1995 USAC Gold Crown Series (Johnsonverse)

The 1995 USAC Marlboro Gold Crown Series season was the 40th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by USAC. The season consisted of 31 races. The national champion and Indianapolis 500 winner was Jacques Villeneuve. Rookie of the Year was Gil de Ferran.
1994 YSAC Rookie of the Year Jacques Villeneuve won the season opener at Miami, a foreshadowing of things to come for the French-Canadian driver. After Scott Goodyear was penalized, Villeneuve won the 1995 Indianapolis 500 despite also receiving a penalty in the race that put Villeneuve down two laps. Villeneuve also won at Road America and Cleveland en route to the 1995 USAC Championship and an offer from Frank Williams to drive in Formula One in 1996. Though Team Penske scored five wins (four by 1994 USAC champion Al Unser Jr.), they were nowhere near the juggernaut that they were in 1994, with a low point being when both team drivers (Unser Jr. and Emerson Fittipaldi) failed to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. This was very much intentional on the part of USAC, who had introduced new technical regulations to curb Penske's advantage. The Honda engine that was abandoned at Indianapolis the previous year led most of the Indy 500 in 1995.
At the request of the Formula One teams with USAC operations, USAC allowed triple-digit numbers starting in 1995.
== Drivers and teams ==
The following teams and drivers competed in the 1995 Indy Car World Series season. Firestone returned to IndyCar after two decades of absence, which sparked worries of a tire war breaking out in the series, similar to the one between Goodyear and Hoosier that had plagued the NASCAR RCA Cup Series in 1988, 1989, and 1994. Both Goodyear and Firestone were ordered to submit an affidavit that this war wouldn't be overly-disruptive to the season, as it had been to NASCAR.
Team 	Chassis 	Engine 	Tires	No.	Drivers 	Primary Sponsor
Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske PC-24 	Chevrolet 	G 	1 	Al Unser Jr. 	Marlboro
Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske PC-24 	Chevrolet 	G 	2 	Emerson Fittipaldi 	Marlboro
Newman/Haas Racing 	Lola T95/00 	Pontiac 	G 	3 	Paul Tracy 	Budweiser
Newman/Haas Racing 	Lola T95/00 	Pontiac 	G 	6 	Michael Andretti 	Texaco-Havoline
Target Chip Ganassi Racing	Mopar M95 	Dodge 	G 	4 	Bryan Herta 	Scotch Tape
Target Chip Ganassi Racing	Mopar M95 	Dodge 	G 	12 	Jimmy Vasser 	STP
Walker Racing 	Reynard 95I 	Cosworth 	G 	5 	Robby Gordon 	Valvoline
Walker Racing 	Reynard 95I 	Cosworth 	G 	15 	Christian Fittipaldi 	Chapeco
Dick Simon Racing 	Lola T95/00
Lola T94/00
Lola T92/00	Cosworth 	G 	7 	Eliseo Salazar 	Cristal
Dick Simon Racing 	Lola T95/00
Lola T94/00
Lola T92/00	Cosworth 	G 	22 	Arie Luyendyk 	WavePhore
Dick Simon Racing 	Lola T95/00
Lola T94/00
Lola T92/00	Cosworth 	G 	77 	Davy Jones 	Byrd's
Dick Simon Racing 	Lola T95/00
Lola T94/00
Lola T92/00	Cosworth 	G 	90 	Lyn St. James 	Whitlock Auto Supply
Dick Simon Racing 	Lola T95/00
Lola T94/00
Lola T92/00	Cosworth 	G 	99 	Dean Hall 	Subway
Hall Racing 	Toyota GR95 	Toyota 	G 	8 	Gil de Ferran 	Pennzoil
Rahal-Hogan Racing 	Rahal-Hogan RH-003	Offenhauser 	G 	9 	Bobby Rahal 	Miller Genuine Draft
Rahal-Hogan Racing 	Rahal-Hogan RH-003	Offenhauser 	G 	11 	Raul Boesel 	Duracell
Galles Racing 	Galmer 95 	Chevrolet 	G 	10 	Adrián Fernández 	Tecate
Galles Racing 	Galmer 95 	Chevrolet 	G 	55 	Marco Greco 	Brastemp
A. J. Foyt Enterprises 	Watson 95 	Offenhauser 	G 	14 	Eddie Cheever 	Copenhagen
A. J. Foyt Enterprises 	Watson 95 	Offenhauser 	G 	41 	Scott Sharp 	Copenhagen
