DETROIT (August 15, 2000) - From 1992 through '95, Marlboro Team Penske won11 of 16 FedEx Championship Series events contested on permanent roadcourses.

The juggernaut which included drivers Al Unser Jr. (4 victories), EmersonFittipaldi (4) and Paul Tracy (3) lambasted their competition, winning 68.7percent of the time at purpose-built road racing circuits.

The years from 1996-99 were another matter, however, as Marlboro Team Penskewent winless on the roads. But with the dawn of a new century, the team'sfortunes have turned. Penske drivers have won both of this year'sroad-course events, getting victories from Gil de Ferran (Marlboro HondaReynard) and Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Honda Reynard) at Portland andMid-Ohio, respectively.

Marlboro Team Penske will look to keep the streak alive this weekend atscenic Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., as the FedEx Championship Seriescontinues with Round 14, the Motorola 220 (4 p.m. ET Sunday, tape delay,ABC-TV). The 4.048-mile road course has played host to three Marlboro TeamPenske victories over the years, from Danny Sullivan (1989), Fittipaldi(1992) and Tracy (1993), who led all 50 laps from the pole en route to histriumph.

Team Penske's 2000 resurgence, however, has not been restricted to permanentroad circuits. After going winless through the 1998 and '99 FedExChampionship Series campaigns while searching for that elusive 100thvictory, Team Penske has already pushed its total to 103, as de Ferran(Nazareth oval) and Castroneves (Detroit street circuit) have complementedtheir road-course successes with victories at other venues.

As a result, Team Penske is chasing its first series championship sinceUnser Jr.'s in 1994. Heading into this weekend's Motorola 220, de Ferranstands second to championship leader Michael Andretti of Newman/Haas Racing,who holds a 125-106 points lead over de Ferran. It marks the deepest pointof the season that a Penske driver has been in contention for a championshipsince 1996.

But Andretti (Big Kmart/Texaco/Havoline Ford Lola), CART's all-time victoryleader (40), continues as a formidable adversary. He is a three-time winnerat Road America (1990, '91 and '96), the two-time defending pole-sitter andtrack record-holder with his qualifying lap of 145.745 miles per hour (1minute, 39.988 seconds) in 1998.

Andretti's Newman/Haas Racing teammate, Christian Fittipaldi (BigKmart/Route 66 Ford Lola), enters this weekend as the defending eventchampion. He recorded his first career FedEx Championship Series victory atRoad America last year and has finished fourth or better in each of his pastthree appearances, including third in 1998 and fourth in '97.

Like Fittipaldi, Dario Franchitti (KOOL Honda Reynard) of Team KOOL Greenlogged his first career FedEx Championship Series victory at Road America in1998. Tracy (KOOL Honda Reynard), his teammate, owns consecutive polepositions from 1992-94, in addition to his 1993 victory.

Andretti and de Ferran are two of the three FedEx Championship Seriesdrivers who have reached 100 championship points through the season's first13 rounds. The other is Roberto Moreno (Visteon Ford Reynard) of PatrickRacing, who stands third in the championship with 100 points, including hisfirst career victory at Cleveland.

Rounding out the top five drivers in the championship are rookie Kenny Brack(Shell Ford Reynard) of Team Rahal, who, despite being without a victory,has finished sixth or better in seven of his past 11 FedEx ChampionshipSeries starts en route to 88 points. Adrian Fernandez (Tecate/QuakerState/Patrick Racing Ford Reynard) of Patrick Racing stands fifth with 87points, built on a victory at Brazil and points-paying results in 10 of hispast 11 starts.

This year, for the first time in FedEx Championship Series history, all carsride on Firestone Firehawks, the Official Tire of CART.

Following the Motorola 220, the FedEx Championship Series continues withRound 15, the Molson Indy Vancouver, September 1-3 at Concord Pacific Placein Vancouver, B.C., Canada.

WHO'S HOT

Michael Andretti (Big Kmart/Texaco/Havoline Ford Lola) ofNewman/Haas Racing continues to set a steaming pace as the current leaderin the chase for the Vanderbilt Cup, emblematic of the FedEx ChampionshipSeries championship. Andretti's eighth-place finish at Mid-Ohio last Sundaygave him championship points in 10 of his last 11 starts, includingvictories at Japan and Toronto and podium finishes of second at Milwaukee,Michigan and Chicago. He enters this weekend's Motorola 220 as the two-timedefending polesitter and holds a 125-106 points lead over Gil de Ferran(Marlboro Honda Reynard) of Marlboro Team Penske in the championship race.

