INDIANAPOLIS (July 30, 2008) – The IndyCar Series in DIRECTV HD today announced its 2009 schedule featuring 18 races, including two new destinations, bookend dates for the state of Florida marking changes to the season-opening and closing venues, and expanding the season-long championship by a month.
In its continuing effort to offer competitors one of the most diverse challenges in all of motorsports, the 2009 schedule features 10 oval races, three permanent road courses and five temporary circuits and includes all but one venue that hosted the IndyCar Series in 2008.
Highlighting the 2009 IndyCar Series schedule:
The season opener will be run through the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., on April 5.
The season-finale moves to Homestead-Miami Speedway and will be run on Oct. 11 with the speedway and series developing a championship weekend celebration, extending the IndyCar Series season a month longer than the previous two seasons.
The Grand Prix of Long Beach will be run on April 19, marking the IndyCar Series’ debut at the 35-year-old event that has hosted F1, CART and Champ Car races as its premier event.
The IndyCar Series will debut in Toronto on July 12. The Indy Toronto, which dates to 1986, will be the first of back-to-back temporary course events in Canada with Edmonton scheduled for July 26.
The Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will shift from July to Aug. 9, allowing the series to break up what was six consecutive weeks of racing in 2008. With this date change, the Kentucky Speedway event will move one week earlier to Aug. 1.
The Raceway at Belle Isle Park and Chicagoland Speedway are exchanging weekends, with Chicagoland running on Saturday evening Aug. 29 and the temporary street event in Detroit running Sept. 6.
The Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan is shifting to Sept. 19 after running in April since 2003.
The IndyCar Series will be a part of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Centennial Celebration with the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race scheduled for May 24.
The IndyCar Series will return to Kansas Speedway, The Milwaukee Mile, Texas Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Richmond International Raceway, Watkins Glen International and Infineon Raceway at approximately the same time on the calendar as 2008.
“We are thrilled with the schedule we have developed for 2009,” said Terry Angstadt, the president of the commercial division for the Indy Racing League, the sanctioning body for the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights. “When unification was announced earlier this year, we talked about the opportunity of developing future schedules on a blank piece of paper, and with today’s announcement we have a solid foundation for developing a consistent, long-term schedule for the IndyCar Series.”
Next season’s schedule will feature four Saturday prime-time events, and unlike the previous two seasons the 2009 schedule affords a couple more in-season off-weekends for drivers and teams.
“Looking ahead to 2009, and with one season of unification under our belts, we know that the IndyCar Series continues to offer the most diverse schedule in all of motorsports,” said Brian Barnhart, president of the competition and operations division for the Indy Racing League. “As our schedule has evolved in the past few years, the race for the IndyCar Series championship has become one that demands the ability of both drivers and teams to master a variety of venues and the challenges each one brings with the end result being a true champion.
“We are also pleased to respond to our teams and offer a couple of more off-weekends during the core of the season.”
The Indy Racing League will announce the 2009 Firestone Indy Lights schedule in the immediate future. The complete 2009 IndyCar Series schedule:
Date Location Venue
Sunday, April 5 Streets of St. Petersburg 1.8-mile street course
Sunday, April 19 Streets of Long Beach 1.968-mile street course
Sunday, April 26 Kansas Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, May 24 Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile oval
Sunday, May 31 The Milwaukee Mile 1.0-mile oval
Saturday, June 6* Texas Motor Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, June 21 Iowa Speedway .875-mile oval
Saturday, June 27* Richmond International Raceway .75-mile oval
Sunday, July 5 Watkins Glen International 3.4-mile road course
Sunday, July 12 Streets of Toronto 1.721-mile street course
Sunday, July 26 Edmonton City Centre Airport 1.973-mile airport course
Saturday, August 1* Kentucky Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, August 9 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 2.258-mile road course
Sunday, August 23 Infineon Raceway 2.245-mile road course
Saturday, August 29* Chicagoland Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, September 6 The Raceway at Belle Isle Park 2.906-mile street course
Saturday, September 19 Twin Ring Motegi 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, October 11 Homestead-Miami Speedway 1.5-mile oval
* Denotes Night race Schedule Subject to Change
***
The IndyCar Series is the premier open-wheel series in the United States, competing on a challenging combination of superspeedways, short ovals, scenic road courses and temporary street circuits. In 2008 the IndyCar Series will conduct 15 events in the U.S. and one each in Australia, Canada and Japan, all available worldwide through a comprehensive, long-term agreement with ESPN, including all races broadcast in High-Definition, including a motorsports first 360-degree in-car camera. A leader in motorsports technology, the IndyCar Series is the first racing series to power its Honda engines on 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol, a renewable and environmentally friendly fuel. The IndyCar Series continues to the be the fastest, most competitive and innovative racing series, attracting a diverse lineup of drivers with participants from the United States, Japan, Brazil, England, France, Spain, Australia and New Zealand. The stars of the IndyCar Series include 2005 Indianapolis 500 and IndyCar Series champion Dan Wheldon, 2004 IndyCar Series champion Tony Kanaan, two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Helio Castroneves, 2005 Bombardier Rookie of the Year Danica Patrick and 2006 Bombardier Rookie of the Year Marco Andretti. Other standouts include Scott Dixon, Buddy Rice, Graham Rahal, Will Power and Justin Wilson. For more information on the IndyCar Series, please visit www.indycar.com.
From IndyCar
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
IndyCar: Announces an 18-race 2009 schedule
IndyCar: Announces an 18-race 2009 schedule
INDIANAPOLIS (July 30, 2008) – The IndyCar Series in DIRECTV HD today announced its 2009 schedule featuring 18 races, including two new destinations, bookend dates for the state of Florida marking changes to the season-opening and closing venues, and expanding the season-long championship by a month.
In its continuing effort to offer competitors one of the most diverse challenges in all of motorsports, the 2009 schedule features 10 oval races, three permanent road courses and five temporary circuits and includes all but one venue that hosted the IndyCar Series in 2008.
Highlighting the 2009 IndyCar Series schedule:
The season opener will be run through the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., on April 5.
The season-finale moves to Homestead-Miami Speedway and will be run on Oct. 11 with the speedway and series developing a championship weekend celebration, extending the IndyCar Series season a month longer than the previous two seasons.
The Grand Prix of Long Beach will be run on April 19, marking the IndyCar Series’ debut at the 35-year-old event that has hosted F1, CART and Champ Car races as its premier event.
The IndyCar Series will debut in Toronto on July 12. The Indy Toronto, which dates to 1986, will be the first of back-to-back temporary course events in Canada with Edmonton scheduled for July 26.
The Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will shift from July to Aug. 9, allowing the series to break up what was six consecutive weeks of racing in 2008. With this date change, the Kentucky Speedway event will move one week earlier to Aug. 1.
The Raceway at Belle Isle Park and Chicagoland Speedway are exchanging weekends, with Chicagoland running on Saturday evening Aug. 29 and the temporary street event in Detroit running Sept. 6.
The Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan is shifting to Sept. 19 after running in April since 2003.
The IndyCar Series will be a part of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Centennial Celebration with the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race scheduled for May 24.
The IndyCar Series will return to Kansas Speedway, The Milwaukee Mile, Texas Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Richmond International Raceway, Watkins Glen International and Infineon Raceway at approximately the same time on the calendar as 2008.
“We are thrilled with the schedule we have developed for 2009,” said Terry Angstadt, the president of the commercial division for the Indy Racing League, the sanctioning body for the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights. “When unification was announced earlier this year, we talked about the opportunity of developing future schedules on a blank piece of paper, and with today’s announcement we have a solid foundation for developing a consistent, long-term schedule for the IndyCar Series.”
Next season’s schedule will feature four Saturday prime-time events, and unlike the previous two seasons the 2009 schedule affords a couple more in-season off-weekends for drivers and teams.
“Looking ahead to 2009, and with one season of unification under our belts, we know that the IndyCar Series continues to offer the most diverse schedule in all of motorsports,” said Brian Barnhart, president of the competition and operations division for the Indy Racing League. “As our schedule has evolved in the past few years, the race for the IndyCar Series championship has become one that demands the ability of both drivers and teams to master a variety of venues and the challenges each one brings with the end result being a true champion.
