Galles Racing is a former auto racing team owned by Rick Galles 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...

 series, Can-Am and Indy Racing League, winning the 1990 CART Championship and 1992 Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis 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...

 with driver Al Unser, Jr.

Al Unser, Jr.

Alfred Unser, Jr. , nicknamed "Little Al", "Al Junior" or simply "Junior" is a retired American race car driver and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.-History:...

.

Early years

The team first competed in a partial CART season in 1980, then was away from CART until 1983 when it fielded a car for rookie Al Unser, Jr.

Al Unser, Jr.

Alfred Unser, Jr. , nicknamed "Little Al", "Al Junior" or simply "Junior" is a retired American race car driver and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.-History:...

. Unser left the team after the 1984 season only to return again for the 1988 and 1989 seasons. In 1989, Unser, Jr. then driving his familiar Valvoline-sponsored Chevy machine, nearly won the Indy 500

1989 Indianapolis 500

The 73rd Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 28, 1989. Emerson Fittipaldi became the first foreign winner of the race since 1966. Though Fittipaldi dominated most of the race, he dropped to second in the waning laps. On the 199th lap, Al Unser, Jr. was...

, finishing second after crashing out with just over a lap to go in a famous duel with Emerson Fittipaldi

Emerson Fittipaldi

Emerson Fittipaldi |São Paulo]], Brazil) is a Brazilian automobile racing driver who throughout a long and successful career won the Indianapolis 500 twice and championships in both Formula One and CART.-Early and personal life:...

.

Championship years

After the 1989 season, Galles merged teams with Maurice Kranes (who had fielded Kraco-sponsored cars for Michael Andretti

Michael Andretti

Michael Mario Andretti is a retired American CART and Formula One driver and owner of the Andretti Autosport team in the IndyCar Series. Andretti is the son of Mario Andretti. His son is Marco Andretti.-Early career:...

 and then Bobby Rahal

Bobby Rahal

Robert "Bobby" Woodward Rahal is an American auto racing driver and team owner. As a driver, he won three championships and 24 races in the CART open-wheel series, including the 1986 Indianapolis 500...

). Kranes brought Rahal and Kraco with him, while Unser, Jr. remained in the Valvoline-sponsored machine. The team competed as Galles-Kraco Racing from 1990 to 1992 and Unser won the 1990 CART Championship with five wins. The Galles duo of Unser and Bobby Rahal

Bobby Rahal

Robert "Bobby" Woodward Rahal is an American auto racing driver and team owner. As a driver, he won three championships and 24 races in the CART open-wheel series, including the 1986 Indianapolis 500...

 was one of the top teams in CART during that period. Rahal finished 2nd at the 1990 Indy 500

1990 Indianapolis 500

The 74th Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis on Sunday, May 27, 1990. Arie Luyendyk took the lead with 32 laps to go, and earned his first-ever victory in championship-level competition...

 and finished second in the 1991 CART championship. Rahal was replaced in 1992 by veteran Danny Sullivan

Danny Sullivan

Daniel John "Danny" Sullivan III is a former racing driver from the United States. He is best known for winning the 1985 Indianapolis 500.-Before racing:...

 as the team introduced their new proprietary Galmer

Galmer

Galmer was an American racecar manufacturer that built cars used from 1992 through 1993 in CART competition and the Indianapolis 500. The cars were commissioned by the Galles Racing team...

 chassis. Unser won the 1992 Indianapolis 500

1992 Indianapolis 500

The 76th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 24, 1992. The race is famous for the fierce battle in the closing laps, as race winner Al Unser, Jr...

 in a Galmer in what would be the closest finish in race history. Despite winning, the Galmer chassis was scrapped after only one season. After a lackluster 1993, Unser left for Penske Racing

Penske Racing

Penske Racing is a racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series and NASCAR. They also previously competed in road racing, and Formula One. Penske Racing is a division of Penske Corporation, and is owned and chaired by Roger Penske...

, and Danny Sullivan moved into semi-retirement (he raced stock cars in 1994, and raced for PacWest

PacWest

PacWest can refer to:*Pacific West Conference, an intercollegiate college athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division II*PacWest Center, a 29-story office building in Portland, Oregon...

 in 1995). For 1994, rookie Adrián Fernández

Adrian Fernández

José Adrián Fernández Mier is a Mexican racing driver and co-owner of the Fernandez Racing team.-Early career:...

 was the team's lone entry, as the team reverted to its Galles Racing name. Fernandez was joined by Brazilian journeyman 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...

 for 1995.

