GRAND-AM Cooldown Lap: Road America
GRAND-AM Rolex 250 Driven by VISITFLORIDA.com
Rolex Sports Car Series 
Saturday, June 23, 2012


The Recap
Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas ended a nine-race losing streak in convincing fashion, winning the GRAND-AM Rolex 250 Driven by VISITFLORIDA.com in the No. 01 TELMEX BMW/Riley. The victory ended a five-race winning streak for the Corvette DP, with Riley Manufacturing Daytona Prototypes sweeping the DP podium.

Scott Pruett took the lead when Ricky Taylor spun the No. 10 SunTrust Corvette and impacted the barrier in Turn 5 while leading the field to the green for the final restart with 12 minutes remaining.

Ryan Dalziel and Enzo Potolicchio finished second in the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport BMW/Riley. Ozz Negri and John Pew took the final podium position in the No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford/Riley after Negri tangled with Action Express Racing Corvette DP driver Joao Barbosa heading to the white flag.

Jeff Segal and Emil Assentato took their third GT victory of the season in the No. 69 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458 Italia. Segal passed Dion von Moltke’s No. 51 Audi R8 on lap 38 and led the final 30 minutes.

Coming off a GT victory in the most recent event at Mid-Ohio, Bill Auberlen and Paul Dalla Lana finished second in the No. 94 Turner Motorsport BMW M3, followed by Sylvain Tremblay and Jonathan Bomarito in the No. 70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8.

The Stats
DP 1st: Memo Rojas and Scott Pruett, No. 01 BMW/Riley 
DP 2nd: Enzo Potolicchio and Ryan Dalziel, No. 8 Starworks Motorsport Ford/Riley
DP 3rd: John Pew and Ozz Negri, No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford/Riley
GT 1st: Jeff Segal and Emil Assentato, No. 69 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458 Italia Grand Am 
GT 2nd: Paul Dalla Lana and Bill Auberlen, No. 94 Turner Motorsport BMW M3
GT 3rd: Sylvain Tremblay and Jonathan Bomarito, No. 70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8
Margin of Victory:  3.794 seconds (DP); 2.541 seconds (GT)
Average Speed:   99.146 mph 
Cautions: Two for 10 laps


The Points (Unofficial)
DP: Scott Pruett/Memo Rojas, 205; Enzo Potolicchio/Ryan Dalziel, 200; David Donohue, 196; Ozz Negri/John Pew, 191; Darren Law, 191.
GT: Jeff Segal/Emil Assentato, 220; Robin Liddell, 199; Sylvain Tremblay/Jonathan Bomarito, 193; Paul Dalla Lana, 189; Andy Lally/John Potter, 185.


Noteworthy
* A sudden downpour on Friday afternoon in the opening minutes of qualifying scrubbed the sessions and set the starting grid by team points for the second time this season. “The easiest pole I ever got,” said Memo Rojas, who join GT point leader Emil Assentato in leading their respective classes.

* Both of the two-time winning Corvette DPs from 2012 encountered problems while leading the race. Antonio Garcia was at the wheel of the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona entry when he brushed the No. 41 Bass2BillFish/Visit Florida Mazda RX-8 of Charles Espenlaub on Lap 13. The contact damaged the left-rear suspension. Ricky Taylor was leading the field to the final restart in the No. 10 SunTrust Corvette started by Max Angelelli when he spun and crashed while scrubbing his tires in Turn 5, damaging the left-rear suspension.

* Jon Fogarty took the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Corvette DP to the paddock after 35 minutes when his left-front suspension broke under braking for Turn 5 on Lap 12. He lost 10 laps for repairs before Alex Gurney ran one lap before retiring the car. Fogarty and Alex Gurney entered the event 10th in the DP standings. This marks the fourth time the two-time championship team has finished ninth or worse this season.

* Steven Bertheau, driver of the No. 67 TRG Porsche, was involved in an incident in Turn 11 on Lap 2. He was taken to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee, where was awake and alert, and all of his vital signs were good. There were no indications of serious injury.

* NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular Miguel Paludo, making his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Road America, took a few laps in Thursday morning’s opening practice in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Corvette. Max Papis went to car owner Ted Marsh and asked if Paludo could drive the car. Eric Curran drove one lap before turning it over to Paludo for five laps. “He liked the car,” Marsh said.

