IndyProRacer.com: The Pro Racer's Resource Online

IndyProRacer.com and A1TeamRacer.com Cease Publication

2008-09-12T00:00:00-07:00

Economic Woes Turn Out the ‘Lights’ at Auto Racing Sites

From IndyProRacer.com and A1TeamRacer.com press release:

Allan Brewer, publisher of IndyProRacer.com and A1TeamRacer.com professional auto racing websites, announced that publication had ceased for both entities with the close of the Firestone Indy Lights season at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday (September 7th).

Brewer cited conflicting personal obligations and the rising costs of fuel and travel to cover the series in person as major factors in the decision to close the websites. The economic downturn of 2008 also created fiscal stress that neither site could overcome.

“It’s been a great privilege to work with officials of the Indy Racing League and A1GP World Cup of Motorsport, the drivers, the teams, the owners, the public relations agents, and the directors and executives of the IRL and A1GP, and their partner organizations and race tracks over the past two seasons,” said Brewer. “I can’t imagine a harder-working, more dedicated group of professionals anywhere than the people who make the Firestone Indy Lights Series and the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport go.”

The IndyProRacer.com and A1TeamRacer.com websites achieved growing readership throughout their existence, even winning acclaim by the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Assocation with an ‘Honorary Mention’ among professional racing websites in 2007 and citations for excellence in reporting on the Indy Lights Series.

Despite the public and critical acclaim, IndyProRacer.com and A1TeamRacer.com never achieved financial success sufficient to match or exceed their expenses in the tough news and sports information marketplace of the twenty-first century.

“Readership without revenue is not a model for business success,” said Brewer.

Raphael Matos Wins 2008 Firestone Indy Lights Title

2008-09-07T13:51:58-07:00

AFS AGR Teammate Arie Luyendyk Jr Collects First Win in Chicago

Champ Chase Ends with Antinucci Crash on Lap 25

by Allan Brewer
allan@indyproracer.com

Beatriz (L), Luyendyk Jr and Matos. Photo: ShawnPayneIRL

Like a bright-red and yellow-stripe fairytale come true, AFS Andretti Green Racing's Arie Luyendyk Jr won his first-ever race in the Indy Racing League after his teammate Raphael Matos clinched the series championship when contender Richard Antinucci of Sam Schmidt Motorsports hit the wall and retired from contention.

Starting his sixty-second race, a record for any driver in the Firestone Indy Lights series, Arie Jr pulled ahead of then-leader Matos on Lap 66 of 67 when the field restarted for the fourth and last time over the 1.5 mile oval at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday (September 7th).

From there Luyendyk held off a charging Ana 'Bia' Beatriz in the No. 20 Sam Schmidt Motorsports Healthy Choice Dallara to reach the checkered flag first as Matos came home third, followed by Panther Racing's Bobby Wilson and Beatriz' teammate James Davison.

"It was perfect," Arie Jr said afterwards. "This is a dream scenario: me winning the race and Rafa (Matos) winning the championship. It's more than words can describe."

"Green, white, checkered is always nerve-wracking. We got a good restart, thank God, and Rafa and I worked beautifully today. Ana (Beatriz) was definitely a tough competitor. She was the one I was worried about."

"My Firestone tires held up beautifully," he finished. "It was amazing. The car was so consistent from Lap 1 to the end. I made a lot of adjustments in the car. AGR/AFS, Targus, my sponsor, everyone helped out. It was just a beautiful weekend."

The win compliments the eight career second-place finishes Luyendyk Jr owns, and put the icing on the cake of the team's first-ever Indy Lights championship.

Beatriz' second-place in the race secured her place of third in the championship standings on 449 points, twenty-one points to the better of Luyendyk Jr, who in turn bested RLR Andersen's J R Hildebrand by 19 points for fourth.

"It was really hard to pass the AFS guys," Bia said, "because they were really, really fast."

