The 1998 Pep Boys Indy Racing League was one of relative stability compared to the previous two seasons. For the first time the season consisted of a single and complete spring, summer, and fall like all other motorsports. 15 drivers completed the entire 11 race schedule, twice as many as the previous season. It was also the first complete season for the new Riley & Scott chassis, though it proved unpopular due to its late introduction. A. J. Foyt Enterprises drivers captured 4 wins, the Indy 500 pole, and the championship, arguably the most successful year in the team's history.
Confirmed entries TeamChassisEngineTiresDriver(s)Round(s) A. J. Foyt EnterprisesDallaraOldsmobile11 Billy Boat1–5, 8–11 Greg Ray6–714 Kenny BräckAll Beck Motorsports Dallara Infiniti54 Hideshi Matsuda3 Blueprint RacingDallaraOldsmobile27 Robbie Groff1–2 Claude Bourbonnais3 Billy Roe4 Bradley MotorsportsG-ForceDallaraOldsmobile12 Buzz Calkins1–6, 8–11 Byrd-Cunningham RacingG-ForceOldsmobile10 Mike Groff1–3 John Paul Jr.4–11 Cahill Auto RacingG-ForceDallaraOldsmobile98 Donnie Beechler 3–5, 7–11 CBR Cobb RacingG-ForceOldsmobile23 Paul Durant2–4 Jim Guthrie6–7 Infiniti Roberto Guerrero8–11 Chastain MotorsportsG-ForceDallaraOldsmobile77 Stéphan GrégoireAll Chitwood MotorsportsDallaraOldsmobile17 Brian Tyler 1–2 Andy Michner 3 D. B. Mann MotorsportsDallaraOldsmobile24 Billy Roe1 Dan Drinan 3 Hemelgarn RacingDallaraOldsmobile9 Johnny Unser391 Buddy LazierAll Immke RacingDallaraOldsmobile20 Tyce Carlson1–3 ISM RacingG-ForceOldsmobile35 Jeff WardAll53 Jim Guthrie1–355 Steve Knapp 3 Kelley RacingDallaraOldsmobile8 Scott SharpAll28 Mark DismoreAll Knapp MotorsportsDallaraOldsmobile97 Greg Ray1–4, 9–11 Liberty RacingG-ForceOldsmobile29 Joe Gosek 3–4 LP RacingDallaraOldsmobile66 Scott Harrington 399 Sam SchmidtAll Lyn St. James RacingG-ForceInfiniti90 Lyn St. James3 McCormack MotorsportsG-ForceOldsmobile30 Raul BoeselAll Metro Racing SystemsRiley & ScottOldsmobile19 Stan Wattles1–5, 7–11 Nienhouse MotorsportsG-ForceDallaraOldsmobile6 Davey HamiltonAll Pagan RacingDallaraOldsmobile21 Roberto Guerrero1–4 Stevie Reeves 7 Panther RacingG-ForceOldsmobile4 Scott GoodyearAll43 Dave Steele 10–11 PDM RacingG-ForceOldsmobile18 John Paul Jr.1–2 Jack Hewitt 3–5 Steve Knapp 6, 8–11 Tyce Carlson7 Phoenix RacingG-ForceOldsmobile16 Marco GrecoAll Riley & Scott CarsRiley & ScottOldsmobile15 Eliseo Salazar1–5 Scott Harrington 6 Andy Michner 7–10 Jim Guthrie11 RSM MarkoDallaraOldsmobile22 Dave Steele 2 Sinden Racing ServicesDallaraInfinitiOldsmobile40 Dr. Jack MillerAll44 J. J. Yeley 2–5, 9 Jimmy Kite7 Team CheeverDallaraG-ForceOldsmobile51 Eddie CheeverAll52 Robby Unser 3–6, 8–11 Team Coulson RacingG-ForceOldsmobile41 Affonso Giaffone1 Team MenardDallaraG-ForceOldsmobile1 Tony StewartAll3 Robbie Buhl1–5, 8–11 Team PelfreyDallaraOldsmobile81 John Paul Jr.3 Tyce Carlson4 Brian Tyler 5–11 Team ScandiaDallaraOldsmobile7 Jimmy Kite1–433 Billy Roe3 Treadway RacingG-ForceOldsmobile5 Arie LuyendykAll
Schedule Rnd Date Race Name Track Location 1 January 24 Indy 200 at Walt Disney World Walt Disney World Speedway Bay Lake, Florida 2 March 22 Dura Lube 200 Phoenix International Raceway Avondale, Arizona 3 May 24 82nd Indianapolis 500 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Speedway, Indiana 4 June 6 True Value 500 Texas Motor Speedway Fort Worth, Texas 5 June 28 New England 200 New Hampshire International Speedway Loudon, New Hampshire 6 July 19 Pep Boys 400K Dover International Speedway Dover, Delaware 7 July 25 VisionAire 500K Charlotte Motor Speedway Concord, North Carolina 8 August 16 Radisson 200 Pikes Peak International Raceway Fountain, Colorado 9 August 29 Atlanta 500 Classic Atlanta Motor Speedway Hampton, Georgia 10 September 20 Lone Star 500 Texas Motor Speedway Fort Worth, Texas 11 October 11 Las Vegas 500K Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas, NevadaSource:
All races were run on oval speedways.
