BorgWarner to Present Trophies to Winning Indy 500 Driver and Team Owner

Helio Castroneves and Roger Penske to be Honored for 2001 Indy Victory DETROIT, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- 2001 Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves and Penske Racing Team Owner Roger Penske will be honored this week with the BorgWarner Championship Driver's Trophy and the BorgWarner Team Owner's Trophy. BorgWarner Chairman and CEO John F. Fiedler will present the awards at Wednesday's 2002 Automotive News World Congress Gala Dinner at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Michigan.

``BorgWarner stands for Product Leadership,'' Fiedler said. ``This means, among other things, achievement, competitive performance, speed, and technological excellence -- some of the same words that come to mind when the topic is auto racing. The BorgWarner name has been associated with the Indianapolis 500 since 1936. We couldn't be more proud to honor Helio Castroneves and Roger Penske for their shared victory at last year's race, and will be pleased to present these tangible symbols of their outstanding leadership in the demanding and exciting world of auto racing.''

The BorgWarner Championship Driver's Trophy, a replica of the BorgWarner Indianapolis 500 Trophy, is awarded each year to the winner of the Indianapolis 500. The sterling silver trophy, referred to in the automotive racing world as the ``Baby Borg,'' is 14 inches high and weighs 5 pounds. It rests on a 4-inch by 8-inch beveled black marble base. The base includes space for a hand-crafted, 2-inch, 3-dimensional sterling silver image of the winning driver's face, and also includes an inscription of the winning driver and year of victory. BorgWarner established the trophy in 1988, so that each winner of the Indianapolis 500 would have a lasting keepsake of the Speedway victory. (The BorgWarner Indianapolis 500 Trophy does not go home with the winner after it is presented in Victory Circle on race day; it stays on permanent display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum.) The first Championship Driver's Trophy went to Rick Mears, winner of the 1988 Indianapolis 500.

In 1998, to mark the company's 70th year as a pioneering innovator in the automotive industry, BorgWarner established the BorgWarner Team Owner's Trophy, a companion to the Championship Driver's Trophy. As its name reflects, the Team Owner's Trophy goes to the owner of the racing team that wins the Indianapolis 500, and recognizes the significance of the team owner's role in the Indy Racing League. Like the Championship Driver's Trophy, the Team Owner's Trophy is a replica of the Indianapolis 500 Trophy, but has a band of art-deco racing cars accentuated in gold to symbolize the importance of teamwork in auto racing and the automotive business. Its first recipient was 1997 Indianapolis 500 winner Arie Luyendyk's team owner, Fred Treadway of Treadway Racing. Had the award been established earlier, Roger Penske would be accepting his eleventh this week - Penske Racing was also the team owner of Indianapolis 500 winners in 1972, 1979, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, and 1994.