“We are also pleased to respond to our teams and offer a couple of more off-weekends during the core of the season.”
The Indy Racing League will announce the 2009 Firestone Indy Lights schedule in the immediate future. The complete 2009 IndyCar Series schedule:
Date Location Venue
Sunday, April 5 Streets of St. Petersburg 1.8-mile street course
Sunday, April 19 Streets of Long Beach 1.968-mile street course
Sunday, April 26 Kansas Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, May 24 Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile oval
Sunday, May 31 The Milwaukee Mile 1.0-mile oval
Saturday, June 6* Texas Motor Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, June 21 Iowa Speedway .875-mile oval
Saturday, June 27* Richmond International Raceway .75-mile oval
Sunday, July 5 Watkins Glen International 3.4-mile road course
Sunday, July 12 Streets of Toronto 1.721-mile street course
Sunday, July 26 Edmonton City Centre Airport 1.973-mile airport course
Saturday, August 1* Kentucky Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, August 9 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 2.258-mile road course
Sunday, August 23 Infineon Raceway 2.245-mile road course
Saturday, August 29* Chicagoland Speedway 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, September 6 The Raceway at Belle Isle Park 2.906-mile street course
Saturday, September 19 Twin Ring Motegi 1.5-mile oval
Sunday, October 11 Homestead-Miami Speedway 1.5-mile oval
* Denotes Night race Schedule Subject to Change
***
The IndyCar Series is the premier open-wheel series in the United States, competing on a challenging combination of superspeedways, short ovals, scenic road courses and temporary street circuits. In 2008 the IndyCar Series will conduct 15 events in the U.S. and one each in Australia, Canada and Japan, all available worldwide through a comprehensive, long-term agreement with ESPN, including all races broadcast in High-Definition, including a motorsports first 360-degree in-car camera. A leader in motorsports technology, the IndyCar Series is the first racing series to power its Honda engines on 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol, a renewable and environmentally friendly fuel. The IndyCar Series continues to the be the fastest, most competitive and innovative racing series, attracting a diverse lineup of drivers with participants from the United States, Japan, Brazil, England, France, Spain, Australia and New Zealand. The stars of the IndyCar Series include 2005 Indianapolis 500 and IndyCar Series champion Dan Wheldon, 2004 IndyCar Series champion Tony Kanaan, two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Helio Castroneves, 2005 Bombardier Rookie of the Year Danica Patrick and 2006 Bombardier Rookie of the Year Marco Andretti. Other standouts include Scott Dixon, Buddy Rice, Graham Rahal, Will Power and Justin Wilson. For more information on the IndyCar Series, please visit www.indycar.com.
From IndyCar
GRAND-AM: Canadian drivers seek home advantage in Montreal
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 29, 2008) - A trio of Canadian drivers will be looking to win in their home country Friday when the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 visits Montreal and the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the Montreal 200 (SPEED, 8 p.m. ET Friday).
Mark Wilkins of Toronto, Michael Valiante of Vancouver and Marc-Antoine Camirand of Quebec will be competing in the series' premier Daytona Prototype class, while Montreal native Sylvain Tremblay, Jean-Francois Dumoulin of Trois-Rivieres and veteran Toronto driver Ron Fellows lead a group of Canadians racing in the GT division.
The only Canadian team in the Grand-Am Rolex Series, AIM Autosport, has been one of the most improved teams in the paddock in 2008. The team has raised its sights, finishing a career-best fourth at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and has five top 10s, though none have come in the last two races. The team would like for that to change this weekend.
The team flexed new-found Ford muscle at the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona, when each of the team's drivers had the car in the lead at the end of their opening shift. The team ran with the leaders until several nighttime incidents dropped them out of contention.
Since then, AIM Autosport has been a frontrunner, finishing in the top eight in five of the following six races and ran seventh in the team standings. Wilkins won the team's first pole at Daytona in July, while in the most recent event, Brian Frisselle passed series front-runners Scott Pruett and Alex Gurney late in the race and led 15 laps, only to have his engine fail with 13 laps remaining.
"We've been looking for podium finishes at recent races, but we're looking for a win at Montreal," said Wilkins, who co-drives the No. 61 Exchange Traded Gold /Mike Direct Connect/Telux Ford Riley with Frisselle. "We led here quite a bit last year, and it was one of our best races last season. This is a race that we're really targeting to be our race.'"
This weekend, Wilkins hopes previous experience here will help him find the top step on the podium. Frisselle led six laps here last year, with the team posting a seventh-place finish.
Another Canadian looking for victory this weekend is Michael Valiante - which would be a repeat performance for SunTrust Racing. Last year, Max Angelelli teamed with Jan Magnussen and came home a winner. This year, Valiante is Angelelli's new co-driver on a new car, as the No. 10 team switched to the Dallara chassis this year. Valiante, who won a pair of poles and led in six of the opening seven races in 2008, finishing a season-best third in the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen.
Open-wheel star Marc-Antoine Camirand of Saint Leonard d'Aston, Quebec, co-drives the No. 09 Spirit of Daytona Porsche Coyote with Guy Cosmo. Montreal is one of the selected races the team is running in 2008. Camirand won here in 2004 in the Hankook Tire Touring Car race.
The three Canadians have joined the remainder of the Daytona Prototype field with a common goal - trying to stop the TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Lexus Riley of Pruett and Memo Rojas. The pair, which finished fifth here last year, won six of the opening nine races - including the Rolex 24 of Daytona (joined by Juan Pablo Montoya and Dario Franchitti) and the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen, where Pruett drove the final three hours in 90-degree heat. They hold a 60-point lead (295-235) over last year's champions Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty.
Gurney and Fogarty have struggled throughout this season after winning seven of 14 events last year in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley. They were winless through the opening seven rounds of 2008 before finally breaking through in the rain at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Since then, Gurney was passed on the final lap by Pruett in the Daytona event earlier this month, and the car's clutch failed after Gurney led the most laps at Barber Motorsports Park.
Riley-Matthews Motorsports won in Mexico City with drivers Jim Matthews and Marc Goossens. Cheever Racing had its best showing of 2007 in Montreal, when rookie Antonio Garcia led three laps en route to a fourth-place finish. Garcia has competed in eight of the nine Rolex Series races this season, and welcomes back former co-driver Christian Fittipaldi, who spent 2006 and 2007 as the team's lead driver. In addition to the Daytona Prototype run last season, Fittipaldi has competed at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Formula 1 and the former Champ Car World Series.
Other teams have been closing in on victory this season. Brumos Porsche posted back-to-back runner-up finishes with Toronto-born Darren Law and David Donohue; Michael Shank Racing had both of its Ford Rileys on the front row for the Rolex 24 At Daytona; Doran Racing has been running near the front with its two Dallaras; Krohn Racing is running the new Lola chassis, with its two-car lineup including Formula 1 veteran Ricardo Zonta and Nic Jonsson in the No. 76 Pontiac and Tracy Krohn teamed with Oliver Gavin in the No. 75 Pontiac; and Rum Bum Racing led the most laps at Mid-Ohio with rookies Matt Plumb and Gene Sigal.
Canadians Tremblay, Dumoulin and Fellows Lead GT Teams
Tremblay and co-driver Nick Ham look to continue their upswing at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in the No. 70 SpeedSource Mazdaspeed/Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8. With two poles and two victories in as many races (Brumos Porsche 250 and Porsche 250 at Barber), the duo is inching closer to GT point leaders Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards in the No. 07 Banner Racing Banner Engineering Pontiac GXP.R, with only 14 points separating the teams (292-278). The SpeedSource sister car, the Watkins Glen-winning No. 69 machine driven by Emil Assentato and Jeff Segal, looks to rebound from two straight 17th-place finishes.
After winning three races early in the season, Collins and Edwards have been off the podium in three straight events. They look for better results at Montreal, where they placed eighth last year despite running third on the final lap. The sister Banner car, the No. 06 Pontiac GXP.R that finished fifth here last year, is slated to be driven by team owner Leighton Reese and Canadian native Ron Fellows, who will also drive Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Nationwide Series car in the Saturday race.
