Race No. 6

Motorola 300
Gateway International Raceway — Madison, Illinois
May 22-24, 1997

1996 Pole Winner: new event
1996 Race Winner: new event
Madison/East St. Louis Forecast
Gateway International Raceway Map

From Swamp to Speedway
New CART venue made possible by earthquake?
By Ray Sprouse

©1997 SpeedCenter Internet Publishing, Inc.

The inaugural Motorola 300, to be held on May 24, signals the openingof the third new track for the PPG CART World Series in just two years.Last year we were offeredbrilliant inaugural races at Homestead, FL, and at the the newly openedEmerson Fittipaldi Speedway in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, and nothing lesscan be expected of the new Gateway International Raceway.

The track itself, located outside of St. Louis, MO in Madison, IL, is amore typical 1.25 mile oval, unlike the "roval" configuration that somany drivers used to describe the Emerson Fittipaldi Speedway in Rio.The track is the brain-child of race promoter extraordinaireChris Pook, promoter of the very successful Long Beach Grand Prix.

The site of the track had been the bottom of the Mississippi riveruntil the Great Earthquake of 1811 shook the New Madrid fault soviolently that it rang church bells in Washington, D.C. The resultingswamp land lay dormant until a gentleman by the name of WayneMeinert opened a 1/8 mile Drag Strip named St. Louis Raceway Park in 1967. The track was extended to 1/4 mile in 1971, and played host to severalAmerican Hot Rod Association Spring Nationals events. It went throughseveral years hosting the "Swamp Rats" in the AHRA, until theorganization folded in the mid-eighty's.

The track changed ownership twice in the next fourteen years. In1985 then-owner Jody Trover constructed a 2.6-mile road course in andaround the drag strip. In May of that year there was an ARCA stock carrace, in June, an IMSA Firehawk Sports/Touring Series race, and inSeptember, an SCCA Trans-Am race. But the support for the track was low, andthe track lay dormant through 1988.

The track survived over the next few years with local support of astrong SCCA chapter, and the running of special IHRA events on thequarter-mile drag strip.

Then came Pook, who pondered the acquisition for a full year beforefinally securing the land for $21.5 million dollars, backed by bondsissued by the Southwestern Illinois Development Association. A new dragstrip was built and opened in September of '95, much to the excitementof local fans and racers who've had the opportunity to run on the track.In the summer of '97, the first NHRA event, the Sears CraftsmanNationals will be staged, and is expected to bring great reviews fromthe big boys in drag racing.

Suddenly, the project that had been met with local skepticism, was feared to be leaving behind the frequent local events and displace it's long-term participants. But Pook's intention is to play host to all who havean interest in racing. There is a Busch Grand National event in July, and a 1.6 mileroad course is under construction, ready to draw other forms of racing to the area.

Important to open-wheel race fans is the 1.25 mileegg-shaped oval that will be host to the inaugural Motorola 300 the daybefore the Indianapolis 500. Situated on 150 acres only five minutesfrom downtown St. Louis, the course has grandstands that will seat50,000 fans, and includes thirty VIP suites, along with extensivehospitality areas.

We've seen enough diversity in the 1997 PPG Cup chase not to attemptspeculation on the chassis/engine/tire package most likely to succeed atGateway. The Rio 400 gave us our first repeat winner of the'97 season with Paul Tracy. The win cameafter the race had been dominated by Bobby Rahal, who fell two laps short on a late race fuelgamble.

The only sure thing about the upcoming race is the devotion of a racepromoter with a proven track record. Chris Pook's other event is clearly one of the 'banner events' of the CART season. A 300 mile race on a small oval may soon develop into another crowd pleaser, especially in an area that hasn't seen top level open-wheel racing in many decades.