CART: Gil de Ferran Gateway Preview
28 May 1999
GIL DE FERRAN # 5 VALVOLINE/CUMMINS - HONDA/REYNARD/GOODYEARRACE PREVIEW - FACT SHEET: GATEWAY
What: Motorola 300 - Round six of the 20-races FedEx Championship Series for the PPG Cup.
When: Saturday, May 28, 1999 . Practice, Thursday. Qualifying, Friday.
Where: Gateway International Speedway, Madison, Illinois.
Distance: 300 miles, 236 laps
The Circuit: 1.27 Mile paved banked oval.
Along with the new lighting, there will be new seats with great views of the action around the Gateway oval, and a new pedestrian/vehicle bridge on the back straightaway to improve traffic flow -- and the sight lines for the fans in the stands. New parking, concession and rest room areas will be added as Gateway gets ready to take its place as one of motorsports major venues.
Broadcast: ESPN2 CART Qualifying 5:00 PM EST (5/28) ESPN2 CART 2Day 12:00 Noon (5/29) ABC CART Race 3:00 PM EST (5/29) EuroSport CART Race 19:00 GMT (5/29) ESPN CART Race 1:00 PM EST (6/1)
1998 Champion : Alex Zanardi Defending Polesitter: Greg Moore
Track Records: Qualifying record: (one lap) 1997, Raul Boesel, 187.963 mph (24.324 seconds). Race record: 1998, Alex Zanardi, 125.725 mph (2:23:02.140)
1999 Cart Point Leaders: 1- Juan Montoya 66 2- Dario Franchitti 51 3- Christian Fittipaldi 49 4- Gregg Moore 45 5- Adrian Fernandez 43 6- Michael Andretti 40 7- Gil de Ferran 36
Gil de Ferran - 1999 Driver Index Report
GIL DE FERRAN # 5 VALVOLINE/CUMMINS - HONDA/REYNARD/GOODYEAR
History: Gateway - 1998 Started 12th and finished 6th, 18.723 seconds behind winner Zanardi. 1997 started 15th and finished 3rd.
Year Qualify Start Finish
1998 12th 12th 6th
1997 15th 15th 3rd
Gil de Ferran: "It's a very difficult short oval, the two corners are very different, one been small radius and very banked and the other much wider and faster. The track is still very bumpy specially turns 3 and 4, in fact is a bump at the entrance of turn 3 that is the source of a lot of trouble. "There are no big changes from last year," said de Ferran, noting the same downforce-reducing wing package was used at Gateway in 1998.
Derrick Walker: " Looking forward to the race so we can regain our championship drive. Had a good test in preparation for the race, Goodyears have some interesting tyres which we are keen to see them perform against the competition.."
Motorola 300 " Fast Facts"
Three Biggest Factors at Gateway:
1) Quick pit-stops : Pits are very long here. It can take as long as fifty seconds from the time a car enters the pit lane, completes service, and returns to the track. Should be a four stop race.
2) Tire Wear: It will be important to look at how the tires wear during the course of a run with the fuel going from full to empty. Having a car that stays consistent with its balance will be the key (i.e. front to rear grip). Right-rear tires are severely tested - enormous load are experienced. If temperatures rise, tires will go away and there will be many unbalanced cars.
3) Traffic: Pits are closed under full course yellows, so making laps up, if you get a lap down, is difficult. Fuel management will be very important if there are few yellow flags.
Champ Cars "under the lights"
The weekend schedule includes a special practice session Friday at 8 p.m.. The practice has been scheduled as a first step in exploring the possibility of conducting a future FedEx Championship Series event under the lights.
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