With one victory in 10 GT events in 2008, Porsche will be looking to return to the form that saw it win here last year and take three of the top four positions. Andy Lally, who teamed with RJ Valentine to win last year's race, returns to lead four Porsche GT3s entered by TRG, which is seeking its first race victory since last year at Montreal. Lally will co-drive with Tim George Jr. in the No. 67 entry, while Valentine teams with Bryan Sellers in the No. 68 Porsche GT3. Also entered are the No. 65 TRG/Riegel Autosport Porsche GT3 driven by Craig Stanton and Canadian Hima Maher and the No. 66 TRG Porsche GT3 driven by Ted Ballou and Spencer Pumpelly.
Dirk Werner and Bryce Miller of the No. 87 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3 look to continue their hot streak, with two consecutive second-place finishes in the past two races. The pair also finished second in the 2007 Montreal 200. Leh Keen and Eric Lux of the No. 86 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche won at Mid-Ohio, and the team's third car, the No. 88 Porsche, is slated to be driven by Toronto's Dave Lacey and Steven Johnson.
The No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Stevenson Automotive Pontiac GXP.R team of Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell hope to capture a podium finish, which narrowly eluded them in the last contest at Barber. They are sitting first in number of podium finishes in GT for the season with six, and are tied for fifth in points with 265.
Blackforest Motorsports have two cars entered for this weekend's competition with a lineup dominated by Canadians. The No. 15 Blackforest Motorsports Ford Mustang GT will be driven by Jean-Francois Dumoulin of Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, and Tom Nastasi of Stamford, Conn. The No. 50 Mustang will seat drivers David Empringham and John Farano - both of Toronto.
Practice for the Montreal 200 begins at 12:30 p.m. ET Thursday. Qualifying begins at 1:15 p.m. ET Friday, with the 200-mile race (74 laps with a two hour time limit) taking the green flag at 4:21 p.m. ET.
RACE SPECS
- This is Round 11 for the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. The combined Daytona Prototype/GT race is two hours or 200 miles (74 laps), whichever comes first.
- The green flag for the race is scheduled to fly at 4:21 p.m. ET on Friday. The race will air same day delay on SPEED, beginning at 8 p.m. ET (Leigh Diffey - Play-by-Play; Dorsey Schroeder, Calvin Fish - Analysts; Brian Till, Chris Neville - Pit Reporters).
- All cars must make a mandatory pit stop prior to the 45-minute mark in the race, and each driver must complete 30 minutes of the race in order to earn points for their respective standings.
- 2007 Montreal race winners were Max Angelelli and Jan Magnussen (Daytona Prototypes), and Andy Lally and RJ Valentine (GT).
ROLEX SERIES WEEKEND SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES EASTERN)
- Thursday: Rolex Series Practice (12:30-1:30 p.m.); Rolex Series Practice (2-3 p.m.); Rolex Series Practice (3:30-4:30 p.m.); Rolex Series Practice (5-5:30 p.m.); Rolex Series Trueman/Akin Practice (5:30-6 p.m.)
- Friday: Rolex Series Daytona Prototype Qualifying (1:15-1:30 p.m.); Rolex Series GT Qualifying (1:35-1:50 p.m.); Montreal 200 (4:21 p.m.; 200 miles/74 laps/two- hour time limit).
2008 IN REVIEW
Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas hold a 60-point advantage (295-235) in the Daytona Prototype standings after six victories and second and third-place finishes in their first nine starts. They won the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the GAINSCO Grand Prix of Miami, the Bosch Engineering 250 at VIR, the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen, the Brumos Porsche 250 and the Porsche 250 presented by Bradley Arant in the No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Lexus Riley. In the Brumos Porsche 250, Pruett passed Gurney on the final lap to win the Brumos Porsche 250. Defending series champs Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty won the rain-soaked EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley. Marc Goossens and Jim Matthews won the Mexico City 250 in the No. 91 Bob Stallings/Riley-Matthews Motorsports Pontiac Riley, while Ryan Dalziel and Henri Zogaib earned their initial Daytona Prototype victories in the No. 2 SAMAX BMW Riley at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
Consistency and nine top 10s - including three class victories this season - have No. 07 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R co-drivers Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards atop the GT point standings, 14 points (292-278) over their closest competitors, Rolex 24 At Daytona winners Sylvain Tremblay and Nick Ham in the No. 70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8. Overall, Tremblay and Ham have won three GT races this season. No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R co-drivers Robin Liddell and Andrew Davis won two straight races this season, and No. 69 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 drivers Jeff Segal, Emil Assentato and Nick Longhi won the Sahlen's Six Hours. Eric Lux and Leh Keen drove the No. 87 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3 to the victory at Mid-Ohio.
NEWS & NOTES
- Hometown Heroes: Three of the Daytona Prototype drivers reside in Canada. Marc-Antoine Camirand lives in St. Leonard d'Aston in Quebec, while Mark Wilkins resides in Toronto and Michael Valiante in Vancouver. In addition, Darren Law was born in Toronto. In GT, Blackforest Motorsports will field two Mustangs for three Canadians. Jean-Francois Dumoulin of Trois-Rivieres will share the No. 5 Mustang with Tom Nastasi, while Toronto drivers David Empringham and John Farano co-drive the No. 50 entry. In addition, Dave Lacey of Toronto will share the No. 88 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3, co-driving with former NFL tight end Steve Johnson.
- Home Turf for AIM Autosport: The No. 61 AIM Autosport Exchange Traded Gold Ford Riley is the only Daytona Prototype team based in Canada. Mark Wilkins and Brian Frisselle drive for the Toronto team.
- Double Duty: Three drivers are expected to compete in both the Montreal 200 and Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series race. Daytona Prototype point leader Scott Pruett will drive Chip Ganassi Racing's No. 40 Fastenal Dodge in the NASCAR race after sharing the team's No. 01 TELMEX Lexus Riley with Memo Rojas in the Montreal 200. Ron Fellows, who will drive the No. 06 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R on Friday, is expected to drive a Chevrolet fielded by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series race. In addition to driving the No. 27 O'Connell Racing Porsche GT3 in the Montreal 200, Kevin O'Connell will drive the No. 09 General Environmental Chevrolet in the NASCAR race. Kevin Roush, his Rolex Series co-driver Friday, will be his spotter the following day.
- Rolex Grads in NASCAR Race: La Salle, Quebec driver Patrick Carpentier, who will drive in the NASCAR race, has competed in 10 races in the Daytona Prototypes, with his best finish second in the 2007 Rolex 24 At Daytona. Sports car veteran Max Papis, who shared the 2004 Daytona Prototype championship with Pruett and is a five-time Rolex Series winner, will drive the No. 64 Atreus Homes Chevrolet. Brad Coleman also began his career in the Rolex Series as part of Team 16 in the 2005 Rolex 24 At Daytona.
- Substitute Roles: Oliver Gavin will join Krohn Racing this weekend, pairing with car owner Tracy Krohn in the No. 75 Pontiac Lola. He has two victories and two runner-up finishes with the team. He will substitute for Eric van de Poele, who will be in his native Belgium this weekend, seeking his fifth victory in the 24 Hours of Spa at Spa Francorchamps. Due to a recent knee injury, Ross Smith will be replaced by Peter Ludwig, who races fulltime in the KONI Challenge Series, to co-drive with Doug Peterson in the No. 30 Racers Edge Motorsports Mazda RX-8.
- Hall Pass: Originally, Ricky Taylor was expected to miss Friday's race due to a conflict with classes at the University of Central Florida, where the 18-year-old is a freshman. However, he was cleared by the school to race the No. 47 Brach's/CDOC Doran Racing Ford Dallara for the fourth straight race with Burt Frisselle. His best finish with the team is fifth in the most recent race at Barber Motorsports Park, matching his career best of fifth in the 2008 Rolex 24 At Daytona, where he co-drove his father Wayne Taylor's No. 10 SunTrust Pontiac Riley.
- Hollywood Style: Actor and GT Series competitor Patrick Dempsey is slated to co-drive the No. 40 Hyper Sport Mazda RX-8 with Joe Foster. Dempsey has six starts this season with a best finish of 11th at Daytona.
ROLEX SERIES POINT STANDINGS
- Daytona Prototype: 1. (tie) Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, (295); 3. Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty (235); 5. (tie) Marc Goossens, Jim Matthews (224); 7. (tie) Mark Patterson, Oswaldo Negri (217); 9. (tie) Darren Law, David Donohue (210).