Bettenhausen Motorsports 	Penske PC-23 	Chevrolet 	G 	16 	Stefan Johansson 	Alumax
PacWest Racing 	Ford F-195 	Ford 	G 	17 	Juan Manuel Fangio II 	Bank of America
PacWest Racing 	Ford F-195 	Ford 	G 	18 	Maurício Gugelmin 	Hollywood Cigarettes
Payton/Coyne Racing 	Coyne DC-10 	Offenhauser 	F 	19 	Greg Moore 	AGFA
Payton/Coyne Racing 	Coyne DC-10 	Offenhauser 	F 	34 	Alessandro Zampedri 	Mi-Jack
Patrick Racing 	Ligier JS42 	Honda 	F 	20 	Scott Pruett 	Firestone
Arciero Racing 	Tatuus US95 	Cosworth 	F 	25 	Hiro Matsushita 	Panasonic
Team Green 	Mopar M95 	Dodge 	G 	27 	Jacques Villeneuve 	Player's
Tasman Motorsports 	Reynard 95I 	Honda 	F 	31 	Doug Boyer 	LCI
Tasman Motorsports 	Reynard 95I 	Honda 	F 	24 	Scott Goodyear 	CTI Worldwide Communications
Forsythe Racing 	Reynard 95I 	Cosworth 	G 	33 	Teo Fabi 	Combustion Engineering
Pagan Racing 	Reynard 94I 	Chevrolet 	G 	21 	Roberto Guerrero 	Upper Deck
Team Menard 	Lola T95/00 	Menard 	G 	160	Scott Brayton 	Quaker State
Team Menard 	Lola T95/00 	Menard 	G 	180	Buddy Lazier 	Quaker State
Greenfield Racing 	Ford F-195 	Greenfield 	F 	42 	Michael Greenfield 	Greenfield Competition
Arizona Motorsports 	Dallara IR-95 	Cosworth 	F 	44 	Jeff Ward 	Arizona Executive Air
Comptech Racing 	Reynard 95I 	Honda 	F 	149	Parker Johnstone 	Motorola
Beck Motorsports 	Ferrari I95 	Cosworth 	F 	54 	Hideshi Matsuda 	Zunne Group
Project Indy 	Lola T94/00 	Offenhauser 	G 	164	Hubert Stromberger 	No-Touch
Hemelgarn Racing 	Reynard 95I 	Ford Cosworth XB	F 	91 	Stan Fox 	Delta Faucet
Hemelgarn Racing 	Lola T92/00 	Ford Cosworth XB	F 	95 	Davey Hamilton 	Delta Faucet
Hemelgarn Racing 	Lola T92/00 	Buick Indy V-6 	F 	196	Jim Crawford 	Hemelgarn Racing
Autosport Racing Team 	Lola T92/00 	Menard Indy V-6 	F 	92 	Franck Fréon 	Indy Regency Racing
Vollstedt Racing 	Vollstedt 95 	Oldsmobile 	G 	52 	Keith Kauffman 	Mobil 1
Stacker & Associates 	Stacker 95B 	Buffalo 	F 	56 	Guido Daccò 	McDonald's
Stacker & Associates 	Stacker 95B 	Buffalo 	F 	57 	Johnny Parsons 	KFC
Stacker & Associates 	Stacker 95B 	Buffalo 	F 	58 	Brian Till 	WBC
Ferrari Racing 	Ferrari I95 	Ferrari 	F 	53 	Christian Danner 	Shell
Ferrari Racing 	Ferrari I95 	Ferrari 	F 	83 	Fredrik Ekblom 	Shell
Williams Indy Engineering 	Williams IW95 	Cosworth 	G 	49 	Didier Theys 	Rothmans
Williams Indy Engineering 	Williams IW95 	Cosworth 	G 	51 	Stéphan Grégoire 	Rothmans
McLaren-Moore 	McLaren M42 	Peugeot 	F 	62 	Giovanni Lavaggi 	Sega
McLaren-Moore 	McLaren M42 	Peugeot 	F 	64 	Franck Fréon 	Sega
Équipe Ligier 	Ligier JS42 	Renault 	F 	89 	Andrea Montermini 	Gitanes
Équipe Ligier 	Ligier JS42 	Renault 	F 	96 	Gary Brabham 	Gitanes
Team Tyrrell 	Tyrrell 024I 	Honda 	G 	43 	David Kudrave 	Nokia
Team Tyrrell 	Tyrrell 024I 	Honda 	G 	45 	Ted Prappas 	Nokia
Minardi Indy 	Minardi I195 	Cosworth 	G 	65 	Domenico Schiattarella	Lucchini
Minardi Indy 	Minardi I195 	Cosworth 	G 	66 	Dennis Vitolo 	Lucchini
GM Performance Racing 	GM 95C 	Chevrolet 	G 	13 	Éric Bachelart 	GM Goodwrench
GM Performance Racing 	GM 95C 	Chevrolet 	G 	103	Eddie Lawson 	GM Goodwrench
Ford-Roush Racing 	Ford F-195 	Cosworth 	G 	23 	Danny Sullivan 	Citgo
Ford-Roush Racing 	Ford F-195 	Cosworth 	G 	26 	Ross Bentley 	Citgo
Mopar Racing 	Mopar M95 	Dodge 	G 	75 	Jack Hewitt 	Dodge Dealers
Mopar Racing 	Mopar M95 	Dodge 	G 	80 	Steve Butler 	Dodge Dealers
Toyota Gazoo Racing 	Toyota GR95 	Toyota 	G 	63 	Bruce Field 	FedEx
Toyota Gazoo Racing 	Toyota GR95 	Toyota 	G 	154	André Ribeiro 	FedEx
Dallara Racing 	Dallara IR-95 	Chevrolet 	F 	78 	Pedro Chaves 	Izod
Dallara Racing 	Dallara IR-95 	Chevrolet 	F 	82 	Nick Firestone 	Izod
