HO US Indy 500 - The Edge

April 17, 1999

Round 16 of 1

Weather: 45 - Cloudy

MARICH'S FIRST CAREER WIN COMES AT H.O. INOY 500

-Kaehny captures first championship-

New Berlin, WI (Apr. 17, 1999). As a team, the Frugal Homebrewer fared pretty well here at the Edge super speedway in the 'Greatest Spectacle in H.0. Racing' Saturday, with driver Phil Marich picking up his first career win in the H.O. U.S. Indy 500, and veteran Jim Kaehny capturing the PPPG Cup that so many said was long overdue in his six-year career. Never mind that the owner of the team, John Baas failed to make the field and finished last, he was celebrating with a shower of beer in Victory Lane with his two drivers. For Marich the magical first win came in his 18th career start in the series. So excited was the second-year driver that he grabbed the cold milk and chugged it down before the presentation of the winner's trophy was even made.

"I can't tell you how absolutely fantastic this feels right now," he said. "This is much more than I ever dreamed of doing this season. The car was just great and I'm proud to be a part of this team."

Marich, who put his Swift-Ford third on the grid, also won his heat race and gathered enough points to overhaul

Dave Austin in the final season standings, finishing in seventh position.

lt was the other Frugal Homebrewer driver Kaehny that led the 500 throughout the first half of the race, with Marich having to make up about 10 laps after that point. Marich, who now resides in Waukesha, Wisconsin, pulled off a pass on the back stretch on lap 620 of 1,000 and was never bested after that. Kaehny knew all he had to do was finish in front of Phil Cianciola for the title, and that's exactly what he did.

"I've finally got the monkey off my back," said Kaehny, as he was showered with beer from his elated teammate Marich. Kaehny went on to explain, "I really tried to run with Phil (Marich} a couple of times, but I couldn't keep up and couldn't risk a crash either." In the end Kaehny fell 27 laps short of the win and in second place. For the record, Marich's victory means in six years of the H.O. U.S. Indy 500 there have been six different winners.

One thing didn't change and that was the fact that Ev Kamikawa won the pole position for the third time here at the 500. But blistered tires led to poor handling and Kamikawa said he "Got into too big of a hole early and couldn't make it up after getting the fresh skins."

Now 'former' series champion Cianciola was never a factor in the race, forced to drive a backup car that was extremely lacking in horsepower. Cianciola shocked the sellout crowd when he found himself on the qualifying bubble, then bumped for a time by his teammate Pat Jarvis, before Cianciola managed to put the backup into the field late in the qualifying session.

Chad Sorce, Dave Austin and Tom Spehert were all very close, finishing fifth, sixth and seventh respectively. Rookie of the Year Larry Rotter was off the pace in eighth. The other series rookie Mike Prelozni picked up a couple of points for ninth place, while Jarvis and Baas took the doughnut in 10th and 11th.

Kaehny, who will now boast the #1 on his car next season, not only was tops in points this season, but also takes home the Final Frugal Four award for most appearances in the Final Four this season at 13. Kaehny's five pole positions this season was also best in the series. His four wins tied Margetta for the high in the series this season, and Kaehny also tied Cianciola for most heat wins at seven.

Former SlotCART champion Austin failed to win a race this season for the first time in his career. The Constructor's Cup went to Reynard, the Manufacturer's Cup went to Ford and Goodyear won the tire wars this season. The stars of the series gather this Thursday for the 6th-Annual SlotCART Awards Banquet, where the PPPG Cup will be presented to the new 199B-1999 champion, Jim Kaehny.

Ironically, neither the 500 winner Marich nor the new series champion Kaehny have contracts to drive in the series next season, although an announcement about their futures may be made at this Thursday's banquet.

RACE PREVIEW: THE H.O. U.S. INDY 500

0    WHAT: The 6th-annual H.O. U.S. Indy 500

0    WHERE: The Edge          New Berlin, WI

0    WHEN: Saturday, Apr. 17th High Noon

0    DEFENDING CHAMPION:  Jim Kaehny

0    DEFENDING POLESITTER: Jim Kaehny

0     TRACK LAYOUT: Super Speedway Oval

0   RACE LENGTH: 1,000 laps

0    RACE RECORDS: Qualifying- 9.09 Ev Kamikawa, 1997

Race- 1,000 laps/45. 10 Ev Kamikawa, 1997

0   RACE#: 16 of 16

0    NEXT EVENT: The SlotCART Awards Banquet

Thursday, April 22nd 6:45 p.m. Giuseppe's Restaurant                        Wauwatosa, WI

0    INSTANT REPLAY

The cold drink of milk went to Jim Kaehny in a great performance. He won the pole and won the race, doing everything he could to win the PPPG Cup. Problem was that Phil Cianciola finished second, scoring enough points to secure the championship.

Ironically, these two are fighting for the Cup once again, just as they have done before for several past seasons.

THE H.O. U.S. INDY 500 HISTORY

Year

Race Winner

Pole Winner

1994

PHIL CIANCIOLA

PHIL CIANCIOLA

1995

JOHN SHEA

JOHN SHEA

1996

DAVE AUSTIN

EV KAMIKAWA

1997

EV KAMIKAWA

EV KAMIKAWA

1998

JIM KAEHNY

JIM KAEHNY

Things to watch for this year .

Well, once again the entire championship comes down to the final race of the season. And once again, it's Jim Kaehny and Phil Cianciola going head-to-head. Kaehny has come out on the short end of this fight each time he has been in it thus far in his career. All eyes will be on him on his home track this year to see if THIS is finally HIS year!