The Champions
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Past and Present/From AAA to CART
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Louis Meyer
Miller Special
The first 3 time World Champion.
1928, 1929, 1933




The PPG Cup
Given to the World Champion driver since 1980.
 The AAA(American Automobile Association) first began sanctioning official races in 1904, but it wasn't until 1916 that a championship was formed. After the Le Mans tragedy, the AAA ended its participation in automobile racing, the USAC(United States Automobile Club) became the sanctioning body of the championship. In 1979, CART(Championship Auto Racing Teams) was formed and it has remained the governing body of the sport ever since.

The World Championship itself has evolved constantly since 1904. Certainly the cars have changed, but the equipment has evolved mostly because the types of race tracks have changed. Prior to the first championship, the series was composed of road races and some oval races. In 1916, the calender was composed mainly of popular wooden "super" speedway ovals. However, the economic depression in the late 20s and early 30s in the USA ended these wood oval races because the the tracks' maintenance cost was too high. Therefore, the series had to move to dirt ovals used for horse racing. By the mid 60s, the dirt ovals were replaced by paved asphalt ovals to match the equipment used at the Indianapolis race. Road races once again became a mainstay of the series in the early 80s, therefore coming full circle to the early days of AAA racing.
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Resta and Zanardi

Dario Resta(UK)
1916 Champion
Peugeot I-4



Alessandro Zanardi(Italia)
1997 Champion
Reynard 97I-Honda HRH 		Despite an 81 year difference, there are a lot of similarities between the 1st World Champion and the 75th and newest World Champion.

Dario Resta was born in Milano, Italia, but raised in the UK. In 1915, he won the non-championship American Grand Prize(Automobile Club of America's major race) and Vanderbilt Cup(American Automobile Association's major race). The next year, he took the first World Championship in a Peugeot I-4. Among the trophies he took in 1916 was the Vanderbilt Cup from winning the Santa Monica road race. Resta won all 6 Chicago Maywood Park races that he entered. Unfortunately, he died in the non-championship Brooklands race of 1924.

Alessandro Zanardi was born in Bologna, Italia. In 1996, he impressed (almost) everyone by winning the prestigeous Monterey Grand Prix. The next year, he took the world title while driving a Honda powered Reynard. Among the trophies he took in 1997 was the Vanderbilt Cup from winning the United States 500. Zanardi's team owner, Chip Ganassi, plans on bringing the Championship Series back to Chicago for the first time since 1918.

While Resta was equally successful in road, super speedway, and short oval racing, only time will tell if Zanardi's skills are as diverse.
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History

Dario Resta
Peugeot I-4
1st World Champion(1916)






Louis Meyer
Miller
11th World Champion(1929)






Bob Sweikert
Kurtis-Offenhauser
33rd World Champion(1955)






Mario Andretti
Hawk-Ford
47th World Champion(1969)






Al Unser Sr.
Colt-Ford
48th World Champion(1970)






Rick Mears
Penske-Cosworth
60th World Champion(1982)






Al Unser Jr.
Penske PC23
Power by Ilmor D
72nd World Champion(1994)






Alessandro Zanardi
Reynard 97I
Power by Honda HRH
75th World Champion(1997)






Alessandro Zanardi
Reynard 98C
Power by Honda HRK
76th World Champion(1998)