- GT: 1. (tie) Kelly Collins, Paul Edwards (292); 3. (tie) Sylvain Tremblay, Nick Ham (278); 5. (tie) Andrew Davis, Robin Liddell (265); 7. Tim George Jr. (240); 8. Ted Ballou (229); 9. (tie) Bryce Miller, Spencer Pumpelly (225).
- MESCO Building for the Future Rookie of the Year: 1. Tim George Jr. (240); 2. Ted Ballou (229); 3. Ricardo Zonta (206); 4. Jeff Segal (205); 5. Lawson Aschenbach (203).
MILESTONES
- Pruett, Ganassi Continue Winning Record: Scott Pruett and Chip Ganassi continue to set records for overall wins in the Rolex Series. Pruett notched his 20th overall win in the Porsche 250 presented by Bradley Arant at Barber Motorsports Park, now seven more than second-place James Weaver. In turn, Ganassi earned his 21st win - all in Daytona Prototypes - 10 more than the SunTrust Racing team. Pruett has also finished in the top 10 in 28 consecutive Rolex Series Daytona Prototype races.
- Pontiac Owns Class Win Record: With seven class victories this season, Pontiac has passed Porsche for all-time class wins. Pontiac owns 51 class wins, while Porsche, which won for the first time in 2008 in the GT class at Mid-Ohio, has 50.
SELECTED PRE-RACE DRIVER QUOTES
Paul Edwards (No. 07 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R): "We were running strong last year until a big pile up in the Casino turn and I spun. We were able to get a good toe down the straights and the GXP.R is always good in transitions and through the corners. We were able to hang with the front cars. We are still at a deficit to the other cars so we will need a trouble free race on the track, pits and in the inspection line. Montreal is a great track; I would love to be on the podium for this race. It supposed to be nice and cool, (so) we can turn the A/C off and get a couple extra horsepower."
Marc-Antoine Camirand (No. 09 Spirit of Daytona Racing Porsche Coyote): "It's always great to race in Canada, but especially at Montreal, because it's only an hour from my home. I love the circuit - I've won here a few times in other cars - and the crowd will be awesome. The people there are real racing fans.
"A lot of my friends and family members will be there, so it will be good to go to Montreal and race in front of that crowd of people as well. I've raced there before, but obviously at these levels the competition is pretty tough, so I'm sure the other drivers are going to figure out the track pretty quickly as well."
Michael Valiante (No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Dallara): "Any time I get to race in my home country, it's a big honor to be representing Canada in this series. Racing in Montreal is a little bit different from being in my home town in Vancouver, but I'm really looking forward to it. It's a great facility and I really enjoy Montreal."
Jean-Francois Dumoulin (No. 15 Blackforest Motorsports Ford Mustang GT): "Last year we finished fourth - and we almost got third, actually. The Mustang passed me on that last turn. There was an incident in the last corner. Obviously we all want to try and win races, which is why we're all here. I think we have a good chance with the Mustang at Montreal, and since it's my home track, I'll be pretty excited. The team's been working really hard. We had some motor issues this year, but I think everything should be sorted out for Montreal. I know that track and my co-driver and I are really good at that track. It's a warm-up for my real race - Trois-Rivieres.
"It's always fun to race at home; you know a lot people. All my friends will be there. I don't really get nervous when they are all there. Actually, I think the extra pressure helps me out."
Christian Fittipaldi (No. 16 Cheever Racing Pontiac Coyote): "I am happy to be back with Cheever Racing and the Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Race Team, and especially look forward to driving again with Antonio (Garcia). We get along very well and I admire his skill as a driver. This combination has great potential."
Mark Wilkins (No. 61 AIM Autosport Ford Riley): "I've raced pretty much everything here: Formula Renault, Formula Ford 1600 and Formula Mazda, so I've got quite a bit of experience here. It's different from the tracks we usually race on, so I'm looking forward to it. Running the open-wheel cars helped me in my move to Daytona Prototypes here last year, because the lines are pretty similar. Getting used to the extra weight of the Daytona Prototype was the big difference, but the experience in open-wheel cars really helped me get up to speed last year."
Sylvain Tremblay (No. 70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8): "It's my hometown; my home track. We had a great run there last year, just with some problems. I really enjoy the track and the French-Canadian culture. It's neat to bring my team and my crew to where I grew up, so they can see a lot of the things I talk about. That's always fun.
"We focused improving a couple of key areas for our run at Montreal. We made some changes to improve our car dramatically and that should make a big difference there. Every year, it's a case where there will be someone I haven't seen in 10 years - and it's always fun to go. It's a very busy time for us, with extra family and that sort of thing, but I enjoy all of it!"
Alex Gurney (No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley): "Montreal is a great track and one that I've always loved. Having watched the F1 races over the years, it's always a special kind of feeling racing on the same track as they do. Now, with the NASCAR Nationwide Series there as well, our Montreal weekend is a very big happening. Last year, it looked like we were headed for a win but a faulty wheel gun put a stop to that. We fell to 10th after our mishap and I had a great time trying to make it back toward the front. I made it up to third and was very happy to get by Scott Pruett in the last few laps for the last podium spot. There are some very long straights at Montreal, which hasn't been our strong suit this year, but everyone on the team and everyone at Pontiac have been doing everything possible to give us the best possible package. With the championship looking more and more difficult, we very much want to win this race, especially since we think we gave one up at Barber."
-30-
From Grand-Am
GRAND-AM: Canadian drivers seek home advantage in Montreal
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 29, 2008) - A trio of Canadian drivers will be looking to win in their home country Friday when the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 visits Montreal and the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the Montreal 200 (SPEED, 8 p.m. ET Friday).
Mark Wilkins of Toronto, Michael Valiante of Vancouver and Marc-Antoine Camirand of Quebec will be competing in the series' premier Daytona Prototype class, while Montreal native Sylvain Tremblay, Jean-Francois Dumoulin of Trois-Rivieres and veteran Toronto driver Ron Fellows lead a group of Canadians racing in the GT division.
The only Canadian team in the Grand-Am Rolex Series, AIM Autosport, has been one of the most improved teams in the paddock in 2008. The team has raised its sights, finishing a career-best fourth at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and has five top 10s, though none have come in the last two races. The team would like for that to change this weekend.
The team flexed new-found Ford muscle at the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona, when each of the team's drivers had the car in the lead at the end of their opening shift. The team ran with the leaders until several nighttime incidents dropped them out of contention.
Since then, AIM Autosport has been a frontrunner, finishing in the top eight in five of the following six races and ran seventh in the team standings. Wilkins won the team's first pole at Daytona in July, while in the most recent event, Brian Frisselle passed series front-runners Scott Pruett and Alex Gurney late in the race and led 15 laps, only to have his engine fail with 13 laps remaining.
"We've been looking for podium finishes at recent races, but we're looking for a win at Montreal," said Wilkins, who co-drives the No. 61 Exchange Traded Gold /Mike Direct Connect/Telux Ford Riley with Frisselle. "We led here quite a bit last year, and it was one of our best races last season. This is a race that we're really targeting to be our race.'"
This weekend, Wilkins hopes previous experience here will help him find the top step on the podium. Frisselle led six laps here last year, with the team posting a seventh-place finish.
Another Canadian looking for victory this weekend is Michael Valiante - which would be a repeat performance for SunTrust Racing. Last year, Max Angelelli teamed with Jan Magnussen and came home a winner. This year, Valiante is Angelelli's new co-driver on a new car, as the No. 10 team switched to the Dallara chassis this year. Valiante, who won a pair of poles and led in six of the opening seven races in 2008, finishing a season-best third in the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen.
Open-wheel star Marc-Antoine Camirand of Saint Leonard d'Aston, Quebec, co-drives the No. 09 Spirit of Daytona Porsche Coyote with Guy Cosmo. Montreal is one of the selected races the team is running in 2008. Camirand won here in 2004 in the Hankook Tire Touring Car race.
The three Canadians have joined the remainder of the Daytona Prototype field with a common goal - trying to stop the TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Lexus Riley of Pruett and Memo Rojas. The pair, which finished fifth here last year, won six of the opening nine races - including the Rolex 24 of Daytona (joined by Juan Pablo Montoya and Dario Franchitti) and the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen, where Pruett drove the final three hours in 90-degree heat. They hold a 60-point lead (295-235) over last year's champions Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty.
