Cogan made his Indycar debut at the
1981 Indianapolis 500, driving the No. 32 Sugaripe Prunes
Phoenix PR-01-
Cosworth DFX for
Jerry O'Connell Racing, as part of the
USAC Gold Crown Championship. Cogan qualified in 12th place and finished the race in fourth place with 197 laps completed. Despite this Cogan lost the
Rookie of the Year Award to
Josele Garza. Cogan then competed in the rival
CART/PPG World Series for O'Connell. In his debut, the
Gould Rex Mays Classic at the
Milwaukee Mile, Cogan qualified in seventh place and finished in second. After the race, he was ranked fifth in points. Cogan participated in four more races that season with his best finish coming at the
Los Angeles Times 500 at
Riverside International Raceway. Cogan finished his first CART season 23rd in points. In
1982, Cogan joined
Team Penske to drive the No. 4
Norton Spirit Penske PC-10-
Cosworth DFX. At the season-opening
Kraco Car Stereos 150 at
Phoenix International Raceway, he qualified and finished in third place. The remainder of his season was inconsistent, highlighted by a second-place finish at the
Domino's Pizza Pocono 500 at
Pocono International Raceway to teammate
Rick Mears. Cogan also had two pole positions at the
Budweiser Cleveland 500 at
Burke Lakefront Airport and the
AirCal 500 at
Riverside International Raceway. He finished the season sixth in points while Mears won the championship. Penske released Cogan at the end of the season.
1982 Indianapolis 500 controversy During qualifying, Cogan set a new one-lap track record of and a record four-lap average of . He was beaten only by his teammate, Mears. Cogan started from the middle of the front row, next to pole-sitter Mears, and
A. J. Foyt. As the field approached the start-finish line to start the race, Cogan suddenly swerved right, touching and bouncing off Foyt's car, and directly into the path of and collecting
Mario Andretti. The cars of
Dale Whittington and
Roger Mears, deeper in the field, were also damaged due to the field checking up.
Bobby Rahal also reported getting hit from behind, but was undamaged. The race was immediately red-flagged. Cogan's shocking accident took out four cars, including himself and Andretti. Foyt's team was able to make repairs and pushed his car out for the restart attempt. Meanwhile, Andretti and Foyt were furious and outspoken about their displeasure with Cogan. Andretti shunned Cogan's attempts to explain himself with a light shove. Andretti on live radio and television "This is what happens when you have children doing a man's job up front." Back in the garage area, Andretti complained about Cogan's abilities, claiming that Cogan was "looking for trouble", that he "couldn't handle the responsibilities of the front row" and that the
Penske car he was driving was "too good for him". of the crash and of Cogan that "It was a stupid deal. The guy had his head up his ass."
Gordon Johncock,
Johnny Rutherford Cogan nearly had the dubious distinction of taking out two of the most famous American auto racing legends (
Foyt and
Andretti) in one move in the biggest race of the season. The incident also further rehashed a standing feud between
Team Penske and
Patrick Racing. A year earlier, Penske and Patrick were the key fixtures in the controversial
1981 race. In a post-wreck interview, Penske stood behind Cogan, although he also refused to confirm nor deny the broken CV-joint believed to be responsible. As a result, Cogan faced a firestorm of controversy that impacted the remainder of his career. Cogan never managed to win a race in 1982, and was possibly fired by
