1986 CART PPG Indy Car World Series

1986 CART season
1986 CART season
PPG Indy Car World Series
	; ; Bobby Rahal
Season
Races	17
Start date	April 6
End date	November 11
Awards
Drivers' champion	Bobby Rahal
Constructors' Cup	March
Manufacturers' Cup	Cosworth
Nations' Cup	United States
Rookie of the Year	Chip Robinson
Indianapolis 500 winner	Bobby Rahal
	← 1985 1987 →

The 1986 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season was the 8th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by CART. The season consisted of 17 races, and one non-points exhibition event. Bobby Rahal was the national champion, and the rookie of the year was Chip Robinson. The 1986 Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by USAC, but counted towards the CART points championship. Bobby Rahal won the Indy 500, and would later become the first driver since 1980 to win Indy and the CART championship in the same season.

The first two races of the season were won by Kevin Cogan (Phoenix) and Michael Andretti (Long Beach), respectively, the first career wins for both drivers on the CART circuit. Rain delayed the Indianapolis 500, postponing it for six days. Bobby Rahal, driving for Truesports, passed Kevin Cogan with two laps to go, and won for car owner Jim Trueman, who was stricken with cancer. Trueman died less than two weeks later.

The season would shape up as a two-man battle between Rahal and Michael Andretti. Andretti won at Milwaukee, which put him in the points lead for the first time. On Father's Day, Andretti was leading on the final lap at Portland. His car ran out of fuel on the final turn of the final lap, and his father Mario beat him to the finish line by 0.07 seconds. It would go down in lore as one of the most shocking finishes in Indy car history, as well as the closest finish in Indy car history on a road course (until 1997).

Rahal was back in victory lane in July, winning the inaugural Molson Indy Toronto, but Michael Andretti still held the points lead. Rahal won four out of five races during a stretch in August and September, and emerged with a 9-point lead in the standings with two races left. Michael Andretti won a key victory at the second-to-last race of the season at Phoenix, while Rahal finished 3rd.

Going into the season finale at Tamiami Park, Rahal held a scant 3-point lead over Andretti. Neither driver was a factor at Miami, and just past the halfway point, Andretti dropped out with a broken halfshaft. Rahal effectively clinched the championship when Andretti dropped out. Roberto Guerrero won the pole and dominated the race, leading the first 111 laps. But on the final lap, his car sputtered and he ran out of fuel. Al Unser Jr. slipped by to steal the victory, his lone win of 1986. Unser Jr. won from 19th starting position, the furthest back any driver had won a CART road/street course race at the time.

Drivers and Teams

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1986 Indy Car World Series season. All cars used Goodyear tires.

