"Firsts" are Foremost at Motorola 300

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"Firsts" are Foremost at Motorola 300
©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc.
One third into the season, teams focus on new venue in Illinois
With Memorial Day the centerpiece of the firstholiday of the summer, it is appropriate that other firsts abound as thePPG CART World Series prepares for the Motorola 300 on Saturday, May 24at Gateway International Raceway in Madison,IL.
The Motorola 300 (ABC-TV live, 1:00 pm ET) is the first event of what istraditionally the biggest racing weekend of the year. It is the first atthe new Gateway venue, a 1.25 mile oval located just across the riverfrom St. Louis. It is the first time a PPG CART World Series event hasbeen held on a Saturday since October 4, 1986, at Elkhart Lake,Wisconsin, and it is the first Championship car race in Illinois sinceAl Unser, Sr. won on a dirt oval at DuQuoin on September 7, 1970.
And for the first time in 21 races, a non-American, Canadian Paul Tracy,enters the event atop the PPG Cup standings. He vaulted into that loftyposition by winning the Hollywood Rio 400 on May 11 in Rio de Janeiro,Brazil. It is the first time that Tracy (Marlboro Team Penske Mercedes)has led the standings since April 2, 1995, and, with 65 PPG Cup points,he has already exceeded his total from the entire 1996 season (60.)
Tracy, who had earlier won the Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix Presented byToyota at Nazareth, PA., comes to Gateway attempting to become the firstdriver to win three consecutive PPG CART World Series events sinceMarlboro Team Penske teammate Al Unser, Jr., who turned the most recenttriple in 1994 when he won at Mid-Ohio, New Hampshire, and Vancouver,and went on to win the PPG Cup.
Tracy believes his car is well-suited for a strong performance at St.Louis, given his two previous wins and a second-place finish (atHomestead) on oval circuits this year.
"I've seen a video-tape of the track which acting CART Chief StewardWally Dallenbach took a couple of weeks ago, and it looks a lot likePhoenix International Raceway," Tracy said. "I've done well at Phoenixbefore and we had a good test there in December, so we should be lookinggood for the race. I think we've proven in Miami (Homestead), Nazareth,and Rio that the Marlboro car does well on ovals, so we're hoping forsome good results in St. Louis.
Though Tracy has dominated the oval-track portion of the PPG CART WorldSeries schedule to date, Michael Andretti (Kmart/Texaco/Havoline SwiftFord) hasn't been far behind. He claimed his record 36th PPG CART WorldSeries victory at Homestead, then finished second to Tracy at Nazarethbefore slipping to 21st at Rio. He is fourth in the PPG Cup standingswith 51 points.
Andretti entered the Hollywood Rio 400 with the PPG Cup lead, but nowtrails Tracy, Scott Pruett, and Alex Zanardi in the points race. Pruett(Brahma Reynard Ford) has parlayed four top-five finishes in five racesinto second place, with 61 points. Zanardi (Target Chip Ganassi ReynardHonda) comes off a spectacular drive at Rio which saw him start 26th andfinish fourth, the largest improvement recorded by any driver thisseason. He is third in the championship with 55 points.
Greg Moore (Player's/Indeck Reynard Mercedes) moved from seventh placeto fifth by tying his career-best PPG CART World Series performance witha runner-up effort at Rio. After his runner-up finish at the April 6Sunbelt IndyCarnival Australia, Moore has now finished second in bothevents off the North American continent this season. He brings 44 pointsto Gateway.
Defending PPG Cup champion Jimmy Vasser (Target Reynard Honda) standssixth in the PPG Cup with 33 points, but has been quietly outstandingthis season. He has extended active streaks of 12 straight points-payingfinishes and 22 consecutive race finishes. He and Pruett have completedmore laps than any other PPG CART World Series competitor this year (666of a possible 667.)
