IRL: Pagan Racing Dallara For Sale on Yahoo! Auctions

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Oct. 15, 1999 -- "Gentleman and ladies, start your bidding!" The Pagan Racing Team, second place finishers at the Indy 500 in May, and Yahoo! Auctions (http://auctions.yahoo.com) are putting a new twist on the legendary call to Indy drivers by putting the Yahoo! Pagan Racing Indy car on the virtual auction block.

Open bidding, which started October 11, continues through Sun., October 24 at http://auctions.yahoo.com/promo/pagan. When the hammer falls, one lucky bidder will be the new owner of a significant piece of Indianapolis 500 history.

"Yahoo! Auctions and Pagan Racing are giving fans of both auto racing and auctions a rare chance to own a piece of auto racing history," said Rich Godwin, brand manager, Yahoo! Inc. "What race fan has not dreamed of owning an Indy Car, and Yahoo! Auctions is pleased to give our users a chance to reach the checkered flag in this auction."

"This car has had some proud finishes under its belt and some great drivers at its helm, including Roberto Guerrero, and most recently, Jeff Ward," said Allan Pagan, co-owner of the Pagan Racing Team. The new owner will receive the car just the way it looks as it rolls off the race track, with all its pings and dings, following the last race. Ultimately, it would make a nice addition to a museum or any historic car collection.

On auction is Yahoo! Pagan Racing's Dallara chassis No. 010, the same car driven to a second place finish by Jeff Ward in the 83rd running of the Indianapolis 500, the most famous automobile race in the world. Ward, who will drive the car in the Indy Race League's (IRL) season finale at the Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday (October 17), also drove this car to a second place finish at the Phoenix International Raceway earlier this season. The car's chassis comes with all the 1999 updates, a complete set of electronics, including the Pi Systems dash and a Comptech engine, one of the same engines that ran during this season's IRL championship races. The new owner will receive the car with everything on it, just as it runs on the race track, including scars, scuffs and paint chips.

"When I see race cars in a museum, if they look pristine, like they're brand new, I always wonder if it's the real thing." said Pagan. "If it rolls off the race track and into a museum, it's truly authentic. People can actually see what actually happens on a race track, like how the nose and the front of the side pods get almost sandblasted clean of paint. Seeing all of the places where a driver likes to add padding, personal touches, and things like that, contribute to a race car's individual character and personality."

The Pagan car is eligible for racing in the 2000 IRL season, although the new owner will need technical expertise to prepare the car to race. As is normal with all high-end professional race cars between races, the car will need to be taken apart, rebuilt, and professionally prepared if they choose to race the car in competition.