By: Spencer Neff
June 15,2023

On Sunday, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES returns to the historic Road America for the Sonsio Grand Prix.

The 55-lap event will be the 34th race on the 4.048-mile, 14-turn permanent road course in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

Before the 27-car field turns a lap in preparation for the eighth of 17 rounds in the 2023 Championship, we’ll take a look back at one of the memorable races from years past at Road America: the 1998 Texaco-Havoline 200.

Franchitti score breakthrough victory

After making it through a recon figured Turn 1 unscathed, trouble unfolded in Turn 3.

Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Zanardi made contact with Team Penske’s Al Unser Jr., sending the latter into the gravel pit. Further back, Players Forsythe Racing’s Patrick Carpentier was collected, ending both his and Unser’s races before they completed a lap.

After earning pole with a track record speed of 145.728 miles per hour, Newman-Haas’ Michael Andretti checked out to a major lead on the field. By Lap 10, Team Penske’s day went further south when Andre Ribeiro stopped on track between Turns 10 and 11.

With Andretti opting to pit during the ensuing yellow, Team Rahal would hold the first two spots. Making his last start on the venue, Owner/Driver Bobby Rahal slipped past Bryan Herta on the front straightaway.

In Turn 5, Herta spun while under braking. All-American Racers’ Alex Barron made contact with the outside wall and continued off-course before colliding with Herta’s stalled car. Thankfully, both drivers escaped without injury.

Stretching out his fuel and tires, Forsythe Racing’s Greg Moore found himself at the front of the pack while the field continued under the second caution of the afternoon. Moore’s day would end abruptly too, as the transmission in his Reynard-Mercedes broke leaving pit road.

Andretti, the 1990-91 and 1996 winner returned to the lead as he looked to break a tie with his father Mario and Emerson Fittipaldi in winning his fourth race at Road America.

Still looking for the first win of his career, Team Kool Green’s Dario Franchitti made his way to the front halfway through the 50-lap race. Following a sequence of pit stops which saw Rahal and JJ Lehto up front, the sophomore driver cycled back to the lead.

Following a number of close calls and heartbreaks, Franchitti pulled away to win by 7.102 seconds.

Despite a controversial beginning to his race, Zanardi would finish second after starting 11th, padding his championship lead to 80 with five races left. Two years after a blown engine with six laps remaining dashed his shot at a first victory, Newman-Haas’ Christian Fittipaldi finished third at Road America.

Andretti crashed on the final lap and the Marlboro bonus money for winning from. the pole would roll over to Vancouver.

Analysis

Two weeks later, Franchitti cashed in on the bonus on the street circuit in Western Canada, becoming the first winner to start from pole since Zanardi in Cleveland a year earlier.

Although it was one of just four races in which he did not see the podium, the popular Italian’s fourth-place effort was enough to become the first repeat champion since Bobby Rahal in 1986-87.

Franchitti would earn ten victories in CART prior to jumping to the IRL full-time ahead of the 2003 season. In 1999, Fittipaldi added his name to the list of first-time.

To date, eight drivers have scored their first win at Road America, more than any other road/street course in the series and second-most among active venues to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Oval). Felix Rosenqvist is the most recent driver to do so (2020 Race 2)

Header Image By Jamie Squire/Getty Images