at the time, who fell five laps short of passing his test after his engine blew.[5]Doug Kalitta andJack Hewitt were also scheduled to take part, although they never took a lap. New Zealand'sRob Wilson, who didn't qualify for the Indy 500, also passed a refresher test withFoyt.[4] On the last day of testing, three Indy 500 entrants took some laps, withBrad Murphey driving forHemelgarn Racing,Billy Roe with Team Blueprint Racing, andRandy Tolsma forMcCormack Motorsports, a team that was embarking in an effort on its own after running the Zunne Group Racing operation in the Indy 500.[5]
Additionally,Goodyear held private tests at New Hampshire on July 8–10, withA. J. Foyt Enterprises (Scott Sharp andDavey Hamilton),Pagan Racing (Roberto Guerrero),Della Penna Motorsports (Richie Hearn) andTeam Scandia (Eliseo Salazar), on which Hearn suffered a hard crash during the first day, although he was uninjured.[6] During that month,Jonathan Byrd's Racing announced the end of their partnership withTreadway Racing to become partners with Cunningham Racing.Mike Groff, who had driven for Foyt andWalker Racing during the year, was selected as their driver, replacingJohnny O'Connell, who would remain on New Hampshire's entry list before being 'scratched'. Also,McCormack Motorsports announced the signing of an injury-freeStan Wattles, on the sidelines sinceLeigh Miller Racing's assets were bought byBeck Motorsports in the spring.[7]
On August 5, the entry list for New Hampshire was released, with the absence ofJohnny Parsons in Blueprint's No. 16, as well as some driver changes. After being released byTeam Menard,Eddie Cheever bought the car he had been using to formhis own team, andStéphan Grégoire leftHemelgarn Racing to drive inTeam Scandia, subbing forMichel Jourdain Jr. in that race. Scandia also fielded a fourth car forMarco Greco, who had hired the services of the Arizona Motorsports rental crew headed by Jeff Sinden.McCormack Motorsports announced a second entry forRandy Tolsma that would be eventually scratched,Tempero–Giuffre Racing entered sportscar gentlemanJon Field, and ABF Motorsports entered supermodified driverMike Ordway.[8] In the following days,PDM Racing enteredTyce Carlson in its second car,[9] and it was confirmed that the Indy Racing League would be visitingPikes Peak International Raceway, another new oval, with a date set for July 27, 1997.[10]
An IRL open test at NHIS planned for July 23–25 was cancelled after some NASCAR drivers complained that the track was breaking up in some spots during theJiffy Lube 300 two weeks earlier.[6] Therefore, IRL officials scheduled two days of testing on August 14–15, prior to the start of practice. The first day was reserved for USAC's driver tests. AfterTyce Carlson passed a refresher test, his car was used byNASCAR Whelen Modified driversTim Connolly, who passed his test, andTed Christopher, who run out of time in his attempt after completing three phases. Five other drivers (Divina Galica,Reggie Ruggiero,Ed Flemke Jr.,Tom Cravenho andTony Turco) were left waiting for their opportunity.[11]
Tempero–Giuffre assigned their second car to sportscar and occasionalIndy Lights driverJuan Carlos Carbonell, who had been partneringJon Field in selected IMSA rounds, but the team had to withdraw both of them, as Carbonell did not complete his test and Field crashed in Turn 1 before being approved. ABF Motorsports had switched Ordway for USAC Silver Crown talentDave Steele, but he also crashed in Turn 4 before completing his test.[11] During the second day,Hemelgarn Racing confirmed thatBrad Murphey would be driving the No. 9 car previously used byStéphan Grégoire, andTempero–Giuffre announced the return ofDavid Kudrave, whileProject Indy, initially absent in the first entry list, returned to competition withJohnny Unser, their regular driver.[12] Unser and Kudrave were among a group of 10 entered drivers who had previous Indy car experience at New Hampshire, withEliseo Salazar,Eddie Cheever,Marco Greco andBuddy Lazier having taken part in the 1995 race; Unser,Scott Sharp,Mike Groff andArie Luyendyk had started the 1994 race, whileRoberto Guerrero, with a 4th-place finish, and Kudrave had been part of the 1993 event.
