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00:00Such as Michael Andretti, second in the cart points.
00:05The younger Andretti has four poles and five wins, and sits on the pole here in the challenge.
00:15Al Unser Jr.
00:16Little Al sits atop the cart PPG point standings.
00:20He has six victories, including four in a row of cart firsts.
00:25Unser Jr. has dominated the ovals with wins at Milwaukee and Michigan.
00:30And Rick Mears, the oval master, he won the cart season opener in Phoenix.
00:35His four poles are second only to Michael Andretti.
00:40Danny Sullivan, Mears' teammate, has sat on the pole three times this season.
00:45He took the checkered flag on the road course at Cleveland, and he knows this track, having
00:50won here in 1988.
00:53Emerson Fittipaldi, the third driver in the Penske contingent, he has two poles this season,
00:59including, of course, the great Indianapolis 500.
01:02And Emo is the defending PPG champion.
01:09Ari Leyendyk came to the 1990 season winless, but changed all of that in May, starting on
01:16the front row and winning the Indianapolis 500.
01:22The Porsche driver sat on the pole at the inaugural race in Denver to earn his invitation
01:27to the challenge, and looks to move up from his starting position in the fourth row.
01:34Bobby Rahal, in his first year with Chevrolet power, has been this season's bridesmaid,
01:40with five second place finishes, but today he looks for a victory.
01:46Mario Andretti, the veteran of this group.
01:49Mario has years of IndyCars under his belt.
01:52From him, there is more than one reason to strive for victory.
01:56Nazareth, Pennsylvania, is his home.
02:03And Eddie Cheever, a challenged freshman in his first IndyCar season.
02:07He's Karts and Indy's rookie of the year and the only rookie in this proud field.
02:13Ten of the best that IndyCar racing has to offer.
02:16This year's ESPN, the world's leader in motorsports coverage, presents Speed World.
02:28From Nazareth, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania International Raceway, it's the race for the
02:33best.
02:34The Marlboro Challenge.
02:35Hello, I'm Paul Page, and this race is a real braggart's rights event, with a great deal
02:42of money on the line.
02:43For the winner, $250,000.
02:46Second place, you drop off another $100,000.
02:49It's extremely important to the drivers, because there's nothing else at stake except winning.
02:54You run just as fast and hard as you can.
02:57You try to prove that you are, in fact, the best of the best.
03:01But especially at this particular event, we're talking a front row made up of the two contenders
03:05in the PPG IndyCar World Series points fight, Michael Andretti and Al Unser Jr.
03:11They battled with one another at Miami in the challenge two years ago.
03:15And there, it was a hard-fought contest, rain throughout most of the race, a wet track,
03:21and to show you how close the competition came with just one lap to go, Al Unser Jr.
03:26Into the wall, and Michael Andretti on to the win.
03:29Both drivers certainly remember that day.
03:32Now, besides the bragging rights of being at the top of the order and the money for
03:36the win, there's other money available here today.
03:39With an update on that, let's go down trackside with Gary Gerald.
03:42Paul, you talk about financial incentive for a race.
03:45This one is loaded.
03:46A quarter million dollars goes to the winner, and if the winner happens to come from the
03:49front row, Unser or Andretti, there's a $150,000 bonus for either man, because they've already
03:55won this year.
03:57Events sponsored by Marlboro.
03:58Now, keep in mind, these are the only two alive in the regular season points chase sponsored
04:02by PPG that resumes tomorrow with a 200-miler here and then in two weeks at Laguna Seca.
04:07Whoever wins that battle for the championship for the year gets another $400,000.
04:11A quarter million goes to the runner-up.
04:13Big money, big pressure.
04:15We're ready to go racing right now in the Marlboro challenge.
04:18Paul?
04:19So, there's a great deal of money and a most prestigious title on the line, 100 laps, 100
04:26miles.
04:27Derek Daly, you've driven in the Marlboro challenge.
04:29What's the mindset of the drivers?
04:30I know from two years ago, the mentality of the drivers is definitely different at an
04:34event like this.
04:35As Al Jr. said yesterday, normally, if the oil light comes on, he takes care of the engine.
04:40He said here, if the oil light comes on, he drives it as hard as he can, and if it blows
04:44itself to pieces, so be it.
04:46So they're lined up in the pit area at Pennsylvania International Raceway and waiting for the
04:51command that will send the challenge underway once again.
04:55Gentlemen, start your engines!
04:58Set, ready to go, there's the front row, Al Unser, Jr., on the outside of the front.
05:25Michael Andretti will start on the pole here.
05:28Not only do they take the 100 miles and distance, but they are required to make a pit stop.
05:34For a further update, let's go back to Gary Gerald.
05:36Yes, indeed, Paul.
05:37There is one mandatory pit stop.
