NorthernLight IRL: Up and Down Day for McGehee and Energizer Team
21 March 2000
Posted By Terry
Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
Phoenix, AZ: After only thirty laps into the MCI
Worldcom 200 at
Phoenix International Raceway, Energizer Motorsports driver Robby
McGehee had already experienced the highs and lows of Indy racing.
After qualifying fourth on the grid for today's race, the 26 year-old
St. Louis resident took the #5 Energizer Advanced Formula car all the
way to the front of the pack with bold passing maneuvers to lead 11
laps before a slow spin and contact with the turn two wall ended his
day on lap 29.McGehee had run at the top of the charts all weekend and demonstrated that his was the car to beat-until the hot track temperatures and fierce racing action ended his debut at the famed Arizona one-mile oval. "It is just such a shame for the Energizer Motorsports team," stated McGehee. "The Treadway Racing team clearly gave me the car to beat today-but it just wasn't meant to be. I don't really know what happened yet. The car was loose and the back end just slowly came around on me. My engineer Jeff Britton gave me the best possible racecar-but the rear just drifted around on me. I just feel really bad for my guys and the whole Treadway team."
McGehee led laps 19 through 29 by stealing the lead from pole sitter Greg Ray. His 24th place finish earns him six IRL points to place him 19th in the IRL Championship standings-just 10 points away from a spot in the top 10. His next stop is Fort Worth, Texas where he and the Energizer Motorsports crew will be participating in a private Firestone tire test at the Texas Motor Speedway on Wednesday of this week.
Text provided by Ruthie Culbertson
Editors Note: To view hundreds of hot racing photos
and art, visit
The Racing
Photo Museum and the
Visions
of Speed Art Gallery.