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CART: Rahal to end term as interim president, CEO of CART

21 September 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
DETROIT- Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. (NYSE: MPH) announced today that Robert W. (Bobby) Rahal will conclude his tenure as its interim President and CEO in November to accept a position with the Jaguar Formula One team.

Rahal will continue in his role as a CART team owner, maintaining his two-car team in the FedEx Championship Series. His move to Jaguar reflects CART's expanded stature in the worldwide motorsports community. CART's Champ Car series will conduct 22 races in eight countries on five continents in 2001. On-site race event audiences will number nearly 3 million people, and more than 1 billion more in over 200 countries will follow the FedEx Series on television.

"Earlier this year I committed to the Board of Directors that I would assume the position of Chief Executive Officer and President on an interim basis to help through the transition following Andrew Craig's resignation," said Rahal. "I believe that the Board and CART management, with significant direction from James Hardymon [acting CART Chairman], have accomplished many of our objectives in a relatively short period of time.

"The end of the race season is a very appropriate time for me to step aside to allow a permanent appointment to be made. With my other business ventures, I do not think that I can provide the day-to-day leadership to CART necessary to grow our sport. I was offered and have accepted the position as Chief Executive Officer for the Jaguar Formula One effort starting December 1, 2000.

"This appointment allows me the opportunity to fulfill a dream. It is a unique and challenging opportunity which fits directly into my interests and goals in auto racing, which include my commitment to my CART FedEx Championship team, under the day-to-day direction of Scott Roembke at Team Rahal."

Mr. James F. Hardymon, Chairman of the Board of the Company, stated: "The Board of Directors wishes to thank Mr. Rahal for accepting the responsibilities of this office during this interim period. We will continue to rely on Mr. Rahal's insight and we wish him well in his future endeavors. We have retained an executive search firm to assist us in our efforts to locate the person to fill this position on a permanent basis."

Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. (NYSE: MPH) owns, operates and markets the FedEx Championship Series. Champions Juan Montoya, Michael Andretti and Jimmy Vasser are among the drivers who battle for the FedEx Championship Series title on oval circuits as well as temporary and permanent road courses. CART also owns and operates its top two development series, the Dayton Indy Lights Championship and the Toyota Atlantic Championship. Learn more about CART's open-wheel racing series at www.cart.com.

This press release may contain "Forward-Looking Statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this release may constitute forward-looking statements. Although the parties believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, they can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Actual results may differ materially from the parties' expectations due to changes in corporate performance, industry factors, continued due diligence by the parties, and other operational and economical factors. Additional information on potential factors that could affect the Company's financial results is included in the reports filed with the SEC, including its Form 10-K.

Text Provided By Randy K. Dzierzawski

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