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Chat Reel: Michael Andretti

CART star chats about F1 and winning in Japan

Posted: Tuesday May 16, 2000 06:25 PM

Michael Andretti (6) makes his move on the way to winning the CART Firehawk 500 on Sunday.

CNNSI Host: Welcome to today's CART chat with driver Michael Andretti. Hi Michael. Thanks for joining us.
Michael Andretti: Thank you. Good to be here.

From Rich in Phillipsburg, N.J.: Do you ever see yourself teaming with brother Jeff, and cousin John to drive in the 24 hours of Daytona or LeMans?
Michael Andretti: Who knows? Anything is possible down the road, but right now we have no plans.

From Brent in Charlottesville, Va.: Does driving a black car during the summer raise the cockpit temperature more than the other, lighter colored cars? Have you considered a "summer color scheme" of silver or white vs black that would still reflect the Texaco Havoline colors?
Michael Andretti: Yes, it is hotter. Texaco prefers to have a black car, which I can understand

From P.J. in Vienna, Va.: Congrats on your win, its been a long time coming. In light of F1 returning to the US, how do you feel about the inability of American drivers to get to F1? Personally I think you were dealt a raw deal in '93, with virtually no testing and a high profile/high maintenance team mate like Senna. Out of the current crop of American drivers, who do you rate highly and think might have a chance at F1?
Michael Andretti: I think Bryan Herta is very good and Jimmy Vasser is very good. Any of those guys, given a chance, would be very good, but they would need at least a year of learning.

From Carlos in Morristown, Tenn: What advice would you give to a CART driver that plans to drive in F1? Do you regret your venture with Williams in F1?
Michael Andretti: First all, I was with McLaren, but I do not regret it. Sheer learning -- it was invaluable. I learned a lot that year. Advice: Make sure when they go for their F1 deal that they make sure they have a lot of testing. I had no testing, and that really hurt me.

From Kelly in Altoona, Iowa: I've been a fan of you and your father since I was a kid. I've always wanted to thank your father for calling me from the jet on my birthday in April of '93 after his win at PIR. My question for you is -- After the death of Greg Moore at Fontana, has anyone called for the inside retaining walls to be redesigned so that they run parallel to the track instead of jutting out toward the track?
Michael Andretti: Yes, I believe they made a correction. They also made a correction so that the car will not go airborne before it hits the wall.

From Vince in Pittsburgh: Today's CART cars have extremely restrictive looking head/neck protection. Though I'm sure you welcome the safety they impose, how do they, if any, affect your driving on road courses?
Michael Andretti: Actually, it's ok. On a road course, it's freed up a little, so they do not get in your way.

From Doc in St. Croix, Virgin Islands: What is the main reason for your qualifying problems so far this year? It's not as big a problem on the ovals as it is on the road courses where track position is much more important, but I'm sure you are somewhat concerned.
Michael Andretti: Yes, we are. Long Beach we feel we would have been sixth or seventh, but I never got a clear lap. We want to be quicker and we need to qualify further up if you can.

Form Guest: How are you and Paul Tracy getting along these days? Paul seems like the man to beat in the points race this year.
Michael Andretti: We are getting along okay. We have not had any problems. It's all worked out. Paul is on a roll, and he needs to have a lot of bad luck for us to catch him. But -- there is a long, long way to go.

From Guest: Mike, congrats on your win on Sunday. You haven’t won on a road course since 1997, but you have been close. What has kept you out of victory lane on the road courses?
Michael Andretti: Luck. We could have won Long Beach but we made the wrong call on the pit stop. We had had a couple of shots at winning, but we will have a break in one of these races.

From Guest: What was your initial thought when they scheduled the Nazareth race for early April?
Michael Andretti: That is was going to snow. That honestly was my initial thought, and I sort of laughed when i woke up and saw all the snow race morning.

From Mike: First I think you got a raw deal on the ruling from the incident in Rio. How is the crew member?
Michael Andretti: He will be okay. He should be back soon I hope in the next few weeks, but yes, we were disappointed.

From Guest: Your father won the Daytona 500. Any interest in ever trying Nascar?
Michael Andretti: Actually, not at this point in my career. It would be a new learning curve and I am not willing to do that right now. I'll leave the NASCAR racing to John.

From Guest: You were quoted on the cart website as saying that the ganassi cars need to be slowed down. Why do they seem so much faster?
Michael Andretti: If we knew, we would be going as fast. They seem to have an edge, and we are working hard to find it.

From Guest: How does this year’s Ford engine compare to last year’s?
Michael Andretti: The new engine is great. It's completely rebuilt and lighter, and it has more horsepower, and it's an inch lower. It's an all-around better package and the best engine out there.

From Guest: Will you be attending the Indy 500? If not, what will you be doing that day? What do you think about the lack of Americans in CART?
Michael Andretti: I won't be attending, I will be watching on TV. We will be racing the day before in Nazareth. As for the lack of American drivers... Our series is international. The drivers are competing with the world in terms of driving talents. It becomes a lot tougher.

From Guest: What kind of physical and mental preparation do you do before a race? What's your typical pre-race meal?
Michael Andretti: I will have pasta before the race, but I do not have a set ritual. I have a lot of PR stuff to do.

From Guest: Your pit crew looked flawless in Japan, do you agree?
Michael Andretti: Yes, they were flawless. Everything went perfect. They were able to get us the win -- they didn't make any mistakes.

From Guest: Now that you have tied Al Unser Sr. with 39 wins, what do you think your chances are of catching your father?
Michael Andretti: That is where I have my eye. I have been wanting to get there before I retire, but I have a way to go. You have to set your goals somewhere.

From Lela in Phoenix: Congratulations on your victory! What track or course on the CART circuit do you consider to be the most challenging and why?
Michael Andretti: I do not know. They are all very challenging in their own way, so I can't just pick out one.

CNNSI Host: That's all the time we have for today. Thanks again for joining us Michael. And good luck the rest of the season.
Michael Andretti: Thank you.

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