Indy Lights: Servia Wins Lights Pole @ Detroit

8 August 1999
                CATALONIA'S ORIOL SERVIA WINS INDY LIGHTS POLE
                                  AT DETROIT NEWS CHALLENGE

        DETROIT, Mich. (Aug. 7, 1999) - - Oriol Servia, of Pals, Catalonia,
Spain, found light at the end of his proverbial tunnel after a torrid final
qualifying lap around Belle Isle's 14-turn, 2.346-mile road course that set
a new track record and secured his third Indy Lights pole this season for
Sunday's Detroit New Challenge.

        Servia will start in the front of a 19-car field in round nine of
the 12-race PPG-Dayton Indy Lights Championship. His winning lap of
1:22.353 = 102.554 mph in the Catalonia/RACC/Elf Lola eclipsed the previous
record set by Airton Dare in 1998 of 1:22.525 = 102.340 mph. Servia also
won pole positions at Nazareth and Portland earlier this season.

        Teammates Philipp Peter, of Monte Carlo, Monaco, and Casey Mears,
of Bakersfield, Calif., will start eighth and 13th with times of 1:23.193 =
101.518 mph and 1:23.787 = 100.798 mph, respectively.

        The 30-minute final qualifying period started on-schedule at 11:15
a.m. ET under clear skies, comfortable humidity, and temperatures in the
low 80s. No major incidents were reported. One two-minute caution was
issued near the midway point of the session when Mario Dominguez struck the
tire barriers in turn three, bringing the session to a brief halt.

        The starting line-up was literally in limbo until  the final
seconds. Derek Higgins then Felipe Giaffone set the early pace. Servia
entered the picture moments past the midway mark when he tipped the scales
at 1:23.339 = 101.322 mph. Four drivers swapped the top position five times
over a four minute span with 11 minutes remaining in the session.

        Servia's last lap heroics prevented Jonny Kane from taking his
second straight Indy Lights pole. With a little over one minute remaining,
Kane recorded a 1:22.486 = 102.388 mph placing him temporarily on pole.
When the checkered flag was issued, Kane's time was still the fastest.
Servia, Guy Smith, and Didier Andre were all completing their last laps 
with Servia prevailing.

        Servia earned a $1,000 bonus for his pole-winning effort, in
addition to a championship point - extending his lead over his teammate
Mears to eight points, 96-88. Peter is only nine points behind  with 87
points.

        "My last lap was as close to text book as I cold get," said Servia.
"I concentrated my hardest of the weekend to hit every corner apex nearly
as perfect as possible. I took the tires to their limit and used every inch
of track the way it should. This isn't a big secret. It's just I finally
ran a great technical lap."

        Sunday's 32-lap, 75.072-mile PPG-Dayton Indy Lights Championship
race is scheduled to drop the green flag at 12:30 p.m. ET.