1981 CART PPG Indy Car World Series

American motorsport season February 2025 1981 CART PPG Indy Car World Series CART logo (1979-1991).svg 11 March 22 November 8 United States Rick Mears United States Penske United Kingdom Cosworth United States Bob Lazier United States United States 1980 1982 The 1981 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season, the third in the CART era of U.S. open-wheel racing, consisted of 11 races, beginning in Avondale, Arizona on March 22 and concluding at the same location on October 31. The PPG Indy Car World Series Drivers' Champion was Rick Mears despite missing Round 2 at Milwaukee due to injuries sustained in the Indianapolis 500. Rookie of the Year was Bob Lazier. After the disagreement with the USAC during the previous season, the 65th Indianapolis 500 was not part of the Series, however no competing race was scheduled and most CART teams and drivers did take part. Drivers and constructors The following teams and drivers competed for the 1981 CART World Series. Team/Car OwnerChassisEngine#DriversRounds USA Chaparral Cars Chaparral Cosworth 1 USA Johnny RutherfordAll USA Jerry O'Connell Racing Phoenix Cosworth 2 USA Tom Sneva 1 32 USA Kevin Cogan 2–3, 5–7 USA Bignotti-Cotter Racing March (5–11) Phoenix (2) Cosworth 2 USA Tom Sneva All except 1 and 3–4Phoenix 21 USA Salt Walther 5 USA Team Penske Penske Cosworth 3 USA Bobby UnserAll 6 USA Rick Mears All except 2 7 USA Bill Alsup All except 1–2 and 8–9 USA Alex Morales Motorsports Penske (all except 2, 9)Lightning (2, 9) Cosworth 5 USA Pancho Carter AllLightning 75 USA Steve Chassey 4 USA Longhorn Racing Longhorn (All except 8) Eagle (8) Cosworth 8 USA Al Unser All USA Rhoades Competition Wildcat Cosworth 12 AUS Dennis Firestone 3USA Gary Bettenhausen5, 7USA Gordon Smiley6, 10–11 USA Gilmore RacingCoyote Cosworth 14 USA A. J. Foyt 5 USA Tempero RacingMcLaren Chevrolet 15 USA Bill Tempero All except 2 USA Bettenhausen RacingMcLaren (1–6) Longhorn (7) Phoenix (8–11) Cosworth 16 USA Tony Bettenhausen Jr. All except 1 USA Leader Card RacingVollstedt Offenhauser 17 USA Jerry Sneva 5, 11 WatsonCosworth (All except 7–8) Offenhauser (7–8) 22USA Dick Simon All except 3–4. USA Spike Gehlhausen3-4USA Patrick RacingWildcatCosworth 20USA Gordon JohncockAll 40USA Mario Andretti 1–4, 8–9, 11 USA Steve Krisiloff5, 7USA Brayton RacingPenskeCosworth 21USA Mike Mosley 10USA Chip Ganassi 11 37USA Scott BraytonAllUSA McElreath RacingEagleOffenhauser (1, 9–11)Chevrolet (8) 23USA Jim McElreath 1, 8–11USA Luxury Racers KingfishChevrolet 24USA Wally Pankratz 6 65USA Wally Pankratz 11USA Buick RacingEagleChevrolet 26USA Jim Buick 1 86 USA Jim Buick 2–5 USA Menard Racing Lightning (1–8) Eagle (9–11) Chevrolet 28 USA Herm Johnson All except 1–2, 4, and 8 USA Beaudoin Racing McLaren Cosworth 29 USA Billy Engelhart 2, 5, 7 USA Machinists Union Racing Penske Cosworth 31 USA Larry Dickson All except 1 USA Theodore Racing McLaren (5, 10–11) March (6) Cosworth 33 AUS Vern Schuppan 5–6, 10–11 USA Wysard Racing Eagle Cosworth 34 USA Hurley Haywood 6, 9–10USA Johnny Parsons11 USA Bob Fletcher RacingPenske (1–6) March (7–11) Cosworth 35 USA Bob Lazier All USA Karl RacingMcLaren (1) Karl (2–7, 9–10) Chevrolet 38 USA Jerry Karl All except 8 and 11USA Alsup RacingPenskeCosworth 41USA Bill Alsup 1, 8–9McLarenChevrolet 47ITA Phil Caliva 3–7, 11USA Frey RacingEagleOffenhauser 