Trans-Am Series Heads North of the Border for Round 2 at Mosport

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: T.E. McHale (727) 533-0503

 

TRANS-AM SERIES HEADS NORTH OF THE BORDER FOR ROUND 2 AT MOSPORT

 

CLEARWATER, Fla. (May 14, 2002) - Merely one of the 12 rounds of the 2002 Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup is in the books, and already fans are wondering what the Series will do for an encore.

 

The Trans-Am, North America's longest-running road racing championship, launched its 37th campaign in scintillating fashion at last month's Johnson Controls 100 on the streets of Long Beach, Calif. The season opener came down to a breathtaking battle which saw Paul Gentilozzi, Boris Said and Justin Bell each hold the lead for a portion of the last lap before Gentilozzi (#3 Johnson Controls/Microchip/Matrix One/Futaba Jaguar XKR), the three-time and defending Trans-Am Series champion, finally edged clear for his 24th career race victory.

 

The triumph, Gentilozzi's fourth at Long Beach, gave him the early lead in his bid for a fourth Trans-Am Series championship, which would tie him with Tommy Kendall (1990, '95, '96 and '97) for the most in series history. Gentilozzi's previous titles came in 1998, '99 and last year.

 

Gentilozzi, Said and Bell are among the most prominent entries as the series prepares for Round 2, the Victoria Day Trans-Am, on Sunday, May 19 at Mosport International Raceway in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada (1 p.m. ET, live, SPEED Channel).

 

With 34 points, Gentilozzi holds a five-point championship advantage over Said (#33 Applied Computer Solutions Panoz Esperante), who stands second at 29. Johnny Miller (#64 Automation Direct/Eaton/Cutler-Hammer Jaguar XKR) is four points further back with 25, followed by Bob Ruman (#23 Cenweld Corp./McNichols Co. Chevrolet Corvette), with 21 points, and Randy Ruhlman (#49 Preformed Line Products Chevrolet Corvette), with 20.

 

Bell (#40 XtremeLens/Starcashonline Chevrolet Corvette), the 2001 AmeriSuites Rookie of the Year who spun off course following an incident with Said in the final two turns at Long Beach, stands seventh in the championship with 18 points, one behind Tomy Drissi (Rocketsports Racing Jaguar XKR), who is sixth with 19.

 

Gentilozzi comes to Mosport as the defending race and pole winner, having claimed his first of a series-high four 2001 victories at the 2.459-mile, 10-turn road course last May. He also won at Mosport in 1996 and earned the pole there in 2000.

 













Gentilozzi's victory from the pole at Long Beach allowed him to extend Trans-Am records for race starts (174), top-three finishes (56), top-five finishes (87), top-10 finishes (115), laps led (1,400), fastest race laps (31), lead lap finishes (113) and Fast Five qualifying efforts (104). He has now finished among the top-five drivers in exactly half (87) of his 174 career Trans-Am starts.

 

Said's runner-up result was his best since winning the 2001 season opener at Sebring, and the 16th podium result of his career. Miller, meanwhile, logged his best performance since taking runner-up honors at Road America last year, and finished on the podium for the 17th time in his nine-year career.

 

Ruman's fifth-place finish at Long Beach was his third top-five effort in seven years of Trans-Am competition. Oddly, one of the others also came at Long Beach, a third-place performance in 2000.

 

Other strong candidates for victory at Mosport include Michael Lewis (#12 AmeriSuites Jaguar XKR), Lou Gigliotti (#28 LG Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette), Tony Ave (#53 LAC Motorsports Panoz Esperante), Stu Hayner (#02 Revolution Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette) and Butch Leitzinger (#88 Tommy Bahama Chevrolet Corvette).

 

Following Sunday's second round at Mosport, the Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup travels immediately to Lakeville, Conn. for Round 3, the Mohegun Sun Presents the Lime Rock Park Grand Prix on Memorial Day, Monday, May 27. The race will be broadcast live on Speed Channel, beginning at 3 p.m. ET.

















 

 

 
FAST FACTS FOR THE VICTORIA DAY TRANS-AM SERIES WEEKEND
 

WHAT: Victoria Day Trans-Am Series Weekend.

WHERE: Mosport International Raceway, Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada.

WHEN: Friday-Sunday,  May 17-19.

TRANS-AM SERIES FOR THE BFGOODRICH TIRES CUP SCHEDULE (All Times EDT): FRIDAY, MAY 17 - Trans-Am practice, 11:50 a.m.-12:20 p.m.; Trans-Am practice, 3:30-4 p.m. SATURDAY, MAY 18 - Trans-Am Fast Five qualifying, 11:15 a.m. - noon; Trans-Am practice, 4:05-4:35 p.m. SUNDAY, MAY 19 - Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup race, 1 p.m.

