Motor Racing Roundup : Johncock to Team With Guerrero on Granatelli Team

Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Gordon Johncock, who came out of retirement as a replacement for injured Jim Crawford last year, was named Sunday to drive a March race car for the Vince Granatelli team in this year’s Indy 500 May 29.

He will be the teammate of Colombian Roberto Guerrero and will drive the same car Guerrero drove to second place in last year’s 500.

Mario Andretti, last year’s pole-sitter, made his first appearance on the Indy track Sunday and quickly built his top speed to 210.970 m.p.h.

An afternoon rain halted practice early, leaving Dick Simon’s first-day speed of 211.665 m.p.h. on Saturday as the fastest so far.

Andretti’s nephew, John Andretti, became the first of the eight rookies entered in the race to complete the final phase of the mandatory driving test.

Gregor Foitek of Switzerland, driving a Lola-Cosworth T88, won Sunday’s Grand Prix of Rome, the second event of the world Formula Three championships Sunday.

The 23-year-old Swiss, who started the race in the pole position, covered the 124-mile course in 1 hour 13 minutes 49.83 seconds. Foitek had an average speed of 101 m.p.h. to edge Bertrand Gachot of Belgium.

At Moron de la Frontera, Spain, France’s Jean Michel Bayle, riding a Honda, won the 12th Spanish motocross 125cc Grand Prix, counting for the world championship. Bayle won both heats of the race.

Bayle leads the world standings with 186 points.

At Malmo, Sweden, former world champion David Thorpe of Britain turned in two steady rides at the Swedish 500cc motocross Grand Prix to extend his overall world championship lead.