42USA Bob Frey 1 71USA Bob Frey 2, 5 USA Rattlesnake Racing Watson Offenhauser 42 USA Bill Vukovich II 5–6, 8, 10USA AMI Racing ArmstrongCosworth 43USA Greg Leffler 11Lola 45USA Harry MacDonald 5USA Rager RacingWildcatChevrolet 44USA Roger Rager 11 66USA Roger Rager 5–9USA Orlo Trice10 USA All American Racers Eagle Chevrolet 48 USA Mike Mosley 2–3, 5, 7–8, 11 AUS Geoff Brabham6, 10USA Rocky Moran9 USA Space RacingEagle Cosworth 49 USA Chip Mead 5, 11 MEX Garza Racing Penske Cosworth 54 AUS Geoff Brabham 1 MEX Josele Garza2 55MEX Josele Garza All except 2 USA Gohr Racing Penske Chevrolet 56 USA Tom Bigelow 3, 5, 7–8, 11USA Metro RacingMcLarenOffenhauser 57CAN Cliff Hucul 2, 5, 8 USA Hamilton Racing Riley Chevrolet 63 USA Ken Hamilton 6, 11 USA Jet Engineering Eagle Chevrolet 64 USA Steve Chassey All except 4 and 10USA Mergard RacingMcLaren (2, 9) IAM (10)Chevrolet (2, 9) Donovan (10)67USA Phil Threshie2BEL Teddy Pilette9-10 USA Hodgdon Racing Penske Cosworth 72 USA Mike Chandler 5 74USA Mike Chandler 6, 10–11USA Davis RacingWildcatOffenhauser (3–4, 7–9, 11) Chevrolet (6) 77USA Ross Davis 3–4, 6–9, 11USA Joe Hunt MagnetoEagleChevrolet (1, 6, 10) Offenhauser (11) 89USA Phil Krueger 1, 6, 10–11 USA Intercomp Penske Offenhauser (2, 6–7) Chevrolet (11) 92 USA John Mahler 2, 6–7, 11MEX Grupo-AcypsaPenskeOffenhauser93MEX Michel Jourdain Sr.10USA Whittington Bros. RacingMarchCosworth 94USA Bill Whittington 5USA Cannon RacingWildcatOffenhauser 95USA Larry Cannon 1USA Herm Johnson4 96USA Tom Frantz 1USA Dick Ferguson5 99USA Larry Cannon 2–5USA Dick Ferguson6-7, 10–11USA Vetrock RacingEagleChevrolet XUSA Dean Vetrock 2USA Ohio Racing AssociatesLonghornCosworth 49USA Steve Krisiloff 8 Notable team and driver changes Tom Sneva left Jerry O'Connell Racing for new team Bignotti-Cotter Racing. The team scaled back to part-time for 1981. Team Penske expanded to a three-car operation, with Bill Alsup joining. His owner-driver team Alsup Racing only ran part-time in 1981. After racing a limited schedule beforehand, Tony Bettenhausen Jr. ran his first full-time season with his new owner-driver team Bettenhausen Racing. Dick Simon replaced Sheldon Kinser at Leader Card Racing, leaving Kinser without a ride. Simon's old team, Vollstedt Enterprises, did not compete. Mario Andretti returned to running the majority of the races after a stint in Formula One, driving for Patrick Racing. He replaced Tom Bagley, who was left without a ride. Rookie driver Scott Brayton ran a full schedule with family-owned team Brayton Racing. After running part-time in 1980, Machinists Union Racing ran a full schedule with driver Larry Dickson. Spike Gehlhausen was replaced at Bob Fletcher Racing by rookie driver Bob Lazier. Josele Garza ran his first season with family-owned team Garza Racing. Steve Chassey ran his first full-time season for the Jet Engineering team. AMI Racing only ran two races in 1981 after running full-time in 1980. Gary Bettenhausen was left without a full-time ride. Interscope Racing also stopped running full-time, along with driver Danny Ongais. At Cannon Racing, Larry Cannon only ran the first few races, with most of the rest driven by Dick Ferguson. This was Bobby Unser's final season of IndyCar racing. See the 1981 Indianapolis 500 for more information. Notable equipment changes Tempero Racing switched from an Eagle to McLaren