| 1980 USAC Championship Car season | |
|---|---|
| Championship Racing League | |
 Champion: Johnny Rutherford | |
| Season | |
| Races | 5 |
| Start date | April 13 |
| End date | July 13 |
| Awards | |
| National champion |  Johnny Rutherford |
| Indianapolis 500 winner | Johnny Rutherford |
The1980 USAC Championship Car season consisted of five races, beginning inOntario,California on April 13 and concluding inLexington,Ohio on July 13. TheUSAC National Champion andIndianapolis 500 winner wasJohnny Rutherford.
USAC andCART united in early 1980 to form a co-sanctioning agreement under the banner of the Championship Racing League (CRL). The entire season was supposed to run under this agreement, but only the first five races of the 1980 Indy/Championship Car season were run under CRL banner. Unhappy with the arrangement, USAC pulled out of the CRL after the Mid-Ohio race in July. USAC declared their 1980 season over after the five races, while CART finished out the remainder of the1980 season on their own.
Johnny Rutherford, drivingJim Hall's revolutionaryground effectsChaparral 2K won three of the five races (includingIndianapolis), and finished second in the other two. Rutherford won the USAC championship by a commanding point margin. Rutherford happened to score the most points under both USAC's five-race points distribution and CART's 12-racepoints championship, securing what could be considered "undisputed" or "unanimous" top driver honors for the calendar year of 1980.
In January 1980, USAC initially released a ten-race schedule, with new venuesTalladega,Charlotte, andRoad Atlanta added to the schedule.[1] However, these three events were eventually scrapped when USAC entered into a joint sanctioning effort with CART.
| Rnd | Date | Race name | Length | Track | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 26 | Texas 200 | 200 mi (320 km) | O Texas World Speedway | College Station, Texas |
| 2 | May 26 | 500 Mile International Sweepstakes | 500 mi (800 km) | O Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Speedway, Indiana |
| 3 | June 8 | Gould Rex Mays Classic | 150 mi (240 km) | O Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway | West Allis, Wisconsin |
| 4 | June 22 | True Value 500 | 500 mi (800 km) | O Pocono International Raceway | Long Pond, Pennsylvania |
| 5 | July 13 | Red Roof Inns 150 | 150 mi (240 km) | R Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course | Lexington, Ohio |
| 6 | July 27 | Road Atlanta 200 | 150 mi (240 km) | R Road Atlanta | Braselton, Georgia |
| 7 | August 10 | Tony Bettenhausen 150 | 200 mi (320 km) | O Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway | West Allis, Wisconsin |
| 8 | August 24 | Alabama 200 | 500 mi (800 km) | O Alabama International Motor Speedway | Talladega, Alabama |
| 9 | September 14 | Mosport 200 | 150 mi (240 km) | R Mosport International Raceway | Bowmanville, Ontario |
| 10 | September 28 | Charlotte 500 | 300 mi (480 km) | O Charlotte Motor Speedway | Charlotte, North Carolina |
In the spring of 1980, USAC and CART merged their schedules for the newly created CRL Championship. With Talladega, Charlotte, and Road Atlanta already scrapped, Texas World Speedway was cancelled too. That track would soon cease to hold any more professional races, and Indy cars never raced at Texas World again. Mosport, which had held races in the past, was also dropped.Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Mid-Ohio, andPocono, all were kept as part of the final merged schedule.
The co-sanctioning effort ended after only five races. USAC declared their involvement in the 1980 season over after Mid-Ohio. The remaining seven races were sanctioned solely by CART, and paid points to theCART championship only.
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