THIS 'MARTIAN' KNOWS HER CARS.

Byline: Tom Hoffarth Media

Leslie Gudel's form-fitting, fire-retardant jumpsuit that she has to wear in the infield at the Indianapolis 500 won't have the phrase ``Brickyard Babe'' stitched over the top pocket.

Fact is, with the giant radio headset she has to wear for ABC's live coverage of the 84th running of the marquee event Sunday morning, she feels more like a gearhead geek. Friends have told her she looks like a Martian.

That, and at 5-foot-10, she tends to tower a bit over these jockey-sized race car drivers, which only adds to the amusing visual.

But the network's decision to add Gudel, the UCLA grad and former Los Angeles anchor at the then-Prime Ticket ``Press Box'' in the mid-'90s, is anything but an awkward fit. Especially this year, where for the first time, there are two females in the starting field of 33.

Gudel, as it turns out, is doing more than fill a quota. She's filling a need ABC has had on this race coverage for a long time - not just a female TV presence, but one who knows what she's talking about.

``Why did it take so long? It took the right person, which we all believe Leslie is, and she proved on the Saturday and Sunday shows (last weekend during coverage of the qualifying) to step into as high a profile and as much a pressure situation as you can possibly imagine in sports TV,'' said Bob Goodrich, ABC's Indy 500 producer for the last 16 years.

``She's a terrific reporter and she always does her job. She's not just cruising in and saying, 'tell me what you want me to do and I'll do it.' She sold me on some interviews she wanted to do last Sunday.

``She's didn't just come out of the woodwork. She's a good, sound professional broadcaster and reporter and that's what we're asking her to do.''

That wide-range role includes covering everything that goes on in the garages and hospital area with drivers, owners and mechanics, plus celebrity interviews.

ABC has three other pit reporters - Jack Arute, Dr. Jerry Punch and Vince Welch - but Gudel will also be in the pace car as the race begins to report on track conditions.

``It's pretty awesome to be part of all this,'' said Gudel, an anchor at Philadelphia's Comcast Cable sports desk whose motor sports experience comes from doing NASCAR coverage for TNN. ``I had a blast last weekend.

``I think the things I'm reporting on adds a dimension. In the past, they had to have someone leave the pits to go cover and they could have missed something because of that.''

As it turns out, Gudel isn't the first woman on ABC's Indy broadcast. Donna DeVarona has been a fish out of water in the position before, and one year Goodrich tried Al Unser Jr.'s wife in the role.

``That's my ex-wife,'' Unser corrected Goodrich during a conference call with reporters.

Neither had the combination of Gudel's motor sports credentials or on- air experience.

``The drivers don't see a lot of women running around in the pits very often,'' Gudel admits. ``I was nervous last weekend, but as it turned out, I knew more than I thought I knew, if that makes sense, and I felt very comfortable.''

--The Web experience: Because Indy driver Eddie Cheever's main sponsor is Excite.com, that site will unleash several interesting elements this weekend that allow access to Cheever's racing experience.

The highlights at http://sports.exite.com are real time audio of Cheever in contact with his pit crew, plus live telemetry streaming of his in-car computer that gives reading of his MPH, RPM, G force, lap time, throttle, steering, oil temperature, tire pressure and brake data.

Because Cheever, the '98 Indy winner, is also doing a live chat after the race, there's the element of exclusivity if he wins this time. Meaning he'll likely be taking e-mail questions before he gets around to the media members.

One of the reasons why the Indy 500 has regained some stature in the business world is that one-third of the sponsorships are tech companies.

--Missed it by that much: Fox picked the Boston Red Sox-New York Yankees matchup to send to 77 percent of the country for its relaunch of the Saturday Game of the Week (10 a.m.).

But it'll be ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball that has those two teams, plus the scheduled Pedro Martinez vs. Roger Clemens matchup on its 5 p.m. telecast the next day.

If the ESPN family has any say in the matter, this could also be Fox's final year of carrying the Saturday package. ABC is expected to bid for the lot, co-owned in the postseason by NBC, after Fox's window of exclusivity to negotiate with baseball ends next week.

If there is no deal reached between Fox and MLB, baseball can open it up for bids after June 5. There's also talk of CBS trying to wrestle away NBC's rights.

``The commissioner (Bud Selig) and (MLB executive) Paul Beeston made it clear as to what the relationship has meant over the last four years,'' Fox executive Ed Goren said.

``We clearly stepped in when not everyone was to pick up the contract when baseball was going through tough labor times. In conjunction with what baseball has done, we brought the sport back. The relationship is solid and their desire is to continue this relationship with Fox for many years to come.''

But Goren isn't stupid. Loyalty in TV rights only go as far as one's checkbook.

``It depends on what's in the envelope,'' Goren admits. ``Money talks, you know what walks. I'd hope we get the benefit of the doubt.''

SOUND BYTES

WHAT SMOKES

--Sports Illustrated for Women's ``swimsuit spectacular'' (May/June issue) focuses on a photo shoot in Santa Monica that includes very tasteful - and even cute - pictures of many L.A. athletes (Lisa Leslie, Shaquille O'Neal, Karch Kiraly, Bob Samuelson, Johnnie Morton, Misty May and Jason Sehorn) showing off the products. Although Morton can't seem to keep his boardshorts on around pool shark Jeanette ``The Black Widow'' Lee?.

--At least Lakers backup center John Salley has been put to a useful task: Fox's National Sports Report has given him a camcorder - known as ``SpiderCam'' - and asked him to tape behind-the-scene interviews that have been airing on Sunday's newscast.

--If Fox's 11 p.m. Regional Sports Report debuts next month with as much creativity as the commercial spots created by the Cliff Freeman and Partners ad firm, there should be no problem drawing viewers.

-- The Learning Channel has an hour-long documentary looking at the Indy 500 behind the scenes called ``24 Hours at Indy'' (Sunday, 10 p.m.)

WHAT CHOKES

--What does it say about ABC's plans for ``Monday Night Football'' when Rush Limbaugh gets a tryout but Dick Vermeil isn't even given an invitation? The thing Vermeil apparently lacks: Abrasive, incessant banter. If ABC wants this train-wreck mentality for its viewership, why even keep someone such as Al Michaels in the play-by-play chair. The WWF could rotate hosts, anchors and analysts each week. Not that Boomer Esiason was the most polished broadcaster - although, given his lack of experience on such a big-time TV event, he was set up to fail - at least he has some credibility.

--TBS will use former NFL coach Jerry Glanville on its coverage Sunday of the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR race from Charlotte, N.C. When will this wrench head be interviewed for ``MNF''?

--CBS made a big to-do Thursday about having boxing return to network TV for the first time in three years - it's going to show month-delayed replays of Showtime cable bouts that happen in June. That'll include Mike Tyson's encounter with Lou Savarese. And this, we're told, is the beauty of the CBS-Viacom merger.

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