Gil de Ferran has scored championship points in 10 of his 13 startsthis season and is one of four drivers who have won multiple events, withvictories at Nazareth and Portland. He has finished on the podium in each ofthe past two events - third at Chicago and runner-up at Mid-Ohio - and hastaken over second place in the championship race with 106 points, 19 behindleader Michael Andretti of Newman/Haas Racing. De Ferran also owns threepoles this season (Homestead, Long Beach, Mid-Ohio) and has qualified amongthe top 10 drivers in 11 of 13 starts.

Rookie Kenny Brack (Shell Ford Reynard) of Team Rahal has scoredchampionship points in nine of his past 11 FedEx Championship Series starts,and has finished sixth or better in seven of those. Included in the run arepodium finishes of second at Cleveland and third at Nazareth, in addition tofinishes of fourth at Milwaukee and Chicago, fifth at Japan and Mid-Ohio andsixth at Portland. He has moved to fourth in the championship with 88 pointsand has doubled the point total of Alex Tagliani (Player's Forsythe RacingTeam Ford Reynard), who has 44, in the battle for the Jim Trueman Rookie ofthe Year Award.

Adrian Fernandez (Tecate/Quaker State/Patrick Racing Ford Reynard)of Patrick Racing has scored championship points in 10 of his last 11 FedExChampionship Series starts, beginning with a victory at Rio de Janeiro. Healso owns a podium finish of second at Toronto, and, following last week'ssixth-place finish at Mid-Ohio, has moved to fifth in the championship with87 points, one behind rookie Kenny Brack.

Patrick Carpentier (Player's Forsythe Racing Team Ford Reynard) ofPlayer's Forsythe Racing has finished seventh or better in seven of 10 FedExChampionship Series starts this season, and has scored championship pointsin seven of his past eight. Included is a podium finish of third atMilwaukee and finishes of fourth at Michigan and fifth at Detroit andCleveland. Despite missing three events earlier in the year with a smallfracture of the left wrist sustained in an accident at his Las Vegas home,Carpentier stands 10th in the championship with 71 points, a career-hightotal already for his four FedEx Championship Series seasons.

Rookie Oriol Servia (Telefonica Toyota Reynard) of PPI Motorsportsjoins Gil de Ferran as the only FedEx Championship Series drivers to havescored championship points in as many as five of the six road or streetcourse events contested to date. Servia's run includes finishes of sixth atLong Beach, a career-best third at Detroit, eighth at Portland, 11th atToronto and 10th at Mid-Ohio. He stands 16th in the championship with 41points.

ON THE RIGHT TRACK

Michael Andretti is a three-time winner at Road America (1990, '91and '96), and has scored championship points in 10 of 15 appearances there,including podium results of 1985, '86 and '99. His victory in 1996 - when hetook the lead from Al Unser Jr., who suffered an engine failure on the finallap - made him one of only four drivers in CART history to win while leadingonly the final lap of a race. Andretti is also is the two-time defendingpole-sitter at Road America and owns the track record of 145.745 miles perhour (1 minute, 39.988 seconds) set in 1998.

Paul Tracy (KOOL Honda Reynard) of Team KOOL Green won at RoadAmerica in 1993, finished second in 1995 and earned three of his 13 careerpole positions in 1992, '93 and '94. He has led 90 career laps at the venue,including all 50 from the pole en route to his 1993 victory.

Christian Fittipaldi (Big Kmart/Route 66 Ford Lola) of Newman/HaasRacing drove to his first career FedEx Championship Series victory at RoadAmerica last year, when he led the final seven laps. He also finished on thepodium with a third-place effort in 1998 and finished fourth in '97.Counting his eighth-place performance in 1995, he has scored championshippoints with finishes of eighth or better in four of his five career startsat the venue.

Tony Kanaan (Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing Mercedes Reynard) of Mo NunnRacing owns top six finishes of fourth in 1998 and sixth last year in histwo career appearances at Road America.