Gurney and Fogarty have struggled throughout this season after winning seven of 14 events last year in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley. They were winless through the opening seven rounds of 2008 before finally breaking through in the rain at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Since then, Gurney was passed on the final lap by Pruett in the Daytona event earlier this month, and the car's clutch failed after Gurney led the most laps at Barber Motorsports Park.
Riley-Matthews Motorsports won in Mexico City with drivers Jim Matthews and Marc Goossens. Cheever Racing had its best showing of 2007 in Montreal, when rookie Antonio Garcia led three laps en route to a fourth-place finish. Garcia has competed in eight of the nine Rolex Series races this season, and welcomes back former co-driver Christian Fittipaldi, who spent 2006 and 2007 as the team's lead driver. In addition to the Daytona Prototype run last season, Fittipaldi has competed at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Formula 1 and the former Champ Car World Series.
Other teams have been closing in on victory this season. Brumos Porsche posted back-to-back runner-up finishes with Toronto-born Darren Law and David Donohue; Michael Shank Racing had both of its Ford Rileys on the front row for the Rolex 24 At Daytona; Doran Racing has been running near the front with its two Dallaras; Krohn Racing is running the new Lola chassis, with its two-car lineup including Formula 1 veteran Ricardo Zonta and Nic Jonsson in the No. 76 Pontiac and Tracy Krohn teamed with Oliver Gavin in the No. 75 Pontiac; and Rum Bum Racing led the most laps at Mid-Ohio with rookies Matt Plumb and Gene Sigal.
Canadians Tremblay, Dumoulin and Fellows Lead GT Teams
Tremblay and co-driver Nick Ham look to continue their upswing at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in the No. 70 SpeedSource Mazdaspeed/Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8. With two poles and two victories in as many races (Brumos Porsche 250 and Porsche 250 at Barber), the duo is inching closer to GT point leaders Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards in the No. 07 Banner Racing Banner Engineering Pontiac GXP.R, with only 14 points separating the teams (292-278). The SpeedSource sister car, the Watkins Glen-winning No. 69 machine driven by Emil Assentato and Jeff Segal, looks to rebound from two straight 17th-place finishes.
After winning three races early in the season, Collins and Edwards have been off the podium in three straight events. They look for better results at Montreal, where they placed eighth last year despite running third on the final lap. The sister Banner car, the No. 06 Pontiac GXP.R that finished fifth here last year, is slated to be driven by team owner Leighton Reese and Canadian native Ron Fellows, who will also drive Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Nationwide Series car in the Saturday race.
With one victory in 10 GT events in 2008, Porsche will be looking to return to the form that saw it win here last year and take three of the top four positions. Andy Lally, who teamed with RJ Valentine to win last year's race, returns to lead four Porsche GT3s entered by TRG, which is seeking its first race victory since last year at Montreal. Lally will co-drive with Tim George Jr. in the No. 67 entry, while Valentine teams with Bryan Sellers in the No. 68 Porsche GT3. Also entered are the No. 65 TRG/Riegel Autosport Porsche GT3 driven by Craig Stanton and Canadian Hima Maher and the No. 66 TRG Porsche GT3 driven by Ted Ballou and Spencer Pumpelly.
Dirk Werner and Bryce Miller of the No. 87 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3 look to continue their hot streak, with two consecutive second-place finishes in the past two races. The pair also finished second in the 2007 Montreal 200. Leh Keen and Eric Lux of the No. 86 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche won at Mid-Ohio, and the team's third car, the No. 88 Porsche, is slated to be driven by Toronto's Dave Lacey and Steven Johnson.
The No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Stevenson Automotive Pontiac GXP.R team of Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell hope to capture a podium finish, which narrowly eluded them in the last contest at Barber. They are sitting first in number of podium finishes in GT for the season with six, and are tied for fifth in points with 265.
Blackforest Motorsports have two cars entered for this weekend's competition with a lineup dominated by Canadians. The No. 15 Blackforest Motorsports Ford Mustang GT will be driven by Jean-Francois Dumoulin of Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, and Tom Nastasi of Stamford, Conn. The No. 50 Mustang will seat drivers David Empringham and John Farano - both of Toronto.
Practice for the Montreal 200 begins at 12:30 p.m. ET Thursday. Qualifying begins at 1:15 p.m. ET Friday, with the 200-mile race (74 laps with a two hour time limit) taking the green flag at 4:21 p.m. ET.
RACE SPECS
- This is Round 11 for the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. The combined Daytona Prototype/GT race is two hours or 200 miles (74 laps), whichever comes first.
- The green flag for the race is scheduled to fly at 4:21 p.m. ET on Friday. The race will air same day delay on SPEED, beginning at 8 p.m. ET (Leigh Diffey - Play-by-Play; Dorsey Schroeder, Calvin Fish - Analysts; Brian Till, Chris Neville - Pit Reporters).
- All cars must make a mandatory pit stop prior to the 45-minute mark in the race, and each driver must complete 30 minutes of the race in order to earn points for their respective standings.
- 2007 Montreal race winners were Max Angelelli and Jan Magnussen (Daytona Prototypes), and Andy Lally and RJ Valentine (GT).
ROLEX SERIES WEEKEND SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES EASTERN)
- Thursday: Rolex Series Practice (12:30-1:30 p.m.); Rolex Series Practice (2-3 p.m.); Rolex Series Practice (3:30-4:30 p.m.); Rolex Series Practice (5-5:30 p.m.); Rolex Series Trueman/Akin Practice (5:30-6 p.m.)
- Friday: Rolex Series Daytona Prototype Qualifying (1:15-1:30 p.m.); Rolex Series GT Qualifying (1:35-1:50 p.m.); Montreal 200 (4:21 p.m.; 200 miles/74 laps/two- hour time limit).
2008 IN REVIEW
Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas hold a 60-point advantage (295-235) in the Daytona Prototype standings after six victories and second and third-place finishes in their first nine starts. They won the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the GAINSCO Grand Prix of Miami, the Bosch Engineering 250 at VIR, the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen, the Brumos Porsche 250 and the Porsche 250 presented by Bradley Arant in the No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Lexus Riley. In the Brumos Porsche 250, Pruett passed Gurney on the final lap to win the Brumos Porsche 250. Defending series champs Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty won the rain-soaked EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley. Marc Goossens and Jim Matthews won the Mexico City 250 in the No. 91 Bob Stallings/Riley-Matthews Motorsports Pontiac Riley, while Ryan Dalziel and Henri Zogaib earned their initial Daytona Prototype victories in the No. 2 SAMAX BMW Riley at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
Consistency and nine top 10s - including three class victories this season - have No. 07 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R co-drivers Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards atop the GT point standings, 14 points (292-278) over their closest competitors, Rolex 24 At Daytona winners Sylvain Tremblay and Nick Ham in the No. 70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8. Overall, Tremblay and Ham have won three GT races this season. No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R co-drivers Robin Liddell and Andrew Davis won two straight races this season, and No. 69 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 drivers Jeff Segal, Emil Assentato and Nick Longhi won the Sahlen's Six Hours. Eric Lux and Leh Keen drove the No. 87 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3 to the victory at Mid-Ohio.
NEWS & NOTES
- Hometown Heroes: Three of the Daytona Prototype drivers reside in Canada. Marc-Antoine Camirand lives in St. Leonard d'Aston in Quebec, while Mark Wilkins resides in Toronto and Michael Valiante in Vancouver. In addition, Darren Law was born in Toronto. In GT, Blackforest Motorsports will field two Mustangs for three Canadians. Jean-Francois Dumoulin of Trois-Rivieres will share the No. 5 Mustang with Tom Nastasi, while Toronto drivers David Empringham and John Farano co-drive the No. 50 entry. In addition, Dave Lacey of Toronto will share the No. 88 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3, co-driving with former NFL tight end Steve Johnson.
- Home Turf for AIM Autosport: The No. 61 AIM Autosport Exchange Traded Gold Ford Riley is the only Daytona Prototype team based in Canada. Mark Wilkins and Brian Frisselle drive for the Toronto team.
