Andretti aims for second consecutive victory

Andretti aims for second consecutive victory
Surfers Paradise, Australia
April 4, 1997

Based on early-season form and past race finishes in Australia, Michael Andretti, Paul Tracy and Jimmy Vasser appear to be the trio to watch in Sunday's Australian IndyCarnival. Andretti, who took the opening Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami on March 3, also won over the 2.794-mile Surfers Paradise temporary street circuit in 1994. Tracy, who won Down Under in 1995, finished second at Miami and Vasser, last year's winner in Australia and the 1996 PPG Cup series champion, was third in Florida. The win was Andretti's 36th, 16 short of the number achieved by his father, Mario, who will drive the pace car in Sunday's race. While Michael Andretti said his American-built Swift-Ford at Miami was the result of the "perfect marriage" between driver and car, he said there was room for improvement. "I think we have the best car and we are capable of being the best car out there," Andretti said Thursday. "But we are not yet as quick as we would like to be." Andretti and teammate Christian Fittipaldi practiced at Sebring, Fla., in preparation for the tighter curves of the Surfers Paradise course. "It's a tight course for a street circuit but it's one of the better ones for passing ... without taking too many risks," Andretti said. Andretti's aggressive driving last year put Tracy out of the race and eventually himself. There will be fewer chances for accidents on at least one portion of the track. The ocean-side chicane has been widened as part of an increased safety awareness on the circuit. Scott Pruett will be out to improve on his second-place finish here last year. Pruett, fourth here in 1994 and third in 1995, is honeymooning with his wife, Judy, after being married on New Year's Eve. Pruett, fifth at Miami, has new sponsorship from a beer company, a revitalized Ford-Cosworth engine and a last-minute swap to a Reynard chassis. He led the qualifying here last year until Vasser edged him by .02 seconds in the final minutes of the last qualifying session. "That was our own fault," Pruett said. "I'd been fastest all weekend and believed I could have gone faster. "But the team decided we were in good shape so I brought the car in. Not this time." Drivers will have a Friday morning practice session before the first qualifying session Friday afternoon, with the final qualifying session set for Saturday. Sunday's race will be 181.61 miles over 65 laps. On Monday, the cars and other equipment will be loaded back on two transport planes for shipping back to the United States in time for the April 13 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.