Indy history means little to F1 drivers

Mike Harris

Friday, Sept. 22, 2000 | 4:42 a.m.

INDIANAPOLIS - The massive grandstands and the infield golf course hold little interest for Formula One's drivers, and the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is just yesterday's news.

They know about the famed Brickyard, of course. But it's the new 2.6-mile, 13-turn road circuit that they were zeroing in on as the first official practice of the inaugural SAP United States Grand Prix approached.

The main preparation for Friday's opening practice included track simulations done on computers by team engineers and trips around the new track on foot, scooter or pace car.

Michael Schumacher, the biggest star in Formula One, was one of the scooter riders Thursday, making a slow, solitary trip around the circuit on a two-wheeler painted the same blood red as his Ferrari race car.

Looking every bit as intense as he appears in his race car, the former F1 champion stopped at a concrete curbing and pounded on it with his foot. Schumacher then putted slowly on to the first tire barrier in the infield portion of the track, stopping long enough to peek under the covering to see how the tires were stacked.

"It is important to know these things," Schumacher said before donning his helmet and stepping into one of the official Mercedes pace cars for a faster look at the track that includes a portion of the historic banked 2.5-mile oval on which the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR's Brickyard 400 are run.

"My approach is to get out there and see what it is," Schumacher added. "But, until we put our race car on the track, we will not really know what we are seeing."

McLaren's Mika Hakkinen, the two-time defending series champion, who leads Schumacher by just two points with three races remaining, also got out in a pace car Thursday after walking the course.

"I think it's better to do both, to go around with the car and by foot to look at the curves and understand the characteristics of the corners," the Finnish driver said. "And because part of the circuit is banked, it's important to understand how deep it is and if you can really use special lines in some places and also to see if the circuit is bumpy or not."

F1's first visit to the United States since 1991 will officially begin with practice Friday.

Since there has been no opportunity for testing here by any of the F1 teams, the first time on the race track for the sleek, sophisticated race cars will be a learning experience.

Heinz Harald-Frentzen, who drives for the Jordan team, was the first driver to set foot - or tire - on the track, driving around the just-completed circuit in a rental car during a visit in June on the way to the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal - F1's only other North American stop.

"The only circuit that comes close to resembling this is Hockenheim," Frentzen said, referring to the longtime home of the German Grand Prix. "But this track is more complex, and finding the correct aerodynamic set-up will be a huge challenge for all the F1 teams."

The infield portion of the course will be slower than most F1 tracks, while the segment on the oval is expected to see speeds up to 220 mph - among the fastest anywhere F1 races.

"That could make it a little more difficult to get totally comfortable," Schumacher said. "Usually, at a new track, you get into a sort of rhythm within a couple of laps and then you just develop the set-up and adapt it until the final moment of qualifying and the race. That is what I expect here."

The history of the Indianapolis track, which dates to its opening as a test track in 1909 and the first 500-mile race in 1911, is lost on many of the F1 drivers - most of them in their 20's.

"To be honest, I do not have much interest," said Ralf Schumacher, 25, Michael's younger brother who drives for Williams. "I do not know much about the Indianapolis history. For me, it's just exciting to come here to America and basically see how we are received here and drive a type of circuit like we have never driven before."

Asked if he expects American race fans to take to the F1 version of the open-wheel sport now that it has apparently found a home at Indy, he said, "I've heard everything is sold out on Sunday. That's a good sign for us. I just hope that we entertain the American crowd well.

"I mean, maybe it rains so they can see we race in the rain as well. That would be something new for them. It should be good."