The eight races that were held in calendar year 1997 returned in 1998, with the addition of three new races. As part of their effort to venture in traditional stock-car markets, the IRL held the second Indy-car race ever, the first since 1969, at Dover International Speedway, and also competed at the reconfigured Atlanta Motor Speedway, which had been raced eight times by Indy-cars in its former shape between 1965 and 1983. A second race at Texas Motor Speedway in the fall completed the calendar.
Results Rd.RacePole positionFastest lapMost laps ledRace WinnerReport Driver TeamChassisEngine 1 Walt Disney World Tony Stewart Kenny Bräck Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Team MenardG-ForceOldsmobileReport 2 Phoenix Jeff Ward Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Scott Sharp Kelley RacingDallaraOldsmobileReport 3 Indianapolis Billy Boat Tony Stewart Eddie Cheever Eddie Cheever Team CheeverDallaraOldsmobileReport 4 Texas 1 Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Billy Boat Billy Boat A. J. Foyt EnterprisesDallaraOldsmobileReport 5 New Hampshire Billy Boat Davey Hamilton Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Team MenardDallaraOldsmobileReport 6 Dover Tony Stewart Greg Ray Scott Sharp Scott Sharp Kelley RacingDallaraOldsmobileReport 7 Charlotte Tony Stewart Kenny Bräck Kenny Bräck Kenny Bräck A. J. Foyt EnterprisesDallaraOldsmobileReport 8 Pikes Peak Billy Boat Jeff Ward Jeff Ward Kenny Bräck A. J. Foyt EnterprisesDallaraOldsmobileReport 9 Atlanta Billy Boat Billy Boat Scott Goodyear Kenny Bräck A. J. Foyt EnterprisesDallaraOldsmobileReport 10 Texas 2 Billy Boat Jeff Ward Tony Stewart John Paul Jr. Byrd-Cunningham RacingG-ForceOldsmobileReport 11 Las Vegas Billy Boat Arie Luyendyk Arie Luyendyk Arie Luyendyk Treadway RacingG-ForceOldsmobileReport
Race summaries
Indy 200 The Indy 200 was held on January 24 at Walt Disney World Speedway. Qualifying was rained out, so Tony Stewart won the pole position due to the race being lined up by 1996–97 entrant standings for the first 20 positions and the remaining eight came from the best practice speeds of the remaining cars.
Top 10 results 1- Tony Stewart 35- Jeff Ward 6- Davey Hamilton 77- Stéphan Grégoire 28- Mark Dismore 8- Scott Sharp 10- Mike Groff 5- Arie Luyendyk 99- Sam Schmidt 18- John Paul Jr. Failed to qualify: 24-Billy Roe, 27-John Hollansworth Jr., 41-Affonso Giaffone and 53-Jim Guthrie
Dura-Lube 200 The Dura-Lube 200 was held on March 22 at Phoenix International Raceway. Jeff Ward qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 8- Scott Sharp 1- Tony Stewart 11- Billy Boat 77- Stéphan Grégoire 35- Jeff Ward 4- Scott Goodyear 99- Sam Schmidt 30- Raul Boesel 12- Buzz Calkins 51- Eddie Cheever Failed to qualify: 19-Stan Wattles, 27-Robbie Groff, 40-Jack Miller and 53-Jim Guthrie
Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500 was held on May 24 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Billy Boat qualified on the pole position.
Top ten results 51- Eddie Cheever 91- Buddy Lazier 55- Steve Knapp 6- Davey Hamilton 52- Robby Unser 14- Kenny Bräck 81- John Paul Jr. 17- Andy Michner 44- J. J. Yeley 12- Buzz Calkins Failed to qualify: 10-Brian Tyler, 10, 20, 29-Joe Gosek, 15, 19-Eliseo Salazar, 20-Tyce Carlson, 23-Paul Durant, 24-Dan Drinan, 27-Claude Bourbonnais, 54-Hideshi Matsuda, 66-Scott Harrington, 68-Jaques Lazier, 81-Danny Ongais and 90-Lyn St. James Cheever became the first owner/driver to win the Indianapolis 500 since A. J. Foyt in 1977. Cheever, whose team was unsponsored prior to this race, planned to shut down his team after the race. However, he and teammate Robby Unser received sponsorship from Rachel's Gourmet Potato Chips. This, combined with Cheever's victory, kept the team open the rest of the season. Because St. James failed to qualify, the starting lineup consisted of only men for the first time since 1991. On the first lap, Yeley spun out and collected Cheever. Both recovered to finish in the top 10. Bräck ran out of fuel while leading. As a result, owner Foyt threw the laptop computer that said that Bräck had enough fuel in anger.
