CART: Tony Kanaan notes and quotes, Houston

29 September 2000

Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Houston

#55 Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing Mercedes-Benz Reynard
Pre-Race Notes/Quotes –Sept. 29 to Oct. 1, 2000
Downtown Houston (1.527-mile temporary street course)
Round 18 of 20 on the 2000 CART FedEx Championship Series

TONY KANAAN

“Here we are at our last street race of the year.  There is always a lot
of atmosphere and these races, and each one has its own personality.  I
really liked Houston my first two times here.  It’s true what they say
about Texas hospitality.  They take good care of us down here.  And the
fans really appreciate a good show.  When it rained down here two years
ago, they stayed right where they were and watched us all the way.
That’s really something.  I hope we can get back on track here and start
a run of strong finishes.  It’s a tight track.  A lot of 90-degree
turns.  That requires a lot of focus, an a lot of patience from the
driver.  It also demands a good setup so that we can get the most out of
our engine.  I think we’ll be in good shape.”

NOTES

-- This is Kanaan’s third visit to Houston in a Champ Car, his first
with first-year Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing.  He scored his second career
podium finish when he was third here during his Rookie of the Year
season of 1998 with Tasman Motorsports (later Forsythe Championship
Racing).  He qualified eighth and finished ninth here last year with the
Forsythe team.

-- At Gateway International Raceway near St. Louis two weekends ago,
Kanaan qualified sixth but was taken out of contention in the early
going when he was blocked by a slower car.

-- In his 13 starts this season for Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing, Kanaan has
four top-10 finishes and five top-10 qualifying efforts.  His best
finish was eighth, at both Nazareth and Road America.  His top
qualifying effort was third at Chicago.

-- Kanaan was involved in a final qualifying accident at Detroit in June
left him with a broken left forearm that required surgery and four
broken ribs on his left side.  He was back in the car 33 days later but
missed four races, three of which (Portland, Cleveland and Toronto) he
was replaced by Bryan Herta.

-- Team owner Morris Nunn was technical director at Target/Chip Ganassi
Racing during the last four CART championship runs by Jimmy Vasser
(1996), Alex Zanardi (1997-98) and Juan Montoya (1999).  He was on the
pole here with Montoya last year, and finished second here with Zanardi
in 1998.