The 1996 Bank of America 300 was the sixteenth and final round of the 1996 PPG Indy Car World Series season. The race was held on September 8, 1996 at Laguna Seca Raceway.
Championship points leader Jimmy Vasser, Michael Andretti, and Al Unser Jr. came into the weekend mathematically eligible to win the championship. Alex Zanardi won the race from pole position after a daring last-lap overtake on Bryan Herta at the Corkscrew, a downhill left-right corner. In motorsport circles, this move has been eponymously referred to as "The Pass". Named one of the greatest passes in motorsport history, The Pass' legitimacy has been retrospectively debated due to the lack of enforcement of track limits. Vasser finished fourth and won his first and only IndyCar championship.
Race results
Grid Driver Team Laps Time/Status Points 1 1 4 Alex Zanardi Chip Ganassi Racing 83 1:48:32.157 22 2 2 28 Bryan Herta Team Rahal 83 +1.412 16 3 10 20 Scott Pruett Patrick Racing 83 +15.754 14 4 5 12 Jimmy Vasser Chip Ganassi Racing 83 +16.090 12 5 3 17 Mauricio Gugelmin PacWest Racing 83 +17.779 10 6 6 99 Greg Moore Forsythe Racing 83 +18.150 8 7 9 18 Bobby Rahal Team Rahal 83 +18.870 6 8 16 18 Jan Magnussen Hogan-Penske Racing 83 +34.806 5 9 11 6 Michael Andretti Newman/Haas Racing 82 + 1 Lap 4 10 8 11 Christian Fittipaldi Newman/Haas Racing 82 + 1 Lap 3 11 20 32 Adrián Fernández Tasman Motorsports 82 + 1 Lap 2 12 23 34 Roberto Moreno Payton/Coyne Racing 82 + 1 Lap 1 13 12 49 Parker Johnstone Brix Comptech Racing 82 + 1 Lap 14 21 10 Davy Jones Galles Racing International 82 + 1 Lap 15 15 5 Robby Gordon Walker Racing 82 + 1 Lap 16 13 2 Al Unser Jr. Marlboro Team Penske 82 + 1 Lap 17 24 44 Richie Hearn Della Penna Motorsports 80 + 3 Laps 18 27 15 Scott Goodyear Walker Racing 80 + 3 Laps 19 7 31 André Ribeiro Tasman Motorsports 76 Off course 20 22 1 Raul Boesel Brahma Sports Team 69 Electrical 21 19 16 Stefan Johansson Bettenhausen Motorsports 52 Crash 22 17 25 Max Papis Arciero-Wells Racing 39 Engine 23 26 19 Hiro Matsushita Payton/Coyne Racing 33 Engine 24 4 21 Mark Blundell PacWest Racing 18 Electrical 25 14 8 Gil de Ferran Hall Racing 15 Suspension 26 25 22 Michel Jourdain Jr. Team Scandia 15 Exhaust 27 29 98 P.J. Jones All American Racers 15 Engine 28 28 36 Juan Manuel Fangio II All American Racers 5 Engine 29 18 3 Paul Tracy Marlboro Team Penske 2 Crash
Notes
References