Jimmy Vasser (Target Toyota Lola) of Target/Chip Ganassi Racing hasfinished ninth or better in four of his six career starts at Road America,topped by a third-place result in 1995. He also finished sixth in 1996,eighth in '97 and ninth last year.

MANUFACTURING SUCCESS

Ford-powered drivers have won four of the past six FedExChampionship Series events contested at Road America, getting victories fromJacques Villeneuve in 1994 and '95, Michael Andretti in 1996 and ChristianFittipaldi last year. Ford has also won three of the past five poles, withVilleneuve leading the field in 1995 and Andretti doing the honors in '98and '99.

Honda has won both FedEx Championship Series events contested onpermanent road courses this season, getting victories from Marlboro TeamPenske drivers Gil de Ferran at Portland and Helio Castroneves at Mid-Ohio.Honda has also won four of the past six permanent road course events overthe past two seasons, including victories last year from de Ferran atPortland and Juan Montoya at Mid-Ohio.

NOTEWORTHY

Target Chip Ganassi Racing has scheduled a media availability,featuring team owner Chip Ganassi and driver Jimmy Vasser on Friday at 1:30p.m. in the Media Center at Road America, following Monday's announcementthat Vasser would not drive for the team in 2001. Since joining the team in1995, Vasser has recorded eight victories and seven pole positions. He wonthe 1996 FedEx Championship Series championship, starting the team on anunprecedented run of four consecutive series titles. "Jimmy is one of themain reasons for Target Racing's success over the years," Ganassi said. "Ivalue what he has brought to this team and the impact he has made, and moreimportantly, I value his friendship. It's an unfortunate part of ourbusiness that friends have to deal with each other in this environment. I'vebeen proud to have Jimmy on the team for the past six years." Said Vasser,"Chip said he wants to make a change, and he thinks that change would begood for both the team and me. I tend to agree. We have a lot of historytogether and maybe things have gotten a little stale. It should be anamicable divorce. The timing gives me the opportunity to see what optionsare available for next season and in the future."

By starting Sunday's Motorola 220, Michael Andretti will tie currentCART President and CEO Bobby Rahal for second place on CART's career startslist, with his 264th. Al Unser Jr. sits atop CART's career starts list, with273.

ON THE AIR

Qualifying for the Motorola 220 will air 5 p.m. ET Saturday onESPN2; CART 2Day airs 11 a.m. ET Sunday on ESPN2, with ABC-TV's tape-delayedrace broadcast slated to begin 4 p.m. ET. The race will also air live on theCART Radio Network and on CART's official website at www.cart.com .

MOTOROLA 220 "QUOTEBOARD"

MICHAEL ANDRETTI (Big Kmart/Texaco/Havoline Ford Lola), on Newman/HaasRacing's success at Road America: "I think that Elkhart Lake is one of thenicest race tracks in the world to drive. It's a true driver's track andjust a fun track to drive. The fans are also unique to the track. They areup on all of the latest news in the series and are committed fans. We planto give them a good show this weekend. We've had good setups there and realgood results. I've won back-to-back poles there and [teammate] Christian[Fittipaldi] won the race last year, so it's been a good place for us. Itwould be nice to win the third pole in a row there, as well as win one more[championship] point. The championship is going to be really tight thisseason and we are just starting to see it really heat up. There is no roomfor any kind of misstep right now and our next challenge is Elkhart Lake.We need to maintain our lead and I think the Big Kmart/Texaco/Havoline teamhas what it takes to win the Championship this year. We learned a lot fromour test there and think we will be competitive this weekend. By no meanswill it be easy. The Penske team has shown that they have a good set-up onroad courses, so they should be tough as well."

CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI (Big Kmart/Route 66 Ford Lola), on defending hischampionship in the Motorola 220: "Elkhart is a special place especiallybecause I have always run in the top three there. It was nice to finallywin at Elkhart because we had run well there for years, but the win eludedus. We came really close in 1996 but the engine let go with a few laps inthe race. I would say that out of all the tracks we go to during theseason, Elkhart Lake is the one where I am the strongest. It is one of thetoughest tracks because of the length. To put in a 100 percent perfect lapthere is tough because it is so long. I think it is one of the hardestplaces we go to. That is one of the reasons I am glad that I won there. Wetested there although it was very short. I did 10 laps and then we packedup. At least I have an idea of how the car is and what area we will need towork on. We have a good set-up for the track so we should be fine. I washappy last year [following his victory], but I was real happy for the teamthat had stood behind me through all kinds of different conditions. Theywere always supporting me and that's really important. It's a nice feelingbeing the defending champion, but it shouldn't add any extra pressure, andif it does, then there is something going wrong. I think you should just goout and try to be competitive like we do every single race. Just becauseyou ran well somewhere, it doesn't mean you are going to be competitivewithout giving 110 percent again. It gives you a little bit of boost comingin if you know you have always run well but you still have to work hard.There is no room for slackers in this series."

