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©1999 SpeedCenter Publishing The Championship Auto Racing Teams team owners voted unanimously last week to retire car number "99" as a tribute to driver Greg Moore, who lost his life in an accident in CART's season finale at California Speedway on Oct. 31. The number "99" joins the number "14" of all-time Champ Car victory leader A.J. Foyt as the only retired numbers in Championship Auto Racing Teams history. Moore was a four-year veteran of the FedEx Championship Series, all with the Player's Forsythe Racing Team. He earned five victories and five pole positions during his career and owns the distinction of being the youngest race winner in CART history following his 1997 victory at The Milwaukee Mile at age 22 years, 1 month and 10 days. He also won the 1998 U.S. 500 Presented by Toyota at Michigan Speedway in a race which featured a Champ Car-record 62 lead changes, and was one of a record 10 race winners during the 1999 FedEx Championship Series campaign, having won the season opener from the pole at Homestead. It is a commonly held misconception that Moore campaigned number "99" in honor of National Hockey League superstar and fellow Canadian Wayne Gretzky. In fact, "99" was significant to Moore because it was the number on his first license issued by the Westwood Karting Association. "Everyone felt that we should retire the number '99' as a mark of respect for a fallen hero of our sport," said CART President and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Craig. "Greg Moore left a permanent impression on the FedEx Championship Series in his all-too-brief tenure with us. It seems only proper that we assure him a permanent legacy by retiring the number which became a symbol for his success." NEWMAN/HAAS, LOLA TEAM UP AGAIN Lola Cars International announced Monday that Newman/Haas Racing will campaign Lola chassis during the 2000 FedEx Championship Series season for drivers Michael Andretti and Christian Fittipaldi. Newman/Haas and Lola won three FedEx Championship Series titles with drivers Mario Andretti (1984), Michael Andretti (1991) and Nigel Mansell (1993) while claiming 51 wins and 60 pole positions from 1983-96. Newman/Haas competed in Swift chassis from 1997-99. "We look forward to working again with Lola Cars International and plan to return both Newman/Haas Racing and Lola to the dominance we previously enjoyed," said Carl A. Haas, who co-owns Newman/Haas Racing with actor Paul Newman. "We were impressed by the competitiveness of the Lola chassis in 1999 and are confident that we can assist in making the Lola a winning chassis in 2000." Said Lola's managing director, David Bowes, "The deal is for the long term, and I have no doubt that this will be a major milestone in Lola's return to winning form in North America." Andretti and Fittipaldi are expected to begin testing the new chassis in mid-December in preparation for the 2000 FedEx Championship Series season. PLAYER'S FORSYTHE TEAM RETURNS TO FORD POWER Player's Forsythe Racing announced Monday that drivers Patrick Carpentier and rookie Alexandre Tagliani will be powered by Ford Cosworth engines during the 2000 FedEx Championship Series season. Player's and Ford Cosworth teamed with driver Jacques Villeneuve to win a FedEx Championship Series title in 1995. The Player's Forsythe team has campaigned with Mercedes-Benz power for the past four FedEx Championship Series seasons, and was an integral contributor to Mercedes' 1997 CART Manufacturer's Championship. "We are very excited about our package for next season and our renewed association with Ford Cosworth certainly serves notice that we will be a team to be reckoned with in the year 2000 and beyond," said Neil Micklewright, vice president of operations for Player's Forsythe Racing. "We know from experience that their race engineers are among the best in the business and they share our vision for the future, which includes many more trips to the Winner's Circle and a shot at the PPG Cup." The new Ford Cosworth XF engine, which will debut in the 2000 FedEx Championship Series season, is two inches shorter and 18 percent lighter than the 1999 version and revs at a range approaching 16,000 revolutions per minute. "The decrease in size and weight will give us more flexibility in our setups," said Carpentier. "I heard Christian [Fittipaldi] and Roberto [Moreno] rave about the new engine when they tested it last August, and I simply can't wait to get in the car and see it for myself." CART CARES HOLIDAY FOOD DRIVE LAUNCHED This week marks the launch of the second annual CART Cares Holiday Food Drive, which is being coordinated by members of