1997 Phoenix 200 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

style="font-size: larger;" | **1996–1997 Phoenix**
Race details
4th Round of the 1996–97 Indy Racing League.
Date	March 23, 1997
Official name	Phoenix 200
Location	Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...
Course	Permanent racing facility 1.000 / 1.609 km
Distance	200 laps, 200.000 mi / 321.869 km
Weather	Dry
Pole
Driver	Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart...	Team Menard Team Menard Team Menard was an auto racing team in the Indianapolis 500 and Indy Racing League owned by John Menard. From 1991 to 1996 they modified their own Buick V6 engines for racing. This combination won pole for the 500 with Scott Brayton in 1995 and 1996; Tony Stewart used this combination for the first...
Time	21.175
Fastest Lap
Driver	Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart...	Team Menard Team Menard Team Menard was an auto racing team in the Indianapolis 500 and Indy Racing League owned by John Menard. From 1991 to 1996 they modified their own Buick V6 engines for racing. This combination won pole for the 500 with Scott Brayton in 1995 and 1996; Tony Stewart used this combination for the first...
Time	22.135 (on lap 11 of 200)
Podium
First	Jim Guthrie	Blueprint Racing
Second	Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart...	Team Menard Team Menard Team Menard was an auto racing team in the Indianapolis 500 and Indy Racing League owned by John Menard. From 1991 to 1996 they modified their own Buick V6 engines for racing. This combination won pole for the 500 with Scott Brayton in 1995 and 1996; Tony Stewart used this combination for the first...
Third	Davey Hamilton Davey Hamilton Davey Jay Hamilton is a race car driver in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. He has made 50 series starts and while never winning a race, finished second 3 times...	A. J. Foyt Enterprises A. J. Foyt Enterprises A.J. Foyt Enterprises is a racing team in the IZOD Indycar Series and formerly NASCAR. It is owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A. J. Foyt. Foyt Enterprises won IRL titles in 1996 with Scott Sharp and 1998 with Kenny Bräck, the latter driver also winning the Indianapolis 500 for the team...

The 1997 Phoenix 200 was the fourth round of the 1996–1997 Indy Racing League. The race was held on March 23, 1997 at the 1 mi (1.6 km) Phoenix International Raceway

Phoenix International Raceway

Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...

in Avondale, Arizona

Avondale, Arizona

Avondale is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, adjacent to Phoenix, Arizona. According to 2010 Census Bureau, the population of the city is 76,238.Avondale is the home of Phoenix International Raceway, an auto racing facility...

