|
2007 Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear - Round 8 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event Information and Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Road America Event Reports | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LAST TO FIRST – WHITE WINS A WILD ONE AT ROAD AMERICA The race began with pole sitter Marco Di Leo, suffering from fuel pressure woes in his # 21 Maxwell Paper/Nugget Mazda, losing the lead to 2nd-place qualifier Australian James Davison in his #7 Easternats / Velocity Motorsports Mazda. Davison led most of the race but several overt blocking moves in the closing stages provoked series officials to penalize him three places, dropping him back to 4th. This handed the victory to White, who overcame a horrible start to the weekend in stellar fashion to score his first win of the season. White has scored two podiums and two top-5 finishes so far this season. “We weren’t able to qualify because of mechanical problems, so I had to start at the very back of the grid, which actually worked out quite well,” said the native of Santa Clara, California. “The field spread out a bit back there and gave me some room to run hard and pass cars. I had to drive the wheels off the car, but I figured out some new racing lines about mid-way through the race that let me pick up about a second per lap, and that really helped get me to the front. I changed teams between the last race and this one, no hard feelings, just one of those racing things, and I’m really happy to be able to thank the Maxwell Paper Racing team with our first win of the season.” Star Mazda Championship points leader, and winner of three races so far this season, including Round Seven at Toronto, suffered through a difficult day of practice on Thursday and a miserable qualifying session that saw him start 8th on the grid. He moved up and down the order during the race like a yo-yo, finally making the pass for 2nd on the next to last lap. This is his third 2nd-place finish this year, in addition to three wins and four pole positions. “How many places I lost was a function of traffic, yellow flags and the fact that, as the points leader I have a target on my back and pretty much everyone was trying to run me off the road,” said the 18 year-old native of Sonoma, California. “How many places I gained is a function of what a great car the JDC Motorsports team gave me for the race. We had the fastest car out there, and if I didn’t have to spend so much time dodging disaster, we’d have given Ron run for the front in the closing laps. That said, the mission this weekend, after winning, was to be smart, keep it on the road, finish the race and extend our points lead… which we did.” Third place was also a source of controversy, with one driver replacing another during the middle of the podium ceremony. Jonathan Goring raced his #14 Skip Barber Racing/Andersen Racing Mazda across the finish line in third place after a hard-fought pass for position… a pass that that officials ultimately determined was an infraction of the rules, resulting in a penalty moving him back to 24th. The recipient of that pass, and the man ultimately replacing him in the middle of the ‘hat dance’ was 4th-place finisher Nick Haye, driver of the #37 Quantum Sphere/JCD Motorsports, who started the race from 9th on the grid. Haye has scored four top-10 finishes so far this season. “It was wild, I was back in the paddock with my car surrounded by people and my team is telling me that I need to get over to the podium, that I’d finished third,” said Haye. “I actually qualified quite well, but due to a penalty I incurred in Toronto they took away my best laps and I started ninth. The team gave me a great car and I’m really excited to score my first podium for my new sponsor Quantum Sphere. It was really aggressive out there, but I just love the track and it really suits my driving style.” Rounding out the top-5 were the aforementioned James Davison, finishing 4th for his fifth top-5 of the year, and another interesting story, Eric Freiberg in the #39 Northwest Autosport/EBI Medical Mazda. Freiberg’s normal car is the #3 CDE Collision Damage Experts/Northwest Autosport Mazda, but terminal mechanical problems shortly before the race looked to keep Freiberg out of the event… until his teammate, Steve Cook of New Orleans, LA, offered to sit out the race and put Freiberg in his #39 car… a gentlemanly gesture that worked out well for Freiberg and the Northwest team. Also of note in the race, 3rd-place qualifier Natacha Gachnang of St. Gingolph, Switzerland got caught up in an on-track incident and though she was able to continue, finished 7th in her #35 AIM Autosport Mazda. Gachnang made Star Mazda series history with back-to-back podium finishes at Portland and Cleveland earlier in the season. Pole-sitter Di Leo soldiered on with a down-on power car to bring it home in 8th. Finishing first in the Expert Series for drivers aged 30 – 44, and 13th overall, was Richard Zober, driver of the #66 Zober Industries/Comprent Motorsports Mazda. Texan Steve Hickham won the Master Series for driver over 45 years of age with a 16th-place overall finish in the #17 HB Turbo/Hickham Motorsports Mazda. _____________________________________ On any given weekend, there are more Mazdas on the road-race tracks of America than any other brand of vehicle. At the track, you’ll see MX-5 Miata, RX-8, MAZDA3, MAZDA6, RX-7 and other vintage Mazda models competing, because every Mazda has the Soul of a Sports Car.
