1970 USAC Championship Car season

1970 USAC Championship Car season
USAC National Championship Trail
Season
Races	18
Start date	March 28
End date	November 21
Awards
National champion	Al Unser
Indianapolis 500 winner	Al Unser

The 1970 USAC Championship Car season consisted of 18 races, beginning in Avondale, Arizona on March 28 and concluding at the same location on November 21. There was also one non-championship event at Pikes Peak, Colorado. The USAC National Champion and Indianapolis 500 winner was Al Unser. After this season, dirt courses did not reappear in the USAC Championship until 1981-82. Road courses after this season did not reappear in the USAC Championship until 1977. The Pikes Peak Auto Hill Climb was the only non-championship event. Also of note, the series added a second 500 mile race at the new Ontario Motor Speedway.

(partial list)

Team	Chassis	Engine	Drivers	Rounds
Vel's Parnelli Jones Racing	Colt (1-9, 11-12, 16, 18), King (10, 13-15, 17)	Ford	Al Unser	All
	Colt	Ford	Joe Leonard	4-5, 12
Leader Card Racing	Eagle (1-9, 11-12, 16, 18), Watson (10, 13-15, 17), Ward (17)	Ford(1-5, 7, 9, 11-12, 16, 18), Offenhauser (6, 8, 10, 13-15, 17)	Bobby Unser	All
	Watson (1-11, 13-18), Eagle (12)	Offenhauser	Mike Mosley	All
	Epperly (1), Coyote (4), Watson (8-9, 12, 16, 18), Dunlop (10, 13-15, 17)	Offenhauser (1, 8-10, 12-17), Ford ( 4, 18)	George Snider	1, 4, 8-10, 12-18
A.J. Foyt Enterprises	Gerhardt (1, 3, 5), Coyote (4, 12), McElreath (10, 13-15, 17), Eagle (18)	Ford (4, 12, 18), Chevrolet (10, 13-15, 17), Offenhauser(1, 3, 5)	Jim McElreath	All
	Coyote (1-5, 7-9, 11-12, 18), Meskowski (10, 13-15)	Ford	A.J. Foyt	1-5, 7-15, 18
	Eagle	Ford	Donnie Allison	4
	Coyote	Ford	George Snider	4
Andy Granatelli	Gerhardt (1, 3, 5), Coyote (4, 12), McElreath (10, 13-15, 17), Eagle (18)	Ford (4, 12, 18), Chevrolet (10, 13-15, 17), Offenhauser (1, 3, 5)	Mario Andretti	All
	Kuzma	Offenhauser	Larry Dickson	10, 13-15, 17
	Hawk	Ford	George Folmer	4, 12
	Kuzma	Offenhauser	Bill Vukovich II	17
	Hawk	Ford	Steve Krisiloff	16
Agajanian-Faas Racers	Brabham	Offenhauser	Bill Vukovich II	2
Hayhoe Racing Enterprises	Scorpion (1, 3-6, 7-9, 11-12, 16, 18), Meskowski (15, 17)	Ford (1, 3-6, 7-9, 11-12, 16, 18),, Offenhauser (15, 17)	Roger McCluskey	1, 3-6, 7-9, 11-12, 15-18
	Gerhardt (1), King (3-5), Vollstedt (7), Morris (8, 11, 16, 18), Scorpion (12)"	Offenhauser (1, 3-5), Ford (7-8, 11-12, 16, 18)	Art Pollard	1, 3-5, 7-8, 11-12, 16, 18
Johncock Racing Team	Gerhardt (1, 3-5), McLaren (6, 8, 12, 16), Eagle (2, 7, 9)	Offenhauser (1, 3-6, 8, 12, 16), Ford (2, 7, 9)	Gordon Johncock	1-9, 12, 16
Jerry O-Connell Racing	Brabham	Offenhauser	Bill Vukovich II	4, 18
Brabham	Brabham	Offenhauser	Jack Brabham	4, 12
Dayton-Walther	Morris	Offenhauser	Bill Vukovich II	5, 6
Racing International	Volstedt (1-6, 8-9, 12, 16, 18), Morris (7), Moore (17)	Ford (1, 4-5, 7-9, 12, 16), Chevrolet (2-3), Offenhauser (6, 17)	Dick Simon	1-9, 12, 16-18
All American Racers	Eagle	Ford (2, 4), Offenhauser (12)	Dan Gurney	2, 4, 12
	Eagle	Ford	Swede Savage	7, 9, 12, 18
Penske	Lola	Chevrolet (2, 12), Ford (4, 9)	Mark Donohue	2, 4, 9, 12
McLaren	Mclaren (4), Meskowski (10, 13-15, 17), Gerhardt (12)	Offenhauser	Carl Williams	4, 10, 12-15, 17
Patrick Racing	Eagle (2-6, 7-9, 11-12, 16, 18), Lesovksy (10, 13-15, 17)	Offenhauser (3-4, 8, 10-17), Ford (2, 5-6, 9, 18)	Johnny Rutherford	2-6, 8-18
Lindsey Hopkins Racing	Eagle (4-5, 11), Kuzma (8-18)	Ford (4-5, 11, 18), Offenhauser (8)	Mel Kenyon	4-5, 8, 11, 16
	Eagle (1, 3-6, 8-9, 18), Kuzma (14, 16)	Offenhauser (1, 3-6, 8-9, 14, 16), Ford (18)	Wally Dallenbach	1, 3-6, 8-9, 14, 16, 18
Gene White Racing	Finley (1, 3-6, 11, 16, 18), Vollstedt (10, 13-15, 17)	Offenhauser	Lloyd Ruby	1, 3-5, 7, 11-12, 16, 18
Vatis Enterprises	Laycock	Offenhauser (1, 3-5, 7), Ford (11-12, 16, 18)	Bentley Warren	1, 3-6, 10-11, 13-17)
Don Gerhardt	Gerhardt (1-6, 8-9, 11-12, 16, 18), Ward (10, 13-15), Edmunds (17)	Offy (1, 3-6, 8-9, 11-18), Ford (10), Chevy (2)	Gary Bettenhausen	1-6, 8-18
	Gerhardt	Offenhauser	Larry Dickson	4
Volstedt Racing	Volstedt	Ford	Larry Dickson	18

