The Grand Prix of Portland (known as the BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland for sponsorship reasons) is a race in the IndyCar Series held at the Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon. The race was an annual event from 1984 to 2007, initially as a race in the CART series, and later as part of the Champ Car World Series. After a ten-year hiatus, the race made its return to the IndyCar Series in the 2018 season.[1]
IndyCar Series | |
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Venue | Portland International Raceway |
Corporate sponsor | BitNile.com |
First race | 1984 |
First ICS race | 2018 |
Distance | 216.04 mi (347.68 km) |
Laps | 110 |
Previous names | Stroh's/G.I. Joe's 200 (1984–1985) Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200 (1986–1990, 1996) Texaco/Havoline Presents the Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200 (1991–1995, 1998–1999) Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200 Presented by Texaco/Havoline (1997) Freightliner/G.I. Joe's 200 Presented by Texaco (2000–2001) G.I. Joe's 200 (2002–2003) Champ Car Grand Prix of Portland (2004) G.I. Joe's Grand Prix of Portland (2005–2006) Mazda Grand Prix of Portland (2007) Grand Prix of Portland (2018-2019, 2021-2022) BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland (2023) |
Most wins (driver) | Michael Andretti (3) Al Unser Jr. (3) |
Most wins (team) | Newman/Haas Racing (8) |
Most wins (manufacturer) | Chassis: Lola (12) Engine: Honda (7) Chevrolet (7) |
Portland is best-remembered as being the site of two of the closest finishes on a road course in Indy car racing history. In 1986, Michael Andretti lost fuel pressure on the final turn of the final lap, which allowed his father Mario to catch up and beat him to the finish line by 0.070 seconds. At the time, it was the closest finish of any race in Indy car history. In 1997, in a three-wide finish, Mark Blundell beat second place Gil de Ferran by 0.027 seconds, and beat third place Raul Boesel by 0.055 seconds. For a road course race, it was the all-time closest finish in CART series history, as well as the closest three-car finish in series history.
For nearly its entire existence, the title sponsor of the race was G.I. Joe's sporting goods and auto parts store, and the event was held during or around the Portland Rose Festival. Numerous times, the race was held on Father's Day. Beginning in 2018, the race was held in September on Labor Day weekend, promoted by Green Savoree Racing Promotions.
Season | Date | Driver | Team | Chassis | Engine | Race Distance | Race Time | Average Speed (mph) |
Report | |||
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Laps | Miles (km) | |||||||||||
CART/Champ Car World Series[2] | ||||||||||||
1.915 miles (3.082 km) course | ||||||||||||
1984 | June 17 | Al Unser Jr. | Galles Racing | March 84C | Cosworth | 104 | 199.16 (320.516) | 1:53:17 | 105.484 | Report | ||
1985 | June 16 | Mario Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola T900 | Cosworth | 104 | 199.16 (320.516) | 1:51:35 | 107.083 | Report | ||
1986 | June 15 | Mario Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola T8600 | Cosworth | 104 | 199.16 (320.516) | 1:50:53 | 107.759 | Report | ||
1987 | June 14 | Bobby Rahal | Truesports | Lola T8700 | Cosworth | 104 | 199.16 (320.516) | 1:50:02 | 108.59 | Report | ||
1.922 miles (3.093 km) course | ||||||||||||
1988 | June 19 | Danny Sullivan | Penske Racing | Penske PC-17 | Chevrolet-Ilmor | 104 | 199.888 (321.688) | 1:57:17 | 102.253 | Report | ||
1989 | June 25 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Patrick Racing | Penske PC-18 | Chevrolet-Ilmor | 104 | 199.888 (321.688) | 1:55:20 | 103.984 | Report | ||
1990 | June 24 | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola T9000 | Chevrolet-Ilmor | 104 | 199.888 (321.688) | 1:48:22 | 110.643 | Report | ||
