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1997 CART season
PPG CART World Series
Season
Races	17
Start date	March 2
End date	September 28
Awards
Drivers' champion	Alex Zanardi
Constructors' Cup	Reynard
Manufacturers' Cup	Mercedes
Nations' Cup	United States
Rookie of the Year	Patrick Carpentier
← 1996 (ICWS)1998 →

The 1997 CART PPG World Series season was the nineteenth in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing. It consisted of 17 races, beginning in Homestead, Florida on March 2 and concluding in Fontana, California on September 28. The PPG CART World Series Drivers' Champion was Alex Zanardi. Rookie of the Year was Patrick Carpentier. Mercedes-Benz won their first and only CART engine-manufacturer's title.

After a settlement with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, CART relinquished its license of the "IndyCar" trademark for 1997 and beyond. As a result, the series was renamed for the first time since 1980. The CART term, which had been mostly eschewed since 1992, was brought back and embraced, a new logo was unveiled, and participants were encouraged to refer to the machines of the CART series as "Champ Cars". The revival of the historic term (and curtailing the use of the mostly generic term "Indy cars") helped to differentiate the machines from those of the rival Indy Racing League, and was part of a concerted and necessary effort to distance the series from the Indianapolis 500, to which it no longer had any link. This was also the last year of title sponsorship by PPG Industries, although the Driver's Championship continued to be known as the PPG Cup until 1999. This was the first season since 1983 not to feature Emerson Fittipaldi.

Drivers and constructors

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1997 CART World Series season.

Team	Chassis	Engine	Tires	No	Drivers	Rounds	Primary Sponsors
Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard 97i	Honda HRR	F	1	Jimmy Vasser	All	Target
				4	Alex Zanardi	1–16
					Arie Luyendyk	17
Marlboro Team Penske	Penske PC-26-97	Ilmor-Mercedes IC108D	G	2	Al Unser Jr.	All	Marlboro
				3	Paul Tracy	All
Walker Racing	Reynard 97i	Honda HRR	G	5	Gil de Ferran	All	Valvoline
Newman-Haas Racing	Swift 007.i	Ford XD	G	6	Michael Andretti	All	Texaco-Havoline
				11	Christian Fittipaldi	1–2, 9–17	Budweiser
					Roberto Moreno	3–8
Team Rahal	Reynard 97i	Ford XD	G	7	Bobby Rahal	All	Miller Lite
				8	Bryan Herta	All	Shell
Hogan Racing	Reynard 97i	Mercedes IC108D	F	9	Dario Franchitti (R)	1–16	Hogan Racing
					Robby Gordon	17
Bettenhausen Racing	Reynard 97i	Mercedes IC108D	G	16	Patrick Carpentier (R)	1–14, 17	Alumax
					Roberto Moreno	15–16
PacWest	Reynard 97i	Mercedes IC108D	F	17	Maurício Gugelmin	All	Hollywood Cigarettes
				18	Mark Blundell	All	Motorola
Payton/Coyne Racing	Reynard 97i	Ford XD	G	19	Michel Jourdain Jr.	11, 14, 16	Herdez
	Lola T97/00					1–10, 12–13, 15, 17
				34	Roberto Moreno	1	Data Control
					Paul Jasper (R)	2–7	Hype
					Christian Danner	8–9	Payton/Coyne Racing
					Charlie Nearburg (R)	10, 13	Nearburg Exploration
					Dennis Vitolo	11–12	Payton/Coyne Racing
	Reynard 97i				Charlie Nearburg (R)	14, 16	Nearburg Exploration
					Christian Danner	15	Payton/Coyne Racing
					Dennis Vitolo	17	SmithKline Beecham
Patrick Racing	Reynard 97i	Ford XD	F	20	Scott Pruett	All	Brahma
				40	Raul Boesel	All
Della Penna Motorsports	Lola T97/00	Ford XD	G	21	Richie Hearn	1–16	Ralphs
	Swift 007.i					17
Arciero-Wells Racing	Reynard 97i	Toyota RV8B	F	24	Hiro Matsushita	All	Panasonic
				25	Max Papis	All	MCI Worldcom
Team KOOL Green	Reynard 97i	Honda HRR	F	27	Parker Johnstone	All	KOOL
Tasman Motorsports	Reynard 97i	Honda HRR	F	31	André Ribeiro	10–17	LCI Communications
	Lola T97/00					1–9
				32	Adrian Fernández	All	Tecate
All American Racing	Reynard 96i Reynard 97i	Toyota RV8B	G	36	Juan Manuel Fangio II	All	Castrol
				98	P. J. Jones	All
Project Indy	Lola T97/00	Ford XD	G	64	Dennis Vitolo	1, 3–4, 15–16	SmithKline Beecham
					Arnd Meier (R)	2, 5–6, 8–14, 17	Hasseröder
Davis Racing	Reynard 97i	Ford XD	G	77	Gualter Salles (R)	All	Davis Racing 2 Indusval 15
Forsythe Racing	Reynard 96i Reynard 97i	Mercedes IC108D	F	99	Greg Moore	All	Player's