GIL de FERRAN (Marlboro Honda Reynard), on his enjoyment of Road America:"Elkhart Lake is my favorite track in America. The reason being it is oneof the last few of its kind - a long circuit with a great variety ofcorners. They don't really make circuits like this anymore. If you takeinto consideration Marlboro Team Penske's road course performances andrecent test at Road America, I'd have to say things are looking reasonablygood for this weekend."

HELIO CASTRONEVES (Marlboro Honda Reynard), on the Road America experience:"I really enjoy racing at Road America because it's a very long, demandingcircuit with fast corners and the fans are very supportive of us.Unfortunately, I haven't had the results I've wanted the past two years, butafter our strong performance at Mid-Ohio and a successful test here a coupleof weeks ago, it looks like Marlboro Team Penske has what it takes to bringit home in the points this weekend. We need to stay focused on the job athand, given the competitiveness of the CART FedEx Championship Series."

PAUL TRACY (KOOL Honda Reynard), on what makes Road America great: "As racetracks go, Road America is about as good as it gets -- fast corners, slowcorners, long straights, and several good opportunities to pass. Whenyou've got a good setup on the car, it's a real kick to drive. We're at thestage of the schedule where we really need to reach back for something extrato get back in contention. Even though we had some misfortune and weren'table to finish at Mid-Ohio, the KOOL car was running well and that's apositive that we can take into Road America. The recent setbacks arefrustrating but they haven't shaken our determination."

JUAN MONTOYA (Target Toyota Lola), on maintaining the lead he lost late lastyear at Road America: "Road America is a great course and I'm really lookingforward to getting back on a racetrack and starting a good streak. Lastyear, I led a lot of laps in Elkhart, so this year I want to do the samething, except I want to stay in the lead. We've had a couple ofdisappointing races, so I'm looking forward to a good race to get someconfidence back for our team. When we're behind on the racetrack, we nevergive up. The same is true with the points race. I don't care how manypoints we're down, we still believe we have a shot and we're not going togive up. We need to score a lot of points this weekend and hope for thebest."

ROBERTO MORENO (Visteon Ford Reynard), on building upon last month'ssuccessful test at Road America: "The Visteon/Patrick Racing team had agreat test at Road America a couple of weeks ago, so I am very confidentgoing into this race. It is a great circuit and I love to drive there. Thetrack is one of the most beautiful in the world and with all the differenttypes of corners and elevation changes, as well as the speed; it is verychallenging and fun for the driver. It is a circuit where in my second CARTrace, in 1985; I qualified well and almost won the race. As far as thechampionship is concerned, that is something we have to take race by race.All the races for the rest of the season, beginning with Elkhart Lake, areimportant. That is the way it is when you have such a competitive situationlike we do in the FedEx Championship Series. There are going to be ups anddowns during the season and you just have to try and score as many points aspossible whenever you can. If we can do that, at the end of the season thechampionship will be there."

ADRIAN FERNANDEZ (Tecate/Quaker State/Patrick Racing Ford Reynard), "I amlooking forward to going back to Road America. I have had some very goodresults there in the past and it is my favorite track to drive. Last year,I almost won the race, but I made a little mistake with Michael [Andretti]and lost a place to Christian [Fittipaldi]. I think the Tecate/QuakerState/Patrick Racing team has a good chance at Road America. We arecarrying a lot of momentum going into this race. The Tecate/QuakerState/Patrick Racing team has been very consistent since the third race ofthe season and we have put ourselves into the middle of the FedExChampionship Series title hunt. I expect us to continue to be consistent.I also expect to win some more races this year. We just need to improve ourqualifying, which I know we can, and then we can finish on the podium andwin races."