"They were working together, which was really tough. I tried to stay behind them. When Arie (Luyendyk Jr.) made his move, I was able to stay with him and get that second position."

"It was very good, finishing on the podium in second place. I am very grateful to Healthy Choice and all of the people who have helped me throughout the season. I believe we're going to stay in the Firestone Indy Lights for one more year and fight for the championship from the beginning of the season."

"I am stronger and have more experience right now, and I'm hopeful that we can do well."

The podium finish was Bia's sixth of the 2008 season, including her precedent-making Indy Lights win at Nashville SuperSpeedway.

Championship Battle Ends In Lap 25 CrackUp

2008 Indy Lights Champion Raphael Matos. Photo: RonMcQueeneyIRL

Matos finished the chase for the Firestone Firehawk Cup with 510 points whle Antinucci was classified twenty-first in the twenty-four car SunRich Gourmet 100 race field and accumulated a total of 478 points for the season.

"It was the best third-place finish of my life," said a smiley Rafa from aside Victory Lane. "We had a plan today for me to win the championship and Arie (Luyendyk Jr.) to win the race."

"Arie really deserved to win a race this year, and it worked perfectly for us. I'm very happy for him, and I'm really happy for the AFS Racing/Andretti Green Racing team. They deserve this championship as much as I do. I told them not to drink the champagne before we finished the race."

A disappointed Antinucci put the Lap 25 incident that ended his race and season into perspective by reliving the moments before the accident.

"I need to see the video but the No. 4 car (of Guthrie Racing's Sean Guthrie) did not hold a consistent line throughout the corner," said Antinucci of the incident that sent him to the sidelines and runner-up for the year. "We were actually banging wheels up the straight."

"It's a bitter pill to swallow, losing it at the last round," he continued, "but, 'ifs' and 'buts' don't take you anywhere. We managed to finish second, and I had a great year overall. I have to thank my Lucas Oil LifeLock Sam Schmidt Motorsports group tremendously because they helped me."

"We had a chance. We led most of the year, but not when it counted unfortunately."

Race Recap

The 67-lap event got off to an uneven start with Hildebrand teammate Daniel Herrington spinning on the initial lap. Team Moore's Dillon Battistini damaged the left rear of his car in the ensuing melee, as 2005 Indy Lights champion Wade Cunningham stalled on the track in the Integra Motorsports No. 9 machine.

Racing 3-wide at Chicagoland Speedway. Photo: JimHainesIRL

A restart on Lap 8 was short-lived when Hildebrand spun in Turn 2 bringing out the yellow flag again.

A second restart put Matos in the front still on Lap 13, with Luyendyk Jr planted to the rear wing of the Dallara, Beatriz third and Wilson racing strongly in fourth.

On Lap 25 Sean Guthrie moved up-track slightly and touched, then touched again, the wheels of Antinucci sending the No. 7 championship contender into the outer wall and into retirement.

Matos, Luyendyk, Beatriz and Wilson separated from the pack to put on a two and three-car wide exhibition at near-190 mph speeds throughout the mid portion of the race without incident or much change in position.

The final restart on Lap 66 came after Michael Crawford Motorsports' Tom Dyer punctured a right rear tire and slowed on the track bound for the pits on Lap 63.

Luyendyk Jr smoothly slid beneath Matos to take the lead on the last lap, followed by Bia; then the No. 26 Targus Dallara sailed home unheaded for the victory.

Matos was credited with leading the most laps, sixty-six; while Brent Sherman in the second Panther car set race's fastest lap on Lap 36 at 193.530 mph.

Season Ends on High Note for Indy Lights Series

With the final race the 2008 Indy Lights season drops the curtain on its closest-ever championship chase and the most race-winners (ten in sixteen rounds) of a single season yet.

New team announcements have been flowing like water from an open tap before the campaign's end, giving credence to the suspicion that the 2009 FILS season could be greater still (as hard as that is to imagine) than the present one.

