|| *Comments on the 1991 Indianapolis 500:* View the most recent comment <#31> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Darrell posted: 04.02.2009 - 11:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Willy T. Ribbs becomes the first African-American to compete in the Indy 500. 2. RaceFanX posted: 04.03.2009 - 9:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Rick Mears passes Michael Andretti late to gain his record-tying fourth Indy 500 win. It was his penultimate CART victory. Michael Andretti's best Indy 500 finish. 3. RaceFanX posted: 04.15.2009 - 4:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 1989 CART RotY Bernard Jourdain's last CART race 4. Unser1 posted: 04.20.2009 - 11:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hiro Matsushita becomes the first Japanese driver to run the Indy 500 5. Pacer posted: 04.21.2009 - 5:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The pace car for this Indy 500 was the prototype Dodge Viper. The Viper was a last minute sub, Dodge had originally intended to use the Dodge Stealth as the pace car. They made the late change because the Stealth was made in Japan and they didn't want the controversy a foreign made car pacing the 500 could bring. 6. Darrell posted: 05.23.2009 - 1:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Failed to Qualify: Guido Daccò (#37) Mark Dismore (#12) Dean Hall (#97) Davey Hamilton (#81) Phil Krueger (#25) Johnny Parsons (#11) Ted Prappas (#31) Vinicio Salmi (#36) Tom Sneva (#59) Didier Theys (#17/#50T) Paul Tracy (#90) Salt Walther (#77) Jeff Wood 7. RaceFanX posted: 08.28.2010 - 1:06 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Gordon Johncock's final top-10 in CART 8. RaceFanX posted: 05.24.2012 - 10:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the 75th running of the Indy 500. This was A.J. Foyt's first CART race back from his injuries suffered in his violent wreck at Road America the previous year. Foyt apparently announced the 1991 Indy 500 would be his last but it wouldn't stick, he returned to race again in 1992. His car was knocked out of this race by front-end damage caused by striking debris from the crash of Roberto Guerrero and A.J.'s 'old buddy' Kevin Cogan. Rick Mears had never crashed at Indy before 1991 and crashed for the first time in practice. He and his team went to the back up and ended up on the pole on the way to winning. The driver he bumped off the top of the scoring pylon to take the pole was Foyt, combined with Mario Andretti qualifying third and the front row for this 500 totalled 8 previous victories at the Brickyard before Mears joined the four-win club later in the day. Gary Bettenhausen was actually the fastest qualifer for the 500 despite starting 13th. He posted his quick speed with his Menards car during the second week of qualifying but as always at Indy the bright yellow-and-orange car would end up not being a contender on race day. For the Andrettis it was somewhat a banner day as they became the first family to ever have four members all compete in the same 500. This was the first year Jeff Andretti, Mario's youngest son, made the race after a DNQ in 1990. It was a successful year as Jeff went on to claim Rookie of the Year honors at the 500 while the other three members of the Pennsylvania clan claimed top-10s. For Michael Andretti this was perhaps his best run at Indy. For once his car held together and he didn't wreck leading to a dominating performance before Danny Sullivan's Alfa Romeo (the brand's last 500 to date) went kaboom late in the race to cause a caution. Andretti lost the lead to Mears when he pitted but with some help from cousin John Andretti on the restart Michael regained the lead. Mears grabbed it back with a move to the outside a few laps later and went on to win. Michael got one last chance at Mears on a restart in the closing laps following a caution for the engine failure of Michael's father and teammate Mario Andretti (Mears has noted that was quite convenient) but Rick held him off for the win. Future IRL race winner Mark Dismore made his first appearence at Indianapolis but wouldn't be in the field of 33. Dismore split his car in half in a firey crash at the enterance to the pit road, failing to qualify and being injured in the process ending his first month of May at the track. He eventually made his Indy 500 debut in 1996. 9. 83andJoe posted: 07.10.2013 - 11:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Did Not Qualify: Johnny Parsons (#11), Dean Hall (#97), Salt Walther (#77), Guido Dacco (#37), Ted Prappas (#31), Didier Theys (#17, 50), Mark Dismore (#12), Tom Sneva (#59) 10. Un posted: 11.01.2014 - 10:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsors: #51 Gary Bettenhausen- Menards / Glidden Paints #9 Kevin Cogan- Glidden Paints / Conseco DNQs and sponsors: #11 Johnny Parsons- Leader Card Racing (owned by Leader Card) #12 Mark Dismore- Arciero Wines (owned by Frank Arciero) #17, 50 Didier Theys- Walker Motorsports / Euromotorsports #31 Ted Prappas- Say NO To Drugs / P.I.G. (owned by Norman Turley) #37 Guido Dacco- Genoa Racing (owned by Angelo Ferro) #59 Tom Sneva- Menards / Glidden Paints (owned by John Menard) #77 Salt Walther- Walther #25 Phil Krueger- Support Net #97 Dean Hall- CNC Systems Sales #36 Vinicio Salmi- Genoa / Diemme Group 11. Schroeder51 posted: 06.14.2015 - 10:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) First Indy 500 starts for Jeff Andretti, Hiro Matsushita, Mike Groff, Willy T. Ribbs, and Buddy Lazier. Last Indy 500 starts for Randy Lewis, Bernard Jourdain, Pancho Carter, and Tero Palmroth. 