 Year  Driver  Car
 1916  Dario Resta  Peugeot
 1917-1919  -  No championships due to world war.
 1920*  Tommy Milton or Gaston Chevrolet  Duesenberg or Frontenac
 1921  Tommy Milton  Durant/Dusenberg, Frontenac, Miller/Durant
 1922  Jimmy Murphy  Dusenberg-Miller
 1923  Eddie Hearne  Miller
 1924  Jimmy Murphy  Miller
 1925  Peter DePaolo  Dusenberg
 1926  Harry Hartz  Miller
 1927  Peter DePaolo  Miller
 1928  Louis Meyer  Miller
 1929  Louis Meyer  Miller
 1930  Billy Arnold  Summers-Miller
 1931  Louis Schneider  Stevens-Miller
 1932  Bob Carey  Stevens-Miller
 1933  Louis Meyer  Miller
 1934  Bill Cummings  Miller
 1935  Kelly Petillo  Wetteroth-Offy
 1936  Mauri Rose  Miller-Offy
 1937  Wilbur Shaw  Shaw-Stevens-Offy
 1938  Floyd Roberts  Wetteroth-Offy
 1939  Wilbur Shaw  Maserati
 1940  Rex Mays  Stevens-Winfield
 1941  Rex Mays  Stevens-Winfield
 1942-1945  -  No races due to world war.
 1946  Ted Horn  Horn-Offy, Maserati
 1947  Ted Horn  Horn-Offy, Maserati
 1948  Ted Horn  Horn-Offy, Maseratti
 1949  Johnnie Parsons  Kurtis-Offy
 1950  Henry Banks  Moore-Offy
 1951  Tony Bettenhausen Sr.  Kurtis-Offy
 1952  Chuck Stevenson  Kurtis-Offy
 1953  Sam Hanks  Kurtis-Offy
 1954  Jimmy Bryan  Kuzma-Offy
 1955  Bob Sweikert  Kurtis-Offy, Watson-Offy
 1956  Jimmy Bryan  Kuzma-Offy
 1957  Jimmy Bryan  Kuzma-Offy
 1958  Tony Bettenhausen Sr.  Epperly-Offy, Kurtis-Offy
 1959  Rodger Ward  Watson-Offy
 1960  A.J. Foyt Jr.  Meskowski-Offy
 1961  A.J. Foyt Jr.  Meskowski-Offy, Watson-Trevis-Offy
 1962  Rodger Ward  Watson-Offy
 1963  A.J. Foyt Jr.  Meskowski-Offy, Watson-Trevis-Offy
 1964  A.J. Foyt Jr.  Watson-Offy, Meskowski-Offy
 1965  Mario Andretti  Hawk-Ford, Kuzma-Offy
 1966  Mario Andretti  Hawk-Ford, Kuzma-Offy
 1967  A.J. Foyt Jr.  Meskowski-Offy, Coyote-Ford
 1968  Bobby Unser  Eagle-Ford, Eagle-Drake Offy, Unser-Chevrolet
 1969  Mario Andretti  Hawk-Ford, Kuzma-Offy, King-Chevrolet
 1970  Al Unser Sr.  Colt-Ford, King-Ford
 1971  Joe Leonard  Colt-Ford
 1972  Joe Leonard  Parnelli-Drake Offy
 1973  Roger McCluskey  McLaren-Drake Offy
 1974  Bobby Unser  Eagle-Drake Offy
 1975  A.J. Foyt Jr.  Coyote-Ford
 1976  Gordon Johncock  Wildcat-Offy DGS
 1977  Tom Sneva  McLaren-Cosworth
 1978  Tom Sneva  Penske-Cosworth
 1979  Rick Mears  Penske-Cosworth
 1980  Johnny Rutherford  Chaparral-Cosworth
 1981  Rick Mears  Penske-Cosworth
 1982  Rick Mears  Penske-Cosworth
 1983  Al Unser Sr.  Penske-Cosworth
 1984  Mario Andretti  Lola-Cosworth
 1985  Al Unser Sr.  March-Cosworth
 1986  Bobby Rahal  March-Cosworth
 1987  Bobby Rahal  Lola-Cosworth
 1988  Danny Sullivan  Penske-Chevrolet
 1989  Emerson Fittipaldi  Penske-Chevrolet
 1990  Al Unser Jr.  Lola-Chevrolet
 1991  Michael Andretti  Lola-Chevrolet
 1992  Bobby Rahal  Lola-Chevrolet
 1993  Nigel Mansell  Lola-Ford Cosworth
 1994  Al Unser Jr.  Penske-Ilmor, Penske-Mercedes Benz
 1995  Jacques Villeneuve II  Reynard-Ford Cosworth
 1996  Jimmy Vasser  Reynard-Honda
 1997  Alessandro Zanardi  Reynard-Honda
 1998  Alessandro Zanardi  Reynard-Honda
 1999  Juan Pablo Montoya  Reynard-Honda

� *- There is a controversy over who won the 1920 World Championship. At the start of the season, all 11 races on the calender were considered championship races, however, at the end of the season, the AAA only counted 5 races towards the championship. At the time, the AAA awarded Gaston Chevrolet the championship, this is also substantiated by contemporary newspaper reports. The AAA accepted Tommy Milton as the champion in 1952.
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Created on April 24, 1998. Last modified on November 3, 1999.