Roger Penske because of it and replaced by
Al Unser in
1983. The accident was never explained by the Penske team, however, several experts had differing opinions.
Rodger Ward, working for the
IMS Radio Network immediately believed the rear brakes locked up. It was a common practice for drivers in the turbocharged era to "ride the brakes" during warm up laps in order to engage the turbocharger. Others theorized it may have happened due to a broken
CV joint. Some feel that
Sam Posey on ABC-TV inadvertently may have added to the controversy when he proclaimed "absolutely no idea" to the question of how it could have happened, and saying "it was as if he turned the wheel intentionally." The injuries ended Cogan's season and he finished 24th in points. In
1985, Cogan would begin to drive for
Kraco Racing in the No. 18
Kraco Car Stereo/
Wolff Systems March 85C-
Cosworth DFX. The season had its ups and downs such as Cogan nearly failing to qualify for the
Indianapolis 500, eventually starting in 32nd place and finishing 11th. Cogan would also get a fourth-place finish at the
Detroit News 200 at
Michigan International Speedway and a 5th-place finish at the
Stroh's/G.I. Joe's 200 at
Portland International Raceway to get a 14th-place finish in points. For
1986, Cogan joined
Patrick Racing to drive the No. 7
7-Eleven March 86C-
Cosworth DFX. At the season opening
Dana 200 for Special Olympics at
Phoenix International Raceway Cogan scored his first Indycar win, leading 2nd place
Tom Sneva by a lap. It was also the first time Cogan led the CART standings in his career. With 13 laps to go in the
Indianapolis 500, Cogan made a bold move to pass
Rick Mears and
Bobby Rahal in less than a lap when both were held up by the slower car of
Randy Lanier. Despite his car conspicuously oversteering in the turns, Cogan pulled away to a 3-second lead before a caution came out on lap 195 for a crash by
Arie Luyendyk in turn four. Cogan did not get a good restart on lap 198 and was passed by Rahal, eventually finishing in second place. Cogan still led the standings after Indianapolis but suffered retirements in seven of the fourteen remaining races and fell to sixth in the championship. For
1987, Cogan would return with Patrick, making it the first team Cogan drove for in consecutive years, driving the No. 7
Marlboro March 87C-
Ilmor-
Chevrolet Indy V8 265A. The season would turn out to be a disappointment as Cogan got a best finish of 5th at the
Escort Radar Warning 200 at
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and the
Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix at
Nazareth Speedway to get a 16th-place finish in points. In
1988, Cogan would begin to drive for
Machinists Union Racing in the No. 11
Schaefer Beer/
Playboy Fashions March 88C-
Cosworth DFX (although an 87C was used at the
Miller High Life 200 at the
Milwaukee Mile). The season started off well as Cogan got a 3rd-place finish at the
Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on the
Streets of Long Beach. After seven rounds, Cogan was ranked 11th in points when he was injured while competing at the
Molson Indy Toronto at
Exhibition Place. Cogan would miss four races but would still finish 13th in points on the strength of a fourth-place finish at the
Nissan Indy Challenge at
Tamiami Park. For
1989, Cogan returned with the Machinists Union driving the No. 11
Schaefer Beer/
Playboy Fashions March 88C-
Cosworth DFX. Another frustrating season saw Cogan finish 14th in points with a best finish of 8th at the
Champion Spark Plug 300K at
Laguna Seca Raceway. The only 'highlight' of Cogan's season was a major crash at the
Indianapolis 500. At the end of the third lap, Cogan spun in turn four and hit the entrance to the pit lane. The car broke in half, rebounded and slammed into the end of the pit wall before finally sliding to a stop on its side in the pit lane. To everyone's surprise, Cogan immediately climbed from his destroyed car unharmed. In
1990, Cogan could only get a drive for
Indianapolis for
Vince Granatelli Racing in the No. 11
Tuneup Masters Penske PC18-
Buick V6. In the race, Cogan qualified in 15th place and finished in 9th place. Cogan would later get a second race at the
Marlboro 500 at
Michigan International Speedway for Stoops Racing in the No. 17
Conseco Lola T9000-
Cosworth DFS starting 13th and finishing 20th. Cogan would finish out the season 23rd in points. In
1991, Cogan would join
Team Menard to drive the No. 9
Glidden/
Menards Lola T9100-
Buick V6 at the
Indianapolis 500. During qualifying, Cogan was unable to make an attempt due to rain and would have to wait for the second day. Cogan would easily qualify for the race in 16th place with a speed that would have placed him easily in the top ten along with other drivers, such as teammate
Gary Bettenhausen,
Arie Luyendyk,
Emerson Fittipaldi and
Stan Fox. In the race Cogan was involved in a crash with
Roberto Guerrero on lap 25. Cogan suffered serious injuries with his right femur broken near the hip in four lengthwise pieces, requiring seven and a half hours of surgery. He also suffered a broken right forearm and shoulder. Original television footage was inconclusive, and Cogan firmly assessed the blame on Guerrero, claiming that Guerrero cut down on him. An amateur home video shot from the grandstands surfaced, however, which showed that Cogan may have moved up into Guerrero. At the very least, the video showed that it may have been a simple racing accident, although Cogan still holds Guerrero responsible. As a result of the crash Cogan missed the remainder of the year (Menard wasn't going to do anymore races) and
the next year. Cogan scored no points during the season. For
1993, Cogan would drive for
Galles-Kraco Racing in the No. 11
Conseco Lola T9300-
Ilmor-
Chevrolet Indy V8 265A in a part-time schedule. At Cogan's debut for the year, the
Indianapolis 500 Cogan was on the bubble on Bump Day and was nearly bumped by
Bobby Rahal. Rahal was not successful and Cogan started in 14th place and would lead for four laps during pit stops, eventually finishing in 14th place. Cogan would drive in three more races for Galles-Kraco, getting a best finish of 13th at the
Budweiser Grand Prix of Cleveland at
Burke Lakefront Airport. Cogan would again score no points towards the championship. Cogan would retire from racing at the end of 1993 with 6th place in 1982 and 1986 being his best finish in the CART standings and his win at Phoenix in 1986 being his only win. ==Personal life==