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Unsers fight for grid spots

With two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Al Unser Jr. qualified for the race on Saturday, there were two more Unsers hoping to make the starting field on Sunday's final day of qualifications. Al's cousins are Johnny and Robby

Johnny made the race with a four-lap average of 219.066 miles per hour in a G Force/Oldsmobile Aurora. Robby, however, was bumped out of the starting lineup with a four-lap average of 212.678 mph.

"I can't take too many more days like this when I qualify on my last attempt," Unser said. "Our first two laps were the best, but then the car began to tighten. This is a new team and we didn't even run the first two days.

"We found our real speed during qualifying - a great to time to peak."

Because of the deep connection between the Unser family and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, making the field for the Indianapolis 500 was very important to Johnny.

"The 500 means so much to me because of my family history," Unser said. "It is more than you can imagine. My dad (Jerry) was the first Unser to race here in 1958 and was killed the next year. My uncles (Al and Bobby) and my cousin (Al Jr.) are winners. I get very emotional about this place.

"I remember coming here as a boy and watching the race."

Because his father was killed when he was just eight months old, Johnny has had to look up to his uncles for guidance.

"He's had a hard time the last few days and thank goodness he was able to get qualified," said his Uncle Al. "Johnny is a good boy, a good young man. I still think that he is a very capable race car driver and he needs a few breaks. Hopefully, he will get the team going better, they will help him and he will be good.

"He came to Albuquerque and stayed with me for a while, I wanted to try to get him into racing, but he elected to go to college. He made that his top priority and I'm proud of him for that."

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