Race No. 11
Molson Indy
Toronto — Ontario, Canada
July 18 — July 20, 1997
Sunday Quotes from drivers and managers at Toronto: | Target Chip Ganassi Racing Reynard Honda Finished: 7th |
| Photo: Scott Hughes JIMMY VASSER | |
| "I guess this was all we could salvage out of the weekend. We qualified and started on the Firestone primaries, and got way behind. We switched to the option (compound) at the first stop and the car was pretty good after that, but there was just too much ground to make up." | |
 | Forsythe Player's/Indeck Reynard Mercedes-Benz Finished: 23rd |
| GREG MOORE | |
| "It's very frustrating to finish a race that way. Alex (Zanardi) was coming out of the pits on cold tires. I was on his outside and he slid into my rear right tire. That was it for me today." | |
 | Marlboro Penske Mercedes Finished: 10th |
| PAUL TRACY | |
| "We gave everything we had today and were only able to come up with a tenth place finish but it was good for three points and we still maintained our points lead. It was a real struggle for me to keep my motivation since the car was so difficult to drive. We're testing in Elkhart Lake after the U.S. 500 so hopefully we'll learn some more about the car and be able to improve our performance on road courses. We've shown that the Marlboro car has performed better on ovals so hopefully we'll be in good shape in Michigan. We tested well there so that's a good start. All we can do now is keep finishing races and keep giving 110%." | |
 | Kmart/Texaco/Havoline Swift Ford Cosworth XD Finished: 4th |
| MICHAEL ANDRETTI | |
| "I had to pass Dario on the left because he was blocking the track. I lost two positions. Bobby and Dario got together at the apex. The tires went away really quick on the first stint. When the track got better, the situation got better. The Firestone cars took off on the first four laps. I lost first gear during the last yellow because I was trying to clean my tires. They picked up some marbles and I was trying to get them off by burning out. Not having first gear hurt me a little because you use it at the beginning of the front straight. Fourth was good enough to keep us in the points championship but it certainly doesn't give us any breathing room." | |
 | Marlboro Penske Mercedes Finished: 20th |
| AL UNSER, Jr. | |
| "Today just wasn't our day and unfortunately we continued our string of bad luck at Toronto (for the fourth consecutive year). Salles and I got together on lap 28 and it bent my left front tie rod. We ended up three laps down after coming in to fix it (on lap 29) and from that point on all we could do was hope to finish in the points. Many of the guys in front of me ended up finishing the race, so we only wound up in 20th position. We easily could have dropped out of the race after my incident with Salles, but that's one thing great about Marlboro Team Penske--they never give up. We know we've struggled on our road course set-ups, so we also wanted to stay in the race to gain some more knowledge about the car. We did learn some things and that's one thing good that happened today." | |
 | Brahma Sports Team Reynard Ford Finished: 5th |
| SCOTT PRUETT | |
| "Pit strategy was a key. The car was good, the engine was perfect and the Brahma guys did a good job with the stops. We lost a couple of positions on our first pit stop, positions we had gained on the first lap incident. I'm not quite sure how that happened because we had a good stop. Other than that we kept up with the pace and were actually very strong at the end." | |
 | PacWest Motorola Reynard Mercedes Finished: 1st |
| MARK BLUNDELL | |
| "I would say this is one of my best races. When you lead a race from start to finish - when you have that kind of pressure on you, obviously you feel like it's one of your best. The last few races have shown us we have the competitiveness as a team to win. Now that we're winning, we want to win more." | |
 | Ralphs/Food 4 Less Della Penna Racing Lola Ford Finished: 27th |
| RICHIE HEARN | |
| "It's a shame because we were faster than those guys, but faster in the wrong parts of the track. I couldn't get off the comer in the two passing zones, but I was able to cruise by at other parts of the track. I don't know what the problem was, but it was in the engine or transmission I think. With the fast time from this morning's practice, I was pretty optimistic going into this race for a change. This was probably the one time in a long time that the car actually felt semi-drivable. It's too bad it didn't happen when it counts in qualifying. That's the difficulty with this car, there's no rhyme or reason, things just happen because they want to happen." | |
 | Kmart/Budweiser Swift Ford Newman/Haas Racing Finished: 11th |
| CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI | |
| "God only gave me two legs so of course I stalled it trying not to hit Franchitti. I had to learn to left foot brake to be able to race and your left foot can only be in one place at one time. My left foot could either be on the brake or the clutch. I had to choose the brake obviously. After I was push-started, I continued but got in traffic later, which put me a lap down. I was going to try to get my lap back after the restart when my car seemed as quick as Blundell's with cold tires. He was clearly faster so I had to sit back and take 11th. We've scored points in all of our races back but I certainly hoped for more." | |
 | MCI Arciero Wells Reynard Toyota Finished: 15th |
| MAX PAPIS | |
| "Today we didn't race, we cruised for 80 laps and concentrated on finishing the race. I pushed the last ten laps and I did laps that were faster than qualifying. That showed the guys on the MCI Racing team did a good job. The car was fantastic, we just couldn't use it. We need to figure out what the problem is so we can go 100 percent for more than the last ten laps. We were not only saving fuel a little bit, I had to absolutely cruise, like four or five seconds, or we wouldn't have finished the race. The last ten laps were a lot of fun." | |
 | Pennzoil Special Reynard Ford Davis/Craig Racing Finished: 18th |
| GUALTER SALLES | |
| "A coil in the electronics let us down, otherwise the INDUSVAL-Marlboro Reynard- Ford Cosworth was a very good car. I was fortunate to avoid the mess at Turn One at the start and pick up a few positions, and I was able to race with some of the others out there as while we were still close. Other than the two laps we lost with the coil change, we didn't give away anything. Still, that's a lot of work for a 19th position. I hope that next time the Davis Racing team can take some points home for all the work." | |
 | Shell Reynard Ford Team Rahal Finished: 17th |
| BRYAN HERTA | |
| "I got stuck behind de Ferran in Franchitti's spin at the start. I was parked on the outside and a bunch guys went to the inside. I think we fell back to 19th. I actually had a pretty good car but it was slippery. I don't know if it was the track or the tires going off. I moved up to tenth, but I had brake trouble too and there's how I spun at the end of the backstraight. It was a long day and it isn't fun when you're sliding around like that." | |
 | Team Kool Green Reynard Honda Finished: 12th |
| PARKER JOHNSTONE | |
| "The car was pretty good everywhere today except turns one and three. We had a long brake pedal at those two places and that made it tough to downshift and go down through the gears. But we were really going well through the whole turn four, five, six complex and the rest of the circuit. Really, with the exception of Blundell and Zanardi, I think we were as fast as anyone else. Just like Rio, it was a long, tough race to scrape together one (championship) point." | |
 | Target Chip Ganassi Racing Reynard Honda Finished: 2nd |
| ALEX ZANARDI | |
| "We got held up in the incident at the start and I had a lot of cars to pass. But I was able to do it my way, and pick my places and times. When I got to Blundell, he had just enough more than I had. But I drove hard and I can't complain about moving up to second in the points." | |
 | LCI International Reynard Honda Tasman Motorsports Group Finished: 3rd |
| ANDRE RIBEIRO | |
| "This feels just great. It has been a long time, and it feels great to be back on the (victory) podium. Yes, the Reynard chassis has made a big difference, but the biggest factor is the team. This is only our second race with the (new) car and they have made it competitive already. To be able to be this competitive again and finish on the podium is a fantastic feeling. Michigan is waiting for us." | |
 | Tecate Beer/Quaker State Lola Honda Tasman Motorsports Group Finished: 14th |
| ADRIAN FERNANDEZ | |
| "We did our best. We had great pit stops and battled through the whole race. The car was the best of the weekend, more consistent than what we had in practice and qualifying. It was a matter of maintaining our pace and moving up patiently. We stayed clean and made sure we finished." | |
 | Valvoline/Cummins/Craftsman Special Reynard Ford Finished: 25th |
| GIL de FERRAN | |
| "It was a shame. We first had a problem with the throttle linkage sticking when we collected a Sinai' electrical connector dropped by another car which made the car undriveable. As a result, we lost five laps. Afterward, the brake pedal started to get a little long and inconsistent. We decided that rather then risk an accident we would just park it. The car was fantastic this afternoon. My guys did a wonderful job giving me a great car to drive today. It was really looking good after the morning warm-up for a top-six finish. These things happen, unfortunately." | |
 | Bettenhaused Racing Alumax Aluminium Reynard Mercedes-Benz Finished: 16th |
| PATRICK CARPENTIER | |