chassis. Menard Racing switched from an Offenhauser to Chevrolet engine. With this shift the Cannon Racing team was the only full-time team that still used Offenhauser engines. Schedule Of note was the addition of the inaugural Michigan 500 to replace the California 500 at the now-closed Ontario Motor Speedway. The Tony Bettenhausen 200 at Milwaukee was originally scheduled for August 2, but was rained out and postponed until September 5. Icon Legend white O silver Oval/Speedway lightblue R silver Road courseNC Non-championship race +RdDateNameCircuitLocation1March 22USA Kraco Car Stereo 150white O silver Phoenix International RacewayAvondale, ArizonaNCMay 24USA Indianapolis 500white O silver Indianapolis Motor SpeedwayIndianapolis, Indiana2June 8USA Gould Rex Mays Classicwhite O silver Milwaukee MileWest Allis, Wisconsin3June 28USA Kraco Twin 125white O silver Atlanta Motor SpeedwayHampton, Georgia45July 25USA Norton Michigan 500white O silver Michigan International SpeedwayBrooklyn, Michigan6August 30USA Los Angeles Times 500lightblue R silver Riverside International RacewayRiverside, California7September 5USA Tony Bettenhausen 200white O silver Milwaukee MileWest Allis, Wisconsin8September 20*USA Detroit News Grand Prixwhite O silver Michigan International SpeedwayBrooklyn, Michigan9October 4USA Watkins Glen 200lightblue R silver Watkins Glen InternationalWatkins Glen, New York10October 18MEX I Copa México 150lightblue R silver Autódromo Hermanos RodríguezMexico City, Mexico11November 8USA Miller High Life 150white O silver Phoenix International RacewayAvondale, Arizona * The Detroit News Grand Prix was supposed to run for 150 miles, but was shortened due to a scoring error. Results Rd Race Pole position Winning driver Winning teamRace time 1 USA Kraco Car Stereo 150 USA Bobby Unser USA Johnny Rutherford Chaparral1:17:08 NC USA Indianapolis 500 USA Bobby Unser USA Bobby Unser Team Penske3:35:42 2 USA Gould Rex Mays Classic USA Gordon Johncock USA Mike Mosley All American Racers1:19:03 3USA Kraco Twin 125 USA Johnny Rutherford USA Rick Mears Team Penske0:51:29 4 USA Rick Mears USA Rick Mears Team Penske0:45:20 5 USA Norton Michigan 500 USA Tom Sneva USA Pancho Carter Alex Foods3:45:45 6 USA Los Angeles Times 500 AUS Geoff Brabham USA Rick Mears Team Penske2:43:40 7 USA Tony Bettenhausen 200 USA Johnny Rutherford USA Tom Sneva Bignotti-Cotter1:41:41 8 USA Detroit News Grand Prix USA Rick Mears USA Rick Mears Team Penske1:10:30 9 USA Watkins Glen 200 USA Mario Andretti USA Rick Mears Team Penske1:52:17 10 MEX I Copa México 150 USA Bobby Unser USA Rick Mears Team Penske1:24:48 11 USA Miller High Life 150 USA Bobby Unser USA Tom Sneva Bignotti-Cotter1:20:10 Note: The total time of the Norton Michigan 500 does not include red flag stoppage time as the race was stopped for nearly 1 hour due to a bad pit lane fire Final driver standings List of American Championship car racing point scoring systems Pos Driver PHX1 USA INDY USA MIL1 USA ATL USA MIS1 USA RIV USA MIL2 USA MIS2 USA WGL USA MXC MEX PHX2 USA Pts 1 USA Rick Mears 4 30 1 1* 3 1* 2 1 1 1 8 304 2 USA Bill Alsup 5 11 8 8 4 3 11 4 3 5 17 175 3 USA Pancho Carter 7 28 20 5 5 1* 10 10 18 15 6 5 166 4 USA Gordon Johncock 6 9 16 4 4 36 2 6 5 10 3 3 142 5 USA Johnny Rutherford 1* 32 6 2* 3 22 21 4 20 2 26 21 120 6 USA Tony Bettenhausen Jr. 7 12 7 11 2 DNQ 14 10 8 11 19 107 7 USA