- Double Duty: Three drivers are expected to compete in both the Montreal 200 and Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series race. Daytona Prototype point leader Scott Pruett will drive Chip Ganassi Racing's No. 40 Fastenal Dodge in the NASCAR race after sharing the team's No. 01 TELMEX Lexus Riley with Memo Rojas in the Montreal 200. Ron Fellows, who will drive the No. 06 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R on Friday, is expected to drive a Chevrolet fielded by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series race. In addition to driving the No. 27 O'Connell Racing Porsche GT3 in the Montreal 200, Kevin O'Connell will drive the No. 09 General Environmental Chevrolet in the NASCAR race. Kevin Roush, his Rolex Series co-driver Friday, will be his spotter the following day.
- Rolex Grads in NASCAR Race: La Salle, Quebec driver Patrick Carpentier, who will drive in the NASCAR race, has competed in 10 races in the Daytona Prototypes, with his best finish second in the 2007 Rolex 24 At Daytona. Sports car veteran Max Papis, who shared the 2004 Daytona Prototype championship with Pruett and is a five-time Rolex Series winner, will drive the No. 64 Atreus Homes Chevrolet. Brad Coleman also began his career in the Rolex Series as part of Team 16 in the 2005 Rolex 24 At Daytona.
- Substitute Roles: Oliver Gavin will join Krohn Racing this weekend, pairing with car owner Tracy Krohn in the No. 75 Pontiac Lola. He has two victories and two runner-up finishes with the team. He will substitute for Eric van de Poele, who will be in his native Belgium this weekend, seeking his fifth victory in the 24 Hours of Spa at Spa Francorchamps. Due to a recent knee injury, Ross Smith will be replaced by Peter Ludwig, who races fulltime in the KONI Challenge Series, to co-drive with Doug Peterson in the No. 30 Racers Edge Motorsports Mazda RX-8.
- Hall Pass: Originally, Ricky Taylor was expected to miss Friday's race due to a conflict with classes at the University of Central Florida, where the 18-year-old is a freshman. However, he was cleared by the school to race the No. 47 Brach's/CDOC Doran Racing Ford Dallara for the fourth straight race with Burt Frisselle. His best finish with the team is fifth in the most recent race at Barber Motorsports Park, matching his career best of fifth in the 2008 Rolex 24 At Daytona, where he co-drove his father Wayne Taylor's No. 10 SunTrust Pontiac Riley.
- Hollywood Style: Actor and GT Series competitor Patrick Dempsey is slated to co-drive the No. 40 Hyper Sport Mazda RX-8 with Joe Foster. Dempsey has six starts this season with a best finish of 11th at Daytona.
ROLEX SERIES POINT STANDINGS
- Daytona Prototype: 1. (tie) Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, (295); 3. Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty (235); 5. (tie) Marc Goossens, Jim Matthews (224); 7. (tie) Mark Patterson, Oswaldo Negri (217); 9. (tie) Darren Law, David Donohue (210).
- GT: 1. (tie) Kelly Collins, Paul Edwards (292); 3. (tie) Sylvain Tremblay, Nick Ham (278); 5. (tie) Andrew Davis, Robin Liddell (265); 7. Tim George Jr. (240); 8. Ted Ballou (229); 9. (tie) Bryce Miller, Spencer Pumpelly (225).
- MESCO Building for the Future Rookie of the Year: 1. Tim George Jr. (240); 2. Ted Ballou (229); 3. Ricardo Zonta (206); 4. Jeff Segal (205); 5. Lawson Aschenbach (203).
MILESTONES
- Pruett, Ganassi Continue Winning Record: Scott Pruett and Chip Ganassi continue to set records for overall wins in the Rolex Series. Pruett notched his 20th overall win in the Porsche 250 presented by Bradley Arant at Barber Motorsports Park, now seven more than second-place James Weaver. In turn, Ganassi earned his 21st win - all in Daytona Prototypes - 10 more than the SunTrust Racing team. Pruett has also finished in the top 10 in 28 consecutive Rolex Series Daytona Prototype races.
- Pontiac Owns Class Win Record: With seven class victories this season, Pontiac has passed Porsche for all-time class wins. Pontiac owns 51 class wins, while Porsche, which won for the first time in 2008 in the GT class at Mid-Ohio, has 50.
SELECTED PRE-RACE DRIVER QUOTES
Paul Edwards (No. 07 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R): "We were running strong last year until a big pile up in the Casino turn and I spun. We were able to get a good toe down the straights and the GXP.R is always good in transitions and through the corners. We were able to hang with the front cars. We are still at a deficit to the other cars so we will need a trouble free race on the track, pits and in the inspection line. Montreal is a great track; I would love to be on the podium for this race. It supposed to be nice and cool, (so) we can turn the A/C off and get a couple extra horsepower."
Marc-Antoine Camirand (No. 09 Spirit of Daytona Racing Porsche Coyote): "It's always great to race in Canada, but especially at Montreal, because it's only an hour from my home. I love the circuit - I've won here a few times in other cars - and the crowd will be awesome. The people there are real racing fans.
"A lot of my friends and family members will be there, so it will be good to go to Montreal and race in front of that crowd of people as well. I've raced there before, but obviously at these levels the competition is pretty tough, so I'm sure the other drivers are going to figure out the track pretty quickly as well."
Michael Valiante (No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Dallara): "Any time I get to race in my home country, it's a big honor to be representing Canada in this series. Racing in Montreal is a little bit different from being in my home town in Vancouver, but I'm really looking forward to it. It's a great facility and I really enjoy Montreal."
Jean-Francois Dumoulin (No. 15 Blackforest Motorsports Ford Mustang GT): "Last year we finished fourth - and we almost got third, actually. The Mustang passed me on that last turn. There was an incident in the last corner. Obviously we all want to try and win races, which is why we're all here. I think we have a good chance with the Mustang at Montreal, and since it's my home track, I'll be pretty excited. The team's been working really hard. We had some motor issues this year, but I think everything should be sorted out for Montreal. I know that track and my co-driver and I are really good at that track. It's a warm-up for my real race - Trois-Rivieres.
"It's always fun to race at home; you know a lot people. All my friends will be there. I don't really get nervous when they are all there. Actually, I think the extra pressure helps me out."
Christian Fittipaldi (No. 16 Cheever Racing Pontiac Coyote): "I am happy to be back with Cheever Racing and the Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Race Team, and especially look forward to driving again with Antonio (Garcia). We get along very well and I admire his skill as a driver. This combination has great potential."
Mark Wilkins (No. 61 AIM Autosport Ford Riley): "I've raced pretty much everything here: Formula Renault, Formula Ford 1600 and Formula Mazda, so I've got quite a bit of experience here. It's different from the tracks we usually race on, so I'm looking forward to it. Running the open-wheel cars helped me in my move to Daytona Prototypes here last year, because the lines are pretty similar. Getting used to the extra weight of the Daytona Prototype was the big difference, but the experience in open-wheel cars really helped me get up to speed last year."
Sylvain Tremblay (No. 70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8): "It's my hometown; my home track. We had a great run there last year, just with some problems. I really enjoy the track and the French-Canadian culture. It's neat to bring my team and my crew to where I grew up, so they can see a lot of the things I talk about. That's always fun.
"We focused improving a couple of key areas for our run at Montreal. We made some changes to improve our car dramatically and that should make a big difference there. Every year, it's a case where there will be someone I haven't seen in 10 years - and it's always fun to go. It's a very busy time for us, with extra family and that sort of thing, but I enjoy all of it!"
Alex Gurney (No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley): "Montreal is a great track and one that I've always loved. Having watched the F1 races over the years, it's always a special kind of feeling racing on the same track as they do. Now, with the NASCAR Nationwide Series there as well, our Montreal weekend is a very big happening. Last year, it looked like we were headed for a win but a faulty wheel gun put a stop to that. We fell to 10th after our mishap and I had a great time trying to make it back toward the front. I made it up to third and was very happy to get by Scott Pruett in the last few laps for the last podium spot. There are some very long straights at Montreal, which hasn't been our strong suit this year, but everyone on the team and everyone at Pontiac have been doing everything possible to give us the best possible package. With the championship looking more and more difficult, we very much want to win this race, especially since we think we gave one up at Barber."
