"Big Mo" Wins Pole Position for Hollywood Rio 400

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"Big Mo" Wins Pole Position for Hollywood Rio 400
©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc.
Banner Day for PacWest and sponsor Hollywood
mo cashes in Giving his team and event sponsor Hollywood a banner day, Mauricio Gugelmin, the man known as "Big Mo," captured the first pole position of his four-year CART career today, qualifying his Hollywood Reynard/Mercedes-Benz fastest at the 1.864-mile Emerson Fittipaldi Speedway in Rio de Janeiro.
His performance marked second consecutive pole for the IC108D engine and gave Mercedes-Benz a one-point lead in the PPG CART World Series manufacturers points standings.
Gugelmin could not have chosen a better event for his breakthrough, enjoying support from both his fellow Brazilians and his sponsor, Hollywood, which also sponsors the race.
The 34-year-old Brazilian and PacWest Racing Group teammate Mark Blundell switched from Ford-Cosworth to Mercedes-Benz engines for 1997. Prior to the change at the end of last season, Gugelmin posted four top-five performances, including podium finishes at both of last year's 500-mile races (Marlboro 500 and U.S. 500).
Big Mo qualified second for this year's PPG Cup season opener in Miami and finished sixth. In Australia, he qualified eighth and ran near the front for most of the day, but he finished 17th following a spin while dicing with Jimmy Vasser for second place. In Long Beach, Calif., he matched his career-best as a CART driver, giving Mercedes its third consecutive second place finish of the season. At Nazareth (Pa.) Speedway, he qualified fifth and finished ninth.
A former Formula One driver and the 1985 British Formula 3 champion, Gugelmin resides in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is married to Stella, and has twin sons, Bernardo and Giuliano.
It's amazing how close the competition is, especially on some race teams. Team Rahal pilots Bobby Rahal and Bryan Herta, driving what one could safely assume are identically prepared Reynard-Ford-Goodyear cars, achieved both the good and unusual Saturday afternoon. They qualified third and fourth to own the second row I at exactly the same time and speed — 39.337 seconds and 170.587 miles per hour. The tie was broken in favor of Bobby Rahal, as he had a faster first qualifying lap.
Engine misfire Italian qualifying ace Alex Zanardi, who won a record six consecutive poles over the last four races of 1996 and the first two this season (Miami and Australia), is on the down side of that streak at present. After qualifying for the front row in 11 consecutive races, Zanardi was 21st at Nazareth and pulled in after a warm-up lap here with an engine misfire. Although he would ordinarily be able to get back in qualifying, take a one lap penalty and have just one lap to qualify instead of two, the allotted time for qualifying expired and he will start last in the field with no qualifying time.
It was a tough day In qualifying for Michel Jourdain, Jr., who spun and lightly hit the wall, and Juan Fangio who's engine quit. Jourdain starts just in front of Fangio, followed by Zanardi, at the back of the pack according to their positions in the qualifying order.
An interview with polesitter Mauricio Gugelmin will follow shortly on SpeedCenter.
Protions from CART News Service


		JUST RELEASED! — The Official Directory for CART Racing

		"Big Mo" Wins Pole Position for Hollywood Rio 400 ©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc. Banner Day for PacWest and sponsor Hollywood Giving his team and event sponsor Hollywood a banner day, Mauricio Gugelmin, the man known as "Big Mo," captured the first pole position of his four-year CART career today, qualifying his Hollywood Reynard/Mercedes-Benz fastest at the 1.864-mile Emerson Fittipaldi Speedway in Rio de Janeiro. His performance marked second consecutive pole for the IC108D engine and gave Mercedes-Benz a one-point lead in the PPG CART World Series manufacturers points standings. Gugelmin could not have chosen a better event for his breakthrough, enjoying support from both his fellow Brazilians and his sponsor, Hollywood, which also sponsors the race. The 34-year-old Brazilian and PacWest Racing Group teammate Mark Blundell switched from Ford-Cosworth to Mercedes-Benz engines for 1997. Prior to the change at the end of last season, Gugelmin posted four top-five performances, including podium finishes at both of last year's 500-mile races (Marlboro 500 and U.S. 500). Big Mo qualified second for this year's PPG Cup season opener in Miami and finished sixth. In Australia, he qualified eighth and ran near the front for most of the day, but he finished 17th following a spin while dicing with Jimmy Vasser for second place. In Long Beach, Calif., he matched his career-best as a CART driver, giving Mercedes its third consecutive second place finish of the season. At Nazareth (Pa.) Speedway, he qualified fifth and finished ninth. A former Formula One driver and the 1985 British Formula 3 champion, Gugelmin resides in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is married to Stella, and has twin sons, Bernardo and Giuliano. It's amazing how close the competition is, especially on some race teams. Team Rahal pilots Bobby Rahal and Bryan Herta, driving what one could safely assume are identically prepared Reynard-Ford-Goodyear cars, achieved both the good and unusual Saturday afternoon. They qualified third and fourth to own the second row I at exactly the same time and speed — 39.337 seconds and 170.587 miles per hour. The tie was broken in favor of Bobby Rahal, as he had a faster first qualifying lap. Engine misfire Italian qualifying ace Alex Zanardi, who won a record six consecutive poles over the last four races of 1996 and the first two this season (Miami and Australia), is on the down side of that streak at present. After qualifying for the front row in 11 consecutive races, Zanardi was 21st at Nazareth and pulled in after a warm-up lap here with an engine misfire. Although he would ordinarily be able to get back in qualifying, take a one lap penalty and have just one lap to qualify instead of two, the allotted time for qualifying expired and he will start last in the field with no qualifying time. It was a tough day In qualifying for Michel Jourdain, Jr., who spun and lightly hit the wall, and Juan Fangio who's engine quit. Jourdain starts just in front of Fangio, followed by Zanardi, at the back of the pack according to their positions in the qualifying order. An interview with polesitter Mauricio Gugelmin will follow shortly on SpeedCenter. Protions from CART News Service