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The 2006 Season
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The
2005 Season |
The
2004 Season |
The
2003 Season |
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Dec
21, 2004: The Inside Line: Oswaldo Negri Jr.
Dec 17, 2004: Michael Shank Racing’s
Oswaldo Negri Named “Rising Star”
Dec 13, 2004: TheRaceSite.com Announces
2004 Award Winners
Nov 16, 2004: Oswaldo Negri teams
with de Ferran, Carrapatoso and Castroneves for all-star karting...
Nov 15, 2004: Corrida emocionante de Negri/
Gil/ Helinho e Carrapatoso nas 500 Milhas
Nov 15, 2004: Negri's team gave a show in the
500 Miles of Granja Viana
Nov 01, 2004: Negri termina em sétimo
na Califórnia
Oct 31, 2004: Michael Shank Racing finishes
7th in Fontana Finale
Oct 31, 2004: Negri larga em sétimo
na Califórnia
Oct 30, 2004: Michael Shank Racing takes 7th
on the grid for Fontana finale
Oct 30, 2004: Mears and Borkowski join
Michael Shank Racing for 2005
Oct 28, 2004: Michael Shank Racing looks
for strong finish to debut season
Oct 27, 2004: Negri viaja para Fontana para última
etapa da Grand-Am
Oct 27, 2004: Granja 500
Oct 27, 2004: 500 Milhas da Granja: Negri, Castroneves
e De Ferran disputarão as 500 Milhas
Oct 14, 2004: Mike Shank says thank you
Oct 12, 2004: Retardatário tirou Negri da
prova em Barber Park
Oct 10, 2004: Michael Shank Racing knocked from
strong run at Barber Motorsports Park
Oct 09, 2004: Negri coloca seu carro na quarta
fila em Barber Park
Oct 09, 2004: Michael Shank Racing takes eighth
on grid at Barber Motorsports Park
Oct 06, 2004: Michael Shank Racing working late
nights
Oct 06, 2004: Doran ajuda a Mike Shank Racing a
reconstruir o carro de Negri
Oct 03, 2004: Lapped car ends Negri's race
Oct 03, 2004: Negri larga em 3º na VIR 400
Oct 02, 2004: Michael Shank Racing takes 3rd
in VIR qualifying
Sep 30, 2004: Michael Shank Racing gears up for
VIR 400
Sep 29, 2004: Mike Shank Racing segue otimista
para VIR 400
Sep 22, 2004: Castroneves and De Ferran visit Michael
Shank Racing at Homestead
Sep 20, 2004: Negri foi quinto em Homestead
Sep 19, 2004: Michael Shank Racing takes fifth
at Homestead
Sep 15, 2004: Michael Shank Racing partners with 94.9
ZETA for Miami 250
Sep 13, 2004: Michael Shank Racing has high
hopes for Homestead
Aug 20, 2004: Negri testa pneus Hoosier
Aug 14, 2004: Michael Shank Racing scores second
place at the Glen
Aug 14, 2004: Negri conquista brilhante segundo lugar
em Watkins Glen
Aug 13, 2004: Negri larga em quarto em Watkins
Glen
Aug 09, 2004: Roda atrapalha corrida de Negri
e Frisselle em Ohio
Aug 08, 2004: Mid-Ohio: Michael Shank Racing
race report
Aug
06, 2004: Mid-Ohio: Michael Shank Racing
qualifying report
Aug 06, 2004: Negri larga da segunda fila em
Mid-Ohio
July 27, 2004: Michael Shank Racing Midseason
Review
July
02, 2004: Equipe de Negri brilhou em Daytona
Juy 01, 2004: Negri larga em 5º na pista de
Daytona
Jun 30, 2004: Nesta quinta Negri disputa a Paul
Revere 250 em Daytona
Jun 21, 2004: Michael Shank Racing finishes
a battered eighth at the Glen
Jun 21, 2004: Negri chegou em 8º nas 6 Horas
de Watkins Glen
Jun 19, 2004: Negri larga em 5º nas
6 Horas de Watkins Glen
Jun
19, 2004: Negri espera largar entre os 5
primeiros em Watkins Glen
Jun 16, 2004: Negri confiante para
as 6 Horas de Watkins Glen
May
24, 2004:Negri e Frissele terminaram em
6º Mont-Tremblant, no Canadá
May
