Herr Tops Mosport SPEED Touring Car Practice

CANADA Aug. 22, 2008 – Chip Herr, of Lititz, Pa., topped afternoon practice for the Mosport SPEED Touring Car Presented by Toyo Tires, part of the Mobil 1 Grand Prix of Mosport, and was the fastest on the day at Mosport International Raceway. Montreal’s Kuno Wittmer was second fastest in the session, followed by Michael Galati, of Olmsted, Ohio.

Piloting the No. 97 Mazdaspeed/Tindol Motorsports MAZDA6, Herr laid down a lap of 1:30.108 (98.242 mph) early in the 20-minute session.

“For the afternoon, I think we made the proper adjustments on the car from the morning,” Herr said. “The right shock adjustments, the right tire pressures to get the most grip out of these high-speed corners. This is the best my car’s felt all year. Michael hit it right on the head this morning-the cars are perfect. Working with Barry and Paul at Tindol Motorsports, these guys really put the car together. It felt perfect this morning, and there was a little more rubber laid down for the afternoon.

“This is a track that refers back to my Spec Miata days that rewards momentum. When I ran Spec Miata here, I always did well because it’s a track that requires momentum and that’s always the way I’ve driven. The interesting thing is, Galati and I are totally different, he drives hard in and I drive momentum, so it’s a little hard to run together. I’m looking forward to hooking up with Michael and hopefully getting a Tindol one-two in qualifying.”

Current point leader Wittmer ended the session second in the No. 44 Acura/RealTime/Eibach/Red Line Oil Acura TSX. The Canadian’s fast lap of 1:30.169 (98.175 mph) was only 0.061-second off Herr’s fast lap.

After topping the morning session, Galati found himself third in the afternoon, despite improving his time. Galati turned a 1:30.220 (98.120 mph) in the No. 95 Mazda North America/Tindol Motorsports MAZDA6, before a driveline failure parked the car mid-session.

Seth Thomas, of Cumming, Ga., was fourth fastest in the afternoon session. Thomas posted a 1:30.769 (97.5876 mph) in the No. 38 BimmerWorld BMW 325i.

Peter Cunningham, who’s currently chasing Wittmer in the Drivers’ Championship, completed the top five in his No. 42 Acura/RealTime/Eibach/Red Line Oil Acura TSX. The RealTime Racing team owner clocked a fast lap of 1:30.977 (97.282 mph).

Road America race winner James Clay was sixth in the afternoon session at the wheel of the No. 36 BimmerWorld BMW 325i, followed by the Acura TSXs of Pierre Kleinubing and Dino Crescentini. Jason Saini (MAZDA6) and Patrick Lindsey (Acura RSX) completed the top 10.

Combined practice results were nearly identical to the afternoon order, except for Saini, who turned a 1:30.930 (97.354 mph) in the morning session, which put him fifth on the combined results.

Qualifying for the Mosport SPEED Touring Car Presented by Toyo Tires, Round Nine of the SCCA SPEED Touring Car Championship, is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 23, at 11:10 a.m. (EDT). The race is set for 10:45 a.m. (EDT) on Sunday, Aug. 24. Live timing and lap notes are available at www.world-challenge.com.