Indianapolis 500 and Indy Racing League
| Eddie Cheever | |
|---|---|
| Indy Racing League IndyCar Series | |
| Years active | 1996-2002, 2006 |
| Teams | Team Menard Cheever Racing |
| Starts | 77 |
| Wins | 5 |
| Poles | 1 |
| Best finish | 3rd in 1996-1997, 2000 |
| Awards | |
| 1998 | Indianapolis 500 winner |
In 1996 the Indy Racing League began, and Cheever moved there from CART. Cheever ran for Team Menard for the three-race series, and at the 1996 Indianapolis 500, he set the fastest race lap to date at 236.103 mph (379.971 km/h). Cheever then set up his own team and had his first race as a driver/owner at New Hampshire later that August, which was the first race of the next season.
In 1998, all the pieces came together for Cheever when he took the biggest win of his career. He started from 17th position and led 76 of 200 laps to win the 82nd Indianapolis 500, despite sliding in the first turn of the race's first lap, helping bring out the race's first caution period. He was the first owner/driver to win the race since A.J. Foyt (one of Cheever's former bosses) in 1977.
Cheever's IRL team, active until July 2006, ran cars for Alex Barron and Patrick Carpentier in 2005. Having hung up his helmet in 2002, except for occasional instances such as the 2006 24 Hours of Daytona where he competed in the first race with his new Grand-Am series team, Eddie announced on February 21 he would come out of retirement to run his own car in the IRL's first four races, including the Indianapolis 500. He shut his team down after the 8th race of the season due to lack of sponsorship. The team continues to compete in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series.
Currently, Cheever is providing television commentary on ABC for the Indianapolis 500, a position he has held since 2008.
Read more about this topic: Eddie Cheever
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