Bobby Unser 2 1* 21 13 6 16 9 3 7 17 15* 2 99 8 USA Tom Sneva 3 25 4 Wth 23 24 1* 19 21 20 1* 96 9 USA Bob Lazier yellow RY silver 12 19 13 17 9 10 5 16 13 4 4 13 92 10 USA Al Unser 17 17 5 6 7 11 14 5 3 14 2 2290 11 USA Mario Andretti 11 2 3 3 2 2* 16* 4 81 12 USA Tom Bigelow 20 9 5 24 9 11 60 13 USA Scott Brayton orange R silver 15 16 11 9 10 7 8 21 24 20 23 DNQ 57 14 USA Larry Dickson 18 10 10 12 9 16 12 8 7 22 DNQ 49 15 USA Gary Bettenhausen 26 6 19 42 16 USA Dick Simon 10 DNQ 7 Wth 31 6 22 25 11 25 20 38 17 USA Herm Johnson DNQ 22 22 17 33 7 13 9 8 9 38 18 USA Mike Chandler 12 27 4 16 DNQ 37 19 USA Mike Mosley 33 1* Wth 18 DNS 26 7 24 32 20 USA Steve Chassey Wth DNQ 24 23 22 20 15 15 12 5 Wth 31 21 MEX Josele Garza 21 23 14 12 18 19 12 8 23 24 18 6 30 22 USA Phil Caliva DNQ 19 15 8 Wth DNS DNQ 27 23 USA Kevin Cogan 4 2 16 DNS 28 11 23 23 24 USA Dick Ferguson Wth 30 18 6 10 7 20 25 USA Steve Krisiloff 8 17 7 17 18 26 USA Rocky Moran orange R silver 6 16 27 AUS Geoff Brabham orange R silver 9 5 19 9 14 28 USA Jerry Karl 8 15 23 21 21 14 22 25 19 19 13 29 USA Billy Engelhart DNQ 8 35 9 11 30 USA Larry Cannon 20 DNQ 15 11 20 12 10 30 USA Roger Rager DNQ 13 13 18 21 DNQ DNQ 10 32 USA Bill Tempero 18 DNQ 15 14 34 28 17 15 23 12 DNQ 7 33 USA Phil Krueger orange R silver 14 DNQ 20 14 16 6 33 USA Bill Vukovich II DNQ 15 DNQ 14 27 6 35 USA Gordon Smiley 22 25 18 10 5 36 USA Jim McElreath 19 Wth 11 DNQ 13 DNQ 4 36 USA Ross Davis DNQ 19 DNQ DNQ 16 13 DNQ 4 36 AUS Vern Schuppan 3 24 17 21 15 4 36 USA Jim Buick orange R silver 16 DNQ 19 20 16 DNQ 4 40 USA Hurley Haywood 26 12 17 3 41 USA Spike Gehlhausen DNQ 14 13 2 41 USA Bob Frey 13 DNQ 17 DNQ 2 41 USA John Mahler DNQ 25 DNQ 27 20 Wth 2 44 USA Jerry Sneva DNQ DNQ 12 1 44 USA Chip Mead DNQ 29 14 1 44 USA Phil Threshie 18 1 44 AUS Dennis Firestone 10 18 DNS 1 44 USA Johnny Parsons DNQ 18 1 CAN Harry MacDonald DNQ 21 0 CAN Cliff Hucul 26 25 22 0 USA Tom Frantz 22 0 BEL Teddy Pilette 22 0 USA Ken Hamilton DNQ 23 DNQ 0 USA Greg Leffler DNQ 23 0 MEX Michel Jourdain Sr. 24 0 USA A. J. Foyt 13 26 0 USA Salt Walther 32 0 USA Bill Whittington 21 37 0 USA Joe Saldana DNQ DNQ 0 USA Wally Pankratz DNQ Wth 0 USA Orlo Trice DNQ 0 USA Chip Ganassi DNQ 0 USA Pete Halsmer 24 Wth 0 USA Rich Vogler DNQ Wth 0 Pos Driver PHX1 USA INDY USA MIL1 USA ATL USA MIS1 USA RIV USA MIL2 USA MIS2 USA WGL USA MXC MEX PHX2 USA Pts Color Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green 4th & 5th place Light Blue 6th-10th place Dark Blue Finished(Outside Top 10) Purple Did not finish Red Did not qualify(DNQ) Brown Withdrawn(Wth) Black Disqualified(DSQ) White Did not start(DNS) Blank Did notparticipate(DNP) Not competing In-line notationBoldPole positionItalicsRan fastest race lap*Led most race lapsyellow RY silver Rookie of the Yearorange R silver Rookie See also 1981 Indianapolis 500 1981–82 USAC Championship Car season References http://www.driverdb.com/standings/5-1981/ PPG Indy Car World Series 1981 Åberg, Andreas Driver Database 2009-05-19 http://www.champcarstats.com/year/1981.htm 1981 PPG Indy Car World Series Champ Car Stats 2009-05-19 http://www.champcar.ws/Results/Standings.asp?Year=1981 Standings after Phoenix Champ Car World Series 2009-05-19 https://web.archive.org/web/20081022080221/http://www.champcar.ws/Results/Standings.asp?Year=1981 22 October 2008 Category:Champ Car seasons Indycar season