Unser, Hamilton wrap up preps

Thursday, April 13, 2000 | 10:37 a.m.

SUN STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Racing veterans Al Unser Jr. and Davey Hamilton concluded their final preparations Wednesday for the April 22 Indy Racing Northern Light Series Vegas Indy 300 with the final day of a two-day test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Unser, who logged more than 100 laps during Wednesday's test session, had a top speed of 205.2 mph.

"We worked real hard on our qualifying and race set-up, and we are real happy with the car," Unser said. "This is an important race because we need some momentum going into the Indy 500. This is a great track, and we really want to win here very badly."

Hamilton's team continued to be hampered by electrical problems, which plagued the team at Phoenix last month. The Las Vegas resident did manage to turn several laps at 204.6 mph before being sidelined for a good part of the day because of the mechanical trouble.

"The good thing is that we haven't even tried for speed out there and we ran over 204," Hamilton said. "The car handled well, but obviously there's some uncertainty going in (to the race).

"We had hoped to get in 250 or 300 miles and we only got in 21 laps. While Indy is the big one, this race is certainly next on our list because it's a great track, and I live here."