03, 2004:MSR Drivers Burt Frisselle and Oswaldo
Negri Jr. Race for a Cause
Apr 11, 2004: Negri foi 6º na Food City 250
em Phoenix
Apr 11, 2004: Michael Shank Racing Finishes
Sixth at Phoenix International Raceway
Apr
04, 2004: Negri larga da 3ª posição
em Phoenix
Apr 09, 2004: Equipe Mike Shank Racing, treinou
em duas sessões nesta quinta em Phoenix
Apr 06, 2004: EUA: Negri pronto para o desafio
em Phoenix
Mar 01, 2004: Michael Shank Racing Moves
up in Championship Battle
Feb 29, 2004: EUA: Negri conquista pódio
em Miami
Feb 28, 2004: Michael Shank Racing Scores
Podium Finish at Homestead
Feb 28, 2004: Grand Prix of Miami
Feb 27, 2004: EUA: Negri foi 3º no
primeiro treino em Miami
Feb 20, 2004: Negri realiza primeiro teste
com o Doran-Toyota
Feb 19, 2004: The second day of testing
Feb 18, 2004: Frisselle and Negri Jr. Complete First
Test in Daytona Prototype
Feb 18, 2004: My first test with the Daytona
Prototype at Savannah
Feb 05, 2004: Negri assina com a Shank
Racing na Grand-Am
Feb 05, 2004: Michael Shank Racing Names New
Drivers for Rolex Series
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The
Inside Line: Oswaldo Negri Jr.
12/21/2004
Oswaldo
Negri Jr. jumped onto the Grand American radar this year with some great
performances in the Michael Shank Racing Daytona Prototype. Some strong
podium performances and some very strong drives made Negri recognized
throughout the paddock as well as in the stands. Negri was voted as TheRaceSite.com
Rising Star of the Year in the Daytona Prototype class. Voters included
team owners, Grand Am officials, and members of the media. Negri shared
the award with Max Angelelli.
Recently Negri took a short break from off season work to converse with
us about topics from Daytona Prototypes to an all star go-kart race.
TheRaceSite.com:
The Grand Am Rolex Series has really given a new birth to your career.
Fellow teams, officials, and members of the media named you TheRaceSite.com
Daytona Prototype Rising Star. The DP class is blossoming into a premiere
class in racing. What are your thoughts on the formula and the racing?
Oswaldo
Negri, Jr.: I think the series is just fantastic, I had great fun racing
this year, it was one of the best years of my career. The Grand American
Rolex Series has all the ingredients to be one of the best in the United
States. It has top drivers, top chassis manufacturers, great engines and
if you mix it all up you see what we saw this year, great fights during
the 2:45 minutes of racing.
The
cars handle pretty well and are quick, it is not high tech and the manufacturers
are not as heavily involved as in other series, making the Rolex series
more like a drivers series. The braking zone is not short, permitting
great overtaking maneuvers done by the drivers. To finalize, the Rolex
series is supposed to be an endurance type of racing, but I don't feel
this way. It is flat out from green flag to the end, it is just so cool.
TheRaceSite.com:
The 2005 season could be a strong follow up to the success you had in
2004. Do you have any firm plans yet?
Oswaldo
Negri, Jr.: Unfortunatly not. I am talking to three good teams, I wished
I had a deal already, so I could start concentrating on my driving. This
is harder then driving, I mean the waiting.............
TheRaceSite.com:
You got a chance recently to compete in the 500 Miles of Granja Viana
with Helio Castro Neves and Gil De Ferren. What was that event like?
