IT'S HARD TO FATHOM NOW, but in 1994, IndyCar racing was the country's most popular form of motorsport. The series, sanctioned by CART, was increasingly global in its aspirations. The '94 grid included three former Formula 1 champions and one future F1 champ. Chassis maker Reynard entered the series to take on Lola and Penske. A new Honda engine debuted to do battle with Ford and Ilmor.
But for all its mechanical diversity, 1994 was Penske's year. A murderers' row of drivers-Emerson Fittipaldi, Paul Tracy, and Al Unser Jr.-piloted Penske's three Marlboro-sponsored entries. Of the 48 total possible podium positions that season, Penske drivers took 30. The Penske trio managed five podium sweeps. Unser won the drivers' championship and the Indy 500. Penske won the constructors' title, and the team's engine builder, Ilmor, took the manufacturers'.
There to capture the Penske cars and their engines in minute and exquisite detail was Tony Matthews, among the best cutaway illustration artists ever to put pencil to paper. The illustrations you see on these pages are all his.
In the following years, IndyCar would all but destroy itself, splitting into two warring factions. But those were just dark clouds on the horizon of a sun-drenched sky in 1994.
Heave Ho
This story is from the August - September 2023 edition of Road & Track.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the August - September 2023 edition of Road & Track.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
REMADE IN JAPAN
ON A MISSION TO HIGHLIGHT THE COUNTRY'S FINEST ARTISANS, BUILT BY LEGENDS PIECES TOGETHER THE GREATEST-AND MOST EXPENSIVE-SKYLINE RESTOMODS EVER BUILT.
CREASE MONKEY
HOW GIORGETTO GIUGIARO'S FOLDED-PAPER ERA DEFINED THE SEVENTIES AND BEYOND.
WOULD THE REAL INTEGRA PLEASE STEP FORWARD?
A comparison between a 2001 Type R and the all-new Type S reveals much about motoring, then and now.
HUMMER. REBORN
After more than a decade, General Motors' profligate son returns.
THE V-8 BENCHMARK
The E39-generation BMW M5 has been the sport-sedan icon for over 20 years. Can Cadillac's CT5-V Blackwing measure up?
BABY BLUE
The Mazda Miata gets better without changing much at all.
INSANE BROTHERS.FROM OTHER MOTHERS
The Lamborghini Urus Performante presents with symptoms of Completely Bonkers first seen in the Nineties GMC Typhoon.
NO RESERVE
BRING A TRAILER'S ONLINE AUCTIONS ARE TRANSFORMING HOW COLLECTOR CARS ARE SOLD.
Going, Going, Gone
The generational shift that's redefining what a collector car is.
LET'S GET DIGITAL
TO EVOKE PROTOTYPE RACING'S RADDEST ERA, A CLASSICALLY STYLED CHRONOGRAPH WON'T DO