1973 USAC Championship Car season
The 1973 USAC Championship Car season consisted of 16 races, beginning in College Station, Texas on April 7 and concluding in Avondale, Arizona on November 3. The first race of the season, in Avondale, Arizona on March 17, was postponed by rain and eventually cancelled due to infrastructure damage caused by the rain and scheduling conflicts. Bob Criss was killed in a private test at Phoenix before he could enter another event. Typically he doesn't show up in the stat sheets because he never appeared at an actual race with this Phoenix event being wiped off the schedule. He was 35 years old. The USAC National Champion was Roger McCluskey and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Gordon Johncock. In this tragic season, two drivers were killed at the Indianapolis. Art Pollard died in an accident while practicing for the Indy 500, and Swede Savage died from injuries in the race itself.
Schedule and results
All races running on Oval/Speedway.
Rnd |
Date |
Race Name |
Length |
Track |
Location |
Pole Position |
Winning Driver |
1 |
April 7 |
Texas 200 |
200 mi (320 km) |
Texas World Speedway |
College Station, Texas |
Bobby Unser |
Al Unser |
2 |
April 15 |
Trentonian 300 Heat #1 |
150 mi (240 km) |
Trenton International Speedway |
Trenton, New Jersey |
Gordon Johncock |
A. J. Foyt |
3 |
Trentonian 300 Heat #2 |
150 mi (240 km) |
A. J. Foyt |
Mario Andretti |
4 |
May 30 |
International 500 Mile Sweepstakes |
332.5 mi (535.1 km)A |
Indianapolis Motor Speedway |
Speedway, Indiana |
Johnny Rutherford |
Gordon Johncock |
5 |
June 10 |
Rex Mays Classic |
150 mi (240 km) |
Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway |
West Allis, Wisconsin |
Bobby Unser |
Bobby Unser |
6 |
July 1 |
Schaefer 500 |
500 mi (800 km) |
Pocono International Raceway |
Long Pond, Pennsylvania |
Peter Revson |
A. J. Foyt |
7 |
July 15 |
Michigan 200 |
200 mi (320 km) |
Michigan International Speedway |
Brooklyn, Michigan |
Bobby Unser |
Roger McCluskey |
8 |
August 12 |
Tony Bettenhausen 200 |
200 mi (320 km) |
Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway |
West Allis, Wisconsin |
Wally Dallenbach |
Wally Dallenbach |
9 |
August 26 |
California 500 Qualification Heat 1 |
100 mi (160 km) |
Ontario Motor Speedway |
Ontario, California |
Gordon Johncock |
Wally Dallenbach |
10 |
California 500 Qualification Heat 2 |
100 mi (160 km) |
Johnny Rutherford |
Johnny Rutherford |
11 |
September 2 |
California 500 |
500 mi (800 km) |
Peter Revson |
Wally Dallenbach |
12 |
September 16 |
Michigan Twin 125s #1 |
126 mi (203 km) |
Michigan International Speedway |
Brooklyn, Michigan |
Gordon Johncock |
Bill Vukovich, Jr. |
13 |
Michigan Twin 125s #2 |
126 mi (203 km) |
Gary Bettenhausen |
Johnny Rutherford |
14 |
September 23 |
Trenton 200 |
201 mi (323 km) |
Trenton International Speedway |
Trenton, New Jersey |
Gordon Johncock |
Gordon Johncock |
15 |
October 6 |
Texas 200 |
200 mi (320 km) |
Texas World Speedway |
College Station, Texas |
Mario Andretti |
Gary Bettenhausen |
16 |
November 3 |
Arizona 150 |
150 mi (240 km) |
Phoenix International Raceway |
Avondale, Arizona |
Gordon Johncock |
Gordon Johncock |
- ^A Scheduled for 500 miles, stopped early due to rain.
Final points standings
|
Color |
Result |
Gold |
Winner |
Silver |
2nd place |
Bronze |
3rd place |
Green |
4th & 5th place |
Light Blue |
6th-10th place |
Dark Blue |
Finished (Outside Top 10) |
Purple |
Did not finish (Ret) |
Red |
Did not qualify (DNQ) |
Brown |
Withdrawn (Wth) |
Black |
Disqualified (DSQ) |
White |
Did not start (DNS) |
Blank |
Did not participate (DNP) |
Not competing |
|
In-line notation |
Bold |
Pole position |
Italics |
Ran fastest race lap |
* |
Led most race laps |
Rookie of the Year |
Rookie |
|
|
Note: Sam Posey, Peter Revson, Mark Donohue, David Hobbs, Jerry Grant, John Cannon, Graham McRae and Bobby Allison not eligible for points. The Rookie of the Year title any driver awarded, because every rookie did not eligible for points.
References
See also
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| Seasons | |
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| Indianapolis 500s | |
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| National Champions | |
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| Tracks | |
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| The Indianapolis 500 was the only race in the USAC National Championship from 1984-85 onwards |
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