 Buhl began the 1996 races of the 1996-1997 season but left for the powerhouse Team Menard in 1997, leaving Beck to only field an entry for Dennis Vitolo in the Indy 500.The team suffered from severely underpowered Infiniti engines and had to controversially rely on a guaranteed starting position from the "25 and 8 rule" based on their points from the 1996 season in order to make the race.Vitolo finished 15th.