The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 31

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1989- -THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR- 3-13 CART, Pbcono; a bitter divorcel is? Auto Racing USAC '500' plan favors older cars By RICK SHAFFER corned by some, but there was concern by owners of some smaller teams about keeping tneir old cars competitive against the new ones. Machin duced interest and attention among oval track fans." "In 1988, we broke attendance records at eight of the fifteen races on the schedule." Poole added. We also turned down six promoters who wanted their races added to the schedule. "We (CART) didn't want lose Pocono. It's In a good market with Philadelphia and New York nearby, but we couldn't ask the drivers to race there under the current Poole added that CART "would like a higher mix of ovals" on Its schedule and was looking at the southeastern portion of the country for additional oval-track races.

lsts Union announced they wouldn be back next year, but might run Indy if rules permit them to be competitive. And Frank Arciero is also threaten ing to disband his team for simi When asked if Indy cars would be gone from PIR forever, Mattioli replied: "Who can ever say? If they (CART) change their tact and show a way we can make a profit, of course. We're not crazy. We're in the business of running auto races." In response to Mattioll's remarks, CART spokesman Mel Poole said that Mattioli had an escape clause which allowed him to drop the race for the final year of the contract. "He (Mattioli) chose to exercise his option," said Poole.

"Technically speaking, he dropped us because of that option, but CART would not have returned because he failed to make the necessary improvements in the facility. "You'll notice he says that Pocono is making most of the Improvements required by CART. That's very carefully worded and it a really good choice of words." Poole took exception to Mattioll's argument that current schedule has "dramatically re- lar reasons. tioli explained. "But when CART made its announcement and Mario and Michael Andretti made remarks about the track.

I had to do something." Mattioli alluded to remarks made to a Philadelphia newspaper by the Andrettis concerning the boiler-plate wall. "Ironically, we have bids for replacing the wall with a concrete wall." Mattioli continued. "We were going to basically do what they (CART) had wanted us to do all along." However, financial considerations played a major role in the track's decision to not stage an Indy-car race. "We lost our shirt on this race." Mattioli said. "We drew half of what we used to draw for the Schaefer 500 (when it was sanctioned by USAC) and half of what we draw for the NASCAR race, which was a sell-out." According to Mattioli, the reason that fans In his area have shunned the race has been a lack of identity with current Indy-car drivers, many of whom are from foreign countries, and the fact that the high cost of the sport has prevented his track from having a 33-car field like Indianapolis.

CART has attempted to resolve that situation by offering so-called "underwing diffuser kits tree of charge to help the financially-strapped teams save money and retain their current cars. Although not every owner By RICK SHAFFER STAR STAFF WRITER On Thursday, Championship Auto Racing Teams announced it had dropped the Pocono 500 from its 1990 schedule. On Friday. Pocono International Raceway's chief executive officer. Dr.

Joseph Mattloll. announced that It was PIR that had dropped CART. In a week filled with auto racing- controversies as USAC weighed its options on 1990 chassis rules, the CART-PIR struggle was added to the fray. Mattioli issued a statement in which he detailed a sequence of events concerning his race track and CART. On Aug.

20. PIR hosted the Quaker State 500. On Aug. 23. PIR notified CART by a mailgram that it would not exercise its 1990 option to stage a race because the event was not profitable.

On Sept. 7. a purported CART schedule for 1 990 included Pocono as a tentative event with an Aug. 19 date. On Sept.

10, Pocono was contacted by Atlanta International Raceway regarding CART'S negotiations with AIR to assume Pocono's 1990 date. On Sept. 12, CART chairman John Frasco sent Mattioli a notification letter, dated Sept. 7, acknowledging receipt of the Pocono mailgram of Aug. 23, which announced the track was dropping the race.

Mattioli claimed he would have let the matter alone had It not been for the announcement that CART was dropping his race, in conjunction with the announcement CART would hold a race in Denver next year. "I was going to let the thing die and not say anything." Mat supports the new CART chassis rules, the desire to make Indy cars safer is shared by all. "We're strong advocates of 'T'HE UNITED States Auto Club can always change its mind, but If the sanctioning body for the Indianapolis 500 goes through with its plan to allow older cars to compete under existing regulations, next year's "500" could become the "greatest spectacle in used cars." A week ago. It was learned that USAC was planning to announce new rules which could make the newer and slower 1990 cars uncompetitive against current cars. In a letter to potential "500" entrants released Friday.

USAC asked for opinions on chassis construction for 1990. In its letter. USAC said it intends to allow 1989 cars and older to compete without wind tunnel changes proposed by Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), which sanctions all Indy-car races except Indianapolis. USAC also proposed lengthening the cars by six inches (to allow the driver to be moved behind the front axle line) and restricting the rear wing length to "achieve increased stability." USAC's yet-to-be unveiled rules created a mini-uproar at last Sunday's Indy-car race at Elkhart Lake. Car owner Roger Penske vowed to refrain from selling his current cars to smaller teams and questioned the logic in failing to slow down the cars.

