Archer Takes Two-In-A-Row with SpeedVision GT Championhip Win at Lime Rock Park

30 May 1999

LAKEVILLE, Conn.Bobby Archer, in the No. 3 Viper Speed Dodge Viper, scored his second-consecutive win of the 1999 Speedvision GT Championship by 5.365-second over Bill Cooper, in the No. 75 Les Stanford Chevrolet Corvette C-4. George Biskup, in the No. 22 Biskup Racing Porsche RSR finished third.

Archer, who started the 45-lap, 68.85-mile race third, quickly engaged in an intense door-to-door battle with pole-sitter Rick DiIorio. DiIorio held the lead until lap 15, when he was overtaken by Archer at the end of the front straight. Five laps later, DiIorio was able to return the favor to Archer in the same spot, but a key pre-race decision by the Viper Speed team gave Archer the edge in the later stages of the race.

"We only ran seven laps prior to the race at Mosport, and this set of tires had only been through one heat cycle, so we decided to run the same tires for this weekend's race," said Archer. "The BFGoodrich tires have proven to be very durable and we knew this set would have good bite as the race went on. Our car was perfect. We didn't have any problems today. Toward the end of the race the temperature started running a bit high so I had to back off the pace a bit, but otherwise we are very happy with the win."

Watching the battle for the lead throughout much of the race was Cooper, who ran comfortably in third throughout much of the 46:01.814 contest. An overheating engine kept Cooper from challenging Archer and DiIorio for the lead, but Cooper was able to coax enough performance out of the car to score the team's first podium finish of the season, after a lap 34 off-course excursion dropped DiIorio back to fifth.

"We were driving by the water temperature gauge all race," said Cooper, of Manhattan, Mont.. "The ZR-1 is known to overheat. I was just keeping in touch with Bobby, then the car seemed to run out of brakes - it really caught me by surprise. For the second half of the race I only had 50 or 60 percent of my brakes. I'm proud of my crew and happy for Les Stanford."

Biskup, who kept Cooper in his sights all day, held on to score his second-consecutive podium, following his runner-up finish at Lime Rock. Biskup currently holds a 19-point lead over John Kohler in the Red Line Oil Rookie of the Year point standings.

"We kind of kept in touch at the beginning," said Biskup, of Naperville, Ill. "but by mid-race I couldn't keep up with Bill. The Porsche was great all day. Our goal is to be be consistent all year."

Pete Halsmer, in the No. 62 Honda of America Racing Team Acura NSX, finished fourth, followed by DiIorio, in the No. 27 Danielson Ford Saleen Mustang, in fifth.

After two rounds of the 1999 Speedvision GT Championship, Archer leads the Drivers' Championship point standings (65), followed by Cooper (55), Biskup (54), Schardt (46) and Halsmer (35).

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