Geoff Bodine, the defending series champion, went...

Geoff Bodine, the defending series champion, went to the front early and sped to an easy victory in the third round of the $739,600 International Race of Champions at Brooklyn, Mich.

The victory at Michigan International Speedway gave Bodine, a NASCAR driver, the series point lead going into the final IROC race next Saturday at Watkins Glen, N.Y.

Bodine, starting third in one of the 11 identically prepared IROC-Z Chevrolet Camaros, moved into second place moments after the start. He then passed pole-starter Roberto Guerrero, an Indy-car racer, for the lead on Lap 5 of the 50-lap, 100-mile event.

Bodine finished 0.783 of a second ahead of NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt. Third-place finisher Al Unser Jr., the 1986 series champion and current CART-PPG Indy-car point leader, was a little more than three seconds behind in third place.