RESTA HURLS CAR OVER LINE IN VAN

Topics:  Speedway Grand Prix, Dario Resta

The New York Times
August 20, 1916

Achieves Victory in Grand Prix at Chicago, Driving at 100 Miles an Hour.

Special to The New York Times.

CHICAGO, Aug. 19.—Dario Resta, driving his Peugeot car, added another sprig of laurels to his already large supply here this afternoon by winning the Grand Prix race in easy fashion. Dave Lewis, in a Hoskins Special, was second; Buzane, in a Dusenburg, third; Galvin, in a Sunbeam, fourth, and D'Alene, in a Dusenburg, fifth.

The time for the fifty miles was 29:52.49, an average speed of one-hundred miles an hour.

With Resta it was the old story of pronounced superiority. He annexed the first of the twenty-mile heats, necessary to qualify in the main event in the afternoon. He led in twenty-four laps out of the twenty-five in the final, and the only time he was behind was in the eighteenth lap when Lewis sneaked up on Resta in the stretch and had the pleasure of leading for about one second.

Resta was in the lead again before the first turn had been passed and from that time on he increased his advantage with the big blue racing car until he was a good three car lengths ahead. This was the order of the finish, which brought $5,000 to Resta for taking first place, $2,500 to Lewis, $1,250 to Buzane, $750 to Galvin, and $500 to D'Alene.

From the start it was evident that Resta was the class of the five starters, although Galvin and Lewis hung to the Italian's heels, making an even better showing than most of the experts expected. Buzane also cut loose once or twice and threatened the leaders, but Resta always stepped out when his rivals got frisky and showed that he still had something left for an emergency.

The fact that De Palma and Chevrolet were out of the running because of engine trouble detracted from the interest in the classic, for they left little or no competition for Resta. The accident which put De Palma out of the running occurred in the third lap of the first heat, when, after he had see-sawed with Resta for first honors, he had to pull up lame and limp to his pit. His engine had gone wrong and he was through for the afternoon.

Probably the biggest surprise of the day was the showing of Lewis. He and Galvin made what race there was in the final, and only a bad tire prevented the Sunbeam driver from being further up in the standing, for he was forced to stop once and change a tire.

The rest of the heats were slow affairs, mainly because none of the first choices were in the line-up. After Galvin had nosed out Lewis for first honors in the second brush, Dave proceeded to step out in the third heat and with little competition easily placed his Hoskins in first place. Buzane in a Dusenburg took down the prize in the fourth heat, running Christaens off the boards for the rest of the afternoon, and leaving only Milton and D'Alene, Dusenburg drivers, to fight it out for first place in the final sprint. When Milton's car developed engine trouble, D'Alene was awarded first place in the final clash after going around the track twice.