Oswaldo
Negri, Jr.: It was great, we were like three 15 year old kids jumping
up and down cheering each other. It is a very big event here in Brazil,
we had top drivers from almost every category in the world, F-1. Rubens,
Montoya, Massa and Zonta , IRL we had JUST the Champion Tony that is quick
in anything he seats on, in my Team alone, we had three Indy 500 wins,
with Helio and Gil. Plus other great talents like Marco Adretti, Dan Wheldon
and Felipe Giaffone. Now imagine all that with the best of the local talents,
you are racing against another 78 Go-Karts and they are all good. It is
so hard to explain, you just have to be there to realize what it is.
TheRaceSite.com:
What did you learn from your 2004 season in DP's that you will be able
to take into 2005 to elevate your success?
Oswaldo
Negri, Jr.: I think I had a lot of pressure in 2004, we had to make it
happen to keep going, it was almost a race by race deal. I could not have
done it without my teammate Burt and the great Mike Shank Team that always
gave me the support.
I
think that in racing there is always room for improvement, and I am always
looking for one. I took a lot of chances that sometimes worked and some
did not, maybe if I had a secure ride for the whole year, it could have
been a little better, I always drove from my heart.
TheRaceSite.com:
The Michael Shank Racing effort surprised quite a few people I think.
They came in and were stunningly fast, despite no real sportscar background.
What, besides your driving of course, helped give them an edge in their
first season?
Oswaldo
Negri, Jr.: I Always say that the thing that I most liked about the team,
is that Mike has the same desire to win that I have. It doesn't matter
how many hours, or what it takes. I could only imagine if we had a budget,
what it would have been.
The
chemistry was fantastic between me and Dale, my engineer, the mechanics
are first class. MSR is an all around professional team that will do well
in anything they enter. I really hope that I can announce to your readers
soon with good news about 2005, I want to drive in the Series so much,
that hurts.
I
would like to wish everyone, Happy Holidays and an outstanding 2005.
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Michael
Shank Racing’s Oswaldo Negri Named “Rising Star”
12/17/2004
2004 Michael Shank Racing driver Oswaldo Negri was recently named as the
“Grand American Daytona Prototype Rising Star” in a survey
of Grand American teams and officials, as well as a panel of media members.
Negri shares the award with Max Angelelli, who also had a stand out 2004
season. Negri co-drove the Lexus-powered Doran with young Burt Frisselle,
and the driver pairing proved potent, netting two podium finishes during
the season and taking the MSR car to sixth in the team championship.
“I am quite honored to have been named for this award,” said
Negri. “This season was one of my best ever. Even though it was
the team’s first year in the series going against some bigger teams,
we always had a competitive chance, and it was very rewarding. I have
to thank the Frisselles and whole Michael Shank Racing team for the faith
that they showed in me, and all the hard work that they do, because if
they hadn’t done such a good job all season, Burt and I would have
never been able to show our speed.”
Negri, who took championships in his native Brazil and went on to race
in England against guys with names like Barrichello, Coulthard, and de
Ferran, brought speed and experience in the Daytona Prototype to the team,
having contested a limited schedule of races in 2003. He also brought
a wealth of experience developing race cars, as his time in F3 and Indy
Lights had led to him being tapped by Barber Dodge and Formula BMW USA
to develop their cars as a test driver.
Eager to show they were well-placed in the category, and working to make
the most of the opportunity, Negri and Frisselle scored a coup in just
their first race together, hustling their way to third place in qualifying
and backing that up with a scrappy run to third in the race behind a Michael
Shank Racing crew that was adapting quickly to the special challenge of
pit stops in sprint-format endurance racing.
After a series of setbacks in the mid season that saw the team fall in
the championship order, Negri and Frisselle kept their heads and their
positive attitude, fighting all the way to close the season out with yet
another top-ten at California Speedway.
“This is a great thing for Os to get the recognition we feel he
deserves,” said team owner Mike Shank. “He played a big part
in our first season as we learned the nuances of the car and of the endurance
category. We are hoping we will be able to include him in our 2005 plans,
because he has shown us, and everyone in the Rolex paddock, that he deserves
to be here.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317.908.2975
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TheRaceSite.com
Announces 2004 Award Winners
12/13/2004
TheRaceSite.com
asked all season long teams, all officials, and a long list of members
of the media to vote on the 2004 TheRaceSite.com awards. The results have
been tabulated and the final awards have been announced. The award categories
included Rising Star Awards in all classes of Grand American Rolex and
Grand Am Cup, Crew Chief of the Year Awards in all classes of Grand American
Rolex and Grand Am Cup, and Paint Scheme of the Year in Grand American
Rolex and Grand Am Cup.