05:39Everybody has to complete ten green flag laps before they can come into the pits.
05:43During the pit stop, you must change at least two tires, and, of course, you will add fuel.
05:47Since it's the 100-mile distance, unless you're getting outstanding or unheard-of mileage,
05:52you wouldn't be able to go 100 miles on the allotment here that they carry with the 40
05:56gallons on board.
05:57So as far as strategy, most of these teams, we think, will wait as late as possible to
06:01duck in unless there's a yellow, and they change those two tires, get the fuel, and
06:05then hope that they've got enough fuel to go the distance, because virtually every crew
06:08chief has said fuel is going to be a concern in this 100-mile sprint today.
06:13Paul?
06:14A special set of rules for a very special race, the Marlboro challenge.
06:17An invitational for winners, pole sitters, and points leaders.
06:21Ten of the best the Indy cars have to offer.
06:24So as they begin to roll out now, we'll take a look at the starting grid for this, the
06:301990 Marlboro challenge, brought to you by the die-hard battery, now with more power
06:36when you need it most.
06:37On the pole, Michael Andretti, the winner of the 1988 challenge, and Al Unser Jr. Will
06:41start to the outside, the defending champion and leading money winner in this challenge
06:45series.
06:46The second row on the inside, well, it's Rick Mears, whose best finish in this very special
06:49event was fifth in 1988, and his teammate, Danny Sullivan, to the outside, twice a runner
06:54up, but looking to cash in on the big prize this afternoon.
06:57The third row to the inside, Emerson Fittipaldi, his bid was foiled last year when he ran out
07:02of fuel on the final lap, and Ari Leyandyk, who is making his third start in this prestigious
07:06invitational event.
07:07The fourth row, to the inside, Tao Fabi, ran a strong fourth in his only challenge start
07:12just last year, and Bobby Rahal, the winner of the inaugural Marlboro challenge in 1987.
07:18Michael Andretti on the inside of the last row, finished fifth last year, and Eddie Cheever,
07:22the only rookie in today's star-studded field.
07:25So there's the lineup.
07:26We'll be back with the start right after these messages.
07:29All of these championship-winning drivers have one thing in common, Goodyear Racing
07:42Eagles.
07:43The race-winning technology that's found in the Goodyear Racing Eagles can also be found
07:48in the world's best-selling line of high-performance street tires, Goodyear Eagles Street Radials.
07:53The champions know, and it's why we say, the best tires in the world have Goodyear written
08:00all over them.
08:01A meeting of ten of the best in IndyCar racing, from Pennsylvania International Raceway in
08:08Nazareth, Pennsylvania, it's the Cart Marlboro Challenge.
08:16And today it's brought to you by Quaker State, the big Q is one tough motor oil, by Goodyear
08:23Eagle Radials, the best-selling performance radials in the world, and by Bud Light, everything
08:29else is just a light.
08:35On board now with Al Unser, Jr., in the front row on the outside, as they anticipate a green
08:43flag in this 100-mile dash for the honors of being the winner at the Marlboro Challenge.
08:50The pole sitter, of course, is Michael Andretti.
08:52Now, you may notice there is something written, though it's difficult to read, on the tearaway
08:56on his helmet, and that says, get well, A.J., and it's certainly an attitude that everybody
09:02here feels.
09:03A lot of conversation hoping that A.J.
09:04Voigt recovers just as quickly as he can and is back in an IndyCar very soon.
09:09At the front row now comes a line, ready to go, there's Sandy Andretti, the lucky earrings
09:15are on.
09:17Only a few minutes' drive out to their beautiful home here in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, both
09:21the Andrettis, Mario and Michael, live here, in fact, a line of sight to one another.
09:27Pace begins to pick up just a bit now as they come off the final turn in this tri-oval,
09:32looking for the green flag.
09:33Green flag comes out, the Marlboro Challenge for 1990 is underway, and Michael Andretti
09:38ducks low on the inside, but Al Ensor, Jr., stays alongside, now dropped back into second
09:43place.
09:44A great start by Michael, but we saw Al, Jr., did try to go around the outside of turn one
09:51and turn two.
09:52A very, very difficult thing to do here.
09:53Bobby Rahal tries a challenge on Emerson Fittipaldi, can't get it done.
09:54Michael Andretti completing lap number one, begins to pull away just a bit.
09:55Then Al Ensor, Jr., then Danny Sullivan.
09:56Michael Andretti, you mentioned at the start, Derek Daly, as we see a battle continuing
10:13back between Fittipaldi and Rahal, and now Mario moves up to challenge Rahal as well.
10:18You mentioned from the driver's attitude, there's no chance to let up whatsoever.
10:23There is no chance, particularly at a racetrack like this.
10:24It's so short and it's so fast.
10:25The laps go by so fast.
