Scott Harrington
Encyclopedia
Scott Harrington is a former driver in the Indy Racing League. Starting out on two wheels, Harrington won a number of championships and achieved much success in the world of AMA Motocross
Motocross
Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...

 and Supercross
Supercross
Supercross is a motorcycle racing sport involving off-road motorcycles on an artificially-made dirt tracks consisting of steep jumps and obstacles. Professional supercross contest races are held almost exclusively within professional baseball and football stadiums.-History:Supercross was derived...

. In 1986 Sports Car Magazine picked Harrington as one of the three most promising drivers in the U.S. He was a multiple race winner in Toyota Formula Atlantic
Formula Atlantic
Formula Atlantic is a specification of open wheel racing car developed in the 1970s. It was used in professional racing through the IMSA Atlantic Championship until 2009 and is currently primarily used in amateur racing through Sports Car Club of America Formula Atlantic.-History:The history of...

, finishing third in the 1988 championship despite running the uncompetitive Ralt
Ralt
RALT was a manufacturer of single-seater racing cars, founded by ex-Jack Brabham associate Ron Tauranac after he sold out his interest in Brabham to Bernie Ecclestone. Ron and his brother had built some specials in Australia in the 1950s under the RALT name...

 chassis. He was the only person ever to win a race in the 1988 Ralt. From 1992 through 1994, Harrington had much success in the SCCA
Sports Car Club of America
The Sports Car Club of America is a club and sanctioning body supporting road racing, rallying, and autocross in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs many programs for both amateur and professional racers.-History:...

 Can-Am series. During his tenure in the series, he won more races than any other driver. He won the 1992 championship and scored race wins in every season.

An accomplished open wheel racer who made a single CART
Champ Car
Champ Car was the name for a class and specification of open wheel cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race...

 start in 1989, Harrington made a last second Bump Day run to qualify for the first IRL-sanctioned Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...

 in 1996
1996 Indianapolis 500
The 80th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 26, 1996. This was the first Indy 500 contested by the Indy Racing League, under the overall sanctioning umbrella of USAC. It was the third and final race of the 1996 IRL season. Buddy Lazier won the race, his...

. In 1999 he ran a full IRL season with his own team and had numerous top ten finishes, including a top five finish at the difficult 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...

. Despite failing qualify for the Indy 500 and suffering serious injuries at Texas 1 (broken left tibia, right fibula, right foot and three ribs) he won the Rookie of the Year honors by a slim margin over Robby McGehee
Robby McGehee
Robby McGehee is a Indy Racing League driver from St. Louis, Missouri. He won the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award in 1999 after finishing fifth and raced for veteran owner Fred Treadway the next few seasons...

. Harrington has attempted to qualify for seven different Indy 500 races but only succeeded once, in his second attempt in 1996. He has a best IRL finish is a 4th at Phoenix in 1999 and has a total of 14 series starts, which is the least number of total starts by any IRL Rookie of the Year. Harrington is also the only person to ever compete in Formula Atlantic, the original Indy Lights Series, the Infiniti Pro Series, the CART Indy Car Series and the IRL Indy Car Series.

His career was affected by arrests and convictions for driving while intoxicated. Harrington is also one of the few American drivers to compete in the "Big Three" of American motorsports - The Indy 500, The 24 Hours of Daytona
24 Hours of Daytona
The 24 Hours of Daytona, currently known as the Rolex 24 Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on a combined road course, utilizing portions of the NASCAR tri-oval and an infield...

, and The 12 Hours of Sebring
12 Hours of Sebring
The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, a former Army Air Force base in Sebring, Florida...

