1984 Pocono 500

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Flag of the United States.svg 1984 Pocono 500
Race details
10th round of the 1984 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season
1984PoconoProgram.jpg
DateAugust 19, 1984
Official name 1984 Domino's Pizza 500
Location Long Pond, Pennsylvania, U.S.
CoursePermanent racing facility
2.5 mi / 4.023 km
Distance200 laps
500 mi / 804.672 km
WeatherTemperatures up to 75 °F (24 °C); wind speeds up to 13 miles per hour (21 km/h) [1]
Pole position
Driver Rick Mears  (Team Penske)
Time202.872 mph [2]
Podium
First Danny Sullivan  (Doug Shierson Racing)
Second Rick Mears  (Team Penske)
Third Bobby Rahal  (Truesports)

The 1984 Pocono 500, the 14th running of the event, was held at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, August 19, 1984. Branded as the 1984 Domino's Pizza 500 for sponsorship reasons, the race was won by Danny Sullivan.

Contents

Background

Drivers criticized Pocono Raceway's track conditions in 1983. [3] Major bumps on the frontstretch affected cars to the point where the race had to start two-wide instead of three. Before the 1984 season, Pocono repaved the frontstretch.

Rick Mears won the Indianapolis 500. Mario Andretti won the Michigan 500. [4] Domino's Pizza's offer of one million dollars to any driver who could win all three 500 miles races in Indy car's Triple Crown went unclaimed.

Practice and Time Trials

Practice - Wednesday, August 15

In practice on Wednesday, August 15, Kevin Cogan spun 360 degrees and crashed in turn two. Cogan suffered broken heels in both feet, a torn Achilles tendon on his left foot, and a shattered Talus bone on his right foot. [5] On Thursday, he was flown to Los Angeles for rehabilitation. [6] Cogan was driving for the Forsythe Racing Team, defending winners of the Pocono 500, replacing Teo Fabi who returned to Formula One.

Ed Pimm also crashed on Wednesday. He was uninjured but needed to go to a backup car.

Qualifying - Thursday, August 16

Rick Mears won the pole at a speed of 202.872 mph. It broke the track record he set in 1982. Bobby Rahal was second fastest at 201.496 mph. Mario Andretti qualified third at 200.294 mph. [7]

Tony Bettenhausen Jr. was the slowest qualifier on Thursday with a speed of 172.364 mph, over 30 mph slower than Mears. On Friday morning, Bettenhausen crashed in practice.

Qualifying Day 2 - Friday, August 17

Friday's final round of qualifying set the final three starting positions for the race. Pete Halsmer started 31st with a speed of 189.036 mph. Ed Pimm in a backup car qualified at 188.695. Dick Ferguson was the 33rd qualifier at 178.887 mph. [8]

Race

The race start was delayed two hours and eight minutes while the track was dried from a morning rain. [9] Because of the freshly repaved frontstretch at Pocono, the race was able to start lined up in rows of three. Major bumps in the frontstretch had forced the race to start in rows of two in 1982 and 1983.

When the race began, Rick Mears drove off to a quick lead, a lead he held for 14 laps. Tom Sneva took the lead on lap 15. Roberto Guerrero crashed on lap 20. Under caution, Mears cycled back to the lead. [10]

Roberto Guerrero's Wrecked Car RobertoGuerrero1984PoconoCrash.jpg
Roberto Guerrero's Wrecked Car

Mario Andretti was running third when the caution flew. At this point, the engine began running on seven cylinders. When he came into the pits, his crew took off the engine cover and replaced a spark plug. A handful of laps later, his crew replaced the spark box.