True Value 500 The True Value 500 was held June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 11- Billy Boat 97- Greg Ray 14- Kenny Bräck 4- Scott Goodyear 8- Scott Sharp 3- Robbie Buhl 6- Davey Hamilton 16- Marco Greco 52- Robby Unser 19- Stan Wattles Failed to qualify: 7-Jimmy Kite, 10-Mike Groff, 18-Jack Hewitt, 20-Tyce Carlson, 23-Paul Durant and 29-Joe Gosek Boat's only IndyCar win. He had been declared the winner at Texas the previous year, but a scoring error was discovered that resulted in Arie Luyendyk getting the win. John Paul Jr. replaced Groff at Byrd-Cunningham Racing for the remainder of the season.
New England 200 The New England 200 was held on June 28 at New Hampshire International Speedway. Billy Boat qualified on the pole position.
Top ten results 1- Tony Stewart 4- Scott Goodyear 8- Scott Sharp 6- Davey Hamilton 5- Arie Luyendyk 15- Eliseo Salazar 91- Buddy Lazier 28- Mark Dismore 51- Eddie Cheever 3- Robbie Buhl Stewart's final IndyCar win. Boat was involved in a large crash lap 95 and missed the next two races. Team owner John Menard Jr. believed that A. J. Foyt Enterprises was cheating and withdrew his car driven by Robbie Buhl from the next two races. His other car, driven by Stewart, was not withdrawn as it was leading the point standings.
Pep Boys 400K The Pep Boys 400K was held on July 19 at Dover Downs International Speedway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 8- Scott Sharp (248 laps) 91- Buddy Lazier (248 laps) 16- Marco Greco (246 laps) 6- Davey Hamilton (246 laps) 77- Stephan Gregoire (244 laps) 4- Scott Goodyear (242 laps) 23- Jim Guthrie (229 laps) 1- Tony Stewart (220 laps) 5- Arie Luyendyk (203 laps, DNF - Crash) 14- Kenny Bräck (197 laps) Failed to qualify: 15-Eliseo Salazar Greg Ray replaced the injured Billy Boat. He started 7th, but crashed with Eddie Cheever on lap 104 and finished 15th. Only 10 (1st through 8th, 10th, and 12th) of the 22 starters were running at the finish.
VisionAire 500K The VisionAire 500K was held on July 25 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Tony Stewart qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 14- Kenny Bräck (208 laps) 35- Jeff Ward (208 laps) 4- Scott Goodyear (208 laps) 5- Arie Luyendyk (206 laps) 16- Marco Greco (205 laps) 10- John Paul Jr. (203 laps) 6- Davey Hamilton (202 laps) 77- Stéphan Grégoire (201 laps) 40- Jack Miller (194 laps) 21- Stevie Reeves (184 laps, DNF - CV Joint) Bräck's first IndyCar win.
Radisson 200 The Radisson 200 was held August 16 at Pikes Peak International Raceway. Billy Boat qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 14- Kenny Bräck 3- Robbie Buhl 1- Tony Stewart 77- Stéphan Grégoire 6- Davey Hamilton 16- Marco Greco 91- Buddy Lazier 51- Eddie Cheever 11- Billy Boat 98- Donnie Beechler Boat returned in this race. He qualified on the pole position and finished 9th, one lap down. Buhl also returned in this race, finishing 2nd after starting 6th.
Atlanta 500 Classic The Atlanta 500 Classic was held on August 29 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Billy Boat qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 14- Kenny Bräck 6- Davey Hamilton 51- Eddie Cheever 4- Scott Goodyear 1- Tony Stewart 35- Jeff Ward 28- Mark Dismore 5- Arie Luyendyk 15- Andy Michner 30- Raul Boesel
Only the top 10 finishers finished the race.
Lone Star 500 The Lone Star 500 was held on September 20 at Texas Motor Speedway. Billy Boat qualified on the pole position.
Top 10 results 10- John Paul Jr. 52- Robby Unser 35- Jeff Ward 23- Roberto Guerrero 14- Kenny Bräck 91- Buddy Lazier 3- Robbie Buhl 19- Stan Wattles 6- Davey Hamilton 28- Mark Dismore Paul's second and final IndyCar win. 16 years earlier, he won the 1983 Michigan 500 at Michigan International Speedway. Entering the season finale, Bräck led Hamilton by 31 points and Tony Stewart by 41 points.
Las Vegas 500K