Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Unser still seeks first Phoenix win

Wednesday, March 19, 2003 | 9:25 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

There is no question that Al Unser Jr. knows his way around Phoenix International Raceway.

In 16 open-wheel races at the 1-mile oval, in both CART and the Indy Racing League, Unser has posted six podium finishes and 13 top-10 efforts but has yet to find his way to Victory Lane at PIR.

Unser, a two-time Indy 500 champion and part-time Henderson resident, is hoping to change that this weekend as the IRL's IndyCar Series visits Phoenix for the Purex Dial Indy 200.

"I haven't won there in all the years that I've been there and we need to get it done, for sure," Unser said. "I've been going there since I was 5 or 6 years old with my father racing there. There's a lot of heritage there and we sure would like to do well there."

Because the track is relatively close to his hometown of Albuquerque, N.M., Unser said a victory at PIR would be "extra special." A win also would help ease the frustration of coming so close so many times but never winning in Phoenix.

"I think I've run second there like six times (five, actually) and every time that I did have the car over the years to win at Phoenix, something would happen; I would catch a yellow (flag) wrong or I'd run out of fuel or something of that nature," he said.

"I would just love to be able to put together a perfect race and come up with a win."

With only two races on the IRL schedule before the Indianapolis 500, Unser said a victory in Phoenix would be important for another reason.

"I've really seen, over the years, that whoever does well at Phoenix ends up doing well at Indy," Unser said. "The setup on the car is completely different -- you don't even run the same springs or anything like that. Really, what I think it is, it's a frame of mind that you put the team into going into Indy."

Unser made the switch from CART to the IRL in 2000 and earned his first victory in the series in his third race, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He added a win in 2001 before moving from Galles Racing to Kelley Racing last season. Although he was winless last season, Unser had two runner-up finishes and seven top-10s in 13 races.

Unser finished seventh in the championship in 2002 for the second consecutive year despite missing two races while being treated for alcohol abuse. He said a win Sunday would be meaningful on several fronts.

"To come as close as we did a year ago and throughout the season and never really getting (a victory) in there, it would be great," Unser said. "From a personal standpoint, it would make everything -- all the efforts that I've put into my personal life and all that -- the rewards would be there.

"Just like anything, you have to work hard in order to get what you deserve and we're working awful hard to be the best Al Unser Jr. that ever has been."

"I had to push really hard to get up front from where I started back in eighth," Jaskol said. "The (tires) were good and consistent, though, and I was able to be fast at the end when it counted. This is a really intensely competitive field and I am really excited to take this win."

Jaskol, 18, secured his ride in the FDNC by winning a Barber-Champ Car Karting Scholarship. He is a former driver for Paul Tracy's karting team.