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An Indy Racing Northern
Light Series event will take place on September 2, 2001 at
Chicagoland Speedway at Joliet, a state-of-the art 1.5-mile oval
under construction, Indy Racing League and track officials have
announced.
The new race at Chicagoland
Speedway joins the 85th Indianapolis 500 and another new event at
Kansas Speedway, also announced today, on the 2001 Indy Racing
Northern Light Series schedule. The new date at Chicagoland takes
place on Labor Day weekend, creating a new holiday tradition of
racing for fans.
Tony George, Indy Racing
League founder and Indianapolis Motor Speedway president and chief
executive officer, made the announcement today along with Mike
Helton, NASCAR senior vice president and chief operating officer,
Indy Racing and NASCAR drivers, and track officials at a press
conference at Chicago's Navy Pier. NASCAR Winston Cup Series and
NASCAR Busch Series, Grand National Division events also will take
place at the new facility.
Chicago is the third-largest
city in the United States, making it one of the most appealing
markets for major motorsports. 'This region has a great tradition
of open-wheel racing dating back to Meadowdale International and
Raceway Park, and we are proud to link the heritage of the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500 with the
racing tradition of Illinois,' George said. 'Chicago will be the
largest market where the Indy Racing Northern Light Series
competes, and I expect it will be a great event for our drivers,
our fans and our sponsors.'
Chicagoland Speedway is
scheduled to open in spring 2001. The 75,000-seat facility will be
part of one of the most comprehensive motorsports complexes in
America, as it is adjacent to Route 66 Raceway, site of an annual
NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series event. 'We're thrilled to bring
the Indy Racing Northern Light Series to the Chicago area,' said
Joie Chitwood III, general manager of Chicagoland Speedway. 'Our
partners identified Chicago as a target market five years ago, and
we've been working toward this day ever since. 'We began
construction with the hopes of getting a great lineup of events,
but there are no guarantees in this business. We hoped that if we
built a great facility and assembled a solid leadership team, our
chances would be good.'
The Indy Racing Northern
Light Series is the premier open-wheel, oval-track series in the
world, with the world-famous Indianapolis 500 as its cornerstone
events. Drivers in the Northern Light Series compete in
open-wheel, open-cockpit cars with normally aspirated V8 engines
that race at more than 220 mph. Top drivers in the series include
two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr., 1998 Indianapolis
500 winner Eddie Cheever Jr., 1996 Indianapolis 500 winner Buddy
Lazier, 1999 series champion Greg Ray, Scott Goodyear, Robbie Buhl
and Scott Sharp. Cheever and Sharp attended the press conference
today to help launch the new era of racing in Chicago.
'It's a great track in a
great city,' Cheever said. 'Chicago has the most dedicated, vocal
sports fans, and I can't wait to see them turn out by the
thousands to cheer on their favorite drivers - hopefully me. And
as a team owner in the Indy Racing Northern Light Series, I'm
proud to see our series expand our schedule into another major
market.' The remainder of the 2001 Indy Racing Northern Light
Series schedule will be announced at a later date.
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