Race No. 17
The California 500
Presented by Toyota
The California Speedway — Fontana, California
September 26-28, 1997
Race Results
| pos | car | driver | laps | lag | mph | km/h | status |
| 1 | 18 | Mark Blundell | 250 | 166.575 | 268.019 | running | |
| 2 | 1 | Jimmy Vasser | 250 | 0.847 | 166.562 | 267.999 | running |
| 3 | 32 | Adrian Fernandez | 249 | 1 lap | 165.619 | 266.481 | running |
| 4 | 17 | Mauricio Gugelmin | 249 | 1 lap | 165.564 | 266.392 | running |
| 5 | 7 | Bobby Rahal | 249 | 1 lap | 165.554 | 266.376 | running |
| 6 | 5 | Gil de Ferran | 249 | 1 lap | 165.442 | 266.196 | running |
| 7 | 20 | Scott Pruett | 248 | 2 laps | 164.875 | 265.284 | running |
| 8 | 9 | Robbie Gordon | 247 | 3 laps | 164.362 | 264.458 | running |
| 9 | 11 | Christian Fittipaldi | 247 | 3 laps | 164.008 | 263.889 | running |
| 10 | 98 | PJ Jones | 244 | 6 laps | 162.356 | 261.231 | running |
| 11 | 27 | Parker Johnstone | 243 | 7 laps | 161.801 | 260.338 | running |
| 12 | 25 | Max Papis | 242 | 8 laps | 160.923 | 258.925 | running |
| 13 | 99 | Greg Moore | 240 | 10 laps | 163.938 | 263.776 | engine |
| 14 | 77 | Gualter Salles | 238 | 12 laps | 158.267 | 254.652 | running |
| 15 | 21 | Richie Hearn | 238 | 12 laps | 158.232 | 254.595 | running |
| 16 | 34 | Dennis Vitolo | 231 | 19 laps | 153.816 | 247.490 | running |
| 17 | 31 | Andre Ribeiro | 207 | 43 laps | 162.058 | 260.751 | contact |
| 18 | 19 | Michel Jourdain | 195 | 55 laps | 155.518 | 250.228 | handling |
| 19 | 6 | Michael Andretti | 104 | 146 laps | 134.656 | 216.662 | overheating |
| 20 | 40 | Raul Boesel | 83 | 167 laps | 116.744 | 187.841 | electrical |
| 21 | 8 | Bryan Herta | 80 | 170 laps | 116.197 | 186.961 | engine |
| 22 | 2 | Al Unser J. | 44 | 206 laps | 101.721 | 163.669 | exhaust |
| 23 | 24 | Hiro Matsushita | 40 | 210 laps | 96.238 | 154.847 | debris |
| 24 | 44 | Arie Lyendyk | 39 | 211 laps | 103.704 | 166.860 | contact |
| 25 | 64 | Arnd Meier | 38 | 212 laps | 101.086 | 162.647 | contact |
| 26 | 2 | Paul Tracy | 12 | 238 laps | 75.940 | 122.187 | contact |
| 27 | 36 | Juan Manuel Fangio II | 0 | 250 laps | 0.000 | 0.000 | engine |
Race Distance: 250 laps @ 2.029 miles = 507.25 miles