Overlooked during Tracy's recent hot streak has been the performance ofhis teammate, Al Unser, Jr. (Marlboro Penske Mercedes), who has finishedseventh of better in each of the past three events and stands seventh inthe standings with 32 points. Likewise, Pruett's success has somewhatobscured a strong showing by Brahma Sports teammate Raul Boesel (BrahmaReynard Ford,) who improved from 18th to a season-best fifth at Rio andhas produced four points paying finishes in a row.
The month of May has been designated in some quarters as the "PacWest700." Hollywood, the title sponsor of the Hollywood Rio 400, is also theprimary sponsor of Mauricio Gugelmin's Hollywood PacWest Mercedes, whileMotorola, title sponsor of the Motorola 300, is the primary sponsor ofMark Blundell's Motorola PacWest Mercedes. Gugelmin made the most of theHollywood connection in Rio by claiming his first career PPG CART WorldSeries pole position. Blundell will look to go his teammate one betterby winning for Motorola at Gateway.
In contrast to PacWest, Team Rahal had a heartbreaking result at Riowhen owner/driver Bobby Rahal (Miller Lite Reynard Ford) ran out of fueljust over a lap from his first PPG CART World Series victory sinceNazareth in 1992. Still, Rahal was dominant as he led 102 of the race's133 laps and settled for 10th place. He and teammate Bryan Herta (ShellReynard Ford,) who finished sixth at Rio and has scored points in 11 ofthe past 12 events, will be looking to build on that momentum atGateway.
Arciero-Wells/MCI Racing also generated some momentum in Brazil asdriver Max Papis (MCI Reynard Toyota) finished 13th, a season-higheffort for the Toyota engine program. P.J. Jones (Castrol-Jockey ReynardToyota) matched his season best with a 16th place finish and ran as highas eighth. Teammate Juan Fangio (Castrol - Jockey Reynard Toyota) willlook to better his season-best finish of 15th at Nazareth.
Gil de Ferran (Valvoline/Cummins Special Reynard Honda) owns threepoints-paying finishes in his past four events, and Parker Johnstone(Kool Reynard Honda) has scored in three out of five. Roberto Moreno(Kmart/Budweiser Swift Ford) enjoyed a career-best start on the outsidepole in his hometown of Rio, but subsequent engine problems relegatedhim to an 18th place finish.
Richie Hearn (Ralph's Food 4 Less Lola Ford) comes to Gateway havingimproved his starting position in all five races this season, includinga season best at Rio. Gaulter Salles (INDUSVAL Reynard Ford) became onlythe second rookie to lead a lap this season when he led lap 52 at Rio.
Patrick Carpentier (Alumax Reynard Mercedes) and Dario Franchitti (HoganRacing Reynard Mercedes) were early exits at Rio. They remain tied forthe Rookie of the Year lead with five points each after going scoreless.
Adrian Fernandez (Tecate/Quaker State Lola Honda) made his best start onan oval circuit this season with a 17th at Rio. Meanwhile, TasmanMotorsports Group teammate and defending Rio 400 champion Andre Ribeiro(LCI/Marlboro Lola Honda) shook off early contact and battled his way toa 16th place finish.
Michel Jourdain Jr. (Herdez/Mexlub/Viva Mexico! Lola Ford) matched hisbest performance of the season with a 17th place finish at Rio. PaulJasper (Hype Lola Ford), a resident of Lake Forest, IL., races for thefirst time in his home state. Hiro Matsushita (Panasonic/Duskin ReynardToyota) posted his best qualifying effort in nine races, starting 22ndat Rio.
Rookie Arnd Meier (J.A.G./Marcelo/Hawaiian Tropic) continues in theProject Indy seat, making back-to-back PPG CART World Series starts forthe first time this season.
Qualifying for the Motorola 300 will air Friday, May 23 at 5pm ET.ESPN's "On the Grid" program will air Saturday, May 24, at 12:30pm ET.The 240 lap, 300 mile Motorola 300 takes the green flag Saturday at1:15pm ET.
The PPG CART World Series continues with the Miller 200, Sunday, June 1at The Milwaukee Mile.