Race

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Laps Led	Points
1	27	Jim Guthrie	Blueprint Racing	200	1:33:30.748	2	74	35
2	2	Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart...	Team Menard Team Menard Team Menard was an auto racing team in the Indianapolis 500 and Indy Racing League owned by John Menard. From 1991 to 1996 they modified their own Buick V6 engines for racing. This combination won pole for the 500 with Scott Brayton in 1995 and 1996; Tony Stewart used this combination for the first...	200	+ 0.854 sec	1	85	36
3	4	Davey Hamilton Davey Hamilton Davey Jay Hamilton is a race car driver in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. He has made 50 series starts and while never winning a race, finished second 3 times...	A. J. Foyt Enterprises A. J. Foyt Enterprises A.J. Foyt Enterprises is a racing team in the IZOD Indycar Series and formerly NASCAR. It is owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A. J. Foyt. Foyt Enterprises won IRL titles in 1996 with Scott Sharp and 1998 with Kenny Bräck, the latter driver also winning the Indianapolis 500 for the team...	200	Running	14	0	32
4	22	Marco Greco Marco Greco Marco Greco is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and race car driver who competed in the Indy Racing League from 1996 to 1999. His best finish in the season points was 4th in 1997. He made four starts in the Indianapolis 500 with a best finish of 14th in 1998...	Team Scandia Team Scandia Team Scandia was a team in the Indy Racing League owned by Andrew L. Evans that fielded a record 7 cars in the 1996 Indianapolis 500. Evans bought the team from Dick Simon during the 1996 season and Simon was listed as the owners of some of Scandia's cars in the 1996 "500"...	199	+ 1 lap	8	0	31
5	77	Stephan Gregoire Stephan Gregoire Stéphan Grégoire is a French race car driver. Currently living in Carmel, Ind.Gregoire is a veteran of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Rolex Sports Car Series, the Indianapolis 500, and the Indy Racing League. He made 44 IRL starts between 1996 and 2001 with a best finish of 2nd at Pikes Peak...	Chastain Motorsports Chastain Motorsports Chastain Motorsports is a team in the Indy Racing League owned by Indianapolis businessman Tom Chastain. The team was founded in 1997 and raced until 1998 with driver Stephan Gregoire. Gregoire finished 11th in driver points in '97 and 12th in '98 with a best race finish of 2nd at Pikes Peak...	199	+ 1 lap	19	0	30
6	10	Mike Groff Mike Groff Mike Groff is a former race car driver in CART and the Indy Racing League and the 1989 Indy Lights champion. He made 54 starts in CART beginning in 1990 with a best finish of 6th, occurring at Phoenix International Raceway in 1994...	Byrd-Cunningham Racing	195	+ 5 laps	16	0	29
7	21	Roberto Guerrero Roberto Guerrero Roberto José Guerrero Isaza is a former racing driver from Colombia. He participated in 29 Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 23 January 1982...	Pagan Racing Pagan Racing -CART Indy 500 entries:The team was founded in 1993 when the team purchased the CART IndyCar equipment of Kenny Bernstein's King Racing. The team fielded a car for Jeff Andretti for the 1993 Indianapolis 500 who finished 29th after a crash. The following year they signed veteran Roberto Guerrero to...	194	+ 6 laps	10	0	28
8	12	Buzz Calkins Buzz Calkins Bradley "Buzz" Calkins is a former Indy Racing League driver. After a successful run in Indy Lights from 1993 to 1995 where he finished 11th, 10th, and 6th in his three seasons, he and his Bradley Motorsports team purchased a 1995 Reynard chassis to compete in the inaugural season of the IRL...	Bradley Motorsports Bradley Motorsports Bradley Motorsports was a racing team in the Indy Racing League owned by Colorado convenience store owner Brad Calkins. His son, Buzz Calkins, drove the bright red cars shod in the livery of Bradley Food Marts, Brad Calkins' company. Bradley won the first IRL race in 1996 at Walt Disney World...	187	+ 13 laps	22	0	27
9	18	John Paul, Jr. John Paul, Jr. John Lee Paul, Jr. is a former race car driver in CART and the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series and winner of the 1982 12 Hours of Sebring while co-driving with his father John Paul, Sr....	PDM Racing PDM Racing PDM Racing is a racing team in the Indy Racing League and USAC Silver Crown series owned by Paul Diatlovich. Almost always a low budget team and affectionately dubbed "Poor Dumb Mechanics" by one of its former owners, it is known to make the most out of mediocre equipment...	179	+ 21 laps	11	0	26
10	16	Sam Schmidt Sam Schmidt Sam Schmidt is a former Indy Racing League driver and current IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights Series team owner....	Blueprint Racing	176	Accident T4	6	0	25
11	4	Kenny Bräck Kenny Bräck Kenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...	Galles Racing Galles Racing Galles Racing is a former auto racing team owned by Rick Galles that competed in the CART series, Can-Am and Indy Racing League, winning the 1990 CART Championship and 1992 Indianapolis 500 with driver Al Unser, Jr..-Early years:...	145	Accident T4	9	24	24
12	51	Eddie Cheever Eddie Cheever Edward "Eddie" McKay Cheever, Jr. is an American racing driver who raced for almost thirty years in Formula One, Sports cars, CART and the Indy Racing League. Cheever participated in 143 World Championship Formula One races and started 132, more than any other American, driving for nine different...	Team Cheever	120	Overheating	7	0	23
13	17	Affonso Giaffone Affonso Giaffone Affonso Giaffone , is a former driver in the Indy Racing League. His family has closed relation with auto racing; he is a cousin of Felipe Giaffone, an ex-IRL driver, and a cousin-in-law of Rubens Barrichello...	Chitwood Motorsports	114	Half Shaft	21	13	22
14	33	Fermin Velez Fermín Vélez Fermín Vélez was a Spanish sports car racing driver, two-time winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring and two-time World Sportscar Championship Group C2 champion....	Team Scandia Team Scandia Team Scandia was a team in the Indy Racing League owned by Andrew L. Evans that fielded a record 7 cars in the 1996 Indianapolis 500. Evans bought the team from Dick Simon during the 1996 season and Simon was listed as the owners of some of Scandia's cars in the 1996 "500"...	94	Electrical	15	0	21
15	50	Billy Roe Billy Roe Billy Roe , is a former driver in the Indy Racing League. He raced in the 1997-1998 and 2000-2002 seasons with 16 career starts, including 2 at the Indianapolis 500. His best IRL finish was a 12th place at Nashville Speedway in 2001. In the 1997 Las Vegas Motor Speedway race, he fielded his own car...	Eurointernational	82	Accident T3	17	0	20
16	1	Scott Sharp Scott Sharp Scott Sharp is an American race car driver in the American Le Mans Series. He is the son of six-time SCCA champion Bob Sharp. Scott Sharp is best known for his years as a competitor in the Indy Racing League....	A. J. Foyt Enterprises A. J. Foyt Enterprises A.J. Foyt Enterprises is a racing team in the IZOD Indycar Series and formerly NASCAR. It is owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A. J. Foyt. Foyt Enterprises won IRL titles in 1996 with Scott Sharp and 1998 with Kenny Bräck, the latter driver also winning the Indianapolis 500 for the team...	65	Engine	20	4	19
17	6	Scott Goodyear Scott Goodyear Scott Goodyear is a former race car driver from Newmarket, Ontario, Canada. Goodyear ran the IRL and Champ Car series during his career from 1987, winning the Michigan 500 in 1992 and 1994...	Treadway Racing Treadway Racing Treadway Racing is a former auto racing team that competed in the early seasons of the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. The team was owned by Indianapolis business man Fred Treadway. Prior to the IRL's inaugural season in 1996, Treadway was able to sign former Indianapolis 500 Champion Arie...	52	Engine	3	0	18
18	3	Robbie Buhl Robbie Buhl Robbie Buhl is a former Indy Racing League competitor and current team-owner, with the Dreyer & Reinbold Racing team in the IRL's IndyCar Series...	Team Menard Team Menard Team Menard was an auto racing team in the Indianapolis 500 and Indy Racing League owned by John Menard. From 1991 to 1996 they modified their own Buick V6 engines for racing. This combination won pole for the 500 with Scott Brayton in 1995 and 1996; Tony Stewart used this combination for the first...	51	Accident T2	5	0	17
19	30	Jeret Schroeder Jeret Schroeder Jeret Schroeder , is a former driver in the Indy Racing League. He raced in the 1997 and 1999-2002 seasons with 20 career starts, including the 1999-2001 Indianapolis 500. His best career finish was fourth at the 2000 Vegas Indy 300 won by Al Unser, Jr. at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway...	McCormack Motorsports McCormack Motorsports McCormack Motorsports is a former Indy Racing League team owned by Dennis McCormack that operated from 1996 to 2001. Based in Avon, Indiana, the team debuted at the 1996 Indianapolis 500 with a car for Randy Tolsma, however, it failed to make the field. For the 1996-1997 season, the team used 3...	51	Accident T2	12	0	16
20	40	Jack Miller Jack Miller (driver) Jack Miller , usually known as Dr. Jack Miller, raced in the Indy Racing League from 1997 to 2001 and the Indianapolis 500 from 1997 to 1999. Miller is a dentist and, thus, was known as "the racing dentist." His best IRL finish was a 9th in 1998 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. His best finish in the Indy...	Arizona Motorsport	33	Fuel Pickup	18	0	15
21	91	Buddy Lazier Buddy Lazier Robert Buddy Lazier is an American Indycar driver. He won the 1996 Indianapolis 500 and has finished in the Top Ten in that race six times...	Hemelgarn Racing Hemelgarn Racing Hemelgarn Racing was a racing team in the Indy Racing League owned by Ron Hemelgarn. The team won the 1996 Indianapolis 500 and 2000 Series Championship with driver Buddy Lazier. Along with A.J...	31	Engine	13	0	14
22	5	Arie Luyendyk Arie Luyendyk Arie Luyendyk, originally Arie Luijendijk is a Dutch auto racing driver, twice winner of the Indianapolis 500....	Treadway Racing Treadway Racing Treadway Racing is a former auto racing team that competed in the early seasons of the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. The team was owned by Indianapolis business man Fred Treadway. Prior to the IRL's inaugural season in 1996, Treadway was able to sign former Indianapolis 500 Champion Arie...	11	Mechanical	4	0	13

