CART Preview - Round 11 : Michigan.

Michigan Speedway is a fearsome two mile D-shaped oval that makes today's Champ Cars look like Micro Machines even though they are averaging more than 200mph for the entire race, less cautions and pit-stops. Races such as the Michigan 500 really separate Champ Car drivers from their Formula One counterparts as all the drivers know that a MAJOR accident can only be a few seconds away.

The Fed-Ex Championship Series was given a grim reminder of the inherent dangers of the two, two mile Superspeedways on the Champ Car calendar. Last October at the California Speedway in Fontana, Greg Moore was killed in a horrific impact which cast a shadow over Juan Montoya's Championship celebrations.

The CART teams travel to Michigan this weekend with a number of devices aimed to curb the alarming rise in speeds. Despite such innovative designs such as the Handford wing which cuts the amount of downforce generated through the rear wing, speeds still hover at the 230mph mark for a good lap.

The sheer width and flowing nature of the Michigan track always guarantees close racing. In 1998 there were a record 62 lead changes during the race and last year Tony Kanaan swept to victory by just three tenths of a second.

Michael Andretti's 40th career victory at Toronto last Sunday has put him within two points of series leader Roberto Moreno. The American Newman-Haas driver has finished seven of the ten races so far this year and is one of only two drivers with more than a single victory. Andretti has more than 15 years of experience at Michigan and has only missed one race since 1985.

Last year Andretti drove the difficult Swift chassis which ran well on ovals but did not adapt to street courses as well. Despite being at a slight disadvantage, Andretti used his years of oval racing experience to good use and came home fourth. An oil fire knocked him out of the Fontana race but with more experience of the draft than anyone else in the field, Michael is a definite favourite for victory as he aims for just his second Indy Racing title.

Team Patrick driver Moreno suffered his worst weekend of the season in Toronto, qualifying 16th and retiring ten laps from home. The Brazilian saw his points lead trimmed from 22 to just two and must finish ahead of his American rival if he wants to retain his Championship lead. Moreno drove last years Michigan 500 in place of Mark Blundell in the PacWest Reynard-Mercedes but was not able to cure a long standing handling deficiency and was forced to retire. Roberto has shown over the past three years that he is almost unrivalled in his ability to adapt quickly to constantly changing cars, tracks and teams, he will need to remember the secret to Michigan fairly quickly if he wants to remain top of the pile.

Juan Montoya has been the series' leader on oval circuits this year. The Colombian has been a strong contender for victory in all five oval races held so far this year although mechanical reliability has let him down on all but one occasion. The Colombian's Milwaukee victory remains his sole win of the year thus far and the reigning champion is still looking for an extra slice of luck with his Lola-Toyota.

Montoya is currently ninth in the points, a full 36 points behind Moreno and he will be hoping that the gremlins which plagued his Ganassi team earlier in the year don't return for this, one of the toughest mechanical races on the calendar. Last year Montoya charged to within half a second of Tony Kanaan on the final lap to record the second closest finish in series history. Montoya added to that performance with a joyless run to fourth, and the Fed-Ex title, at Fontana.

Kanaan will be hoping to gain final clearance from CART's leading orthopaedic surgeon, Dr Kirk Russell before he can hope to return to defend his crown. The Brazilian has missed the last four Champ Car events after a practice crash in Detroit saw him break his left forearm and crack four ribs.

There were scenes of both unbridled joy and utter desolation in victory lane last year for as Kanaan swept through to take his first ever, Champ Car win, long time leader Max Papis ran out of fuel on the run out of the very final turn.

The Italian had been dominant until the final lap, leading almost 150 tours and looking in good shape to take his first ever win. Into the last lap, Papis held a stable gap back to Kanaan and wasn't reporting any difficulties. Truly believing that 'Mad Max' was going to score a long overdue victory, his crew were almost on their way to victory lane when his car ran dry in the final turn and he was demoted to seventh.