BROADCAST: SPEED Channel, Sunday, May 19, 1 p.m ET (live).

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Paul Gentilozzi.

DEFENDING POLESITTER: Paul Gentilozzi.

TRACK LAYOUT: 2.459-mile permanent road course.

RACE DISTANCE: 41 laps (100.819 miles).

TRACK RECORDS: Qualifying (one lap) - 1995, Ron Fellows, 113.184 miles per hour (1 minute, 18.212 seconds). Race - 1988, Darrin Brassfield, 104.570 mph. Race Lap - 2001, Tommy Archer, 110.291 mph (1 minute, 20.264 seconds) .

RACE NUMBER: 2 of 12 in the Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup.

NEXT EVENT: Friday-Monday, May 24-27, Lime Rock Park, Lakeville, Conn.

 

PAST TRANS-AM RACE WINNERS AT MOSPORT INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

 

1976          Ludwig Heimrath (II)

John Huber (I)                                

1977          Ludwig Heimrath/Paul Miller (II)        

                                Bob Tullius/Brian Furstenau (I)

1978          Greg Pickett (II)

Bob Tullius (I)

1979          John Paul (II)

Gene Bothello (I)

1981          Bob Tullius

1984            Paul Miller

1985            Wally Dallenbach, Jr.

1986            Scott Pruett

1987            Scott Pruett

1988            Darrin Brassfield

1989            Ron Fellows

1990            Dorsey Schroeder

1991            Scott Sharp

1992            Scott Sharp

1993            Scott Sharp

1994            Scott Pruett

1995            Dorsey Schroeder

1996            Paul Gentilozzi

1997            Tom Kendall

1999          Brian Simo

2000          Brian Simo

2001          Paul Gentilozzi

 

                PAST TRANS-AM POLE WINNERS AT MOSPORT INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

 

                1976        Carl Shafer     

                1977        Peter Gregg (II)                               

                1978        Ludwig Heimrath (II)                           

                1979        John Paul (II)                  

                1981        Tom Gloy

                1984        Willy T. Ribbs

                1985        Wally Dallenbach, Jr.

                1986        Pete Halsmer

1987             Scott Pruett

1988            Ron Fellows

1989            Dorsey Schroeder

1990            Tom Kendall

1991            Scott Sharp

1992            Scott Sharp

1993            Scott Sharp

1994            Tom Kendall

1995            Ron Fellows

1996            Tom Kendall

1997            Tom Kendall

1999        Brian Simo

2000            Paul Gentilozzi

2001            Paul Gentilozzi

 

 

NOTEWORTHY
 

·         Dr. Donald E. Panoz, chairman of the Trans-Am Series, will address the prestigious Empire Club of Canada on Thursday, May 16, at the Royal York Hotel in downtown Toronto. The program, which will be telecast live, begins at noon. In his address, Dr. Panoz will discuss his incentive in joining the motorsports industry after a career of entrepreneurial success in a number of unrelated fields, and will share his vision for the future of the fastest-growing sport in North America. The Empire Club is Canada's most significant speakers' forum of record. Its membership is comprised of some of Canada's most influential leaders from the worlds of business, labor, the arts, science and technology and government. Over its 100-year history, The Empire Club has been addressed by more than 2,500 prominent Canadian and international leaders. Dr. Panoz will join a list that includes Winston Churchill, Indira Ghandi, Dag Hammerskjold, Rose Kennedy, Golda Meir, Bernard Montgomery, Margaret Thatcher, The Dalai Lama, Ronald Reagan and Bill Gates, among many others. For further information on Dr. Panoz' appearance at The Empire Club of Canada, call (416) 364-2878.

 

·         While Paul Gentilozzi (#3 Johnson Controls/Microchip/Matrix One/Futaba Jaguar XKR) is the only driver on this weekend's entry list with a previous victory at Mosport International Raceway, a number of other drivers have recorded wins at Mosport in other forms of racing. They are led by Stu Hayner (#02 Revolution Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette), who owns five victories at the venue (1988 Corvette Challenge, 1989 and '90 USEC/World Challenge 24 Hours, 1997 Showroom Stock GS and 1999 Motorola Cup). Lou Gigliotti (#28 LG Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette), Butch Leitzinger (#88 Tommy Bahama Chevrolet Corvette) and Boris Said (#33 Applied Computer Solutions Panoz Esperante) have each recorded two wins at Mosport. Gigliotti's came in Class B at the 1991 World Challenge 24 Hours and in T1 at the 1995 World Challenge. Leitzinger won IMSA World Sports Car events in 1996 and '98, while Said won IMSA GT and IMSA SSEC GS events in 1996. Jerry Simmons (#76 Westward Tools Ford Mustang), who launches his 18th consecutive season of Trans-Am competition this weekend, rounds out the list of former Mosport winners, having claimed a 1999 victory in the Canadian GT Championship Series.

