Saturday night marks the second appearance of the Champ Car World Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but it's the actually the fourth CCWS event in Vegas and the fifth time the Champ Cars have raced there source: champcarworldseries.com - David Phillips Champ Cars first raced at the old 3 mile Stardust Raceway road course in 1968, with Dan Gurney taking the pole and Bobby Unser coming through for the win. Some fifteen years later the Champ Car World Series came to town to visit what surely ranks among the most distinctive race tracks the series had ever -- and has ever -- seen; namely the original "ro-val" in the parking lot of the Caesar's Palace casino and hotel. This was not the first time high powered, open wheel racers had cavorted around the Caesar's Palace parking lot. The finale to the 1981 and '82 Formula One seasons had taken place there, albeit on a 2.268 mile temporary "road course" that doubled back on itself again and again . . . and which settled the '81 World Championship in Nelson Piquet's favor when pole sitter and title rival Carlos Reutemann faded with mysterious (some would imaginary) transmission problems. The following year Keke Rosberg clinched the World Championship with a fifth place finish . . . and a fellow named Mario Andretti made what was destined to be the final Formula One start of his illustrious career in (what else?) a Ferrari. Unfortunately, Andretti -- who had qualified on pole for the Italian Grand Prix the previous fortnight -- was destined to crash out of his F1 finale. However, Mario extracted a measure of revenge from the Caesar's Palace facility the following season. Abandoned by the Formula One set, the Caesar's organizers (led by one Christopher Pook) refashioned the circuit by bypassing the GP circuit's intestine-like "infield" section, and running around its 1.125 mile perimeter in a series of left hand turns. Thus was born the first "ro-val," although the nomenclature of the time designated it as a "modified oval." Formula One, Champ Cars, road course, ro-val, Andretti found the atmosphere enjoyable. The complete article at champcarworldseries.com
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