European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 25, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse Saturday May 25,-1991 the stars and stripes a Page 27 Cheever revs his winning indy formula by Shaw Glick the los Angeles times Indianapolis a Eddie Cheever was voted Rookie of the year in last years Indianapolis 500 after finishing eighth but he admits a i was Only holding on trying to keep off the Walls and out of anyone a it have been surprising be cause Cheever had been in 132 formula one races a with their tire Wall barriers wide Runoff areas and comparatively slow speeds a and Only one Oval before challenging the 21 Miles of Concrete Walls around the Indianapolis motor Speedway. A Oval and Road races have nothing in common except for pedals and brakes and throttle a Cheever said. Speeds Are so High at indy it has no relationship to speeds in formula one. We run 230 Mph going for the first turn at indy. In a grand prix at most id go 180 into a the Phoenix native 33, who spent most of the first 30 years of his life living abroad is eagerly awaiting his second indy 500 sunday when he will drive a Lola Chevy for owner Chip Ganassi. Cheever will Start in 10th position on the inside of the fourth Row. A a in a a Little disappointed at my starting position but the Way qualifying went this is going to be a strange Start anyway a he said. Because several Drivers of fast cars were fooled by the weather and did not qualify on the first Day the fifth Row of Gary Bettenhausen Arie Luyendyk and Emerson Fittipaldi is faster than the front Row of Rick Mears . Foyt and Mario Andretti. A no matter what it should be easier than last year a Cheever said. A it would be a lie if i said i did no to have a hard time last year. Everything i had been taught about racing i had to forget when i drove Here. A in Road racing a Driver reacts to the car then makes his correction. Sometimes you May Over Correct but you still react. Here there is no time to react. You must anticipate. If you get to the Point where you should react its too late. A you May instinctively try to react but surely the result will be the same. You will be into a its a wonder Cheever migrated from grand prix to indy cars after his first experience watching an Oval race. It was at Michigan in 1984, and he dropped in to visit an old Friend from formula one Danny Sullivan. A i was standing in the second Corner when the cars began to warm up a Cheever said. A i thought it would be fourth 500 on an Central european time to and radio�?5 . Sunday. Liec what i saw. By the time i was Able to focus he was gone-1 had never seen such Speed sheer blinding Speed a in All my years of racing. That is what makes indy so fascinating the Cheever drove his first Oval race last year on the mile track at Phoenix. He quickly Learned the difference Between qualifying on an Oval and on a Road circuit when he lost control and spun 400 Yards. A it was a very cheap lesson a he said. A i hit nothing and people said it was Good driving to keep the car off the Walls but that a hard to believe when your eyes Are closed and you re screaming.44 Cheever has approached indy much As he would a Road course dividing its four turns and four Straightaway into separate segments. A turn 1 is the biggest problem Quot he said. A when you re coming Down the front Straightaway and see the turn coming at you your first instinct is that you la never make it through. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to keep your foot Down but it also takes a lot of knowledge to make it through smoothly. A turn 3 is the next biggest problem but for some reason it does no to seem As frightening or As difficult As the first one. How you get through turn 2 is the consequence of How you get through turn 1, and turn 4 bears the same relationship to turn 3. A a you practice with special emphasis on getting in and getting out of the Corners. They look alike but each one is different and you have to continually make compromises to get your car in balance and then keep it that despite his newness to Oval races Cheever had one of the Best records among cart Drivers in the two 500s, the eighth place at indy and a fourth at Michigan. Only a1 Unser or. And Bobby Rahal did better. Cheever who is moving his wife and daughter from Rome to a new chalet in aspencolo., believes this May be the year for him to win. He was third twice last year at Detroit and Toronto and also finished third this year at Long Beach Calif. He was running third in Australia when Al Unser or. Spun in front of him and knocked his car Eddie Cheever woke up in time last year to finish eighth in the Indianapolis 500. Out of the race. In 132 formula one races Over 11 seasons Cheever never won. His last Victory of any kind was in a group c world endurance championship race in 1986 in a Jaguar. A there is a big difference but Ween our team this year and last a he said. A that makes me much More confident about the season. A last year we had a Bunch of Good doers mechanics who were Good at making sure the pieces did not fall off. This year in addition to them we have excellent thinkers too. We did no to have them last year and with racing technology the Way it is today with All its electronics and aerodynamics it is important for a team to have its own Ken Anderson the team s chief Engineer came from team in Enske where he worked on three winning indy 5 h cars Between 1985 and 1988. A. A i also have a better indy Comfort level a Cheever said. A i know More about handling a car at these speeds. This year the first time i Slid in the Corners was during qualifying. Last year sliding around every time Rookie Groff made it the Indianapolis a Mike Groff the fastest Rookie Ever in the fastest Indianapolis 500 starting Field likes the reliability of the co Worth engine that Powers his Lola Chassis. A we Haven to blown a motor. The Chevrolet have and the bricks certainly have a Groff said tuesday. A we know we re not going to outrun them. We just have to keep our car running not be super conservative but conservative and see How things Groff is one of five rookies in an historic indy Field and is one of three who qualified last year but were bumped by cars that completed their 10-mile qualification run quicker once the Field was full. A when you come Here and spend an entire month give every ounce of sweat and Effort and done to make the race in be never had a letdown like that Groff said. A it was an empty feeling and one i Don j Ever want to experience the other rookies have distinctions of their own. Willy t. Ribbs is the first Black to qualify Hiro Matsushita is the first japanese to make the Field and Jeff Andretti and buddy Lazier have family history As second generation indy Drivers. Groff who will Start on the outside of the sixth Row plans no wild dash to the front when the race begins. A a it a a 500-mile race and someone who tries to win it too Early is usually out Early a he said. A i just want to go out gradually move up positions and be there for the the 29-year-old Groff who set a Rookie qualifying record of 219.015 Mph picked up $2,500 for being the quickest Rookie qualifier in a Field that averages 218.590. He stands to pick up a lot More monday night when the purse is divided at the traditional Victory dinner. The lowest payoff from a record purse of $6,325,803 last year was $108,021 to last place finisher Stan Fox the highest was $1,090,940 for Winner Arie Luyendyk. A a a we re real Happy with the Way things have gone this month a said Groff a three time grand National Champion in Quarter midgets. A we had the car up to 215 right away and it was real comfortable. Ever since then we be built our Way up and Haven to gone backwards once
