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IRL: McGehee runs at the top in Orlando

8 January 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

Indianapolis, IN: Robby McGehee has shed his rookie status with a vengeance. At the close of practice yesterday during the open test at the Walt Disney World Speedway, he was second on the speed charts with a lap of 166.984 mph in his #55 Energizer Advanced Formula 2000 G-Force/ Aurora/Firestone car.

Under the direction of Treadway Racing team manager Skip Faul and engineer Jeff Britton, McGehee-the 1999 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year-finished in sixth position overall among the 20 cars participating in the two-day test.

"We were very happy to be there," stated the 26 year-old. "The 2000 G-Force has tremendous potential, and I'm sure we didn't realize the half of it this week. We still have a lot left in the car and I'm sure we could trim it out even further than we did. The guys did a great job the past two days and I can stand on the gas if I have to."

The St. Louis, Missouri resident completed a total of 113 laps yesterday before "hanging it up" due to increasingly windy conditions. "The wind picked up and there was no reason to risk anything," he said.

Overall, the Energizer Motorsports crew completed 214 laps on the 1-mile tri-oval in preparation for the upcoming Delphi Indy 200 to run on January 29.

For more information regarding Treadway Racing, visit www.treadwayracing.com on the Internet. Also, check out websites for Robby McGehee and Energizer Motorsports at: www.rmracing.com and www.energizer-motorsports.com.

The following is a listing of overall practice speeds:

Car No. Driver C/E/T Top Speed (Day recorded)

1 Greg Ray 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 168.445 mph (Wed.)
7 Stephan Gregoire 2000 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 167.887 (Thurs.)
1T Greg Ray 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 167.707 (Wed.)
8 Scott Sharp 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 167.333 (Wed.)
12 Buzz Calkins 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 167.069 (Wed.)
55 Robby McGehee 2000 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 166.984 (Thurs.)
28 Mark Dismore 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 166.752 (Wed.)
8T Scott Sharp 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 166.651 (Thurs.)
98 Donnie Beechler 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 165.960 (Thurs.)
3 Al Unser Jr. 2000 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 164.979 (Thurs.)
51 Eddie Cheever Jr. 1999 Dallara/Infiniti/Firestone 163.736 (Wed.)
5 Sam Schmidt 1999 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 163.347 (Wed.)
51 Ross Cheever 1999 Dallara/Infiniti/Firestone 161.936 (Thurs.)
14 Jeff Ward 2000 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 161.696 (Wed.)
18 Sam Hornish Jr. 1999 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 161.681 (Wed.)
98T Donnie Beechler 1999 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 161.276 (Wed.)
10 Jon Herb 1999 G Force/Aurora/Firestone 159.553 (Thurs.)
43 Doug Didero 1999 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 157.791 (Thurs.)
11 Jeff Ward 1999 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 156.121 (Wed.)
28T Mark Dismore 2000 Dallara/Aurora/Firestone 153.912 (Thurs.)

Editors Note: To view hundreds of hot racing photos and art, visit The Racing Photo Museum and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.