John Kevin Cogan^[1] (born March 31, 1956)^[1] is an American formerrace car driver who drove inFormula One from1980 to1981. Driving aRAM Williams in the1980 Canadian Grand Prix, he failed to qualify, suffering the same result driving forTyrrell at the1981 United States Grand Prix West. He then moved over toIndy cars in 1982 but his career was cut short by a series of accidents.

Cogan made his Indycar debut at the1981 Indianapolis 500, driving the No. 32 Sugaripe PrunesPhoenix PR-01-Cosworth DFX forJerry O'Connell Racing, as part of theUSACGold Crown Championship. Cogan qualified in 12th place and finished the race in fourth place with 197 laps completed. Despite this Cogan lost theRookie of the Year Award toJosele Garza. Cogan then competed in the rivalCART/PPG World Series for O'Connell. In his debut, theGould Rex Mays Classic at theMilwaukee Mile, Cogan qualified in seventh place and finished in second. After the race, he was ranked fifth in points. Cogan participated in four more races that season with his best finish coming at theLos Angeles Times 500 atRiverside International Raceway. Cogan finished his first CART season 23rd in points.

In1982 Cogan joinedTeam Penske to drive the No. 4Norton SpiritPenske PC-10-Cosworth DFX. At the season-openingKraco Car Stereos 150 atPhoenix International Raceway, he qualified and finished in third place. The remainder of his season was inconsistent, highlighted by a second-place finish at theDomino's Pizza Pocono 500 atPocono International Raceway to teammateRick Mears. Cogan also had two pole positions at theBudweiser Cleveland 500 atBurke Lakefront Airport and theAirCal 500 atRiverside International Raceway. He finished the season sixth in points while Mears won the championship. Penske released Cogan at the end of the season.

During qualifying, Cogan set a new one-lap track record of 204.638 mph (329.333 km/h) and a record four-lap average of 204.082 mph (328.438 km/h). He was beaten only by his teammate, Mears.

Cogan started from the middle of the front row, next to pole-sitter Mears, andA. J. Foyt. As the field approached the start-finish line to start the race, Cogan suddenly swerved right, touching and bouncing off Foyt's car, and directly into the path of and collectingMario Andretti. The cars ofDale Whittington andRoger Mears, deeper in the field, were also damaged due to the field checking up.Bobby Rahal also reported getting hit from behind, but was undamaged. The race was immediately red-flagged.

Cogan's shocking accident took out four cars, including himself and Andretti. Foyt's team was able to make repairs and pushed his car out for the restart attempt. Meanwhile, Andretti and Foyt were furious and outspoken about their displeasure with Cogan. Andretti shunned Cogan's attempts to explain himself with a light shove.

Andretti on live radio and television^[2] said,^[3] "This is what happens when you have children doing a man's job up front." Back in the garage area, Andretti complained about Cogan's abilities, claiming that Cogan was "looking for trouble", that he "couldn't handle the responsibilities of the front row" and that thePenske car he was driving was "too good for him".^[4]

The commonly outspoken Foyt also chimed in during comments to ABC'sChris Economaki with,^[2] "...he ran right square into my goddamned left front...'Coogin'." Later, Foyt said back in the garage area,^[4][5] of the crash and of Cogan that "It was a stupid deal. The guy had his head up his ass."

Gordon Johncock,Johnny Rutherford^[4] andBobby Unser^[2] later placed some blame for the accident on the polesitterRick Mears, for bringing the field down at such a slow pace. Johncock, who went on to win the 1982 race, pointed out that Andretti had jumped the start, and could have avoided the spinning car of Cogan had he been lined up properly in the second row.^[5] Foyt wrote a memoir of his career in 1983 and when mentioning the crash, in a more analytic form, assigned some blame on Mears for the slow start, while assigning Cogan the rest of the responsibility.

At the end of theUSAC Gold Crown season, Cogan finished 47th in points. The reason was that Cogan ran the 1981 race without a USAC Class I license and received no points for his 4th-place finish.

Cogan quickly fell out of favor following the humiliation stemming from the accident. It was followed by a noticeable "blacklisting" by fans and press.^[6] Cogan nearly had the dubious distinction of taking out two of the most famous American auto racing legends (Foyt andAndretti) in one move in the biggest race of the season. The incident also further rehashed a standing feud betweenTeam Penske andPatrick Racing. A year earlier, Penske and Patrick were the key fixtures in the controversial1981 race. In a post-wreck interview, Penske stood behind Cogan, although he also refused to confirm nor deny the broken CV-joint believed to be responsible. As a result, Cogan faced a firestorm of controversy that impacted the remainder of his career.

