The 1995 Michigan 500 was the thirteenth round of the 1995 PPG Indy Car World Series season. Branded as the 1995 Marlboro 500 for sponsorship reasons, the race was held on July 30, 1995, at the 2.00 mi Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. The race marked Firestone's first Indy Car victory since 1974. Patrick Racing driver Scott Pruett took his first win in American open-wheel competition after a late-race battle with defending series champion Al Unser Jr., winning by just over half a second. Adrian Fernández came in third place, one lap behind Pruett and Unser. Parker Johnstone earned his first pole position and fastest lap in the series but suffered brake problems that forced him to retire; rookie André Ribeiro led the first ever laps of his career, ultimately earning a point for leading the most laps during the race. Danny Sullivan's IndyCar career would come to an end at leader's lap 194 as he would be involved in a crash where he would suffer a broken pelvis and other injuries.
This was the first time the series competed on the newly resurfaced circuit, which made the track smoother and easier to drive on. Nevertheless, the race still saw massive attrition knock out many of the front-runners over the grueling 500-mile distance. Many cars suffered problems with failing wheel bearings and blistering tires. By the halfway point in the race, it was essentially a two-horse race between Pruett and Unser while the rest of the field simply struggled to make it to the end. Points leader Jacques Villeneuve, despite spending extensive time on pit lane trying to diagnose an engine problem, managed to finish tenth and keep his substantial lead in the points standings.
Background In 1994, Tony George, president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, founded the Indy Racing League (IRL), to begin competition in 1996. It would exist as a separate championship, and leveraged the fame of the Indianapolis 500, which was placed as its centerpiece. The majority of teams that raced in CART chose not to enter the new series, meaning 1995 was the final Michigan 500 with a unified Indy car.
Firestone returned to IndyCar racing for the first time since 1974. Entering the Michigan 500, Goodyear had won every race in the 1995 CART season.
After years of being defined by a bumpy surface, Michigan International Speedway was repaved in early 1995, for the first time since 1986. In order to keep speeds down, CART officials instituted aerodynamic restrictions and a reduction in turbocharger boost pressure from 45 inches to 40 inches. It was estimated these changes would reduce the power of the engines by about 70 horsepower.
Jacques Villeneuve won the 1995 Indianapolis 500 and entered the Michigan 500 with a 33 point lead in the series standings. Scott Goodyear had won two of the last three Michigan 500s but was not entered in the 1995 race as his team was only running a part time schedule.
Practice and Time Trials In Friday's opening practice session, rookie driver André Ribeiro had the fastest speed at 230.834 mph. Paul Tracy was second fastest at 229.757 mph, followed by Michael Andretti at 229.144 mph.
During practice Robby Gordon crashed hard in turn three, impacting the wall with the right side with a force of 116-Gs and was knocked unconscious. Team-owner Derrick Walker said the crash was caused by a left-rear wishbone failure. Gordon was hospitalized overnight with a concussion and returned to the track the following day. Despite getting approval from a neurologist to race, CART rules stated that anytime a driver lost consciousness, they were required to sit out for seven days.
In his first race on an oval, Parker Johnstone won the pole with a speed of 230.458 mph. It was Johnstone's first pole, the first pole for Honda engines in Indy car, and the first for Firestone tires since 1974. Teo Fabi was second fastest at 228.526 mph. Michael Andretti completed the front row with a speed of 228.413 mph.
On Saturday, the International Race of Champions competed at Michigan. Al Unser Jr. won the 100 mile race. Unser and fourth-place finisher Scott Pruett were the only two drivers to compete in IROC and the Michigan 500.
