bob jennings' WORLD O' RACING
To Floyd go the Spoils
(originally presented
09/28/96)
CART Champion Jimmy Vasser at Milwaukee in 1996
Bob Jennings
Floyd "Chip" Ganassi had a terrific day at Laguna Seca on September 8. His two Target Reynard - Hondas took the honors. The jovial, rotund "rich kid" owner, of Chip Ganassi Race Teams, saw one driver, Alex Zanardi, take his third win of the season, while his other driver, Jimmy Vasser, took the 1996 CART PPG World Series championship.
It had to be one of the best days of Ganassi's life and he appears to be on a roll. He married recently. He's rich. His race cars have been at the head of the CART competition all season. His racing team looks like a good bet to win again in 1997.
Ganassi is always smiling. From the way he looked, when Paul Page wished him luck, prior to the start of the Laguna Seca race, during ESPN2's pre-race programming, he's eating well too. If Ganassi's eating habits run parallel to his racing success and 1997 is a repeat of 1996, he'll have to be transported to the pits on a flat bed truck.
Regardless that he isn't one of my favorite racing people, he did a hell of a job putting together his racing team.
A favorite, of the photos I took at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during May 1982, shows Ganassi sitting in the Jack Rhodes owned Wildcat - Cosworth, preparing to take to the track, during practice. He was the fastest qualifier, at 197.704 mph, among the rookies qualifying for the 1982 "Indianapolis 500". That group included Bobby Rahal and Danny Sullivan; not too shabby competition. I recall when Ganassi made his run, on Pole Day, 1982. Ganassi was largely unknown to the fans, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Tom Carnegie, in his usual "down home" Speedway public address style, told the crowd that Ganassi was graduating from college, the next weekend. Ganassi was but a kid at the time. One of the fun things about racing is watching personalities develop over the years, as I've been able to do with Ganassi.
He finished 15th, in his debut at Indianapolis. He made six CART starts, in 1982, with a top finish of 11th and completed 449 laps in competition.
Ganassi actually appeared to have some promise as a driver. He signed with Patrick Racing, in 1983, as a replacement for the injured Johnny Rutherford. He qualified for Indianapolis, at 197.608 mph, to finish eighth. He made 10 CART starts in 1983, with third place finishes, at the temporary circuit, at Caesar's Palace, in Las Vegas, and at Laguna Seca. Ganassi's Patrick Racing March - Cosworth had well funded Old Milwaukee Beer support for the 1984 season. He qualified at 201.612 mph, at Indianapolis, finishing 28th. At Cleveland he had a second place finish. Things appeared to moving for Ganassi, going into the "Michigan 500", in late July 1984.
His crash at Michigan, with Al Unser Jr., was violent and spectacular, and Ganassi is lucky to have survived. Everyone has seen the crash, either on a highlight reel, or in one of those "real crash" videos that are pitched during telecasts of NASCAR races. I recall talking with people, who had also been to the Michigan race, that evening, at a Northeast Indiana rest area, along Interstate 69. There was speculation that Ganassi might not live through the night.
Pat Patrick signed Emerson Fittipaldi, who was beginning his return to racing, to replace Ganassi. Of course, the rest of that story is racing history.
Ganassi recovered quickly enough, from his Michigan injuries, to qualify 22nd at 206.104 mph for Indianapolis, in one of A.J. Foyt's cars. He had one other start that season. In 1986, he qualified one of the Machinists Union entries, for Indianapolis, at 207.590 mph, and finished 21st. He had one other start in 1986. His driving career drifted into obscurity after that.
In 1988, he purchased an interest in former employer Patrick Racing. In 1989, Patrick - Ganassi Racing "kicked butt". Fittipaldi won Indianapolis and five CART races, in the team Marlboro Penske - Chevrolets, on the way to the 1989 CART championship.