10:26But Rahal, you mentioned Rahal.
10:27Remember, he is on the pole position for tomorrow's live race here.
10:28He arguably has the fastest car in this race.
10:29And Eddie Cheever in car number 15, who started in the last starting position, has pulled into
10:30the pits.
10:31Now, part of the reason, perhaps, for this, as we continue to watch the battle between
10:32Fittipaldi and Rahal, is that Cheever's Lola was pulled out of the pits.
10:33Now, that's a good thing.
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13:50We'll be back with more from Nazareth.
13:56You see all the prettiest faces at your Discount Tire Store.
14:00Because everybody likes to save money.
14:03Everybody.
14:04Discount Tire Company.
14:06Back at the Marlboro Challenge.
14:07The IndyCars of cart.
14:08Michael Andretti leads it.
14:09Followed by Al Unser Jr. running in second.
14:11Then Danny Sullivan, Rick Mears, and Emerson Fittipaldi all lined up trying to challenge for second place.
14:18Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
14:19The all-star race of the IndyCars.
14:22On board with the leader.
14:26Fight continues now for third place.
14:28Danny Sullivan, Rick Mears, Emerson Fittipaldi.
14:33The car is seemingly performing pretty much the same.
14:36But look at the difference in line between Sullivan and Mears as Mears closes in and tries to the inside of Sullivan.
14:43Mears is quicker than Sullivan right now.
14:45We saw Sullivan change his line ever so slightly through turn two.
14:48And Mears took a run.
14:49Look at Fittipaldi.
14:50The run might have cost him a place because look at Emerson come down the inside.
14:53That's what can happen.
14:54If you make a move and you don't get by, you can get past.
14:58On an oval, momentum is critical as Rick tries to the outside.
15:02Then darts down to the inside.
15:04He had to burn up a lot of inertia to do that.
15:06But it pays off.
15:07He gets past Sullivan.
15:09Now Rick Mears sitting in third place.
15:11Now Fittipaldi comes past Sullivan as well.
15:14Sullivan is in trouble.
15:15Remember a couple of years ago here, a lot of tire troubles when they run a lot of laps here.
15:20Now Sullivan is in trouble.
15:21Looks like he has a lot of push because he's very slow through the apex and exiting corners.
15:27As Rahal comes up to try and take Sullivan and does so as Sullivan rolls down onto the pit road.
15:33A one-pit stop with a two-tire change in fuel is mandatory here.
15:37But where you take it is extremely important to the whole race strategy.
15:41Sullivan rolls down toward Penske service.
15:43The crew is already there and waiting.
15:47Here comes Sullivan.
15:50Make a front wing change on that car.
15:53That's interesting.
15:54They made a wing change.
15:55We mentioned about understeer or push.
15:57That's why they adjusted that front wing.
15:59Sullivan did have some push.
16:00But he looks in good shape now.
16:02And four tires as well.
16:0615 seconds for the stop.
16:08And Sullivan is back into the action.
16:10But a change in aerodynamics and all new tires all the way around.
16:15Now we know Mears is a past master at oval track racing.
16:18He now has clean air ahead of him on his run to try and catch Allenser Jr.
16:24So that's the battle I think we're going to have to watch over the next ten laps or so.
16:27We mentioned that Eddie Cheever is out of the action.
16:29Now he's with Gary Gerald.
16:31And already out of his Marlboro uniform.
16:33And Eddie, I know, great disappointment.
16:34Your concern now, I'm sure, is will the car that you want to drive be ready for tomorrow's race?
16:40I'm sure the car will be ready.
16:41We were just very unlucky with an engine change.
16:44It's a bitter disappointment for us at Chip Ganassi Racing.
16:46We worked very hard this year to achieve this possibility to run in the Marlboro Challenge.
16:51And it was an extra gift I would have liked to have given to Target who have been so beneficial for us.
16:56We've had a very great relationship this year.
16:58And it was a bitter disappointment, I must say.
17:00But what can you do?
17:02I mean, we decided to get a Lola halfway through the season because the 89 car wasn't working.
17:06We ran it and it just happened in exactly the wrong place at the wrong time.
17:10And I know you'll be refocused and ready to go tomorrow as we go back to Paul Page.
17:14Back at the front of the field as we approach the halfway point now.
17:17It is still Michael Andretti.
17:19Got a glimpse there of Mario and Ari Lyondyke who are battling now for sixth place.
17:24Ten cars started.
17:25Nine are still in competition after Eddie Cheever fell out.
17:32Mears has the clear road.
17:33We see it here.
17:34He drags Fittipaldi with him.
17:35So both of those cars are handling similarly.
17:38But Mears will see Al Jr.
17:40Very short because he is closing down on him ever so slightly each lap.
