Dick Simon Racing
Encyclopedia
Dick Simon Racing was a race team owned by racer Dick Simon
that competed in the CART
Championship Car series from 1983 to 1995 and the Indy Racing League from 1999 to 2001.
for the first time since 1980 and was noticeably more competitive than he was with the Leader Card team. In 1985 Simon brought in Brazilian Raul Boesel
to drive full time as he scaled back his own racing to a part-time schedule, occasionally joining Boesel in a second car. Simon only competed in four races in 1986 as Boesel drove the team's primary car to 17th in points and was competitive in nearly every race. A number of other drivers made part-time appearances in Simon's other entry as Dick Simon Racing became one of the premier teams for pay driver
s. This trend continued in 1988 which would be Simon's final year of racing as Arie Luyendyk
replaced Boesel in the team's full-time entry. In 1989 Scott Brayton
joined Luyendyk as the team fielded a pair of full-time fully funded entries for the first time. Luyendyk finished 10th in points while Brayton finished 15th. Luyendyk left the team for 1990 and was replaced by Japanese rookie Hiro Matsushita
while Brayton again finished 15th. Matsushita took his Panasonic funding elsewhere for 1991, leaving Brayton to drive a single Simon entry to a respectable 12th place points finish. Brayton, Matsushita, and Boesel returned to the team in 1992 and Boesel finished 9th in the championship while Brayton finished 15th again. The team also fielded a car in the Indy 500 for female rookie Lyn St. James
who became the second woman to compete in the race. St. James returned for a partial schedule in 1993 while Brayton and Boesel drove the full-time cars to 15th and 5th place points finishes respectively, with Boesel capturing 3 runner-up finishes. In 1994 Matsushita again returned to the team as Boesel continued in the other car, this time finishing 7th in points. In 1995 the team signed Dean Hall
and Formula One
veteran Eliseo Salazar
to drive the team's two cars and they were joined in April by rookie Carlos Guerrero
. Hall left the team after failing to qualify for the Indy 500 while Salazar and Guerrero managed 21st and 30th place points finishes respectively.
The team finished its years in CART without winning a race, but captured two poles, both by Boesel at the Milwaukee Mile
in 1993 and 1994.
Dick Simon sold much of the team's cars and assets to Team Scandia
founder Andy Evans and Simon was listed on many of the team's entries in the new Indy Racing League as Simon/Scandia Racing. It was during that year that Scandia set a race record by having 7 of their cars successfully qualify for the Indianapolis 500.
Dick Simon returned to the IRL in 1999
with Stephan Gregoire
who competed in a full schedule but failed to qualify for the Indy 500 and finished 15th in points. Gregoire returned in 2000
and finished 14th in points and was joined in the Indianapolis 500 by Lyn St. James who began her IndyCar career with Simon 8 years earlier. Both cars made the race and while St. James wrecked early in the race, Gregoire finished 8th. Gregoire was set to return for a full season in 2001
, but after the team again failed to qualify for the Indy 500, the team shut down in May of that year.
, Dick Simon was the co-owner of Jim Sauter
's entry. The car failed to qualify.
(1986-1987) Fulvio Ballabio
(1988) Raul Boesel
(1985-1986, 1992-1994) Gary Brabham
(1993) Scott Brayton
(1989-1993) Jean-Pierre Frey
(1988) Bertrand Gachot
(1993) Marco Greco
(1995) Carlos Guerrero
(1995) Maurício Gugelmin
(1993) Dean Hall
(1995) Ludwig Heimrath, Jr. (1987) Jorge Koechlin
(1983) Arie Luyendyk
(1988-1989, 1995) Hideshi Matsuda
(1994) Hiro Matsushita
(1990, 1992, 1994) Mike Nish
(1984) Tero Palmroth
(1988-1990) Tom Phillips
(1986) Scott Pruett
(1988) John Richards
(1987) Chip Robinson
(1986) Eliseo Salazar
(1995) Dick Simon
(1983-1988) Joe Sposato
(1990) Lyn St. James
(1992-1995) Didier Theys
(1988) Dennis Vitolo
(1994) Jeff Wood
(1987)
(1996*) Racin Gardner
(1996*) Stephan Gregoire
(1999-2001) Joe Gosek
(1996*) Michel Jourdain, Jr.