The stars of this year, Matos and Antinucci, are both likely headed for IndyCar in the near future; and the series' attention will shift to certain favorites Beatriz, Davison, Battistini, Luyendyk Jr, Hildebrand, Wilson and Herrington in 2009.

Firestone Indy Lights SunRich Gourmet 100 Results

Firestone Indy Lights 2008 Firehawk Cup Cumulative Results

AFS AGR's Raphael Matos Takes Pole for Championship Tilt at Chicago

2008-09-07T06:35:33-07:00

Race Start Moved Forward to 12 Noon EDT on Sunday

by Allan Brewer
allan@indyproracer.com

Rafa Matos (L) and Richard Antinucci. Photo: ChrisJonesIRL

AFS Andretti Green's Raphael Matos extended his lead in the Firestone Firehawk Cup championship race by one point on Saturday (September 6th) by winning pole for Sunday's Firestone Indy Lights series SunRich Gourmet 100 at Chicagoland Speedway.

The 27-year old Brazilian holds the slimmest point advantage in FILS history going into the final Indy Lights race of the season that will decide the series' championship.

"It's another point that we definitely needed," he said. "We have a four-point lead now, and we'll see what happens tomorrow. We're 67 laps away from the title. There's a lot of work and hard racing tomorrow."

"I feel great about my car," he continued. "I feel great about the opportunity. We've been good all year long. We've had some ups and down this season, but we've found good momentum. Hopefully, we can carry this momentum into tomorrow."

Sam Schmidt Motorsports' Ana Beatriz continued to look strong on the oval configuration, putting the No. 20 Healthy Choice Dallara onto the front row alongside countryman Matos.

Matos teammate Arie Luyendyk Jr starts from the inside of the second row, with Team SWE's Mike Potekhen holding down the fourth spot.

SSM's Richard Antinucci qualified ninth, a disappointing effort that was nearly two miles per hour off Matos pace over the 1.5 mile oval.

"I thought we had a little more," he said. "In testing this morning we ended up pretty well in qualifying trim, but the race is what counts and that's what we spent most of our time doing. Tomorrow is when it's all decided."

"Hopefully it will be a clean fight and it should be really exciting," he continued. "Matos was sitting on pole at Homestead, Kentucky and Chicago this year, and at the end of the Homestead and Kentucky rounds I was in front of him in the standings. I have to do that again at Chicagoland tomorrow."

"This track has a tradition of hosting nail-biters: 4 of 6 races have had a margin of victory of less than 0.1 second: I have to do my best to keep this tradition alive!"

Race Start Advanced Thirty Minutes to Noon EDT

The 67 lap championship-deciding race of 100 miles has been moved up by thirty minutes, to Noon Eastern time on Sunday.

ESPN2 cited 'scheduling conflicts' as the reason for the change in times for the final Indy Lights event of the season.

The start of the IndyCar series race remains unchanged at 2:30 PM EDT.

Firestone Indy Lights SunRich Gourmet 100 Qualifying Results

Team 3G LLC Announces for 2009 Indy Lights Series

2008-09-07T06:17:19-07:00

Growing Interest in Open-Wheel Brings FILS Newcomer

From Indy Racing League Media Reports:

Greg Beck and Steve Sudler have partnered to form Team 3G LLC with intentions to compete in the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights in 2009.

Beck is veteran IndyCar Series team owner, while Sudler brings 15 years of motorsports sponsorship and marketing experience to the team.

GREG BECK: "The IndyCar Series is growing in popularity, yet remains a great value for corporate marketers. Now is the time to build an organization that places emphasis on bringing new drivers and sponsors into the sport. With a unified IndyCar Series, there has been greater interest from drivers around the world wishing to compete in the championship. I have had a long association with Mike Curb and Cary Agajanian, which we will continue and build upon, including a Curb/Agajanian entry in the Indy 500."

