MOTOR RACING ROUNDUP : Michael Andretti Finally Gets Break, Wins

Michael Andretti shook off his challengers and his run of ill fortune, easily winning Sunday’s Detroit Grand Prix.

Andretti, 27, who lost two weeks ago at Milwaukee when he ran out of fuel while leading two laps from the end, led all 62 laps around the 2.5-mile, 17-turn downtown street circuit. He became the first CART driver to lead a race from start to finish since his father, Mario Andretti, did it at Elkhart Lake, Wis., in 1987.

“I didn’t raise my hand until I knew I could coast across the finish line,” Andretti said. “Then I knew I could rejoice.”

It was Andretti’s 10th career victory, but his first since winning the Marlboro 500 last August at Michigan International Speedway.

Since then, he has led numerous races, losing because of fuel problems, engine problems, brake problems and even a throttle problem caused by a torn shoe.

Danny Sullivan mounted a late challenge and was right behind Andretti’s Chevrolet-powered Lola as the two approached their final scheduled pit stops.

Sullivan’s Penske-Chevrolet trailed by just 0.36 seconds on Lap 46, and he pitted the next time around. The stop was quick, but one of Penske Racing’s airguns failed, and Sullivan inadvertently left the pits with the lug nuts on his right-rear wheel still loose.

A radio message from his crew chief kept Sullivan running slowly on the track, but the wheel eventually fell away and the car stopped on the course.

Bobby Rahal inherited second place as the only other car on the lead lap, but was far off the pace, nearly a lap behind.

It was Rahal’s third second-place finish in five starts this season.

Andretti, who started from the pole here for the second consecutive year, averaged a record 84.902 m.p.h. in only the second Indy-car race on this circuit. He won $134,306 for beating Rahal to the finish line by 1 minute 48.53 seconds.

Harry Gant beat Rusty Wallace to the finish line by 2.4 seconds in the Miller 500 and, at 50, became the oldest driver to win a NASCAR Winston Cup event. He is 85 days older than Bobby Allison was when he won the 1988 Daytona 500.

Gant struggled during the first part of the race when some loose ductwork in his Buick caused an overheating problem.

“It got so hot that we almost parked the car,” he said. “It was getting to be where it wouldn’t run.”

Gant’s crew saved the day with a bit of pit work, and then he charged off toward the leaders.

A caution flag on Laps 182 and 183, the track-record 13th of the day, set up the sprint to the finish. Wallace led Gant, Hut Stricklin and Bodine on the restart, but Stricklin quickly fell off the pace.

On Lap 189, Gant roared past Wallace on the inside of Turn 1 of the Pocono International Raceway’s 2 1/2-mile tri-oval and didn’t look back. Wallace soon became entangled in a battle with Bodine for second place.

“He passed me and then checked out. He was really flying,” Wallace said of Gant. “I was surprised Harry pulled away that fast. What really hurt me is when Bodine got up there and started running alongside of me and it slowed me up real bad.”

Gant averaged 120.627 m.p.h. in his first Winston Cup victory since April 2, 1989, at Darlington, S.C. He also won at Pocono in July of 1984.

Frank Hawley, replacing injured driver Darrell Gwynn, swept past series points leader Joe Amato in a swift top-fuel championship run to win the NHRA Springnationals at National Trail Raceway at Kirkersville, Ohio.

Gwynn was seriously injured during an exhibition in Britain April 15 and is undergoing rehabilitation for paralysis in Miami.

In the finals, Hawley clocked a 5.122-second elapsed time at 278.12 m.p.h. to Amato’s 5.221 and 272.47.

John Force edged Jim White for his second consecutive series victory and third of the season in the funny-car category, and Jerry Eckman edged defending International Hot Rod Assn. titlist Rickie Smith in Pro Stock for his second triumph of 1990.

Bill Sedgwick, from Van Nuys, led all 200 laps Saturday night to win the NASCAR Winston West 200 by two seconds over Bill Schmitt at Saugus Speedway.

Sedgwick, from Van Nuys, pitted his Chevrolet Lumina only once during the 66.6-mile event, for right-side tires and gasoline. His winning pace of 55.788 m.p.h. was slowed by seven caution periods that consumed 34 laps. Sedgwick won $5,850 from a $34,496 purse.