12. Anonymous posted: 08.28.2015 - 9:21 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Why did Rick Mears only get 20 points? He won the pole so that would be an extra bonus point... right? 13. Cornys posted: 08.28.2015 - 9:43 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) It must have been updated. It now shows 21 :D 14. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 02.01.2016 - 1:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Qualifying results: 1. Gary Bettenhausen-224.468 MPH 2. Rick Mears-224.113 MPH 3. Arie Luyendyk-223.880 MPH 4. Emerson Fittipaldi-223.063 MPH 5. Kevin Cogan-222.844 MPH 6. A. J. Foyt-222.443 MPH 7. Mario Andretti-221.818 MPH 8. Bobby Rahal-221.401 MPH 9. Michael Andretti-220.943 MPH 10. Al Unser, Jr.-219.823 MPH 11. Stan Fox-219.501 MPH 12. John Andretti-219.059 MPH 13. Mike Groff-219.015 MPH 14. Jim Crawford-218.947 MPH 15. Buddy Lazier-218.692 MPH 16. Scott Brayton-218.627 MPH 17. Danny Sullivan-218.343 MPH 18. Tony Bettenhausen, Jr.-218.188 MPH 19. Hiro Matsushita-218.141 MPH 20. Eddie Cheever, Jr.-218.123 MPH 21. John Paul, Jr.-217.952 MPH 22. Jeff Andretti-217.632 MPH 23. Willy T. Ribbs-217.358 MPH 24. Scott Goodyear-216.751 MPH 25. Bernard Jourdain-216.683 MPH 26. Tero Palmroth-215.648 MPH 27. Dominic Dobson-215.326 MPH 28. Geoff Brabham-214.859 MPH 29. Scott Pruett-214.814 MPH 30. Randy Lewis-214.565 MPH 31. Roberto Guerrero-214.027 MPH 32. Pancho Carter-214.012 MPH 33. Gordon Johncock-213.812 MPH 15. Anonymous posted: 03.11.2016 - 1:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Some DNQ info... #7 Hiro Matsushita, Dick Simon, Lola-Cosworth (King Hiro had a Cosworth and a Buick car available to him. He qualified and raced the Buick) #11 Pancho Carter, Ralph Wilke, Lola-Cosworth DFS #11 Johnny Parsons, Ralph Wilke, Lola-Cosworth DFS #12 Mark Dismore, Frank Arciero, Penske-Buick #31 Ted Prappas, Norm Turley, Lola-Judd #37 Guido Dacco, Angelo Ferro, Lola-Cosworth #39 Randy Lewis, Dale Coyne, Lola Cosworth (Lewis had a huge crash in this car on pole day) #50T Didier Theys, Antonio Ferrari, Lola-Cosworth #66 Dominic Dobson, Thom Burns, Lola-Judd #77 Salt Walther, Todd Walther, Penske-Cosworth #92 Stan Fox, Ron Hemelgarn, Lola-Cosworth #97 Dean Hall, Kent Baker, Lola-Buick #99 John Paul Jr., D.B. Mann, Lola-Buick 16. Anonymous posted: 04.14.2016 - 1:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There was also an on-air negotiation between D.B. Mann and Johnny Parsons Jr. to get Parsons to drive the #99 car but Parsons didn't want to do it. He had accepted a similar deal a few years previous in one of Foyt's cars and had a huge crash on his first qualifying lap. With that in mind it's no wonder JP didn't want to take the chance. Had someone actually attempted to qualify that car on bump day, it's safe to say it would have made the field. 17. Ultimate Warrior #18 posted: 07.17.2016 - 8:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 22 out of 33 cars failed to finish wow 18. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 03.22.2017 - 12:34 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) First alternate: Johnny Parsons Second alternate: Tom Sneva 19. RaceFanX posted: 02.14.2018 - 1:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race was referred to as the Indianapolis 500's "Diamond Jubilee" and the race logo even featured a diamond in its design to tie in with this being the 75th running of the race. There were several tributes to American troops during the lead up to this race to celebrate the United States' victory as a part of an international coalition earlier in the year during Operation Desert storm. Many of the troops were just returning home after the conflict. 20. RaceFanX posted: 04.04.2018 - 12:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the first Indianapolis 500 without Tom Sneva in the field since 1973. The Gas Man's #59 Menards entry was bumped from the field during qualifying. 21. Ryan posted: 06.14.2018 - 11:35 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) On the lap 187 restart, Bobby Unser who was commentating stated that Michael Andretti made one of the greatest passes he ever saw when he passed Rick Mears on the outside of turn one going into the short chute. A lap later, Mears blew by Andretti on the outside in the same exact spot and went on to win his fourth Indy 500. Erasing the ridicule that plagued him from the 1982 race when he was criticized by the racing world for not being more aggressive with Gordon Johncock at the end of that race. 22. RaceFanX posted: 01.17.2019 - 2:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mark Dismore later told Jack Arute he pushed his car way too hard in practice. He was angry that so many teams had refused to hire him and he was rattling off fast laps in an effort to show them how wrong they here to pass on him when he lost control of his #12, leading to the crash that almost cost him his life. With Dismore out for the year afterward Pancho Carter took over Frank Arciero's #12 for the rest of the month of May and put their backup car in the field although he would retire just before halfway with a mechanical problem. 