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1995 Indianapolis 500

79th Indianapolis 500
1995 Indianapolis 500 winning car.jpg
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning body USAC
Season 1995 CART season
Date May 28, 1995
Winner Jacques Villeneuve
Winning team Team Green
Average speed 153.616 mph (247.221 km/h)
Pole position Scott Brayton
Pole speed 231.604 mph (372.731 km/h)
Fastest qualifier Brayton
Rookie of the Year Christian Fittipaldi
Most laps led Maurício Gugelmin (59)
Pre-race ceremonies
National anthem Florence Henderson
"Back Home Again in Indiana" Jim Nabors
Starting Command Mary F. Hulman
Pace car Chevrolet Corvette
Pace car driver Jim Perkins
Attendance 250,000 (estimated)
TV in the United States
Network ABC
Announcers Paul Page, Sam Posey, Bobby Unser
Nielsen Ratings 9.4 / 26
Chronology
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1994 1996

The 79th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday, May 28, 1995. Sanctioned by USAC, it was part of the 1995 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season. Jacques Villeneuve won in his second start. After dominating the 1994 race and the 1994 IndyCar season, Marlboro Team Penske failed to qualify for the race. Defending Indy 500 winner Al Unser, Jr. (too slow) and Emerson Fittipaldi (bumped) could not get their cars up to speed.

On lap 190, with the field coming back to green on a restart, leader Scott Goodyear passed the pace car in turn four, and was assessed a stop-and-go penalty. Goodyear refused to serve the penalty, claiming that the green light was on, and stayed out on the track. Officials stopped scoring him on lap 195, which handed Jacques Villeneuve the lead of the race, and ultimately, a controversial victory. Examination of video evidence after the race proved that Goodyear passed the pace car while the yellow light was on, and his team declined to protest the ruling. Villeneuve's winning car was powered by the Ford Cosworth XB engine, the powerplant's first Indy victory in its fourth attempt. The win broke a seven-year winning streak by Ilmor-constructed engines. With Goodyear's disqualification, Honda was effectively denied their first Indy victory, and would not manage to win at Indianapolis until 2004.

Race winner Jacques Villeneuve's day was not without incident, as he was penalized two laps for passing the pace car during a caution period in the early segment of the race. Through both strategy and luck, the young driver made up the 5-mile deficit for the win earning the race the "Indy 505" sobriquet. In addition to the race controversies, the day was marred by a multi-car crash on the opening lap involving Stan Fox, Eddie Cheever, and others. Fox suffered career-ending head injuries.


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