1981 Michigan 500

August 2023 42 03 58.68 N 84 14 29.18 W type:landmark title United States Michigan 500 Michigan International Speedway track map.png July 25 1981 1981 Norton Michigan 500 5 11 CART Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan, United States Permanent racing facility 2.000 3.219 250 500.000 804.672 Cloudy with temperatures up to 83 F C; wind speeds reaching up to 9 mph km/hWeather information for the 1981 Norton Michigan 500 at Wunderground USA Tom Sneva Bignotti-Cotter Racing 201.359 mph km/h on USA Pancho Carter Alex Morales Motorsports USA Tony Bettenhausen Jr. Tony Bettenhausen Jr. USA Rick Mears Team Penske The 1981 Michigan 500, the inaugural running of the event, was held at the Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan, on Saturday, July 25, 1981. Branded as the 1981 Norton Michigan 500 for sponsorship reasons, the event was race number 5 of 11 in the 1981 CART PPG Indy Car World Series. The race was won by Pancho Carter - his only Indy Car victory. The race commenced a 20-year history of the Michigan 500 being a part of Indy car racing's Triple Crown. Background Indy car racing's Triple Crown began in 1971 when Pocono Raceway opened and held their inaugural Pocono 500, joining the Indianapolis 500 and California 500. This continued for 10 years until late 1980, Ontario Motor Speedway closed and created a void in the Triple Crown where only two 500 mile races would be held. In 1979, Championship Auto Racing Teams was created as a way for Indy car teams to have greater control over the sport. It led to a split between CART and USAC, where two separate open-wheel schedules were held. In 1980, the two series briefly merged as the Championship Racing League before once again splitting. As Indy car racing entered 1981, USAC retained sanctioning control of the Indianapolis 500 and Pocono 500. For the majority of the first twelve years of Michigan International Speedway, the July Indy car race was a 200-mile event. On February 26, 1981, track-owner Roger Penske announced that the race would be extended to 500 miles.https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-1981-michigan-500-ann/127189256/ Detroit Free Press Michigan Associated Press CART Rolls 500-Miler to MIS February 27, 1981 43 With NBC providing live coverage, the Michigan 500 would become the second 500-mile auto race to be aired live in its entirety, joining NASCAR's Daytona 500. At the time of the announcement, NBC's vice-president of sports programming, Dick Auerbach, said, "With the squabbles they've been having at Indianapolis recently, I think this race will be the 500-mile race of the future. It could supplant the Memorial Day race within a few years."https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-1981-michigan-500-ann/127189256/ Detroit Free Press Michigan Associated Press CART Rolls 500-Miler to MIS February 27, 1981 43 Penske insisted the creation of the Michigan 500 was not an attempt for CART to supplant the Indianapolis 500, but rather just a chance to build a successful event. "We have the finest racing facility in the country today. With the proper presentation we can build this to be a major event. It's a good business decision. We have no conflict with Indy."https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-1981-michigan-500-ann/127189256/ Detroit Free Press Michigan Associated Press CART Rolls 500-Miler to MIS February 27, 1981 43 Crowd enthusiasm was very high for the change in distance to 500 miles. Penske declared that ticket sales had almost doubled compared to the 200 mile event in July 1980. "The moment we announced we were going to have a 500-mile Indy car race here, it was like I had invented a new formula. The ticket sales jumped almost 100 percent over last year."https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-journal-news-1981-michigan-500-pensk/125912308/ The Journal News New York Associated Press Penske Boosts Michigan 500 July 18, 1981 26 Bobby Unser won the 1981 Indianapolis 500 for Team Penske but had his win stripped away due to a rules violation and given to Mario Andretti. While the win was returned to Unser through a USAC appeal in