For more information on the various Mazda spec series, visit Dean Case / Communications Officer / MAZDASPEED Motorsports
FRIDAY QUALIFYING – Di Leo on Pole at Road America Capping off a stunning comeback from his troubles at Toronto that saw him excluded from the results and then re-instated, Canadian racer Marco Di Leo put his #21 Maxwell Paper Racing/Nugget Mazda on the pole for Saturday’s Round Eight of the 2007 Star Mazda Championship with a lap of 2:06.670. DiLeo, who won the season-opener at Sebring, is now – with his one point for winning the pole -- tied with Jonathan Goring for 3rd in the championship with 214 points. “The track was a bit slippery with all the different types of rubber from all the series running this weekend on the track, but the Maxwell Paper team gave me a great car and I feel confident about our chances tomorrow,” says the Toronto native. “We have a new sponsor on board this weekend and for the rest of the season, Nugget, and I’m very pleased to have their very distinctive race car on the pole for this event.” Qualifying second was Australian racer James Davison who put the #7 Easternats/Velocity Motorsports Mazda on the outside of the front row with a lap of 2:06.762. Davison, who has started from the pole twice so far this season, has two podium finishes, two top-5 finishes and is currently second in the championship points battle with 216. Davison actually turned the third-fastest lap, but inherited the second spot when Nick Haye, driver of the #37 Quantum Sphere/JCD Motorsports Mazda forfeited his fastest lap due to a penalty incurred for causing a full-course yellow at the previous race in Toronto. “I feel bad for Nick, but that’s racing and after the luck I’ve had this season, I feel a front-row start is payback for a lot of hard work by the team getting it all turned around,” said Davison. “I love high-speed turns and natural road courses, so Road America is just my kind of track, certainly one of the top-5 circuits in the world. I was a bit tense in qualifying because a red flag came out just as I went out, and that’s always a problem here because of the long laps, but they got it cleaned up quickly and I was able to put in a good time.” The other beneficiary of Nick Haye’s slow-motion misfortune was Natacha Gachnang, of St. Gingolph, Switzerland. The lone female driver in Star Mazda, she made series history earlier in the season with back-to-back podium finishes at Portland and Cleveland. Rebounding from a difficult race on the narrow street circuit at Toronto, she put the #35 AIM Autosport Mazda third on the grid with a lap of 2:06.848. This is the first time she has qualified in the top-10. “I was 1.7 seconds off the pace in practice because we had the car set up too soft,” she said. “But my engineer and I worked hard overnight to get a new setup for the car for qualifying and it was very good. The car is difficult to drive, but very fast. The track is a little slippery, but it’s very much like the European circuits I’m used to and I just love it.” Rounding out the top-5 were another Canadian, Devin Cunningham, and Louisiana native Alex Ardoin. Cunningham, who won Round Five at Portland and is currently 6th in the points with 203, drove his #33 Discovery Channel / AIM Autosport Mazda to a lap of 2:07.002. Ardoin, who surprised the field with a 3rd-place finish in Toronto, piloted his #51 Oral & Facial Surgery Center / Mundill Mazda to a lap of 2:07.003. Series points leader Dane Cameron, who has won three races so far this season and started from the pole four times, is enduring a difficult weekend. Fastest in one of the three practice sessions on Thursday, his Friday qualifying effort was spoiled by an engine severely down on power. He managed 8th on the grid in his #19 JDC Motorsports/Finlay Motorsports Mazda with a lap of 2:07.152. The top qualifier in the Expert Series for drivers in the 20 – 44 age range, was Richard Zober of Newtown, PA. His lap of 2:11.744 in the #66 Zober Industries / Comprent Motorsports Mazda was good for 21st on the grid. In the Master Series for drivers over 45, Gerry Kraut of