These awards have been given out in the past from TheRaceSite.com for
the Grand Am Cup series, but in 2004 the awards have expanded to the Rolex
Series.
The
Rising Star Award is voted on upon the basis that these drivers
are on their way to becoming stars in the sportscar racing world. Past
champions of a professional North American series and past winners of
a TheRaceSite.com Rising Star Award were not eligible.
Grand
American Rolex Daytona Prototype Rising Star (Tie):
Max Angelelli (SunTrust) and Oswaldo Negri, Jr. (Michael
Shank Racing)
Max Angelelli helped lead the SunTrust Racing effort to a second place
finish in the Grand Am Rolex points. Italian born, Angelelli has enjoyed
success across the Atlantic but the 2004 season was a breakout season
for him in the states. Three wins in the Grand Am Rolex Daytona Prototypes
as well as success in the World Challenge GT class gave Angelelli recognition
for his talents in the states. The 2005 season looks to be strong for
the aggressive Italian as he will be back with SunTrust Racing in a new
DP in their bid for the 2005 title.
Oswaldo
Negri Jr. didn't score a win in 2004 but proved very talented
with two podium finishes in the Michael Shank Racing Doran. Paired with
Burt Frisselle, Negri also drove with ferociousness to place himself and
Frisselle twelfth in the Driver's Championship. Silly season movements
have seen Frisselle move to Synergy Racing to pair with his brother in
a DP leaving Negri temporarily without a ride, a situation that probably
won't last for this talented Brazilian.
Grand
American Rolex GT Rising Star:
Justin Marks (Team PTG)
Driving for Team PTG, Justin Marks scored four wins and took third place
in the Championship. Marks started out the season paired with fellow rookie
Joey Hand. Midseason he got the opportunity to pair with veteran Bill
Auberlen. Marks found success in both the GT class and the World Challenge
Touring class. The future looks bright for this young American as he looks
to be back with PTG next season and his efforts with Turner may expand
next year to other opportunities.
Grand
American Rolex Super Grand Sport Rising Star:
Craig Stanton (AASCO, Planet Earth, G&W Motorsports)
Driving for various teams through the 2004 season, Criag Stanton had a
break out season. Stanton found success in the Rolex Series, the Grand
Am Cup series, and the GT class of ALMS. Early in the Rolex season Stanton
won a race and scored a second place finish with the AASCO effort. Later
in the season Stanton took on the role of driving instructor for the young
driver Mae Van Wijk scoring her a season high fourth place finish as her
co-driver.
Grand
Am Cup Grand Sport Rising Star:
Craig Stanton (TheRaceSite.com Racing)
Voters proved that they thought Stanton is a star on the rise as they
named him the Rising Star in two different classes. Driving for TheRaceSite.com
Racing in Grand Am Cup, Craig Stanton had a career season. Stanton started
the season out with Terry Borcheller and the duo won the first three races
together. In the fourth race Stanton found himself paired with long time
teammate David Murry and the duo went on to win three more races. The
total of six wins and two poles scored Stanton the Driver Championship,
his first professional title.
Grand
Am Cup Sport Touring Rising Star:
Will Turner (Turner Motorsports)
With the dual role of both Team Owner and Driver, Will Turner had very
busy weekends. In addition Turner also ran a World Challenge Touring effort
that scored Bill Auberlen the Driver's Championship. In Grand Am Cup Turner
and his co-driver Don Salama missed out on the Drivers title by the slimmest
of margins to the SpeedSource effort. Turner's performances in his BMW
didn't go unnoticed as his peers named him the Rising Star in the Sport
Touring class.
