CHAMPCAR/CART: Fans will vote on Annual CART All-Star Team

DETROIT (May 18, 2000) - FedEx Championship Series fans will have the opportunity to cast their votes and become part of the exclusive selection committee that will choose the 2000 CART All-Star Team, Championship Auto Racing Teams announced today.

The worldwide fan base will join the selection committee that is currently comprised of all current FedEx Championship Series drivers, a select group of motorsports media and three celebrity voters. The fans will be able to make their selections on CART.com, the official website of the FedEx Championship Series, and their overall vote for their top five CART All-Star choices will be weighed in the balloting. The voting format utilized awards the first-ranked driver 10 points; second, seven (7) points; third, five (5) points; fourth, three (3) points; fifth, one (1) point.

"The CART All-Star selection committee contains some of the most knowledgeable people in the sport and it seemed fitting that our fans become part of the process because of their knowledge and love of the sport," said Patrick Leahy, CART Senior Vice President of Marketing. "We believe this is an excellent opportunity for them to get more involved in tracking the performances of the top drivers as well as their favorites and have an impact on one of the prestigious honors bestowed upon the FedEx Championship Series drivers annually. CART.com provides an outstanding avenue for this because the fans can get the latest news on the FedEx Championship Series before they cast their deciding votes."

There will be two voting periods for the 2000 CART All-Star Team. The first will be the midseason CART All-Star Team, which gives fans, drivers and media an opportunity to see where their choices stand in the balloting at the midway point of the season. Voting will be conducted following Round 10 - the Molson Indy in Toronto on July 16 - and the results will be released the weekend of the Target Grand Prix scheduled for July 28-30 at Chicago Motor Speedway.

The official balloting for the 2000 CART All-Star Team will begin following the season-ending Marlboro 500 Presented by Toyota on Oct. 29 at California Speedway. The votes from the midseason CART All-Star Team do not carry over to the final balloting of the team.

Last season, the voting committee of FedEx Championship Series drivers, motorsports media and the celebrity trio of actors Tim Allen and Anthony Edwards and 1999 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Robin Yount chose the inaugural CART All-Star Team. The team consisted of FedEx Series champion Juan Montoya of Target/Chip Ganassi Racing; Dario Franchitti and Paul Tracy of Team KOOL Green; Max Papis of Team Rahal and Michael Andretti of Newman/Haas Racing. Greg Moore, who was fatally injured at California Speedway, was selected to the team as an honorary member.

Montoya, the sensation who became only the second rookie in history to win the series crown, received the prestigious Mario Andretti Trophy as the leading vote-getter on the team.

--CART--