DARIO FRANCHITTI (KOOL Honda Reynard), on his bid to return to the podium atRoad America: "Road America is my favorite track in the CART series,although it's been feast or famine for me since I started racing there threeyears ago. Sandwiched between a couple of DNFs [Did Not Finish] is the wintwo years ago, my first in CART and first with Team KOOL Green. I'm hopingthat if it follows the same pattern, this is the year for another win. Thetwo-day test we had at Road America earlier this month was very encouraging.Our times were more than respectable and the Team KOOL Green crew was ableto acquire some valuable information that should be a big help forqualifying and race set-up. The priority right now is to get that first winof the season under our belts. All of the guys at Team KOOL Green have donesuch a great job preparing a competitive car in recent races, only to bedogged by some bad luck that prevented us from finishing. We just have tokeep plugging away, and if we do that we're going to have a race whereeverything falls into place."

PATRICK CARPENTIER (Player's Forsythe Racing Team Ford Reynard), on theimportance of qualifying well at Road America: "Finishing ninth inqualifying at Mid-Ohio gets Team Player's into the fast group for qualifyingat Road America this weekend, and that's an important factor. You don't wantto be too far back on the starting grid at Elkhart Lake because with afour-mile track, it's often tough to catch up to the contenders if you haveto work your way up the field. But at Mid-Ohio we improved throughout theweekend and that gives us something to build on. One of the things thatpleases me about my season so far is that I've been able to get 35 of mypoints on road courses and 36 on ovals, so I've been pretty consistent inthat regard. Now that I've managed to get back into the top 10, I want tomaintain that consistency to continue climbing in the standings."

JIMMY VASSER (Target Toyota Lola), looking forward to competing at RoadAmerica: "I'm anxious to get on the track at Elkhart and just race andforget about some of the other things that have been going on.I've had some good luck at Road America in the past, so it will be nice toreturn there after a couple of tough races. We've had some good stretchesand some disappointing stretches this year, but this team has the talent andthe car to start a good streak in Elkhart and finish up strong. I plan toget back to that podium again in Elkhart. Team Target is still in a battlefor a fifth straight championship, and no one on this team is going downwithout a fight."

ALEX TAGLIANI (Player's Forsythe Racing Team Toyota Reynard), on hisfamiliarity with Road America from his days as a competitor in the ToyotaAtlantic Championship: "From my days in the Atlantic series, I always lookedforward to racing at Road America, and I've had some success there in thepast, including last year in Atlantic, when I won the pole and finished onthe podium. This will be my first time at Elkhart Lake as a driver in theCART series, but Team Player's tested at Road America a couple of weeks agoand things went well. Our fast laps were right up there with the contendersand we came away with a lot of useful information that will help us getready for qualifying and the race. We've had a couple of ninth-placefinishes in a row and now we're looking to improve on that. If we cansteadily pick up points in each race, we can have a strong finish to theseason, which is one of my goals in this second half. Qualifying is going tobe a key at Road America because it's a track where you don't have too manyyellows during the race, so you have to try to make sure you stay close tothe leaders."

TONY KANAAN (Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing Mercedes Reynard), on changing hisluck at Road America: "I'm glad to be at Road America this weekend, and I'mespecially glad to get away from what turned out to be unlucky weekendNumber 13 [last week's Round 13, on Sunday, Aug. 13, at Mid-Ohio, whereKanaan finished 13th]. Fourteen sounds a lot better, if you ask me!Seriously, this track asksa lot of the same things out of your car as Mid-Ohio, but even more so. Ithas a mix of tight corners and fast corners, but the straights are evenlonger. Horsepower is going to be even more of a factor here thisweekend, on top of the usual need to have a well-balanced car. We had agood race car last weekend, but just ended up in the wrong place at thewrong time. I think we had a sure top-10 finish. We're one racefurther along, now. Each weekend we learn something, and it's a good thingwe're right back at it this week on another beautiful road course. This istruly one of my favorite tracks."

LUIZ GARCIA JR. (Hollywood/Embratel/Tang/Banco Sofisa Mercedes Reynard),looking forward to competing at Road America: "As I said after the race atMid-Ohio, I'm glad the race at Road America is only a week away, so we canforget about what happened at Mid-Ohio. Road America is a long course andfuel has to be managed well. This should be another great race and I expectto do a lot better here. It's a long race and I can't wait to get started."