October,http://digitalnewspapers.libraries.psu.edu/Default/Skins/BasicArch/Client.asp?Skin=BasicArch&&AppName=2&enter=true&BaseHref=DCG/1981/10/09&EntityId=Ar01703 Digital Newspapers - Penn State University Libraries digitalnewspapers.libraries.psu.edu 25 April 2018 live https://web.archive.org/web/20160304022830/http://digitalnewspapers.libraries.psu.edu/Default/Skins/BasicArch/Client.asp?Skin=BasicArch&&AppName=2&enter=true&BaseHref=DCG%2F1981%2F10%2F09&EntityId=Ar01703 4 March 2016 as of July's Michigan 500, Andretti was still considered the winner of that year's Indianapolis 500. USAC's Pocono 500 was held in June and was won by A. J. Foyt. CART teams boycotted the event and the field was filled with dirt cars.https://www.newspapers.com/article/tampa-bay-times/62652549/ Tampa Bay Times Florida Associated Press Foyt's Dad Gets A Pocono Present on Father's Day June 22, 1981 29 Tom Sneva, Dick Simon, Roger Rager, Jim McElreath, Tom Bigelow, Geoff Brabham, and Dean Vetrock were suspended by CART for 60 days for competing in the Pocono 500, a suspension that would extend through the Michigan 500. The drivers filed a lawsuit against CART in United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia which was successful and overturned their suspension, allowing them to enter the Michigan 500.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=t4MsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=W84EAAAAIBAJ&pg=5115%2C5574567 Herald-Journal South Carolina Associated Press Suspended Drivers Win Court Battle But Will Not Compete in Sunday Race June 27, 1981 A10 After not committing to join CART for two years, A. J. Foyt obtained CART membership on July 13, and entered the Michigan 500.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-news-1981-michigan-500/127192411/ Indianapolis News Indiana Associated Press Foyt to Race at Michigan July 14, 1981 22 Mario Andretti skipped the Michigan 500 in order to run the 1981 British Grand Prix. Practice and Time Trials In Wednesday's opening three-hour practice, Johnny Rutherford and Tom Sneva posted the fastest practice speed when they ran identical lap speeds of 197.8 mph. Team Penske drivers Rick Mears and Bill Alsup ran laps at 196.7 mph, followed by Pancho Carter at 196 mph.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127193510/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Rutherford, Sneva Have Fastest Times July 16, 1981 42 The opening round of Time Trials was held on Thursday afternoon. Tom Sneva won the pole with a speed of 201.359 mph. Johnny Rutherford and Rick Mears posted the second and third fastest speeds to occupy spots on the front row.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=yoQsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=z80EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4541%2C3154024 Herald-Journal South Carolina Associated Press Sneva Takes Pole for Michigan Race July 17, 1981 C3 Salt Walther led second day qualifiers on Friday with a speed of 193.876 mph. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=4YQsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=z80EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4666%2C3258286 Herald-Journal South Carolina Associated Press Walther Turns 193 MPH Lap July 18, 1981 A11 On Saturday, July 19, Roger Penske exercised his "promoter's option" and expanded the starting field to 37 starters. Two alternate starters and the top-two finishers from a 10-lap qualifying race were added.https://www.newspapers.com/article/muncie-evening-press-1981-michigan-500-f/127198066/ Muncie Evening-Press Indiana Associated Press Heat May Slow Norton 500 Pace July 18, 1981 71981-07-18 Four more get shot at '500' win Sunday https://www.newspapers.com/article/journal-and-courier-four-more-get-shot-a/208144011/ 2026-10-12 Journal and Courier 19 Steve Chassey and Bill Tempero were added to the starting grid by posting the 34th and 35th fastest qualifying speeds, but they were bound to compete in the qualifying race, along with Harry MacDonald, Jerry Sneva, Jim Buick, Phil Caliva, Bob Frey, John Mahler, Pete Halsmer and Rich Vogler.1981-07-18 Can cars last 500 