NorthernLight IRL: Team Cheever notes and quotes
29 September 2000
Posted By Terry CallahanMotorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
FORMULA ONE VETERAN CHEEVER IMPRESSED BY USGP AT INDY: 1998 Indianapolis 500 Champion Eddie Cheever Jr. attended the inaugural SAP United States Grand Prix from September 22-24 and was impressed with F1's debut at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
"It is nice to see that the U.S. Grand Prix finally has a good and dignified home for this event," noted Cheever. "I'm sure that all of the Formula One teams will remember the inaugural event as the highlight of their season. It was a great race to watch. At the beginning of the race all of the pageantry had a very American flavor to it, and I was very proud to participate. Hopefully in the grandstands there was a kid who felt that special spark, and he or she will go through whatever is necessary to be the next American Grand Prix driver."
Prior to his arrival on the Indy racing scene in 1990, Cheever enjoyed a distinguished career on the Formula One circuit, competing in more Grand Prix races (132) than any other American, including Mario Andretti and Dan Gurney. Attending his first F1 race since the 1998 Canadian Grand Prix, Cheever admitted: "At the beginning of the week I was happy I wasn't driving a Formula One car because 10 years had passed. But when I saw how exciting the track was and how great it was to have F1 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, I kind of felt the itch on Sunday morning. I was wishing I had one of the cars."
TONY GEORGE HONORED AS INTERNATIONAL CITIZEN OF THE YEAR: Eddie Cheever Jr. was on hand at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in downtown Indianapolis on September 26 to honor Tony George as the 2000 International Citizen of the Year. Cheever paid tribute to George - the President and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway - at the black tie event presented by the International Center of Indianapolis.
CHEEVER HONORARY CHAIR OF MINI GRAND PRIX: #51 Excite@Home driver Eddie Cheever Jr. will serve as the honorary chairperson of the Arthritis Foundation's Tenth Annual Mini Grand Prix scheduled for Saturday, September 30th in downtown Indianapolis. Local companies and organizations sponsor mini Indy-style cars and race through the city streets as part of the fundraising event, which also includes food vendors, live music, children's activities, and the Colts Care-A-Van. Admission is free to the public. For more information about the Mini Grand Prix, contact the Indiana Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation at (317) 879-0321 or 1-800-783-2342.
Text provided by Ashleigh Higgins
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