| | Associated Press
FONTANA, Calif. -- In a champ car racing version of
"Survivor," Christian Fittipaldi and Gil de Ferran were still
going at the finish and earned $1 million each.
|  | | Christian Fittipaldi celebrates after winning the Marlboro 500. |
Fittipaldi won the rain-delayed Marlboro 500 on Monday, and de
Ferran finished third to capture the closest points race in CART
history.
The two were among only six drivers still running at the end,
after blown engines and other mechanical attrition decimated the
field of 23 cars that took the green flag.
"It was a tough day for reliability for a lot of people. Even
on Friday, we knew challenge No. 1 would be to make it to the
finish,"' said de Ferran, who remained in his car for several
minutes, sobbing with relief and joy, after crossing the finish
line.
Three cars -- driven by Oriol Servia, Helio Castroneves and Alex
Tagliani -- slammed into the wall at different times. Servia and
Castroneves apparently were not seriously hurt, but doctors said
Tagiliani may have a fractured vertebrae.
"I had several close calls, especially with Michael Andretti
and Oriol Servia," said de Ferran, who was running near those two
when they bumped on the 88th lap.
Fittipaldi also narrowly escaped that jam.
The race resumed Monday after rain halted it after 33 laps
Sunday.
Fittipaldi, nephew of former racing great Emerson Fittipaldi,
earned $1 million in winning for just the second time since
beginning his CART career in 1995.
He was assured the victory when Tagliani went into the wall two
laps from the finish, prompting a yellow flag. Fittipaldi averaged
139.563 mph in his Ford Lola as the race was slowed by caution
flags 11 times for 85 laps over the two days.
"I was absolutely wide open for the last five laps of the
race," Fittipaldi said. "We knew it was our last chance to win a
race this season and we were giving it everything we had."
Roberto Moreno was second, giving Brazilians a 1-2-3 finish.
Casey Mears, son of off-road racer Roger Mears and nephew of
four-time Indy 500 champion Rick Mears, finished fourth in his CART
debut.
Tagliani, also a rookie, was sixth behind Adrian Fernandez.
De Ferran finished with 168 points, eight ahead of Fernandez, to
win the $1 million Vanderbilt Cup as season champion. Fernandez
came into the race six points back of de Ferran.
"Unfortunately we didn't have the car today to give Gil a run
for his money," Fernandez said. "The car was pushing a lot. It
was something weird. A couple of times I got very close to the
wall. At the end it was a matter of being patient and finishing the
race in the best position we could."
Nine drivers had been in contention with three races remaining.
There also were 11 different winners in the 20-race series.
De Ferran, who won two races this year, narrowly escaped the
tangle on the 88th lap, when Tony Kanaan blew the engine on his
Mercedes Reynard heading into the first turn.
As Kanaan dropped down to the inside, Andretti and Servia, their
vision hampered by the smoke cloud from Kanaan's car, tried to go
high on the track and bumped.
De Ferran, just behind those two cars in his Honda Reynard,
barely missed Andretti's car. Servia careened into the wall, his
car skidding down it for some 100 yards before he slid to a stop.
Both Servia and Andretti were through for the day.
"There was so much smoke I couldn't see where any of the cars
were," de Ferran said. "At one point, Michael's car and mine were
nose-to-nose and I was looking right into his face. But luck was on
our side."
Fittipaldi was lucky, too.
"I almost spun trying to avoid Michael," he said.
Juan Montoya of Colombia, driving his final CART race before
switching to Formula One, was trying for his fourth champ car win
of the season. He had just taken the lead on the 219th lap when the
engine blew on his Toyota Lola.
Castroneves, who also had been running at or near the front much
of the day, was another victim of a blown engine, and the spilling
oil caused him to skid backward into the wall in front of the main
grandstand.
Moreno moved up to third in the final points standings with 147,
followed by Kenny Brack with 135 and Paul Tracy with 134.
Brack, the champ car tour's rookie of the year, lost his slim
chance at the points title when a turbocharger problem on his Ford
Reynard ended his day on the 168th lap. Tracy lost his bid for the
points championship a day earlier when his engine blew on lap 23
before the race was stopped.
De Ferran, virtually assured his first CART championship if he
finished in the top three in the race, had started from the pole
Sunday after posting a closed-course record lap of 241.428 mph.
| |
ALSO SEE
Marlboro 500 results
CART Final Points Standings
CART notebook
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Christian Fittipaldi won the Marlboro 500, but Gil de Ferran is the 2000 CART/FedEx champion.
avi: 2333 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Alex Tagliani, who was in third place, crashes in Turn 1 with two laps remaining.
avi: 2750 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Tony Kanaan's blown engine sends oil onto the track, causing major trouble during the Marlboro 500.
avi: 2003 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Helio Castroneves' engine blows up, causing him to slam into the wall on Lap 227.
avi: 1342 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Gil de Ferran comments on his near miss with Michael Andretti's car after Tony Kanaan blew his engine.
avi: 2191 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
CART Champion Gil de Ferran talks with ESPN's Marlo Klain after completing the Marlboro 500.
RealVideo: 28.8
ESPN's John Kernan talks with Marlboro 500 winner Christian Fittipaldi on RPM 2Night.
RealVideo: 28.8
 Christian Fittipaldi says the whole race was difficult.
wav: 301 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Gil de Ferran talks about winning his first CART/Fedex championship.
wav: 194 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Roberto Moreno recaps his second place finish in the Marlboro 500.
wav: 459 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Adrian Fernandez was fighting for the championship, but his car refused to cooperate.
wav: 223 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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