1980 Tony Bettenhausen 200 (lost footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980): Difference between revisions
(Johnny Rutherford claims victory in a race featuring heavy crashes from Mike Mosley and long-term leader Al Unser. The NBC coverage was cited as an example as to why motor racing was less popular compared to other sports back then.) |
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*[[1979 California 500 (lost footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; existence unconfirmed; 1979)]] | *[[1979 California 500 (lost footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; existence unconfirmed; 1979)]] | ||
*[[1979 Gould Grand Prix (lost footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; 1979)]] | *[[1979 Gould Grand Prix (lost footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; 1979)]] | ||
*[[1980 Norton Twin 200 (lost footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)]] | *[[1980 Miller High Life 150 (partially found footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)]] | ||
*[[1981 Pocono 500 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1981)]] | *[[1980 Norton Twin 200 (lost footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)]] | ||
*[[1980 Primera Copa Mexico 150 (lost footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)]] | |||
*[[1981 Kraco Car Stereo 150 (lost CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1981)]] | |||
*[[1981 Pocono 500 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1981)]] | |||
*[[1996 Las Vegas 500K (partially lost footage of IRL Season race; 1996)]] | |||
*[[Indianapolis 500 WFBM-TV Broadcasts (lost racing footage; 1949-1950)]] | *[[Indianapolis 500 WFBM-TV Broadcasts (lost racing footage; 1949-1950)]] | ||
*[[Indianapolis 500 MCA closed-circuit broadcasts (partially lost racing footage; 1964-1970)]] | *[[Indianapolis 500 MCA closed-circuit broadcasts (partially lost racing footage; 1964-1970)]] |
Revision as of 13:44, 4 July 2022
The 1980 Tony Bettenhausen 200 (also known as the 1980 Tony Bettenhausen Classic and the 1980 Milwaukee 200) was the eighth race of the 1980 CART PPG IndyCar World Series. Occurring on 10th August at the Milwaukee Mile, the race would ultimately be won by polesitter Johnny Rutherford in a Chaparral-Cosworth, after long-term leader and Longhorn-Cosworth driver Al Unser crashed out following an upright failure.
Background
The 1980 Tony Bettenhausen 200 was the 20th running of the event, with the annual race lasting 200 miles.[1] It was one of two 1980 CART PPG IndyCar World Series races to commence at the Milwaukee Mile, the other being the Gould Rex Mays Classic,[2] which occurred on 8th June and was won by Bobby Unser in a Penske-Cosworth.[3] The race, named in memory of two-time IndyCar champion Tony Bettenhausen,[4] was the first Milwaukee Mile race to be sanctioned by CART, with a few more races held until it was dropped from the schedule from 1983 onwards.[5][6]
Prior to the race, qualifying commenced with Johnny Rutherford winning the pole position with a speed of 130.813 mph.[1] Directly behind him was Al Unser, with Penske-Cosworth's Rick Mears lining up third out of 26 competitors.[1]
The Race
With the starting order decided, the 1980 Tony Bettenhausen 200 commenced on 10th August.[1] Rutherford maintain his lead on the opening lap, holding it until Al Unser passed him on lap 20.[1] Unser held the first position for 39 laps, before Rutherford regained it on lap 59.[1] On lap 65, Penske-Cosworth's Mike Mosley was running in fifth, when he suddenly suffered a rear suspension failure following the front straightaway, culminating in a crash into the wall with the impact significant enough to allow the car to climb up said wall and be airborne, slamming into the wall again.[7][5][1] Despite the massive accident, Mosley escaped uninjured.[5] The resulting crash led to pitstops during a caution period, with Unser coming out in front when the race resumed.[1]
Unser led another 45 laps before briefly being passed by Rutherford on lap 113.[1] He regained it a lap later however, and was seemingly set to win, when on lap 166, his front upright failed, causing the car to slam into the north turn wall.[5][7][1] Unser also escaped uninjured, with Rutherford taking the lead.[5][1] His main rivals for the remaining 35 laps would be Mears and Bobby Unser, but he received a boost when both Penske drivers were penalised a lap following pit violations.[5][1] Rutherford therefore controlled proceedings to claim victory and $20,150 in prize money.[5][7][1] Rutherford's performance was also significant considering he spun off the circuit at one point and also had to contend with a vibration that prevented him from seeing clearly.[7] Mears finished a lap down in second, while Unser was three laps behind, yet still took third.[5][1]
Availability
According to IndyCar on TV, 20 minutes of highlights were televised on the same day by NBC as part of its NBC Sportsworld, alongside the Avon World Women's Marathon and Survival of the Fittest, being billed as the Milwaukee 200.[8] The coverage received criticism, with The Indianapolis Star lambasting how just 20 of the 90-minute race was shown. Additionally, the review criticised the limited coverage of the race standings, as well as failing to capture much of the battle between Rutherford and Unser, one camera apparently being situated behind a tree.[8] The review deemed the coverage as an example of motor racing's lack of popularity compared to other sports.[8]
The broadcast has yet to resurface, and no footage of the race is currently publicly available. It was known that a YouTube video containing highlights of 1979-1981 CART races also included coverage of the race, but said video has since been taken down.[9]
See Also
- 1962 Trenton 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1962)
- 1962 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1962)
- 1963 Trenton 100 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1963)
- 1963 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1963)
- 1964 Golden State 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1964)
