Da Matta Wins GI Joe

June 16, 2002

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Cristiano da Matta and Bruno Junqueira grew up in the same Brazilian city, Belo Horizonte. They were on the same go-kart team as youngsters, but until Sunday they never got the chance to duel in a big race.

Using a combination of nimble driving, seamless crew work and a few lucky breaks, da Matta held off his countryman to win the G.I. Joe's 200 on Sunday, da Matta's third victory of the young CART season.

"I was just pushing as hard as I could all the time," da Matta said. "It was probably one of the toughest races I've ever driven."

Da Matta, who drives for Newman-Haas, has won five of the last eight races dating to last season. All three of his 2002 victories have come on road courses.

He completed the 110-lap race in 2 hours, 3 minutes, 19.113 seconds, with an average speed of 105.381 mph. Target-Ganassi's Junqueira finished 0.625 seconds back, and Kool Green's Dario Franchitti was third, 7.761 seconds behind the winner.

Junqueira recalled the days when two young drivers, their fathers and mechanics would pile into Junqueira's father's pickup, with the go-karts in back, and drive six or seven hours from Belo Horizonte to Sao Paulo for races. They slept in rooms above the shop.

"In the morning, we would wake up with the guys hammering the (karts)," da Matta said. "That was the alarm clock."

Da Matta, 28, and Junqueira, 25, went on to compete together in Brazilian Formula 3, but they were in different classes.

"We never really raced like today," Junqueira said.

Starting from the pole, da Matta immediately gave up the lead to the No. 2 starter, Kenny Brack, Junqueira's Target-Ganassi teammate. But Brack lost a wheel on the third turn of the 1.969-mile Portland International Raceway course, just after the start of the 61st lap.

Da Matta had open track in front of him after that, but fortune came his way twice more. On the 87th lap, da Matta was about to lap Adrian Fernandez when Fernandez locked his brakes and skidded off to the left. Da Matta didn't miss a beat, turning slightly to the right and plowing ahead through Fernandez's smoke.

Da Matta's crew gave him a quick final pit stop following the 90th lap. Junqueira came out behind him, but his tires were cold, and his brakes locked up, costing him 0.716 seconds.

"Kenny had the problem with his pit stop, then I had Bruno behind me, so I just didn't have any time to breathe," da Matta said.

Junqueira cut the deficit to less than half a second at the white flag, but it was too much to make up.

"I was a little bit faster than Cristiano, but not enough to get past him," Junqueira said. "I tried to make him make a mistake, but Cristiano drove really well."

With the victory, da Matta extended his lead in the standings to 20 points. He has 74 in six races, followed by Junqueira and Michel Jourdain Jr., both at 54.

Visteon-Walker rookie Townsend Bell was a season-best fourth; he would have made the podium, but he thought his crew had finished refueling on the last stop. He took off, stalling the engine and falling from third.

Early on, the race appeared to set up as a duel between da Matta and Brack, who qualified 1-2 for the second straight week. Da Matta won the Monterey Grand Prix at Laguna Seca, while Brack -- a four-time winner in 2001 still looking for his first victory this season -- took third.

After Brack took the lead, he and da Matta stayed close together until just after the second pit. As Brack rounded the final of the three-turn Festival Curves, the wheel nut on his left rear tire popped off, and the wheel rolled across the track.

"I think the mistake Ganassi made on the pits with Brack was a little bit of pressure they were feeling," da Matta said.

Brack said it appeared the safety pin that keeps the wheel nut secured malfunctioned. The same problem knocked Paul Tracy out of Monterey last weekend. The pin came loose on the same wheel, the left rear, and Tracy crashed into a tire wall.