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GRAND-AM
GRAND-AM: Mid-Ohio Preview
Several scores to settle as Rolex Series heads to Mid-Ohio...
Following an action-packed race on the streets of Belle Isle, the Rolex Series heads back to a natural-terrain circuit for more action. (Photo: Brian Cleary/GRAND-AM)
With manic battles for the lead, some heated tempers after the race, heartbreak for two leading cars, a dramatic inter-team battle for the win, and even a little bit of rain thrown in the mix, the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series debut at Detroit was one to remember.
As the series rolls south for the EMCO Gears Classic on Saturday afternoon (Live!, 4:30 p.m. ET, SPEED), there are still some scores to settle as the Rolex Series stages Round Six of the 2012 season.
Despite taking an unsatisfying sixth in Detroit, the Starworks squad of Ryan Dalziel and Enzo Pottolicchio enters the EMCO event with a four-point margin over a heady triumvirate of teams that are tied for second in the Team Championship standings.
All knotted up with 138 points apiece ahead of Mid-Ohio are the BMW-Riley combination of Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, the Rolex 24 champs Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian Ford-Riley of John Pew and Ozz Negri, and the Detroit GP runner-up Corvette No. 5 Action Express Racing driven by David Donohue and Terry Borcheller.
Starworks has reason to be excited about the Mid-Ohio event, having broken through for a win in the 2011 season-finale event at the track. But that win, achieved with the previous-generation Riley DP, might not translate so well this year as the teams continue to become familiar with the new DPG3 equipment.
“I think towards the end of 2011 we started to find our stride, but 2012 has been difficult,” said Dalziel, who will be one of many to be making the Mid-Ohio venture between weekends at Le Mans for the Test Day and then the 24.
“The new car was great at Daytona but we have struggled since then to find the outright pace from our Ford/Riley. We have focused on points and not losing sight of the big picture, but we know we need to win races. We have tried to keep the points lead long enough that we get back to some tracks that suit the Riley better. Hopefully we can repeat our 2011 victory with Starworks.”
While the new-look DP3 generation has a varied field that includes Riley machines with Ford and BMW power as well as Corvettes with Riley, Dallara, and Coyote chassis underneath, the parity has been remarkable in the first season of the new platform. The difference between winning (35) and finishing last in this DP race (21) is just 14 points and with 22 points separating the top nine machines, there is a lot to play for and a lot of racing yet to come for the DP crown.
On the GT side of the roster, 2010 Rolex Series GT Champions Emil Assentato and Jeff Segal lead the championship after posting four consecutive top-four finishes including two wins on the trot at Homestead and New Jersey. The close proximity with the timing of the Detroit and Mid-Ohio weekends meant that some teams played it a little bit safer given the short turn-around between races.
"We had a great race car,” Segal said of the run to fourth in Detroit. “Track position was difficult, it was all out street fighting that is for sure, and we came out of it with a clean car, unscathed, and we are looking forward to heading to Mid-Ohio next weekend."
Driving the Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GT.R, Robin Liddell has shown metronomic consistency in the last three races, with two third place finishes and a run to second in New Jersey. But after feeling like some points slipped through his fingers in the home race for Chevrolet, he will target a win at Mid-Ohio as he now enjoys having co-driver John Edwards back full-time after the young American suffered a ski injury earlier this year.
2011 Rolex GT champs Brumos Racing will look to rebound from disappointment in Detroit after the team fell to sixth in the Team Championship when a loose wheel nut forced a 13th place finish.
Autohaus Motorsports also has a bit of a score to settle at Mid-Ohio, as it was the scene for their heartbreaking loss in the GT championship battle last year. Last weekend’s win in Detroit marked the squad’s first podium appearance of the year, and now has the group just 23 points adrift of the lead.
The Mid-Ohio weekend, long a staple of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series, will kick off a very busy summer of race action. Follow it all at SPEED.com and don’t miss a thing on SPEED this weekend. (Live! Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET).