(1996*) Lyn St. James
(1996*, 2000) Fermin Velez
(1996*) Alessandro Zampedri
(1996*)
* indicates car was entered as Simon/Scandia Racing
Dick Simon
Dick Simon is one of the oldest men to ever have raced in the Indianapolis 500. He was 55 years old during his final Indy 500 start in 1988. A multiple starter and top-ten finisher in the race, he also became a car owner, founding Dick Simon Racing helping to begin the IndyCar careers of Stéphan...
that competed in the CART
Champ Car
Champ Car was the name for a class and specification of open wheel cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race...
Championship Car series from 1983 to 1995 and the Indy Racing League from 1999 to 2001.
CART
The team was founded in 1983 when Simon decided to bring his sponsorship from Vermont American to a new team of his own creation. He saw an immediate boost in performance as he qualified for the Indianapolis 500Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...
for the first time since 1980 and was noticeably more competitive than he was with the Leader Card team. In 1985 Simon brought in Brazilian Raul Boesel
Raul Boesel
Raul de Mesquita Boesel is a former racing driver who raced for the March and Ligier Formula One teams and later raced in Champ Car and the Indy Racing League.He won the 1987 World Sportscar Championship and the 1988 24 Hours of Daytona...
to drive full time as he scaled back his own racing to a part-time schedule, occasionally joining Boesel in a second car. Simon only competed in four races in 1986 as Boesel drove the team's primary car to 17th in points and was competitive in nearly every race. A number of other drivers made part-time appearances in Simon's other entry as Dick Simon Racing became one of the premier teams for pay driver
Pay driver
A pay driver is a driver for a professional auto racing team who, instead of being paid by their car owner, drives for free and brings with him either personal sponsorship or personal or family funding to finance the team's operations...
s. This trend continued in 1988 which would be Simon's final year of racing as Arie Luyendyk
Arie Luyendyk
Arie Luyendyk, originally Arie Luijendijk is a Dutch auto racing driver, twice winner of the Indianapolis 500....
replaced Boesel in the team's full-time entry. In 1989 Scott Brayton
Scott Brayton
Scott Everets Brayton was a race car driver from Coldwater, Michigan, on the American open-wheel circuit. He competed in 14 Indianapolis 500s, beginning with the 1981 event...
joined Luyendyk as the team fielded a pair of full-time fully funded entries for the first time. Luyendyk finished 10th in points while Brayton finished 15th. Luyendyk left the team for 1990 and was replaced by Japanese rookie Hiro Matsushita
Hiro Matsushita
, is a former driver in the Champ Car series. He is the grandson of Konosuke Matsushita, founder of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.. The family relationship has allowed him to receive financial backing from Panasonic throughout his racing career.-Early career:...
while Brayton again finished 15th. Matsushita took his Panasonic funding elsewhere for 1991, leaving Brayton to drive a single Simon entry to a respectable 12th place points finish. Brayton, Matsushita, and Boesel returned to the team in 1992 and Boesel finished 9th in the championship while Brayton finished 15th again. The team also fielded a car in the Indy 500 for female rookie Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James is a retired professional IndyCar driver with 8 CART and 5 Indy Racing League starts to her name. She is just one of seven women who successfully qualified for the Indianapolis 500, and became the first woman to win the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award...
who became the second woman to compete in the race. St. James returned for a partial schedule in 1993 while Brayton and Boesel drove the full-time cars to 15th and 5th place points finishes respectively, with Boesel capturing 3 runner-up finishes. In 1994 Matsushita again returned to the team as Boesel continued in the other car, this time finishing 7th in points. In 1995 the team signed Dean Hall
Dean Hall
Dean Hall , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1990, 1991, and 1995 seasons with 21 career starts, including the 1990 Indianapolis 500...
and Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
veteran Eliseo Salazar
Eliseo Salazar
Eliseo Salazar Valenzuela is a Chilean racing driver, and the only one of his countrymen to compete in Formula One. He participated in 37 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix scoring a total of three championship points...
to drive the team's two cars and they were joined in April by rookie Carlos Guerrero
Carlos Guerrero
Carlos Guerrero , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series who was a multiple Formula 3 and Formula 2 champion in his native Mexico. He raced in the 1995-1996 CART seasons with 17 career starts, including the 1995 Indianapolis 500...
. Hall left the team after failing to qualify for the Indy 500 while Salazar and Guerrero managed 21st and 30th place points finishes respectively.
