Pacific Mobile/Biosign car finishes 3rd at Mid-Ohio
Thrilling finish as AIM Autosport charges and nearly takes 2nd
(Lexington, OH) 20 June 2010 – Every member of AIM Autosport's Grand-Am
Daytona Prototype team is elated following a brilliant race to third
place at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course yesterday. After being in the
hunt throughout the 2h 45m timed race, a push in the final stages saw
the Pacific Mobile/Bioisign No. 61 Ford Riley charge to the podium
finish and, given another lap, could well have claimed second in the
EMCO Gears Classic presented by Keybank. The result advances drivers
Burt Frisselle and Mark Wilkins to 2nd in the Driver Championship
while AIM Autosport moves into a tie for 7th in the Team Championship.
The race got underway shortly after its scheduled start time of 5:00pm
ET and, thankfully, the rough weather that had threatened earlier
subsided and gave way to a hot (84ºF/29ºC), sunny conditions.
Starting from 3rd, thanks to his superb qualifying effort on Friday,
Burt quickly moved into 2nd place and kept pace with leader Memo Rojas
in the Telmex car. Having targeted running with that dominant car on
Wednesday, Burt surely relished having it in his sights now. For 14
laps, Burt chased the leader, the gap fluctuating as they surged past
traffic from the GT class.
On lap 15, the first of six full-course cautions saw most cars head
for the pits. Burt brought the car in for fuel, but at the end of the
stop, the hot, sticky tires caused the car to bog down and stall as
Burt dropped the clutch to leave the pits. Several cars rushed by
while Burt re-fired the motor and he rejoined the race in 9th place.
Within four laps, Burt had fought his way to 6th place and by lap 23,
had clawed his way to 3rd, just 2.995 seconds behind the leader. Ten
laps later, still in third, he was just 1.283 seconds behind the leader.
On lap 35, Burt pitted during a full-course caution. While the crew
added fuel and changed tires, Burt let Mark take the wheel for the
run to the finish. The team sacrificed track position in order to take
a full load of fuel and when Mark headed back into battle he was 9th.
Trying to chase down the Telmex car ahead of him and keep another car
at bay, Mark had quite a chore. It's hard work, the sun was beating
down, he was wearing a helmet and racing overalls, he had a hot engine
at his back and, to top it off, his suit-cooling system wasn't working.
On lap 46, the team took advantage of another caution period to call
Mark in for fuel. They checked his cool-suit system, but nothing could
be done. He re-entered the race in 6th position, still sweltering.
By lap 50, Mark had advanced to 5th. Five laps later, another caution
presented the opportunity to top off the tank and take new left-side
tires. The Pacific Mobile/Biosign car was 8th when Mark drove back
onto the track.
Mark may have been searing in the cockpit, but he put plenty of heat
on his competitors: claiming 7th, cranking out quick lap after quick
lap, claiming 6th and then charging after 5th place.
With 35 minutes left, Mark set the team's fastest lap of race
(1:19.450 @ 102.313 mph) and four laps later, sat just 0.191s behind
the 5th-placed SunTrust car, which was hounding the Action Express entry.
Lap after lap the trio of cars chased around Mid-Ohio until lap 96
when the cars ahead of Mark touched and the Action Express car spun
off the circuit. Mark avoided the melee and advanced to 5th. The
wayward car managed to get back on the track but dragged dust and
gravel with it. The next time around, the SunTrust car spun on the
debris. Again, Mark steered clear and moved up another place.
With just 10 minutes to go, the lead cars were conserving fuel in
order to get the finish, but AIM's Pacific Mobile/Biosign car had
plenty of fuel and Mark kept charging. With 4 minutes remaining, Mark
claimed third and began closing on second place. Gaining almost 0.7
seconds per lap as the clock wound down, Mark finished just 0.154s
behind the Crown Royal XR car, which chased the Telmex car to the
checkered flag.
"The car was just fantastic and we had something for these guys
today," enthused Mark after the race. "One more lap and we were up
another step!
"Burt had a great first stint, getting up there right at the start to
battle with Memo. It's only a matter of time before we get to the top
step of the podium. Everyone on the team can be very proud."
"AIM has done it again," said Burt. "The guys have done an awesome job.
"It was tough out there in the heat, but the car was just amazing on
old tires—which we discovered in morning practice—so we went with that
and it paid off. We were able to go much longer on the Pirelli P-Zeros
today than you usually would. Pretty amazing given the heat."
The GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No.
16 now heads south to Florida to race in the Brumos Porsche 250 at the
legendary Daytona International Speedway. The race takes place on July
3, starting at 11am and will be broadcast live on SPEED and MRN (Motor
Racing Network).
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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