miles? https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-can-cars-last-500-mil/208143309/ 2026-10-12 Detroit Free Press 30 Eight cars entered Saturday's 10-lap qualifying race, with Halsmer and Vogler being unable to compete due to mechanical issues and a practice crash, respectively.1981-07-19 Article clipped from Palladium-Item https://www.newspapers.com/article/palladium-item/160835752/ 2026-10-12 Palladium-Item 231981-07-21 Bad luck at Michigan 500 won't discourage Halsmer https://www.newspapers.com/article/journal-and-courier-bad-luck-at-michigan/208144151/ 2026-10-12 Journal and Courier 171981-07-19 Chassey wins qualifying race https://www.newspapers.com/article/journal-and-courier-chassey-wins-qualify/208144209/ 2026-10-12 Journal and Courier 31 The race was won by Chassey, who had a half-mile lead when Jerry Sneva and Jim Buick crashed on lap eight. Buick was transported to a local hospital after complaining of shoulder pains but was released later that day. MacDonald and Caliva were the only two other cars to finish, and were added to the Michigan 500 field.https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-1981-michigan-500-qua/127198628/ Detroit Free-Press Michigan Associated Press Lansing Driver Wins 10-Lap MIS Qualifier July 19, 1981 76 Race A constant rain marred race day on Sunday July 19. Once it became apparent the rain would not stop, the race was postponed until the following Saturday. While the possibility existed for the race to be run on Monday, (with NBC taping the event for later broadcast), Roger Penske decided to run the following weekend to retain spectators.https://www.newspapers.com/article/lansing-state-journal-1981-michigan-500/125901014/ Lansing State Journal Michigan Associated Press Rain Ruins MIS Race July 20, 1981 19 "The best thing would be to run the next day, Penske said. "The decision was made because of the wonderful support we've had, from the press and from all of the fans. We felt we needed to give them the opportunity to come back. We're trying to help the fans, and I think you'll see most of them come back."https://www.newspapers.com/article/lansing-state-journal-1981-michigan-500/125901014/ Lansing State Journal Michigan Associated Press Rain Ruins MIS Race July 20, 1981 19 A practice session was held on Friday, July 24, ahead of the rescheduled race. Polesitter Tom Sneva posted the fastest practice speed at 199.5 mph.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kokomo-tribune-1981-michigan-500-7-2/127202457/ Kokomo Tribune Indiana Associated Press Rain May Be Winner in Michigan 500 July 25, 1981 13 When the race began, Tom Sneva pulled out to a lead. At the beginning of lap two, Larry Cannon spun in turn two and continued. The restart came out on lap five and Johnny Rutherford quickly passed Sneva for the lead. In turn one, Gordon Johncock and Bill Whittington crashed. On lap 25, Bill Tempero blew an engine in turn one. Larry Dickson lightly hit the wall after hitting the oil and Pancho Carter spun into the infield grass. Under caution, Herm Johnson's car caught fire while refueling. The methanol fire spread uncontrolled to other pit boxes as people fled. Tires exploding from the heat caused loud explosions. Heroic work from firefighters kept the fuel tanks from exploding. Track fire crews were unable to completely extinguish the blaze, firefighters from the Cambridge Township Department were summoned and were able to extinguish the fire in five minutes.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127204590/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Fire Pays Return Pit Visit July 26, 1981 70 14 people were injured in the fire. 12 were treated for minor burns at the track hospital, including Johnson who had minor facial burns. Graig Nelson, a Johnson crew member, was hospitalized with first and second degree burns to his feet. Jay Signore, a Team Penske crewman for Bobby Unser, suffered a cut leg and was hospitalized.