Season summary

Schedule

Rnd	Date	Race Name	Circuit	Location	TV Broadcaster
1	March 2	Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami Presented by Toyota	O  Homestead Motorsports Complex	Homestead, Florida	ABC
2	April 6	Sunbelt IndyCarnival	R  Surfers Paradise Street Circuit	Surfers Paradise, Australia	ABC
3	April 13	Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach	R  Streets of Long Beach	Long Beach, California	ABC
4	April 27	Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix Presented by Toyota	O  Nazareth Speedway	Nazareth, Pennsylvania	ABC
5	May 11	Hollywood Rio 400K	O  Autódromo de Jacarepaguá	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	ABC
6	May 24	Motorola 300	O  Gateway International Raceway	Madison, Illinois	ABC
7	June 1	Miller 200	O  Milwaukee Mile	West Allis, Wisconsin	ESPN
8	June 8	ITT Automotive Detroit Grand Prix	R  The Raceway on Belle Isle Park	Detroit, Michigan	ABC
9	June 22	Budweiser/G. I. Joe's 200 Presented by Texaco/Havoline	R  Portland International Raceway	Portland, Oregon	ESPN
10	July 13	Medic Drug Grand Prix of Cleveland	R  Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport	Cleveland, Ohio	ABC
11	July 20	Molson Indy Toronto	R  Exhibition Place	Toronto, Ontario	ABC
12	July 27	U.S. 500 Presented by Toyota	O  Michigan Speedway	Brooklyn, Michigan	ABC
13	August 10	Miller 200	R  Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course	Lexington, Ohio	ABC
14	August 17	The Chicago Tribune Presents the Texaco/Havoline 200	R  Road America	Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin	ESPN
15	August 31	Molson Indy Vancouver	R  Streets of Vancouver	Vancouver, British Columbia	ESPN
16	September 7	Toyota Grand Prix of Monterey Featuring the Texaco/Havoline 300	R  Laguna Seca Raceway	Monterey, California	ESPN
17	September 28	Marlboro 500 Presented by Toyota	O  California Speedway	Fontana, California	ESPN

– The Australian Indy Grand Prix was supposed to run 182 miles, but was shortened due to time constraints.
– Portland was supposed to be 193 miles, but was shortened due to rain.
 O  Oval/Speedway
 R  Road/Street course

Race results

Rnd	Race	Pole position	Fastest lap	Race Winner				Race time	Report
				Driver	Team	Chassis	Engine
1	Homestead	Alex Zanardi	Michael Andretti	Michael Andretti	Newman/Haas Racing	Swift	Ford	1:38:45	Report
2	Surfers Paradise	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Scott Pruett	Patrick Racing	Reynard	Ford	2:01:04	Report
3	Long Beach	Gil de Ferran	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard	Honda	1:46:17	Report
4	Nazareth	Paul Tracy	Paul Tracy	Paul Tracy	Marlboro Team Penske	Penske	Mercedes	1:53:31	Report
5	Rio	Maurício Gugelmin	Gil de Ferran	Paul Tracy	Marlboro Team Penske	Penske	Mercedes	2:10:47	Report
6	Gateway	Raul Boesel	Dario Franchitti	Paul Tracy	Marlboro Team Penske	Penske	Mercedes	2:37:54	Report
7	Milwaukee	Paul Tracy	Paul Tracy	Greg Moore	Forsythe Racing	Reynard	Mercedes	1:43:32	Report
8	Belle Isle	Gil de Ferran	Dario Franchitti	Greg Moore	Forsythe Racing	Reynard	Mercedes	1:52:45	Report
9	Portland	Scott Pruett	Raul Boesel	Mark Blundell	PacWest	Reynard	Mercedes	2:00:12	Report
10	Cleveland	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard	Honda	1:41:40	Report
11	Toronto	Dario Franchitti	Mark Blundell	Mark Blundell	PacWest	Reynard	Mercedes	1:45:43	Report
12	Michigan	Scott Pruett	Maurício Gugelmin	Alex Zanardi	Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard	Honda	2:59:35	Report
13	Mid-Ohio	Bryan Herta	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard	Honda	1:41:16	Report
14	Road America	Maurício Gugelmin	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard	Honda	1:57:54	Report
15	Vancouver	Alex Zanardi	Alex Zanardi	Maurício Gugelmin	PacWest	Reynard	Mercedes	1:47:17	Report
16	Laguna Seca	Bryan Herta	Mark Blundell	Jimmy Vasser	Target Chip Ganassi	Reynard	Honda	1:41:38	Report
17	Fontana	Maurício Gugelmin	Greg Moore	Mark Blundell	PacWest	Reynard	Mercedes	3:02:42	Report