Source: CART News Service


		JUST RELEASED! — The Official Directory for CART Racing

		"Firsts" are Foremost at Motorola 300 ©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc. One third into the season, teams focus on new venue in Illinois With Memorial Day the centerpiece of the firstholiday of the summer, it is appropriate that other firsts abound as thePPG CART World Series prepares for the Motorola 300 on Saturday, May 24at Gateway International Raceway in Madison,IL. The Motorola 300 (ABC-TV live, 1:00 pm ET) is the first event of what istraditionally the biggest racing weekend of the year. It is the first atthe new Gateway venue, a 1.25 mile oval located just across the riverfrom St. Louis. It is the first time a PPG CART World Series event hasbeen held on a Saturday since October 4, 1986, at Elkhart Lake,Wisconsin, and it is the first Championship car race in Illinois sinceAl Unser, Sr. won on a dirt oval at DuQuoin on September 7, 1970. And for the first time in 21 races, a non-American, Canadian Paul Tracy,enters the event atop the PPG Cup standings. He vaulted into that loftyposition by winning the Hollywood Rio 400 on May 11 in Rio de Janeiro,Brazil. It is the first time that Tracy (Marlboro Team Penske Mercedes)has led the standings since April 2, 1995, and, with 65 PPG Cup points,he has already exceeded his total from the entire 1996 season (60.) Tracy, who had earlier won the Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix Presented byToyota at Nazareth, PA., comes to Gateway attempting to become the firstdriver to win three consecutive PPG CART World Series events sinceMarlboro Team Penske teammate Al Unser, Jr., who turned the most recenttriple in 1994 when he won at Mid-Ohio, New Hampshire, and Vancouver,and went on to win the PPG Cup. Tracy believes his car is well-suited for a strong performance at St.Louis, given his two previous wins and a second-place finish (atHomestead) on oval circuits this year. "I've seen a video-tape of the track which acting CART Chief StewardWally Dallenbach took a couple of weeks ago, and it looks a lot likePhoenix International Raceway," Tracy said. "I've done well at Phoenixbefore and we had a good test there in December, so we should be lookinggood for the race. I think we've proven in Miami (Homestead), Nazareth,and Rio that the Marlboro car does well on ovals, so we're hoping forsome good results in St. Louis. Though Tracy has dominated the oval-track portion of the PPG CART WorldSeries schedule to date, Michael Andretti (Kmart/Texaco/Havoline SwiftFord) hasn't been far behind. He claimed his record 36th PPG CART WorldSeries victory at Homestead, then finished second to Tracy at Nazarethbefore slipping to 21st at Rio. He is fourth in the PPG Cup standingswith 51 points. Andretti entered the Hollywood Rio 400 with the PPG Cup lead, but nowtrails Tracy, Scott Pruett, and Alex Zanardi in the points race. Pruett(Brahma Reynard Ford) has parlayed four top-five finishes in five racesinto second place, with 61 points. Zanardi (Target Chip Ganassi ReynardHonda) comes off a spectacular drive at Rio which saw him start 26th andfinish fourth, the largest improvement recorded by any driver thisseason. He is third in the championship with 55 points. Greg Moore (Player's/Indeck Reynard Mercedes) moved from seventh placeto fifth by tying his career-best PPG CART World Series performance witha runner-up effort at Rio. After his runner-up finish at the April 6Sunbelt IndyCarnival Australia, Moore has now finished second in bothevents off the North American continent this season. He brings 44 pointsto Gateway. Defending PPG Cup champion Jimmy Vasser (Target Reynard Honda) standssixth in the PPG Cup with 33 points, but has been quietly outstandingthis season. He has extended active streaks of 12 straight points-payingfinishes and 22 consecutive race finishes. He and Pruett have completedmore laps than any other PPG CART World Series competitor