Richie Hearn dominated on Friday, leading a rain affected morning practice with a 175.335 mph lap, followed byArie Luyendyk andTony Stewart,[13] and the afternoon practice at 172.297 mph, in front ofMark Dismore and Stewart.[14] In that session,Johnny Unser lost control of his car, crashed in Turn 2 and travelled all the way down the back straight without steering until he crashed in Turn 3 again.[15] The car was lost for the weekend, andProject Indy withdrew from the event.[16] On Saturday morning,Michele Alboreto jumped to the front with a 173.364 mph lap, beating Stewart andBuddy Lazier.[17] Also, ABF Motorsports returned to the track, withJoe Gosek at the wheel of the No. 96, andBrad Murphey crashed in Turn 2, leaving himself out of qualifying.[16]
After a few runs had been completed in qualifying,Buddy Lazier set the pace with a 172.664 mph lap. That mark was surpassed byMichele Alboreto, who registered a 175.125 mph. The Italian veteran was close to obtain the pole position afterTony Stewart,Mark Dismore andArie Luyendyk fell short, butRichie Hearn got to set the two fastest laps of the day, securing his first Indy car pole position at 175.367 mph, two miles short ofAndré Ribeiro's 177.436 mph track record, yet fast enough for a 4th place spot in the 1995 grid. Luyendyk and Lazier completed the second row, while Dismore qualified in a career-best fifth place, in front ofEliseo Salazar and Stewart. Further behind,John Paul Jr. soldiered his 1993 Lola to an 11th place, between IRL co-championsBuzz Calkins andScott Sharp. His teammateTyce Carlson, qualifying for his first Indy car race, only got to do a single lap after missing his qualifying turn, but it was good enough for 16th place, in front of favouritesDavey Hamilton andRoberto Guerrero.[18]
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With an estimated attendance of 24.000 espectators,Richie Hearn kept the lead when the green flag was waved, whileArie Luyendyk passedMichele Alboreto for second place. The first caution came out immediately, asJim Guthrie lost control of his car accelerating off Turn 4 due to a leak, andRobbie Buhl had found the Turn 1 wall after being loose.[19] The race was restarted on Lap 7, and Luyendyk took advantage to overtake Hearn in Turn 3, taking the lead. Having started in seventh place, Stewart had already made it pastEliseo Salazar and a slow startingMark Dismore at the start, and passedBuddy Lazier during the restart, paving the way for his dominating performance. He soon caught up to the leading trio on Lap 11 and, helped by traffic, grabbed the lead on Lap 14.[19] Amid concerns that high fuel consumption would subjectTeam Menard to an additional pit stop, Stewart rapidly started to pull away, being at least a full second faster than anyone else: by Lap 25, he had a 10-second lead, which was increased to 22 seconds by Lap 30.
Scott Sharp climbed into the top 10, and was running in eighth place, while Hearn faded to fifth place and Lazier overtook Alboreto on Lap 29 for third place.[20] Both were by Stewart five laps later. Before the leader could catch Luyendyk, a second caution came out asJoe Gosek, running in 17th place, spun and crashed in Turn 4.[19] Luyendyk, Lazier, Alboreto, Sharp,Davey Hamilton,Buzz Calkins andMike Groff elected not to pit to regain their lap,[21] although Hamilton and Calkins wouldn't be able to keep up in green flag conditions. Stewart came out of the pits in second place, behind Luyendyk, but 10 seconds away from Lazier. His teammateMark Dismore, who pitted just behind Stewart, spun exiting his pit box and was left backwards, having to make a 180º burnout. In doing so, he damaged his clutch and ran over an air hose, then being assessed a Stop & Go penalty before retiring a few laps later. This resembled a similar half-spin byEddie Cheever at the Indianapolis 500, also in front of Stewart's pit box when he was his teammate, although Stewart had already left before Dismore spun.[19]
Despite restarting with a 3-second gap on Lap 41, Luyendyk's lead lasted two further laps, as Stewart continued to obliterate the field. Sharp passed Alboreto for fourth place at the restart, andBuddy Lazier passed Luyendyk for second on Lap 64, but the Indy 500 winner had Stewart already in his mirrors three laps later, and was instructed to not let him pass. On Lap 68, Stewart dived into the inside of Lazier in Turn 3 and both drivers had a slight contact that sent Lazier into the wall.[19] Lazier, who was still competing with partial back injuries suffered at Phoenix earlier in the year, did not suffer further back damage in this crash, but was very angry at Stewart's maneuver, being heard using profanities onABC's broadcast, for which he later apologized.[22] Despite the contact, Stewart only suffered cosmetical damages on his front wing.
