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It's Moore and Mercedes at Michigan!

26 July 1998

It's Moore and Mercedes at Michigan!

           Three-Pointed Star Wins Thrilling Battles in CART and F1

    BROOKLYN, Mich., July 26 -- The Mercedes-Benz IC108E Champ
Car engine enjoyed a triumphant run in its first 500-mile race as Greg Moore
outdueled Jimmy Vasser and Alex Zanardi in the final laps of an action-packed
U.S. 500 to score his second FedEx Championship Series win of the season.
    As expected, drafting was the most important factor in the race.  The new
high-drag, low-downforce Handford Wing resulted in close racing throughout the
event's 250 laps, with the lead changing hands no fewer than 62 times.
    Following a late-race caution period after Gil de Ferran's Honda engine
failed, it came down to a five-lap shoot-out between Moore, Vasser, Zanardi
and Scott Pruett.  Within the last four laps, Zanardi, Vasser and Moore each
took a turn at the front.  Moore finally captured the lead at the start of the
final lap, holding off Vasser and Zanardi for the run to the checkered flag.
    "This race was flat out from start to finish," said Moore.  "On the last
lap, I knew this was my last chance.  The draft here is so big that sometimes
it's impossible to prevent someone from going by.  On the straight, I was
going back and forth trying to take the draft away from Jimmy (Vasser), so he
couldn't get by me.  Once I got through turn three and four, I knew they
weren't close enough to draft by me.  This race was a lot of fun.  The new
rear wing made for some great racing today.  The people here came to see a
show, and we gave them one."
    The win was the second of the weekend for Mercedes-Benz, which also
powered West McLaren Mercedes teammates Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard to a
one-two finish in the Formula One Grand Prix of Austria.
    Moore's Player's/Forsythe Racing teammate Patrick Carpentier was the
second-highest finishing Mercedes at Michigan Speedway.  Despite pitting just
before a yellow flag and losing two laps to the leaders, he managed to get
back on the lead lap, finishing eighth.
    Rookie Helio Castro-Neves finished in a points-paying position in his
first 500-mile experience.  Although he was black flagged when his Team Alumax
car was reported smoking, he recovered to finish 12th.  PacWest Racing
teammates Mauricio Gugelmin and Mark Blundell finished 13th and 17th,
respectively.  Gugelmin was plagued by a failed right rear shock absorber, and
Blundell battled handling problems from the start.
    Hogan Racing rookie JJ Lehto ran among the leaders, but hit the wall on
lap 223.  Uninjured, he was credited with 20th place.  Marlboro Team Penske's
Al Unser Jr. and Andre Ribeiro ran competitively early in the race, with Unser
leading the first lap.  But both retired early with oil leaking from cracked
overflow tanks.