Fernandez holds on to IRL win

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Aug 16, 2004 | by Associated Press

SPARTA, Ky. -- Adrian Fernandez has changed his opinion that the Indy Racing League is better suited to younger drivers.

That's what a win will do for a driver, even a 41-year-old rookie on the IRL's IndyCar Series circuit.

Fernandez earned his first visit to IRL victory lane on Sunday when he held off Buddy Rice to win at Kentucky Speedway. The Belterra Casino Indy 300 victory comes after eight career wins in Champ Car competition.

The driver from Mexico City, who owns his own racing team, had a previous best finish of fifth in the IndyCar Series at Texas Motor Speedway on June 12. Two years ago, Fernandez said the circuit was much friendlier to younger drivers.

"Fortunately, I always say things that I regret later, you know?" Fernandez said with a laugh. "We say things, you know, when you're not winning. I got down.

"Am I old? I'm not that old. I have always worked out and taken care of myself. You know, beyond being an owner, I like to be a driver ... I can still be competitive with these young guys, who really make me excited that I can still be there."

Fernandez beat Rice, a three-time series winner this year, by 0.0581 of a second, the ninth-closest finish in series history. Dan Wheldon, Kosuke Matsuura and series points leader Tony Kanaan rounded out the top five.

"We were very aggressive, because I didn't want to settle for second or third," Fernandez said.

He decided to switch from the Champ Car series to the IRL for two reasons -- to unify his team, which had had drivers on both circuits, and because he "saw in IRL better opportunities for the future."

Fernandez, who led for 51 laps, averaged 180.588 mph in his Honda. His win secured the series manufacturers' championship for Honda with five races remaining. Honda drivers have won 10 of 11 races this year. Honda is in its second year in the IndyCar Series.

"We basically reached the end of last season knowing where we were and where we believed our competition was, and we focused our efforts on trying to make the biggest improvements we could," said Robert Clarke, the vice president and general manager for Honda Performance Development.

Kanaan extended his streak of top-five finishes to 10 and maintained his points lead, although it dropped from 57 to 50 points.