The team finished its years in CART without winning a race, but captured two poles, both by Boesel at the Milwaukee Mile
Milwaukee Mile
The Milwaukee Mile is a -long oval race track in West Allis, Wisconsin that seats about 40,000 spectators. It operated as a dirt track until 1953. The track was paved in 1954....
in 1993 and 1994.
Indy Racing League
In 19961996 in IRL
The first season of Indy Racing League competition consisted of only three races. Walt Disney World Speedway was completed in time to host the first race of the season, and the first ever event of the IRL. Phoenix International Raceway switched alliances from CART to IRL and hosted the second event...
Dick Simon sold much of the team's cars and assets to Team Scandia
Team Scandia
Team Scandia was a team in the Indy Racing League owned by Andrew L. Evans that fielded a record 7 cars in the 1996 Indianapolis 500. Evans bought the team from Dick Simon during the 1996 season and Simon was listed as the owners of some of Scandia's cars in the 1996 "500"...
founder Andy Evans and Simon was listed on many of the team's entries in the new Indy Racing League as Simon/Scandia Racing. It was during that year that Scandia set a race record by having 7 of their cars successfully qualify for the Indianapolis 500.
Dick Simon returned to the IRL in 1999
1999 in IRL
The 1999 Pep Boys Indy Racing League season was highly competitive and parity was the order of the year. Team Menard had a very good season with their driver Greg Ray capturing 3 race wins in a row and the series championship...
with Stephan Gregoire
Stephan Gregoire
Stéphan Grégoire is a French race car driver. Currently living in Carmel, Ind.Gregoire is a veteran of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Rolex Sports Car Series, the Indianapolis 500, and the Indy Racing League. He made 44 IRL starts between 1996 and 2001 with a best finish of 2nd at Pikes Peak...
who competed in a full schedule but failed to qualify for the Indy 500 and finished 15th in points. Gregoire returned in 2000
2000 in IRL
The 2000 Indy Racing Northern Light Series season was another season that saw a high level of parity as only one driver, champion Buddy Lazier, won more than a single race. It also saw the beginning of the jump from CART as Al Unser Jr. moved to the series full time and Chip Ganassi Racing came...
and finished 14th in points and was joined in the Indianapolis 500 by Lyn St. James who began her IndyCar career with Simon 8 years earlier. Both cars made the race and while St. James wrecked early in the race, Gregoire finished 8th. Gregoire was set to return for a full season in 2001
2001 in IRL
The 2001 Indy Racing Northern Light Series season saw the addition of five races and loss of one to bring the total to 13. Chip Ganassi Racing returned to the Indy 500 with four cars and were joined on the grid by Penske Racing and Team Kool Green. Many other CART teams made clear their intention...
, but after the team again failed to qualify for the Indy 500, the team shut down in May of that year.
NASCAR
At the 1994 Brickyard 4001994 Brickyard 400
The Inaugural Brickyard 400 was held on Saturday August 6, 1994 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race marked the nineteenth race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. It was first race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway besides the Indianapolis 500 since the Harvest Classic in...
, Dick Simon was the co-owner of Jim Sauter
Jim Sauter (NASCAR)
Jim Sauter is a former NASCAR race car driver from Necedah, Wisconsin.-Racing career:Sauter started racing in 1964 in a modified at Raceway Park in Savage, Minnesota. He moved up to late models the following year. Sauter moved to Wisconsin, and his career took off after he won the North Star 500...
's entry. The car failed to qualify.
CART
Ian AshleyIan Ashley
Ian Hugh Gordon Ashley is a British racing driver who raced in Formula One for the Token, Williams, BRM and Hesketh teams....
(1986-1987) Fulvio Ballabio
Fulvio Ballabio
Fulvio Ballabio is a race car driver born in Milan, Italy. He raced in Formula 2 in 1983, in Formula 3000 in 1986 and 6 starts in CART from 1987 to 1989 for Dick Simon Racing and Dale Coyne Racing...
(1988) Raul Boesel
Raul Boesel
Raul de Mesquita Boesel is a former racing driver who raced for the March and Ligier Formula One teams and later raced in Champ Car and the Indy Racing League.He won the 1987 World Sportscar Championship and the 1988 24 Hours of Daytona...
(1985-1986, 1992-1994) Gary Brabham
Gary Brabham
Gary Brabham is a former professional racing driver from Australia and a British Formula 3000 champion.-Racing career:...
(1993) Scott Brayton
Scott Brayton
Scott Everets Brayton was a race car driver from Coldwater, Michigan, on the American open-wheel circuit. He competed in 14 Indianapolis 500s, beginning with the 1981 event...