17:45As we watch Mears and Fittipaldi, Derek, we mentioned the importance of tomorrow for both Michael Andretti and Al Unser Jr.
17:52And that is that the championship very much on the line.
17:55How much will those two drivers learn about their cars and this track in this run today?
18:00This is a great run because during qualifying and practicing, they never run more than three or four or five laps at a time.
18:07If they do a full tank run, they may run 15 laps.
18:11But here, they'll run almost half a race distance.
18:14There's so much more that they can learn about the car, particularly the tires, and how the tires react to harsh treatment under full fuel loads.
18:23That's the type of information they'll take into tomorrow's race for the battle for the championship.
18:27All right, Leyendijk continues to challenge Mario Andretti for sixth place.
18:34As in doing so, Michael Andretti now begins to close on traffic just ahead of him, and they're on board.
18:40Derek, this is exactly what you wanted to see, was the effect of traffic just ahead on the leader of the race, who's running a much faster pace.
18:46The race is just about to start now.
18:48We are over halfway, but Michael has Al Jr. all over him.
18:51But Mears and Fittipaldi are almost right there in a train.
18:55There's going to be four cars together in about three laps.
18:57This race has only just started.
18:59You've driven in this race.
19:01If you were driving on this track in this race, and you were in Michael's shoes, and closed on someone that you couldn't necessarily pass,
19:08and are threatened like you are, like he is right now by Al Unser Jr., would you consider making a stop?
19:14I think as long as you're in clear road, I think you need to keep running.
19:18Now, if a faster car, I think Al Jr. gained on Michael right there.
19:21Look how he gains through turn two.
19:23Michael is not handling that well.
19:25I think we're going to see a bit of a defensive line from Michael.
19:28Let's see does he begin to start to move down earlier into turn three to protect that line.
19:33But look at Mears.
19:34He's all over Al Jr.
19:35There's Emerson all over Rick Mears.
19:37Well, the interval, first to fourth, has dropped down to 1.1 seconds.
19:40Let's take a look at the challenge that Mears responds to.
19:45Oh, the two Penskes are catching the two Lomas.
19:48This is the battle.
19:49Fittipaldi's all over Mears, but he's looking for a way through Al Jr.
19:52Look at Michael, going to try and protect his lead.
19:56And the pace, of course, picking up because the drivers and crews both know that the pit stops,
20:01one mandatory, and the very realistic need for fuel lies not that far ahead.
20:06So at the front of the field, it is still Michael Andretti, who led right from the green.
20:10Crews stand ready with the tires, and Allenter Jr. tries to chase Michael down.
20:15We'll be back with more.
20:18The Quaker State King Racing Buick, winner of the 1989 Diehard Award for the most tough NASCAR mile,
20:25is winning again in 1990 as Brett Bodine takes first in the first Union 400.
20:32It takes a tough oil to keep a car running this tough,
20:35and it takes a tough driver to step right in, step on it, and win.
20:39But number 26 is one tough car.
20:41Brett Bodine is one tough driver, and Quaker State is one tough motor oil.
20:52This is how a Ferrari Testarossa looks on the road.
20:58And this is how a Ferrari Testarossa looks to the road,
21:01where it ultimately responds through the contact patch of its Goodyear Eagle tires,
21:06the exclusive tires chosen for every Testarossa sold in America.
21:10Goodyear Eagles, they're another reason we say
21:13the best tires in the world have Goodyear written all over them.
21:17Fittipaldi continues to rip at Rick Mears,
21:20while at the same time, Bobby Rahal tries to challenge Fittipaldi.
21:23The first five cars now running very close together on this track,
21:27and Allenter Jr. begins to climb all over the back of the leader of the race, Michael Andretti.
21:32So in the front five positions, we've got a whale of a fight going.
21:35But at the same time, Arie Luyendyk has just managed to dart around Mario Andretti
21:39and pick up sixth place.
21:41And in doing so, he now begins to close down on Bobby Rahal.
21:44So the top of the order still running right together
21:47as Rick Mears tries inside of second place Allenter Jr.,
21:50and Rick picks up second.
21:52Oh, Al Jr. tried to move down, but Rick was there.
21:54Look at Emerson come down the inside.
21:56Al Jr. saw him come a little bit too late.
21:58He moved down, but Rick forced the issue and took the pass.
22:02Rick Mears now sets off after Michael, who's coming up to lap his dad, Mario.
22:08Rick Mears on an oval is superlative.
22:10Allenter Jr. scored his first oval win at Milwaukee back in June.
22:16Mears knows every inch of this track.
22:19It is a Penske-owned track, and of course, his team owner, Roger Penske, uses it for testing,
22:23though Rick says they've gotten this year about the same amount of testing
22:26as everyone else who has been at Nazareth at Pennsylvania International Raceway.
22:31Rick is extremely fast through turn two.