Rnd	Date	Race name	Length	Track	Location	Type	Pole position	Winning driver
1	March 28	Phoenix 150	150 mi (240 km)	Phoenix International Raceway	Avondale, Arizona	Paved	Mario Andretti	Al Unser
2	April 4	Golden Gate 150	151.38 mi (243.62 km)	Sears Point Raceway	Sonoma, California	Road	Mark Donohue	Dan Gurney
3	April 26	Trenton 200	201 mi (323 km)	Trenton International Speedway	Trenton, New Jersey	Paved	Al Unser	Lloyd Ruby
4	May 30	International 500 Mile Sweepstakes	500 mi (800 km)	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	Speedway, Indiana	Paved	Al Unser	Al Unser
5	June 7	Rex Mays Classic	150 mi (240 km)	Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway	West Allis, Wisconsin	Paved	Mario Andretti	Joe Leonard
6	June 14	Langhorne 150	150 mi (240 km)	Langhorne Speedway	Langhorne, Pennsylvania	Paved	Bobby Unser	Bobby Unser
7	June 28	Rocky Mountain 150	151.62 mi (244.01 km)	Continental Divide Raceways	Mead, Colorado	Road	Al Unser	Mario Andretti
8	July 4	Michigan Twin 200s	200 mi (320 km)	Michigan International Speedway	Brooklyn, Michigan	Paved	Gary Bettenhausen	Gary Bettenhausen
NC	July 4	Pikes Peak Auto Hill Climb	12.42 mi (19.99 km)	Pikes Peak Highway	Pikes Peak, Colorado	Hill	Orville NanceA	Ted Foltz
9	July 26	Indy 150	150 mi (240 km)	Indianapolis Raceway Park	Clermont, Indiana	Road	Mario Andretti	Al Unser
10	August 22	Tony Bettenhausen 100	100 mi (160 km)	Illinois State Fairgrounds	Springfield, Illinois	Dirt	Larry Dickson	Al Unser
11	August 23	Tony Bettenhausen 200	200 mi (320 km)	Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway	West Allis, Wisconsin	Paved	Al Unser	Al Unser
12	September 6	California 500	500 mi (800 km)	Ontario Motor Speedway	Ontario, California	Paved	Lloyd Ruby	Jim McElreath
13	September 7	Ted Horn Memorial 100	100 mi (160 km)	DuQuoin State Fairgrounds	Du Quoin, Illinois	Dirt	Al Unser	Al Unser
14	September 12	Hoosier Hundred	100 mi (160 km)	Indiana State Fairgrounds	Indianapolis, Indiana	Dirt	Johnny Parsons	Al Unser
15	September 19	Sedalia 100	100 mi (160 km)	State Fair Raceway	Sedalia, Missouri	Dirt	Al Unser	Al Unser
16	October 3	Trenton 300	264 mi (425 km)B	Trenton International Speedway	Trenton, New Jersey	Paved	Al Unser	Al Unser
17	October 4	Golden State 100	100 mi (160 km)	California State Fairgrounds	Sacramento, California	Dirt	Mario Andretti	Al Unser
18	November 21	Bobby Ball 150	150 mi (240 km)	Phoenix International Raceway	Avondale, Arizona	Paved	Al Unser	Swede Savage

^A No pole is awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, in this schedule on the pole is the driver who started first. No lap led was awarded for the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, however, a lap was awarded to the drivers that completed the climb.
^B Scheduled for 300 miles, stopped early due to rain.

