Sports Car Rolls into Las Vegas
22 April 1998
The second round of the Professional Sports Car Racing (PSR) season continues this week-end in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Toshiba Copiers & Fax Grand Prix will be conducted on the 2.25 mile 9-turn track. For the World Sports Car (WSC) ,GT-1, GT-2 and GT-3 race teams the four hour enduro will get underway at 1:00 PM (PST) on Sunday April 26. Supporting the four- hour enduro will be the Endurance Cup (2 Hour and 45 min) race for Stock Sports Cars and the Sports Toyota Championship (30 minute race). The Las Vegas Motor Speedway received a lot of praise from the participants last year. The ultra-modern garage facilities as well as the track configuration were given thumbs-up reviews by all of the teams. The major difference this year is that the main event will be run during the day. Last year the endurance race was on Saturday night. One other change is that the track configuration has been shortened by a quarter-mile from last year's event. This race will be the first real test for the PSR marketing department. With the on-going split in the sportscar sanctioning world the Las Vegas race is the first of the season to determine if the fans will support two series. The previous two races at Daytona and Sebring are so well established that regardless of any in-fighting among the sanctioning bodies a large contingent of competitors and racefans arrive for the race meeting. The number of competitors attending the Las Vegas race could be smaller than last year since this race venue is, for many East Coast based teams, an out and back tow. Last year the PSR race was followed the next week-end with a PSR race in Pikes Peak, Colorado. The expense of a round-trip tow of 6,000 miles was easy to justify with two races. With just the one event some teams may defer to attend. The other indicator that the race is having a tough time drawing a lot of cars is that the four-hour enduro is going to run all four classes together. This could be a recipe for carnage. On a long- road course such as Daytona, Sebring or Watkins Glen the combining of the classes makes sense. However, on a short road course of 2.25 miles it leaves little time for any of the drivers to get even a moments rest. It will be interesting to watch. The one unknown for determining the number of competitors is that the announced prize money for the Las Vegas race is up over last year. Even with the increase in prize money, there are still some teams feeling the sting of not being paid for the last two races of the 1997 season. For the enduro race the prize money will be distributed from 1st ($15,000) to 20th ($1,000) place. In addition to the over-all prize money each of the four classes will have prize money distributed from 1st($8,000) to 5th ($1,000) place. To regain the confidence of the competitors, the organizers are literally going out of their way to assure teams that PSR is here to stay and will be the sportscar sanctioning body of the future. Results and actions will speak for themselves. Setting aside all of the internal politics of sportscar racing, the marketing department of PSR is trying to capitalize on the momentum coming out of Sebring. The Momo Ferrari team led by team owner Gianpiero Moretti will be a drawing card to see if the team can continue their two race winning streak. The Las Vegas race week-end will also be hosting the Endurance Showroom StockCar Series, Sports Toyota Championship series and the American City Racing League. For ticket information contact 702-644-4444 or by fax 702-644-7774. David Treffer -- The Auto Channel