Cogan never managed to win a race in 1982, and was possibly fired byRoger Penske because of it and replaced byAl Unser in1983.^[7]

The accident was never explained by the Penske team, however, several experts had differing opinions.Rodger Ward, working for theIMS Radio Network immediately believed the rear brakes locked up.^[8] It was a common practice for drivers in the turbocharged era to "ride the brakes" during warm up laps in order to engage the turbocharger. Others theorized it may have happened due to a brokenCV joint. Some feel thatSam Posey on ABC-TV inadvertently may have added to the controversy when he proclaimed "absolutely no idea" to the question of how it could have happened,^[2] and saying "it was as if he turned the wheel intentionally."^[2] The comments led many to conclude that the accident may have been entirely of Cogan's doing. As soon as he climbed from the car, Cogan was observed looking at the rear end axle, suggesting that he thought something broke.

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In1983 Cogan began driving for Bignotti-Cotter Racing in the No. 6 Master Mechanic/Caesars PalaceMarch 83C-Cosworth DFX (numbered 16 at Indianapolis only). During the season results were hard to come by for Cogan with his best finish being a 5th place at theIndianapolis 500 where teammateTom Sneva won. Helping neither Cogan nor Sneva was that Bignotti-Cotter began to develop theTheodore 83 rather than continue to use the provenMarch 83C. At the end of the season Cogan finished 15th in the CART standings and 6th in the USAC standings. At year's end, team co-ownerGeorge Bignotti retired and sold his share of the operation to co-owner Dan Cotter, who did not retain Cogan for 1984.

For1984 Cogan was originally going to drive the No. 98Dubonnet/Curb RecordsLigier LC02-Cosworth DFX forCurb Racing and the No. 98DubonnetEagle 84SB-PontiacV8 forAll American Racers each in select races. At the season-openingToyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on theStreets of Long Beach Cogan would start 21st and finish in 28th place in the Ligier. At theDana Jimmy Bryan 150 atPhoenix International Raceway Cogan would finish in 8th place aboard the Eagle. Then at theIndianapolis 500 Cogan returned to the Ligier. The car was off the pace at the beginning of practice and Cogan faced the possibility of failing to qualify. Cogan would eventually qualify for the race after Ligier and Curb parted ways, and whenMichael Chandler suffered career-ending injuries in the Eagle. During this timeMike Curb andDan Gurney merged their teams to formCurb-All American Racers. In the race Cogan qualified in 27th place, setting a new speed record for stock block engines at Indianapolis. In the race Cogan retired to 20th place after suffering a frozen wheel after 137 laps. Cogan would leave Curb-All American Racers after theBudweiser Cleveland Grand Prix atBurke Lakefront Airport. Cogan would then start driving forForsythe Racing in the No. 33Skoal BanditMarch 84C-Cosworth DFX. Initially results were good as Cogan was able to start 5th and finish 8th in his debut for the team at theMichigan 500 atMichigan International Speedway and would follow it up with a 10th-place finish at theProvimi Veal 200 atRoad America. During practice for theDomino's Pizza 500 atPocono International Raceway, Cogan crashed in turn two. The force of the frontal impact caused broken heels in both feet, a torn Achilles tendon on his left foot, and a shatteredtalus bone on his right foot.^[9] The injuries ended Cogan's season and he finished 24th in points.

In1985 Cogan would begin to drive forKraco Racing in the No. 18Kraco Car Stereo/Wolff SystemsMarch 85C-Cosworth DFX. The season had its ups and downs such as Cogan nearly failing to qualify for theIndianapolis 500, eventually starting in 32nd place and finishing 11th. Cogan would also get a 4th-place finish at theDetroit News 200 atMichigan International Speedway and a 5th-place finish at theStroh's/G.I. Joe's 200 atPortland International Raceway to get a 14th-place finish in points.

For1986 Cogan joinedPatrick Racing to drive the No. 77-ElevenMarch 86C-Cosworth DFX. At the season openingDana 200 for Special Olympics atPhoenix International Raceway Cogan scored his first Indycar win, leading 2nd placeTom Sneva by a lap. It was also the first time Cogan led the CART standings in his career. With 13 laps to go in theIndianapolis 500, Cogan made a bold move to passRick Mears andBobby Rahal in less than a lap when both were held up by the slower car ofRandy Lanier. Despite his car conspicuously oversteering in the turns, Cogan pulled away to a 3-second lead before a caution came out on lap 195 for a crash byArie Luyendyk in turn four. Cogan did not get a good restart on lap 198 and was passed by Rahal, eventually finishing in 2nd place. Cogan still led the standings after Indianapolis but suffered retirements in seven of the fourteen remaining races and fell to 6th in the championship.

For1987 Cogan would return with Patrick, making it the first team Cogan drove for in consecutive years, driving the No. 7MarlboroMarch 87C-Ilmor-Chevrolet Indy V8 265A. The season would turn out to be a disappointment as Cogan got a best finish of 5th at theEscort Radar Warning 200 atMid-Ohio Sports Car Course and theBosch Spark Plug Grand Prix atNazareth Speedway to get a 16th-place finish in points.