(1989-1993) Jean-Pierre Frey
Jean-Pierre Frey
Jean-Pierre Frey is a former Swiss racing driver from Baselgia, Medel . He competed in full seasons of the FIA Formula 3000 Championship in 1986 and 1987 but failed to qualify for a single race in a time when the series was incredibly competitive...
(1988) Bertrand Gachot
Bertrand Gachot
Bertrand Gachot is a French-Belgian former racing driver.-Career:Gachot is the son of a French European Commission official. He began karting at the age of 15. In 1983 he attended Winfield School, a well-known racing-driving school in France. After this, he focused on his racing career, competing...
(1993) Marco Greco
Marco Greco
Marco Greco is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and race car driver who competed in the Indy Racing League from 1996 to 1999. His best finish in the season points was 4th in 1997. He made four starts in the Indianapolis 500 with a best finish of 14th in 1998...
(1995) Carlos Guerrero
Carlos Guerrero
Carlos Guerrero , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series who was a multiple Formula 3 and Formula 2 champion in his native Mexico. He raced in the 1995-1996 CART seasons with 17 career starts, including the 1995 Indianapolis 500...
(1995) Maurício Gugelmin
Mauricio Gugelmin
Maurício Gugelmin is a former racing driver from Brazil. He took part in both Formula One and the Champ Car World Series. He participated in 80 Formula One grands prix, debuting in 1988 for the March team. He achieved one top-three finish and scored a total of ten championship points in the series...
(1993) Dean Hall
Dean Hall
Dean Hall , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1990, 1991, and 1995 seasons with 21 career starts, including the 1990 Indianapolis 500...
(1995) Ludwig Heimrath, Jr. (1987) Jorge Koechlin
Jorge Koechlin
Jorge Koechlin von Stein is a Peruvian former racing driver and magazine publisher from Huacho.Koechlin began racing professionally in European Formula Renault in 1975 in a works Lola run by Mader Racing out of Switzerland, then made starts in various Formula Three series in 1977 with little success...
(1983) Arie Luyendyk
Arie Luyendyk
Arie Luyendyk, originally Arie Luijendijk is a Dutch auto racing driver, twice winner of the Indianapolis 500....
(1988-1989, 1995) Hideshi Matsuda
Hideshi Matsuda
Hideshi Matsuda , is a racecar driver and Japanese TV reporter. He has raced in several 24-hour races, including Daytona and LeMans. He also raced 4 times in the Indianapolis 500, in 1994-1996 and 1999, usually for Beck Motorsports. He also drove in one CART Championship Car race at Twin Ring...
(1994) Hiro Matsushita
Hiro Matsushita
, is a former driver in the Champ Car series. He is the grandson of Konosuke Matsushita, founder of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.. The family relationship has allowed him to receive financial backing from Panasonic throughout his racing career.-Early career:...
(1990, 1992, 1994) Mike Nish
Mike Nish
Mike Nish is an American racing driver who competed in the CART Championship Car series and competes in world land speed record events....
(1984) Tero Palmroth
Tero Palmroth
Tero Palmroth , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1988-1992 seasons with 12 career starts, including the 1988-1991 Indianapolis 500. His best CART finish was in 12th position at the 1990 Indianapolis 500.-Indy 500 results:-External Links:*]...
(1988-1990) Tom Phillips
Tom Phillips (driver)
Tom Phillips is an American former racing driver from Portland, Oregon. He finished in fifth place in the 1986 WCAR/SCCA Pro Formula Atlantic Championship with wins at Laguna Seca and the Tacoma Dome course...
(1986) Scott Pruett
Scott Pruett
Scott Donald Pruett is an American race car driver who has competed in NASCAR, Champ Car, IMSA, Trans-Am and Grand-Am. He and his wife Judy have three children, and are children's book authors....
(1988) John Richards
John Richards (driver)
John Richards is a former American racing driver from Waco, Texas. A former motorcycle racer, Richards switched to racing cars and competed in the US Formula Super Vee championship in 1984 and finished 10th. In 1987 he funded a series of road course drives in the CART Championship Car series...
(1987) Chip Robinson
Chip Robinson
Chip Robinson is a retired race car driver. He drove in the IMSA Camel GT series and won the 1987 24 Hours of Daytona Chip Robinson (born March 29, 1954 in Philadelphia, PA) is a retired race car driver. He drove in the IMSA Camel GT series and won the 1987 24 Hours of Daytona Chip Robinson (born...