STEVE SUDLER: "I am fortunate to have worked with some of the best brands, teams and agencies in the sports business. The IndyCar Series is showing phenomenal growth in terms of fan support, which leads to increased interest from potential sponsor partners. This is certainly the time to combine my marketing expertise with Greg's ability to build a competitive racing organization."

HVM Aboard for 2009 Indy Lights Series

2008-09-06T06:50:31-07:00

Michael Crawford to Manage Two-Car Lineup

From HVM Racing Media Reports:

In line with their intended goal to become a key player in the IndyCar Series, HVM Racing announced today that they will field two entries in the Firestone Indy Lights Series in 2009. The addition of the Indy Lights team will complement HVM Racing's program in the IndyCar Series and confirm the team as one of the fastest-growing in the Indy Racing League. The Indy Lights team will be run by Michael Crawford, who will be the General Manager.

HVM Racing has a long history of competition and success in North American open-wheel racing primarily in the Champ Car World Series where they captured six wins, 23 podiums and two poles. In 2008, Keith Wiggins, HVM Racing team owner, followed the unification of open-wheel racing and is determined to put all the pieces in place for a winning organization.

"This has been the plan since we committed to the IRL," said Wiggins. "We didn't want to come into this league and just be another team. We want to be a premier team, but also understand it takes the necessary steps. The move into the Firestone Indy Light Series is very important to us."

"This will allow us to immediately become a stronger team in 2009," continued Wiggins. "We are going to add additional engineers, mechanics, and obviously we have begun the process of searching for drivers that are the right fit for the HVM Racing brand now and in the future."

Experience in Series Key to Confederation of Crawford and HVM

Michael Crawford has been a major player in the Indy Lights Series since the series' inception in 2002 when he was the successful General Manager for Sam Schmidt Motorsports before taking ownership of his own team in 2006. For Crawford, this is an opportunity to join HVM and gives him the resources to perform at a racing oraganization with proven credentials.

"I am thrilled to be joining HVM. I look forward to delivering race wins and a championship run in 2009," commented Crawford. "Keith (Wiggins) has a super organization and HVM's expansion into the Firestone Indy Lights Series comes at a perfect time for us to work together. We will begin finalizing our driver lineup and infrastructure immediately after Chicago."

HVM is based in Indianapolis, Indiana. In its 7 years of competition in the Champ Car World Series, the team has earned 6 wins, 2 pole positions, and an additional 16 podiums since 2001 when Keith Wiggins took over Bettenhausen Motorsports. They finished 4th and 3rd, respectively, in Championship standings in 2006 and 2007 and drivers Mario Dominguez and Robert Doornbos were named Rookie of the Year in 2002 and 2007, respectively.

The Road Ends on Sunday in Chicago

2008-09-05T05:38:13-07:00

Firestone Indy Lights Final Round Will Crown Champion

by Allan Brewer
allan@indyproracer.com

It all comes down to one last race on the 1.5 mile oval as the SunRich Gourmet 100 at Chicagoland Speedway hosts the deciding round of racing in the 2008 Firestone Indy Lights season.

Only Raphael Matos of AFS Andretti Green Racing and Sam Schmidt Motorsports' Richard Antinucci can reap the rewards of a long season's battle for the Firestone Firehawk Cup, a year that's featured some of the best competition ever in the eight year old series that switched its name a week ahead of the first event and went on to prove itself exceedingly worthy of the 'Indy Lights' mantle.

There's some business yet to settle further down the field as well, with SSM's Ana Beatriz and RLR Andersen racer J R Hildebrand separated by only eight points for third. The race for fifth place is even tighter as Dillon Battistini (newly appointed at Team Moore) tries to hold off AFS AGR's Arie Luyendyk Jr for the spot. The pair are tied at 378 points apiece.

Driver Changes Continue Ahead of Round Sixteen

Panther Racing found idle Bobby Wilson eager to return to the cockpit for the SunRich Gourmet 100 and will put the veteran driver into the No. 15 Dallara whose seat was vacated when Dillon Battistini took the reins of the No. 22 car at Team Moore, while Pablo Donoso moves back to the Mo's Gold No. 3 car for the weekend.