With experience at Skip Barber Racing School, Lime Rock Park, and several IndyCar teams, Matt Cleary has covered open wheel and sports car racing for over a decade. Working for Sunday Group Management, Cleary also provides strategic motorsports consulting for a range of clients in the sport. You can follow him on Twitter @sundaygroup.
As the series rolls south for the EMCO Gears Classic on Saturday afternoon (Live!, 4:30 p.m. ET, SPEED), there are still some scores to settle as the Rolex Series stages Round Six of the 2012 season.
Despite taking an unsatisfying sixth in Detroit, the Starworks squad of Ryan Dalziel and Enzo Pottolicchio enters the EMCO event with a four-point margin over a heady triumvirate of teams that are tied for second in the Team Championship standings.
All knotted up with 138 points apiece ahead of Mid-Ohio are the BMW-Riley combination of Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, the Rolex 24 champs Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian Ford-Riley of John Pew and Ozz Negri, and the Detroit GP runner-up Corvette No. 5 Action Express Racing driven by David Donohue and Terry Borcheller.
Starworks has reason to be excited about the Mid-Ohio event, having broken through for a win in the 2011 season-finale event at the track. But that win, achieved with the previous-generation Riley DP, might not translate so well this year as the teams continue to become familiar with the new DPG3 equipment.
“I think towards the end of 2011 we started to find our stride, but 2012 has been difficult,” said Dalziel, who will be one of many to be making the Mid-Ohio venture between weekends at Le Mans for the Test Day and then the 24.
“The new car was great at Daytona but we have struggled since then to find the outright pace from our Ford/Riley. We have focused on points and not losing sight of the big picture, but we know we need to win races. We have tried to keep the points lead long enough that we get back to some tracks that suit the Riley better. Hopefully we can repeat our 2011 victory with Starworks.”
While the new-look DP3 generation has a varied field that includes Riley machines with Ford and BMW power as well as Corvettes with Riley, Dallara, and Coyote chassis underneath, the parity has been remarkable in the first season of the new platform. The difference between winning (35) and finishing last in this DP race (21) is just 14 points and with 22 points separating the top nine machines, there is a lot to play for and a lot of racing yet to come for the DP crown.
On the GT side of the roster, 2010 Rolex Series GT Champions Emil Assentato and Jeff Segal lead the championship after posting four consecutive top-four finishes including two wins on the trot at Homestead and New Jersey. The close proximity with the timing of the Detroit and Mid-Ohio weekends meant that some teams played it a little bit safer given the short turn-around between races.
"We had a great race car,” Segal said of the run to fourth in Detroit. “Track position was difficult, it was all out street fighting that is for sure, and we came out of it with a clean car, unscathed, and we are looking forward to heading to Mid-Ohio next weekend."
Driving the Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GT.R, Robin Liddell has shown metronomic consistency in the last three races, with two third place finishes and a run to second in New Jersey. But after feeling like some points slipped through his fingers in the home race for Chevrolet, he will target a win at Mid-Ohio as he now enjoys having co-driver John Edwards back full-time after the young American suffered a ski injury earlier this year.
2011 Rolex GT champs Brumos Racing will look to rebound from disappointment in Detroit after the team fell to sixth in the Team Championship when a loose wheel nut forced a 13th place finish.
Autohaus Motorsports also has a bit of a score to settle at Mid-Ohio, as it was the scene for their heartbreaking loss in the GT championship battle last year. Last weekend’s win in Detroit marked the squad’s first podium appearance of the year, and now has the group just 23 points adrift of the lead.
The Mid-Ohio weekend, long a staple of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series, will kick off a very busy summer of race action. Follow it all at SPEED.com and don’t miss a thing on SPEED this weekend. (Live! Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET).
With experience at Skip Barber Racing School, Lime Rock Park, and several IndyCar teams, Matt Cleary has covered open wheel and sports car racing for over a decade. Working for Sunday Group Management, Cleary also provides strategic motorsports consulting for a range of clients in the sport. You can follow him on Twitter @sundaygroup.
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