Team	Chassis	Engine	No*	Drivers	Rounds
Bignotti-Cotter Racing	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	2 (5)	Roberto Guerrero	All
Curb-All American Racers	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	33	Tom Sneva	All
			66	Ed Pimm	All except 8, 11-12, 14
			66	Derek Daly	8, 11-12, 14
	Eagle 86GC		98	Jan Lammers	1-3
Dick Simon Racing	Lola T86/00	Cosworth DFX	22	Raul Boesel	All
			23	Dick Simon	3, 10, 12
				Chip Robinson	6-7, 17
				Ian Ashley	8, 11, 14
Galles Racing	Lola T86/00 (2-11, 13-17)^[1] March 86C(1, 12)^[2]	Cosworth DFX (1-4, 12-17)^[3] Honda/Judd (5-11)^[4]	8	Geoff Brabham	All
	Lola T86/00	Cosworth DFX	9	Roberto Moreno	1-11, 13-17
			9	Pancho Carter	12
			15	Pancho Carter	3, 9-10
Hemelgarn Racing	March 86C (1, 3, 9-10, 13)^[5]	Cosworth DFX (1, 9-10, 13)^[6] Buick V-6 (3)^[7]	71	Scott Brayton	1, 3, 9-10, 13
		Cosworth DFX	71	Jacques Villeneuve Sr.	2, 4-8, 11-12, 14-17
		Cosworth DFX	81	Jacques Villeneuve Sr.	3
Kraco Racing	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	18	Michael Andretti	All
Leader Card Racing	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	24	Gary Bettenhausen	1, 3-4, 9-10, 12-13, 16
	March 86C		24	Dominic Dobson	2, 5-8, 11, 14-15, 17
	March 85C		42	Phil Krueger	3
Machinists Union Racing	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	55	Josele Garza	1-11, 17
				Johnny Parsons	12-13, 16
				Desiré Wilson	14-15
			59	Desiré Wilson	11
				Chip Ganassi	1, 3
				Johnny Parsons	4, 7, 9-10
			95	Johnny Parsons	3
Alex Morales Motorsports	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	6	Rich Vogler	3
Alex Morales Motorsports	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	21	Johnny Rutherford	All
Newman/Haas Racing	Lola T86/00	Cosworth DFX	5 (2)	Mario Andretti	All
Patrick Racing	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	7	Kevin Cogan	All
Patrick Racing	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	20	Emerson Fittipaldi	All
Penske Racing	March 86C (1, 3-5, 7-11, 13-16)^[8] Penske PC-15 (2, 6, 12, 17)^[9]	Cosworth DFX (1, 3-5, 7-10)^[10] Chevy 265A (2, 6, 11-17)^[11]	1/ 86 (4)	Rick Mears	All
	March 86C (1-16)^[12] Penske PC-15 (17)	Cosworth DFX (1-16)^[13] Chevy 265A (17)	4 (1)	Danny Sullivan	All
	March 86C (9-10, 17) Penske PC-15 (1, 3)	Chevy 265A (1, 3, 9-10, 17	11	Al Unser	1, 3, 9-10, 17
Doug Shierson Racing	Lola T86/00	Cosworth DFX	30	Al Unser Jr.	All
Truesports	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	3	Bobby Rahal	All
Part-time entries
A. J. Foyt Enterprises	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	14	A. J. Foyt	1, 3-4, 9-10, 13, 16-17
		Chevy V6	44	Mike Nish	3
		Cosworth DFX	84	George Snider	3, 9
		Cosworth DFX	84	Sammy Swindell	10
Arciero Racing	March 86C March 85C (11, 13)	Cosworth DFX	12	Randy Lanier	1-9
				Steve Chassey	11, 14-16
				Eddie Cheever	17
				Jeff MacPherson	13
Bettenhausen Motorsports	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	16	Tony Bettenhausen Jr.	3
Bettenhausen Motorsports	Lola T86/00/ March 86C	Cosworth DFX	61	Arie Luyendyk	All except 5 and 12
Dale Coyne Racing	Coyne DC-1	Chevy	19	Dale Coyne	All except 3-4
Gohr Racing	March 86C	Buick V-6 (Until Mid-Ohio) Cosworth DFX	56	Steve Chassey	3-4, 9
				Rocky Moran	6-7, 10-11, 13-17
				John Morton	8
	March 85C	Buick V-6	65	Rupert Keegan	3
J.P. Racing	Lola T900	Cosworth DFX	10	Spike Gehlhausen	3, 9-10, 13
March Engineering	March 86C	Buick V-6	25	Danny Ongais	3
March Engineering	March 86C	Buick V-6	31	Jim Crawford	3
Mosquito Autosport	March 85C	Cosworth DFX	16 (19)	Rick Miaskiewicz	2-4, 6-8
Pace Racing	Lola T86/00	Cosworth DFX	36	Randy Lewis	2, 6-8, 11, 14-15, 17
Pace Racing	Lola T86/00	Cosworth DFX	36	Dennis Firestone	3, 9-10, 12, 13, 16
Team Menard	March 86C	Cosworth DFX	28	Herm Johnson	3

- The number in parentheses for chassis & engine indicates the round number it was used at.
- The number in parentheses for car number is the number the car used at the Indianapolis 500, if a different number was used.

Season Summary

Schedule


Rd	Date	Name	Circuit	Location	TV Broadcaster
1	April 6	Dana 200 for Special Olympics	O Phoenix International Raceway	Avondale, Arizona	ESPN
2	April 13	Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach	R Streets of Long Beach	Long Beach, California	NBC
3	May 31*	Indianapolis 500	O Indianapolis Motor Speedway	Indianapolis, Indiana	ABC
4	June 8**	Miller American 200 in Honor of Rex Mays	O Milwaukee Mile	West Allis, Wisconsin	ESPN
5	June 15	Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200	R Portland International Raceway	Portland, Oregon	ESPN
6	June 29	Chase Grand Prix at the Meadowlands	R Meadowlands Sports Complex	East Rutherford, New Jersey	NBC
7	July 6	Budweiser Cleveland Grand Prix	R Burke Lakefront Airport	Cleveland, Ohio	ESPN
8	July 20	Molson Indy Toronto	R Streets of Toronto	Toronto, Ontario	ESPN
9	August 2	Michigan 500	O Michigan International Speedway	Brooklyn, Michigan	NBC
10	August 17	Domino's Pizza 500	O Pocono International Raceway	Long Pond, Pennsylvania	ESPN
11	August 31	Escort Radar Warning 200	R Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course	Lexington, Ohio	ESPN
12	September 7	Molson Indy Montreal	O Sanair Super Speedway	Saint-Pie, Quebec	ESPN
13	September 28	Pepsi Cola 250	O Michigan International Speedway	Brooklyn, Michigan	ESPN
14	October 4***	Race For Life 200	R Road America	Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin	Untelevised
15	October 12	Nissan Monterey Grand Prix Featuring the Champion Spark Plug 300	R Laguna Seca Raceway	Monterey, California	ESPN
16	October 19	Circle K/Fiesta Bowl 200	O Phoenix International Raceway	Avondale, Arizona	ESPN
17	November 9	Nissan Indy Challenge	R Tamiami Park	Miami, Florida	NBC