Kiwi's Christina Orr and Jonny Reid are back in place at Alliance Motorsports and Sam Schmidt Motorsports respectively, as veteran oval-racer and 2005 Indy Lights champion Wade Cunningham rejoins for this race at Integra Motorsports.

Brandon Wagner of Lafayette, Indiana takes a spot in an Alliance/Wagner Motorsports entry for Chicago, and Tom Wieringa returns at Guthrie Racing to take the seat once held by IndyCar-bound Franck Perera.

Jonathan Klein closes out the season with a home stand (he's from historic and beautiful Chicago suburb of Long Grove, Illinois) in the No. 2 Team Moore car alongside Battistini.

Race Will Be Broadcast Live on ESPN 2

The final race of the 2008 Indy Lights season will bring the series' first live event coverage of the year as ESPN2 broadcasts the SunRich Gourmet 100 from Chicagoland Speedway at 11:30 PM CDT (12:30 PM EDT) on Sunday.

The original live broadcast of the season had been the Freedom 100 on Carb Day (May 23rd) which was delayed by rain until Saturday, and was tape-delayed for national viewing several days later.

TV/Radio Coverage of the Firestone Indy Lights SunRich Gourmet 100:

SunRich Gourmet 100 Race: ESPN2 (Live Coverage) at 12:30 PM EDT, September 7th
Talent: Bob Jenkins, Robbie Buhl (announcers); Mike King (pit reporter)
Live streaming video coverage of the SunRich Gourmet 100 SWE Pole Qualifying (3:00 PM EDT September 6th) and the SunRich Gourmet 100 (12:30 PM EDT September 7th) is available at www.indycar.com

Firestone Indy Lights SunRich Gourmet 100 Track Schedule
(all times local; schedule subject to change):

Saturday, September 6th

8:00-9:00 AM – Firestone Indy Lights practice

11:15 AM-12:15 PM – Firestone Indy Lights practice

2:00 p.m. – Firestone Indy Lights SWE Pole Qualifying

Sunday, September 7th

11 AM – Firestone Indy Lights SunRich Gourmet 100 pre-race

11:30 AM – Firestone Indy Lights SunRich Gourmet 100 (100 laps/100 miles)

Firestone Indy Lights Milwaukee 100 Entry List

Battistini Shifts Gears to Drive Team Moore Entry in Chicagoland Finale

2008-09-04T15:18:24-07:00

Early 2008 Championship Points Leader Moves from Panther Racing

by Katie Loomis
katie@teammooreracing.com

Team Moore Racing is pleased to announce Dillon Battistini will pilot the #22 TMR entry at the Firestone Indy Lights Series season finale. The final event of the 2008 season will take place on Sunday, September 7 at Chicagoland Speedway.

The English driver currently sits 5th in series point standings and has claimed four victories in his rookie season. His first win of his Indy Lights career came in the season opener at Homestead Miami Speedway, his first ever race on an oval track.

"I'm thankful for opportunity to drive for Team Moore Racing this weekend. I hope to be able to rack up my fifth win of the season," explained Battistini.

"I'm glad I am able to explore my options for next year and gain experience with working with a new team."

Team Moore Racing is currently auditioning drivers for the 2009 season and is extremely pleased to have someone of Dillon's caliber in the seat for the final event of 2008. The team is just coming off their first victory, as Pablo Donoso piloted the #22 to victory lane at Infineon Raceway.

"Tom Wood and I are very happy to have an opportunity to see what Dillon Battistini can do in one of our cars," said team co-owner Mark Moore. "Dillon is an extremely talented driver and we are really looking forward to the race at Chicago with him in the #22 car. With Dillon as a teammate to Jonathan Klein, we couldn't ask for a better pair of drivers to compete in the final event."