Tatuus Racing 	Tatuus US95 	Chevrolet 	G 	73 	Mauro Baldi 	Old Navy
Tatuus Racing 	Tatuus US95 	Chevrolet 	G 	177	Carlos Guerrero 	Old Navy
==Schedule==
No.	Race title 	Track 	Track Type 	Date
1 	Gilroy Garlic 500 	San Jose Motorplex, Gilroy, California 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	February 26
2 	Pepsi 300 	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	March 5
3 	Pennzoil 200 	Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Virginia 	Short oval 	March 12
4 	Indy Carnival 	Surfers Paradise Street Circuit, Surfers Paradise, Queensland, Australia	Street course 	March 19
5 	Kansas Indy Grand Prix 	Heartland Park Topeka, Topeka, Kansas 	Road course 	March 26
6 	Slick 50 200 Presented by LCI International 	Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, Arizona 	One-mile oval 	April 2
7 	Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach 	Streets of Long Beach, California 	Street course 	April 9
8 	Cosworth 200 	Suzuka International Raceway, Suzuka, Kansai 	Road course 	April 16
9 	Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix 	Nazareth Speedway, Nazareth, Pennsylvania 	One-mile oval 	April 23
10 	Detective Jenny 200 	Ontario Motor Speedway, Ontario, California 	Superspeedway (unrestricted)	April 30
11 	Indianapolis 500 	Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, Indiana 	Superspeedway (unrestricted)	May 28
12 	Miller Genuine Draft 200 	Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, Wisconsin 	One-mile oval 	June 4
13 	ITT Automotive Detroit Grand Prix 	The Raceway on Belle Isle Park, Detroit, Michigan 	Road course 	June 11
14 	Dallara 200 	Monza Circuit, Monza, Lombardy, Italy 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	June 18
15 	Texaco/Havoline Presents the Budweiser/G. I. Joe's 200 	Portland International Raceway, Portland, Oregon 	Road course 	June 25
16 	Coca-Cola 300 	Denver International Speedway, Denver, Colorado 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	July 2
17 	Tim & Chloe Johnson Grand Prix presented by Texaco/Havoline * 	Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin 	Road course 	July 9
18 	Molson Indy Toronto 	Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 	Street course 	July 16
19 	Medic Drug Grand Prix of Cleveland Presented by Dairy Mart 	Burke Lakefront Airport, Cleveland, Ohio 	Road course 	July 23
20 	Marlboro 500 	Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan 	Superspeedway (unrestricted)	July 30
21 	Quaker State 500 	Pocono International Raceway, Long Pond, Pennsylvania 	Superspeedway (unrestricted)	August 6
22 	Miller Genuine Draft 200 	Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio 	Road course 	August 13
23 	New England 200 	New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon, New Hampshire 	One-mile oval 	August 20
24 	Howard Johnson's 225 	Pikes Peak International Raceway, Fountain, Colorado 	Intermediate oval 	August 28
25 	California 500 	Ontario Motor Speedway, Ontario, California 	Superspeedway (unrestricted)	September 3
26 	Molson Indy Vancouver 	Streets of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada 	Street course 	September 10
27 	Toyota Grand Prix of Monterey Featuring the Bank of America 300	Laguna Seca Raceway, Monterey, California 	Road course 	September 17
28 	Molson 300 	Fuji Speedway, Fuji, Kanto 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	September 24
29 	Alabama 500K 	Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln, Alabama 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	October 1
30 	Lola Cars 200 	Mallory Park, Leicestershire, United Kingdom 	One-mile oval 	October 8
31 	Florida Citrus Growers 500 	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida 	Superspeedway (restricted) 	October 15
* * This race was originally named The Chicago Tribune Presents the Texaco/Havoline 200, but was renamed on race day to commemorate the birth of Tim and Chloe Johnson
==Results==
No.	Race title 	Pole position 	Winner 	Team 	Chassis/Engine
1 	Gilroy Garlic 500 	Keith Kauffman 	Jimmy Vasser 	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	Mopar/Dodge
2 	Pepsi 300 	Michael Andretti 	Jacques Villeneuve	Team Green 	Mopar/Dodge
3 	Pennzoil 200 	Eddie Cheever 	Brian Till 	Stacker & Associates 	Stacker/Buffalo
4 	Indy Carnival 	Michael Andretti 	Paul Tracy 	Newman/Haas Racing 	Lola/Pontiac
5 	Kansas Indy Grand Prix 	Jack Hewitt 	Greg Moore 	Payton/Coyne Racing 	Coyne/Offenhauser
6 	Slick 50 200 Presented by LCI International 	Bryan Herta 	Robby Gordon 	Walker Racing 	Reynard/Cosworth
7 	Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach 	Michael Andretti 	Al Unser Jr. 	Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske/Chevrolet
8 	Cosworth 200 	Al Unser Jr. 	Eddie Cheever 	A. J. Foyt Enterprises 	Watson/Offenhauser
9 	Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix 	Robby Gordon 	Emerson Fittipaldi	Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske/Chevrolet
10 	Detective Jenny 200 	Arie Luyendyk 	Bobby Rahal 	Rahal-Hogan Racing 	Rahal-Hogan/Offenhauser
11 	Indianapolis 500 	Scott Brayton 	Jacques Villeneuve	Team Green 	Mopar/Dodge
12 	Miller Genuine Draft 200 	Teo Fabi 	Paul Tracy 	Newman/Haas Racing 	Lola/Pontiac
13 	ITT Automotive Detroit Grand Prix 	Robby Gordon 	Robby Gordon 	Walker Racing 	Reynard/Cosworth
14 	Dallara 200 	Steve Butler 	Danny Sullivan 	Ford-Roush Racing 	Ford/Cosworth
15 	Texaco/Havoline Presents the Budweiser/G. I. Joe's 200 	Jacques Villeneuve	Al Unser Jr. 	Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske/Chevrolet
16 	Coca-Cola 300 	Michael Greenfield	Jack Hewitt 	Mopar Racing 	Mopar/Dodge
17 	Tim & Chloe Johnson Grand Prix presented by Texaco/Havoline 	Jacques Villeneuve	Jacques Villeneuve	Team Green 	Mopar/Dodge
18 	Molson Indy Toronto 	Jacques Villeneuve	Michael Andretti 	Newman/Haas Racing 	Lola/Pontiac
19 	Medic Drug Grand Prix of Cleveland Presented by Dairy Mart 	Gil de Ferran 	Jacques Villeneuve	Team Green 	Mopar/Dodge
20 	Marlboro 500 	Parker Johnstone 	Scott Pruett 	Patrick Racing 	Ligier/Honda
21 	Quaker State 500 	Jack Hewitt 	Brian Tills 	Stacker & Associates 	Stacker/Buffalo
22 	Miller Genuine Draft 200 	Jacques Villeneuve	Al Unser Jr. 	Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske/Chevrolet
23 	New England 200 	André Ribeiro 	André Ribeiro 	Toyota Gazoo Racing 	Gazoo/Toyota
24 	Howard Johnson's 225 	Eddie Cheever 	Adrián Fernández 	Galles Racing 	Galmer/Chevrolet
25 	California 500 	Al Unser Jr. 	Jimmy Vasser 	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	Mopar/Dodge
26 	Molson Indy Vancouver 	Jacques Villeneuve	Al Unser Jr. 	Marlboro Team Penske 	Penske/Chevrolet
27 	Toyota Grand Prix of Monterey Featuring the Bank of America 300	Jacques Villeneuve	Gil de Ferran 	Hall Racing 	Gazoo/Toyota
28 	Molson 300 	Lyn St. James 	Danny Sullivan 	Ford-Roush Racing 	Ford/Cosworth
29 	Alabama 500K 	Guido Daccò 	Jack Hewitt 	Mopar Racing 	Mopar/Dodge
30 	Lola Cars 200 	Keith Kauffman 	Keith Kauffman 	Vollstedt Racing 	Vollstedt/Oldsmobile
31 	Florida Citrus Growers 500 	Al Unser Jr. 	Bryan Herta 	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	Mopar/Dodge
Category:Johnsonverse