Michael Shank Racing Sahlen's Six Hour Watkins Glen Report
(Watkins Glen, NY) 05 June 2010 – Michael Shank Racing driver Michael
Valiante emerged without injury from a frightening fire during Saturday's
Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen. The car was running in top-ten position late
in the event as Valiante was set to close the race after strong drives from
fellow pilots Mark Patterson and Brian Frisselle. The sister No. 60 Crown
Royal XR Ford Riley of Ozz Negri and John Pew finished the race in eighth
after completing 190 laps at the classic up state New York track.
Team owner Mike Shank began making plans for a recovery even before the
checkered flag fell.
"I am not sure what we are going to do just yet, because the car is probably
too damaged for our home race at Mid-Ohio," said Shank. "We had a solid day
going with both cars, and some great driving from our guys, all around. This
is a big hit to take, but we will work on finding a way to be back on track,
whatever we can do to make that happen. The biggest thing is that Michael
got out of the car without getting hurt."
"The motor was going away, and we were struggling with power," said Valiante
to the SPEED broadcast. "It caught on fire almost faster than I could get
out of the car. I'm lucky to get out as quickly as I did. It's a shame
because the Michael Shank Racing guys work so hard. The flames were
everywhere and the car got really hot, very fast."
Deepening the disappointment was the strong pace shown by the No. 6 CAP &
Associates drivers before the day ended in a ball of flames.
"I'm thankful that Michael got out of the car safely. The car was really
consistent, and I was able to run it on the limit the entire time," said
Frisselle. "That's the only way you can be competitive in this series, being
on the limit, all the time. I have to hand it to the Shank guys for having
another great car for us today. Mark and Michael did a great job. I
couldn't believe the amazing lap times that Mark was throwing down. It was a
great effort."
The weekend marked the return to race action for Patterson, who was
enthusiastic about his stint after going to work in the middle stages of the
race.
"It was great to be back with the entire Michael Shank Racing team-the crew,
Mike, all the guys, this was just fantastic," said Patterson after his
stint. "Man, this car was beautiful--full tanks, and even with cold tires, I
could still do a decent out lap. The car let me do it. When we restarted
with all these wonderful pro drivers in front and behind us--Every trick I
thought I had to throw at them, I think they had all learned them years ago!
So I just tucked in and followed them and was able to set some nice laps. We
took off some aero, it was a great decision. It was fabulous into the
bustop, you could brake really late with the way the wind was there. And
then Bang! Back on the accelerator. This car was awesome. It was great to
be back!"
Negri and Pew were one of the few two-man driving teams, bringing memories
of Negri's debut win with Patterson at Miller Motorsports Park. The Crown
Royal XR had a stout outing, working to recover from a caution period
scoring issue that saw the car having to fight from one lap down.
"The car was very good," said Negri. "I was running qualifying laps from
start to finish in my stint. It was tough with no yellows, just
relentless." said Negri. "We need to see what happened with he wave-by on
the yellow flag because we lost a lap with that and we didn't think that
should have happened. But we fought for everything we could get today. John
didn't put a wheel wrong all day. I put my whole heart into driving this car
today. I'm relieved that Michael is ok after that fire. That was horrible
to drive by and see your team car like that. We will be fighting back at
Mid-Ohio."
The six hour race was originally suspected to be a very wet affair, but the
weather held off early in the race, only to come into play some ninety
minutes into the race, giving the drivers another challenge on the long
Grand Prix circuit.
"It's obviously a shame about what happened with the six car today, just
such a hard thing for this team that works so hard. At least Michael was
ok," said Pew about his old co-driver. "As far as my time out there, I had a
blast. It was really challenging, with the rain being harder in different
parts of the track, and almost dry in others, so it was different every
lap. It was just like driving my go-kart, sliding around everywhere but it
was fun. Hopefully the team can find a solution with the six car and we can
have a strong race for the entire team at Mid-Ohio."
The team will announce plans for the EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio early
this week. Thanks to the outreach of support and offers of help from
competitors in the GRAND-AM paddock in the aftermath of the incident.
•
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Press Notes:
About AIM Autosport
Established in 1995, AIM Autosport operates multi-car teams competing in the Formula BMWUSA Championship and the Star Mazda Series. The company has a mandate to identify, train and manage emerging motorsport talent. AIM has provided many young drivers with a solid foundation on which to build a career in professional racing. The success of the AIM driver development programs has been achieved through the dedication of our employees and the ongoing support of our commercial and technical partners.
Away from the track, AIM Autosport serves the needs of the racing community with a purpose-built preparation shop situated in the Toronto suburb of Woodbridge, Ontario.
Chassis brings resume of success to AIM Autosport:
AIM Autosport's Riley chassis was purchased from Chip Ganassi Racing and comes to the team with an impressive legacy of success, having won the Rolex Sports Car Series Championship in 2004.
AIM Autosport Alumni:
AIM has a long history of bringing drivers up through the ranks, and the alumni list reads like a who's who in the sport: www.aimautosport.com/drivers/Alumni/Alumni.htm
Performance-Oriented:
Performance Drink, the "Official Performance Drink" of Grand Am has signed on as an associate partner for the 2007 season, and will be utilizing the relationship to develop and demonstrate the high-performance capabilities of the drink. The drivers in the Rolex 24 At Daytona will be participating in a unique program that will closely monitor their bodies' performances throughout the enduro. More details to follow.
For additional information
www.aimautosport.com
www.michaelshankracing.com
