MOTOR RACING ROUNDUP : Often a Runner-Up, Rahal Runs Away in New Jersey

Bobby Rahal finally found the victory that had eluded him for the past two years, running away with Sunday’s Marlboro Grand Prix at East Rutherford, N.J.

Rahal won there in 1987 and 1989, and his 1989 triumph in a rain-shortened race was his last in the CART Indy car series until Sunday when he became the seventh different winner in nine CART races this season.

In 1 1/2 seasons, Rahal--who has 20 career victories--had nine runner-up finishes, four thirds, two fourths and a fifth.

“For some reason, something always seemed to keep us from winning,” he said. “Today was just our day.

“When I saw the checkered (flag), I felt a lot of satisfaction,” Rahal said. “It’s kind of a vindication for myself. I felt all along we would win races, but we had an awful lot of almost-but-not-quites.”

Rahal took the lead with 89 of 150 laps remaining on the 1.217-mile, six-turn circuit and dashed off to margins as big as 14.9 seconds by lap 126.

Taking good care of his Chevrolet-powered Lola in the final laps, Rahal passed pole-winner Rick Mears on the 62nd lap and won by 6.954 seconds, averaging 95.551 m.p.h and winning $77,922.

Unser overcame early brake problems to finish second. Mears was third.

Nigel Mansell sped away from the field at Silverstone, England, to win the British Grand Prix by 42 seconds over Gerhard Berger. It was Mansell’s second Formula One victory in a row.

He had won the French Grand Prix a week earlier and led in Britain for all but the opening 45 seconds. No other car could match the speed of his Williams-Renault, which repeatedly set lap records.

He began from the pole position but was overtaken at the start by Ayrton Senna. Mansell needed only half a lap to regain the lead, and never relinquished it.

Senna, driving a McLaren-Honda, ran out of fuel on the last lap and dropped to fourth place. Berger, in the other McLaren, finished second by nearly 18 seconds over Alain Prost in a Ferrari.

Mansell took 1 hour 27 minutes 35.479 seconds to complete 59 laps of the 3.247-mile Silverstone circuit. He averaged 131.227 m.p.h.