O Oval/Speedway
R Road/Street course
NC Non-championship event
*The Indianapolis 500 was scheduled for May 25, but postponed due to rain.
**The Miller American 200 in Honor of Rex Mays was scheduled for June 1, but postponed due to the delay of running the Indianapolis 500 on May 31.
***The Road America race was started on September 21, but stopped after a few laps due to rain, the rest was run on October 4.

Race results

Rd	Event Name	Pole Position	Winner	Winning team	Race time
1	Dana 200 for Special Olympics	Mario Andretti	Kevin Cogan	Patrick Racing	1:39:42
2	Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach	Danny Sullivan	Michael Andretti	Kraco Racing	1:57:34
3	Indianapolis 500	Rick Mears	Bobby Rahal	Truesports	2:55:43
4	Miller American 200 in Honor of Rex Mays	Michael Andretti	Michael Andretti	Kraco Racing	1:42:45
5	Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200	Emerson Fittipaldi	Mario Andretti	Newman/Haas Racing	1:50:53
6	Chase Grand Prix at the Meadowlands	Michael Andretti	Danny Sullivan	Team Penske	1:49:17
7	Budweiser Cleveland Grand Prix	Danny Sullivan	Danny Sullivan	Team Penske	1:43:01
8	Molson Indy Toronto	Emerson Fittipaldi	Bobby Rahal	Truesports	2:05:50
9	Michigan 500	Rick Mears	Johnny Rutherford	Alex Morales Motorsports	3:38:45
10	Domino's Pizza 500	Michael Andretti	Mario Andretti	Newman/Haas Racing	3:17:13
11	Escort Radar Warning 200	Mario Andretti	Bobby Rahal	Truesports	1:56:18
12	Molson Indy Montreal	Rick Mears	Bobby Rahal	Truesports	1:48:05
13	Pepsi Cola 250	Rick Mears	Bobby Rahal	Truesports	1:22:33
14	Race for Life 200	Bobby Rahal	Emerson Fittipaldi	Patrick Racing	2:26:42
15	Champion Spark Plug 300k	Mario Andretti	Bobby Rahal	Truesports	1:33:20
16	Circle K/Fiesta Bowl 200	Bobby Rahal	Michael Andretti	Kraco Racing	1:29:06
17	Nissan Indy Challenge	Roberto Guerrero	Al Unser Jr.	Doug Shierson Racing	1:52:45

Indianapolis was USAC-sanctioned but counted towards the CART title.