Qualifying July 30, 1995 - Qualifying Speeds Rank Driver Time Leader Speed (mph) Team1 Parker Johnstone31.242—230.458Comptech Racing2 Teo Fabi31.506 +0.264228.526Forsythe Racing3 Michael Andretti 31.522 +0.280228.413Newman-Haas Racing4 Jacques Villeneuve31.546 +0.304228.239Team Green5 Jimmy Vasser31.582 +0.340227.982Chip Ganassi Racing6 Maurício Gugelmin31.601 +0.359227.839PacWest Racing7 Bryan Herta31.767 +0.525226.652Chip Ganassi Racing8 Paul Tracy31.782 +0.540226.540Newman-Haas Racing9 Danny Sullivan 31.896 +0.654225.732PacWest Racing10 André Ribeiro 31.898 +0.656225.722Tasman Motorsports11 Adrian Fernández31.918 +0.676225.579Galles Racing12 Scott Pruett32.023 +0.781224.841Patrick Racing13 Al Unser Jr. 32.100 +0.858224.296Team Penske14 Raul Boesel32.104 +0.862224.266Rahal-Hogan Racing15 Gil de Ferran 32.173 +0.931223.787Hall Racing16 Bobby Rahal32.180 +0.938223.734Rahal-Hogan Racing17 Emerson Fittipaldi32.198 +0.956223.618Team Penske18 Eddie Cheever32.208 +0.966223.546A. J. Foyt Enterprises19 Carlos Guerrero 32.218 +0.976223.480Dick Simon Racing20 Buddy Lazier32.610 +1.368220.783Payton-Coyne Racing21 Stefan Johansson32.692 +1.720220.238Bettenhausen Racing22 Lyn St. James32.750 +1.508219.847Dick Simon Racing23 Eliseo Salazar 32.846 +1.604219.201Dick Simon Racing24 Alessandro Zampedri32.998 +1.756218.197Payton-Coyne Racing25 Christian Fittipaldi 33.049 +1.807224.649Walker Racing26 Hiro Matsushita33.990 +2.748218.245Arciero-Wells Racing Robby Gordon crashed during practice and was not cleared to participate in the rest of the weekend.
Race An estimated 75,000 spectators were on hand for the Marlboro 500.
Parker Johnstone brought the field slowly to the green flag and the start was waved off by CART officials. The field was not aligned well for the second time and the start was waved off again. When the race began, Johnstone established himself as the fastest car.
The first caution of the day came out on lap six when rookie Carlos Guerrero crashed in turn four. When the race resumed, Johnstone maintained his lead. Outside of five laps during pit stop cycles, Johnstone led 52 of the first 57 laps.
Johnstone's attempt to get his first win was ended while leading on lap 58 by a bad wheel bearing. He returned to the track 28 laps behind the leaders and retired for good after brake failure after breaking a right-rear upright.
Johnstone's problems gave the lead to his teammate Andre Ribeiro. With the exception of green flag pit stops, Ribeiro led 68 of the next 72 laps. While leading on lap 129, Ribeiro was sidelined by electrical problems.
After the departure of Johnstone and Ribeiro, Al Unser Jr. and Scott Pruett established themselves as the two fastest cars. Unser led for a total of 66 laps.
On lap 194, Lyn St. James blew an engine and crashed in turn two. Danny Sullivan slid in the oil and both cars crashed into the wall. Sullivan suffered a broken pelvis and was airlifted to a local hospital. The race was ultimately, Sullivan's last career Indy car race.
While leading on lap 230, Unser was forced to make a pit stop under green because of a blistered right-rear tire. That allowed Scott Pruett to re-take the lead. It appeared Pruett would take an easy victory with a 28 second over Unser.
With 13 laps remaining, Alessandro Zampedri crashed in turn four and brought out the caution flag. That allowed Unser to catch up to Pruett for a final five-lap run to the finish.
As the cars approached the final lap, Unser pulled to the outside and completed the pass on Pruett entering turn one. Down the backstretch, Pruett followed the draft of Unser and drove deep into turn three, pulling to the outside of Unser. The two cars came off turn four side-by-side before Pruett pulled ahead approaching the checkered flag.
Pruett won by 0.056 seconds, the second closest margin of victory at a 500 mile Indy car race behind the 1992 Indianapolis 500. It was his first victory in 75 starts. It was the first win for Firestone in Indycar racing since 1974. It was also Patrick Racings first IndyCar victory since the 1989 Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix at Nazareth Speedway with their former driver Emerson Fittipaldi.