A season high run to second at Fontana was tempered by the death of his close friend Moore, whose father he dedicated his first win to at Homestead this year. The charming Italian has been having an inconsistent year since his season opening win in Miami and has dropped from title contention, eleventh in the standings and nearly 40 points shy of Moreno. His superb Superspeedway form though has 'Mad Max' down as a good outside bet for victory.

Last year Paul Tracy scored more points in the second half of the season than anyone else en route to a fine third in the final standings. This year it is Tracy's Team KOOL Green team-mate Dario Franchitti who is hoping for a second half turnaround to push him back to the front of the pack.

The Scotsman, who may be entering his final half-season in the Fed-Ex Series if his Jaguar Formula One plans come to fruition. Dario would dearly love to win a CART title for team-owner Barry Green before he makes the almost inevitable trip back to European soil although he may need a miracle of biblical proportions if his wish is to come true. A promising qualifying run in Toronto was negated when he crashed with Montoya on the opening lap, his failure to score keeping him in 13th place in the standings, 44 points behind Moreno.

Franchitti, who alongside Andretti and Montoya will turn their hand to acting for Sly Stallone's new CART based movie, was involved in one of the battles of the race at Michigan last year when he, Andretti and Tracy fought tooth and nail for the entire 500 miles, Tracy coming out on top ahead of Andretti and the fifth placed Scot.

An inspired drive to third in Toronto has put Tracy right back in the thick of the title fight and the early season points leader has moved to within a race win of the points lead once again. Fourth in the points and with four top ten finishes in the last four Michigan events, the Canadian driver is feeling confident as the CART teams move into the second half of the season, taking in many circuits at which he was amongst the pace-setters last year.

The Team KOOL Green driver is the fourth man who could possibly leave Michigan with the points lead on Sunday. Third placed man in the Championship, Gil De Ferran is making his 100th Champ Car start and will be looking to improve upon his Superspeedway performances last year when contact forced him out of the Michigan event after just 60 laps and uncompetitive tyres restricted him to ninth at Fontana. The Brazilian Team Penske driver has not missed a race in the CART series since he made his debut in 1995, securing five victories in his first century of races.

Others who could challenge for honours this weekend include Cristiano Da Matta, Adrian Fernandez and Jimmy Vasser although the list of potential winners once again numbers almost a dozen.

Da Matta's mature performance at Toronto marked him out as a future champion in the making and he could take his maiden win this weekend. The young Brazilian failed to shine on his Superspeedway debut last year and failed to finish either 500 mile race. However this year his confidence has grown immensely and the Toyota engine which powers his PPI Reynard has proven itself to be more than a match for its Honda, Ford and Mercedes counterparts.

Fernandez is a definite oval expert with victories at Motegi, Rio and Fontana under his belt. The Mexican won the Marlboro 500 last year and again on the Rio De Janeiro oval earlier this year and is coming off a strong second place finish at Toronto. Last year the Tecate backed driver was sixth after running with the leaders all day and he cannot afford to let his team-mate Moreno get too far ahead in the points chase. Remember, the most important person you have to beat as a racing driver is your team-mate, Fernandez is currently eighth in the standings, 29 points behind Moreno.

Vasser's recent slump has seen him drop to sixth in the points chase and he has failed to shine since the early rounds at Motegi and Rio. Last year the American, who won the inaugural US 500 in 1996, was resplendent in his special Superman livery on his way to a disappointing ninth place. A podium finish was on the cards for the 1996 Fed-Ex Champion until he, like Papis, ran out of fuel in the closing stages.

With non-stop excitement and drama being the order of the day in the series throughout the first ten events, things can only get even more dramatic during the final ten events of the year. Last seasons exciting title chase was largely forgotten as the two fatal accidents involving Moore and Gonzalo Rodriguez cast a dark cloud over proceedings. Everyone hopes that this year there will be nothing but happy memories from the series, continuing first of all at Michigan on Sunday.