Emmo and the Marlboro sponsorship moved to Penske Racing, for 1990, and Patrick and Ganassi split their racing partnership to form two new racing teams. Patrick, engineer Morris "Mo" Nunn and team manager Jim McGee joined Alfa Romeo, March and Miller Brewing to form Patrick Racing International, with Roberto Guerrero and Al Unser as drivers.
Ganassi formed Chip Ganassi Race Teams, assuming the former Patrick Racing facilities, on the northwest side of Indianapolis. He purchased the ex-Fittipaldi Penske - Chevrolets that had been so successful in 1989, and promoted Emmo's former crew chief, Tom Anderson, to team manager. Formula One refugee Eddie Cheever signed to drive the Ganassi entry, with Target stores as the major sponsor.
1990 was the most recent season when there was a major redesign of the Indianapolis-style racing car prior to the new Indy Racing League specifications for 1997. The ground effects tunnels were reduced substantially and the overall chassis profile and length was redefined to compensate for the reduction in down force. The teams gambling on 1989 chassis packages, like Ganassi, were at a big disadvantage. Both USAC, at Indianapolis, and CART, developed aerodynamic structures, called diffusers for the 1989 cars to make them compatible with the smaller, longer 1990 cars. Cheever qualified the Ganassi Target 1989 Penske - Chevrolet 14th, at 217.926 mph, finished eighth in the "Indianapolis 500" and won the annual Rookie of the Year award. By mid season, however, the deficiencies of a year old package began to become pretty obvious, prompting Ganassi to acquire a 1990 Lola.
Even with the disadvantages of an obsolete package, for much of the season, and a steep learning curve, it was a good beginning season for Ganassi and Cheever. They had a third place, at Toronto, and accumulated a season total 80 points, which placed them ninth in the 1990 CART standings.
Cheever displayed a lot of speed, during practice, for the 1991 "Indianapolis 500", and qualified tenth, at 218.122 mph. There was optimism within the Ganassi team, about Cheever's chances in the "500". Electrical problems, however, forced the Target Scotch Video Lola - Chevrolet out of the race early, with a 31st place finish. Cheever finished ninth, again, in the CART standings, with 67 points, with a season best fourth place finish at Denver.
During 1991, Ganassi began his on again off again relationship with engineer Mo Nunn. He also committed to the new Ford Cosworth Indy car engine program to begin the next season.
The 1992 Lola - Ford package was superior to the Chevrolet powered cars immediately. Ganassi and the Newman Haas team, with the Andrettis, were the only teams running the new Ford Cosworth XB V8 power. Cheever had an early season second place finish at Phoenix. Off road racing star Robby Gordon signed to do selective races in a Target/Scotch Lola - Ford, while 1990 Indianapolis winner Arie Luyendyk signed for the 500 milers at Indianapolis and Michigan.
At the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May, the Ford powered cars, the Kenny Bernstein Quaker State Lola - Buicks and John Menard's Lola - Buicks were running in the fastest group during practice. Rain delayed the start of Pole Position qualifications, on May 9, until late in the afternoon. When the runs started, there was a classic display of "Pole Day' drama. Luyendyk set the one lap Indianapolis record, with a 229.305 mph lap, and the four lap record, at 229.127 mph. Gary Bettenhausen beat Arie's one lap mark, with a 229.317 mph lap, but Arie's four lap record stood until Roberto Guerrero's 232.618 mph lap and 232.482 mph run erased both one and four lap records. The next day, with Pole Position runs continuing, in hot, slick conditions, Cheever qualified his Target/Scotch Lola - Ford, at 229.639 mph, which placed him between Guerrero and Mario Andretti, on the front row of the grid.
Once the wreckage, from Guerrero's Parade Lap mishap, had been cleared, and the 1992 "500" began, the Andrettis went around either side of Cheever, into turn one, in a spectacular display of high-speed bravado. Both Target/Scotch cars ran near the front during the first half of the race, with Cheever leading nine laps and Luyendyk leading one. Arie crashed, on lap 137, while running second. Cheever was assessed a one lap penalty, which was later lifted, and he finished fourth; the only Ford powered car still running at the finish.