Transition to IRL

1996 saw several drivers in Galles cars as the team was one of the few CART teams to cross over and compete in the rival Indy Racing League's first Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis 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...

 with driver Davy Jones

Davy Jones (racing driver)

Davy Jones is an American racing driver.In 1983 he came 3rd in the British Formula Three Championship behind Ayrton Senna and Martin Brundle. He also that year tested the Brabham F1 car at Brands Hatch with Bernie Ecclestone, the then team owner, looking at Jones as the next American hope for F1...

 who finished second. Jones also drove a partial schedule in CART while rookie and former Motorcycle champion Eddie Lawson

Eddie Lawson

Eddie Lawson is a former four-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. His penchant for not crashing & consistently finishing in the points earned him the nickname "Steady Eddie".-Biography:...

 drove Galles' full-time CART entry. In 1997

1996-1997 in IRL

The 1996-1997 Indy Racing League season was a result of the league abandoning the concept of ending each season with the Indianapolis 500. The 1996-97 season would ultimately comprise the events following the Indy 500 in 1996, and all events contested in the calendar year of 1997.The 1996-97 season...

 the team moved full-time to the IRL with rookie Kenny Bräck

Kenny Bräck

Kenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...

. Bräck switched to A. J. Foyt Enterprises

A. J. Foyt Enterprises

A.J. Foyt Enterprises is a racing team in the IZOD Indycar Series and formerly NASCAR. It is owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A. J. Foyt. Foyt Enterprises won IRL titles in 1996 with Scott Sharp and 1998 with Kenny Bräck, the latter driver also winning the Indianapolis 500 for the team...

 for 1998

1998 in IRL

The 1998 Pep Boys Indy Racing League season was one of relative stability compared to the previous two seasons. For the first time the season consisted of a single and complete spring, summer, and fall like all other forms of motorsport. 15 drivers completed the entire 11 race schedule, twice as...

 and the team again ceased operations. Galles returned 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 veteran Davey Hamilton

Davey Hamilton

Davey Jay Hamilton is a race car driver in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. He has made 50 series starts and while never winning a race, finished second 3 times...

. Hamilton was replaced 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...

 by a returning Al Unser, Jr., who was switching over from CART after being released from Penske Racing. Unser was one of the first CART stars to switch full-time to the IRL. The team's final year was 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...

 where Unser was joined by rookies Didier André

Didier André

Didier Andre is a race car driver born in Lyon, France. In the late 1990s he competed in Indy Lights, driving in the Indy Racing League in 2001 and Nissan World Series from 2003 until the present day. During 2006 he drove in the Le Mans Series Championship, initially in LMP2 for the team Paul...

 and Casey Mears

Casey Mears

Casey James Mears is the driver of the #13 GEICO Toyota for Germain Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. He is a former winner of the Coca-Cola 600....

.

Summary

Throughout the team's 22 year history, their drivers captured 21 wins - 18 by Al Unser, Jr. (6 in 1990, 4 in 1988, 2 in 1991 and 1 each in 1984, 1989, 1992, 1993, 2000, and 2001), two by Danny Sullivan (1 each in 1992 and 1993), and one by Bobby Rahal in 1991 in addition to capturing the 1990 CART championship and 1992 Indianapolis 500 with Unser.

CART

Geoff Brabham

Geoff Brabham

Geoff Brabham is an Australian racing driver. He is the son of three-time Formula One World Champion Jack Brabham. Brabham spent the majority of his racing career in the United States. He raced successfully in CART early in his career. In ten appearances in the Indianapolis 500, with a best result...

 (1985-1987) Pancho Carter

Pancho Carter

Duane "Pancho" Carter, Jr. is a retired American race car driver. He is most famous for his participation in CART races.-Background:...

 (1984-1986) Kevin Cogan

Kevin Cogan

Kevin Cogan is a former racecar driver who drove in Formula One from to . Driving a RAM Williams in the 1980 Canadian Grand Prix, he failed to qualify, suffering the same result driving for Tyrrell at the 1981 US GP West...

