''Super Speedway'' is a 1997 documentary racing film chronicling one man's quest to get his new

Champ Car Champ Car World Series (CCWS) was the series sanctioned by Open-Wheel Racing Series Inc., or Champ Car, a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 2004 to 2008. It was the successor to Championship Auto Racing Team ...

Lola Lola may refer to: Places * Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama * Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States * Lola Prefecture, Guinea * Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture * Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands People * Lol ...

chassis up to speed, and another's goal of rebuilding an old 1964 roadster once driven by the legendary

Mario Andretti Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an Italian-born American former racing driver. One of the most successful drivers in the history of motorsports, Andretti is one of only two drivers to have won races in Formula One, IndyCar, ...

. The film was directed by renowned

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graem ...

director Stephen Low and produced by

Pietro Serapiglia Pietro is an Italian masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: People * Pietro I Candiano (c. 842–887), briefly the 16th Doge of Venice * Pietro Tribuno (died 912), 17th Doge of Venice, from 887 to his death * Pietro II C ...

. It was narrated by

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three ...

(who was himself an avid racer and co-owner of

Newman/Haas Racing Newman/Haas Racing was an auto racing team that competed in the CART and the IndyCar Series from 1983 to 2011. The team operations were based in Lincolnshire, Illinois. Newman/Haas Racing was formed as a partnership between actor, automotive enth ...

). It first premiered at IMAX theaters nationwide.

Production

The entire process took well over four years to film. Overall, the car was equipped with an IMAX camera and driven by

Michael Andretti Michael Mario Andretti (born October 5, 1962) is an American semi-retired auto racing driver and current team owner. Statistically one of the most successful drivers in the history of American open-wheel car racing, Andretti won the 1991 CART PP ...

drove his teammate

Christian Fittipaldi Christian Fittipaldi (born 18 January 1971) is a Brazilian former racing driver who has competed in various forms of motorsport including Formula One, Champ Car, and NASCAR. He was a highly rated young racing driver in the early 1990s, and par ...

's car in the film. Mario was able to get his car as fast as 240 mph at the

Michigan International Speedway Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...

at director Low's request.

was the only team interested in the project in the technical world of Indy Car racing. The effort was spearheaded by Neil Richter, the team's director of finances. The film features Mario and Michael Andretti during the 1996 season driving for

. During the season, Michael Andretti won a season-high five races and finished 2nd in the championship to

Jimmy Vasser James Vasser Jr. (born November 20, 1965) is an American former racing driver. Vasser won the 1996 CART IndyCar championship with Chip Ganassi Racing, and scored ten victories in the series. Vasser was the last American to win the CART champio ...

. At the end of the film, Mario is reunited with his old roadster for a once-in-a-lifetime experience and can be seen driving it thru the countryside.

External links

* * 1997 films American auto racing films Canadian auto racing films Documentary films about auto racing Short films directed by Stephen Low Champ Car IMAX documentary films Canadian sports documentary films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films 1990s Canadian films {{sport-documentary-film-stub