1991 | June 23 | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola T9100 | Chevrolet-Ilmor | 104 | 199.888 (321.688) | 1:44:06 | 115.208 | Report | ||
1.95 miles (3.14 km) course | ||||||||||||
1992 | June 21 | Michael Andretti | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola T9200 | Ford-Cosworth XB | 102 | 198.9 (320.098) | 1:53:25 | 105.219 | Report | ||
1993 | June 27 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Penske Racing | Penske PC-22 | Chevrolet-Ilmor C | 102 | 198.9 (320.098) | 2:03:54 | 96.312 | Report | ||
1994 | June 26 | Al Unser Jr. | Penske Racing | Penske PC-23 | Ilmor D | 102 | 198.9 (320.098) | 1:50:43 | 107.777 | Report | ||
1995 | June 25 | Al Unser Jr. | Penske Racing | Penske PC-24 | Mercedes-Benz-Ilmor | 102 | 198.9 (320.098) | 1:54:49 | 103.933 | Report | ||
1996 | June 23 | Alex Zanardi | Chip Ganassi Racing | Reynard 96i | Honda | 98 | 191.1 (307.545) | 1:50:25 | 103.837 | Report | ||
1.967 miles (3.166 km) course | ||||||||||||
1997 | June 22 | Mark Blundell | PacWest Racing | Reynard 97 | Mercedes-Benz-Ilmor | 78* | 153.426 (246.915) | 2:00:12 | 76.575 | Report | ||
1998 | June 21 | Alex Zanardi | Chip Ganassi Racing | Reynard 98i | Honda | 98 | 192.766 (310.226) | 1:54:06 | 101.355 | Report | ||
1.969 miles (3.169 km) course | ||||||||||||
1999 | June 20 | Gil de Ferran | Walker Racing | Reynard 99i | Honda | 98 | 192.962 (310.542) | 1:47:44 | 107.457 | Report | ||
2000 | June 25 | Gil de Ferran | Penske Racing | Reynard 2Ki | Honda HRK | 112 | 220.528 (354.905) | 2:00:46 | 109.564 | Report | ||
2001 | June 24 | Max Papis | Team Rahal | Lola B1/00 | Ford-Cosworth | 76* | 149.644 (240.828) | 2:00:20 | 74.606 | Report | ||
2002 | June 16 | Cristiano da Matta | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola B2/00 | Toyota | 110 | 216.59 (348.567) | 2:03:19 | 105.381 | Report | ||
2003 | June 22 | Adrián Fernández | Fernández Racing | Lola B02/00 | Ford-Cosworth XFE | 100 | 196.9 (316.879) | 1:56:16 | 101.602 | Report | ||
2004 | June 20 | Sébastien Bourdais | Newman/Haas Racing | Lola B02/00 | Ford-Cosworth XFE | 94 | 185.086 (297.867) | 1:45:50 | 104.923 | Report | ||
1.964 miles (3.161 km) course | ||||||||||||
2005 | June 19 | Cristiano da Matta | PKV Racing | Lola B02/00 | Ford-Cosworth XFE | 105 | 206.22 (331.878) | 1:51:51 | 110.616 | Report | ||
2006 | June 18 | A. J. Allmendinger | Forsythe Racing | Lola B03/00 | Ford-Cosworth XFE | 105 | 206.22 (331.878) | 1:48:32 | 113.989 | Report | ||
2007 | June 10 | Sébastien Bourdais | Newman/Haas Racing | Panoz DP-01 | Cosworth XFE | 103 | 202.292 (325.557) | 1:45:42 | 114.816 | Report | ||
2008 – 2017 |
Not held | |||||||||||
IndyCar Series | ||||||||||||
1.967 miles (3.166 km) course | ||||||||||||
2018 | Sept. 2 | Takuma Sato | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | Dallara UAK-18 | Honda | 105 | 206.535 (332.386) | 2:00:09 | 102.971 | Report | ||
2019 | Sept. 1 | Will Power | Team Penske | Dallara UAK-18 | Chevrolet | 105 | 206.535 (332.386) | 1:58:43 | 104.225 | Report | ||
2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | |||||||||||
2021 | Sept. 12 | Álex Palou | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara UAK-18 | Honda | 110 | 216.04 (347.683) | 2:07:04 | 102.011 | Report | ||
2022 | Sept. 4 | Scott McLaughlin | Team Penske | Dallara IR18 | Chevrolet | 110 | 216.04 (347.683) | 01:56:15.6892 | 111.493 | Report | ||
2023 | Sept. 3 | Álex Palou | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara IR18 | Honda | 110 | 216.04 (347.683) | 01:57:01.9814 | 110.758 | Report |
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Preceded by Bommarito Automotive Group 500 (Gateway) |
IndyCar Series Grand Prix of Portland |
Succeeded by IndyCar Monterey Grand Prix |
45°35′49″N 122°41′45″W / 45.59694°N 122.69583°W