# 1991 CART PPG Indy Car World Series

The 1991 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season was the 13th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by CART. The season consisted of 17 races, and one non-points exhibition event. Michael Andretti was the national champion, and the rookie of the year was his younger brother Jeff Andretti.
The 1991 Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by USAC, but counted towards the CART points championship. Rick Mears won the Indy 500, his record-tying fourth victory in the event.
Michael Andretti won a total of eight races, eight pole positions, and led more than half of the laps during the season, but the championship battle still went down to the final race of the season. Bobby Rahal won only one race, but had 11 podium finishes and 13 top tens. Rahal's consistent season put him in position to challenge Andretti for the title in the season finale at Laguna Seca. Andretti got off to a slow start to the season, dropping out of the first two races, and finished a heartbreaking second at Indianapolis. But after Indy, he shot to the top of the standings. He won four of the last five races of the season, and needed to finish 6th or better at Laguna Seca to clinch the title. When Bobby Rahal dropped out at Laguna Seca with overheating problems, Andretti cruised to the title.

## Drivers and constructors

The following teams and drivers competed for the 1991 Indy Car World Series. All entrants used Goodyear tires.
| Team | Chassis | Engine | No | Drivers |
| Galles-Kraco Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 1 | Al Unser Jr. |
| Galles-Kraco Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 18 | Bobby Rahal |
| Newman/Haas Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 2 | Michael Andretti |
| Newman/Haas Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 6 | Mario Andretti |
| Marlboro Team Penske | Penske | Chevrolet | 3 | Rick Mears |
| Marlboro Team Penske | Penske | Chevrolet | 5 | Emerson Fittipaldi |
| Marlboro Team Penske | Penske | Chevrolet | 17 | Paul Tracy |
| Chip Ganassi Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 8 | Eddie Cheever |
| Vince Granatelli Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 9 | Arie Luyendyk |
| Truesports | Truesports | Judd | 11 | Scott Pruett |
| Patrick Racing | Lola | Alfa Romeo | 20 | Danny Sullivan |
| Patrick Racing | Lola | Alfa Romeo | 40 | Roberto Guerrero |
| Bettenhausen Motorsports | Penske | Chevrolet | 16 | Tony Bettenhausen Jr. |
| Bettenhausen Motorsports | Penske | Chevrolet | 90 | Cornelius Euser |
| Walker Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 10 | Willy T. Ribbs |
| Walker Racing | Lola | Judd | 15 | Scott Goodyear |
| Euromotorsports | Lola | Cosworth | 42 | Franco Scapini |
| Euromotorsports | Lola | Cosworth | 42 | Nicola Marozzo |
| Euromotorsports | Lola | Cosworth | 50 | Mike Groff |
| Euromotorsports | Lola | Cosworth | 50 | Roberto Guerrero |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 19 | Randy Lewis |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 19 | Dale Coyne |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 19 | Ross Bentley |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 39 | Dennis Vitolo |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 39 | Jeff Wood |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 39 | Michael Greenfield |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 39 | Paul Tracy |
| Dale Coyne Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 90 | Buddy Lazier |
| P.I.G. Entreprises | Lola | Judd | 31 | Ted Prappas |
| Hall-VDS Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 4 | John Andretti |
| Bayside Disposal Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 86 | Jeff Andretti |
| Dick Simon Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 7 | Hiro Matsushita |
| Dick Simon Racing | Lola | Chevrolet | 22 | Scott Brayton |
| Leader Card Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 21 | Dean Hall |
| Leader Card Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 21 | Didier Theys |
| Leader Card Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 21 | Johnny Parsons |
| U.S. Engineering | Lola | Cosworth | 44 | Phil Krueger |
| Arciero Racing | Penske | Buick | 12 | Mark Dismore |
| Arciero Racing | Lola | Buick | 12 | Pancho Carter |
| Arciero Racing | Lola | Buick | 12 | John Jones |
| Giochi/Preziosi | Lola | Cosworth | 33 | Guido Daccò |
| A. J. Foyt Enterprises | Lola | Chevrolet | 14 | A. J. Foyt |
| A. J. Foyt Enterprises | Lola | Chevrolet | 14 | Bernard Jourdain |
| A. J. Foyt Enterprises | Lola | Chevrolet | 14 | Al Unser |
| Hemelgarn Racing | Lola | Buick | 71 | Buddy Lazier |
| Hemelgarn Racing | Lola | Buick | 91 | Stan Fox |
| Hemelgarn Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 92 | Gordon Johncock |
| Thom Burns Racing | Lola | Judd | 66 | Dominic Dobson |
| King Racing | TrueSports | Judd | 21 | Geoff Brabham |
| King Racing | Lola | Judd | 26 | Jim Crawford |
| Menard Racing | Lola | Buick | 9 | Kevin Cogan |
| Menard Racing | Lola | Buick | 51 | Gary Bettenhausen |
| Paragon Racing | Lola | Cosworth | 23 | Tero Palmroth |
| Mann Racing | Lola | Buick | 93 | John Paul Jr. |