-30-
From Grand-Am
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
NASCAR Montreal: Lots of Canadians attempting to make the Nationwide race
Preliminary Entry List
NAPA Auto Parts 200 Presented by Dodge
NASCAR Nationwide Series
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve - 8/2/2008
Ent Car # Driver Sponsor Manu. Owner
1 0 Wheeler Boys sponsordavis.com 08 Chevy Johnny Davis
2 01 Trevor Boys sponsordavis.com 08 Chevy Johnny Davis
3 1 Mike Bliss Miccosukee Indian Gaming & Resort 08 Chevy James Finch
4 2 Clint Bowyer BB&T 08 Chevy Richard Childress
5 02 Andy Ponstein StottClassicRacing.com 08 Chevy Corrie Stott
6 4 Landon Cassill Miccosukee 06 Chevy James Finch
7 05 Burney Lamar 31W Insulation & Certainteed 07 Ford Wayne Day
8 5 Ron Fellows Go Daddy 08 Chevy Rick Hendrick
9 6 David Ragan Discount Tire 08 Ford Jack Roush
10 7 Mike Wallace GEICO 08 Toyota Bob Germain
11 9 Patrick Carpentier Subway 08 Dodge George Gillett Jr
12 09 Kevin O'Connell General Environmental Mngt-Taleo Grill 07 Chevy Susan O'Connell
13 10 Justin Marks Furniture Electronics 08 Toyota Todd Braun
14 11 Jason Keller America's Incredible Pizza Company 08 Chevy Bryan Mullet
15 16 Greg Biffle 3M 08 Ford Jack Roush
16 20 Joey Logano Game Stop 08 Toyota Joe Gibbs
17 22 TBA Supercuts 08 Dodge Armando Fitz
18 24 Brian Simo TBA 08 Chevy John McGill
19 25 Boris Said NoFear/Team Smithfield 08 Ford Ed Rensi
20 27 Brad Coleman Cottonelle 08 Ford Mike Curb
21 28 Kenny Wallace TBA 06 Chevy Mimi Fitz
22 29 Scott Wimmer Holiday Inn 08 Chevy Richard Childress
23 30 Stanton Barrett NOS Energy Drink 08 Chevy Chris Lencheski
24 31 Kenny Hendrick Interush 08 Chevy Stanton Barrett
25 32 Jacques Villeneuve L'Equipeur/Ganotec 08 Toyota Todd Braun
26 33 Ron Hornaday Jr Camping World 08 Chevy Delana Harvick
27 38 Jason Leffler Great Clips 08 Toyota Ralph Braun
28 40 Scott Pruett Fastenal 08 Dodge Floyd Ganassi
29 47 Kelly Bires Clorox 08 Ford Jodi Geschickter
30 49 Derrike Cope TBA 06 Chevy Jay Robinson
31 52 Scott Gaylord TBA 07 Ford Jimmy Means
32 59 Marcos Ambrose STP 08 Ford Tad Geschickter
33 60 Carl Edwards CitiFinancial 08 Ford Jack Roush
34 61 Stan Barrett TBA 08 Ford Charlie Shoffner
35 62 Brandon Whitt TBA 08 Ford Doug Taylor
36 64 Max Papis Atreus Home & Communities 08 Chevy Ed Rensi
37 66 Steve Wallace 5-Hour Energy 08 Chevy Rusty Wallace
38 81 D J Kennington Mahindra Tractor 08 Dodge Pat MacDonald
39 84 Mike Harmon Mike Harmon Racing 07 Chevy Mike Harmon
40 88 Brad Keselowski U.S. Navy 08 Chevy Dale Earnhardt Jr
41 89 Morgan Shepherd TBA 07 Chevy Cindy Shepherd
42 90 Don Thomson TBA 08 Chevy Marcia Parsons
43 91 Scott Steckly TBA 08 Chevy Stacey Humphrey
44 98 Alex Garcia Dixien/OmniSource 08 Chevy Alex Garcia
45 99 David Reutimann Aaron's Dream Machine 08 Toyota Michael Waltrip
NASCAR Montreal: Lots of Canadians attempting to make the Nationwide race
Preliminary Entry List
NAPA Auto Parts 200 Presented by Dodge
NASCAR Nationwide Series
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve - 8/2/2008
Ent Car # Driver Sponsor Manu. Owner
1 0 Wheeler Boys sponsordavis.com 08 Chevy Johnny Davis
2 01 Trevor Boys sponsordavis.com 08 Chevy Johnny Davis
3 1 Mike Bliss Miccosukee Indian Gaming & Resort 08 Chevy James Finch
4 2 Clint Bowyer BB&T 08 Chevy Richard Childress
5 02 Andy Ponstein StottClassicRacing.com 08 Chevy Corrie Stott
6 4 Landon Cassill Miccosukee 06 Chevy James Finch
7 05 Burney Lamar 31W Insulation & Certainteed 07 Ford Wayne Day
8 5 Ron Fellows Go Daddy 08 Chevy Rick Hendrick
9 6 David Ragan Discount Tire 08 Ford Jack Roush
10 7 Mike Wallace GEICO 08 Toyota Bob Germain
11 9 Patrick Carpentier Subway 08 Dodge George Gillett Jr
12 09 Kevin O'Connell General Environmental Mngt-Taleo Grill 07 Chevy Susan O'Connell
13 10 Justin Marks Furniture Electronics 08 Toyota Todd Braun
14 11 Jason Keller America's Incredible Pizza Company 08 Chevy Bryan Mullet
15 16 Greg Biffle 3M 08 Ford Jack Roush
16 20 Joey Logano Game Stop 08 Toyota Joe Gibbs
17 22 TBA Supercuts 08 Dodge Armando Fitz
18 24 Brian Simo TBA 08 Chevy John McGill
19 25 Boris Said NoFear/Team Smithfield 08 Ford Ed Rensi
20 27 Brad Coleman Cottonelle 08 Ford Mike Curb
21 28 Kenny Wallace TBA 06 Chevy Mimi Fitz
22 29 Scott Wimmer Holiday Inn 08 Chevy Richard Childress
23 30 Stanton Barrett NOS Energy Drink 08 Chevy Chris Lencheski
24 31 Kenny Hendrick Interush 08 Chevy Stanton Barrett
25 32 Jacques Villeneuve L'Equipeur/Ganotec 08 Toyota Todd Braun
26 33 Ron Hornaday Jr Camping World 08 Chevy Delana Harvick
27 38 Jason Leffler Great Clips 08 Toyota Ralph Braun
28 40 Scott Pruett Fastenal 08 Dodge Floyd Ganassi
29 47 Kelly Bires Clorox 08 Ford Jodi Geschickter
30 49 Derrike Cope TBA 06 Chevy Jay Robinson
31 52 Scott Gaylord TBA 07 Ford Jimmy Means
32 59 Marcos Ambrose STP 08 Ford Tad Geschickter
33 60 Carl Edwards CitiFinancial 08 Ford Jack Roush
34 61 Stan Barrett TBA 08 Ford Charlie Shoffner
35 62 Brandon Whitt TBA 08 Ford Doug Taylor
36 64 Max Papis Atreus Home & Communities 08 Chevy Ed Rensi
37 66 Steve Wallace 5-Hour Energy 08 Chevy Rusty Wallace
38 81 D J Kennington Mahindra Tractor 08 Dodge Pat MacDonald
39 84 Mike Harmon Mike Harmon Racing 07 Chevy Mike Harmon
40 88 Brad Keselowski U.S. Navy 08 Chevy Dale Earnhardt Jr
41 89 Morgan Shepherd TBA 07 Chevy Cindy Shepherd
42 90 Don Thomson TBA 08 Chevy Marcia Parsons
43 91 Scott Steckly TBA 08 Chevy Stacey Humphrey
44 98 Alex Garcia Dixien/OmniSource 08 Chevy Alex Garcia
45 99 David Reutimann Aaron's Dream Machine 08 Toyota Michael Waltrip
NASCAR Canadian Tire Series News & Notes - Montreal
NAPA AutoPro 100 Notebook // Edmonton Canadian Tire Series 100 Post-Race Notebook // Whissell Adjusting To Stock Car Racing
* Ashley Taws Overcomes On And Off The Track
Beating the odds is nothing new to Ashley Taws, both as a female racer and as a victim of a terrible passenger car accident in late 2002.
