2000 Indianapolis 500 - Legacy

Legacy

After the 2000 CART season, Juan Pablo Montoya signed with Williams, and thus did not return for another attempt at the Indy 500. Later, Montoya switched to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and as of 2012, still has only one career start at the Indianapolis 500. His 100% career win record at the Indy 500 (1 start/1 win) is equaled only by Ray Harroun, winner of the inaugural 500. Though Montoya has never raced in the 500 again, he has raced in the U.S. Grand Prix, Brickyard 400, and Brickyard Grand Prix, all held at IMS.

The 2000 Indy 500 marked a turning point in the ongoing, five-year "split" between IRL and CART. While neither side was prepared to make concessions towards a unification or buyout, it became evident that sponsors in the CART series desired to have their teams participate in the Indianapolis 500 to benefit from the increased exposure. Ganassi's arrival, and subsequent domination of the event led other CART-based teams to follow suit. The following year additional teams (namely Penske and Team Green) returned to Indianapolis as well. By 2004, nearly all of the major teams from CART/Champ Car had either entered singly at Indy, or defected completely to the Indy Racing League. Despite these moves, a formal unification would not take place until 2008.

CART-based Walker Racing also "crossed picket lines" to enter the race, but received little publicity for doing so. The attention for Walker was instead focused on their driver, rookie Sarah Fisher, who would become a popular fixture in the IRL in the years to come.