* APR Motorsport will be have a second Audi R8 GRAND-AM for the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen, which serves as the second of three rounds in the inaugural North American Endurance Championship presented by VISITFLORIDA.com. The car will be driven by Audi factory drivers Frank Stippler and Marc Basseng. The No. 52 Audi is the same car that tested during the Roar Before the Rolex 24, and will mark the first time that APR Motorsport campaigns two cars in Rolex Series competition. … TRG will field three cars for Watkins Glen. Wolf Henzler is entered alongside Steven Bertheau and Spencer Pumpelly in the No. 67. Ben Keating, Damien Faukner and Bryan Sellers will be in the No. 66, and Eliseo Salazar co-drives the No. 64 with Eduardo Costabal and Santiago Orjuela. … Rolex 24 At Daytona GT winner Magnus Racing added Patrick Long to its WGI lineup, joining Andy Lally and John Potter. 
 
. … Rolex 24 At Daytona GT winner Magnus Racing added Patrick Long to its WGI lineup, joining Andy Lally and John Potter.

The Numbers:
* 3 – Number of Riley-built cars on the DP podium.
* 9 – GT drivers leading the race, with six cars leading in the class.
* 11 – GT cars finishing on the lead lap.
* 24 – Race-leading number of GT laps led by Emil Assentato (11) and Jeff Segal (13)
* 119.700 – Speed in mph of fastest race lap for Richard Westbrook

The Quotes:

* “We’ve been digging all year, working to get every point we can. With about five laps to go, all I could do was to go every lap like I was qualifying. We could always do consistent fast laps, so all l could do was go like heck to the checkered. Road America is one of my favorite tracks. Winning here again is awesome.” Scott Pruett, No. 01 TELMEX BMW/Riley

* “It’s a bittersweet day, kind of like a victory for us because it’s been a tough season since Daytona. Scott Pruett drove perfectly. I didn’t have enough for him at the end after I got into the side of the No. 5 car (David Donohue). It’s really great to see three Rileys on the podium, and I’m glad to help Bill Riley get ahead of the Corvettes.” Ryan Dalziel, No. 8 Starworks Motorsport Ford/Riley

* “It’s exciting to be able to run up front, but I’ve got to take my hat off to Ian Willis and the entire AIM Autosport team. Without their preparation, this car would be very difficult to handle, because it has a very narrow window of setup. It’s not the fastest car out there, but we’ve got a great team and Jeff (Segal) did a fantastic job taking it to the finish.” Emil Assentato, No. 69 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458 Italia

* “The closing laps were a nightmare for me. The Continental Tires were amazing throughout my entire stint, but when I let them cool off I was totally out of control until I got them back up to temperature. I was a sitting duck for a lap, and then they were perfect. So I got passed by the Brumos car, and after I got back around him I chased after the Ferrari. We’re happy – we finally feel we can race somebody.” Bill Auberlen, No. 94 Turner Motorsport BMW M3

* “We talked to Chip (Ganassi) earlier this year and thought it would be cool when we heard the GRAND-AM cars were going to Indy, it would be fun to run there. We put all the deal together and Jamie and myself are going to be running that race on Friday, so we are pretty pumped about that.” Juan Pablo Montoya, who announced on Friday that he and fellow Ganassi Sprint Cup Series driver Jamie McMurray will co-drive the No. 02 Chevron BMW/Riley for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates in the Brickyard Grand Prix on Friday, July 27, during the Kroger Super Weekend at the Brickyard

* “This car is a blast to drive, and I love the Rolex Series. Rick Ware Racing built this car almost like a NASCAR Nationwide Series car, but it’s 800 pounds lighter and has about 300 less horsepower. The main difference driving this car is that it has a lot more brake and is a bit quicker. I can go way deeper in the turns. Other than that, the two cars drive real similar.” Timmy Hill, No. 15 Poynt.com Ford Mustang Boss 302R, 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year

* “It’s great to be racing close to home. I’ve got a lot of experience here, but I haven’t raced Road America since doing the Barber Dodge Pro Series in around 1999. I’ve got a local sponsor – Sprecher Root Beer of Milwaukee, and I have a lot of people here for the race. Colin (Braun) was very quick in practice, and I look forward to doing good for the sponsor and my friends.” Scott Mayer of Franklin, Wis., No. 7 Starworks Motorsport Ford/Riley

Coming Up:
Round 8 of the 2012 Rolex Series season will be the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on Sunday, July 1, at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, N.Y. The race will also be the second event in the inaugural North American Endurance Championship presented by VISITFLORIDA.com.