In1988 Cogan would begin to drive forMachinists Union Racing in the No. 11Schaefer Beer/Playboy FashionsMarch 88C-Cosworth DFX (although an 87C was used at theMiller High Life 200 at theMilwaukee Mile). The season started off well as Cogan got a 3rd-place finish at theToyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on theStreets of Long Beach. After seven rounds Cogan was ranked 11th in points when he was injured while competing at theMolson Indy Toronto atExhibition Place. Cogan would miss four races but would still finish 13th in points on the strength of a 4th-place finish at theNissan Indy Challenge atTamiami Park.

For1989 Cogan returned with the Machinists Union driving the No. 11Schaefer Beer/Playboy FashionsMarch 88C-Cosworth DFX. Another frustrating season saw Cogan finish 14th in points with a best finish of 8th at theChampion Spark Plug 300K atLaguna Seca Raceway. The only 'highlight' of Cogan's season was a major crash at theIndianapolis 500. At the end of the third lap, Cogan spun in turn four and hit the entrance to the pit lane. The car broke in half, rebounded and slammed into the end of the pit wall before finally sliding to a stop on its side in the pit lane. To everyone's surprise, Cogan immediately climbed from his destroyed car unharmed.

In1990 Cogan could only get a drive forIndianapolis forVince Granatelli Racing in the No. 11Tuneup MastersPenske PC18-BuickV6. In the race Cogan qualified in 15th place and finished in 9th place. Cogan would later get a second race at theMarlboro 500 atMichigan International Speedway for Stoops Racing in the No. 17ConsecoLola T9000-Cosworth DFS starting 13th and finishing 20th. Cogan would finish out the season 23rd in points.

In1991 Cogan would joinTeam Menard to drive the No. 9Glidden/MenardsLola T9100-BuickV6 at theIndianapolis 500. During qualifying Cogan was unable to make an attempt due to rain and would have to wait for the second day. Cogan would easily qualify for the race in 16th place with a speed that would have placed him easily in the top ten along with other drivers, such as teammateGary Bettenhausen,Arie Luyendyk,Emerson Fittipaldi andStan Fox. In the race Cogan was involved in a crash withRoberto Guerrero on lap 25. Cogan suffered serious injuries with his right femur broken near the hip in four lengthwise pieces, requiring seven and a half hours of surgery. He also suffered a broken right forearm and shoulder.^[10]

Original television footage was inconclusive, and Cogan firmly assessed the blame on Guerrero, claiming that Guerrero cut down on him. An amateur home video shot from the grandstands surfaced, however,^[11] which showed that Cogan may have moved up into Guerrero. At the very least, the video showed that it may have been a simple racing accident, although Cogan still holds Guerrero responsible. As a result of the crash Cogan missed the remainder of the year (Menard wasn't going to do anymore races) andthe next year. Cogan scored no points during the season.

For1993 Cogan would drive forGalles-Kraco Racing in the No. 11ConsecoLola T9300-Ilmor-Chevrolet Indy V8 265A in a part-time schedule. At Cogan's debut for the year, theIndianapolis 500 Cogan was on the bubble on Bump Day and was nearly bumped byBobby Rahal. Rahal was not successful and Cogan started in 14th place and would lead for four laps during pit stops, eventually finishing in 14th place. Cogan would drive in three more races for Galles-Kraco, getting a best finish of 13th at theBudweiser Grand Prix of Cleveland atBurke Lakefront Airport. Cogan would again score no points towards the championship.

Cogan would retire from racing at the end of 1993 with 6th place in 1982 and 1986 being his best finish in the CART standings and his win at Phoenix in 1986 being his only win.

Since leaving IndyCar, Cogan has distanced himself from racing (which includes not watching the races), stating that any interest in the sport died withScott Brayton in 1996. Instead, he concentrated on a real estate business inLos Angeles in the Palos Verdes estates. Cogan declined invitations to be interviewed for the centennial era of theIndianapolis Motor Speedway in 2009 in which many IndyCar legends and IndyCar drivers were interviewed by ESPN. Cogan also refused invitations to participate in Indianapolis 500 festivities during the100th anniversary of the race in 2011. He granted a rare interview in 2015 about his life, noting that he has lingering pain from the crashes he suffered in racing (foot, shoulder, and forearm), which include shaky balance.^[12]

In 1988, ESPN reporter Jack Arute reported that Cogan was married, to Tracy, and had a son. The couple has since been divorced since 2004. In the 2015 interview with Curt Cavin, it was revealed that Cogan has two more children, a daughter and a son, since his retirement.

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Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1988	Silk Cut Jaguar	Derek Daly Larry Perkins	Jaguar XJR-9LM	C1	383	4th	4th

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