The race restarted on Lap 77, and Stewart officially run in a lap of his own from Lap 81 after passingRichie Hearn, the only top 10 driver who had not pitted. Around the halfway mark,Team Menard lost telemetry and had the first report of an engine misfiring, with both issues seemingly being solved a few laps later.[19] On Lap 102, Stewart lapped fifth-placedMichele Alboreto, who would lose his spot toMike Groff 13 laps later. With clouds looming over the track, Sharp closed on Luyendyk, forcing him to run faster and pursue Hearn, before Sharp himself caught both of them. Hearn had a pending pit stop, and he decided to take it on Lap 123, but a caution for rain came out just seconds before, and Hearn had to drive by the closed pits, losing second place to Luyendyk.
One lap later, a heavy rain shower forced a 45-minute red flag period.[19] At the restart on Lap 127, Hearn was passed on track byScott Sharp. Stewart continued his domination, lapping Hearn on Lap 144 and Sharp on Lap 149 for a second time. On Lap 152, Luyendyk started developing problems with his right front wheel and lost direction. Despite being out of the race for 30 laps, he got out on track in the final stages of the race to score additional points. Hearn also had to do an unscheduled pit stop on Lap 161 to remove a piece of debris from his radiator and fell to sixth, ten laps before retiring due to an overheating engine that was believed to have developed during the red flag.[19]
Stewart was comfortably heading to an undisputed victory, seconds away from gaining a third lap on the field. He was lapping consistently in the 165 mph range, and half a second faster than Sharp on average. The only concern forTeam Menard was to decide when to make the last pit stop without running him out of fuel. With 18 laps to go, while his team was preparing for the pit stop, Stewart's car sustained an electrical failure coming out of turn 2.[23] He pitted afterwards, but the car shut down in the pits. Every attempt to revive the engine was futile, forcing Stewart to retire. Sharp inherited the lead and, as all of his rivals had dropped out, he had a 20 seconds lead overMike Groff. Sharp, however, was nursing the car, as the team suspected they were too short on fuel to make it to the finish without an additional pit stop.
While allowing bothMichele Alboreto andBuzz Calkins to unlap themselves, Sharp maintained the gap and went on to achieve his first Indy car win, which was also a first for the Lola chassis and Goodyear tires in the IRL,[19] the first forA. J. Foyt's team since his last as a driver at the1981 Pocono 500, and the second by any Foyt's driver afterJim McElreath's victory at the1970 Ontario 500.Buzz Calkins passedMichele Alboreto with nine laps to go and held off a late charge to finish second, as Groff fell to fourth after pitting for a splash with 6 laps to go. Also,Davey Hamilton –fifth– andMarco Greco –seventh– got their first top-10 finish. Further behind,Eliseo Salazar lost several laps with fuel issues, andEddie Cheever's first race as a driver-owner, having run as high as seventh, was soon ruined by brakes and engine problems.
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| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scott Sharp | 35 |
| 2 | Buzz Calkins | 33 |
| 3 | Michele Alboreto | 32 |
| 4 | Mike Groff | 31 |
| 5 | Davey Hamilton | 30 |
The fourth race as part of theIndy Racing League but the first race of the 1996-1997 season was carried live on theIMS Radio Network. Gary Lee served as chief announcer. In the booth with Lee wasMike King.
Mark Jaynes and Vince Welch were the pit reporters.
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth Announcers | Pit/garage reporters | |
Chief Announcer:Gary Lee | Mark Jaynes Vince Welch | |
| sources:[24][25] | ||
| Previous race: 1996 Indianapolis 500 (1996 season) | Indy Racing League 1996–1997 season | Next race: 1996 Las Vegas 500K |
| Previous race: 1995 New England 200 (IndyCar) | True Value 200 | Next race: 1997 Pennzoil 200 |