North Oaks, MN qualified 17th on the grid with a lap of 2:09.744 in his Dougherty & Co. / JDC Motorsports Mazda. Road America is Round Eight of the 12-race 2007 Star Mazda Championship schedule and the 45-minute Star Mazda race will take the green flag at11:40 am Saturday morning. Star Mazda races are broadcast tape-delayed on SPEED TV. Date and time (all times stated are Eastern and subject to change) for the one-hour broadcast is available at www.speedtv.com/programs. The Road America race is scheduled to air on Saturday, August 18 at 3:00 pm with a re-broadcast on Monday, August 20 at 3:00 pm. For additional information on the Star Mazda series and the Mazda Motorsports Ladder, please visit www.starmazda.com and www.mazdausa.com. _____________________________________ On any given weekend, there are more Mazdas on the road-race tracks of America than any other brand of vehicle. At the track, you’ll see MX-5 Miata, RX-8, MAZDA3, MAZDA6, RX-7 and other vintage Mazda models competing, because every Mazda has the Soul of a Sports Car. For more information on the various Mazda spec series, visit Dean Case / Communications Officer / MAZDASPEED Motorsports Office - (310) 755-7403 / Cell - (310) 318-4582 / E-mail: dean@RWB-LLC.com
THURSDAY PRACTICE – Three Sessions Fastest was newcomer Steve Whelk in the #57 GBR Racing / John Walko Racing Mazda with a lap of 2:11.109. The only other driver within shouting distance was Englishman Jonny Baker in the #6, Andersen Racing Mazda with a lap of 2:12.454. From there it was Jonathan Goring in the #14 Skip Barber Racing / Andersen Racing Mazda with a lap of 2:26.592. The late-morning session, commencing at 11:20 am, was more representative of the natural order of things, with series points leader Dane Cameron leading the pack in the #19 JDC Motorsports / Finlay Motorsports Mazda turning a lap of 2:10.315 (111.827 mph). Cameron’s teammate, Nick Haye in the #73 JDC Motorsports/HNR Racing Mazda was a close second with a lap of 2:10.403 (111.752 mph). The interval to third-fast in the session was even tighter, with Canadian Lorenzo Mandarino turning a 2:10.499 (111.670 mph) lap in his #23 Newway Forming/Team G.FRO Mazda. Rounding out the top-5 in the middle session were Jonathan Goring in the #14 Skip Barber Racing / Andersen Racing Mazda with a lap of 2:10.561 (11.617 mph) and Eric Freiberg, who turned a lap of 2:11.270 (111.014 mph) in the #3 CDE Collision Damage Experts/Northwest Autosport Mazda. The afternoon session, taking to a dry track at 4:00 pm, saw lap times tumble and speeds increase dramatically. Nick Haye was fastest with a lap of 2:06.613 (115.097 mph), followed by Australian James Davison in the #7 Easternats/ Velocity Motorsports Mazda turning a lap of 2:07.018 (114.730 mph). Third was Texan Russell Walker in the #28 Pavecon / John Walko Racing Mazda turning a lap of 2:07.301 (114.475 mph). Rounding out the top-5 were Steve Welk with a 2:07.419 (114.369 mph) and Ron White in the #69 Maxwell Paper Racing Mazda turning a lap of 2:07.424 (114.365 mph). Surprisingly, Dane Cameron’s team missed the setup, dropping him to 8th with a 2:08.399 (113.496 mph). Qualifying to set the grid for Saturday’s Round 8 of the 2007 Star Mazda Championship will take place Friday afternoon from 4:30 to 5:15 pm. The 45-minute Star Mazda race will take the green flag at11:40 am Saturday morning. Road America is Round Eight of the 12-race 2007 Star Mazda Championship schedule. Star Mazda races are broadcast tape-delayed on SPEED TV. Date and time (all times stated are Eastern and subject to change) for the one-hour broadcast is available at www.speedtv.com/programs. The Road America race is scheduled to air on Saturday, August 18 at 3:00 pm with a re-broadcast on Monday, August 20 at 3:00 pm. The 60-minute Trois Rivierès race – where Star Mazda is the featured event -- will take place on Sunday, August 19, at 1:00 pm. The race is scheduled to air on Saturday, August 25 at 12pm (noon). The Mosport event (again with ALMS) takes place at 3:50 pm, Saturday, August 25 and will be broadcast on Saturday, September 1 at 12pm (noon).
