Chevy and Scheckter Win Miami IRL Pole

CHEVY AND SCHECKTER ON POLE FOR IRL SEASON-OPENER

MIAMI, March 5, 2005 – Chevrolet, Tomas Scheckter and Panther Racing are
back on top. Scheckter put his Chevy-powered Pennzoil Dallara on the
pole for Sunday’s season-opening Indy Racing League IndyCar Series race
at Homestead-Miami Speedway with a 215.115 mph qualifying lap on the
1.5-mile oval. Scheckter’s teammate Tomas Enge qualified third in
Panther Racing’s Rockstar Chevrolet at 214.152 mph as the two Chevy Indy
V-8s in the 22-car field captured two of the top three starting spots.

“This is the type of racing you dream about, when you’ve got a great car
and a strong engine,” said Scheckter. “It’s great to come to the track
and know you have a combination like this. I’ll tell you what makes me
the proudest: So many people have been giving Chevrolet a hard time, and
they just fought back. My hat’s off to them and what a great job they did.”

Chevrolet’s last IRL IndyCar Series pole was won by Richie Hearn at
Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 6, 2003. Scheckter, the sixth driver in
the qualifying order today, withstood the challenges of 15 drivers who
tried to knock him from the top spot. The two Tomases were qualified
side-by-side on the front row until Vitor Meira, the 19th driver in the
order, edged Enge by .019 seconds.

“Chevrolet has put a massive effort into the engine program just as they
promised, and it’s showing now,” Scheckter explained. “I feel optimistic
about tomorrow because my race car is even better than my qualifying
car, and there’s a lot more to come.”

“Today’s performance by both of Panther Racing’s drivers shows that we
were serious when we said that Chevy would be competitive in 2005,” said
Joe Negri, GM Racing IRL program manager. “We know the competition is
intense, but we plan on winning some races. We have a engine now that
will allow Panther Racing to run at the front.”

Enge, a former Formula 3000 star and Formula 1 driver from the Czech
Republic, will make his third career IRL start on Sunday in Panther’s
Rockstar Chevy.

“We were fast in the morning practice session and I didn’t think we
would go any faster,” Enge revealed “But my engineer promised me that we
were going to go 214 mph, and everybody did a great job. The Chevy
engine has improved from last year – big time!”

“I’ve only been with this team a short time, but they always surprise
me,” he laughed. “I’m still new to this championship, but I’m gaining
confidence every time I go out on the track. So far we are looking good.”

The season-opening Toyota Indy 300 will begin at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday,
March 6. The 200-lap, 300-mile race will be televised live on ESPN.

TOYOTA INDY 300 QUALIFYING SUMMARY:
Pos./Driver/Engine/Speed
1. Tomas Scheckter/Chevrolet, 215.115 mph
2. Vitor Meira/Honda, 214.317
3. Tomas Enge/Chevrolet, 214.152
4. Buddy Rice/Honda, 214.006
5. Dario Franchitti/Honda, 213.899

General Motors Corp. , the world’s largest automaker, has been
the global industry sales leader since 1931. Founded in 1908, GM today
employs about 324,000 people around the world. It has manufacturing
operations in 32 countries and its vehicles are sold in 200 countries.
In 2004, GM sold nearly 9 million cars and trucks globally, up 4 percent
and the second-highest total in the company’s history. GM’s global
headquarters are at the GM Renaissance Center in Detroit. More
information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.

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