Crew
Chief of the Year Award
The Crew Chief of the Year award doesn't necessarily go to the team with
the most success, but rather to the Crew Chief that utilized the resources
available to their team to get the most success out of the vehicle package
they had to work with.
Grand
Am Rolex Daytona Prototype Crew Chief of the Year:
Kent Holden (#01 CompUSA)
When the 2004 season started everyone expected CompUSA to be a force in
the Grand Am Rolex Series. With ownership shared by Chip Ganassi and Felix
Sabates, it seemed as if the team would be a sure thing to win races.
However even with the right budget and equipment, no team can have success
without the right people behind the project. Coming into a new situation
with no previous Daytona Prototype experience for the team, Kent helped
Scott Pruett and Max Papis win eleven pole positions, three wins, and
the DP Championship in the CompUSA Riley and Scott Lexus.
Grand
Am Rolex GT Crew Chief of the Year:
Pascal Bussy (Orbit Racing)
The Crew Chief award is supposed to go to the person who utilized their
resources to secure the highest level of performance from their team.
Orbit Racing certainly didn't have the largest budget, but they certainly
scored success on the track. The 2000 Porsche Cup Champion, Mike Fitzgerald,
led the driving lineup that included the progressing talents of Jay Policastro
and Joe Policastro. Bussy helped lead the team to a GT class win at the
Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona, three podiums, and five top fives. In a season
dominated by the factory backed BMW effort, the results from Orbit Racing
were enough to earn Pascal Bussy the Rolex GT Crew Chief of the Year from
his peers.
Grand
Am Rolex Super Grand Sport Crew Chief of the Year:
Tom Chan (TPC Racing)
TPC Racing had a banner year in Super Grand Sport this season. The team
ran three Porsche GT3 Cups all season long (except for the 24 Hours).
Every one of the three cars won and the team ended up with seven wins,
twenty three podiums, and the Team, Driver, and Manufacturer Championship.
The success of the TPC Racing effort was recognized by their peers as
the team earned the Super Grand Sport Crew Chief of the Year Award for
Tom Chan.
Grand
Am Cup Grand Sport Crew Chief of the Year:
Mike Thomas (TheRaceSite.com Racing)
The Phoenix ProMotions effort ran the Grand Am Cup TheRaceSite.com Racing
Porsche effort as well as the Grand Am Rolex Orison Planet Earth Motorsports
Porsche effort. By season end the team had racked up sixty seven entries
in the two series and their Grand Am Cup effort scored the Driver, Team,
and Manufacturer Championship. Thomas has been with the team since 1993
and has helped lead the team to five of the team's seven professional
Team Championships since the team inception in 1984.
Grand
Am Cup Sport Touring Crew Chief of the Year:
Bobby Khavidi (SpeedSource Race Engineering)
SpeedSource Race Engineering entered the 2004 season with thoughts of
winning races and visions of a Championship. With a brand new Mazda RX-8
that needed developing, the Florida based effort embarked upon a season
long venture that saw them wrap up the Driver Championship in the last
race of the season. Four wins and a reputation of reliability in their
first year with the rotary Renesis engine helped earn Khavadi the Sport
Touring Crew Chief of the Year.
Best
Paint Scheme
The Best Paint Scheme of the Year Award was voted on by teams, members
of the media, and series officials as well. The voting was very tight
in this category as the Rolex winner had only one vote more than the three
way tie for second and in Grand Am Cup the winner only had two more votes
than second.
Grand
Am Rolex Best Paint Scheme:
Orison Planet Earth Motorsports
Sporting the earth on the Porsche silhouette, the Orison Planet Earth
Motorsports effort's Porsche GT3 Cup won the Grand Am Rolex Best Paint
Scheme Award. The effort finished in first only one vote ahead of a three
way tie for second that included Brumos Racing, CompUSA, and TPC Racing.
The scheme was the brainchild of Will Nonnamaker and has been in the sportscar
racing world since 1996 when it debuted on the team's Mazda MX-6.