| "It was a hard day and a long race for us. It was so slippery in the beginning it was almost like running in the rain. It felt that way especially with the first set of tires. The car was a little better after that, but toward the end of the race, I had a problem with buildup on the tires and that slowed me down. I am obviously disappointed because I wanted to have a good result in my first Indy-car race in Canada. It also hurts to come away with no points because my crew worked very hard this weekend like they do every weekend. But it was not to be so now we move on to Michigan." | |
 | Miller Lite Reynard Ford Team Rahal Finished: 9th |
| BOBBY RAHAL | |
| "I got a good start and Dario (Franchitti) left an opening on the inside. I think he saw Mark (Blundell) on the outside and didn't see me up next to him on the inside. I think I surprised him and he turned in and I tried not to hit him. But I couldn't avoid him. I feel bad because I don't like to race that way. I like Dario and he's a very good driver. I don't think he knew the turn was wide enough for both us. We were taking it easy in the early part. I was trying to save fuel and tires. But the last 10 laps of each run the tires went off and it was all I could do to hang on. Finally, I just had to pit for new tires. We lost a lot of positions right before our pit stops." | |
 | Hollywood Reynard Mercedes Finished: 6th |
| MAURICIO GUGELMIN | |
| "Basically, it was a pretty straightforward day. I got boxed in at the start when Franchitti spun, so when I should have gained a place, I actually lost one. The car was pretty decent, not perfect. I made a few passes, but it's a difficult circuit to pass on. I was getting held up, so I asked to make my next pit stop a bit early and we got a couple of more as a result and finished sixth. I'm happy for my teammate and the PacWest team, but I hope next time it's going to be me." | |
 | Panasonic/DUSKIN Arciero/Wells Racing, Reynard Toyota Finished: 22nd |
| HIRO MATSUSHITA | |
| "It was a difficult task today although we managed finish again to continue our streak of six races now. A bad vibration started in the rear after the start and we stopped early on lap 16 to change tires. The vibration was gone but we then understeer crept in after our first stop. We added downforce to the front wing during the second stop and the third set of tires were the best of the day. The rear brakes were not consistent as they kept trying to lock up going into Turns One and Two. Some laps the pedal went soft, on other laps the pedal was 50/50. Every lap the brakes were inconsistent." | |
 | Castrol/Jockey AAR Racing Reynard Toyota Finished: 21st |
| P.J. JONES | |
| "We were running pretty good until the first yellow. I had so much pick-up on the tires, that I couldn't take off. It took four laps to clean the tires off, which caused me to lose a lap. At the end l just ran out of fuel." | |
 | Castrol/Jockey AAR Racing Reynard Toyota Finished: 19th |
| JUAN MANUEL FANGIO II | |
| "It was a tough weekend for us, with the crash during qualifying. It was difficult to stay with the group during the race. We changed tire compounds during the race and the car seemed to get better and better I just wanted to drive a safe race, without going over the limit. I need to work on changing my luck. We go to Michigan next weekend and that's a big horsepower track, so we'll just have to see what happens." | |
 | Brahma Sports Team Reynard Ford Cosworth Finished: 8th |
| RAUL BOESEL | |
| "When the long yellow came, my car was really slippery after we went green again. For about six or seven laps the grip was horrible. It was like I was on ice. I lost one position. It was just from what I had picked up. It was an exciting race. I had some good dicing with Rahal and Moore. It's difficult to pass here, and we just sort of stayed where we began. On the first lap, when Franchitti spun, I had to go to the outside where there wasn't much room. I just barely made it. The guys who passed on the inside had more room to work with. It was close." | |
 | Hasseroder Project Indy Lola Ford Cosworth Finished: 24th |
| ARND MEIER | |
| "I don't know what happened, but the car acted like it ran out of fuel. But my computer said there were still three or four gallons left. I don't know if there is indeed gas in the tank, but we thought there certainly should have been enough. We were on the last lap before coming into the pits, but we were not close. My computer said we had 3.8 gallons, but it died two turns from the pit entrance and I coasted to a stop there." | |
 | Hogan Racing Reynard Mercedes Finished: 26th |
| DARIO FRANCHITTI | |
| "I clipped the wall there and everything snapped. It's my fault and I owe an apology to the team and to Carl. At the beginning, I believed I had a clear line there and Bobby caught me and we went for a spin." | |