PEDAL TO THE METAL AS STAR MAZDA TRIPLE-HEADER
The professional teams and rising star drivers of the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear will be facing a test of their mettle during the upcoming three-race August swing through Northeast swing that will see them putting the pedal to the metal on back-to-back weekends at Road America, Trois Rivieres and Mosport. Drivers of all ages (17 to 64), both sexes and from a veritable UN of countries (U.S., Canada, England, the Philippines, Australia and Switzerland), will be battling for fun, honor, money, TV time and the ultimate prize – Mazda’s ladder program scholarship that will help the 2007 series champion move up to the 2008 Cooper Tires Presents The Champ Car Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda. First up is the Generac 500 Champ Car/American Le Mans event at Road America, August 9 – 11. Star Mazda championship points leader Dane Cameron (#19 JDC Motorsports/Finlay Motorsports) comes to this event with the advantage of having tasted victory here in 2006, driving in the Formula Ford 2000 series. Cameron has won three Star Mazda races so far in 2007, started from the pole four times and scored two ‘hat tricks’ – fastest in every practice session, qualified on the pole and led every lap on his way to victory. “The nature of the track, with long straights followed by fairly tight turns, makes Road America a great place,” says the 18 year-old native of Sonoma, California. “You can set somebody up a couple of turns ahead, get a big tow and pass them under braking without having to muscle them over. But the length of the track, more than four miles, and the long lap times, makes it critical to get your setup right as soon as possible and turn your fast lap in qualifying early because if there’s a red flag or full-course yellow, it uses up so much time. There have been some changes to the track – wider in places, with more runoff areas and bigger curbs -- that should make it even faster this year.” Cameron leads the championship battle with 263 points, but hot on his heels is Australian racer James Davison (#7 Easternats/Velocity Motorsports) with 216 points. Davison has started from the pole twice, finished on the podium twice and scored four top-5 finishes so far this season. Rounding out the top-5 are American Jonathan Goring (#14 Skip Barber Racing/Andersen Racing) with 214 points, Canadian Marco Di Leo (#21 Maxwell Paper Products/Maxwell Racing) with 213 and American Ron White (#69 Wunder-bar/Team G.FRO) with 206. Also of note in the Star Mazda field is Natacha Gachnang, a native of St. Gingolph, Switzerland, driving the #35 AIM Autosport Mazda. Gachnang is the lone female driver in the Star Mazda Championship and has made series history by finishing on the podium in back-to-back races. With two of the three upcoming races taking place in Canada, interest in Canadian drivers is high – and three of them, all rookies, each with one win so far this season, will be among the rising stars competing in Rounds Eight, Nine and Ten of the 2007 Star Mazda Championship. Heading the list is Toronto’s own Marco Di Leo, driver of the #21 Maxwell Paper Products Mazda. Di Leo was the 2006 Skip Barber National Championship runner-up, 2005 Skip Barber Scholarship winner, Team Sunoco Ultra 94 member and F2000 Bridgestone Series champion. He won the Star Mazda season-opener in Sebring and is 4th in the championship with 213 points. Next is Burnaby B.C.’s Lorenzo Mandarino, driver of the #23 Newway Forming/Team G.FRO Mazda and race winner at Round Four in Salt Lake City. Currently 9th in the championship battle with 182 points, Mandarino was the 2005 SKUSA (Super Karts USA) Supernational Winner in the Super Pro class and an 11-time karting champion since 1996. Rounding out the trio