Drivers points standings

Pos	Driver	PHX1	LBH	INDY	MIL	POR	MEA	CLE	TOR	MIC1	POC	MDO	SAN	MIC2	ROA	LAG	PHX2	MIA	Pts
1	Bobby Rahal	16	18	1	6	20	3	15	1	10*	14	1	1*	1	5	1*	3	8	179
2	Michael Andretti	15*	1*	6	1*	2*	20	2	19	11	11*	10	6	2*	2*	3	1*	18	171
3	Danny Sullivan	4	11	9	11	11	1	1*	2	25	16	3*	5	12	6	2	2	26	147
4	Al Unser Jr.	12	2	5	8	3	9	8	4*	8	6	5	2	21	11	23	6	1	137
5	Mario Andretti	7	5	32	5	1	24	3	3	21	1	24	8	10	9	4	4	11	136
6	Kevin Cogan	1	17	2	12	14	21	23	5	22	2	4	4	4	20	9	14	4	115
7	Emerson Fittipaldi	3	16	7	24	12	2	13	17	20	19	21	3	3	1	7	5	20	103
8	Rick Mears	19	20	3*	3	16	19	4	8	12	8	17	18	8	3	17	20	3	89
9	Roberto Guerrero	8	DNS	4	18	13	4*	17	20	24	21	2	17	22	4	5	12	2*	87
10	Tom Sneva	2	4	33	2	4	17	5	9	18	15	12	13	5	12	22	18	22	82
11	Johnny Rutherford	5	9	8	4	15	7	10	10	1	18	8	16	9	14	12	9	12	78
12	Geoff Brabham	10	3	12	21	7	22	14	14	4	12	20	11	11	22	6	8	5	64
13	Raul Boesel	13	19	13	14	8	23	6	7	5	5	7	9	15	8	14	13	19	54
14	Josele Garza	23	7	18	7	17	8	7	23	2	7	14						24	45
15	Jacques Villeneuve Sr.		8	20	15	5	5	19	24			11	19		10	19	16	6	38
16	Roberto Moreno	20	6	19	13	18	18	25	18	6	10	16		6	16	20	10	17	30
17	Arie Luyendyk	6	15	15	9		16	24	6	23	17	18		13	7	10	15	21	29
18	Ed Pimm	22	22	17	10	6	12	DNS		15	24			7		11	7	10	29
19	Pancho Carter			16						3	3		15						28
20	Randy Lanier	11	13	10	20	9	6	9	21	19									21
21	A. J. Foyt	17		24	19					9	4			16			22	23	16
22	Jan Lammers	9	14	DNQ												8	23	9	13
23	Derek Daly			DNQ								6	10		13				11
24	Johnny Parsons			27	22			21		16	29		7	23			11		8
25	Randy Lewis		10				10	20	11			15			24	18		14	8
26	Chip Robinson RY						14											7	6
27	Spike Gehlhausen			DNQ						7	22			18					6
28	Ian Ashley								15			9			23				4
29	Sammy Swindell										9								4
30	Mike Nish R			DNQ	DNS	10	24		22										3
31	Dominic Dobson R		12			19	11	18	16			19			18	21		13	3
32	Rick Miaskiewicz R		21	DNQ	16		15	11	13	DNS									2
33	Gary Bettenhausen	21		11	23					26	13		21	20			19		2
34	Dale Coyne	DNQ	23			21	DNQ	12	DNQ	DNQ	26	23	12	DNQ	17	DNS	DNQ	25	2
35	John Morton								12										1
36	Rocky Moran R						13	16			25	25		DNQ	21	15	21	16	0
37	Jeff MacPherson											22			15	13	DNQ		0
38	Desiré Wilson											13			19	16			0
39	Scott Brayton	24		30						13	27			19					0
40	Dennis Firestone			Wth						17	28		14	14			17		0
41	Al Unser	18		22						14	20							15	0
42	Dick Simon			14				22			23		20						0
43	Chip Ganassi	14		21															0
44	Steve Chassey			DNQ	17					28				17					0
45	Danny Ongais			23															0
46	Tom Phillips															24			0
47	Rich Vogler			25															0
48	George Snider			26						27									0
49	Eddie Cheever																	27	0
50	Tony Bettenhausen Jr.			28															0
51	Jim Crawford			29															0
52	Phil Krueger			31															0
-	Rupert Keegan R			DNQ															-
-	Herm Johnson			DNQ															-
-	Steve Bren R			DNQ															-
-	John Paul Jr.			Wth															-
Pos	Driver	PHX1	LBH	INDY	MIL	POR	MEA	CLE	TOR	MIC1	POC	MDO	SAN	MIC2	ROA	LAG	PHX2	MIA	Pts

Color	Result
Gold	Winner
Silver	2nd place
Bronze	3rd place
Green	4th-6th place
Light Blue	7th–12th place
Dark Blue	Finished (Outside Top 12)
Purple	Did not finish
Red	Did not qualify (DNQ)
Brown	Withdrawn (Wth)
Black	Disqualified (DSQ)
White	Did not start (DNS)
Blank	Did not participate (DNP)
	Driver replacement (Rpl)
	Injured (Inj)
	Race not held (NH)
	Not competing

In-line notation
Bold	Pole position
Italics	Ran fastest race lap
*	Led most race laps
RY	Rookie of the Year
R	Rookie

References

Åberg, Andreas. "PPG Indy Car World Series 1986". Driver Database. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
"1986 PPG Indy Car World Series". Champ Car Stats. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
"Official Box Score: 70th Indianapolis 500-Mile Race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway". Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Archived from the original on 2008-06-28. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
"Champ Car > Standings after Beatrice Indy Challange [sic]". Champ Car World Series. October 22, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-10-22. Retrieved June 11, 2013.

[1] "Driver Season Stats".

[2] "Driver Season Stats".

[3] "Driver Season Stats".

[4] "Driver Season Stats".

[5] "Driver Season Stats".

[6] "Driver Season Stats".

[7] "Driver Season Stats".

[8] "Driver Season Stats".

[9] "Driver Season Stats".

[10] "Driver Season Stats".

[11] "Driver Season Stats".

[12] "Driver Season Stats".

[13] "Driver Season Stats".

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