Al Unser, Jr.

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Penske PC-23 driven by Al Unser, Jr. in 1994.
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Penske PC-23 driven by Al Unser, Jr. in 1994.

Alfred Unser, Jr. (born April 19, 1962 in Albuquerque, New Mexico), nicknamed "Little Al" or "Al Junior" is an American race car driver and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.

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[edit] History

Al Unser, Jr., the son of Al Unser and the nephew of Bobby Unser, both race car drivers in their own right, grew up surrounded by racing. By the age of 11, Al Junior was racing sprint cars. After high school, he was already in the World of Outlaws series of sprint car racing. He soon moved into road racing, winning the Super Vee title in 1981 and the Can Am title in 1982.

In 1982, Unser made his debut on the CART circuit, finishing fifth at the California 500. A year later, he competed in his first Indianapolis 500, finishing tenth. Unser continued racing on the CART circuit, becoming one of the series' rising stars. He finished second in the CART championship point standings in 1985, losing to his father by just one point. He began competing in the IROC championship in 1986, winning that championship with two victories in four races. At the age of 24, Unser was the youngest IROC champion ever (as of 2004). Unser won the 1988 and 1986 IROC championships. Unser won the 24 Hours of Daytona, also at age 24.

Unser continued to improve on the CART circuit, finishing fourth in the points standings in 1986, third in 1987, second in 1988 and finally winning the series for the first time in 1990. In 1989, Unser was on the verge of winning his first Indianapolis 500, but while battling with Emerson Fittipaldi for the lead, the two touched wheels and Unser spun out, hitting the wall and ending his chances. Unser would have his day at Indy in 1992, however, defeating Scott Goodyear by 0.043 of a second, the closest finish in Indianapolis 500 history (as of 2005). During the off-season he drove in the 1993 Daytona 500 for Hendrick Motorsports finishing 36th in what would be his only NASCAR start.

In 1994, Unser again won at Indy, this time with Penske Racing. His teammate was Emerson Fittipaldi, the man whom he battled with five years before. Unser turned in a dominant season-long performance, winning eight of 16 races on his way to his second CART championship. However, Unser would begin to fade in CART, perhaps due to alcohol problems that would later lead to his arrest. He would finish second to Jacques Villeneuve in CART championship points in 1995, but after finishing fourth in 1996, 13th in 1997, 11th in 1998 and 21st in 1999, Unser would eventually leave CART to join the budding Indy Racing League for the 2000 campaign. Unser won a total of 31 races during his 17 seasons in CART.

He won his first IRL race that same season at Las Vegas. Unser would go on to win a total of three races in his IRL career, but after breaking his pelvis in an all-terrain vehicle accident in October of 2003, Unser had difficulty securing a ride for the 2004 season. He finally signed with Patrick Racing three races into the season, but after a 22nd-place finish in Richmond, Al Unser, Jr. finally announced his retirement from racing on June 30, 2004. Unser continued to remain involved in racing, however, outside of a racing capacity. He served as an adviser for Patrick Racing and worked as a mentor for his son, Alfred Unser, who is currently working his way through the lower ranks in open-wheel racing.

In 2006 Unser announced that he would come back to racing again and he would run the 2006 Indianapolis 500, teamed with fellow former winner Buddy Lazier for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. This came just days after Michael Andretti also came out of retirement to run the 500. Unser qualified 27th in the 33-car field, and consistently ran in the upper half until a crash ended his day.

In late August, Unser took part in an A1 Grand Prix test session at Silverstone.


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[edit] External links

[edit] Champ Car career results

Year Team Wins Points Championship Finish
1982 Forsythe Racing 0 30 21st
1983 Galles Racing 0 89 (new system) 7th
1984 Galles Racing 1 103 6th
1985 Shierson Racing 2 150 2nd
1986 Shierson Racing 1 137 4th
1987 Shierson Racing 0 107 3rd
1988 Galles Racing 4 149 2nd
1989 Galles Racing 1 136 5th
1990 Galles/Kraco Racing 6 210 1st
1991 Galles/Kraco Racing 2 197 3rd
1992 Galles/Kraco Racing 1 169 3rd
1993 Galles Racing 1 100 7th
1994 Penske Racing 8 225 1st
1995 Penske Racing 4 161 2nd
1996 Penske Racing 0 125 4th
1997 Penske Racing 0 67 13th
1998 Penske Racing 0 72 11th
1999 Penske Racing 0 26 21st

2 championships, 31 victories

[edit] Indy Racing League results

Year Team Wins Points Championship Finish
2000 Galles Racing 1 188 9th
2001 Galles Racing 1 287 7th
2002 Kelley Racing 0 311 7th
2003 Kelley Racing 1 374 6th
2004 Patrick Racing 0 44 24th
2006 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 0 12 30th

3 victories, best series finish: 6th

[edit] Indianapolis 500 results

Year Chassis Engine Start Finish Note
1983 Eagle Cosworth 5th 10th Out of Fuel
1984 March Cosworth 15th 21st Water Pump Broke
1985 Lola Cosworth 11th 25th Engine Failure
1986 Lola Cosworth 9th 5th
1987 March Cosworth 22nd 4th
1988 March Chevrolet 5th 13th
1989 Lola Chevrolet 8th 2nd Crash
1990 Lola Chevrolet 7th 4th
1991 Lola Chevrolet 6th 4th
1992 Galmer Chevrolet 12th 1st
1993 Lola Chevrolet 5th 8th
1994 Penske Ilmor-Mercedes 1st 1st
1995 Lola Ilmor-Mercedes Failed to Qualify
2000 G-Force Oldsmobile 18th 29th Radiator Damage
2001 G-Force Oldsmobile 19th 30th Crash
2002 Dallara Chevrolet 12th 12th
2003 Dallara Toyota 17th 9th
2004 Dallara Chevrolet 17th 17th
2006 Dallara Honda 27th 24th Crash
Preceded by:
Rick Mears
Indianapolis 500 Winner
1992
Succeeded by:
Emerson Fittipaldi
Preceded by:
Emerson Fittipaldi
Indianapolis 500 Winner
1994
Succeeded by:
Jacques Villeneuve
Preceded by:
Emerson Fittipaldi
CART Series Champion
1990
Succeeded by:
Michael Andretti
Preceded by:
Nigel Mansell
CART Series Champion
1994
Succeeded by:
Jacques Villeneuve
Preceded by:
Harry Gant
IROC Champion
IROC X (1986)
Succeeded by:
Geoff Bodine
Preceded by:
Geoff Bodine
IROC Champion
IROC XII (1988)
Succeeded by:
Terry Labonte
In other languages