1996 Las Vegas 500K (partially lost footage of IRL Season race; 1996): Difference between revisions

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[[Category:Partially lost media]]

Revision as of 21:12, 24 January 2023

1996lasvegas500k1.jpg

Program for the race.

Status: Partially Lost

The 1996 Las Vegas 500K was the second race of the 1996–97 IRL Season. Occurring on 15th September at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the race would ultimately be won by Richie Hearn in a Reynard-Ford, his sole IndyCar victory. The race is also known for its large number of crashes, with three drivers suffering serious injuries.

Background

The 1996 Las Vegas 500K was the inaugural running of the event, with the race lasting 300 miles.[1] The 1996-97 IRL Season would also include the race's sequel, the 1997 Las Vegas 500K,[2] which occurred on 11th October and was won by Eliseo Salazar.[3] IndyCar has not raced at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway following Dan Wheldon's fatal accident in 2011, pending an evaluation on whether the series can safely continue running on high-banked ovals.[4]

Prior to the race, qualifying commenced with Arie Luyendyk winning the pole position in a Reynard-Ford with a speed of 226.491 mph.[1] Directly behind him was Lola-Menard's Tony Stewart, with Reynard-Ford's Robby Gordon lining up third.[1] Richie Hearn qualified 8th out of 28 competitors.[1]

The Race

With the starting order decided, the 1996 Las Vegas 500K commenced on 15th September.[1] Luyendyk maintained his lead from the start, holding it until traffic enabled Gordon to catch-up and pass him on lap 26.[5][1] After being overtaken and then re-passing Luyendyk on lap 28, Gordon controlled proceedings until lap 58.[5][1] Beforehand, Brad Murphey suffered a serious crash in his Reynard-Ford, resulting in injuries to his right thighbone, pelvis and hip, which required surgery at the Methodist Hospital.[6][5][1] By lap 58, Gordon and the other front runners pitted during another caution, enabling John Paul Jr, who had already pitted in a Lola-Menard, to take the lead.[5][1] On lap 78, Lola-Menard's Tony Stewart crashed out on Turn 2, inflicting a broken left collarbone and neck ligament damage, which required treatment at the University Medical Center.[6][5][1] Paul pitted during the caution, giving Gordon back the lead.[5][1]

Meanwhile, Hearn began to close the gap towards the front runners, and after overtaking Luyendyk on lap 93, would take the lead from Gordon on lap 100 as the latter was saving fuel.[5][1] Six laps later, Luyendyk crashed out following a wheel bearing failure.[1] On lap 125, Stan Wattles crashed his Lola-Ford, losing consciousness following the accident, but ultimately recovered without suffering any injuries.[5][1] The same could not be said for Lola-Menard's Mark Dinsmore, who crashed out from sixth on lap 151, suffering pelvis and left hip socket fractures.[6][5][1] At the restart on lap 161, Gordon took the lead from Hearn, but the latter regained it on lap 169.[5][1] Ten laps later, Gordon retired following a wheel bearing failure.[5][1]

A 20-minute stoppage then occurred when Johnny O'Connell crashed out in a Reynard-Ford with 15 laps remaining, his car ending up upside down, although he escaped uninjured.[5][1] From there, Hearn fended off the Lola-Ford of Michel Jourdain Jr for the final laps to claim his sole IndyCar victory and $120,000 in prize money.[7][5][1] Jourdain Jr finished second, with Reynard-Ford's Mike Groff a lap down in third.[5][1]

Availability

The race received live flag-to-flag coverage from ABC.[8] However, on the East Coast, ABC opted to leave its coverage of the race with around 68 laps remaining, instead focusing on local news reports.[9] The reason behind this decision was that 40% of the race was held under caution, resulting in the coverage going well beyond its allocated time.[9][5][1] However, the West Coast broadcast was unaffected.[9]

As of the present day, only the East Coast version is currently publicly available.[9] Some of the race's final laps can be viewed online thanks to a local news broadcast, but most of the remaining 68 laps is inaccessible. During an r/INDYCAR discussion regarding the missing broadcast among other lost IndyCar media, a representative of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Racing Museum claimed they had found the complete broadcast.[9] Whether it will receive a wide public release remains unclear.

Gallery

Videos

ABC's East Coast broadcast, also including a local report showcasing footage of the finish.

nascarman History detailing the missing West Coast ABC broadcast (1:33-2:16).

See Also

References

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 Racing-Reference detailing the qualifying and race results of the event. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  2. ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the 1996-97 IRL Season schedule. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  3. ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the results of the 1997 Las Vegas 500K. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  4. ↑ Archived USA Today reporting on IndyCar not returning to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway following the 2011 edition. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 Archived IRL Trackside Report detailing the race highlights. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Archived IndyCar Racing Magazine reporting on Stewart, Dismore, and Murphey requiring hospital treatment for their injuries. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  7. ↑ Las Vegas Review-Journal noting this was Hearn's only IndyCar win. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  8. ↑ Ultimate Racing History summarising the ABC broadcast and detailing the race results. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 r/INDYCAR post discussing the partially lost ABC broadcast and an Indianapolis Motor Speedway Racing Museum representative's claim that the Museum has a full copy of it. Retrieved 3rd Jul '22
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