1999 Long Beach Thoughts
TRACK: It's amazing that it has been 25 years since Chris Pook took his harebrained
idea and made it a reality. Where has all the time gone?
RACE: I don't care what everybody (including myself) says about street circuits. I
love Long Beach. Always have, always will. Even if this year's race turned into a runaway.
MONTOYA: WOW! Simply, wow. Then again, for those familiar with his Pau street race
performance last year where he lapped the entire field for the largest margin of victory in F3000
history, this is not much of a surprise. And, we won't even mention how, yet again, a driver put
on probation wins his next race out.
KANAAN: Simply folded under pressure. A shame, since he was the only one that could
give Montoya a fight, thus spoiling a potential showdown to the finish.
HEARN: I think Richie is carrying the idea of maximizing sponsor exposure a bit too
far.
FITTIPALDI: A great run. Even better than last week's podium finish.
ANDRETTI: Consider this stat -- despite not having a win yet in this young season, Mikey
has 32 points. After three races, and one win, last season, he only had 21 points. And his move
on de Ferran still makes him one of the most exciting drivers to watch.
TRACY: Whether it was his fault or not, it is ironic that it was Andretti he tangled
with. And it is interesting that once again, Paul watched the finish from the pit wall.
VASSER: What I find interesting, is that even when Zanardi would dominate races, Jimmy
was still very competitive, thus not totally being overshadowed. This year, Vasser has yet
to be close to his typical competitiveness.
MARQUES: That's what I would call rookie exuberance.
TOYOTA: Not quite what they expected after some fine runs on the ovals and last year's
latter street races.
START: Perhaps the worst start in CART history.
YELLOW FLAGS: I really like the FIA yellow flag zone rules. I think all road racing on
all levels in America should institute it.
PAGE: It's amazing how every driver who dropped out "had a good run going." Well,
that's what Paul says.
SUPER PRIX: The best news of the weekend is that the Hawaiian Super Prix organizers
came to their senses and dumped that ridiculous point system
to determine a winner, and will now go with a nice and simple formula -- the first one across the
line in the second heat wins. Gee, must have taken some real brain power to figure that one out.
Now it's worth the $20 pay-per-view fee.
QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND: Mauricio Gugelmin after competing in a "race" on a new
super-realistic full-car computer simulation with full motion effects of the California Speedway:
"This is the first time I've ever crashed three times on an oval in 15 minutes and was able to
walk away. I'm satisfied with my performance."
RUNNERUP QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND: Dario Franchitti on street circuits: "When I drove around
it, it looked fine, but that was before they put the barriers up. When I saw that, I was
horrified."
SCHEDULE: Nobody knows Nazareth the way Paul Tracy does. If he keeps his head screwed
on correctly (a tall order indeed), he will be the one in victory lane.
Deep Throttle
Copyright © 1999 by Deep Throttle. All Rights Reserved.
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