IRL: Indy Racing goes the distance for exciting finishes
INDIANAPOLIS -- When it comes to close racing and exciting finishes, the Indy Racing League finishes second to none. The statistics show that's more than just a slogan. Twenty-one of the 60 IRL races -- 35 percent -- conducted since the series ...
INDIANAPOLIS -- When it comes to close racing and exciting finishes, the Indy Racing League finishes second to none.
The statistics show that's more than just a slogan. Twenty-one of the 60 IRL races -- 35 percent -- conducted since the series debut in January 1996 have included finishing margins of one second or less. Another 11 races -- 18 percent -- have seen finishing margins between one and two seconds.
In total, 32 of the 60 IRL races -- 53 percent -- have included finishes closer than two seconds.
Reigning Indy Racing League champion Sam Hornish Jr. is the king of close finishes. Hornish has won the two closest finishes in league history, capturing the Chevy 500 in October 2001 at Texas Motor Speedway by .0188 of a second and the Yamaha Indy 400 in March 2002 at California Speedway by .0281 of a second.
Indy Racing events almost always finish at top speed, too. Fifty-four of the 60 races (90 percent) have ended under the green flag. In fact, there was only one yellow-flag finish in each of the 1999, 2000 and 2001 seasons. <pre> 21 Finishing Margins Of Less Than One Second in Indy Racing League History.
Margin Date Track (winner, runner-up)
1. .0188 of a second Oct. 6, 2001 Texas (Sam Hornish Jr., Scott Sharp)
2. .0281 March 24, 2002 California (Sam Hornish Jr., Jaques Lazier)
3. .059 June 11, 2000 Texas (Scott Sharp, Robby McGehee)
4. .064 Aug. 17, 1997 New Hampshire (Robbie Buhl, Vincenzo Sospiri)
5. .120 June 27, 1999 Pikes Peak (Greg Ray, Sam Schmidt)
6. .140 Oct. 15, 2000 Texas (Scott Goodyear, Eddie Cheever Jr.)
7. .1976 July 8, 2001 Kansas (Eddie Cheever Jr., Sam Hornish Jr.)
8. .222 June 29, 1997 Pikes Peak (Tony Stewart, Stephan Gregoire)
9. .445 Aug. 29, 1999 Pikes Peak (Greg Ray, Davey Hamilton)
10. .4969 April 21, 2001 Nazareth (Scott Sharp, Felipe Giaffone)
11. .570 May 29, 1997 Indianapolis (Arie Luyendyk, Scott Goodyear)
12. .617 Sept. 26, 1999 Las Vegas (Sam Schmidt, Kenny Brack)
13. .689 July 19, 1998 Dover (Scott Sharp, Buddy Lazier)
14. .695 May 26, 1996 Indianapolis (Buddy Lazier, Davy Jones)
15. .731 Aug. 1, 1999 Dover (Greg Ray, Buddy Lazier)
16. .854 March 23, 1997 Phoenix (Jim Guthrie, Tony Stewart)
17. .866 Jan. 27, 1996 Walt Disney World (Buzz Calkins, Tony Stewart)
18. .888 June 12, 1999 Texas (Scott Goodyear, Greg Ray)
19. .926 Oct. 11, 1998 Las Vegas (Arie Luyendyk, Sam Schmidt)
20. .928 June 6, 1998 Texas (Billy Boat, Greg Ray)
21. .944 Aug. 29, 1998 Atlanta (Kenny Brack, Davey Hamilton)
Indy Racing League Finishing Statistics
Season Races CautionFinish GreenFinish Less ThanOne Second 1996 3 0 3 2 1996-97 10 2 8 4 1998 11 0 11 4 1999 10 1 9 5 2000 9 1 8 2 2001 13 1 12 2 2002 4 1 3 2 Totals 60 6 (10%) 54 (90%) 21 (35%)
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