Grand
Am Cup Best Paint Scheme:
TheRaceSite.com Racing
With a distinctive Black and Red car combined with a lightening bolt on
the side of the car, TheRaceSite.com Racing took home the Grand Am Cup
Best Paint Scheme. With only two more votes than past winner of the award,
SpeedSource Race Engineering, the voting was tight in the Grand Am Cup
series as well.
With
the 2005 season coming less than six weeks from now the coming season
will be an exciting and challenging one for teams and drivers. Increased
competition in every class of the two series will force teams to double
their development efforts in the off season if they want to stay on top.
The Grand American Rolex and Grand Am Cup season get kicked off at the
newly renovated Daytona International Speedway on February 4th through
the 6th.
Presented by HRPWorld.com
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Oswaldo
Negri teams with de Ferran, Carrapatoso and Castroneves for all-star
karting enduro in Brazil
11/16/2004
(Miami,
FL)-Michael Shank Racing’s Oswaldo Negri teamed with Indianapolis
500 winner Gil de Ferran, two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves,
and World Karting champion Rubens Carrapatoso in the Granja Viana 500
in Brazil this weekend, storming from fifty-third on the grid of seventy
to take second place just fifteen seconds behind 2004 Indy Racing League
Champion Tony Kanaan after a late-race pit miscue cost Negri’s squad
the win in the nearly eleven-hour event.
Negri proved quick in practice, so the team selected him to qualify the
kart but a problem with the fuel pump kept him from producing any fast
times, leaving the team to fight from mid-field. But the Brazilian squad
was more than up to the task, as Carrapatoso took the helm for the start,
and hauled the kart up to the lead in his first stint.
“It was amazing, Carrapatoso turns the kart over to me in the lead,
and it doesn’t have a single scratch on it after passing all those
karts!” said Negri.
Negri then took the wheel, keeping the car competitive during a brutal
two-hour and forty-five minute stint, even lapping Rubens Barrichello
(part of the winning squad that included Kanaan, Dan Wheldon, and Philippe
Giaffone) before turning the car over to countryman Castroneves, who was
also able to keep the car in the lead.
Castroneves in turn passed the driving duties over to former Penske teammate
de Ferran, who had to turn the kart back over to Carrapatoso after he
injured his ribs on the rough circuit. Carrapatoso did everything he could
to take the win, but a line of karts waiting in the pits for fuel in the
closing laps of the enduro kept the team from taking the victory.
“We all went down for some fun-see some old friends, have a good
time in the karts for the race, but in those closing laps, those guys
were fighting for that win like it was the last race in the world, and
there was no joking around,” said Negri. “With a field of
drivers as talented as this-probably the most skilled collection of drivers
in any race-its not too surprising that it was so competitive.”
Negri, who is hoping to return to the Rolex Sports Car Series in 2005
and build on the positive momentum he generated with the Michael Shank
Racing team, was nursing some sore ribs upon his return to the States.
“It hurts a little bit, but that will go away,” said Negri.
“It was very special to be racing there, to have the exceptional
teammates that I did, and to come so close to winning. I really had a
good time, and of course, we can start thinking now about how to make
sure we win next year…”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications
matt@cleary.net
317.722.1838
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Corrida
emocionante de Negri/ Gil/ Helinho e Carrapatoso nas 500 Milhas
15/11/2004
Equipe
largou na 53ª posição e terminou em segundo lugar na
8ª edição das 500 Milhas da Granja Viana
São
Paulo - O quarteto formado pelos pilotos Oswaldo Negri Jr., Ruben Carrapatoso,
Helio Castroneves e Gil de Ferran deu um show de pilotagem, que não
será esquecido, no Kartódromo Internacional da Granja Viana.
No treino de classificação a equipe sofreu com vários
problemas de acerto, e os relegou a uma distante 53ª posição
no grid, que abrigou 72 karts.
A
largada foi dada pontualmente às 0:00 do domingo, para as 644 voltas
no circuito de 1.200 metros. Ruben Carrapatoso, que na última semana
venceu as 500 Milhas de Milão, foi o encarregado de largar. Rapidamente
a equipe foi galgando várias posições, e ao final
da terceira hora de prova, a equipe já ocupava a liderança
da prova.
