IRL: Brack Makes History at Atlanta with Third Straight Win
30 August 1998
|
Brack, from Karlstad, Sweden, passed Jeff Ward in Turn 1 on Lap 195 of the 208-lap race and never trailed thereafter. He held off a charging Davey Hamilton in the closing laps on the 1.54-mile quad-oval, winning by .944 of a second. Hamilton's second-place finish in the Reebok-Nienhouse Motorsports Dallara/Aurora/Goodyear was a career best.
"I debated on the last pit stop whether to try to take the lead or to be satisfied with what we had, and I decided to go for it," Brack said. "I can't believe it. We won $100,000, and we're doing really well in the run for the championship. We'll see how it goes."
Brack earned $160,950 for the victory, $50,000 of that sum his half of a $100,000 bonus shared with a fan through the MCI Pep Boys Million contest. Brack will split a $1 million bonus with a fan by winning the season-ending Las Vegas 500 on Oct. 11.
Brack set himself up for the big bonus by winning this race and the VisionAire 500 on July 25 at Charlotte, N.C., the first race in his hot streak. He continued the streak with a victory at the Radisson 200 on Aug. 16 at Fountain, Colo.
Brack, who started sixth, averaged 140.026 mph in the Power Team Dallara/Aurora/Goodyear owned by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A.J. Foyt. Brack's victory completed a sweep of the three Pep Boys IRL night races this season for A.J. Foyt Racing. Brack's teammate, Billy Boat, won the True Value 500 on June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Eddie Cheever Jr. finished third Saturday night in the Rachel's Gourmet Potato Chips-Team Cheever Dallara/Aurora/Goodyear, his best showing since winning the Indianapolis 500 in May.
Scott Goodyear finished fourth in the Pennzoil Panther G Force/Aurora/Goodyear but led 93 laps, more than any other driver. Defending league champion Tony Stewart finished fifth after starting 25th in the 28-car field in his Glidden-Menards-Special Dallara/Aurora/Firestone.
Brack leads the standings with 282 points, the first time he has topped the points during his Pep Boys IRL career. Hamilton is second at 259 and Stewart third at 257.
Scott Sharp, who entered this event with the points lead, finished 18th in the Delphi Automotive Systems Dallara/Aurora/Goodyear after dropping out of the race with gearbox problems after 135 laps. Sharp fell to fourth in the points at 246.
The next Pep Boys Indy Racing league event is the Lone Star 500 on Sept. 20 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. It's the 10th of 11 events in the series this season.
Editors Note: The images displayed in this article (plus many more) can be viewed in The Racing Image Galleries and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.
