Unser Gives Penske Another Victory

Roger Penske has done just about everything right this year, including hiring Al Unser Jr. to drive one of his Ilmor-powered Indy cars.

Unser, who has been just about unbeatable this season, drove to another victory Sunday at Portland International Raceway, leading a 1-2-3 Penske finish in the Budweiser-G.I. Joe’s 200.

Unser fought off teammate Emerson Fittipaldi over the second half of the 102-lap event on the 1.95-mile, nine-turn road course to earn his fourth victory in seven starts this season.

That gave Penske’s team its ninth consecutive victory--six in a row in the PPG IndyCar World Series and three in a row on NASCAR’s top stock-car circuit.

Unser beat Fittipaldi to the finish line by 1.83 seconds, with Paul Tracy, the winner last week at Detroit, a distant third.

The winner averaged 107.777 m.p.h., a Portland race record. He broke the mark of 105.218 set by Michael Andretti in 1992.

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At Watkins Glen, N.Y., Gianpiero Moretti and Eliseo Salazar drove a Ferrari 333SP to victory in the IMSA Glen Continental event for World Sports Cars and GT cars. Moretti, 54, is the oldest driver to win an IMSA feature race. He and Salazar averaged 90.697 m.p.h. over the 3.4-mile Watkins Glen International circuit and became the first repeat winners in the new Exxon World Sports Car Championship.

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Scott Kalitta won the Top Fuel title at the NHRA Western Auto Nationals at Topeka, Kan., and John Force of Yorba Linda won the Funny Car division. Kalitta, who now lives in Belleville, Mich., won with an elapsed time of 4.824 seconds and a speed of 299.40 m.p.h. Force’s winning run was 5.105 seconds and 292.11 m.p.h. . . . Miss Budweiser driver Chip Hanauer, who two weeks ago was considering retirement because of a bad back, won the Pontiac Thunder on the Ohio hydroplane regatta. Mark Tate in Smokin’ Joe was second.

Miscellany

Tim Twietmeyer, 35, of Auburn won his second Western States 100-mile endurance run and became the race’s first 13-time finisher with nearly a 47-minute victory in the 18th annual event. Women’s winner Ann Trason, 33, of Kensington, Calif., finished second overall in a women’s record time of 17 hours 37 minutes 51 seconds.

Once the NHL approves the sale of the Hartford Whalers, which is expected to happen Tuesday, Paul Holmgren will relinquish his general manager duties and return to coach the team next season, the Hartford Courant reported. Jim Rutherford, the team’s president, is expected to assume Holmgren’s general manager duties.