Danny Sullivan took the lead on lap 44 and led for 15 laps. Sneva returned to the lead on lap 60 and led 34 of the next 43 laps. [11]

Dennis Firestone crashed on lap 93. During the caution, the CART pace car, driven by Roger Mears, experienced engine problems and was switched to a backup car. [12]

Bobby Rahal took the lead on lap 139, and held the lead for the next 44 laps. Mario Andretti suffered an engine failure on lap 163. Al Unser Jr. crashed in turn one on lap 166. [13]

The race saw a record 10 cautions. Bobby Rahal led the field to the final restart on lap 182. One lap after the restart, Rick Mears retook the lead and pulled away by over two seconds. [14]

With 12 laps to go, the low fuel light on Mears' dashboard came on. The Penske driver was forced to run at a lower fuel number to conserve enough to finish. With six laps remaining, Rahal and Sullivan passed Mears for the lead on the frontstretch. Then going into turn two, Sullivan passed Rahal for the lead. Once Mears had saved enough fuel, he returned to full engine boost, but after re-passing Rahal, was almost two seconds behind Sullivan. [15]

As Sullivan entered the last lap, he caught a pack of four lapped cars who spread out four-wide down the frontstretch, creating a blockade impassable to Sullivan. Entering turn three, Mears reached Sullivan's rear wing, but couldn't complete the pass. Sullivan won by 0.27 seconds, the closest finish in Pocono 500 history. Sullivan's win marked two consecutive years where a driver won in their first start at the track, joining Teo Fabi in 1983. [16] It was Sullivan's second CART win and first on an oval. [17]

For the second straight year, Mears won the Triple Crown points championship and the $10,000 prize that came with it. [18]

Box score

FinishGridNoNameEntrantChassisEngineLapsTime/StatusLedPoints
1930 Flag of the United States.svg Danny Sullivan Doug Shierson Racing Lola T800 Cosworth 2003:38:29.6902220
216 Flag of the United States.svg Rick Mears Penske Racing March 84C Cosworth 200+0.2707418
325 Flag of the United States.svg Bobby Rahal Truesports March 84C Cosworth 200Running4514
444 Flag of the United States.svg Tom Sneva Mayer Motor Racing March 84C Cosworth 200Running5112
5825 Flag of the United States.svg Danny Ongais Interscope Racing March 84C Cosworth 199+1 Lap010
6537 Flag of the United States.svg Scott Brayton Brayton Racing March 84C Cosworth 199+1 Lap08
71977 Flag of the United States.svg Pancho Carter Galles Racing March 84C Cosworth 199+1 Lap06
8111 Flag of the United States.svg Al Unser Penske Racing March 84C Cosworth 199+1 Lap35
91041 Flag of the United States.svg Howdy Holmes Mayer Motor Racing March 84C Cosworth 194+6 Laps04
102082 Flag of the United States.svg Gary Bettenhausen H&R Racing March 84C Cosworth 192+8 Laps03
11720 Flag of the United States.svg Gordon Johncock Patrick Racing March 84C Cosworth 192+8 Laps02
121622 Flag of the United States.svg Dick Simon Dick Simon Racing March 84C Cosworth 191+9 Laps01
131398 Flag of the United States.svg Ed Pimm Curb Racing Eagle 84 Pontiac 188+12 Laps00
141818 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Geoff Brabham Kraco Racing March 84C Cosworth 188+12 Laps00
152438 Flag of the United States.svg Chet Fillip Racing Team VDS Penske PC-10 Cosworth 187+13 Laps00
162916 Flag of the United States.svg Tony Bettenhausen Jr. Bettenhausen Motorsports March 84C Cosworth 187+13 Laps00
173372 Flag of the United States.svg John Paul Jr. Primus RacingPrimus 84 Cosworth 184+16 Laps00
183011 Flag of the United States.svg Pete Halsmer Arciero Racing March 84C Cosworth 169Lost wheel00
1933 Flag of the United States.svg Mario Andretti Newman/Haas Racing Lola T800 Cosworth 163Engine00
202864 Flag of the United States.svg John Morton Jet Engineering March 83C Chevrolet 156Engine00
21137 Flag of the United States.svg Al Unser Jr. Galles Racing March 84C Cosworth 153Crash50
222756 Flag of the United States.svg Steve Chassey Gohr Racing March 83C Chevrolet 131Transmission00
231599 Flag of the United States.svg Michael Andretti Kraco Racing March 84C Cosworth 125Engine00
242627 Flag of the United States.svg Bill Alsup Alsup Racing Argo JM15B Cosworth 116Engine00
252155 Flag of Mexico.svg Josele Garza Machinists Union Racing March 84C Cosworth 97Wheel bearing00
262236 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Dennis Firestone BC Pace Racing March 83C Cosworth 83Crash00
271714 Flag of the United States.svg A. J. Foyt A. J. Foyt Enterprises March 84C Cosworth 79Ignition00
281284 Flag of the United States.svg Johnny Rutherford A. J. Foyt Enterprises March 84C Cosworth 75Exhaust00
291421 Flag of the United States.svg Al Holbert Alex Morales Motorsports March 84C Cosworth 49Magneto00
302359 Flag of the United States.svg Jerry Karl Machinists Union Racing March 83C Cosworth 38Oil pressure00
3169 Flag of Colombia.svg Roberto Guerrero Bignotti-Cotter Racing March 84C Cosworth 19Crash00
322524 Flag of the United States.svg Stan Fox Pabst Racing March 83C Cosworth 13Turbo fire00
333231 Flag of the United States.svg Dick Ferguson Hess Racing Eagle 83 Cosworth 13Engine00
Source: [19] [20]