## Season Summary
### Schedule

| Rd | Date | Race Name | Track | City |
| 1 | March 17 | Gold Coast IndyCar Grand Prix | R Surfers Paradise Street Circuit | Surfers Paradise, Australia |
| 2 | April 14 | Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach | R Long Beach Street Circuit | Long Beach, California |
| 3 | April 21 | Valvoline 200 | O Phoenix International Raceway | Phoenix, Arizona |
| 4 | May 26 | Indianapolis 500 | O Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Speedway, Indiana |
| 5 | June 2 | Miller Genuine Draft 200, in Honor of Rex Mays | O Milwaukee Mile | West Allis, Wisconsin |
| 6 | June 16 | Valvoline Detroit Grand Prix | R Streets of Detroit | Detroit, Michigan |
| 7 | June 23 | Texaco/Havoline Presents the Budweiser/G. I.Joe's 200 | R Portland International Raceway | Portland, Oregon |
| 8 | July 8 | Budweiser Cleveland Grand Prix | R Burke Lakefront Airport | Cleveland, Ohio |
| 9 | July 14 | Marlboro Grand Prix | R Meadowlands Street Circuit | East Rutherford, New Jersey |
| 10 | July 21 | Molson Indy Toronto | R Exhibition Place | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| 11 | August 4 | Marlboro 500 | O Michigan International Speedway | Brooklyn, Michigan |
| 12 | August 25 | Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Denver | R Streets of Denver | Denver, Colorado |
| 13 | September 1 | Molson Indy Vancouver | R Streets of Vancouver | Vancouver, British Columbia |
| 14 | September 15 | Pioneer Electronics 200 Presented by Budweiser | R Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course | Lexington, Ohio |
| 15 | September 22 | The Chicago Tribune Presents the Texaco/Havoline 200 | R Road America | Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin |
| 16 | October 6 | Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix | O Pennsylvania International Raceway | Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania |
| NC | October 19 | Marlboro Challenge | R Laguna Seca Raceway | Monterey, California |
| 17 | October 20 | Toyota Monterey Grand Prix Featuring the Champion Spark Plug 300 | R Laguna Seca Raceway | Monterey, California |
O Oval/Speedway  R Road/Street course  Non-championship event
* Indianapolis was USAC-sanctioned but counted towards the PPG Indy Car title.

### Race results

| Rnd | Race Name | Pole position | Winning driver | Winning team | Race time |
| 1 | Gold Coast IndyCar Grand Prix | Michael Andretti | John Andretti | Hall-VDS Racing | 2:12:54 |
| 2 | Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach | Michael Andretti | Al Unser Jr. | Galles-Kraco Racing | 1:57:14 |
| 3 | Valvoline 200 | Rick Mears | Arie Luyendyk | Vince Granatelli Racing | 1:32:18 |
| 4 | 75th Indianapolis 500 | Rick Mears | Rick Mears | Marlboro Team Penske | 2:50:00 |
| 5 | Miller Genuine Draft 200, in Honor of Rex Mays | Rick Mears | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:29:10 |
| 6 | Valvoline Detroit Grand Prix | Michael Andretti | Emerson Fittipaldi | Marlboro Team Penske | 1:57:19 |
| 7 | Texaco/Havoline Presents the Budweiser/G. I. Joe's 200 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:44:06 |
| 8 | Budweiser Cleveland Grand Prix | Emerson Fittipaldi | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:42:47 |
| 9 | Marlboro Grand Prix | Rick Mears | Bobby Rahal | Galles-Kraco Racing | 1:54:37 |
| 10 | Molson Indy Toronto | Michael Andretti | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:50:57 |
| 11 | Marlboro 500 | Rick Mears | Rick Mears | Marlboro Team Penske | 2:59:23 |
| 12 | Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Denver | Michael Andretti | Al Unser Jr. | Galles-Kraco Racing | 1:57:06 |
| 13 | Molson Indy Vancouver | Michael Andretti | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:47:10 |
| 14 | Pioneer Electronics 200 Presented by Budweiser | Michael Andretti | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:59:49 |
| 15 | The Chicago Tribune Presents the Texaco/Havoline 200 | Bobby Rahal | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:35:05 |
| 16 | Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix | Rick Mears | Arie Luyendyk | Vince Granatelli Racing | 1:31:23 |
| NC | Marlboro Challenge | Michael Andretti | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 0:56:41 |
| 17 | Toyota Monterey Grand Prix Featuring the Champion Spark Plug 300 | Michael Andretti | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | 1:47:42 |