At season end, Cheever was tenth in the CART standings, and was replaced for 1993 by Luyendyk.
Arie took Pole Position, at Indianapolis, at 223.967 mph, and finished a close second to Emerson Fittipaldi. The rest of the 1993 season was a big disappointment, though, prompting Ganassi to make more changes for 1993.
In July 1993 Ganassi announced he would switch to the new Reynard chassis for 1994. At Nazareth, in September, it was announced that Michael Andretti was coming to the Ganassi team, after his Formula One career, with McLaren, had ended abruptly, the previous weekend at Monza.
The 1994 season opened with an Andretti win, at Surfer's Paradise, giving Reynard, a win in its CART debut, and an initial victory to the Ganassi team. Michael took another win, at Toronto, in July. Andretti's stay with Ganassi was short though. In June 1994 he signed to return to his former seat at Newman Haas in 1995.
To replace Andretti, Ganassi signed
second year CART driver and 1993 Indy Lights champion Bryan Herta. He added
a second car, to be driven by Jimmy Vasser, with support from STP. Retiring
NFL star Joe Montana joined the team in a promotional
role.
Herta won the pole, at Phoenix, in record speed, then destroyed his originally qualified car, at Indianapolis, during practice. In July Herta lost the Cleveland race on the final lap to Jacques Villeneuve.
Vasser had a more impressive season. Strategic pit stops placed Vasser in the lead, at Indianapolis, with 25 laps remaining. Jimmy caught the fourth turn wall trying to stay ahead of Scott Goodyear's Tasman LCI Reynard - Honda and Scott Pruett's Patrick Firestone Lola - Ford. Vasser was handed the win, at Portland, after winner Al Unser Jr's Penske was disqualified for not meeting minimum ground clearance, in a post race inspection. That ruling was reversed, however, shortly after the 1995 CART season had concluded.
Ganassi signed Vasser for a second season, but replaced Herta with unemployed Italian Formula One driver Alex Zanardi. That proved to be a shrewd move, for Ganassi, based on Zanardi's impressive 1996 season.
The most decisive decisions, however, came when Ganassi chose expensive Honda power and Firestone tires for this past season. Ganassi's switch to Firestone was the first for an established CART team.
Ganassi's decisions paid off immediately, as Vasser opened the season with a win at the new Miami oval. Vasser followed that, with wins through the streets of Surfers Paradise and Long Beach. It's unfortunate, for Ganassi, that his big success came in the season of the CART - Indianapolis Motor Speedway divorce, as the Target Reynard - Hondas would have been very tough to beat in the "Indianapolis 500." As it was, he had to settle for the CART title, and a win in the substitute "US 500" on May 26, rather than victory in the sport's biggest event. Vasser won the "US 500", at Michigan, in a spare car, after crashing his pole position car, on the start.
After the "US 500", the momentum seemed to swing from Vasser to Zanardi. The Italian won Portland, Mid Ohio, and his brilliant pass, on Herta, in the "Corkscrew", on the final lap, for the Laguna Seca win, was a classic maneuver.
For the five or ten people who read "Little Al Versus the World" last month, in Bob Jennings' World O' Racing, I wrote of the emergence of Honda, Firestone and Ganassi as the premier competitors in CART. A look at some of the CART final season statistics, for the Target drivers, illustrates that theory. The Target cars won seven of 16 races. Vasser led a total of 162 laps and Zanardi had a season high 610 leading laps. Vasser's consistency of running at the finish of all 16 races was the biggest contribution to his championship. Of the total 2005 competitive laps and 3662.83 miles, during the 1996 CART season, Vasser completed 1990 and 3637.60 respectively.
The array of talent, which included engineers Julian Robertson (Vasser) and Mo Nunn (Zanardi), Ganassi assembled for 1996, was impressive. It's been a difficult, but impressive, climb to the CART title. For his continuous search for the best combinations of men and machines, Floyd "Chip" Ganassi receives my congratulations.
Congratulations Floyd.