Box score Pos Driver Team Chassis Engine Tire Laps Time/retired Grid Points 1 20 Scott PruettPatrick Racing Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 250 3:07:52 58 1220 2 1 Al Unser Jr. Marlboro Team Penske Penske PC-24 Mercedes-Benz 250 +0.56 secs 66 13 16310 Adrián FernándezGalles Racing Lola T95/00 Mercedes-Benz 249 +1 Lap 01114433 Teo FabiForsythe Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 247 +3 Laps 121252 Emerson Fittipaldi Marlboro Team Penske Penske PC-24 Mercedes-Benz 245 +5 Laps 01710616 Stefan JohanssonBettenhausen Racing Penske PC-23 Mercedes-Benz 244 +6 Laps 0218712 Jimmy VasserChip Ganassi Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 241 +9 Laps 05689 Bobby RahalRahal-Hogan Racing Lola T95/00 Mercedes-Benz 240 +10 Laps 0165915 Christian Fittipaldi Walker Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 239 +11 Laps 02541027 Jacques VilleneuveTeam Green Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 235 +15 Laps 0431118 Maurício GugelminPacWest Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 232 +18 Laps 262128 Gil de Ferran Hall Racing Reynard 95I Mercedes-Benz 226 +24 Laps 01511334 Alessandro ZampedriPayton-Coyne Racing Lola T94/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 225Contact 024—1419 Buddy LazierPayton-Coyne Racing Lola T94/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 223 +27 Laps 020—154 Bryan HertaChip Ganassi Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 193Contact 07—1617 Danny Sullivan PacWest Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 189Contact 09—1790 Lyn St. JamesDick Simon Racing Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 188Contact 022—187 Eliseo Salazar Dick Simon Racing Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 175Engine 023—1914 Eddie CheeverA. J. Foyt Enterprises Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 163Transmission 218—2025 Hiro MatsushitaArciero-Wells Racing Reynard 94I Ford-Cosworth XB 139Contact 026—2131 André Ribeiro Tasman Motorsports Reynard 95I Honda 130Electrical 681012249 Parker JohnstoneComptech Racing Reynard 95I Honda 100Brakes 5211233 Paul TracyNewman-Haas Racing Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 91Engine 18—2411 Raul BoeselRahal-Hogan Racing Lola T95/00 Mercedes-Benz 57Engine 014—256 Michael Andretti Newman-Haas Racing Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 40Electrical 03—2622 Carlos Guerrero Dick Simon Racing Lola T95/00 Ford-Cosworth XB 5Contact 019—275 Robby GordonWalker Racing Reynard 95I Ford-Cosworth XB 0Withdrawn,not medically cleared 027— Notes – Includes one bonus point for leading the most laps. – Includes one bonus point for being the fastest qualifier.
= Series rookie = Former Marlboro 500 winner
Tires: = Goodyear = Firestone
Broadcasting The Michigan 500 was broadcast live on television by ABC. Paul Page was the lead announcer and was joined by Bobby Unser and Sam Posey as color commentators.1995 Michigan 500 Telecast: ABC-TV, July 30, 1995
Nielsen ratings stated that the 1995 Michigan 500 attracted the largest television audience for an IndyCar race that year behind the Indianapolis 500.
Race Statistics Lead changes: 18 among 8 drivers Average Speed: 159.676 mph
Lap Leaders Laps Leader1-45 Parker Johnstone46 André Ribeiro47 Paul Tracy48 Teo Fabi49-50 Eddie Cheever51-57 Parker Johnstone58-88 André Ribeiro89-90 Scott Pruett91-92 Maurício Gugelmin93-128 André Ribeiro129-131 Scott Pruett132-152 Al Unser Jr.153-154 Scott Pruett155-176 Al Unser Jr.177-188 Scott Pruett189 Al Unser Jr.190-207 Scott Pruett208-229 Al Unser Jr.230-250 Scott Pruett
Total Laps Led Driver Total Laps Andre Ribero 68 Al Unser Jr. 66 Scott Pruett 58 Parker Johnstone 52 Mauricio Gugelmin 2 Eddie Cheever 2 Teo Fabi 1 Paul Tracy 2
Cautions: 6 for 51 laps Laps Reason1-2Aborted start7-15Guerrero crash152-158Matsushita crash194-208Herta, Sullivan, St. James crash238-245Zampedri crash
Standings after the race