1999 Firestone Firehawk 500K

The 1999 Firestone Firehawk 500K was the second round of the 1999 CART FedEx Champ Car World Series season, held on April 9, 1999, on the Twin Ring Motegi in Motegi, Tochigi, Japan.

1999 Firestone Firehawk 500K
Race details
Race 2 of 20 in the 1999 CART season
Twin Ring Motegi
DateMarch 28, 1999
Official name1999 Firestone Firehawk 500K
LocationTwin Ring Motegi, Motegi, Tochigi, Japan
CoursePermanent oval course
1.549 mi / 2.493 km
Distance201 laps
311.349 mi / 501.093 km
WeatherDry
Pole position
DriverGil de Ferran (Walker Racing)
Time25.463
Fastest lap
DriverHélio Castro-Neves (Hogan Racing)
Time25.830 (on lap 136 of 201)
Podium
FirstAdrián Fernández (Patrick Racing)
SecondGil de Ferran (Walker Racing)
ThirdChristian Fittipaldi (Newman-Haas Racing)

It was the first Champ Car race since the 1995 Indianapolis 500 where Al Unser Jr is absent.

Report

Race

There was drama at the start when polesitter Gil de Ferran spun while taking the green flag. As a result, the start was delayed, and de Ferran was able to take back his starting position: pole. He led the early stages but then began to drop back with tire problems and Maurício Gugelmin took the lead. Gugelmin led comfortably until the first round of stops, when he overshot his pitlane, losing time. He was also given a black flag for running over pit material, which put him a lap down and out of contention. Adrián Fernández took the lead and led comfortably until Juan Pablo Montoya closed right up to him. Fernández held him off, and Montoya's challenge was ended when he lost three laps due to a fuel pick-up problem. In the final stages of the race, it seemed clear that everyone had to pit for fuel, and a caution brought out by Max Papis's spin was ideal. All the leaders pitted, except Fernández who for some reason stayed out. It seemed to be a mistake, as the race went green with 4 laps left, and he did not have enough fuel for 4 green-flag laps. However, Greg Moore, running second, spun while lapping backmarkers, which resulted in Richie Hearn crashing, and the caution came out again. Whereas the spin dropped Moore to fourth, the caution was till the end of the race, which meant that Fernández did not have to stop, and thus won the race. de Ferran recovered to finish second, and Christian Fittipaldi completed the podium.

Classification

Race

PosNoDriverTeamLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints
1 40 Adrián Fernández Patrick Racing 201 1:46:01.463 4 20+1
2 5 Gil de Ferran Walker Racing 201 +6.347 1 16+1
3 11 Christian Fittipaldi Newman-Haas Racing 201 +7.669 7 14
4 99 Greg Moore Forsythe Racing 201 +38.027 6 12
5 6 Michael Andretti Newman-Haas Racing 200 +1 Lap 5 10
6 44 Tony Kanaan Forsythe Racing 200 +1 Lap 17 8
7 17 Maurício Gugelmin PacWest Racing 200 +1 Lap 2 6
8 22 Robby Gordon Team Gordon 200 +1 Lap 14 5
9 9 Hélio Castro-Neves Hogan Racing 199 +2 Laps 18 4
10 10 Richie Hearn Della Penna Motorsports 198 Contact 21 3
11 26 Paul Tracy Team Green 198 +3 Laps 10 2
12 12 Jimmy Vasser Chip Ganassi Racing 198 +3 Laps 12 1
13 4 Juan Pablo Montoya Chip Ganassi Racing 197 +4 Laps 15
14 2 Tarso Marques Team Penske 197 +4 Laps 22
15 20 P. J. Jones Patrick Racing 196 +5 Laps 9
16 7 Max Papis Team Rahal 196 +5 Laps 3
17 36 Alex Barron All American Racing 195 +6 Laps 19
18 19 Michel Jourdain, Jr. Payton/Coyne Racing 188 +13 Laps 26
19 71 Luiz Garcia, Jr. Payton/Coyne Racing 184 Engine 25
20 16 Shigeaki Hattori Bettenhausen Racing 140 Clutch 24
21 24 Scott Pruett Arciero-Wells Racing 106 Fire 20
22 27 Dario Franchitti Team Green 91 Contact 11
23 8 Bryan Herta Team Rahal 84 Electrical 8
24 18 Mark Blundell PacWest Racing 78 Handling 16
25 25 Cristiano da Matta Arciero-Wells Racing 39 Transmission 23
26 33 Patrick Carpentier Forsythe Racing 10 Fuel pressure 13

Caution flags

LapsCause
1-4de Ferran (5) spin
89-96Franchitti (27) contact
140-148Debris on track
194-198Papis (7) spin
200-201Moore (99) spin

Lap Leaders

LapsLeader
1Maurício Gugelmin
2-26Gil de Ferran
27-46Maurício Gugelmin
47-50Adrián Fernández
51-52Scott Pruett
53-201Adrián Fernández
 
DriverLaps led
Adrián Fernández153
Gil de Ferran25
Maurício Gugelmin21
Scott Pruett2

Point standings after race

Pos Driver Points
1 Greg Moore 34
2 Michael Andretti 26
3 Gil de Ferran 25
4 Adrián Fernández 21
5 Christian Fittipaldi 18

References

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