However, fellow car owner Vince Granatelli questions the logic of using safety as an argument. "This is a not a safety Issue, making attempts at restricting MAYO KNOY-ELLIS East Office $2,000,000 Hard work, dedication and professional service are qualities that helped Mayo reach $2,000,000 in sales. For quality real estate service, call one of Graves' Top Producers! BUS. 897-3220 RES. 353-1945 the speeds of the cars," said Johnny Capels, director of the Alfa RomeoMarch team.

"We would be wrong in theory to not make the cars slow down. CLASSIC CAR CARE ADD A TIM OF GLASS "If we don't try to reduce speeds after what we experi enced this year at Indianapolis then I think we're opening the door to some serious accidents Capels serves on CART'S jf JtiirjATi ONE OF INDY'S LARGEST AUTO TINTING COMPANIES! PROFESSIONAL INSTALLATION OF 3M OR MARTIN WINDOW TINT mm ON WXLW 950AM RADIO it's a sales issue," said Granatelli. "If it's a safety issue, why eliminate the '89 cars? It's more than making a wing change. The new rules will do a lot of things to the '89 cars. "I think it would be a grave mistake to not allow the '87, '88 and '89 cars as is.

Indianapolis is the premier race of the series there's no secret to that. We had 105 entries (last May) and that's more than all the CART races put together. board of directors and was part of the CART delegation which met with USAC officials last week. His is a well-taken point, and that's where this columnist gets to put in his two cents' worth. After seeing speeds climb at an alarming rate during practice for last May's Indy 500, there was almost a sense of relief when the month was over.

Danny Sullivan became the month's only casualty with a severe arm fracture following a meeting with the Turn 3 concrete. Jim Crawford also walked away from one of the heaviest crashes In the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He was in his own words "stirred not shaken," but unhurt. In the race Itself, Kevin Cogan walked away from one of the most grisly accidents ever at IMS. Perhaps IMS and the sport of auto racing got lucky that month.

The toll could have been much higher. Granatelli admits that he's not an engineer. Neither is this columnist, but there's got to be a solution to the situation. Still, allowing the cars capable of laps at 225-plus to return to IMS in current form only means that they'll go faster next May. And when they crash, they'll crash harder.

SALEM SPEEDWAY will host the ASA Midwest 300 today at 1 p.m. Bloomington Speedway will host the Sheldon Kinser Memorial Race for non-winged sprint cars on Friday with hot laps at 7 p.m. and racing at 8 p.m. Steel Belted All Season Tread "I'm speaking for selfish rea sons, but I own four '88 Lolas, two '87 Marches and two '86 Marches. I have a chance of Tiompo Radial selling these cars now.

The only people who will buy them will be people who will run Indianapolis only." Granatelli added that he won't be running a '90 car in WHiTEWALL Needed P20575R15 $57.80 P21575R15 $60.90 P22575R15 $64.10 P23575R15 $67.55 WHITEWALL "ftf Sl" Needed Pt6580R13 $41.25 P18580R13 $45.69 P18575R14 $49.55 P19575R14 $52.20 P20575R14 $54.90 P15580R13 Whitewalt No Trade Needed the CART series next year. He already has a contract to purchase three '89 PC-18s from Penske. The '90 cars for CART will be Ifi li sill c-w, Lr designed to go slower, thanks to changes in the underwing area and a change in the rear wing placement. They would also be safer In that the drivers' feet would no longer extend beyond the front axle line. TIRES AND SERVICE YOU TRUST- FROM THE PEOPLE YOU TRUST AUTO TIRES LIGHT TRUCK TIRES The new rules have been wel- Allison shooting for big payday at Dover INVICTAGL WRANGLER ST Vbar 'round radtal tor strvota and rughmyi WRANGLER MT New, rugged radial built lor trw back country T1EMPO Tha original en-season radial ARRIVA RADIAL most a import cars WRANGLER AT WRANGLER Engineered tor ATRV on and Ail season, an terrain, ofltheroed an wftaei poartion radial VECTOR At mm radial lor Crisscross Iraad fights the waatnar for aerodynamic can WRANGLER nn WRANGLER RADIAL RIB EAGLE ST EAGLE GT Year round high WVOe.

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Davey Allison was elated, and It wasn't only because dollar signs were danc-Zi- ing in his eyes. T. The 28-year-old second-gen-J1 eration NASCAR stock car driver won the pole position Friday for 1 the Peak Performance 500 at I' Dover Downs International Raceway. That gave him a shot at a payday of more than $200,000 if 1 he wins today's 500-lap arce on the treacherous one-mile, hlgh- banked oval. The winner's share of the 1 purse will be about $55,000 and Allison also has a shot at the Unocal 76 Challenge bonus, IT which has climbed to $159,600.

The bonus building at T. $7,600 per race goes to any driver who wins a race from the pole. Nobody has climbed the prize since Rusty Wallace at the I second event of the season. "We would certainly like to I be the ones to take home the Unocal money this week." Alli- son said. "Even though we have I Texaco-Havoline as our sponsor, I I don't think they would mind if we win and take home some money from another oil compa- ny." No driver has swept the pole and the race at Dover since Cale I Yarborough in 1976.

Allison drove his Ford Thun- derbird to a fast lap of 146.169 I mph. beating Alan Kulwickl's Ford by Just .082 seconds as I Kulwicki posted a lap of 145.684. I Allison's last pole came just over a year ago at Richmond. L. where Jje also went on to win the race.

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