Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Trio trying to pull IROC-IRL double

Friday, June 9, 2000 | 10 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand's motor sports notebook appears Friday. Reach him at bh@lasvegassun.com or 259-4089.

Jimmy Vasser and Juan Montoya pulled off a tough racing doubleheader two weekends ago, competing in a CART race on Saturday afternoon in Nazareth, Pa., and then running the Indianapolis 500 the following day.

Not to be outdone, Indy Racing League drivers Eddie Cheever Jr., Greg Ray and Mark Dismore will attempt to pull off an equally impressive feat on Saturday when they are scheduled to compete in two races in two different states in the same day.

Cheever, Ray and Dismore will compete in the third round of the International Race of Champions series at Michigan Speedway at noon (EDT) then fly to Fort Worth, Texas, for the 7 p.m. (CDT) start of the Casino Magic 500 IRL race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Ray, who is attempting to defend his IRL title but finds himself trailing frontrunner Buddy Lazier by 83 points with five races remaining, said the points race at Texas Motor Speedway will be his priority this weekend.

"It makes it a little difficult for me and the team having to focus on two races," Ray said. "It's rush, rush, rush. It's a pretty hurried time. I've got to make use of the time to put in all of the input.

"It's the first time I've done two races in one day. At the end of Saturday, I'll tell you whether it's great or whether it's awful."

Cheever, who finished fifth in the Indy 500, said he was looking forward to the doubleheader.

"It's going to be a busy weekend," Cheever said. "I'll leave Texas right after the final practice on Friday night, race in the IROC event in Michigan at noon on Saturday and be back in the Lone Star State for the Casino Magic 500 that night.

"It will be an action-packed 24 hours, but after the month of May at Indy, it shouldn't be a problem."

Like Ray, Cheever is not downplaying the importance of Saturday's IRL event. Cheever is fifth in the championship -- only eight points out of second place and 34 points behind Lazier.

"It's important that the team does well at Texas and gets into the top three in points," Cheever said. "It's essential that we execute flawlessly if we are to make a serious challenge for Buddy Lazier and the top spot in the championship."

"We've gone to a lighter schedule in terms of race weekends, but really, the day-to-day schedule has become more intense," Gordon said. "We've spent more time working on our Michigan cars because that's an important race for a couple of reasons. For starters, the Michigan Speedway is in Ford's backyard and we'd like to try to show them what we're capable of doing.

"Secondly, Michigan falls into one of our focuses, which is being more competitive on the intermediate length tracks. We've had mixed success running the 1.5 and 2-mile ovals. I know this is a loose comparison, but I put Las Vegas, Atlanta, Texas, Michigan, Charlotte and Fontana in the same group; that group represents almost a third of the schedule, and they're all very high-visibility cities. We're also bringing basically the same type of car to those tracks." ...

Gidley, who subbed for Las Vegas resident Patrick Carpentier earlier this season when the Player's Forsythe Racing driver was recovering from a broken wrist, said there are no firm plans for him to replace Fontana next weekend at Detroit.

"I'm the new Super Sub, so I'm available for Della Penna or anyone else who needs me," Gidley said. "The impression I have is that Norberto Fontana will drive for Della Penna in Detroit unless he needs more time to fully recover from his recent crash. Basically, I'm his relief pitcher at the moment, should he need one."

Las Vegas' Davey Hamilton and Jimmy Kite both crashed into the wall after apparently hitting a bump in Turn 4 at Texas Motor Speedway. Both cars were heavily damaged, including a fire in Kite's car, but neither driver was injured. ...

Driver Robbie Buhl and Team Purex Dreyer & Reinbold Racing will switch to the Nissan Infiniti engine at Saturday's Casino Magic 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing used the Infiniti Indy engine in a last-minute entry at this year's Indianapolis 500 for Steve Knapp.

"I had a chance to practice with the Infiniti engine when we were setting the car up for Steve Knapp to drive at Indy," Buhl, a co-owner of the team, said. "The first thing I noticed was how much torque the engine had when I was shifting gears."

Buhl, who is second in the IRL championship, and Eddie Cheever Jr. are the only IRL drivers competing with Infiniti engines. ...

Robby Unser will replace Ronnie Johncox behind the wheel of the Jonathan Byrd/McCormack Motorsports entry in Saturday's race in Texas.

Force last week broke Glidden's record for NHRA Funny Car by notching his 86th victory, in Joliet, Ill. Now he has set his sights on topping Glidden's record of 10 Winston championships.

"I want to pass that and I think I can in the next five years," Force, who has nine championships, said. "I have set the goal of winning 11. It's going to be tough to get ... 10 is going to be tough to get." ...

NHRA Pro Motorcycle rider Angelle Seeling's career winning percentage of .742 (118-41) ranks fifth among all active NHRA Winston Drag Racing competitors with 50 or more decisions. Seeling's 14-3 elimination round record in 2000 is tops among Pro Stock Motorcycle riders.

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway is hosting Friday Night Drags tonight beginning at 6 p.m. The event will feature a test and tune and High School and Import races. ...

Round three of the Summit Racing E.T. Bracket Series will return to The Strip on Saturday. After two events, Chris Naffziger and his 1970 Chevy Nova hold a narrow 11-point lead over Jeff Bansbach, who drives a 1967 Chevy Nova. Both drivers have one E.T. bracket victory this season. Qualifying is set to begin at 5 p.m. with eliminations at 7:30. ...

LVMS also will host a full slate of racing Saturday night at the 1/2-mile dirt track, featuring IMCA Modifieds and Late Models, Legends and Thunder Stox. Heat races begin at 7:30 p.m.