Herta Remains Quickest At Mid-Ohio Tests

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Herta Remains Quickest At Mid-Ohio Tests
©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc.
Team Rahal looking for PPG championship points in Portland
Bryan Herta continued atop the speed charts Wednesday as a two-day Championship Auto Racing Teams open test concluded at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
Late in the afternoon, Herta (Shell Reynard Ford) circled the 2.25-mile, 13-turn permanent road course at an average speed of 123.568 mph. That was well above the track record of 122.100 mph set by Alex Zanardi during qualifying for the 1996 Miller 200.
Herta's mark will not stand as a track standard, which must be achieved in either qualifying or race conditions. But it will give him a lift as the road course portion of the PPG CART World Series continues June 22, with the Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200 Presented by Texaco/Havoline at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway.
"It makes you feel better," Herta said. "It gives you confidence, because you know they [Portland and Mid-Ohio] are similar-type racetracks.
"I certainly don't expect to go out there and have things be easy just because we had a good test here. There's still a lot of work to be done, but it was a good team effort."
Scott Pruett (Brahma Reynard Ford) was second quickest for the two days, at 121.953 mph. He recorded his best speed of the two days in the Wednesday morning session.
"You're never completely pleased unless you're first," Pruett said. "But overall, we're pretty pleased with the results. We haven't done a lot of testing here, and Mid-Ohio is so unique because of the elevation changes and the off-camber corners. It was a good couple of days for us."
Herta also had the third-fastest time of the two-day session while testing teammate Bobby Rahal's Miller Lite Reynard Ford, at 121.717 mph. Rounding out the top five were Mauricio Gugelmin (Hollywood PacWest Mercedes) at 121.587 mph and Gil de Ferran (Valvoline/Cummins Special Reynard Honda) at 121.509 mph. All five of the top times were recorded Wednesday, with Gugelmin's and de Ferran's coming in the afternoon.
Christian Fittipaldi (Kmart/Budweiser Swift Ford) spent his second day in the car since sustaining a broken leg at the Apr. 6 Sunbelt IndyCarnival Australia. He completed 59 laps Tuesday and another 48 Wednesday and was 13th fastest over the two-day session, at 118.990 mph.
"This morning, my pain wasn't any worse than it was before I first drove the car on Tuesday," Fittipaldi said. "I'm very happy and surprised about that. I'll go to the doctors in a few days to evaluate my leg after I finish testing. It's great to drive again."
A total of 19 drivers participated in the two-day session. The PPG CART World Series makes its annual appearance at Mid-Ohio Aug. 10 for the Miller 200.
Source: CART News Service


		JUST RELEASED! — The Official Directory for CART Racing

		Herta Remains Quickest At Mid-Ohio Tests ©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc. Team Rahal looking for PPG championship points in Portland Bryan Herta continued atop the speed charts Wednesday as a two-day Championship Auto Racing Teams open test concluded at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Late in the afternoon, Herta (Shell Reynard Ford) circled the 2.25-mile, 13-turn permanent road course at an average speed of 123.568 mph. That was well above the track record of 122.100 mph set by Alex Zanardi during qualifying for the 1996 Miller 200. Herta's mark will not stand as a track standard, which must be achieved in either qualifying or race conditions. But it will give him a lift as the road course portion of the PPG CART World Series continues June 22, with the Budweiser/G.I. Joe's 200 Presented by Texaco/Havoline at Portland (Ore.) International Raceway. "It makes you feel better," Herta said. "It gives you confidence, because you know they [Portland and Mid-Ohio] are similar-type racetracks. "I certainly don't expect to go out there and have things be easy just because we had a good test here. There's still a lot of work to be done, but it was a good team effort." Scott Pruett (Brahma Reynard Ford) was second quickest for the two days, at 121.953 mph. He recorded his best speed of the two days in the Wednesday morning session. "You're never completely pleased unless you're first," Pruett said. "But overall, we're pretty pleased with the results. We haven't done a lot of testing here, and Mid-Ohio is so unique because of the elevation changes and the off-camber corners. It was a good couple of days for us." Herta also had the third-fastest time of the two-day session while testing teammate Bobby Rahal's Miller Lite Reynard Ford, at 121.717 mph. Rounding out the top five were Mauricio Gugelmin (Hollywood PacWest Mercedes) at 121.587 mph and Gil de Ferran (Valvoline/Cummins Special Reynard Honda) at 121.509 mph. All five of the top times were recorded Wednesday, with Gugelmin's and de Ferran's coming in the afternoon. Christian Fittipaldi (Kmart/Budweiser Swift Ford) spent his second day in the car since sustaining a broken leg at the Apr. 6 Sunbelt IndyCarnival Australia. He completed 59 laps Tuesday and another 48 Wednesday and was 13th fastest over the two-day session, at 118.990 mph. "This morning, my pain wasn't any worse than it was before I first drove the car on Tuesday," Fittipaldi said. "I'm very happy and surprised about that. I'll go to the doctors in a few days to evaluate my leg after I finish testing. It's great to drive again." A total of 19 drivers participated in the two-day session. The PPG CART World Series makes its annual appearance at Mid-Ohio Aug. 10 for the Miller 200. Source: CART News Service