RICHIE HEARN, CLINT MEARS TO DRIVE FOR DELLA PENNA PLAYER'S LTD./TOYOTA
ATLANTIC TEAM IN 1994

Rick Mears' Son To Enter Open Wheel Competition;
Hearn Seen As Major Contender In 1994 Season

Phoenix, AZ -- Della Penna Motorsports, the most successful independent 
entrant in the Player's Ltd./Toyota Atlantic Championship, has announced 
its 1994 driver lineup.

Richie Hearn, 23, the 1993 "Rookie of the Year" in both Sports 2000 and 
Dodge/Shelby Pro Series, will drive the #19 LYNX RACING/FOOD 4 LESS RALT RT-40.

Clint Mears, 21, son of 4-time Indy 500 winner and Marlboro Team Penske 
adviser Rick Mears will drive the #4 FOOD 4 LESS/KONA KI/ MISSION FOODS 
RALT RT-40.

Team owner/manager John Della Penna, formerly a championship-winning 
Atlantic driver, has brought a number of drivers up through the ranks, 
including reigning IMSA GTP champion Juan Manuel Fangio II and Indy drivers 
Willy T. Ribbs and Jimmy Vasser, the fastest rookie ever at the Indy 500.

"I've had some talented young drivers in my cars over the years, but Richie 
Hearn and Clint Mears both exhibit that something special that marks the 
difference between a contender and a champion," says Della Penna.  "In early 
testing Hearn was quickly on the pace with last year's Player's Ltd./Toyota 
Atlantic Champion.  And Mears looks like his father on the track, smooth, 
fast, and never a moment of drama, which means a lot to a team owner.  Both 
of them are quick, smart, in good hands and very definitely on their way to 
the top."

Richie Hearn started in karting, at age 6, and won numerous national titles.  
Switching to racing cars, he became only the second American to win the 
prestigious Pilote Elf competition, which led to a year of racing in Europe 
in the Formula Renault series.  On his return to the U.S. in 1993, Hearn won 
numerous races and pole positions on his way to "Rookie of the Year" in both 
the ACRL Super Sports 2000 Series and the Dodge/Shelby Pro Series.

"I see my involvement with Lynx Racing and Della Penna Motorsports as a 
pivotal point in my career," says Hearn.  "Finally I'm on the path that 
leads directly to the top.  I have proper financing, the latest equipment 
and the help of highly qualified people who have my best interests at heart.  
The rest is up to me, and I'm ready."

Clint Mears also began racing karts, at age 16, and won several local and 
regional championships.  His experience in racing cars includes a 
class-winning co-drive in a Firestone Firehawk endurance race, testing in 
a Formula 2000 open wheel car, and off-road competition in the Mickey 
Thompson series.  This will be his first experience with professional 
open-wheel racing.

"I've watched Clint race everything from karts to off-road to formula cars, 
and I know his talent." says Rick Mears.  "The team's plan for this year is 
to have him do extensive testing to gain seat time and experience, and then 
run several races towards the end of the year.  If all goes well, he'll run 
a full season in 1995."

Mears has already shown a talent for open-wheel competition, winning five 
events (including his first-ever oval track race at Mesa Marin) during the 
1993 Formula Russell and Russell Pro series.  He's a top contender again 
this year in these hotly-contested, USAC-sanctioned series for rotary-engined 
open-wheel cars, currently ranked third in Formula Russell points standings 
after four races.

"Now I know how a move star's son must feel," says Mears.  "The expectation 
is for me to go out and immediately drive as well and win as much as my father. 
That level of skill is still many racing miles down the road for me, but I'm 
prepared to pay the dues.  My ultimate goal is to race Indy cars and win the 
Indy 500, but the most important thing my dad taught me is to do what you 
love, do it as well as you can, and everything else follows from that."

The cars of both Mears and Hearn will carry sponsorship from Food 4 Less, 
the parent company of half a dozen major national grocery chains, including 
hundreds of Alpha-Beta stores in California.  Additional sponsors include 
Carnation, Nestle, Presto Foods, Sahara Water, Vital Care Hair Products, 
3M Scotch, Sunshine Biscuits and Mission Foods.

Hearn's Player's Ltd./Toyota Atlantic Championship sponsorship deal is also 
an intriguing one, involving one of the only all-female car 
owner/promoter/mentor organizations in racing.  Principal funding for 
Hearn's next two seasons will be provided by a group called Lynx Racing, 
headed by businesswoman/philanthropist Peggy Haas.

"We looked long and hard at a group of about thirty talented young drivers, 
and picked Richie Hearn because we feel he has the qualities of both driving 
ability and personality needed to win the Player's Ltd./Toyota Championship," 
says Haas.  "John Della Penna and I are bound together in this project by our 
mutual interest in helping young people get started.  It's a role with many 
rewards, one that both of us like and do well."


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