Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Drivers aim for point(s) at LVMS

Friday, Oct. 27, 2000 | 10:29 a.m.

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

There are several tight points battles being waged for class championships at this weekend's American Le Mans Series Grand Prix of Las Vegas on the 2.25-mile infield road course at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Only 10 points separate the top two drivers in the Prototype class; the top six drivers in the GT class are within 14 points of each other; only three points separate the top two drivers in the GTS class; and 29 points separate the top two drivers in the BFGoodrich Tires Trans-Am Series.

While the ALMS and Trans-Am series will have one race remaining after Las Vegas to decide their championships, the title chase in the companion Star Mazda Series Best Western Championship is a little less cluttered -- much to the relief of Las Vegas resident Bernardo Martinez.

Martinez leads the Star Mazda series points standings heading into Saturday's 45-minute race on the 14-turn LVMS road course and needs only to finish 26th or better to capture the championship in that series' season finale.

The 28-year-old Martinez, who also is an instructor at the Derek Daly Performance Driving Academy at LVMS, is completing his first full season of professional racing and is hopeful a Star Mazda championship will open some doors for him.

"I'm not focusing on one series at the moment," Martinez said. "I want to keep all the doors open, but winning this title will definitely help me tremendously."

Also hoping to take steps toward a championship this weekend will be drivers in the ALMS Prototype, GT and GTS classes, the Women's Global GT and Trans-Am series.

Scotland's Allan McNish leads the Prototype points with 237 while Italy's Rinaldo Capello is second with 227. Jorg Muller of Monaco is third with 221, followed by Finland's JJ Lehto (220) and Italy's Frank Biela (214).

McNish broke the LVMS track record Thursday in practice with a lap of 1:07.303.

Olivier Beretta of Monaco leads the GTS class points with 255 while Austria's Karl Wendlinger is second with 252. Tommy Archer of Duluth, Minn., is third with 215 followed by David Donohue of Malvern, Penn., (209) and Vic Rice of San Rafael, Calif., (130).

But no class has a tighter race for the championship than GT, where Dirk Muller of Monaco leads with 188 points, followed by Randy Pobst of Melbourne, Fla., with 182 and Germany's Sascha Maassen with 181. Bob Wollek of France and Bruno Lambert of Belgium are tied for fourth with 180 points and Lucas Luhr of Monaco is sixth with 174 points.

The Las Vegas-based Petersen Motorsports/White Lightning Team will field a Porsche for drivers Cort Wagner and Mike Fitzgerald in the GT class.

"I'm really excited about this upcoming round," team owner Mike Petersen said. "We have two of the best drivers in the industry behind the wheel of our Westward Ho Casino/MPIE-sponsored GT Porsche. We took a fourth last weekend in Monterey (Calif.) and I think we can do even better on our own home track."

Petersen owns the team with fellow Las Vegas businessman Dale White.

In the Trans-Am Series, Paul Gentilozzi holds a 29-point lead over Brian Simo with two events remaining.

In the Women's Global GT Series, Sonja Bayer holds a 16-point lead over Divina Galica. This will be the final round of the WGGTS season.

The American Le Mans Series, which has announced it will not return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway next year, will conclude the 2000 season Dec. 31 at Adelaide, Australia.

Busch, who will also try to nail down a 1-2 finish in the points for team owner Jack Roush, spent Tuesday and Wednesday testing his Winston Cup car at Homestead-Miami Speedway before heading to Fontana.

"This has been one of the busiest months in my life, but it's something we feel we need to do to better position ourselves going into 2001," Busch said of the No. 97 Roush Racing Ford. "I have booked a vacation at the end of the season but until then, I'm running flat out; living, breathing and sleeping racing."

After Saturday's truck race, Busch will compete in the final three Winston Cup races of the season at Phoenix, Homestead and Atlanta. ...

Brendan Gaughan of Las Vegas also will compete in the truck series finale at California Speedway. It will be the sixth truck race for which Gaughan has attempted to qualify. His best finish this year was 11th at Gateway International Raceway in May.

Patrick Carpentier, another Las Vegas resident, is expected to sign a one-year contract with a one-year option to remain as a driver for Player's Forsythe Racing. Player's also fields a car for fellow Las Vegan Alex Tagliani. ...

Team owner Cal Wells has announced that he is folding his CART team following Sunday's race to concentrate on his Winston Cup effort with driver Scott Pruett. ...

Gil de Ferran, who leads the FedEx Championship Series heading into Sunday's season finale at California Speedway, tested at Indianapolis Motor Speedway Sunday and Monday as Team Penske contemplates a return to the Indy 500 in 2001.

"Actually, it was a bit of a distraction for me, but a good distraction," de Ferran said of the test. "It kind of took my mind off (the championship battle) a little bit and just kind of calmed me down."

Goodyear and Panther Racing announced earlier this year that the two would part ways at the conclusion of the 2000 season.

"I'm considering it a lot," Goodyear said of Cheever's offer. "Of all the things that have come to me since about mid-June, Eddie's probably is the most intriguing." ...

Teammates Scott Sharp and Mark Dismore will return with Kelley Racing for a fourth consecutive season in the 2001 Indy Racing Northern Light Series, team owners Tom and Jim Kelley announced this week.

Dixon, who suffered a broken bone in his foot when his dragster crashed during the Top Fuel final Oct. 8 in Memphis, has won the past two events at Houston Raceway Park.

"HRP has been a good track for (crew chief) Dick LaHaie and the Miller Lite Team, so I just want to try and keep that streak alive," Dixon said. "As far as worrying about my first ride back in the car -- I am not thinking like that. "I guess the thing that makes me nervous most is that we are bringing a brand new car to a national event. We talked about testing during this week, but Dick LaHaie and (assistant crew chief) Don Bender are pretty confident that the data we have from the other car is good enough to run in the 4.60s. We will just work on improving our tune-up from there."

Dixon enters the final three events of the season in third place in the Top Fuel standings, 223 points behind front-running Gary Scelzi and 97 points behind second-place Tony Schumacher.

Serving as the fifth and final stop on the 2000 Goodguys West Coast Championship Series, eight class championships will be decided at the event. Gates open at 8 a.m. both days; professional qualifying begins at 11 a.m. Saturday and final professional eliminations begin Sunday at noon. ...

Open-wheel drivers Jimmy Vasser of Las Vegas, P.J. Jones, Mike Groff and Roberto Guerrero have filed entries to drive in next month's Tecate SCORE Baja 2000. ...

The Pennzoil World of Outlaws wraps up its 2000 season Tuesday and Wednesday on the half-mile dirt track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Steve Kinser, a 15-time WoO champion, is leading the points race by 226 points over cousin Mark Kinser, the 1996 and 1999 WoO champion.

Spectator gates open at 4 p.m. both days and Nevada residents can receive a $5 discount on Tuesday tickets by presenting proper ID. Tickets range from $12 for seniors, military and children to $35 for reserved seats.

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