BY TOM GROESCHEN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
INDIANAPOLIS - Some of the greatest names in Indianapolis 500 history are here this weekend, although not driving. Still, the retired stars are tired of outsiders bemoaning the ''no-name'' field for Sunday's race.
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WHAT: Indy 500
WHERE: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
WHEN: Sunday
TIME: 11 a.m.
TV: Channel 9, 2
LINEUP
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Indy legends A.J. Foyt (car owner), Al Unser Sr. (driving coach), and Johnny Rutherford (Indy Racing League official) remain Brickyard loyalists. Foyt and Unser each won four Indy races and Rutherford three.
They bristle when anyone suggests Indy has lost prestige because of the war between CART (Championship Auto Racing Teams) and the IRL, with established stars such as Michael Andretti and Al Unser Jr. boycotting the race for a second straight year.
Rutherford: ''What's a big name? Al Unser Jr.? Michael Andretti? Now, who made those names? They didn't ...their fathers and their uncles made them, and they're riding the crest.''
Foyt said there are more popular drivers in IRL than in CART. They include 1990 Indy 500 winner Arie Luyendyk, 1992 runner-up Scott Goodyear, and former Indy pole-sitters Tony Stewart and Roberto Guerrero.
Rutherford said the ''future stars'' are driving at Indy now.
''I would bet you that there are more fans following the drivers that are running here than there are following the drivers that are running in CART, because most of those guys are all from foreign countries and they didn't bring any fans when they came here,'' Rutherford said.
Foyt, known for speaking his mind, told the Associated Press this week that CART car owners and drivers are not missed.
''Who cares if Roger Penske leaves? Chip Ganassi? I mean, let's face it ... his daddy's the finest guy I ever met, but what does Chip Ganassi know about racing? Nothing.''
A.J. relents
Speaking of Foyt, the Indianapolis Star reported that the 62-year-old Hall of Famer seriously considered getting back into an Indy car this year, but his crew talked him out of it.
Foyt has been a full-time car owner since he retired four years ago. His feet and legs were mangled in a crash at Elkhart Lake, Wis., in 1990 and he has had an unsteady walk since.
Football caoch on pit crew
Rick Neuheisel, football coach at the University of Colorado, will work in the pits Sunday for driver Buzz Calkins. Calkins is a native of Denver.
Neuheisel's job: Handing new tires over the wall, while receiving the old tires in return.
Cincinnati sponsor
Cincinnati-based NuTone Inc. is a co-sponsor for the car driven by Stephan Gregoire (No. 77), who will start in Row Five. NuTone, manufacturer of built-in home convenience products, is located in Madisonville.
Picking a winner
Odds are good that the Indy 500 winner will come from Sunday's front row: pole sitter Luyendyk, Stewart, or rookie Vincenzo Sospiri.
The pole sitter has won more Indys (15) than any starting spot, followed by the No. 2 spot (10 wins), and the No. 3 spot (nine).
Luyendyk, 43, has had the fastest car all month, is one of the most experienced drivers in the field, and is one of only two former Indy winners entered (he won in 1990, Buddy Lazier in 1996).
Stewart, 26, started on the pole here last year (finished 24th) and is a rising star. He has not won in two years on the IRL circuit but has led 473 total laps, three times more than anyone else.
Sospiri, 30, is one of 13 rookies in this year's field. Only six rookies have won in 80 previous Indy races, the last being Graham Hill in 1966.
More trivia
If your favorite driver starts 20th or lower in the Indy field, don't expect victory. Some history:
Since 1936, only two drivers won Indy after starting 20th or lower: Unser Sr. in 1987 (started 20th), and Rutherford in 1974 (started 25th).
The lowest starting position to win Indy is 28th, by Ray Harroun in the first Indy 500 (1911) and Louie Meyer (1936).
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