Note: Mark Donohue, Kevin Bartlett, Peter Revson, LeeRoy Yarbrough, John Cannon, Donnie Allison, Ron Grable, Jack Eiteljorg and Jack Brabham are not eligible for points.

Pos Driver PHX1 SON TRE1 INDY MIL1 LAN CDR MIS IRP SPR MIL2 ONT DQSF ISF SED TRE2 SAC PHX2 Pts 1 Al Unser 1 3 3 1 3 2 5 18 1 1 1 9 1 1 1 1 1 2 5130 2 Bobby Unser 2 18 4 11 6 1 4 2 24 9 19 22 2 DNQ DNQ 2 6 17 2260 3 Jim McElreath 6 7 5 DNS 3 1 Wth 10 13 16 5 2060 4 Mike Mosley 5 7 5 21 7 3 15 4 14 10 5 14 18 5 4 3 8 20 1900 5 Mario Andretti 13 2 2 6 5 8 1 21 18 24 24 10 17 11 2 21 14 8 1890 6 Roger McCluskey DNQ DNQ 25 2 Wth 7 9 2 25 10 5 5 3 1380 7 Gordon Johncock 18 4 15 28 12 10 7 12 3 4 DNQ 1160 8 Art Pollard 11 21 30 18 19 17 11 2 6 24 1110 9 A. J. Foyt 4 Wth 6 10 24 3 8 12 15 7 15 10 3 DNQ 23 1105 10 Dick Simon  R  24 6 9 14 11 9 11 19 13 3 DNQ DNQ 9 1080 11 Dan Gurney 1 3 18 1000 12 Johnny Rutherford 5 20 18 14 DNQ 3 17 11 21 31 11 DNQ 12 4 13 6 960 13 Mel Kenyon 16 DNQ 10 3 6 9 860 14 Lloyd Ruby 3 1 27 4 17 20 23 22 16 790 15 Bentley Warren  R  DNQ 8 DNQ 10 6 5 4 DNQ 8 5 20 11 DNQ 775 16 Gary Bettenhausen 17 21 12 26 9 5 1 22 20 17 19 9 DNQ 16 DNQ 9 19 710 17 Wally Dallenbach Sr. 10 17 17 8 7 16 5 9 28 DNS 15 4 620 18 Swede Savage 2 8 27 1 615 19 Jim Malloy 33 19 4 5 16 22 DNQ 11 DNQ 12 7 13 13 570 20 Greg Weld 18 32 DNQ 27 7 15 7 8 DNQ 4 530 21 George Snider 7 20 23 23 14 DNQ 4 14 15 18 2 7 460 22 Carl Williams 9 2 12 DNQ 15 DNQ 10 440 23 Jerry Grant 22 7 17 6 21 DNQ 14 420 24 Rick Muther 8 DNQ 14 DNQ 33 8 22 400 25 Sam Sessions 12 DNQ 21 6 17 DNQ 4 11 12 365 26 Steve Krisiloff 8 15 10 DNQ 22 13 18 DNQ 29 7 DNS 315 27 Larry Dickson DNQ 25 DNQ 3 DNQ 3 DNS 11 310 28 John Mahler  R  13 16 DNQ 15 8 9 6 14 12 DNQ 305 29 Joe Leonard 24 1 13 300 30 Bill Simpson 22 10 19 DNQ 20 19 14 7 6 DNQ 19 21 295 31 Ralph Liguori DNQ 13 5 2 DNQ 15 260 32 Bill Vukovich II DNS 20 DNP 23 13 12 DNQ 3 10 200 33 Max Dudley 8 22 9 DNQ 10 DNQ 195 34 Bruce Jacobi 19 9 DNQ 20 20 4 15 DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ 180 35 Tom Bigelow Wth DNQ 17 DNQ 7 13 7 DNQ 6 17 17 DNQ 180 36 Bob Harkey 12 16 17 6 13 9 DNQ DNQ 130 37 Merle Bettenhausen  R  8 7 110 38 Dee Jones DNQ 8 DNQ 100 39 Karl Busson  R  9 11 DNS 18 22 23 DNS DNQ DNQ DNQ 14 15 100 40 Bud Tingelstad Wth 25 24 16 DNQ 10 18 90 41 Bruce Walkup 16 29 21 16 DNS 13 26 23 16 14 6 14 DNQ DNQ DNQ 80 42 Jimmy Caruthers  R  6 DNP 80 43 Jerry Karl 12 24 13 Wth DNQ 11 DNQ 12 25 DNQ 65 44 Ludwig Heimrath Sr. 23 14 23 DNQ 12 10 60 45 Ronnie Bucknum 16 15 DNQ DNP 20 11 60 46 Dick Tobias  R  19 8 50 47 Will Cagle  R  21 DNQ 9 DNQ DNQ 40 48 Arnie Knepper DNQ 15 11 18 22 DNQ DNQ DNQ 40 49 Johnny Parsons DNQ 16 12 17 18 DNQ DNQ 10 50 Johnny Anderson 20 12 10 - Mark Donohue 25 2 2 30 0 - John Cannon 11 DNQ 4 DNQ 0 - Donnie Allison  R  4 0 - Peter Revson 22 5 0 - LeeRoy Yarbrough 19 8 0 - Jack Eiteljorg 