Guy Cosmo Infineon Raceway Report
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: johnt@c2group.com Guy Cosmo Works For A Top-10 At Infineon Starting the week out with some mild handling problems, the team of Gidley and Cosmo had the Playboy Racing / Uniden #19 Daytona Prototype turning pretty quick times by race day. "I got in the car for practice and after about 5-7 flying laps," said Guy Cosmo, "I was quickly up to pace and comfortable, so I felt pretty good. I had to make some personal adjustments inside the cockpit. Unlike the #09 Spirit of Daytona car I drove at Watkins Glen and Daytona, the #19 car's steering wheel and shifter position are significantly different, so that actually took a little getting used to." Cosmo took over the driving duties for qualifying. "We made a few changes that went the wrong way and made the car a bit scary," said Guy. "I wound up spinning on lap 2 and managed to keep it going. I hung on for the remainder of the session, trying to find a gap in traffic and doing my best with the car. I was able to match our best time from practice which put us 14th on the grid." Race day threw another challenge at the hard working Playboy Racing team and due to a longer than expected fuel window, Cosmo's projected short stint ran upwards of 2 hours and 15 minutes. "Early in the race I managed to pick up a few spots," said Guy. "Then with the change in pit strategy I pushed my way up to 6th place. Suddenly in turn 11 Jorg Bergmeister, hit me from behind after trying to get around me for quite a few laps. Unfortunately, we both spun. I got re-fired and going again, but fell back to 13th or 14th. At that point all I could do was patiently run at pace until a fuel window opened." "I think the team did a fantastic job and made the best of what could have been a rough weekend," concluded Cosmo. "By race time we had our work cut out for us and with everyone's never-say-die effort wound up with a very good race. I had a great run getting through the GT traffic to move up a few positions, and the Playboy/Uniden team called and executed a flawless pit stop gaining us a lot of track position." "It's a shame I was hit from behind by the 76 car," added Cosmo. "We were well on our way to a top-five finish. Fortunately, there was no damage to the car and we were able to continue. Memo took over with about 30 minutes left in the race and did a great job hanging on for a top-ten finish." "All in all, it was great to be back with the Playboy/Uniden/Palms team and co-drive with Memo," concluded Cosmo. "We'll do our homework and fight back next week at Miller Motorsports Park." Cosmo will join Gidley and Michael McDowell for the final race of the 2006 Rolex Series schedule. The Salt Lake City, Utah event will take place at the Miller Motorsports Park on Saturday, September 2 and is scheduled for a nine hour race beginning at 12:00 p.m. Guy Cosmo's extensive background with open-wheel formula cars and sports prototypes has earned him a reputation as one of the most successful and versatile young racing drivers in North America. The 2005 American Le Mans Series Rookie of the Year ranks among the top- level road racers in the world. He has earned overall racing titles and major successes in many disciplines including karting, Formula Ford, Formula 2000, Star Mazda, Toyota Atlantic, Grand American and American Le Mans. You can learn more about Guy Cosmo at www.guycosmo.com. The Grand American Road Racing Association was established in 1999 to return stability to major league sports car road racing in North America. As the organization begins its seventh season of competition in 2006, Grand American is universally regarded as one of the world’s fastest-growing motorsports organizations. ________________________________________________________________________ John Thawley ~ Creative Communications Group @ www.c2group.com ~ 248.356.5699