(R) Dedicated road course, (O) Oval/Speedway, (S) Temporary street circuit

Final driver standings

Pos Driver MIA SUR LBH NAZ RIO GAT MIL DET POR CLE TOR MIC MDO ROA VAN LAG FON Pts 1 Alex Zanardi 7 4 1* 11 4 4 13 26 11 1 2 1* 1* 1 4 3 Wth 195 2 Gil de Ferran 22 5 21 4 11 3 7 3* 2 2* 25 3 6 3 3 5 6 162 3 Jimmy Vasser 3 12 9 5 9 5 3 4 19 13 7 24 5 8 2* 1* 2 144 4 Maurício Gugelmin 6 17 2 9 22 6 5 16 6* 15 6 6 7 2 1 9 4 132 5 Paul Tracy 2 19* 7 1* 1 1 6 DNS 7 7 10 4 27 28 28 26 26 121 6 Mark Blundell 14 8 13 19 8 24 12 17 1 9 1* 2 26 16* 7 2 1 115 7 Greg Moore 4 2 23 16 2 13 1* 1 5 24 23 27 2 18 17 24 13 111 8 Michael Andretti 1* 3 22 2 21 11* 2 2 8 23 4 21 8 26 16 27 19 108 9 Scott Pruett 5 1 3 10 3 19 9 24 17 8 5 14 9 5 18 16 7 102 10 Raul Boesel 17 7 8 8 5 14 4 6 3 16 8 18 4 21 6 8 20 91 11 Bryan Herta 10 22 6 7 6 22 15 7 21 3 17 5 24 11 8 6 21 72 12 Bobby Rahal 16 10 10 6 10* 20 11 9 24 5 9 17 3 6 24 19 5 70 13 Al Unser Jr. 27 27 4 3 7 18 20 8 25 4 20 20 22 7 5 11 22 67 14 André Ribeiro 12 6 14 26 15 10 26 25 13 14 3 23 10 22 10 4 17* 45 15 Christian Fittipaldi 26 28 4 6 11 16 21 4 9 21 9 42 16 Parker Johnstone 8 21 5 17 12 7 25 20 9 10 12 25 12 23 11 12 11 36 17 Patrick Carpentier  RY  9 15 15 12 28 2 8 15 16 12 16 15 15 27 Wth 27 18 Adrián Fernández 13 11 11 23 26 8 24 27 10 17 14 26 23 12 19 23 3 27 19 Roberto Moreno 24 24 14 18 25 10 5 15 10 16 20 Gualter Salles  R  15 24 18 24 19 12 22 21 23 19 18 10 20 13 26 7 14 10 21 Richie Hearn 11 13 27 18 14 9 23 23 14 28 27 22 13 9 22 25 15 10 22 Dario Franchitti  R  25 9 12 13 27 17 16 13 26 11 26 19 11 25 13 13 10 23 Juan Manuel Fangio II 20 20 26 15 20 23 21 10 22 21 19 11 25 10 12 15 27 9 24 Max Papis 19 14 25 22 13 26 19 11 28 27 15 8 14 15 20 14 12 8 25 Dennis Vitolo 23 DNS DNQ 28 7 27 20 16 6 26 Robby Gordon 8 5 27 Hiro Matsushita 21 25 20 25 23 15 17 19 15 20 22 9 19 24 14 28 23 4 28 P. J. Jones 28 26 16 21 16 21 14 14 20 25 21 28 17 14 25 17 10 3 29 Michel Jourdain Jr. 18 18 17 20 17 16 27 22 12 18 13 13 18 20 21 22 18 1 30 Arnd Meier  R  16 25 DNS 18 18 22 24 12 16 19 25 1 31 Christian Danner 12 27 23 1 32 Charlie Nearburg  R  26 28 17 18 0 33 Paul Jasper  R  23 19 DNQ 24 Wth 18 0 34 Arie Luyendyk 24 0 Pos Driver MIA SUR LBH NAZ RIO GAT MIL DET POR CLE TOR MIC MDO ROA VAN LAG FON 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) 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	252
2	Brazil	238
3	Italy	198
4	Canada	190
5	England	115
6	Mexico	27
7	Scotland	10
8	Argentina	9
9	Japan	4
10	Germany	2
11	Netherlands	0
Pos	Country	Pts

Chassis Constructors' Cup

Pos	Chassis	Pts	Wins
1	Reynard 97I/96I	346	13
2	Penske PC-26	156	3
3	Swift 007.i	143	1
4	Lola T9700	45	0
Pos	Chassis	Pts	Wins

Engine Manufacturers' Cup

Pos	Engine	Pts	Wins
1	Mercedes	316	9
2	Honda	290	6
3	Ford XD/XB	230	2
4	Toyota	15	0
Pos	Engine	Pts	Wins

See also

• 1997 Toyota Atlantic Championship season
• 1997 Indianapolis 500
• 1996–97 Indy Racing League
• 1997 Indy Lights season
• Super Speedway
• CART World Series

References

1. "Cart 1997". The Indianapolis Star. 2 March 1997. p. 46.

• Åberg, Andreas. "CART FedEx Champ Car World Series 1997 (sic)". Driver Database. Archived from the original on 2008-10-09. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
• "1997 CART FedEx Champ Car World Series (sic)". Champ Car Stats. Archived from the original on 2009-03-03. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
• "PPG Helps Penske Racing Go "Green" with ENVIROBASE High Performance Coatings" (Press release). PPG Industries. 2009-03-09. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
• "Standings after California". Champ Car World Series. Archived from the original on 2008-10-22. Retrieved 2009-05-19.

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