Altenburg's Morning Time Stands To Lead SPEED Touring Car Practice At Laguna
For Immediate Release Altenburg's Morning Time Stands To Lead SPEED Touring Car Practice At Laguna MONTEREY, Calif. (Oct. 20, 2006) - Jeff Altenburg, of Ellicott City, Md., led practice Friday for the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge Touring Car season finale at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Altenburg's morning session time topped all, including Mazda teammate Randy Pobst in second and third place Eric Curran. Driving the No. 72 Mazdaspeed/Tri-Point Motorsports Mazda 6, Altenburg turned a fastest time of 1:36.942 (83.109 mph), just 0.046-second faster than the similar No. 73 car of Pobst. "The car is really good," Altenburg, who won at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in 2003 and 2004, said following the morning session. "We couldn't be happier. The StopTech brakes are awesome, as always. We've been working really hard and the cars are handling the best they ever have." Curran, of E. Hampton, Mass., was third quick on the day, and fastest in the afternoon session run under warmer temperatures, in his No. 43 Acura Certified Pre-Owned/RealTime Racing Acura RSX, with a time of 1:37.018 (83.044 mph). Curran's teammates, driving Acura TSXs, Peter Cunningham, of Grafton, Wis., and Pierre Kleinubing, of Coconut Creek, Fla., completed the top five on the day. Kleinubing holds an 11-point advantage over Pobst for the 2006 Drivers' Championship entering the weekend. Qualifying for Sunday's season finale will be Saturday morning at 9:25 a.m. (Pacific). Live session notes and Timing & Scoring Presented by SRT are available through the SCCA Pit Board at http://www.world-challenge.com/events/index.php?base=14&story=Monterey%2 0Sports%20Car%20Championship. -30- MONTEREY, Calif. - Combined practice results for Sunday's 26-lap, 58.188-mile SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge Touring Car Round 10 race, part of the Monterey Sports Car Championships at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, with position, car number in parentheses, driver, hometown, car, fastest lap time, and speed in miles per hour. 1, (72), Jeff Altenburg, Ellicott City, Md., Mazda 6, 1:36.942, 83.109. 2, (73), Randy Pobst, Gainesville, Ga., Mazda 6, 1:36.988, 83.070. 3, (43), Eric Curran, East Hampton, Mass., Acura RSX, 1:37.018, 83.044. 4, (1), Peter Cunningham, Grafton, Wis., Acura TSX, 1:37.042, 83.023. 5, (42), Pierre Kleinubing, Coconut Creek, Fla., Acura TSX, 1:37.101, 82.973. 6, (74), Dino Crescentini, Malibu, Calif., Mazda 6, 1:37.122, 82.955. 7, (34), Nick Esayian, Encinitas, Calif., Acura RSX, 1:37.139, 82.941. 8, (97), Charles Espenlaub, Lutz, Fla., Mazda 6, 1:37.160, 82.923. 9, (20), Brandon Davis, Denver, Colo., Acura TSX, 1:37.474, 82.655. 10, (13), Brian Smith(R), Simpsonville, S.C., Dodge SRT-4, 1:37.639, 82.516. 11, (06), Kuno Wittmer, Montreal, Canada, Mercedes-Benz C230, 1:37.800, 82.380. 12, (99), Jeff Courtney(R), Slinger, Wis., Audi A4, 1:38.044, 82.175. 13, (17), Chip Herr, Lititz, Pa., Audi A4, 1:38.124, 82.108. 14, (29), James Sofronas, Newport Beach, Calif., BMW 325Ci, 1:38.163, 82.075. 15, (66), Dan Aweida(R), Boulder, Colo., Dodge SRT-4, 1:38.205, 82.040. 16, (38), Seth Thomas, Cumming, Ga., BMW 325i, 1:38.418, 81.863. 17, (36), James Clay, Radford, Va., BMW 325i, 1:38.476, 81.814. 18, (67), Robb Holland(R), Denver, Colo., Dodge SRT-4, 1:38.653, 81.668. 19, (27), Jason Martinelli, Woodbury, Conn., BMW 325ci, 1:38.924, 81.444. 20, (96), Charlie Putman(R), Mills, Wyo., Mazda 6, 1:39.318, 81.121. 21, (18), Freddy Baker, Bedford, Ohio, Audi A4, 1:39.832, 80.703. 22, (39), Tomy Drissi, Hollywood, Calif., BMW 325i, 1:40.014, 80.556. 23, (25), Christian Miller(R), Newark, Calif., Volkswagen Jetta, 1:40.032, 80.542. 24, (2), Lucho deCastro(R), Stone Mountain, Ga., BMW 325i, 1:40.092, 80.494. 25, (88), Andrie Hartanto(R), San Francisco, Calif., Honda Civic Si, 1:40.872, 79.871. 26, (94), Mary Katharine(R), Delray Beach, Fla., Mazda Protege, 1:44.554, 77.058. 27, (47), Jonathan Meris, Elk Grove, Calif., Honda Civic, 1:45.579, 76.310. 28, (86), Kenny Yim, Hong Kong China, , Honda Civic Si, 1:48.745, 74.089. 29, (70), Marco Ferrera(R), Broomfield, Colo., Honda Civic SI, 1:55.941, 69.490. 30, (49), Branden Peterson, Breckenridge, Colo., Honda Civic Si, no time. 31, (95), Billy Johnson(R), San Clement, Calif., Mazda Protege, no time. Attached: Image of Jeff Altenburg, who led SPEED Touring Car practice at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Credit: Mark Weber/SCCA _______________________ Eric Prill Director of Marketing Communications Sports Car Club of America SCCA Pro Racing/SPEED World Challenge 785-357-7222, 785-232-7228 fax 800-770-2055 toll free 785-250-7920 mobile eprill@scca.com www.scca.com <http://www.scca.com> , www.world-challenge.com <http://www.world-challenge.com/>