From: Michael Powell 
 
Barron Fourth for Chevy in Phoenix IRL
 
PHOENIX, March 21, 2004 - On a scorching afternoon in the Valley of the Sun,
Alex Barron shined as Chevy's top finisher in the IRL Copper World Indy 200 at
Phoenix International Raceway. Barron brought his Red Bull Cheever Racing
Chevrolet Dallara across the stripe in fourth place, 7.32 seconds behind the
leader. Starting 17th in the 20-car field, Barron gained 13 spots in the course
of 200 laps. Rookie Mark Taylor finished 12th in the Menards/Johns Manville
Chevrolet Dallara. Accidents eliminated Chevrolet drivers Tomas Scheckter,
Robbie Buhl and Ed Carpenter; none were injured.
 
Tony Kanaan won the IRL IndyCar Series' Phoenix round for the second
consecutive year in Andretti Green Racing's Honda Dallara.
 
Conditions at PIR were difficult, with 96-degree heat and a wilting desert
wind. Barron overcame the obstacles of a slippery racing surface and heavy
traffic to post his best finish since he joined Cheever Racing.
 
"Right away my car was really good and I didn't have to make many
adjustments," Barron reported. "We were a little conservative at
the end with
the rubber pickup on the tires, and I thought maybe I could get third. Overall
we're real happy with the result.
 
"The Chevy power ran great in the race," Barron continued.
"I struggled a bit
this weekend in qualifying. We concentrated in the warm-up on having a good
car. The engineering staff and the crew put together a good car for me. We came
back, and that's what counts."
 
Tomas Scheckter appeared to be headed for a podium finish in Panther Racing's
Chevrolet Dallara. Running third with 20 laps to go, Scheckter was hit from
behind by Dario Franchitti under the yellow flag brought out by Robbie Buhl's
accident in Turn 4.
 
"I slowed for the yellow and was hit from behind," said
Scheckter. "I heard my
spotter call 'Yellow, yellow, yellow!' It was a crash that shouldn't have
happened."
 
Scheckter's misfortune elevated his teammate Mark Taylor in the final
standings. Taylor finished 12th, the best result of his young IndyCar Series
career.
 
"Being a rookie, I struggled in the first 50 laps to gain confidence and
really push the car," Taylor said. "I could have done better if
I'd pushed a
bit harder in the beginning, but when the car's twitching like that, I'm not
going to take any risks after what happened in Homestead.
 
"The engine was great all the way through," Taylor continued.
"We only did two
pit stops so fuel wasn't a problem. I was able to overtake on the outside when
I needed to.
 
"I was a tough day, with the heat and the rubber on the track at the beginning
of the race," he declared. "It was hard work out there, and I'm
happy to have
finished with that result. It would have been nice to get a top 10, but at
least we finished, and that's the most important thing."
 
Rookie driver Ed Carpenter was not so fortunate in Cheever Racing's second
entry. He encountered the SAFER barrier "soft wall" on the 133rd lap.
 
"I was going into Turn 1 with Takagi and Ray and we were all trying to pass
Sharp," Carpenter recalled. "I got impatient and lost my head for just a
minute. I tried to turn in a little too hard and just pinched it off and spun
out. It's a shame. The guys gave me a really good car to work with and I just
made a mistake and lost it."
 
Buhl also tested the SAFER barrier after he lost a portion of his rear wing on
the backstretch. With the sudden loss of downforce, Buhl crashed in the next
corner, but emerged from the wreckage without injury.
 
"It's unfortunate because the guys had worked hard on the car, and gave me a
good car for what we had to work with," said Buhl. "We kept
running hard, and I
think we would've gained a couple of more spots by the end of the race."
 
The IndyCar Series will journey to Japan for the Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring
Motegi on April 17. The third round of the 16-race series will be televised
live on ESPN2 at 12 a.m. EDT.
 
RACE SUMMARY
 
Track: Phoenix International Raceway, 1-mile oval
 
Winner: Tony Kanaan, Andretti Green Racing Honda Dallara
 
Margin of Victory: .5344 seconds
 
Average Speed: 127.981 mph
 
Pole: Dan Wheldon/Honda, 174.779 mph
 
Fastest Lap: Darren Manning/Toyota, 161.433 mph
 
RESULTS
 
Pos./Driver/Engine/Laps
 
1. Tony Kanaan/Honda, 200
2. Scott Dixon/Toyota, 200
3. Dan Wheldon/Honda, 200
4. Alex Barron/Chevrolet, 200
5. Darren Manning/Toyota, 200
12. Mark Taylor/Chevrolet, 198
16. Tomas Scheckter/Chevrolet, 180 (accident)
18. Robbie Buhl/Chevrolet, 177 (accident)
19. Ed Carpenter/Chevrolet, 132 (accident)
 
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after 2 of 16 events)
 
Driver/Engine/Points (victories in parentheses)
 
1. Tony Kanaan/Honda, 77 (1)
2. Helio Castroneves/Toyota, 71
3. Dan Wheldon/Honda, 70
4. Sam Hornish Jr./Toyota, 65 (1)
5. Darren Manning/Toyota, 58
 
Manufacturer/Points (victories in parentheses)
 
1. Toyota, 17 (1)
Honda, 17 (1)
3. Chevrolet, 10
 
NEXT EVENT
 
April 17, 2004, Indy Japan 300, Twin Ring Motegi, Motegi, Japan
 
TV: ESPN2, 12 a.m. EDT
 
General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), the world's largest vehicle manufacturer,
employs about 325,000 people globally. Founded in 1908, GM has been the global
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GM's global headquarters is at the GM Renaissance Center in Detroit. More
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website at www.gm.com.
 
___ Internet Rex 2.29
 


--- GTMail 1.26