22:34Over the hill and turning left at turn two is extremely fast.
22:37That's what gives him more momentum down the back straight to turn three.
22:41That, I think, again, is where he will make his attempt to pass Michael
22:45if he gets close enough, and I think he will.
22:47Mears has a superlative sense of balance,
22:50which is part of what helps him so much when he runs on ovals.
22:53Now as he closes in right behind Michael
22:56and is in attack position with Mario sitting just ahead,
22:59Mario could very quickly become a factor in this run for the lead.
23:04Turn two will be the critical corner.
23:06This is turn two right here.
23:08Mears is extremely fast out of this corner.
23:11That's where he gains on Michael.
23:13Michael is now in traffic. Mario quite rightly moves out of the way.
23:16Mario heads in the pit road while Mears continues his pursuit of Michael Andretti.
23:21So Mario down for routine service out of the Newman-Haas stable.
23:26I'm sure Michael would have liked a little bit of family help there
23:29trying to ward off this challenge from Rick Mears,
23:31but however, I think Mario did the right thing.
23:33Now they're down the back straight again.
23:34They're going to come on traffic, but this is turn two.
23:36Here's the run down to three.
23:40Still, Rick Mears maintains position.
23:43In third place, Al Unser, Jr.
23:45Emerson Fittipaldi is fourth. Bobby Rahal is fifth.
23:48Arie Luyendyk runs in sixth place now.
23:51And all beginning to meet back up into the same fight.
23:55At the front of the field, it's still Michael.
23:58He's led from the green flag, but now Mears wants to dispute that situation as Mears
24:02flies past on the inside and for the moment has first place.
24:05Michael tries to hold on, but Mears definitely quicker as he comes off the corner
24:09and Mears picks up first.
24:12We had a great shot of Michael exiting turn two.
24:15He had a little bobble of oversteer, just the slightest, slightest little lift.
24:19Mears draws up behind him, pulls out into the slipstream,
24:22and wham, straightaway takes the position.
24:24Look at the lead he has now after one lap.
24:27Al Unser, Jr. now coming up to challenge Michael Andretti.
24:33Rick Mears at the front of the field.
24:35Michael drops back to second. Al Unser, Jr. now challenging just behind.
24:41Michael just went from 250,000 to 150,000,
24:44so he's just lost 100 grand in that move.
24:48So Rick Mears out in front of this field, a man who looks for a win.
24:52His last victory came at Phoenix.
24:54We asked him about the challenge and what his strategy would be for today.
24:57Not a lot of time for strategy.
24:59You've got to run as hard as you can,
25:01and you've got to keep your fingers crossed
25:04and hope the car comes out of the trailer
25:07with the right balance for those conditions on that day.
25:10Then you just end up running hard.
25:12You just have to run hard from start to finish.
25:15So Rick Mears at the front of this order,
25:18though the crew is laid out now for a stop by Michael Andretti
25:21and by Al Unser, Jr.
25:26Let's go to Gary Gerald.
25:28Michael Andretti on the march. Right-side rubber change only.
25:31They'll top off with what fuel they have left in the tank.
25:34Everything looks good right here.
25:36We've got a watch running on it at 10 seconds now.
25:38Still waiting to get all the fuel in.
25:40We've got apparently a problem. They're calling for water.
25:42The officials were trying to get a better vantage point.
25:45They've got a flame up here. They pulled the fueling hose back.
25:47Michael sits in the pit.
25:49We're about 10 feet away from a problem on pit wall.
25:51They've doused any possible fire,
25:53but I don't know if they got the fuel in the tank.
25:55Finally off the jack.
25:57Michael Andretti is away in over 30 seconds.
26:00Right at 30 seconds, 30 1⁄2.
26:03Michael Andretti back into the action.
26:05Al Unser, Jr. Was in and out in 20 seconds,
26:08and now the leader of the race, Rick Mears, rolls in as well.
26:11So the single mandatory and necessary stop being made.
26:14Here is Rick Mears.
26:16They, too, work on right-side tires here.
26:18Left side seems adequate for Mears, and a very quick stop
26:21as he's down in 11 1⁄2 seconds,
26:23and Mears is back into the fight.
26:25That's the pit stop there that will help Rick to win this race.
26:28Michael had a disaster, 30 seconds.
26:31Al, Jr., almost 20 seconds, but Rick Mears, 11 seconds.
26:3410 seconds saved in the pits
26:36is an enormous amount of time on the racetrack.
26:38And Rick Mears comes out right behind Michael Andretti on the track.
26:43Ari Leyondyke picks up the lead of the run
26:45as Mears goes into the pits.
26:48So Ari Leyondyke out in front, leader on the track.
26:51Rick Mears slides up into second place,
26:53and then Fittipaldi, Al Unser, Jr., Bobby Rahal.