Taws (No. 72 Barbie at Wal-Mart Chevrolet), racing out of Newmarket, Ont., will become the first female driver in, the albeit short, history of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Sirius Satellite Radio when she makes her debut at Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve this weekend. At the same time, she will add her name to the likes of Janet Guthrie, Shawna Robinson, Erin Crocker and Sarah Fisher as females competing in NASCAR events.
No stranger to being the first female to race in several events and series, Taws, 24, prefers not to focus on that, but rather on the task at hand — racing.
"I expect to have to earn the respect of the guys out there and, once I do, I am just another driver and that is the way I want it," said Taws.
At the end of the day, however, Taws is lucky to be walking let alone racing. Following a successful 2002 season in the open-wheel Canadian Formula Ford series, she was involved in a horrible traffic accident as a passenger in which she suffered serious back injuries. The damage was so severe that doctors were not sure that she would ever walk again. She spent six months in a hospital bed and underwent countless surgeries knowing that she would not only walk, but also race again.
Just after getting on her feet after the accident, Taws went right back to racing, but her physical stamina was not where it needed to be and the lingering pain from the injuries was just too much to bear.
"I just couldn't sit in the car without it hurting," she said. "Plus, my conditioning and stamina was next to nothing."
Seemingly, her racing career was over even before it really started. Taws did not climb behind the wheel of a racecar for four years. During the hiatus, she was in and out of the hospital for various problems and procedures. The final corrective surgeries were performed in the summer of 2006.
Her first foray into stock car racing came just last season in the Ontario Sportsman Series. The cars used in that series are of similar size to those of the Canadian Tire Series, but are lighter and not as powerful.
"I've adjusted pretty well to stock car racing, but I'm going to have another 200 horsepower to get used to in the (NASCAR Canadian Tire Series)."
She has little seat time in her Canadian Tire Series ride and, for that reason, has no grandiose expectations for the Montreal race.
"I have raced on the track before, so only the car will be new to me," Taws said. "I just want to take this as a learning process and not push everything to the limit. I don't expect to win the race. I want to do well, but this will be a learning event for me and my crew, who are new to stock cars, as well."
Neither the high profile of Canada's best stock-car racers on hand for the NAPA 100 nor the presence of the NASCAR Nationwide Series has Taws swimming in a nervous sweat.
"I've watched all the (NCATS) races on television this year and there are a lot of high-profile drivers. I've seen how hard they race and how tight the competition is," she said. "I am a little nervous, but probably more excited than anything. I just want to learn the car and begin to earn respect among the drivers as a solid racer."
Taws also plans to race with the Canadian Tire Series in two weeks at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres. The long-range plan is to do more road-course races in 2009 before tackling an oval track in the Canadian Tire Series.
The Race: NAPA 100
The Place: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Quebec
The Date: Saturday, Aug. 2
The Time: 10:20 a.m. ET
TV Schedule: TSN, Noon ET, Aug. 16 (delayed)
Track Layout: 2.710-mile temporary road course
Race Purse: $68,292 CAD
2007 Winner: Kerry Micks
2007 Pole: J.R. Fitzpatrick
Schedule: Friday: Practice 8-9:40 a.m., Time Trials 12:30 p.m.
Track Contact: Paul Wilson, (514) 982-0833 or (514) 397-8333
* Whissell Taking Adjustment To NASCAR One Step At A Time
As the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series grows in popularity, many drivers from the dozens and dozens of sports car road-racing series all over the country are looking at stock-car racing as a viable option. Jarrad Whissell, of Calgary, Alberta, has moved beyond looking and jumped into the fray.
He will make the third of his four NASCAR Canadian Tire Series appearances this weekend at Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Whissell, who had never been in a stock car before this year, plans to continue racing the road-course events, but does not rule out trying his hand on an oval track.
"I am just so new to these machines that I want to stay on the road courses, for now, just for the comfort level," Whissell said. "Down the road, I wouldn't mind putting together an oval program. I think that would be fun once we're in a position to do it well."
Whissell, 33, has a pair of Western Canadian Motorsport Association championships under his belt and knows the ins and outs of turning left and right. Now, it is just a matter of getting familiar with the beast that is a Canadian Tire Series car.
"I'll admit we've struggled with the mechanics of the car, but every minute adds to our library of knowledge."
Those minutes are about to multiply rapidly. Having just completed the Edmonton event last weekend, the Montreal and Trois-Rivieres races come within the next three weeks.
"It sure is a flurry of activity, but it'll be fun and we're all looking forward to it," he said.
* News & Notes
The Race: This event is the seventh of 13 races on the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Sirius Satellite Radio schedule. It is the series' second visit to the track.
The Procedure: The starting field is 34 cars, including provisionals. The first 29 cars will qualify through NASCAR Road Race (group) qualifying. The remaining five spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 23 laps covering 100 kilometers (62.137 miles).
The Track: The 2.710-mile, 14-turn temporary road course is located in Parc Jean-Drapeau on Île Notre-Dame, a man-made island in the St. Lawrence River. The track was originally named Île Notre-Dame Circuit, but was renamed in 1982 following the death of legendary Canadian driver Gilles Villeneuve.
The Records: The one-lap qualifying record for the Canadian Tire Series is 106.755 seconds (91.387 mph) set by J.R. Fitzpatrick on Aug. 3, 2007. The 23-lap race record is held by Kerry Micks at 1 hour, 2 minutes, 18 seconds set Aug. 4, 2007.
A Season Ago: Fitzpatrick started on the pole, but led just one lap before surrendering the lead to Micks most of the race until Andrew Ranger moved past on lap 21. Ranger and Micks stayed bumper-to-bumper for the rest of the race. Micks staged a dramatic last-lap pass of Ranger for the victory.
Also On Tap: The Canadian Tire Series joins the NASCAR Nationwide Series this weekend along with Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series DP and GT classes.
* Edmonton Canadian Tire Series 100 Post-Race Notebook
Crowded House: Edmonton track officials did not release attendance numbers. With the grandstands full and still plenty of spectators at other vantage points around the track, though, the crowd was easily in excess of 60,000. It was the fourth consecutive capacity crowd for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.
First Timer: In Edmonton, Alex Tagliani (No. 7 Wal-Mart/Tide Ford) became the Canadian Tire Series' first first-time winner since Scott Steckly (No. 22 Tow Truck in a Box/Erb Group Dodge) collected his initial series win in last season's final race. Tagliani is the eighth different race winner in the series' short history.
Mobil 1 Command Performance of the Race Award: As a reward for his NASCAR Canadian Tire Series victory in Edmonton, Tagliani collects $1,500 from Mobil 1 for his effort.
Mopar Fast Five: This program awards the top five finishing Dodges in the race. In the Edmonton 100, Steckly was the highest-finishing Dodge and thus earned a $2,000 bonus for the fifth time this year. D.J. Kennington (No. 17 Castrol/Haldex Dodge) finished fifth overall and was the second-highest finishing Dodge, which earned him $1,250. Picking up $1,000 for finishing as the third-highest Dodge was Jason Hathaway (No. 3 Snap-on Tools/Super 8 Dodge). Collecting $500 for placing fourth among the Dodge entrants was Mark Dilley (No. 9 Dodge/Leland Industries Dodge). Rounding out the top five Dodges was Dave Whitlock (No. 39 Dickies/NMT Dodge), which pays $250.
POWERade Power Move: Hathaway also earned the POWERade bonus of $1,000 for improving his position the most over the course of the race. He started 14th on the grid and finished seventh.
Tow Truck in a Box Free Pass Award: In a new program in 2008, the driver who receives a free pass during the event and has the highest finish earns $1,000. No driver was able to earn a free pass in Edmonton, so the award will roll over and be worth $2,000 in Montreal.
In Case You Missed It: TSN and TSN HD coverage of the Edmonton Canadian Tire Series 100 will premiere on Sunday, August 3 at noon ET. The one-hour program will also air on Tuesday, Aug. 5 at 4 p.m. ET and on Sunday, Aug. 10 at midnight ET.
From Shon Sbarra, NASCAR