23. RaceFanX posted: 03.17.2019 - 12:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Randy Lewis bounces back from a vicious crash earlier in the month of may to claim a top-15 on race day. 24. RaceFanX posted: 06.09.2019 - 2:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Expanding on 23... The Dale Coyne entry Lewis drove in this race was initially going to be Paul Tracy's Indy 500 debut. Tracy lost his sponsorship and his ride before the month began with Lewis taking over Tracy's car from Long Beach as his backup car and pitting it in the field on Bump Day, knocking out Johnny Parsons. 25. RaceFanX posted: 06.09.2019 - 5:45 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) There was actually a lot of pre-race drama in the lead up to this running of the Indianapolis 500 amid concern that the field could come up short of the traditional 33 cars for the first time in the modern era. It didn't, there were several last minute entries and others entered backup cars, but it did spur a lot of talk about how it seemed Indy was getting too expensive, big-time sponsors were moving only toward the most competitive cars, and money more than talent was filling up the rest of the field. A lot of people singled out how guys like rookie Hiro Matsushita had money and a ride while veteran Al Unser was on the sidelines all month, a deal that could have put Unser in a second Granatelli car fell through and Big Al missed the 500 for the first time since 1969 rather than try hooking up with an noncompetitive team. ESPN announcer Dave Despain was quick to mention it was unfortunate that Hiro got a lot of that criticism because he got a good deal of criticism in 1991 that was significantly more racially motivated as well and in general it clouded the issue. ESPN ran a feature piece on the cost issue on Bump Day talking about how costs at the Brickyard had skyrocketed during the track's CART era and the things needed to change. An interview with Indy President Tony George had him expressing his frustration noting how much top-tier talent was "going South (to NASCAR)" as a result. Despain noted that at the time it cost about $500,000 to field a competitive IndyCar team and he hoped that for the future the track could cut costs, perhaps by ditching turbocharged engines and grounds effects racers, to bring that cost down to around $100,000; a price on par with the NASCAR Winston Cup Series at the time. Of course this controversy and cost concern would become all too notable in the years that came. Here in the early 1990s you could already start to see the issues arising that would lead to the infamous split in 1996. 26. RaceFanX posted: 10.03.2019 - 11:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "SNL" accurately predicted the outcome of this race? Yeah, actually they somehow did. A week before this race was run "Saturday Night Live" ran a skit of its popular "Bill Swerski's Super Fans" segment where the quartet of titular characters, all die hard Chicago Bears fans (or should I say "Da Bears") who talk sports, started talking about who they thought would win the race noting the pre-race favorites were seemingly Rick Mears (good guess), A.J. Foyt (he qualified well), and Gary Bettenhausen (huh?). The characters were in favor of Mears but the climatic gag saw them propose the "Da Bears" would win the race easily if they all rode together on the team bus with coach Mike Ditka driving it. 27. possum posted: 10.04.2019 - 7:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @26 - the Bettenhausens resided in Chicago. So the SNL crew was portraying the "local boy" as a favorite. 28. MSportRev posted: 12.26.2019 - 12:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DNQs: 34. Johnny Parsons was in a Lola / Cosworth 35. Tom Sneva was in a Lola / Buick Didier Theys' No. 17 was a Lola Buick owned by Derrick Walker, No. 50 a Lola / Cosworth owned by Antonio Ferrari Salt Walther was in a Penske / Cosworth Mark Dismore was in a Penske / Buick Dean Wall was in a Lola / Buick Ted Prappas was in a Lola / Judd Guido Dacco was in a Lola / Cosworth Source: Ultimate Racing History 29. Shawn posted: 01.09.2020 - 5:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The 1st caution flag was in turn 1 not 3 30. SweetRich posted: 02.29.2020 - 6:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The commentators for the race were Paul Page, Sam Posey, Bobby Unser and Jack Whitaker. The pit road reporters were Jerry Punch, Jack Arute and Gary Gerould. 31. Rich posted: 12.23.2020 - 6:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Along with being the play by play announcer, Paul Page was the studio host. Jack Whitaker was the pre-race show essayist, not one of the commentators during the race itself. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: