1996 Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix

The 1996 Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix was a CART race which happened at the Nazareth Speedway on April 28, 1996. It was the 5th round of the 1996 IndyCar season.

Qualifying

Penske Racing driver Paul Tracy set the a mph speed of 190.737 mph, and also, the pole. It was a New Track Record.

Race

Start - Lap 95

At lap 15, 1st caution came out as Hiro Matsushita collided with Juan Manuel Fangio II. The restart came out at lap 22. The top 10 at lap 25: Paul Tracy, Emerson Fittipaldi, Scott Pruett, Michael Andretti, Jimmy Vasser, Al Unser, Jr., Bobby Rahal, Robby Gordon, Greg Moore and Christian Fittipaldi. At lap 53, Hiro Matsushita was the 1st driver to retire. At lap 79, Andretti stalled his car after a 13.4 pitstop. He continued in the race. At the following lap, the race leader Paul Tracy had hit three mechanics in one move after stop his car in his pit area. The mechanics were not badly injured, but were taken to the hospital. At lap 89, Paul Tracy received a black flag penalty because of the incident with his mechanics. The top 6 at lap 95 was: Michael Andretti, Al Unser, Jr., Greg Moore, Emerson Fittipaldi, Bobby Rahal and Christian Fittipaldi.

Lap 115- Lap 141

At lap 115, 2nd caution came out, as Roberto Moreno lost one of his rear wheels. At the following lap, Gil de Ferran retired after having suspension problems. He collided with Adrian Fernandez in the pits. Restart came out at lap 128. At lap 141, the top 12 was: Michael Andretti, Emerson Fittipaldi, Al Unser, Jr., Greg Moore, Bobby Rahal, Jimmy Vasser, Paul Tracy, Scott Pruett, Christian Fittipaldi, Raul Boesel, Robby Gordon and Adrian Fernandez.

Closing stages. 33 laps to go

With 33 laps to go, 3rd caution came out as Robby Gordon hit the wall at turn 1. He retired. When the restart would come out, Raul Boesel's engine blew up. The restart came out with 23 laps to go. Andretti's lead was growing up and any problem happened to him as he won the race.

Final Results

1. Michael Andretti
2. Greg Moore
3. Al Unser, Jr.
4. Emerson Fittipaldi
5. Paul Tracy
6. Bobby Rahal
7. Jimmy Vasser
8. Scott Pruett
9. Christian Fittipaldi
10. Adrian Fernandez
11. Bryan Herta
12. André Ribeiro
13. Alex Zanardi
14. Mike Groff
15. Maurício Gugelmin
16. Teo Fabi
17. Eddie Lawson
18. Jeff Krosnoff
19. Stefan Johansson
20. Parker Johnstone

Did not finish

1. Raul Boesel engine
2. Robby Gordon contact
3. Gil de Ferran suspension
4. Roberto Moreno lost wheel
5. Juan Manuel Fangio II did not finish
6. Hiro Matsushita did not finish

Points Standings after 5 races

1. Jimmy Vasser 73 points
2. Al Unser, Jr. 53 points
3. Scott Pruett 49 points
4. Greg Moore 36 points
5. Gil de Ferran 33 points
6. Christian Fittipaldi 32 points

Notes

1. Last race - Teo Fabi
2. After this race, Mark Blundell, who broke his foot in Brazil was in good conditions to race in the next round: The US 500.
3. For the last time CART decided to run a 200 lap race in Nazareth Speedway. For 1997 until the last time CART raced there, it was a 225 lap race. After 2002, the race went to Indy Racing League, but it was still a 225 lap race.