 (1993) Dick Ferguson

Dick Ferguson

Dick Ferguson , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1979-1985 and 1987-1988 seasons, with 26 career starts, including the 1980 Indianapolis 500. He finished in the top ten 5 times, with a best finish of 6th position in 1981 at Michigan.-External Links:*...

 (1980) Adrián Fernández

Adrian Fernández

José Adrián Fernández Mier is a Mexican racing driver and co-owner of the Fernandez Racing team.-Early career:...

 (1993-1995) Tom Gloy

Tom Gloy

Tom Gloy , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1980 and 1984 seasons, with 6 career starts, including the 1984 Indianapolis 500. Despite competing in only 3 events in 1980, he finished 14th in points, a result of finishing each race in the top ten.In 1979, Gloy...

 (1984) 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) Davy Jones

Davy Jones (racing driver)

Davy Jones is an American racing driver.In 1983 he came 3rd in the British Formula Three Championship behind Ayrton Senna and Martin Brundle. He also that year tested the Brabham F1 car at Brands Hatch with Bernie Ecclestone, the then team owner, looking at Jones as the next American hope for F1...

 (1996) Eddie Lawson

Eddie Lawson

Eddie Lawson is a former four-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. His penchant for not crashing & consistently finishing in the points earned him the nickname "Steady Eddie".-Biography:...

 (1996) Jeff MacPherson

Jeff MacPherson

Jeff MacPherson , is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in the 1986 and 1987 seasons, with 18 career starts, including the 1987 Indianapolis 500. He finished in the top ten 5 times, with his best finish in 8th position in 1987 at both Indianapolis and Milwaukee...

 (1987) Roberto Moreno

Roberto Moreno

Roberto Pupo Moreno , usually known as Roberto Moreno and also as Pupo Moreno, is a racing driver from Brazil. He participated in 75 Formula One Grands Prix, achieved 1 podium, and scored a total of 15 championship points. He raced in CART in 1986, and was Formula 3000 champion before joining...

 (1985-1986) Bobby Rahal

Bobby Rahal

Robert "Bobby" Woodward Rahal is an American auto racing driver and team owner. As a driver, he won three championships and 24 races in the CART open-wheel series, including the 1986 Indianapolis 500...

 (1990-1991) Danny Sullivan

Danny Sullivan

Daniel John "Danny" Sullivan III is a former racing driver from the United States. He is best known for winning the 1985 Indianapolis 500.-Before racing:...

 (1992-1993) Al Unser, Jr.

Al Unser, Jr.

Alfred Unser, Jr. , nicknamed "Little Al", "Al Junior" or simply "Junior" is a retired American race car driver and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.-History:...

 (1983-1984, 1988-1993)

IRL

Didier André

Didier André

Didier Andre is a race car driver born in Lyon, France. In the late 1990s he competed in Indy Lights, driving in the Indy Racing League in 2001 and Nissan World Series from 2003 until the present day. During 2006 he drove in the Le Mans Series Championship, initially in LMP2 for the team Paul...

 (2001) Kenny Bräck

Kenny Bräck

Kenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...

 (1997) 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...

 (1997) Davey Hamilton

Davey Hamilton

Davey Jay Hamilton is a race car driver in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series. He has made 50 series starts and while never winning a race, finished second 3 times...

 (1999) Davy Jones

Davy Jones (racing driver)

Davy Jones is an American racing driver.In 1983 he came 3rd in the British Formula Three Championship behind Ayrton Senna and Martin Brundle. He also that year tested the Brabham F1 car at Brands Hatch with Bernie Ecclestone, the then team owner, looking at Jones as the next American hope for F1...

 (1996) Casey Mears

Casey Mears

Casey James Mears is the driver of the #13 GEICO Toyota for Germain Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. He is a former winner of the Coca-Cola 600....

 (2001) Al Unser, Jr.

Al Unser, Jr.

Alfred Unser, Jr. , nicknamed "Little Al", "Al Junior" or simply "Junior" is a retired American race car driver and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.-History:...

 (2000-2001) Jeff Ward

Jeff Ward (motocross)

Jeff Ward is the first motocross rider in history to win every major AMA motocross national championship...

(1997)