the PacWest Racing Group, based in Indianapolis. Contributions of non-perishable food, toiletries and checks or money orders will be accepted at PacWest's race shop until Wednesday, Dec. 15. The drive will culminate on Friday, Dec. 17, when PacWest driver Mauricio Gugelmin will tow Santa Claus' sleigh into Monument Circle in Indianapolis, where all donations will be presented to Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana. Gleaners is a not-for-profit organization which collects and distributes food to over 300 Indiana agencies which feed the hungry. Last year's inaugural CART Cares Holiday Food Drive generated more than 750 gallons of food and $2,000 in cash. Dozens of food items have already arrived at the PacWest shop for this year's drive. "Christmas is a time for giving, and putting this food drive together is the least PacWest Racing and CART can do to support those who are in need, especially at this time of year," said Steve Fusek, PacWest's vice president of business operations. "Last year was a nice starting point, but we know that we can produce better results for the needy as we progress with this year's drive during the next month." Donations may be sent or delivered to the PacWest Racing Group, 4001 Methanol Lane, Indianapolis, IN 46268. Tax deductible cash/check/money order donations should be made payable to "Gleaners Food Bank." PAUL NEWMAN TO HEAD CHARITY EFFORT Actor Paul Newman, co-owner of Newman/Haas Racing, has been designated as the chairman and national spokesman of the Committee to Encourage Corporate Philanthropy, a venture launched last week with the goal of generating at least $15 billion annually in charitable donations from corporate America. Noting that a steady increase in corporate pretax profits has been accompanied by a decline in the percentage of those profits which are donated to charity, Newman called for a reversal of the trend. "We're in the '90s; it's flush times," Newman said. "The country is waiting; it's scanning the horizon hoping for some institution to distinguish itself ... to be the standard bearer for social and civic responsibility. What an opportunity! And you only have to reach out and grab it." Already, the committee includes current and former CEOs from such companies as ABC/Capital Cities, Bloomberg, Chase Manhattan Bank, Estee Lauder, Fannie Mae, Goldman Sachs Group, GE Capital, Hallmark Cards, Johnson & Johnson, Kmart, Lucent Technologies, Sara Lee and Xerox. More than two dozen CEOs have already joined the committee and another 25 are expected to join soon. Newman has long been active in fund raising for charity and regularly donates all profits from his Newman's Own food products company to charitable causes. CART CHARITIES PREPARING FOR INAUGURAL HOLIDAY SEASON At the beginning of the 1999 CART FedEx Championship Series season, CART reorganized its charitable activities with the creation of CART Charities. For 1999, CART designated The Buoniconti Fund as its lead charity and the Miami-based organization, which seeks a cure for paralysis, will receive 90 percent of the net proceeds of 1999 donations to CART Charities. The remaining 10 percent will be allocated equally to the Championship Auto Racing Auxiliary (CARA) and to a capital fund within CART Charities. CART is encouraging its fans to help spread the holiday spirit and benefit CART Charities by displaying CART Holiday stickers on their packages and mail. A total of 21 CART Holiday stickers are available by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope to CART Charities, 755 W. Big Beaver Road, Suite 800, Troy, MI 48084. Any donor who gives $100 or more will receive a special CART Charities collector pin, while supplies last. All contributions are tax deductible. CONGRATULATIONS ... To Della Penna Motorsports driver Richie Hearn and longtime girlfriend Brenda Nields, who were married on Saturday in southern California. Attendees from the CART community included drivers Jimmy Vasser and Bryan Herta; Steve Horne, president of Forsythe Championship Racing, and his wife, Christine; and Della Penna Motorsports team owner John Della Penna. Motley Crue lead singer Vince Neil sang "Without You" for the couple's first dance as man and wife. The newlyweds also held a money dance, proceeds of which will benefit the Greg Moore Memorial Fund. CORRECTION The 2000 season schedule released by CART on Nov. 5 contained an error in the title of the September 10 event at Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey, Calif. The correct title is the Honda Grand Prix of Monterey Featuring the Shell 300. CART apologizes for the error.
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