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127204590/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press 14 Hurt in Pit Fire July 26, 1981 70 The race was red-flagged for 97 minutes while fire damage was cleaned and fire damaged-equipment was replaced. It was the third pit fire in two months, following a fire in Rick Mears's pit during the Indianapolis 500 and a previous fire for Herm Johnson at Milwaukee. After the restart, Tom Sneva ran in close company with Mike Mosley. Mosley took the lead and extended his advantage to seven seconds over Sneva by the time he stopped for fuel on lap 76. On lap 81, A. J. Foyt crashed hard into the turn two wall. Foyt was knocked unconscious in the impact and his right arm was nearly severed by the guard rail. He suffered a wound to his left leg and a compound fracture to his right arm along with severe lacerations to his arm. He was airlifted to the University of Michigan hospital in Roger Penske's personal helicopter where he underwent surgery.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127214498/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Michigan 500 Continued July 26, 1981 71 On lap 96, Sneva's car experienced gearbox failure with the car stuck in third gear. He retired from the race after completing 107 laps.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127214498/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Michigan 500 Continued July 26, 1981 71 While leading on lap 112, Johnny Rutherford ran over debris and blew a right-rear tire on the backstretch. The car spun 360 degrees and Rutherford continued back to the pits. Suspension damage knocked him out of the race. The misfortune for Rutherford allowed Pancho Carter to return to the lead lap.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127214498/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Michigan 500 Continued July 26, 1981 71 Suspension issues knocked Bobby Unser out of contention for the win. After leading 34 laps, Mike Mosley fell out of the race with engine problems. On lap 144, Carter received a push start after stalling on pit road.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127204590/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Pancho Fastest Michigan Survivor July 26, 1981 70 Al Unser assumed the lead and paced the field for 46 laps. Unser's chances of winning ended on lap 196 when he blew an engine while leading. Pancho Carter had battled Unser for the lead past the halfway point and led the final 55 laps, beating Tony Bettenhausen Jr. to the finish line by two seconds. It was Carter's first win in 78 starts. Only 10 of the 37 starters finished the race.https://www.champcarstats.com/races/198105.htm 1981 Norton Michigan 500 Results Second-place finisher, Tony Bettenhausen Jr. filed an appeal claiming Carter's push start on lap 144 was in violation of CART rules. With an affidavit from Tom Sneva, who had retired earlier in the race, Bettenhausen appealed to CART stewards, seeking a penalty for Carter, but was denied later that evening.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-star-1981-michigan-500/127204590/ Indianapolis Star Indiana Associated Press Pancho Fastest Michigan Survivor July 26, 1981 70 Box score FinishGridNo Car numberNameEntrantChassisEngineLapsTime/StatusLed Laps ledPoints Points include five bonus points for the fastest qualifier and five bonus points for the driver with the most laps led 1 4 5 USA Pancho Carter Alex Morales Motorsports Penske PC-7 Cosworth 250 3:45:45.00 91 105 2 20 16 USA Tony Bettenhausen Jr. Bettenhausen Motorsports McLaren M24B Cosworth 250 +2.000 5 80 3 3 6 USA Rick Mears Penske Racing Penske PC-9B Cosworth 248 +2 Laps 2 70 4 7 7 USA Bill Alsup Penske Racing Penske PC-9B Cosworth 247 +3 Laps 2 60 5 21 56 USA Tom Bigelow Gohr Racing Penske PC-7 Chevrolet 247 +3 Laps 0 50 6 18 12 USA Gary Bettenhausen Rhoades Racing Wildcat Mk8 Cosworth 247 +3 Laps 0 40 7 31 37 USA Scott Brayton Forsythe Racing Penske PC-7 Cosworth 238 +12 Laps 0 30 8 37 47 ITA Phil Caliva Intersec Security McLaren M16E Chevrolet 235 +15 Laps 0 25 9 24 31 USA Larry Dickson Machinists Union Racing Penske PC-7 Cosworth 229 +21 Laps 0 20 10 17 35 USA Bob Lazier Fletcher Racing Team Penske PC-7 Cosworth 225 Engine 0 15 11 10 8 USA Al Unser Longhorn Racing Longhorn LR02 Cosworth 196 Engine 46 10 12 16 99 USA Larry Cannon Kraco Racing Penske PC-7 Cosworth 190 Crash 