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Friday, December 13, 2002
Too early to think about Indy
By Sarah Fisher
Special to ABC Sports Online
Throughout the 2002 IRL season, Jaques Lazier is writing a diary for ABC Sports Online. Jaques finished second in the IRL's last race behind Sam Hornish Jr., and hopes to head to Indy with a win this Sunday in the Firestone Indy 225 (ABC, 1 p.m. ET).
A lot of people tend to get wrapped up this time of year in the preparing for the Indy 500. Don't get me wrong, it's a necessary evil. How can you hide from the looming shadow of May as it gets closer and closer? It's like a meteor about to hit. And nobody can deny the importance of the Indy 500. Like most, we've tested twice at the Speedway in the last week or so. But still, there's this little place in Pennsylvania that we all need to be careful of and that's Nazareth Speedway.
|  | | Jaques Lazier is hoping to use a strong finish at Nazareth to give him momentum heading into Indy. |
I've been looking at it on the schedule all year, reminding myself how important it is. For starters, nobody has raced Nazareth in an Indy Racing League car and while most of us tested there a while back, it's going to be a pretty unpredictable race. Naz just isn't an easy track to conquer. Nobody knows what the weather will be like, which is going to play a huge part in how everybody handles their tires. In testing, it was very cold. So cold we were snowed out the second day. Getting any kind of heat in the rubber took a lot longer than normal. To get around there quickly without lifting is tough as it is, but with tire temps down, it's impossible. The car really wants to do some "dirt-tracking" on you.
In the test we were turning laps under 20 seconds, which is similar to Phoenix. The difference is this track has so many things going on. Just about every week, we talk about how Turns One and Two at a given track are different than Three and Four. At Naz, it's like someone decided to carve up an old go-kart track and put as many attributes into the oval as they could. It's got an elevation change, which is something we don't normally encounter. On the back straight, you're headed downhill into a banked corner. The front straight is going back uphill into a leaning corner or "off-camber" corner as we call them. Then Turn Two, which is flat and the top of the hill.
There's literally no time to rest at this place, especially considering the small size of the track. We'll be negotiating traffic all day long. As a driver, if your concentration isn't up to par on this track it's going to be a long day. There are cars on the track that won't be up to speed like there are in any race (hopefully that's not us!), and getting by them on a regular basis will definitely play a role in the outcome. The fortunate thing is that most of us have run at Nazareth in some sort of open-wheel series in the past, which means it's not going to be a huge surprise when the green flag drops.
So what do I want out of this weekend? Obviously I want to win and walk into the Speedway in a few weeks as the last guy to win a race. But I'm more after keeping the confidence up and gaining points. We want a championship here at Team Menard. I figure if we can run up front and stay in the hunt for the title, race wins will come. Last year at Chicago we weren't looking for a win, we were trying to have a smooth, calculated weekend and prepare well. Because of that approach, we ended up winning. The key is to be in a position each race to be one of the top guys. We were there at Fontana and I can tell you the next time we're that close, there's a good chance Sam is a few feet back instead of me. Our team the last two races has really stepped it up. Since midway through the Phoenix race everything has been clicking.
The race at Fontana, what can you do? Sam and I had a battle for the ages there at the end and we came up short. But we were a force to be reckoned with and I think that's got to be the most important thing we take away from that race. I'm over the disappointment of finishing second, now I'm fired up. Our test at Nazareth was outstanding, and we've been very quick in Indy testing. Things are really good at Team Menard.
Basically, it's been entirely too long since we strapped in the car for a race. I'm ready to go!
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 Sam Hornish Jr. and Jaques Lazier's battle led to the second closest finish in IRL history.
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Sam Hornish Jr. recaps his victory at Fontana, Calif.
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Jaques Lazier is satisfied with a second-place finish and the impact it will have in the weeks to come.
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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