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Friday, March 9
Defending champ fastest in practice
Associated Press
MONTERREY, Mexico -- A dirty new track and some bothersome injuries not withstanding, all was right with Gil de Ferran's world by Friday afternoon.
|  | | Gil de Ferran drinks water during a practice at Fundidora Park Raceway in Monterrey, Mexico. |
The reigning CART series champion wound up the fastest driver on the opening day of the 2001 season and the debut of a new road circuit at the inaugural Telmex Tecate Grand Prix.
De Ferran, who missed most of his scheduled winter testing after crashing in late January in Phoenix and then, less than a week later, in Homestead, Fla., led 27 other drivers Friday with a lap of 96.390 mph on the 2.1-mile, 12-turn permanent road course in downtown Fundidora Park.
Cristiano da Matta, making his debut with Newman-Haas Racing, was next at 96.199, followed by de Ferran's Penske teammate, Helio Castroneves, at 95.981.
"I'm not surprised we're at the top because I knew the team would be well-prepared," de Ferran said. "My main concern was me -- would I be prepared? The reason you go testing is to prepare the car and prepare the driver as well."
De Ferran was sore from head to toe after the crash in Phoenix. He came away with a badly bruised left foot, left shoulder and ribs after the wreck in Homestead.
"I was out of the car for the last 20 days and Helio just did a great job of winter testing," the champ said. "I talked to him in person or by telephone just about every day, and today's results are due to that good testing and the great job our engineers did back at the shop."
As for his physical condition, the Brazilian racer said, "The worst of it was the shoulder and the ribs, and I wasn't sure what to expect today. But I felt OK, so I'm happy."
The new track was to have opened Thursday for practice by the Indy Lights cars and two other minor circuits, but workers were still bolting tire barriers and fencing into place.
When the Champ cars did take to the track Friday morning for what was to be a 90-minute opening practice, the track surface was so slick and dirty that CART officials stopped the action after 30 minutes.
"I'll tell you how bad it was," Castroneves said. "Most of the teams sent the cars out with rain tires and they were faster than the dries."
After some of the dirt was cleaned off by the other series, the CART cars went back out with their usual dry-weather tries and the speeds began to climb quickly. But there were still plenty of spins and off-course excursions.
"There is very little grip out there now," de Ferran said. "If you misjudge, even the slightest, the racing line or your braking point, you're off."
Kenny Brack, last year's top rookie, was fourth-fastest at 95.699, followed by Patrick Carpentier at 94.407, Bryan Herta at 95.357 and rookie Scott Dixon at 95.327.
Perennial championship contender Michael Andretti was 12th at 94.879, while two-time series champ, Alex Zanardi -- returning after a year in Formula One and one-year hiatus in his racing career -- was 19th at 93.326.
Local hero Adrian Fernandez, debuting his own team, was hampered by an aching left wrist and was well off the pace at 92.032.
A rule change this year in CART eliminates Friday qualifying on road and street courses. The race field will be determined by one 30-minute session on Saturday.
"The track was very difficult," Brack said. "It was like driving on snow or ice today. It's very slick.
"We have a big day Saturday. With this track, qualifying is very important. You need to start toward the front of the field." Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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