Cheever Indianapolis post race report

Indianapolis, IN - 1998 Indianapolis 500 Champion Eddie Cheever Jr. finished seventh at the 2001 True Value IROC season finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on August 4th en route to earning fourth place in the series championship.

Cheever, who earned his first IROC win last season and finished fifth overall in the 2000 championship, entered the Indy event tied with Tony Stewart for third overall in the IROC standings but was unable to mount a charge for the victory.

"I think that was the longest IROC race I've ever had," admitted Cheever. "My car was very loose and there was very little I could do."

"Even when Ricky Rudd and I were running by ourselves towards the end, I couldn't get a tow off him," explained the open-wheel veteran. "I'd gain in the corners but I couldn't hang with him on the straightaways. Still, it was a great championship. I really enjoyed it."

2000 NASCAR Winston Cup champion Bobby Labonte earned the race victory to claim the 2001 IROC series title. Tony Stewart finished second overall, followed by Kenny Brack and Cheever.

"Labonte ran strongly at every race and he deserves it," noted Cheever. "He's inherited Earnhardt's mantle as the IROC champion."

The 2001 True Value IROC finale will be broadcast on ESPN on Friday, August 10 at 7:00 p.m. (EDT.)

-CIR