Catch the Firestone Indy Lights Series season finale at Chicagoland Speedway Sunday, September 7, 2008. The SunRichGourmet.com 100 will start at 12:30 pm EST. All the racing action will be available live on ESPN2.

Franck Perera Rejoins IndyCar with A J Foyt

2008-09-04T15:17:49-07:00

Driver Shuffling Ahead of Indy Lights Finale at Chicagoland Speedway

From Indy Racing League Media Reports:

A.J. Foyt Racing will campaign a second car for rookie Franck Perera Sept. 7 at Chicagoland Speedway. Perera will drive the No. 41 ABC Supply Co./AJ Foyt Racing entry as a teammate to Darren Manning.

Perera opened the 2008 season with Conquest Racing and recorded finishes of 14th at Homestead-Miami and 20th at St. Petersburg before being replaced by Jaime Camara.

Perera joined the Firestone Indy Lights series in June at Iowa and recorded a victory and two pole positions in nine starts.

“I would like to thank A.J Foyt and ABC Supply for giving me the chance to get back into an IndyCar Series car this weekend in Chicago,” said Perera. “It’s a huge pleasure to work with a team like Foyt Racing with so much experience and such a big name in racing.”

Team Director Larry Foyt brought the French driver to his father’s attention as the team begins its scouting process for a driver for a possible second car in 2009.

“At the beginning of the year, I noticed that Franck was one of the quickest among the transition team drivers to adapt to the Indy cars,” Foyt said. “He fared well on the oval in Homestead and qualified well at St. Pete. We thought then that he was a talented driver, and as we’re looking to become a two-car team next year, we thought he might be a good asset to our program. We’ll see how we get along with him this weekend.”

Raphael Matos and Richard Antinucci Savor Showdown on Sunday

2008-09-02T20:39:27-07:00

Championship Contenders Comment on Upcoming Contest at Chicagoland

by Allan Brewer
allan@indyproracer.com

AFS Andretti Green Racing’s Raphael Matos. Photo: ChrisJonesIRL

Months of preparation, and a sixteen-race schedule spanning from March to September, culminate on Sunday (September 7th) when AFS Andretti Green’s Raphael Matos and Sam Schmidt Motorsports’ Richard Antinucci square off at Chicagoland Speedway to determine who is going to go home with the Firestone Firehawk Cup—the prize for winning the 2008 Firestone Indy Lights championship.

Both men, who are competing in their first full year of Indy Lights competition at twenty-seven years of age, were solid preseason co-favorites to win the Cup; and neither has disappointed their fans or their teams in a season-long quest for the crown.

The pair have see-sawed the points lead back and forth from the green flag that waved over the streets of St. Petersburg in Race One to kick off one of the greatest years ever of Indy Lights racing.

Now with a single contest remaining, the last two contenders standing will settle the issue on the 1.5 mile oval near Joliet, Illinois.

Stakes High as Both Drivers Aim for IndyCar Futures

For both men the Firestone Firehawk Cup validates their credentials to move upward into the IndyCar Series.

Raphael Matos’ three victories (St. Pete, Watkins Glen and Mid-Ohio) and seven top-five finishes are bolstered by four pole position starts over the sixteen-race 2008 season.

An Indy Lights championship in tandem with the Champ Car Atlantic championship he won in 2007, and the Star Mazda championship he claimed in 2005, can boost him into the limelight as IndyCar ‘silly season’ gets underway (early) this year.

“I hope I will be in an IndyCar (next year),” Rafa offered. “There are a lot of things going on right now, and that’s my ultimate goal. That's what I'm working hard for.”

“I truly believe having the Indy Lights championship can help me in negotiating for next year. I have a great team that could easily support a car for me in the IndyCar Series,” he said.

“So let's hope.”

Richard Antinucci has shown the kind of consistency of finish, and speed on the big oval at Indianapolis, that leads to championships at the Indy Lights level and beyond.