26:56But Leyondyke has not yet made his stop for the single run.
27:00Mears is not chasing Michael for the lead.
27:02Michael is a lap down almost to Rick Mears,
27:05so Michael is not in the lead.
27:07It's an idea how costly a 30-second pit stop can be on a one-mile oval.
27:11Or should I say, not ahead of Rick on the racetrack.
27:15So Rick Mears trying to chase down Ari Leyondyke,
27:19but the pits will change that situation,
27:21as Ari is due in momentarily.
27:23We'll be back.
27:28On board with Michael Andretti at the Marlboro Challenge,
27:31who is now in the pits for a second time.
27:33The first stop cost immensely.
27:35Let's go to Gary Gerald.
27:37Michael lights up the tires.
27:38There's a lot of water down here as he gets away,
27:40and they came in to get the remaining fuel that they didn't get the first time.
27:43They had a problem.
27:44So the 30 seconds the first time compounded by the fact that he had to come back in,
27:49I don't think there's any way in the world now he'll be able to win this thing.
27:52Michael Andretti roars out right behind Ari Leyondyke,
27:55and they join Emerson Fittipaldi on the circuit.
27:57Fittipaldi is running in second place, trying to chase Mears,
28:01who is the leader of the race once again with Ari Leyondyke's stop.
28:06Terrible situation for Michael.
28:08We watch him here lead so much of this race before being slowly caught by Mears.
28:13He was then passing.
28:14We saw a disastrous pit stop.
28:15I'm sure he hoped that tomorrow a similar thing does not happen
28:18because apart from costing him money today,
28:20tomorrow, that could cost him the championship.
28:23On the other hand, terrific stop for Domino's Pizza Team,
28:26Shearson.
28:27They were 11 seconds in and out for Ari Leyondyke.
28:32Leader of the race, Rick Mears, car number two,
28:35the Pennzoil Penske.
28:39We've talked about this oval here.
28:41There are, in fact, many adjustments that are made to these cars
28:44when they run on an oval.
28:45Here at Nazareth, the teams must make one more adjustment.
28:57This track fact is brought to you by Quaker State.
29:00The Big Q is one tough motor oil.
29:03Now, here's Gary Gerald.
29:05During the course of the racing season,
29:07drivers compete at three dramatically different mile oval racetracks,
29:10starting at Phoenix, moving on to Milwaukee in June,
29:13and then late in the season here at Nazareth.
29:15Each of these tracks has its own distinguishing characteristics.
29:18Nazareth is unusual to begin with because it's tri-oval.
29:21It's also unusual because the racing surface here
29:24is dramatically different than Phoenix or Milwaukee.
29:26This aggregate surface is very dense and it's very, very smooth.
29:30Consequently, you get very little tire wear.
29:33You contrast this to the mile at Milwaukee
29:36where it's in a very abrasive surface.
29:38It really chews up the rubber on race tires.
29:40Now, you say, that should be ideal for racing teams.
29:42But keep in mind, if you don't wear the rubber off of one of these tires,
29:47then you face a potential problem with heat buildup.
29:50As that heat builds up, you can get into a blistering problem.
29:53And that's exactly what happened the first two years
29:55that the IndyCars competed here at Nazareth.
29:57So the Goodyear engineers came up with a special thin-gauge tire.
30:02You look at it, you can't see any difference at all.
30:04But it's 25% thinner than the tires that are used in the other mile ovals.
30:09It's used exclusively here at Nazareth.
30:11On the right side of the race car, front and rear, on the left front.
30:14The left rear is a Phoenix tire.
30:16It's 25% thinner on the fastest mile oval,
30:20and yet you get significantly less tire wear here
30:23than any other mile oval where the IndyCars compete.
30:28Later in the race, still Rick Muir's car number two,
30:31the Pennzoil Penske Chevrolet Power.
30:33Emerson Fittipaldi, with the stops, has moved into second place,
30:36but Rick has a strong lead over that second-place car.
30:40Ellinger Jr., in and out of the pits.
30:42Good time, but not good enough to keep him up in second.
30:44He comes out in third.
30:46Then Bobby Rahal, Ari Leyendijk, runs in fifth place.
30:49Then Mario Andretti, Danny Sullivan, Michael Andretti,
30:52with his two stops, and one at 30 seconds.
30:54Very long, is in eighth.
30:56Ninth is Tao Fabi. There is Danny Sullivan.
31:01All right, it's Fittipaldi there,
31:03as he works his way around running in second.
31:06Fittipaldi, you'll remember, had a great day here last year
31:09when he won the car championship race,
31:11as opposed to the Marlboro Challenge, which is what we have today.
31:14But Emerson followed Rick very closely earlier on,
31:17but now a little bit lonely by himself,
31:19because Muir has just stretched about 15 or 20 car lengths on him.
