page_title: 1992 Indianapolis 500
section_title: Finish
hierarchical_section_title: 1992 Indianapolis 500 / Race recap / Finish
caption_attribution_description: English: Image of the winning car of the 1992 Indianapolis 500 (Al Unser, Jr.). Photo was taken at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum, during the month of May 2011, at the 100th Anniversary "Ultimate Indianapolis 500 Winning Car Collection."
context_page_description: The 76th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, on Sunday, May 24, 1992. The race is famous for the fierce battle in the closing laps, as race winner Al Unser, Jr. held off second place Scott Goodyear for the victory by 0.043 seconds, the closest finish in Indy history. Unser, Jr. became the first second-generation driver to win the Indy 500, following in the footsteps of his father Al Unser, Sr. He also became the third member of the famous Unser family to win the race.
  Cold temperatures and high winds turned the race into a crash-filled, marathon day. The tone for the race was set early when pole position winner Roberto Guerrero spun out and crashed on the pace lap. The race was dominated by Michael Andretti in the debut of the Ford Cosworth XB engine. Andretti led 160 laps and was 30 seconds in front when his fuel pump suddenly failed with eleven laps to go.
  Thirteen cars were eliminated in crashes during the race, and several other serious wrecks occurred during practice. Former Formula One World Champion Nelson Piquet suffered serious leg injuries in a crash on May 7.
context_section_description: With 12 laps to go, Michael Andretti held a 28-second lead of Scott Goodyear. A lap later, Al Unser, Jr. passed Goodyear for second place. On lap 189, Michael Andretti pulled alongside Al Unser, Sr. and put him a lap down in turn two. Down the backstretch, however, Andretti suddenly began to slow. His fuel pump had failed, and the car coasted to a stop in the north short chute. Andretti had dominated the entire race, and had led 160 of the first 189 laps.
  Al Unser, Jr. suddenly inherited the lead, with Scott Goodyear right behind in second. The caution came out for Andretti's stalled car, and the field bunched up for a late-race restart.
  With 7 laps to go, the green flag came out, and the race was down to a tense two-man battle between Al Unser, Jr. and Scott Goodyear. With four laps to go, Unser held a 0.3-second lead. The cars battled nose-to-tail around the entire track, with the savvy Unser holding Goodyear off thus far. On the final lap, Goodyear drafted Unser down the backstretch, and tucked closely behind through the final turn. In turn four, Unser, Jr. got loose, and claimed he had to back off the accelerator slightly, and Goodyear pounced on the opportunity to close in. Out of the final turn, Goodyear zig-zagged behind Unser down the straightaway, and dove his nose inside over the final few hundred yards. Goodyear pulled alongside, but Unser held him off officially by 0.043 seconds, the closest finish in Indy 500 history.
  Al Unser, Sr. edged out Eddie Cheever by a split second for third place. A. J. Foyt brought his car home in 9th, while John Paul, Jr., who nursed his car all day with a broken fuel cable, avoided all the crashes to finish 10th. Lyn St. James clinched the rookie of the year award, as she was the only rookie left running, in 11th place. Danny Sullivan avoided all of the crashes, and finished 5th, giving Galles/KRACO Racing two cars in the top five. It was Sullivan's first time running at the finish since 1985-1986. CART points leader Bobby Rahal also escaped the carnage, coming home 6th, and maintained his points lead.
  It was the first of three bitter defeats in the Indy 500 for Scott Goodyear. Goodyear, an experienced road racer, was lauded by many for charging from last place (33rd) to nearly winning the race. It would have been the first time in Indy history that a driver won from the last starting position, and would have been Goodyear's first win in Indy car competition. Later in the year, he would triumph at the Michigan 500. In a post-race interview a disappointed but happy Goodyear said "This is a real disappointment. When Michael Andretti lost the lead those last few laps I thought 'This is a real possibility.' It was a two-car race from there. I just couldn't get enough time against him and he just beat me. We just drove flat-out those last 3 laps and my Mackenzie team did a fantastic job. We had an up-and-down month and they gave me such a good race-car. I just needed a little more time to get him."
  In victory lane, a very emotional Al Unser, Jr. climbed from the cockpit, and was interviewed by ABC-TV's Jack Arute. When Arute noticed some tears behind Unser, Jr's voice, Unser, Jr. responded in what would become one of the most famous quotes regarding victory at the Indianapolis 500:
  Well, you just don't know what Indy means!
  Unser's quote would be replayed in many subsequent airings, as well as during the intro for ABC's Wide World of Sports in reference to the famous catchphrase "The Thrill of Victory".
caption: Al Unser, Jr.'s 1992 Indy 500 winning Galmer.
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