Race No. 7
Miller 200
West Allis, WI
June 2, 1996
Friday Quotes from drivers at The Milwaukee Mile: |
#99 Forsythe Player's/Indeck Reynard Mercedes-Benz |
GREG MOORE | |
| "Coming from a super oval like
Michigan, this track, with only half the length, is therefore much slower,
with double the traffic. After the start, it will obviously take only 4 or 5
laps for the frontrunners to catch up to others and get into traffic. "It feels like the track has been modified slightly coming out of Turn 2. The previous layout was better, but with the resurfacing, the track is now way smoother. "At the beginning of this afternoon's practice session, we had problems with the car, so we took out the backup. Time-wise, it was costly, and I spent only five to 10 minutes on the track during the whole session. This is definitely not enough time to get to know the track." | |
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#16 Bettenhaused Racing Alumax Aluminium Reynard Mercedes-Benz |
STEFAN JOHANSSON | |
| "We seemed to have lost the balance since we tested here a couple of weeks ago. Part of the problem is the fact that they have done come construction work at the track, and it is very dirty. There was a lot more grip when we were here for testing. It is also considerably warmer today than it was two weeks ago. So basically, we have been forced to start from scratch." | |
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#3 Marlboro Penske Mercedes |
PAUL TRACY | |
| "The car is working well and we were working with full tanks most of the session. We're just working on the race set-up. The track is great and the warm-up lane is a big help. The only problem is some dirt on the track, but it is perfect. It's exactly what we needed." | |
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#6 Kmart/Texaco/Havoline Lola Ford Cosworth XD |
MICHAEL ANDRETTI | |
| "My car had a big
push but we're working on it. The track re-surface is good and the pit exit
acceleration lane is even better. It's a lot safer. Before, you would come
out of the pits and your line of sight would be obstructed by the wall
between the track and pit. You would enter the track right on the line and
hope another car wasn't there. Now it's much safer. My hat's off to them for
adding it so quickly. It wasn't here when we tested a couple of weeks ago,
so they did it in only one week. The re-surfacing should make for a good
race. In previous years, the times would drop off between two and three
seconds from the qualifying time. Now the speeds will probably only drop off
one second. Also, you used to be able to spin and not hit the wall here.
That's probably not the case anymore. "I look forward to coming here. It's not a horsepower track and we seen to have a good short oval setup. It seems to be repeating. I believe if we had new tires in the last session I think we could have run 20.6 to 20.7. The car is pretty good." | |
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#2 Marlboro Penske Mercedes |
AL UNSER, Jr. | |
| "We're slowly chipping away on our setup. The car feels really good. I love the new asphalt. The Milwaukee Mile has become extremely smooth and fast. We can run our cars lower and we don't have to rely on mechanical grip as much as we used to. You still have to really get your car working to get around this track. It's one of those mystical places with so much tradition. It's a place where it's either your day or not. Hopefully, Sunday will be the day for Marlboro Team Penske." | |
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#21 PacWest Reynard Ford Cosworth |
MARK BLUNDELL | |
| "This is definitely much different than the track at Michigan. I've never been on anything like it. I can't believe how flat it is. It's like being on a running track with a car." | |
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#11 Kmart/Budweiser Lola Ford Newman/Haas Racing |
CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI | |
| "They did a good job
with the warm-up lane. The track surface is also good. We came here in May
and had a really positive test. We learned a lot then that will hopefully
help us on Sunday. I really like the one-mile short ovals. It's really great
racing. It's what racing is all about - the lead changes and all. I've
looked forward to coming here since last year. The track has turned into
more of a one-line track. You could run a lot higher here last year because
of the bumps. It [re-surfacing] should keep the weekend interesting. "The car is not coming along as quick as we would like but it is okay. We made a big step in the right direction in the last few minutes of the session. I hope we can keep moving in the same direction tomorrow morning. I think the speeds will be faster tomorrow and I hope we can keep improving." | |
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#8 Pennzoil Special Reynard Honda Hall Racing |
GIL de FERRAN | |
| "I still believe we have the best engine, but not by a very large margin. It's very close here. The track is great. I didn't like the bumps here last year. They've done a super job. It's as good a surface I've ever seen on a race track." | |
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#28 Shell Reynard Mercedes-Benz Team Rahal |
BRYAN HERTA | |
| "There were 15 guys under the old track record [21.7 seconds]. And I think the track will get better yet. We struggled a bit early today, but I'm pleased with the direction we're going with the car's setup. We're not sure about Saturday's weather. It might rain. So we wanted to get a good setup quickly today. The grip in the track was much better this afternoon, and I could really drive the car into the corners." | |
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#31 LCI International Lola Honda Tasman Motorsports Group |
ANDRE RIBEIRO | |
| "We are doing a lot of experimenting with the car right now. The track is very smooth and they did a nice job, especially with the change to the warm-up lane getting out of the pits. It is much safer. That was a good idea. The track is very dirty right now and there is really only one fast line, so this is a challenge." | |
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#5 Valvoline/Cummins/Craftsman Special Reynard Ford |
ROBBY GORDON | |
| "The session this morning was the best session we've had all year. Honestly, it was perfect. Things went exactly how we wanted them to go. We didn't have any mechanical failures or dramas to set us back. It was a smooth session and we got a lot accomplished." | |
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#18 Miller Racing Reynard Mercedes-Benz Team Rahal |
BOBBY RAHAL | |
| "The track really started to get better this afternoon. This morning, the track was too dirty and the car was sliding around. Boy, this place is so much faster with the new pavement, and my back doesn't hurt from the old bumps. The track is smooth, and I think we'll be able to race with several grooves. The car just got better and better. We're learning about the Reynard chassis and what we can do to improve." | |
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#17 Hollywood Reynard Ford |
| photo Mike Levitt | |
MAURICIO GUGELMIN | |
| "We're pushing like crazy right now. The condition is eating up the front tires very quickly." | |
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#1 Brahma Sports Team Reynard Ford Cosworth |
RAUL BOESEL | |
| "I think it was a very productive day. We took the car out of the transporter, put it on the track, and picked up right where we left off from testing here. In the second session, suddenly something went very wrong. The car just went loose, and we need to find out why. We changed tires to see if that was the problem, but the car was still uncomfortable. There's something wrong on the right rear of the car." | |
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#1 Brahma Sports Team Team manager |
BARRY GREEN | |
| "I wish the day finished like it started. It started out real well. Raul was real comfortable. We picked up where we left off from the test. We've been running consistently fast, and then, just toward the end of this last session, we got a little bit loose, which is the same problem we had in the race at Nazareth [Pa., April 28]. To tell you the truth, we're a bit confused right now." | |