is Devin Cunningham of St. Bruno, Quebec, who won the 2006 Discovery Channel competition, called ‘Star Racer,’ designed to find the next great Canadian racing driver and is now making the most of his prize, a full-season sponsorship in the 2007 Star Mazda Championship. He won Round Five of the Star Mazda Championship in Portland driving the #33 Discovery Channel/AIM Autosport Mazda and is currently 6th in the championship with 203 points. At the other end of the age spectrum, Star Mazda Championship “Master Class” racers include 50 year-old Steve Hickham of Corpus Christi, Texas (#17 HB Turbo/Hickham Motorsports) and 56 year-old Dan Tomlin Jr. of Dallas, Texas (#56 Team Tomlin). Tomlin races with his son and business partner, 42 year-old Dan Tomlin III (#58 Team Tomlin). Also in the Master Class is Gerry Kraut, 56, from North Oaks, Minnesota (#55 Dougherty and Company/JDC Motorsports). These ‘gentlemen racers’ may not be fighting for the win, but do run regularly in the top half of the field – and they love to race, happy to be out there and mixing it up with drivers who will be the stars of tomorrow. And here’s the story on what the young lions are all fighting for; forty years ago, on May 31, 1967, Mazda introduced the first street car with a rotary engine, the Cosmo Sport. Since then, they’ve built two million rotary-engined vehicles and the company has built its very identity on the idea of Zoom-Zoom and every vehicle they produce having the soul of a sports car. In pursuit of that ideal, Mazda has created a unique, company-sponsored ‘motorsports ladder’ that reaches all the way from karting to Champ Car. The winner of a shootout among 2007 karting champions will get a scholarship in the 2008 Skip Barber series, while the Skip Barber champion moves up to Star Mazda, the Star Mazda champion moves up to the Champ Car Atlantic Series Powered by Mazda and the Atlantic champion gets $2 million toward a Champ Car drive. So they’re all racing for a dream, and the opportunity of a lifetime. On track action at Road America – where Star Mazda shares the weekend with the American Le Mans Series -- begins with two practice sessions on Thursday, August 9 and a 45-minute qualifying session starting at 4:30 pm on Friday, August 10. The 45-minute Star Mazda Championship race is scheduled to take the green flag at 11:40 am on Saturday, August 11. Road America is Round Eight of the 12-race 2007 Star Mazda Championship schedule. Star Mazda races are broadcast tape-delayed on SPEED TV. Date and time (all times stated are Eastern and subject to change) for the one-hour broadcast is available at www.speedtv.com/programs. The Road America race is scheduled to air on Saturday, August 18 at 3:00 pm with a re-broadcast on Monday, August 20 at 3:00 pm. The 60-minute Trois Rivierès race – where Star Mazda is the featured event -- will take place on Sunday, August 19, at 1:00 pm. The race is scheduled to air on Saturday, August 25 at 12pm (noon). The Mosport event (again with ALMS) takes place at 3:50 pm, Saturday, August 25 and will be broadcast on Saturday, September 1 at 12pm (noon). For additional information on the Star Mazda series and the Mazda Motorsports Ladder, please visit www.starmazda.com and www.mazdausa.com. _____________________________________ On any given weekend, there are more Mazdas on the road-race tracks of America than any other brand of vehicle. At the track, you’ll see MX-5 Miata, RX-8, MAZDA3, MAZDA6, RX-7 and other vintage Mazda models competing, because every Mazda has the Soul of a Sports Car. For more information on the various Mazda spec series, visit Dean Case / Communications Officer / MAZDASPEED Motorsports Office - (310) 755-7403 / Cell - (310) 318-4582 / E-mail: dean@RWB-LLC.com
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||