10 DNQ 0 - Ron Grable  R  11 0 - Kevin Bartlett 12 DNQ 16 26 0 - Ned Spath 14 17 13 DNQ 0 - Larry Cannon  R  DNQ DNQ Wth 18 13 DNQ DNQ 16 DNQ 0 - Jack Brabham 13 DNQ 0 - Darrell Dockery  R  15 23 14 DNQ 23 23 DNQ DNQ 0 - Al Loquasto 24 DNQ DNQ 14 23 0 - John Martin  R  15 DNQ 0 - Al Miller Wth 15 0 - Bill Puterbaugh DNQ DNS DNQ DNQ 16 17 0 - Sonny Ates Wth 16 0 - Salt Walther  R  DNS 18 0 - Jerry Poland  R  DNQ 18 DNQ 0 - Crockey Peterson  R  19 20 DNQ 0 - Scooter Patrick  R  19 0 - George Follmer 31 21 20 0 - Bud Morley Wth 21 DNQ 0 - Nick Dioguardi  R  21 0 - Gig Stephens 22 26 0 - Bob DeJong  R  DNQ DNQ 22 DNQ DNQ 0 - Don Brown  R  24 DNQ 0 - Jim Hurtubise DNQ 32 0 - Ron Burke DNQ DNQ DNQ DNS 0 - Ed Marshall DNQ DNS 0 - Leigh Earnshaw DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ 0 - Jigger Sirois DNQ DNQ 0 - Keith Rachwitz DNQ DNQ 0 - Lee Kunzman Wth DNQ 0 - Denny Zimmerman DNQ DNQ 0 - Rollie Beale DNQ DNQ 0 - Jim Reynard DNQ DNQ 0 - Bob Gregg DNQ 0 - Tony Adamowicz DNQ 0 - Sam Posey DNQ 0 - Charlie Glotzbach Wth 0 - Chris Amon Wth 0 - Denny Hulme Wth 0 - Carlos Pairetti Wth 0 - Bob Veith Wth 0 - Les Scott DNQ 0 - Gary Ponzini DNQ 0 - Bob Allen DNQ 0 - Tom Sneva DNQ 0 - Dave Strickland DNQ 0 Pos Driver PHX1 SON TRE1 INDY MIL1 LAN CDR MIS IRP SPR MIL2 ONT DQSF ISF SED TRE2 SAC PHX2 Pts

Color Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green 4th & 5th place Light Blue 6th-10th place Dark Blue Finished (Outside Top 10) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Brown Withdrawn (Wth) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Blank Did not participate (DNP) Not competing In-line notation Bold Pole position Italics Ran fastest race lap * Led most race laps  RY  Rookie of the Year  R  Rookie

• Åberg, Andreas. "USAC National Championship 1970". Driver Database. Archived from the original on March 25, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2009.
• "1970 USAC National Championship Trail". ChampCarStats.com. Archived from the original on November 22, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2009.
• Harms, Phil. "1970 Championship Driver Summary" (PDF). Motorsport.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 10, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2011.
• http://media.indycar.com/pdf/2011/IICS_2011_Historical_Record_Book_INT6.pdf Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine (p. 232-237)
• https://www.oldracingcars.com/indy/results/1970/indianapolis500/ Retrieved July 30, 2025
• https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/database/championships/1970-usac-national-championship/ Retrieved July 30, 2025
• https://www.oldracingcars.com/indy/results/1970/indianapolis500/ Retrieved July 30, 2025
• http://www.ultimateracinghistory.com/racelist.php?year=1970 Retrieved July 30, 2025

• 1970 Indianapolis 500