Negri assumiu a condução do kart substituindo Carrapatoso,
e manteve o mesmo ritmo avassalador e continuo impondo-se aos adversários,
chegando a abrir uma volta de vantagem para os demais. Em segundo lugar
se alternavam os karts das equipes de Barrichello, que havia tido um problema
de freios ainda na primeira hora, e de Christian Fittipaldi, que vencerá
a última edição da prova.
As últimas 200 voltas da corrida acabaram se transformando em uma
batalha quase titânica, deixando o público e as equipes em
grande suspense. Gil de Ferran havia assumido a condução
do kart nº 73, substituindo Hélio Castroneves, mas após
10 voltas passou a sentir fortes dores nas costelas. No kart 72 era conduzido
por Tony Kanaan, que havia substituido Felipe Giaffone.
Carrapatoso foi chamado as pressas, e quando Gil entrou nos boxes sua
equipe liderava, e quando Carrapatoso voltou, estava em segundo, com vinte
segundos de desvantagem. A pilotagem extremamente agressiva de Carrapatoso
não somente empolgava, mas o fazia diminuir volta a volta a diferença
para Kanaan.
Faltando duas horas para o final, Tony e Carrapatoso estavam disputando
os décimos de segundo pela liderança, e após alguns
ataques Carrapatoso reassumiu a liderança. Neste momento todos
entenderam que salvo algum imprevisto a vitória seria decidida
nos reabastecimentos.
Foi exatamente o que aconteceu. Na última parada de Carrapatoso,
a balança estava desimpedida, mas na sua frente dois outros karts
eram reabastecidos, e com isso a sua vantagem de quase 50 segundos, se
transformou em 20 segundos de desvantagem. Kanaan sabendo que seu adversário
conseguiu um ritmo fortíssimo, e que as quarenta voltas finais
seriam decisivas, se aproveitou brilhantemente de um trabalho de "equipe",
ora sendo puxado pelo vácuo de Renato Russo, ora sendo empurrado
pelo amigo.
Carrapatoso não encontrava quem pudesse fazer o mesmo com ele,
principalmente por que a carenagem do seu kart já estava muito
danificada, e um toque mais forte poderia arrancá-la por inteiro,
forçando-o a uma parada extra. Faltando 15 voltas, Carrapatoso
passou a utilizar Juliano Moro, como seu batedor, lhe abrindo caminho,
e lhe proporcionando vácuo.
Na bandeirada a distância que separava o kart de Tony Kanaan/ Rubens
Barrichello/ Felipe Giaffone e Dan Weldon, do kart de Negri/ Carrapatoso,
Gil e Helinho era de somente 15 segundos, isso após mais de 10
horas e meia de competição.
"Claro que todos queríamos vencer, mas estamos muito felizes.
Viemos para brincar, e terminamos com o segundo lugar, após termos
largado em 53º", disse Negri. "Nos perdemos a corrida na
última parada, ao darmos o azar de pegarmos dois karts ainda sendo
reabastecidos, mas não tem nada, ano que vem nos estaremos de volta",
falou Negri, que deve disputar novamente a Grand-Am, em 2005.
Na
terceira colocação com sete voltas de desvantagem aparecem
os campeões do ano passado, Christian Fittipaldi, Mario Haberfeld
e Charlie Fonseca. Completaram o pódio Clemente Faria/ Felipe Guimarães/
Rodrigo Piquet com o kart 888, Wagner Ebrahim/ Nathan Silva/ Bruno Barri
(kart 116) e Roberto Moreno /Allan Helmeister /Nonô Figueiredo /Matt
Jakso l/ Renato Jader David .
Após a bandeirada Helinho, Gil e Negri foram parabenizar Carrapatoso
pela belíssima e lícita disputa com Kanaan. Em seguida se
juntaram aos amigos que venceram a prova, se cumprimentaram efusivamente
e juntos todos posaram para fotos no kart vencedor.
