©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc.
Riding the momentum of his first 1997 PPG Cup win last Sunday at Laguna Seca, Jimmy Vasser topped a field of 10 drivers in Wednesday testing at California Speedway with a lap at an average speed of 232 mph in his Target Reynard Honda HRR.
Vasser has been the only driver to break the 230 mph barrier in testing this week as several teams have converged on the new Fontana California facility for final testing prior to the Marlboro 500 Presented by Toyota, Sunday, September 28 (Same day coverage on ESPN at 8:00 p.m. ET).
The 10 drivers testing Wednesday completed over 1,600 miles on the two-mile superspeedway as temperatures dropped below the 100-degree mark for the first time this week. Wednesday's activity was conducted in "only" 93-degree heat while track temperature reached a high of 146 degrees.
Vasser, who recorded a total of 110 laps, won the Inaugural U.S. 500 at Michigan Speedway last year and later in 1996 captured the pole for the Marlboro 500 at the same track. California Speedway is modeled after the Michigan facility.
Team Penske's Paul Tracy set the day's second fastest lap at a 228-mph average speed while his teammate Al Unser Jr. clocked in at 226 mph. Both drive Penske Mercedes-Benz race cars.
Parker Johnstone (KOOL Reynard Honda HRR) joined the Penske team for a second day of testing at Fontana and posted a top Wednesday speed of 227 mph. He ran 100 laps on the day.
Toyota had all four of its teams testing, with All American Racers drivers PJ Jones and Juan Fangio II joining Arciero-Wells Racing drivers Max Papis and Hiro Matsushita. The Arciero-Wells team has been at California Speedway since Monday.
Papis was the fastest of the Toyota entries with a lap at 221 mph in his MCI Reynard Toyota. Fangio (Castrol Jockey Reynard Toyota) was next fastest at 219 mph while Jones turned a lap at 216 mph in his identical race car. Matsushita (Panasonic/Duskin Reynard Toyota) turned a 217-mph lap.
The day's other testers include Richie Hearn (Ralph's/Food 4 Less Lola Ford Cosworth) and Michel Jourdain (Herdez/Viva Mexico Reynard Ford Cosworth). Hearn's best was a 222 mph lap while Jourdain managed a 216 mph speed only to have his engine blow a few laps into their run. He and the Payton/Coyne Racing team are done for the week.
Source: CART News Service