Krohn/TRG - Fontana qualifying

 
DP qualifying

 

car         position        driver

 

66             3                    Jörg Bergmeister

67           20                    Tracy Krohn

 

Jörg Bergmeister was poised for a pole position in Rolex Sports Car Series
qualifying at California Speedway, but he had to abort his fast lap when the
session was black-flagged. Although he missed the peak lap for tire
performance, he lapped the 2.88-mile infield road course in one minute
33.556 seconds in the No. 66 Pontiac-Riley he drives with Christian
Fittipaldi, good for third on the 46-car grid. An off-track excursion slowed
teammate Tracy Krohn in the No. 67 Pontiac-Riley, so he and his co-driver
Nic Jönsson will start 20th.

 

"The car was really good, but the black flag destroyed our plans. It came on
my fastest lap, then afterwards the peak of the tires was gone. But we're
getting better and better, it's a good place to start and we have all the
options," Bergmeister said.

 

data dude

 

Most drivers work with their engineers after every track session, analyzing
computer data to improve their lap times. Tracy Krohn compares his
performance around the track with that of his co-driver, Nic Jönsson,
overlaying their data.

 

"Today we checked out brake points and corner speeds, trying to figure out
the optimal points and speeds. I looked at it on the data and I could tell
where I was in comparison to Nic," Krohn explained. "You look at wheel
speed, brake pressure, throttle position and wheel position. Those are the
primary benchmarks. When I compare mine with Nic's lap, it's pretty obvious
from the data where we're on and off. I can close the gap significantly –
within six or seven tenths [of a second] – just by being able to see the
data."

 

experience plus

 

Krohn/TRG co-owner Kevin Buckler is impressed with Christian Fittipaldi's
experience at many levels of international motorsport.

 

"I'm excited to have Christian on board with us at Fontana," Buckler said.
"Because of Max [Papis'] commitments with GM, there are a few races this
year that he won't be available to drive with Krohn Racing/TRG. We talked to
many top-level drivers and chose Christian to drive with Jörg at Fontana.
He's got big shoes to fill, but he's fast, smart, knows endurance racing and
has DP experience. With Christian's background in Formula One, Indy cars and
Nextel Cup, he'll bring a lot to the driver lineup. I look forward to
working with him."