this year (666of a possible 667.) Overlooked during Tracy's recent hot streak has been the performance ofhis teammate, Al Unser, Jr. (Marlboro Penske Mercedes), who has finishedseventh of better in each of the past three events and stands seventh inthe standings with 32 points. Likewise, Pruett's success has somewhatobscured a strong showing by Brahma Sports teammate Raul Boesel (BrahmaReynard Ford,) who improved from 18th to a season-best fifth at Rio andhas produced four points paying finishes in a row. The month of May has been designated in some quarters as the "PacWest700." Hollywood, the title sponsor of the Hollywood Rio 400, is also theprimary sponsor of Mauricio Gugelmin's Hollywood PacWest Mercedes, whileMotorola, title sponsor of the Motorola 300, is the primary sponsor ofMark Blundell's Motorola PacWest Mercedes. Gugelmin made the most of theHollywood connection in Rio by claiming his first career PPG CART WorldSeries pole position. Blundell will look to go his teammate one betterby winning for Motorola at Gateway. In contrast to PacWest, Team Rahal had a heartbreaking result at Riowhen owner/driver Bobby Rahal (Miller Lite Reynard Ford) ran out of fueljust over a lap from his first PPG CART World Series victory sinceNazareth in 1992. Still, Rahal was dominant as he led 102 of the race's133 laps and settled for 10th place. He and teammate Bryan Herta (ShellReynard Ford,) who finished sixth at Rio and has scored points in 11 ofthe past 12 events, will be looking to build on that momentum atGateway. Arciero-Wells/MCI Racing also generated some momentum in Brazil asdriver Max Papis (MCI Reynard Toyota) finished 13th, a season-higheffort for the Toyota engine program. P.J. Jones (Castrol-Jockey ReynardToyota) matched his season best with a 16th place finish and ran as highas eighth. Teammate Juan Fangio (Castrol - Jockey Reynard Toyota) willlook to better his season-best finish of 15th at Nazareth. Gil de Ferran (Valvoline/Cummins Special Reynard Honda) owns threepoints-paying finishes in his past four events, and Parker Johnstone(Kool Reynard Honda) has scored in three out of five. Roberto Moreno(Kmart/Budweiser Swift Ford) enjoyed a career-best start on the outsidepole in his hometown of Rio, but subsequent engine problems relegatedhim to an 18th place finish. Richie Hearn (Ralph's Food 4 Less Lola Ford) comes to Gateway havingimproved his starting position in all five races this season, includinga season best at Rio. Gaulter Salles (INDUSVAL Reynard Ford) became onlythe second rookie to lead a lap this season when he led lap 52 at Rio. Patrick Carpentier (Alumax Reynard Mercedes) and Dario Franchitti (HoganRacing Reynard Mercedes) were early exits at Rio. They remain tied forthe Rookie of the Year lead with five points each after going scoreless. Adrian Fernandez (Tecate/Quaker State Lola Honda) made his best start onan oval circuit this season with a 17th at Rio. Meanwhile, TasmanMotorsports Group teammate and defending Rio 400 champion Andre Ribeiro(LCI/Marlboro Lola Honda) shook off early contact and battled his way toa 16th place finish. Michel Jourdain Jr. (Herdez/Mexlub/Viva Mexico! Lola Ford) matched hisbest performance of the season with a 17th place finish at Rio. PaulJasper (Hype Lola Ford), a resident of Lake Forest, IL., races for thefirst time in his home state. Hiro Matsushita (Panasonic/Duskin ReynardToyota) posted his best qualifying effort in nine races, starting 22ndat Rio. Rookie Arnd Meier (J.A.G./Marcelo/Hawaiian Tropic) continues in theProject Indy seat, making back-to-back PPG CART World Series starts forthe first time this season. Qualifying for the Motorola 300 will air Friday, May 23 at 5pm ET.ESPN's "On the Grid" program will air Saturday, May 24, at 12:30pm ET.The 240 lap, 300 mile Motorola 300 takes the green flag Saturday at1:15pm ET. The PPG CART World Series continues with the Miller 200, Sunday, June 1at The Milwaukee Mile. Source: CART News Service