 

·         Trans-Am Series driver Gary Longo continues to make a miraculous recovery from serious injuries sustained in an accident during the 2001 Trans-Am Series 125 at Mosport International Raceway. Longo sustained a broken neck in the accident, which took the life of driver Michael Gagliardo. He has undergone multiple surgeries and countless hours of rehabilitation since, and has overcome staggeringly long odds to walk and drive again, although he still has trouble speaking above a whisper, due to paralysis of his vocal cords, or eating solid food. Longo is expected to make a full recovery, although that process is anticipated to take two to three years. "Gary becomes more independent every day," says his wife, Molly, who quit her teaching job to devote herself full-time to Gary's recovery, "but there are still a number of things he needs help with, and all of our attention right now must be focused on getting him better. You don't really realize what is important in life until you are confronted with a situation like this." Gary says Molly's support has been the single biggest factor to date in his successful recovery. "My wife is the one who keeps me going," he says. "She has stood by my side through this entire thing, through thick and thin. The love and support of my family and friends, and the support of the fans and the entire racing community through e-mails, letters and visits to the hospital has just been overwhelming."

Gary is currently rehabilitating as an outpatient, attending physical therapy sessions three times weekly and occupational therapy twice weekly.  He is planning to attend this weekend's Victoria Day Trans-Am Weekend at Mosport International Raceway. A relief fund has been established to help defray the costs of Gary's hospitalization and rehabilitation. Contributions, payable to the Gary Longo Relief Fund, should be sent to: 

 

Gary Longo Relief Fund

c/o National City Bank

9168 Otis Avenue

Indianapolis, Ind.  46216 

Attention: Steve Silas, Office Manager

 

For further information on the Gary Longo Relief Fund, contact Gwen Chamberlain (gwen@kmpracing.com) or Keith Kelly (keith@kmpracing.com), at (607) 243-7224 or (817) 295-5565.

 

·         Paul Gentilozzi's victory in the season-opening Johnson Controls 100 at Long Beach gave him race victories in eight consecutive seasons, tying him with Peter Gregg for most seasons with a Trans-Am triumph. It marked the fifth consecutive season in which Gentilozzi has posted a win, tying the series record shared by Darin Brassfield, Mark Donohue and Ron Fellows. Gentilozzi's victory at Long Beach made him only the third driver in Trans-Am history to win four races at a single venue. The others were Mark Donohue, at St. Jovite (Mont Tremblant, Canada) and Darrin Brassfield at Sears Point (Calif.) Gentilozzi's previous Long Beach triumphs came in 1988, '98 and '99. 

 

·         Johnny Miller's (#64 Automation Direct/Eaton/Cutler-Hammer Jaguar XKR) third-place finish at Long Beach was his 13th consecutive top-10 finish, dating to a victory in the 2000 season finale at San Diego. The streak is the longest current run of top-10 finishes in the Trans-Am Series.

 

·         The 2.459-mile, 10-turn Mosport International Raceway road course is particularly tough on tires. Teams generally opt for the soft (#200) compound of the BFGoodrich® g-Force T/A® radial at Mosport, although the weather could dictate different strategies. Should ambient and track temperatures be sufficiently high, teams may opt to run the harder (#75) compound on the left side of the car. "If anyone opts to put on fresh tires during the race, we'll most likely see them take on two left tires to enhance grip later in the race," said Gary Blalock, chief tire engineer for BFGoodrich. "Regardless, a good chassis setup will minimize the abuse on the tires."

 

·         AmeriSuites, Preferred Hotel of the Trans-Am Series, launched its 2002 Trans-Am Racing Team Sweepstakes Monday, highlighted by an advertisement that ran regionally in Monday's issues of USA Today featuring Michael Lewis, who drives the #12 AmeriSuites Jaguar XKR in the Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup. First prize in the AmeriSuites Trans-Am Racing Team Sweepstakes is a two-year lease on a brand-new Jaguar automobile. Hundreds of additional prizes from sweepstakes partners Gatorz Eyewear, Westward Tools, BFGoodrich, American Spirit Racing and the Trans-Am Series will also be awarded. Free scratch-off cards for the AmeriSuites Trans-Am Racing Team Sweepstakes are available at any participating AmeriSuites Hotel. No purchase is necessary. The sweepstakes runs through July 15.