31:23Mentioned earlier that there is $10,000 available
31:27to the man who improves his position the most during this run.
31:30Bobby Rahal has worked up four positions,
31:33Fittipaldi three, Mario Andretti three.
31:35$10,000 also will be donated
31:38to Championship Auto Racing Auxiliary, CARA,
31:41in the name of the winner of the Marlboro Challenge here.
31:44A lot of money, a lot of interests.
31:48Allenser Jr., he currently runs in third place.
31:51The challenge at the early part of this race to Michael Andretti
31:55now tries to catch Fittipaldi and move forward.
31:58But Rick Muir is again an absolute master on the ovals,
32:02beginning to pull away steadily from his teammate Fittipaldi,
32:05who runs in second.
32:07Al Jr. made a lot of changes at the end of the qualifying session yesterday
32:11because he didn't like his car.
32:13Went for a lot of Rahal settings, because Rahal is on the pole.
32:16So Al Jr. made a lot of changes that this man here, Bobby Rahal,
32:20came up with during his practice and qualifying.
32:22Rahal runs in fourth place.
32:25Now trying to roll down behind Allenser Jr. and catch up.
32:30And back behind Rahal is Ari Leindyke,
32:33the Indianapolis 500 mile race champion, car number 30.
32:38Rahal on that Preco STP machine.
32:43Combination effort this year between the man just in front of him,
32:46Allenser Jr., and the Gallus Preco stable.
32:50I have to say, I expect a little bit more from Rahal.
32:53Let's go down to the pits and Gary Gerald.
32:55Paul, just a quick update on the progress of Rick Mears.
32:58We mentioned that fuel was a concern of many of the crew chiefs,
33:00including the Penske chiefs, coming into this race.
33:02We've checked on their fuel consumption,
33:04and remember they have the real-time onboard telemetry,
33:07which gives them accurate reading of fuel.
33:09They're happy right now.
33:10They say they're monitoring it very, very closely,
33:12but they think they can have Rick continue to push this pace.
33:15They've got enough fuel to make it the 100 miles.
33:18Well, it's a torrid pace, 152 miles an hour, the average right now.
33:22But now, just 10 miles to go.
33:25And as he flashes across the line, 9 laps, 9 miles to go for Rick Mears.
33:32Just in front of him, that's Mario Andretti.
33:34Mears closes on Mario.
33:36Mario runs in 6th place, so that gives you an idea of the competitiveness of this challenge.
33:42In this very short distance, Rick Mears,
33:45working his way down through the field and setting a most remarkable pace.
33:53We have such a good day here at Nazareth today.
33:55There was a lot of problems earlier in the week when the cars came here on Thursday
33:58because it was so cold in the morning sessions.
34:01The drivers and teams and engineers would change the cars for that condition.
34:05Then, if it warmed up in the afternoon,
34:07the handling went so bad that a lot of drivers had problems.
34:10But today, it's the warmest, brightest day I think we've ever seen
34:13for an IndyCar race here at Nazareth.
34:16Rick Mears, out in front of the Marlboro Challenge on a beautiful day.
34:20In fact, the weather forecast would be beautiful for the entire weekend
34:23here at Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
34:26Eastern Pennsylvania, with Rick Mears running out in front
34:29and on his way to perhaps a $250,000 payday.
34:35Rick Mears works his way through the field, but look at this.
34:37This could be the $10,000 for the most improved position,
34:41going out the window for Rahal.
34:43A puff of smoke at the back of the engine,
34:45and Rahal pulls off the line and slows down
34:47as Ari Leindyke comes screaming around with four laps to go for Rick Mears,
34:52the leader in the Marlboro Challenge.
34:54$250,000 to the leader.
34:56Second place, $150,000.
34:59Not a bad payday, but still $100,000 less than being out in front.
35:04We mentioned earlier on, you drive these things until they break,
35:07and that's what Rahal is going to try and do here,
35:09make this last four laps.
35:11Remember, it's only four miles here at Nazareth,
35:13but it's a critical four miles for Rahal.
35:16Don't forget later tonight here on ESPN LSU at Florida,
35:207.30 Eastern, and of course, live here tomorrow
35:23from Pennsylvania International Raceway,
35:25the Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix as the IndyCars
35:28could very well resolve the PPG Championship.
35:33Mears has not made a mistake, took his chances.
35:36He was the best through turn two.
35:38That's where we saw him make all his moves.
35:40Fast out of two, down this hill here he was faster,
35:43and all was chopped down to turn three right there.
35:45That was the difference between winning and losing here today.
35:50Rick Mears, as he comes on to the straightaway this time,
35:53sees the white flag indicating one more mile to go.
35:56$250,000 lies just ahead for Rick Mears,
36:00and perhaps his second victory of the season.