Race Leaders

Laps	Leader
1-41	Tony Stewart
42	Jim Guthrie
43-55	Affonso Giaffone
56-61	Tony Stewart
62-65	Scott Sharp
66-94	Tony Stewart
95-120	Jim Guthrie
121	Tony Stewart
122-145	Kenny Bräck
146-153	Tony Stewart
154-200	Jim Guthrie

Caution Periods

There were 9 caution periods during the race, with a total of 86 laps under caution.

Laps	Cause
2-6	Roberto Guerrero tow-in
13-18	Aire Luyendyk accident
36-44	Buddy Lazier oiling
52-60	Robbie Buhl and Jeret Schroeder accident , turn 2
69-75	Oil on track
85-98	Billy Roe accident, turn 3
117-132	Oil on track
146-154	Kenny Bräck accident, turn 4
180-190	Sam Schmidt accident, turn 4

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings

Pos	Driver	Points
1	Mike Groff Mike Groff Mike Groff is a former race car driver in CART and the Indy Racing League and the 1989 Indy Lights champion. He made 54 starts in CART beginning in 1990 with a best finish of 6th, occurring at Phoenix International Raceway in 1994...	125
2	Davey Hamilton Davey Hamilton Davey Jay Hamilton is a race car driver in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. He has made 50 series starts and while never winning a race, finished second 3 times...	114
3	Buzz Calkins Buzz Calkins Bradley "Buzz" Calkins is a former Indy Racing League driver. After a successful run in Indy Lights from 1993 to 1995 where he finished 11th, 10th, and 6th in his three seasons, he and his Bradley Motorsports team purchased a 1995 Reynard chassis to compete in the inaugural season of the IRL...	113
4	Marco Greco Marco Greco Marco Greco is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and race car driver who competed in the Indy Racing League from 1996 to 1999. His best finish in the season points was 4th in 1997. He made four starts in the Indianapolis 500 with a best finish of 14th in 1998...	112
5	Roberto Guerrero Roberto Guerrero Roberto José Guerrero Isaza is a former racing driver from Colombia. He participated in 29 Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 23 January 1982...	106

Note: Only the top five positions are included for the standings.

External links

IndyCar official website

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