1997 Las Vegas Cup

Heat 1 Results

Heat 1A

1. Weber, Miss Budweiser, 132.142
2. Hanson, DeWALT Tools, 131.267
3. Brown, Miss TruckGear, 119.054
4. Evans, Appian Jeronimo, 113.419
5. Christensen, Hire Power (speed N/A) (penalized one lap for bearing out)
(fast lap-- Weber, 1st, 136.778)

Heat 1B

1. Evans, PICO American Dream, 131.905
2. Tate, Close Call, 128.827
3. David, Deja Vu, 122.959
4. Muscatel, Computers & Applications, 119.773
5. Weber, Miss Exide, 111.342
(fast lap, Evans, 1st, 134.481)

LAS VEGAS -- Plagued by ill fortune for nearly the past two months, the Miss Budweiser and replacement driver Mark Weber took a stride toward re-establishing the team's dominance of the unlimited hydroplane world by flashing to victory in Heat 1A of the Las Vegas Cup Saturday. The victory was worth 400 points which, coupled with another 40 for posting the fast qualifying speed earlier in the day, improved the Bud's season high-points total to 10,720, or 443 more than runnerup PICO American Dream, the defending champion of the JASPER THUNDER TOUR presented by LAS VEGAS.

The PICO, given the inside lane when second-fast qualifier Mark Tate in the Close Call chose to start in lane two, won Heat 1B with Tate always a roostertail or two in arrears.

The Bud hasn't won since original driver Dave Villwock nearly was killed in a horrific blowover at Tri-Cities, Wash., in late July. Mark Evans, piloting the PICO, has run off four wins in a row to bring his boat back into contention. Tate, a three-time former driving champ but winless in the season's first eight races, remains in the thick of things for season honors with 10,122 points.

The unlimiteds will return to Lake Mead Sunday for two more preliminary Heats and a winner-take-all final, then move on to Honolulu for the season-ending race.