1972 Best Western Motels 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
The 1972 Best Western Motels 150 was the final race of the 1972 USAC Championship Car Season. Occurring on 4th November at the Phoenix International Raceway, the race would ultimately be won by Bobby Unser in an Eagle-Offenhauser, after having led 96 of the 150 laps.
Background
The 1972 Best Western Motels 150 was the 23rd running of the event, with the annual race lasting 150 miles.[1] It was one of two 1972 USAC Championship Car Season races to commence at Phoenix International Raceway, the other being the Phoenix 150,[2] which occurred on 4th November and was won by Bobby Unser.[3] While renamed to reflect the Best Western Motels sponsorship, the race was still in memory of AAA driver Bobby Ball,[4] The race has ties with Phoenix events like the Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix, before Phoenix races were dropped from the IndyCar schedule after 2018 following low attendance.[5]
Prior to the race, qualifying commenced with Mark Donohue winning the pole position in a McLaren-Offenhauser with a speed of 141.732 mph.[1] Directly behind him was Parnelli-Offenhauser's Mario Andretti, with Unser lining up third out of 24 competitors.[1] Having won the Phoenix 150, Unser was seeking to achieve a Phoenix double by winning this race.[3]
The Race
With the starting order decided, the 1972 Best Western 150 commenced on 4th November.[1] Andretti shot into the lead on the first lap, holding it for the first 53 laps.[1] Unser overtook him on lap 54, maintaining the lead for 46 consecutive laps.[1] Meanwhile, polesitter Donohue retired after 90 laps due to a broken turbocharger.[1] Mike Mosley then moved into the first position on lap 100 in an Eagle-Offenhauser, but Unser retook it a lap later.[1] This proved to be the final lead change of the race, with Unser defending the first position for the final 50 laps from Mosley and Andretti to claim the Phoenix double and $9,496 in prize money.[1] Mosley finished second, while Andretti was a lap down in third.[1]
Availability
According to IndyCar on TV, the race received live flag-to-flag coverage from ABC as part of its Wide World of Sports.[6] The broadcast has yet to resurface however, and no footage of the race is currently publicly available. Nevertheless, photos of the event can be found online.
Gallery
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See Also
- 1962 Trenton 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1962)
- 1962 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1962)
- 1963 Trenton 100 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1963)
- 1963 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1963)
- 1964 Golden State 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1964)
- 1964 Trenton 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1964)
- 1965 Golden State 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1965)
- 1965 Jimmy Bryan Memorial (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1965)
- 1966 Jimmy Bryan Memorial (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1966)
- 1966 Trenton 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1966)
- 1967 Trenton 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1967)
- 1968 Tony Bettenhausen 100 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1968)
- 1968 Trenton 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1968)
- 1969 Langhorne 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1969)
- 1969 Rex Mays Classic (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1969)
- 1969 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1969)
- 1970 Bobby Ball 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Jimmy Bryan 150 (partially lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Langhorne 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Rex Mays Classic (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Rocky Mountain 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1970 Trenton 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1970)
- 1971 Bobby Ball 150 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Jimmy Bryan 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Marlboro 300 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Michigan 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Rex Mays Classic (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Schaefer 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1971 Trentonian 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1971)
- 1972 Indianapolis 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Phoenix 150 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Rex Mays Classic (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1972 Tony Bettenhausen 200 (lost footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1972)
- 1976 Indianapolis 500 (partially found footage of USAC Championship Car Season race; 1976)
- 1981 Pocono 500 (lost televised footage of IndyCar race; 1981)
- Indianapolis 500 WFBM-TV Broadcasts (lost racing footage; 1949-1950)
- Indianapolis 500 MCA closed-circuit broadcasts (partially lost racing footage; 1964-1970)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Racing-Reference detailing the qualifying and race results of the event. Retrieved 5th Jun '22
- ↑ Racing-Reference detailing the 1972 USAC Championship Car Season schedule. Retrieved 5th Jun '22
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Racing-Reference detailing the results of the 1972 Phoenix 150. Retrieved 5th Jun '22
- ↑ Midwest Racing Archives detailing the origins of the Bobby Ball race. Retrieved 5th Jun '22
- ↑ IndyStar reporting on Phoenix races being dropped from the IndyCar schedule after 2018. Retrieved 5th Jun '22
- ↑ IndyCar on TV detailing the ABC broadcast of the race. Retrieved 5th Jun '22