36:02His first scored back at the first race at Phoenix, Arizona,
36:06as Mears with Mario Andretti right behind on the track,
36:09but not in competition with him, just behind.
36:11In second place is teammate Fittipaldi.
36:13Allenger Jr. runs in third place
36:15as the checkered flag comes out for Rick Mears,
36:18the winner of the 1990 Marlboro Challenge.
36:21A Penske car powered by Chevrolet.
36:24Chris Mears, his wife.
36:25Well, a little more into the account for her.
36:30Barbara Hellyer, the chief scorer on the Penske team.
36:32They're happy and excited.
36:33Penske finishes first and second with Fittipaldi in second place.
36:37Allenger Jr. in third.
36:39Ari Leyendijk with a superlative run up to fourth.
36:42Fifth place is Mario Andretti.
36:44We'll be back to talk with the winner.
36:47Rick Mears continues to define his mastery of the ovals
36:50as he takes the quarter-of-a-million-dollar first prize.
36:57From Nazareth, Pennsylvania,
36:59this has been the CART Marlboro Challenge.
37:02And today it was brought to you by Quaker State.
37:04The big Q is one tough motor oil.
37:07By Robert Bosch Corporation,
37:09makers of Bosch Platinum, the ultimate spark plug.
37:12And by First Brands Corporation,
37:15makers of STP oil treatment.
37:17STP is the edge.
37:23And the winner's circle is brought to you by Road Handler.
37:26Treadlock radials at Sears.
37:27Tough tires that you can trust.
37:30Rick Mears, the winner.
37:31He's with Gary Gerald.
37:34Well, for the fourth time in four years,
37:36a different winner in Marlboro Challenge victory laid.
37:38This time it's Rick Mears.
37:39How does it feel to know that there's going to be
37:41a quarter-million dollars deposited in the old bank account?
37:44I tell you, that's great.
37:45And, you know, I've just got to thank Marlboro
37:47for putting on the Marlboro Challenge.
37:48I've always thought it was a tremendous,
37:50just another tremendous aspect to IndyCar racing in general.
37:53And I tell you, the team did a hell of a job in the pit stops,
37:55and the car, the Benz car ran great all day.
37:57It just never missed a beat.
37:58We had to work on it for a while, but it was good.
38:00You worked on the racetrack to get the position,
38:03and then the team really cements it with a terrific stop.
38:05Absolutely. I mean, it was so quick.
38:06We had to, we kind of had to lay back.
38:08I couldn't deal with the turbulence.
38:09The car had a little too much understeer in it.
38:11I didn't want to hurt the right front tire,
38:12so I just kind of waited on everybody and waited.
38:14And pretty soon I saw their tires backing up even more so than mine,
38:17and that allowed us to start working our way by them.
38:19And then once we got in front and got a little bit of a cushion,
38:21the guys just did a tremendous stop.
38:23And that just, there was concern about fuel,
38:26and yet I guess the fuel mileage was good.
38:28The Chevrolet gets great mileage, I'll tell you.
38:31We were in good shape with mileage.
38:34We look at the final results as Mears goes over the million-dollar mark
38:37for this year's earnings,
38:38and Mario Andretti picks up the $10,000 for improving the most positions.
38:42Here's Gary Gerald again.
38:45Michael, obviously things looked good for a long period of the afternoon,
38:48and then it took a real dismal turn.
38:50What, in your mind, really changed the fortunes?
38:52Was it the misfortune in the pit?
38:54Yeah, it was the pit stop.
38:56I guess the nozzle, we had a problem with the nozzle
39:00like Al Junior did at Cleveland.
39:02It was almost the exact same problem, and we didn't get fuel,
39:06and I had to go around a couple more laps and come back in and put fuel in,
39:09so I lost two laps there.
39:11It was a shame.
39:12The car was running just good enough.
39:15And if I would have had a good pit stop and got out in front of Rick again,
39:19who knows what would have happened.
39:20And a quick summation,
39:22did you learn anything that's going to be beneficial in tomorrow's 200-miler?
39:25I hope so, because there's a few things I think we're going to have to change.
39:28The car got a bit loose on me, so we have to change that.
39:30I think everybody did.
39:31Looking at everybody's cars, when you were behind them, they were all loose,
39:34so we're just going to have to try to adapt.
39:37It got a lot warmer for us than it's been all week,
39:39so I think they want it to be warm tomorrow,
39:41so hopefully we can make some adjustments.
39:43We'll come back and check your fortunes tomorrow.
39:47Paul?
39:48So the focus of the PPG IndyCar World Championship
39:50returns tomorrow to the IndyCars at Nazareth
39:53here at Pennsylvania International Raceway.
39:56I'm Paul Page for Derek Daly and Garrett.