STARTING OVER : Chandler, Guerrero Return in Separate Races at Phoenix After a Pair of Crashes at Indy

Four years ago next month, Michael Chandler crashed into the third-turn wall while practicing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and lay in a coma for nine days after a wheel ricocheted off the wall and smacked him in the temple.

Seven months ago, Roberto Guerrero crashed into the second-turn wall while practicing at Indianapolis and lay in a coma for 14 days after a wheel ricocheted off the wall and hit his helmet.

This weekend, in a curious turn of events, the two neighbors from Orange County--Chandler of North San Clemente and Guerrero of San Juan Capistrano--will make their first return to the race track in separate events at Phoenix International Raceway.

Chandler will drive a Wildcat-Buick in today’s 100-mile American Racing Series race, opening event of an 11-race season. Guerrero will be in Sunday’s Checker 200, opening race of the PPG Indy Car World Series.

Chandler had not as much as sat in a race car for more than two years when he took to the mile oval here Friday and immediately posted the day’s fastest qualifying lap at 137.274 m.p.h. However, during qualifying he could manage only 133.958 m.p.h. and will start sixth.

“It felt like I hadn’t been away more than a couple of weeks,” Chandler said. “I only put this deal together six days ago so I didn’t have time to get nervous about it. I didn’t even get in a lap of practice before we arrived here. It was the first time I’ve been on an oval since the accident.”

Chandler, son of Otis Chandler, former Los Angeles Times publisher and currently chairman of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of Times Mirror, had driven in three Indy 500s before his crash, which occured on the final day of practice before qualifying in 1984. Since then, his only racing experience has been in an International Motor Sports Assn. GTO endurance race at Riverside and in a showroom stock race, both more than two years ago.

The car, which is the only 1988 model Wildcat in today’s race, is owned by Mark Weida, a neighbor of Chandler’s, and his wife, Kathy, who is vice president of Dan Gurney’s All American Racers shop in Santa Ana.

“Mark’s been my best friend since we skied together 11 years ago at Orange Coast College and raced motocross together,” Chandler said. “Now he’s my benefactor in helping me get back into racing. Since the moment I came out of the coma four years ago, that has been uppermost in my mind. I haven’t been able to muster up a sponsor to finance my comeback, but I never gave up the idea.”

Weida recently resigned as crew chief for Frank Arciero’s ARS team to form his own Leading Edge Motorsports team. Weida handled the mechanical duties when Fabrizio Barbazza won the championship two years ago and again last year when Jeff Andretti finished second in the series.

Weida’s cars have won two of the three races here at Phoenix.

“A third win would make a nice birthday present for me,” said Chandler, who will be 30 on April 21. “My deal with Mark is for this race only, but if I could win the race, it might open up some sponsorship opportunities for the rest of the season.”

The series champion will receive $100,000 and a guaranteed ride in a new March for the 1989 Indianapolis 500.

In another curious feature of the Chandler-Guerrero situation, both have infant sons and pregnant wives. Chandler’s wife, Mary, is expecting twins this summer to go with their 17-month-old son, Michael Otis Jr. The Guerreros’ son, Marco, is 2 1/2.

“It’s really strange,” Guerrero said. “Katie (Mrs. Guerrero) and I have run into Michael and his wife a couple of times in the last week. I guess we have sort of a kinship after having gone through similar comas. Michael has told me that he would not have been ready to race as quickly as I am doing, but I think head injuries differ very much, one from the other, in their severity.”

Guerrero’s injury occured during a tire test on the lap when he was coming in to call it quits. Something in his suspension broke, and the car was sent careening into the wall. Had not the right front wheel broken off the car at impact and rebounded against his head, Guerrero might have been back driving the next day.

“The doctors told me that if the wheel had not hit me in the head, I wouldn’t have missed a turn. There wasn’t a mark on my body. It was just a freaky thing. I know it sounds surprising, but I haven’t even had a headache from it. I don’t remember a thing, so as far as I am concerned, it was like a long nap. I have no bad feelings about it at all.”

Guerrero, who is the defending champion in the Checker 200, has been practicing in Vince Granatelli’s STP Lola since January, when he first tested his nerves and reflexes at nearby Firebird Raceway, but Sunday will be his first race.

“I’ve felt pretty much up to scratch since I took my first few laps at Firebird (a road course in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler), but I felt like I needed to get the feel of driving in traffic, and I got that today,” Guerrero said after posting the third fastest lap (161.573 m.p.h.) in practice Friday. “Now I have no doubts at all. As far as I’m concerned right now, it’s back to business, and my business is trying to win every race I enter, and that’s what I’ll be trying to do Sunday.

“I don’t feel like I’m at any disadvantage not having raced since last September. The other guys haven’t raced in five months, so that’s only like two months’ difference. Actually, I feel like I’m in better physical condition than I was before the accident.”

In last year’s Phoenix race, Guerrero had to start last after his car was discovered to be underweight, but he charged through the field to score his first Indy car win.

“I hope that’s the last time I have to do that,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned, that was enough for my entire career.”

Qualifying for Sunday’s $400,000 race will be held today, with the fastest 24 cars comprising the field.