### Final driver standings

| Pos | Driver | SUR | LBH | PHX | INDY | MIL | DET | POR | CLE | MEA | TOR | MIC | DEN | VAN | MDO | ROA | NAZ | MAR | LAG | Pts |
| 1 | Michael Andretti | 14 | 16 | 4 | 2* | 1* | 19 | 1* | 1 | 16 | 1* | 14* | 3 | 1* | 1* | 1* | 3* | 1 | 1* | 234 |
| 2 | Bobby Rahal | 2 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1* | 3 | 11 | 20 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 24 | 200 |
| 3 | Al Unser Jr. | 16* | 1* | 6 | 4 | 19 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 23 | 3 | 1* | 3 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 197 |
| 4 | Rick Mears | 3 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 6 | 17 | 3 | 20 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 15 | 15 | 2* | 5 | 145 |
| 5 | Emerson Fittipaldi | 19 | 17 | 3 | 11 | 8 | 1* | 2 | 2* | 7 | 21 | 20 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 140 |
| 6 | Arie Luyendyk | 9 | 5 | 1* | 3 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 18 | 19 | 2 | 22 | 19 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 8 | 134 |
| 7 | Mario Andretti | 17 | 19 | 9 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 15 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 132 |
| 8 | John Andretti | 1 | 18 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 19 | 9 | 6 | 19 | 105 |
| 9 | Eddie Cheever | 15 | 3 | 8 | 31 | 7 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 12 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 91 |
| 10 | Scott Pruett | 5 | 24 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 17 | 8 | 23 | 17 | 4 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 17 | 18 | | 7 | 67 |
| 11 | Danny Sullivan | 4 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 5 | 10 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 14 | 18 | 18 | 9 | 17 | 16 | 20 | 9 | 9 | 56 |
| 12 | Scott Brayton | 6 | 8 | 13 | 17 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 16 | 10 | 13 | 11 | 19 | | 27 | 52 |
| 13 | Scott Goodyear | 23 | 7 | 21 | 27 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 19 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 24 | 8 | 11 | 9 | 21 | | 11 | 42 |
| 14 | Tony Bettenhausen Jr. | 10 | 12 | 18 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 21 | 11 | 5 | 10 | 18 | 18 | 13 | 10 | | 16 | 27 |
| 15 | Jeff Andretti RY | 7 | 9 | 10 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 12 | 16 | 23 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 22 | 18 | 11 | | 13 | 26 |
| 16 | Mike Groff | 8 | 23 | 16 | 24 | 18 | 22 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 8 | | DNS | | 20 | 8 | | | 15 | 22 |
| 17 | Willy T. Ribbs | | | | 32 | | 11 | | 22 | 10 | | | 6 | 21 | | 10 | 17 | | 12 | 17 |
| 18 | John Jones | | | | | | | | 21 | 19 | 10 | 8 | 11 | 15 | 21 | 21 | 13 | | 21 | 10 |
| 19 | Ted Prappas R | 22 | 6 | | DNQ | | 25 | 17 | 18 | 22 | 16 | | 21 | 14 | 12 | 23 | | | 23 | 9 |
| 20 | Gordon Johncock | | | | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 8 |
| 21 | Paul Tracy R | | 22 | | | | | | | | | 21 | | | | | 7 | | 25 | 6 |
| 22 | Buddy Lazier | 25 | 25 | | 33 | DNQ | 18 | | 11 | | 22 | | 9 | | 24 | 24 | | | 22 | 6 |
| 23 | Hiro Matsushita | 21 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 15 | 19 | 14 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 12 | | 20 | 6 |
| 24 | Stan Fox | | | | 8 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 5 |
| 25 | Didier Theys R | | 10 | | DNQ | | DNQ | 22 | 12 | 20 | 13 | | 23 | | 23 | 25 | | | 14 | 4 |
| 26 | Pancho Carter | | | | 21 | 14 | | | | | | 10 | | | | | | | | 3 |
| 27 | Cornelius Euser R | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 10 | 3 |
| 28 | Franco Scapini R | 11 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2 |
