For a huge number of Indy car racing fans, October 31, 1999,was the day the music died. On that blackest of Halloweens, the sport lost itsbrightest young star: Greg Moore. No one person was capable of saving Indy carracing from destroying itself, but if anyone stood a chance, it was Moore. Hewas just twenty-four years old when he died, and already he had captivated alegion of fans and conquered the world-class drivers he fought against on thetrack in the CART series.
Moore ultimately didn’t factor in the 1999 CART championshipbattle that ended in a points tie between Franchitti and brashtwenty-three-year-old rookie Juan Pablo Montoya after a modern-era recordtwenty races. But that remarkable title clash—and its tragic conclusion—wasjust one of many storylines during what was arguably the most compelling singleseason of competition in the one-hundred-year history of American open-wheelchampionship racing.
Class of ’99 recounts the 1999 CART season indetail, combining contemporary reporting and new interviews conducted by authorJohn Oreovicz with many of the key players to bring the year’s personalitiesand storylines to life with nuance, depth, and reflection.
