Boss' illness forces McGehee to withdraw.

Robby McGehee, who finished fourth in last year's Indy Racing League event at Nashville Superspeedway driving for Cahill Racing, will miss Saturday's Firestone Indy 200 IRL race at that track due to the unexpected hospitalisation of Ray Parsons of Parsons Motorsports Marketing.

Parsons had planned to run the popular driver from St. Louis in the Beck Motorsports entry for this weekend's race, just as he had done for similar events at Pikes Peak International Raceway in Colorado; Richmond International Raceway in Virginia and Kansas Speedway.

Parsons plans to do the July 28 race at Michigan International Speedway with McGehee and Beck Motorsports as a substitution for the Nashville event.

Many executives and guests of his sponsor, Norwalk Furniture, are expected to attend the Michigan race.

Parsons was hospitalised last week for unexpected stomach surgery. He is to undergo that surgery on Friday or Saturday. He hopes to be discharged from the hospital next week.

Get-well cards may be mailed to him at: Ray Parsons, c/o Bellevue Hospital, P.O. Box 8004, 811 Northwest St., Bellevue, Ohio, 44811.

"The priority here is not whether or not we're on the track, but Ray's health," McGehee said. "We're all thinking about him and praying that he feels better soon. We know he's as anxious as we are to get back on the racetrack, and we all wish him the best."

McGehee, Parsons and the rest of the team are continuing to search for additional corporate partners for future IRL races.