Dorricott Racing goes 2-3-10 at Long Beach
LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 14, 2002) - - Dorricott Racing showed how
a little luck and a lot of skill goes a long way as the Toyota Atlantic
Championship's newest premier team captured two podium and three top-10
positions in the second round of the Toyota Atlantic Championship, Sunday,
April 14.
Alex Gurney, of Newport Beach, Calif., ran an intelligent,
error-free race to finish an Atlantic career best second place in round two
of the 12-race series around the tortuous 1.968-mile, 11-turn seaside
street circuit of Long Beach.
Teammates Jon Fogarty, of Portola Valley, and Luis Diaz, of Mexico
City, also showed their championship skills with Fogarty finishing third
place and Diaz finishing a truly amazing 10th.
Gurney and Fogarty avoided what could have been a race ending melee
moments after the initial green flag. A slower than anticipated start by
polesitter Joey Hand bunched the field enough that six rows of two cars
took the checkered flag simultaneously. As the 12 cars careened down the
long front straight-away toward Long Beach's notoriously narrow first
corner, the rest of the 27-car field closed. The formula for disaster was
complete as nearly 16 cars entered the turn one braking zone within
hundredths of a second of each other. Multiple contacts ensued.
Gurney took an inside line down the front straight-away and beat
most of the field to the corner. A perfectly executed right-to-left turn as
the carnage began permitted him to squirt into the lead. Canadian Michael
Valiante also dodged the "proverbial bullet" and followed Gurney in turn.
Gurney led the race for the first 20 laps albeit 13 laps were completed
under yellow flag conditions
"I didn't get the greatest start off the line when it went green,"
said Gurney. "It turned out to be a blessing. I was just a tick back so
when everybody collided, I ended up with a nice line through turn one and
exited in front. I'm happy I earned points because I didn't get any in
Mexico."
Fogarty, whose Thomas Fogarty Winery & Vineyards Swift 014a lost
traction in the braking zone and slightly slid, was also able to recover
and jumped behind Valiante. The front-running trio burst away while a full
course yellow flag was issued by Atlantic officials in order to sort out
the mess.
"At least four of us went into the first turn real hot," reflected
Fogarty. "Everybody was late to the brakes. I just avoided stuffing it into
the tire barrier. It was really tight. It didn't spread out going down the
straight-away. I think the polesitter waited a long time to go to the
throttle with the green flag so it bunched the rest of the field. I came
away unscathed so I'm happy for that."
Diaz was caught in middle of the crash scene. Diaz, who started
sixth, did all he could to avoid contact in driving a cautious line into
turn one. Unfortunately, he was struck from the side, spun, and then was
literally struck on his helmet by Scotland's Ryan Danziel when Danziel's
car went airborne after being struck by Jonathon Macri. Diaz was uninjured
but required two separate pit stops during the caution period to replace a
severely damaged rear wing.
"On the race start, I was just trying to keep the car on the
track," said Diaz. "I didn't look to make a bold move. I just wanted to get
through turn one safely. I saw the accident in front of me and was pushed
from the middle to the outside. Then I felt the impact of someone hitting
me from behind. The next thing I recall, a car flew over my head and one of
its tires hit my helmet. I realized my wing was damaged but I couldn't do
anything about the wing or the crash. I returned to pit lane because I
wanted a new wing."
Diaz, who started sixth, fell to 23rd by lap nine after making two
pit stops. However, he then put on a show that was "second to none." Over
the proceeding 20 laps, Diaz powered his Telmex Swift 014a past 13 cars to
score a 10th place finish.
"Team Dorricott was incredible!" said an exited Diaz. "My crew
fixed the car in maybe 30-seconds. The rear wing was badly damaged but L.J.
(crew chief John Martin Jr.) and the rest of the crew had everything ready
so I didn't even drop a lap. I had problems with my left rear tire after
the crash but it wasn't bad enough to stop me from making up positions. The
car felt great after the rear wing was replaced."
A race re-start on lap 21 found Valiante and Gurney in a figurative
drag race down the front straight-away. Valiante drove an inside-to-outside
line, and then pulled side-by-side and within inches of Gurney's
Behr/Castrol/The Cannery Swift 014a as both cars entered the braking zone
of turn one. Valiante took a "too close to call" gamble pass and narrowly
succeeded passing Gurney through turn one. Valiante came to with 10 inches
of striking the outside wall but recovered well and held his lead for the
remaining nine race laps and the win.
"We probably ran too much downforce and that made us vulnerable,"
reflect Gurney. "On the re-start when Michael passed me, he braked later
and then almost crashed. When Valiante first turned in, I didn't think he'd
make it. It looked like he would more likely bounce off the wall and back
into me. I thought he was toast for a moment. I slowed to get out of his
way. When he made it through the turn I thought 'you lucky dog.' He did it
right. He made his move at the right time. I doubt any other moment of the
race would have worked. His timing couldn't have been better."
Due to the lengthy caution periods the race was shortened from its
scheduled 32 laps to 29 laps.
Gurney's runner-up showing was a career best in Atlantic
competition. His previous best was at Trois-Rivieres in 2000.
"My father (Dan Gurney) was here today and I'm sure this race made
him happy," said Gurney. "It was his birthday yesterday so this is a nice
present. It's nice to get a good result in front of him and many of my
friends and family.
"Being with this team is the difference. Compared to other teams
I've been with, Dorricott Racing is totally into every last detail. Every
little thing makes a difference to this team. When you look at the grid,
one-tenth of a second can mean four positions. Every little variable is
looked at by the team. We have three good drivers, excellent engineers and
a winning work ethic."
Fogarty remains the Toyota Atlantic Championship leader with 35
points and a three-point margin over Valiante's 32 points. Diaz remained in
fourth place with 19 points. Gurney made up the most ground in moving into
fifth place with 17 points, including 16 points for second place and one
bonus point for leading the most laps.
Round three of the 12-race Toyota Atlantic Championship will be at
the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wis., on Sunday, June 2.
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