| 29 | Gary Bettenhausen | | | | 22 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 1 |
| 30 | Randy Lewis | 13 | 15 | 19 | 14 | | | | | 14 | 12 | 16 | 17 | | 15 | 22 | | | 26 | 1 |
| 31 | Dean Hall | 12 | | | DNQ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 1 |
| 32 | Jeff Wood | | | 22 | | | 24 | 20 | | | | | 13 | 20 | 19 | 14 | DNS | | 17 | 0 |
| 33 | A. J. Foyt | | | | 28 | 16 | 23 | 16 | 20 | 13 | | 17 | | | | | 16 | | | 0 |
| 34 | Ross Bentley R | | | | | | | | | | | | | 13 | | | | | | 0 |
| 35 | Dominic Dobson | | | | 13 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 36 | Guido Daccò | | 14 | 20 | Wth | | 21 | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 37 | Dennis Vitolo | 24 | 26 | | | | 20 | | | | | | | | | | 14 | | | 0 |
| 38 | Roberto Guerrero | | | | 30 | | 15 | | | | 18 | | 19 | | | | | | 18 | 0 |
| 39 | Mark Dismore R | 20 | 21 | 15 | Wth | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 40 | Michael Greenfield | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 16 | 20 | | | | 0 |
| 41 | Al Unser | | | 17 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 42 | Bernard Jourdain | | 20 | | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 43 | Phil Krueger | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 44 | Johnny Parsons | | | | DNQ | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 45 | Geoff Brabham | | | | 20 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 46 | Dale Coyne | | | | | 21 | DNQ | 23 | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 47 | Nicola Marozzo R | | | | | | | | | | | | | 22 | DNS | DNQ | | | | 0 |
| 48 | Tero Palmroth | | | | 23 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 49 | John Paul Jr. | | | | 25 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 50 | Jim Crawford | | | | 26 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 51 | Kevin Cogan | | | | 29 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| | Tom Sneva | | | | DNQ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| | Salt Walther | | | | DNQ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| | Jon Beekhuis | | | | | | | | | | | Wth | | | | | | | | 0 |
| | Tony de Tommaso | | | | | | | | | | | | DNQ | | | | | | | 0 |
| Pos | Driver | SUR | LBH | PHX | INDY | MIL | DET | POR | CLE | MEA | TOR | MIC | DEN | VAN | MDO | ROA | NAZ | MAR | LAG | Pts |
| Color | Result |
| Gold | Winner |
| Silver | 2nd place |
| Bronze | 3rd place |
| Green | 4th-6th place |
| Light Blue | 7th-12th place |
| Dark Blue | Finished (Outside Top 12) |
| Purple | Did not finish |
| Red | Did not qualify (DNQ) |
| Brown | Withdrawn (Wth) |
| Black | Disqualified (DSQ) |
| White | Did not start (DNS) |
| Blank | Did not participate (DNP) |
| Blank | Not competing |
In-line notation :
| Bold | Pole position |
| Italics | Ran fastest race lap |
| * | Led most race laps |
| RY | Rookie of the Year |
| R | Rookie |

### Nations' Cup

* Top result per race counts towards Nations' Cup.
| Pos | Country | Pts |
| 1 | United States | 328 |
| 2 | Brazil | 136 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 133 |
| 4 | Canada | 55 |
| 5 | Japan | 6 |
| 6 | Belgium | 4 |
| 7 | Italy | 2 |
| 8 | Colombia | 0 |
| 9 | Mexico | 0 |
| 10 | Australia | 0 |
| 11 | Finland | 0 |
| 12 | United Kingdom | 0 |
| Pos | Country | Pts |

### Chassis Constructors' Cup

| Pos | Chassis | Pts |
| 1 | Lola T9100/T9000/T8900/T8800 | 352 |
| 2 | Penske PC-20/PC-19/PC-17 | 229 |
| 3 | Truesports 91 | 67 |
| Pos | Chassis | Pts |

### Engine Manufacturers' Cup

| Pos | Engine | Pts |
| 1 | Chevrolet A | 374 |
| 2 | Judd | 93 |
| 3 | Cosworth DFS/DFX | 57 |
| 4 | Alfa Romeo | 56 |
| 5 | Buick | 15 |
| Pos | Engine | Pts |