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Reunited With Dalziel, Capentier Is Back With Samax Motorsport |
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Saturday, 19 May 2007 |
SAMAX Motorsport will field a strong line up of drivers for Round 5 of the 14-race Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series held this weekend at Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. Team principal Peter Baron is pleased to have regular driver Patrick Carpentier back in action after missing the last race in Virginia, and Ryan Dalziel returning for his third start of the 2007 season with the South Florida-based team.
"This promises to be a good weekend," said Baron. "These two drivers worked well together in the season opener at Daytona and Ryan proved in the last race that he can raise his level of intensity when the occasion arises. I am hard pressed to find a better duo for this Sunday's U.S. Sports Car Invitational 250-mile race. We are currently third in the standings and we are seriously thinking that we can close the gap to second-place or even move up in the team standings."
Carpentier is returning to the fold after taking time off to take care
of a family medical emergency involving his young daughter. "I was
disappointed to miss the VIR race, but I had to be with my family,"
said the Canadian driver who lives in Las Vegas. "Symptoms of a serious
illness were affecting my daughter, and she was scheduled to start a
series of medical tests during that weekend. My mind was not at all on
racing!"
Late on Tuesday afternoon, Carpentier was relieved to finally receive
good news from the doctors. According to them, she is not afflicted by
any serious illness. "I had to do what needed to be done, but I'm sure
glad to be back racing, especially at Laguna Seca. This one of my
favorite tracks and I have done well here in the past. With my mind at
ease, I am eager to get back behind the wheel. With Ryan (Dalziel) on
board for this weekend, we stand a good chance for a podium finish. He
is a very quick driver, but he is also very respectful of others on
track. We should do well," concluded the French Canadian driver who won
back-to-back Champ Car races at Laguna in 2003 & 2004.
Ryan Dalziel, from Scotland, will be making his third start of the
season with the #11 SAMAX Pontiac Riley. The Orlando, Florida resident
was one of the four drivers on the team that finished second in the
Rolex 24 at Daytona, and he also picked-up a fourth-place finish in the
last race in Virginia with Jean-François Dumoulin. The 25-year old, who
is enjoying another weekend off from his Champ Car schedule, will be
making his 18th start in a Daytona Prototype.
"I guess I didn't do too bad of a job at VIR since the team called me
back for this race," said Dalziel. "We ran a strong race at VIR and
missed the podium by just a bit. I am happy to race with Patrick this
weekend and maybe we can give SAMAX its second podium of the year.
Patrick has had a lot of track time in the car and he is a Laguna
Master. I feel that the SAMAX team has improved a lot since I first
raced their car at Daytona."
Jean-François Dumoulin, who replaced Carpentier at Virginia, will be
back in his regular drive in the separate GT class 400K-race on
Saturday afternoon.
SAMAX Motorsport is currently in third place in the Team Standings
after four races with 108 points, 19 markers from SunTrust Racing in
first place. The SAMAX Pontiac Riley finished second in the Daytona
opener in late January, missed a Top-10 finish in the caution-free
Mexico City race in early March, and rebounded with a couple of
fourth-place finishes at Homestead-Miami and Virginia.
Rolex Daytona Prototype action starts Friday with two practice
sessions. A 30-minute practice session is scheduled for Friday at 9:00
a.m. Pacific Time, followed by a 15-minute Daytona Prototype qualifying
period at 11:05 a.m. (PT). The U.S. Sports Car Invitational 250, a
scheduled 112-lap race, will start at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time on Sunday
with live television coverage airing on SPEED.
A SAMAX release will be sent following the end of Sunday's race. SAMAX
Motorsport, based in Pompano Beach, Florida, is in its third year of
competition in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series. More information
on SAMAX Motorsport is available at www.samaxmotorsport.com. Learn more
about Grand-Am at www.grand-am.com
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