(1986) Eliseo Salazar
Eliseo Salazar
Eliseo Salazar Valenzuela is a Chilean racing driver, and the only one of his countrymen to compete in Formula One. He participated in 37 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix scoring a total of three championship points...
(1995) Dick Simon
Dick Simon
Dick Simon is one of the oldest men to ever have raced in the Indianapolis 500. He was 55 years old during his final Indy 500 start in 1988. A multiple starter and top-ten finisher in the race, he also became a car owner, founding Dick Simon Racing helping to begin the IndyCar careers of Stéphan...
(1983-1988) Joe Sposato
Joe Sposato
Joe Sposato is a former American racing driver from Ridgefield, Connecticut. He started his professional career in the Canadian Formula Atlantic series in the mid-1980s where he was fairly successful. He entered the CART Championship Car races at Laguna Seca in 1989 and 1990 in a Dick Simon Racing...
(1990) Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James is a retired professional IndyCar driver with 8 CART and 5 Indy Racing League starts to her name. She is just one of seven women who successfully qualified for the Indianapolis 500, and became the first woman to win the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award...
(1992-1995) Didier Theys
Didier Theys
Didier Theys is an Belgian sports car driver. He is a two-time overall winner of the 24 Hours of Daytona ; a winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring ; the Sports Racing Prototype driver champion of the Grand-American Road Racing Association and the winner of the 24 Hours of Spa...
(1988) Dennis Vitolo
Dennis Vitolo
Dennis Vitolo , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1988 and 1991-1999 seasons with 36 career starts, including the 1994 Indianapolis 500. He was involved in a notorious pit-lane crash in that race, taking out reigning CART champion Nigel Mansell...
(1994) Jeff Wood
Jeff Wood (auto racer)
Jeff Wood is an American former race car driver born in Wichita, Kansas. He was Formula Atlantic Rookie of the Year in 1977. He drove in the CanAm series for Carl Haas in 1981 and finished 5th in the series behind Danny Sullivan. In 1982, driving for Bob Garnetson Racing, finished 3rd place in the...
(1987)
IRL
Michele AlboretoMichele Alboreto
Michele Alboreto was an Italian racing driver. He is famous for finishing runner up to Alain Prost in the 1985 Formula One World Championship, as well as winning the 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans and 2001 12 Hours of Sebring sports car races...
(1996*) Racin Gardner
Racin Gardner
Slick Racin Gardner , is a former ARCA driver who raced in the 1996 Indianapolis 500 for Simon/Team Scandia. He retired from racing in the late 90's and is now a stunt driver for television and motion pictures....
(1996*) Stephan Gregoire
Stephan Gregoire
Stéphan Grégoire is a French race car driver. Currently living in Carmel, Ind.Gregoire is a veteran of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Rolex Sports Car Series, the Indianapolis 500, and the Indy Racing League. He made 44 IRL starts between 1996 and 2001 with a best finish of 2nd at Pikes Peak...
(1999-2001) Joe Gosek
Joe Gosek
Joe Gosek , is a super-modified racecar driver. He also raced in the 1996 Indianapolis 500, finishing 22nd.Was nicknamed "Double-O" Joe Gosek for his traditional use of car number '00.'...
(1996*) Michel Jourdain, Jr.
Michel Jourdain, Jr.
Michel Jourdain Jr. is an IndyCar driver. Jourdain Jr. started racing cars in the Mexican Formula Junior series at the age of 12. He then moved to the Mexican Formula K and Formula 2 series.-Champ Car:...
(1996*) Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James is a retired professional IndyCar driver with 8 CART and 5 Indy Racing League starts to her name. She is just one of seven women who successfully qualified for the Indianapolis 500, and became the first woman to win the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award...
(1996*, 2000) Fermin Velez
Fermín Vélez
Fermín Vélez was a Spanish sports car racing driver, two-time winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring and two-time World Sportscar Championship Group C2 champion....
(1996*) Alessandro Zampedri
Alessandro Zampedri
Alessandro Zampedri is an Italian race car driver. He started three Indy 500s .Zampedri was seriously injured in the 1996 Indianapolis 500, suffering severe foot and leg injuries on the last lap of the race. While running fourth, Zampedri was collected in a crash with Roberto Guerrero and Eliseo...
(1996*)