Broadcasting

The Pocono 500 was broadcast by NBC's Sportsworld. Paul Page was the lead broadcaster, joined by Bobby Unser. Bruce Jenner and Gary Gerould reported from the pits. A one-hour delayed broadcast was aired two weeks after the race on August 27. [21]

Chip Ganassi served as a color commentator for the CART Radio Network broadcast. Ganassi suffered severe head injuries in a crash at Michigan four weeks earlier. [22]

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References

  1. ↑ "1984 Pocono 500 weather information". Wunderground. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Record Speed in Qualifying Puts Mears on Pole". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 17, 1984. p. 19.
  3. ↑ Bailey, Paul (August 14, 1983). "Bumpy Surface Jeopardizes Status of Next Year's Race". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
  4. ↑ "1984 CART Schedule and Results".
  5. ↑ "Footboxes A Joke, Injuries Aren't". Indianapolis Star. September 20, 1984. p. 39. Retrieved April 14, 2024– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  6. ↑ "Record Speed in Qualifying Puts Mears on Pole". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 17, 1984. p. 19.
  7. ↑ "Record Speed in Qualifying Puts Mears on Pole". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 17, 1984. p. 19.
  8. ↑ "Domino's Pizza 500 Lineup". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 19, 1984. p. 94.
  9. ↑ "Sullivan Wins Pocono 500 Race". Ocala Star-Banner. (Florida). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 2C.
  10. ↑ "Race Results - Racing-Reference".
  11. ↑ "Race Results - Racing-Reference".
  12. ↑ "Mario Has No Spark At Home". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 23.
  13. ↑ "1984 Domino's Pizza 500 Results".
  14. ↑ "Sullivan Outduels Mears, Rahal at Pocono". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 22.
  15. ↑ "Sullivan Outduels Mears, Rahal at Pocono". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 22.
  16. ↑ "Sullivan Delivers". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 19.
  17. ↑ "Dan Sullivan Proves Point In Race Victory". Youngstown Vindicator. (Ohio). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 17.
  18. ↑ "Sullivan Delivers". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 20, 1984. p. 19.
  19. ↑ 1984 Domino's Pizza 500
  20. ↑ 1984 Pocono 500 - Round 10
  21. ↑ 1984 Pocono 500 Telecast: NBC-TV, August 27, 1984
  22. ↑ "Record Speed in Qualifying Puts Mears on Pole". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. August 17, 1984. p. 19.
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