15.SEP
Blair Racing Finishes 5th in Drivers' Standings, 5th at Texas

JUSTIN, TX. (September 15, 2002) - Rayovac Blair Racing driver Alex Barron of San Diego, Calif. led, ran at the front all day finishing fifth today at the Indy Racing League (IRL) season finale at Texas Motor Speedway. Barron and Blair Racing in its first year of IRL competition finished fifth in the drivers' standings and fifth in the entrant standings, unofficially. Also, unofficially Blair Racing finished second laps completed.

Larry Blair and Alex Barron celebrate the exciting race and spectacular 2002 season.

Barron qualified eighth for the 200 lap event that covered 300 miles. 28 drivers started on the 1.5-mile oval, vying for top honors as the season came to a close after 15 races that raced across the country. In reflection on today's race, Barron and Blair Racing predicted today would be a good day for the team. Barron was quoted as saying that "We have really good race car. I think we're going to be real strong in the race. We've got a lot of confidence going into the race."

Barron and Blair Racing were amazing on the track and in the pit lane for all 200 laps. Starting eighth, Barron moved into fifth on the first lap and into third by lap seven and second by lap 21. The race was tight and close for the win and the championship. Barron and the team had the goal to remain fifth in the drivers' standings. Barron battled the top runners all day, in the pit lane and on the track. Barron commanding the Rayovac entry ran in the top-five all but 45 laps out of 200 laps on the Texas Super Speedway; Barron went on to finish fifth.

"Great weekend for Blair Racing. We made a break through on the mile and half oval set ups. The Chevrolet Rayovac car was strong all day. I want to thank Chevrolet, Rayovac and most of all my boss Larry Blair. I think we have accomplished a lot this year. As a new team we excelled. We have a solid crew. Larry put this team together late but worked hard on assembling the right key personnel. We are very satisfied with our results; to finish fifth in the standings is great. Chevrolet came on board mid season picking up the pace when they came on board in the middle of the season. The entire team has good pit stops and we work great together. I can't say enough about our engineer, John Dick; he gives me an incredible car every weekend. Tom Gloy calls a great race -- we have the power. Bob Sprow is really solid as a spotter. It would be a nice feeling going into next season to have some testing under our belts, to have a head start on this and have the same team and great package behind us.

"We showed as a new team, solid and steady progress," said team owner, Larry Blair. "This has been a dream season in the IRL; the support and strength they give us is great. Today really brackets a fantastic season and throughout the entire year we have made continuous and steady progress and improvements. The strong hallmarks with the fourth place finish at Indy, co-rookie of the year at Indy, a win at Nashville, the top-10's and top-fives and ending at Texas Motor Speedway in fifth, wow. This way is just a fantastic achievement for a new team but an experienced team. As a new team -- this is amazing." For more information on the IRL, go to its official website at www.indyracing.com.

Powerful facts about Rayovac: Rayovac is one of the world's leading battery and lighting device companies. Rayovac also markets the number-one selling rechargeable brand of battery in the U.S. with nearly a 70 percent share. In addition, the company is the world leader in hearing aid batteries with a 60 percent worldwide share. Rayovac trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ROV symbol. Rayovac markets a variety of batteries including alkaline and heavy duty batteries; lithium coin cells; zinc air hearing aid batteries; and rechargeable alkaline and nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries and chargers. The company also markets a broad line of battery-operated flashlights and lanterns. More information about Rayovac can be found at www.rayovac.com.

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