ThePenske PC-20was aCARTPenske Racingcar which competed in the1991and1992seasons. In 1991, it raced in all seventeen events, scoring 3 wins, two withRick Mears,and one withEmerson Fittipaldi,placed 4th and 5th at the season's end respectively. The most remarkable success of the PC-20 was the1991 Indianapolis 500win by Mears, his 4th win at the Brickyard. The car was designed byNigel Bennett,his 4th for Penske Racing.[1]In 1992, it also raced alongside thePenske PC-21.
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| Category | CARTIndyCar | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Penske Cars Ltd. | ||||||
| Designer(s) | Nigel Bennett | ||||||
| Predecessor | Penske PC-19 | ||||||
| Successor | Penske PC-21 | ||||||
| Technical specifications[citation needed] | |||||||
| Suspension (front) | pushrod | ||||||
| Suspension (rear) | pushrod | ||||||
| Engine | Ilmor-Chevrolet 265AV890°turbochargedMid-engined,longitudinally mounted | ||||||
| Transmission | manual | ||||||
| Fuel | Methanol,supplied byMobil | ||||||
| Tyres | Goodyear Eagle | ||||||
| Competition history | |||||||
| Notable entrants | Penske Racing | ||||||
| Notable drivers | 3Rick Mears 5Emerson Fittipaldi 17Paul Tracy | ||||||
| Debut | 1991 Gold Coast IndyCar Grand Prix | ||||||
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Racing history
editThe PC-20 was powered by anIlmor-Chevrolet V8 265Aturboengine and it debuted at the1991 Gold Coast IndyCar Grand Prixwhere it qualified 6th and 7th with Fittipaldi and Mears, respectively. In the race Mears scored a 3rd place, while Fittipaldi retired with drive shaft failure. After a 4th place finish inLong Beachwith Mears, and a 3rd place finish atPhoenixwith Fittipaldi, the PC-20 scored its biggest win at1991 Indianapolis 500.In qualifying, Mears clinched his 6th pole at Indy 500 (224.113 mph[2]). Mears battled withMichael Andrettiduring final stages of the race, who led Rick Mears by 15 seconds when a caution flag flies on lap 182. Andretti was able to make it to the pits for fuel under the yellow, while Mears lined up as the leader. Andretti then completed a daring pass around the outside of Mears into turn 1 on the restart. Exactly one lap later, Mears repeated the move on Andretti, passing him on the outside of turn one to re-take the lead. Another caution does not alter the result as Mears powered away again to his record-tying fourth Indianapolis 500 Victory,[3]tying A.J Foyt and Al Unser, Sr. During the rest of the season, the Penskes weren't able to compete with Michael Andretti dominance, who clinched the title with 8 season wins.[4]Nevertheless, Fittipaldi won atDetroit,and Mears scored a win atMichigan 500,as confirmation of the PC-20's competitive form on long ovals.[5]
In1992,the PC-20 chassis was used by Penske Racing, as a third car forPaul Tracyin early stages of season (Tracy was driving the #4 car in second half of the season as replacement for injured Mears), and for entire season byBettenhausen Racing,withTony Bettenhausen Jr.andStefan Johanssonsharing the #16 car, with two 3rd places by Johansson as best results. Itracedalong the PC-21.
The PC-21 was instead powered by anIlmor-Chevrolet 265BV8 turbo engine. It made its race debut in the Gold Coast, Australia, at the renamedDaikyo IndyCar Grand Prixwhere it finished first and second, driven by Fittipaldi and Mears, respectively. It is also the last car that Mears drove to his final career podium finish.[6]
Complete Indy Car World Series results
edit(key) (Results inboldindicate pole position)
| Year | Team | Engine | Tyres | Driver | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Points | D.C. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Team Penske | Chevrolet265AV8t | G | SFR | LBH | PHX | INDY | MIL | DET | POR | CLE | MEA | TOR | MCH | DEN | VAN | MDO | ROA | NAZ | LAG | ||||
 Rick Mears
|
3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 6 | 17 | 3 | 20 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 15 | 15 | 5 | 145 | 4th | ||||
 Emerson Fittipaldi
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5 | 19 | 17 | 3 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 21 | 20 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 140 | 5th | ||||
| 1992 | Team Penske | Chevrolet265AV8t | G | SFR | PHX | LBH | INDY | DET | POR | MIL | NHA | TOR | MCH | CLE | ROA | VAN | MDO | NAZ | LAG | |||||
 Paul Tracy
|
7 | 4 | 20 | 59* | 12th* | |||||||||||||||||||
| Bettenhausen Motorsports | Tony Bettenhausen Jr.
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16 | 13 | 11 | 15 | DNQ | 21 | 18 | 9 | 6 | 24th | |||||||||||||
 Stefan Johansson
|
3 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 19 | 3 | 6 | 21 | 11 | 47 | 14th |
*Only results with PC-20 chassis are shown. Tracy raced in a total of 11 events in 1992 season, scoring 59 points and 12th final place.
References
edit- ^"Mercedosaurus Rex at Indianapolic Park, Part 10: Penske PC23 - a home for the engine".forix.autosport.com.
- ^"Rick Mears".www.race-database.com.
- ^"Year-by-Year Highlights".Penske Racing.
- ^"1991 CART PPG IndyCar World Series standings".www.race-database.com.
- ^"1991 Marlboro 500".www.race-database.com.
- ^"1992 Penske PC21-005".John Cummiskey Racing.Retrieved12 November2014.