Sam Schmidt Motorsports’ Richard Antinucci. Photo: RonMcQueeneyIRL

Two wins (also at St. Pete and Watkins Glen) compliment nine top-five finishes and eleven top-tens that could be enough to sway 1998 Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever to roll out an IndyCar team in 2009 with nephew Richard at the wheel.

Most importantly, Antinucci ran a convincing second to Panther’s Dillon Battistini at the Freedom 100 on Carb Day (May 23rd) at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The feat established his potential on the 2.5 mile oval that hosts the grand-daddy of all American races, the Indy 500.

“I hope Eddie and the whole Team Cheever manage to pull something together to do part-time, full-time, or just the Indy 500 in the IndyCar Series,” said Antinucci, “because that's where I really want to be. That's where I think his (Eddie’s) heart is, too.”

“We'd both like to work together,” he continued. “We did really well last year in the few races we did. We ended on a very positive note. We've also done a Grand-Am race together and it went really well. The results were good, fastest lap, all that.”

Something Must Give as Matos and Antinucci Focus on the Same Goal

Matos takes 472 points into the final racing battle at Chicagoland Speedway, a neck ahead of Antinucci’s 469. The closely-fought competition has left both racers anticipating the climax.

“I'm really looking forward to this last race,” said Antinucci in the final pre-race interview of the 2008 campaign, “because we've brought ourselves to this point and we have a chance.”

“We're almost going in even,” he continued of the skinny three point deficit that separates him from leader Matos, “as if the championship race started this race. It's definitely a fair crack at it.”

“I think the approach will be pretty much the same as everywhere we've been,” countered Rafa with his turn at the microphone. “We’ve shown great speed pretty everywhere we've been. We won three races on a road course, and we had two pole positions at the mile-and-a-half oval courses.”

“We tested last week at Chicago,” he said, “and we have a great car for that track. I'm looking forward to it. I think we'll have an extremely good package for the race.”

“Everybody's wishing me good luck from Brazil,” he finished. “Hopefully I will bring this title for them, to all my family, friends, and obviously my team.”

Indy Lights Racer Arie Luyendyk Jr Blog

2008-08-31T02:52:00-07:00

Championship Hopes Slip Away at Infineon, Chicago Preview

It was a tough weekend for my first visit to Infineon raceway.

The championship battle was tight and I was tied for third going into the weekend so I needed a solid two races to be able to go into the last event in Chicago with a chance to compete for the cup.

The weekend started off slow with an electrical problem that lead to missed practice time for the open test on Thursday. Then my left knee split open at the incision area of where I had surgery and my times started slowing down I would end the day 9th.

The weekend slowly became worse and worse as my knee couldn’t cope with the bumps and amount of pressure it took to brake properly on the difficult course. In qualifying I ended up 13th and I knew it would be an uphill battle for the two races.

Race one was on Saturday and I pushed as hard as I could to stay with the group but then a mistake under braking sent me into a spin on the exit of the last corner and then it took all of my energy to just complete the race. My knee felt like it was going to explode! It was the most intense pain I have ever felt in a car and all I could do was push to stay ahead of Battisitni who I had passed for 16th spot.

Race two on Sunday morning was much the same as race one but I knew I could not keep my pace of the previous day so I tried right foot braking and could not adapt well so I had to use my left leg again but it was difficult to apply the pressure needed to brake as well as I normally do. I finished 15th but it was one spot behind Battistini so I left the weekend still tied with him in the championship but we both fell two spots, the championship is now out of reach.

Chicagoland speedway is the scene of the next event. After a great test there this week I’m sure it’s going to be close at the front of the field. The possibility is still there to break into the top three for the championship so that is what I’m aiming for. My team-mate holds a 3 point advantage on the championship lead and I am going to do everything I can to help him in his bid to win in his rookie year.

In previous years I have a second place finish, two fourths, and a sixth……I'll try and do one better and close out the year with a win!

Be sure to watch the race next Sunday live on ESPN2!

-Arie Jr.