0 5 13 32 66 USA Roger Rager Roger Rager Wildcat Chevrolet 185 +65 Laps 0 5 14 22 38 USA Jerry Karl Jerry Karl McLaren M16E Chevrolet 178 Clutch 0 5 15 26 42 USA Bill Vukovich II Rattlesnake Racing Watson Offenhauser 175 Engine 0 5 16 9 3 USA Bobby Unser Penske Racing Penske PC-9B Cosworth 162 Engine 0 5 17 5 40 USA Steve Krisiloff Patrick Racing Wildcat Mk8 Cosworth 153 Overheating 0 5 18 12 48 USA Mike Mosley All American Racers Eagle 81 Chevrolet 144 Engine 34 5 19 19 55 MEX Josele Garza Psachie-Garza Racing Penske PC-9 Cosworth 141 Engine 0 5 20 34 64 USA Steve Chassey Jet Engineering Eagle Chevrolet 131 Engine 0 5 21 36 45 CAN Harry MacDonald Armstrong Mould Racing Team Lola T500 Cosworth 120 Engine 0 0 22 2 1 USA Johnny Rutherford Chaparral Racing Chaparral 2K Cosworth 112 Crash 38 0 23 1 2 USA Tom Sneva Bignotti-Cotter Racing March 81C Cosworth 107 Transmission 32 5 24 25 33 AUS Vern Schuppan Theodore Racing McLaren M24B Cosworth 95 Engine 0 0 25 33 57 CAN Cliff Hucul Hucul Racing McLaren Offenhauser 89 Engine 0 0 26 6 14 USA A. J. Foyt A. J. Foyt Enterprises Coyote 80 Cosworth 80 Crash 0 0 27 14 72 USA Mike Chandler National Engineering Penske PC-7 Cosworth 79 Halfshaft 0 0 28 11 32 USA Kevin Cogan Jerry O'Connell Racing Phoenix 80 Cosworth 70 Engine 0 0 29 29 49 USA Chip Mead Space Racing Eagle Chevrolet 70 Engine 0 0 30 27 96 USA Dick Ferguson Kraco Racing Wildcat Offenhauser 64 Engine 0 0 31 30 22 USA Dick Simon Leader Card Racers Watson Cosworth 63 Oil pressure 0 0 32 28 21 USA Salt Walther Bignotti-Cotter Racing Phoenix 80 Cosworth 53 Engine 0 0 33 23 28 USA Herm Johnson Team Menard Lightning Chevrolet 26 Pit fire 0 0 34 35 15 USA Bill Tempero Bill Tempero McLaren M16E Chevrolet 23 Engine 0 0 35 15 29 USA Billy Engelhart Beaudoin Racing McLaren M24 Cosworth 18 Valve 0 0 36 13 20 USA Gordon Johncock Patrick Racing Wildcat Mk8 Cosworth 4 Crash 0 0 37 8 94 USA Bill Whittington Whittington Bros. March 81C Cosworth 4 Crash 0 0 Source:1981 Norton Michigan 5001981 Michigan 500 - Round 5 Race Statistics Average Speed: 132.890 mph km/h on Lead changes: 15 among 8 drivers Lap Leaders FromLap ToLap TotalLaps Leader 1 4 4 Tom Sneva 5 9 5 Johnny Rutherford 10 37 28 Tom Sneva 38 38 1 Mike Mosley 39 40 2 Johnny Rutherford 41 54 14 Mike Mosley 55 56 2 Rick Mears 57 75 19 Mike Mosley 76 80 5 Tony Bettenhausen Jr. 81 111 31 Johnny Rutherford 112 142 31 Al Unser 143 178 36 Pancho Carter 179 181 3 Al Unser 182 183 2 Bill Alsup 184 195 12 Al Unser 196 250 55 Pancho Carter Standings after the race Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 US Pancho Carter 132 2 US Rick Mears 123 3 US Tony Bettenhausen Jr. 89 4 US Bill Alsup 80 5 US Johnny Rutherford 61 Broadcasting The Michigan 500 was the first time ever that a 500-mile Indy Car race was broadcast live in its entirety. NBC's broadcast was overseen by Don Ohlmeyer, who said, "We probably put as much effort into preparing for this telecast as we have ever put into any single sports event."https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-1981-michigan-500-nbc/126913664/ Detroit Free Press Michigan Associated Press Another Ohlmeyer Show Wrecked by NBC Jinx July 20, 1981 43 Paul Page and Charlie Jones did the play-by-play coverage for NBC. Gary Gerould and Bruce Jenner served as pit reporters. NBC aired a qualifying report and race preview on Saturday, July 18.https://www.newspapers.com/article/lansing-state-journal-1981-michigan-500/125900731/ Lansing State Journal Michigan Associated Press Sports and TV July 18, 1981 9 The car driven by Bill Alsup carried an onboard camera.1981 Michigan 500 Telecast: NBC-TV, July 25, 1981 Because of the rain delay, Ohlmeyer estimated it would cost NBC "a quarter of a million dollars" to bring its cameras and crew back to Michigan for the rescheduled race one week later.https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-1981-michigan-500-nbc/126913664/ Detroit Free Press Michigan Associated Press Another Ohlmeyer Show Wrecked by NBC Jinx July 20, 1981 43 References 2 1981 Kraco Twin 125 1981 1981 Los Angeles Times 500 1980 Norton 200 Michigan 500 1982 Michigan 500 Michigan 500 Michigan 500 Category:Michigan Indy 400