- 1964 Trenton 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1964)
- 1965 Golden State 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1965)
- 1965 Jimmy Bryan Memorial (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1965)
- 1966 Jimmy Bryan Memorial (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1966)
- 1966 Trenton 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1966)
- 1967 Trenton 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1967)
- 1968 Tony Bettenhausen 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1968)
- 1968 Trenton 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1968)
- 1969 Langhorne 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1969)
- 1969 Rex Mays Classic (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1969)
- 1969 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1969)
- 1970 Bobby Ball 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Jimmy Bryan 150 (partially lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Langhorne 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Rex Mays Classic (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Rocky Mountain 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1971 Bobby Ball 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Jimmy Bryan 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Marlboro 300 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Michigan 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Rex Mays Classic (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Schaefer 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Trentonian 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1972 Best Western Motels 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Indianapolis 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Phoenix 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Rex Mays Classic (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Tony Bettenhausen 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Trenton Times 300 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Trentonian 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1973 Schaefer 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1973)
- 1973 Texas 200 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1973)
- 1974 Phoenix 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1974)
- 1974 Schaefer 500 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1974)
- 1974 Trentonian 200 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1974)
- 1975 Bricklin 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1975)
- 1975 Michigan 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1975)
- 1975 Trentonian 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1975)
- 1976 Indianapolis 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1976 Jimmy Bryan 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1976 Michigan 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1976 Schaefer 500 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1976 Trenton Times Auto Classic (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1976 Trentonian 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1977 American Parts 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1977 Jimmy Bryan 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1977 Michigan Grand Prix (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1977 Rex Mays Classic (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1977 Schaefer 500 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1977 Texas Grand Prix (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1977 Trentonian 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1977)
- 1978 Coors 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1978)
- 1978 Daily Express Indy Silverstone (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1978)
- 1978 Daily Mail Indy Trophy (partially found CBS and BBC One footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1978)
- 1978 Norton Twin 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1978)
- 1979 Arizona Republic / Jimmy Bryan 150 (partially found footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; 1979)
- 1979 California 500 (lost footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; existence unconfirmed; 1979)
- 1979 Gould Grand Prix (lost footage of SCCA/CART IndyCar Series race; 1979)
- 1980 Miller High Life 150 (partially found footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)
- 1980 Norton Twin 200 (lost footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)
- 1980 Primera Copa Mexico 150 (lost footage of CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1980)
- 1981 Kraco Car Stereo 150 (lost CART PPG IndyCar World Series race; 1981)
- 1981 Pocono 500 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1981)
- 1996 Las Vegas 500K (partially lost footage of IRL Season race; 1996)
- Indianapolis 500 WFBM-TV Broadcasts (lost racing footage; 1949-1950)
- Indianapolis 500 MCA closed-circuit broadcasts (partially lost racing footage; 1964-1970)
References
- ↑ 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 Racing-Reference detailing the qualifying and race results of the event. Retrieved 2 July '22
- ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the 1980 CART PPG IndyCar World Series schedule. Retrieved 2nd Jul '22
- ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the results of the 1980 Gould Rex Mays Classic. Retrieved 2nd Jul '22
- ↑ Haul Away! noting origins of the race's name. Retrieved 2 Jun '22
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 Racing Nation detailing the race. Retrieved 2 Jun '22
- ↑ UPI reporting on the event being dropped from 1983 onwards. Retrieved 2 July '22
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Track Forum discussing the race and the crashes. Retrieved 2 July '22
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 IndyCar on TV detailing the NBC broadcast of the race and its criticism from the The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2 July '22
- ↑ Motorsport Retro Facebook post linking to a deleted YouTube that contained race highlights. Retrieved 2nd Jul '22