. Since retiring from active driving Harrington has achieved success in his driver coaching business, including coaching Highcroft Racing
Highcroft Racing
Highcroft Racing is an American auto racing team based out of Danbury, Connecticut and founded by driver Duncan Dayton in 1989. Initially founded for Dayton's involvement in historic motorsport, specifically the restoration and preparation of classic automobiles, the team was expanded for Dayton's...

 factory Acura team Championship winning owner-driver Duncan Dayton and Mike Miserandino who has won four national championships in a row. In addition to his coaching work, Harrington also does testing and training work for various vehicle manufactures. Harrington currently lives in Indianapolis with his wife Marsie and young son Riley

Indy 500 results

Year Chassis Engine Start Finish
1989
1989 Indianapolis 500
The 73rd Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 28, 1989. Emerson Fittipaldi became the first foreign winner of the race since 1966. Though Fittipaldi dominated most of the race, he dropped to second in the waning laps. On the 199th lap, Al Unser, Jr. was...

Lola Cosworth
Cosworth
Cosworth is a high performance engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in engines and electronics for automobile racing , mainstream automotive and defence industries...

Failed to Qualify
1996
1996 Indianapolis 500
The 80th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 26, 1996. This was the first Indy 500 contested by the Indy Racing League, under the overall sanctioning umbrella of USAC. It was the third and final race of the 1996 IRL season. Buddy Lazier won the race, his...

Lola Ford-Cosworth 32nd 15th
1997
1997 Indianapolis 500
The 81st Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway over three days, May 25–27, 1997. It was originally scheduled Sunday, May 25, however, rain washed out all activities for the day. The race was started on Monday May 26, but rain halted the race after only 15 laps...

G-Force
Panoz
Panoz Auto Development is an American manufacturer of high-performance automobiles founded in 1989 by Dan Panoz, son of pharmaceutical and motorsport mogul Don Panoz. The company is located in Braselton, GA. Panoz products have included the Panoz Roadster and AIV Roadster, and the Panoz Esperante...

Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile was a brand of American automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. It was founded by Ransom E. Olds in 1897. In its 107-year history, it produced 35.2 million cars, including at least 14 million built at its Lansing, Michigan factory...

Qualifying Crash
1998
1998 Indianapolis 500
The 82nd Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 24, 1998. This was the first Indianapolis 500 fully sanctioned by the Indy Racing League after the IRL relied on USAC to sanction the 1996–1997 races...

Dallara
Dallara
Dallara Automobili is an Italian chassis manufacturer for various motor racing series, being most notable for its near-monopoly in Formula 3 since 1993...

Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile was a brand of American automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. It was founded by Ransom E. Olds in 1897. In its 107-year history, it produced 35.2 million cars, including at least 14 million built at its Lansing, Michigan factory...

Failed to Qualify
1999
1999 Indianapolis 500
The 1999 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 30, 1999.-Recap:Robby Gordon and Team Menard take a major gamble late in the race, and try to stretch their fuel for the win. Gordon had last pit on lap 164, and attempted to run the final 36 laps on one tank...

Dallara
Dallara
Dallara Automobili is an Italian chassis manufacturer for various motor racing series, being most notable for its near-monopoly in Formula 3 since 1993...

Infiniti
Infiniti
is the luxury division of automaker Nissan. Infiniti officially started selling vehicles on November 8, 1989 in North America. Marketing operations have since grown to include the Middle East, South Korea, Russia, Taiwan, China, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Infiniti began sales in additional...

Failed to Qualify
2000
2000 Indianapolis 500
The 2000 Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 28, 2000.-Recap:Chip Ganassi Racing became the first regular CART series team to break ranks and compete at Indianapolis since the CART/IRL split in 1996, entering 1996 CART series champion Jimmy Vasser and reigning...

Dallara
Dallara
Dallara Automobili is an Italian chassis manufacturer for various motor racing series, being most notable for its near-monopoly in Formula 3 since 1993...

Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile was a brand of American automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. It was founded by Ransom E. Olds in 1897. In its 107-year history, it produced 35.2 million cars, including at least 14 million built at its Lansing, Michigan factory...

Failed to Qualify
2002
2002 Indianapolis 500
The 86th Indianapolis race was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 26, 2002. It was the seventh Indianapolis 500 held as part of the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series schedule, and was part of the 2002 Indy Racing League season....

Dallara
Dallara
Dallara Automobili is an Italian chassis manufacturer for various motor racing series, being most notable for its near-monopoly in Formula 3 since 1993...

Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...

Failed to Qualify
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