"Foi antes de tudo uma grande festa, e uma competição
em altíssimo nível. Adorei correr aqui, mas agora quero
dormir até segunda-feira", brincava Gil de Ferran.
Prova válida pela 5.ª e última etapa do Brasileiro
de Endurance:
1 Kart 72 - Rubens Barrichello/ Tony Kanaan/ Felipe Giaffone/
Dan Wheldon
2 Kart 73 – Helio Castroneves/ Gil de Ferran/ Osvaldo Negri/
Ruben Carrapatoso
3 Kart 1 - Christian Fittipaldi/ Mário Haberfeld/
Charlie Fonseca
4 Kart 888 - Clemente Faria /Felipe Guimarães
/Rodrigo Piquet
5 Kart 116 – Wagner Ebrahim /Nathan Silva /Bruno
Bari
6 Kart 91 – Roberto Moreno /Allan Helmeister /Nonô
Figueiredo /Matt Jakso l/ Renato Jader David
7 Kart 8 – Pedro Serrano /Luiz Matarazzo /Carlos
Araújo /Guiliano Salzano
8 Kart 121 – Marcelo Dias /Rafael Daniel /Thiago
Camilo /Norberto Gresse
9 Kart 99 - José França /Renan Goffredo
/ Hermes Moreira/ José Raul Girondi
10 Kart 511 – Osvaldo Badula/ Mário Maia/
Rogério Garcia/ Eduardo Abrantes/ Bruno Miloni/ Rafael Frigeri
11 Kart 57 – Jorge Borelli/ Felipe Ferreira/ Eduardo
Cândio/ Rodrigo Marcheschi
12 Kart 128 – Daniel Landi/ Dennis Dirani/ Alberto
Valério
13 Kart 18 – Vítor Meira/ Juliano Moro/
Felipe Maluhy
14 Kart 10 – Guido Palenga/ Jorge Thompson/ Eduardo
Corrêa da Fonseca/ Rogério Secco/ Ricardo Bigliazzi/ Roberto
Palenga
15 Kart 41 – Roberto Gomes/ Pedro Gomes/ Fernando
Wortmann/ Juliano Moro/ Lucas Rodrigues
16 Kart 204 - Tommy Muth/ Wagner Rossi/ Demian Borba/
Sergio Lobo/ Carlos Teixeira/Sergio Slaviero
17 Kart 2 – Eduardo Martins/ André Martins/
Mário Haberfeld/ Charlie Fonseca
18 Kart 4 – Guilherme/ Pedro Biachini/ André
Gouveia
19 Kart 102 – Carlos Iaconelli/ Galid Osman/ Felipe
Polehtto
20 Kart 142 – Patrik/ João Preto/ Nelson
Rangel
JV5Racing
Crédito das fotos: João Vasconcelos
João
Vasconcelos
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Negri's
team gave a show in the 500 Miles of Granja Viana
11/15/2004
The
team formed by Oswaldo Negri Jr., Ruben Carrapatoso, Helio Castroneves
and Gil de Ferran had a race that will not be forgotten soon in the traditional
500 Miles of Granja Viana, in Brazil.
In Qualifying the team had problems that caused them to start in 53rd
out of 72 karts. The start of the race was at midnight, from saturday
to sunday and the race had 644 laps in the 1.2 km track 25 km from the
center of Sao Paulo.
After
three hours the team of Negri was already leading the race, when Negri
assumed the kart and kept the strong pace. Negri even managed to lap the
second placed, Rubens Barrichello. But the best was still to come, as
Gil assumed the kart with less than 200 laps to go, but had to come back
after only 10 laps, with strong back pains.
So,
the team of Tony Kanaan and Rubens Barrichello assumed the lead, working
together with his team mate Renato Russo to open the way through the crowded
track lap after lap. In a very tight battle, that was decided at the last
pit-stop, the team of Barrichello had the advantage and won the race,
but the show the spectators will not forget was from kart 73, driven by
Negri, Carrapatoso, Castroneves and de Ferran.
"Of
course a win was our goal, but we came here to have fun and finishing
2nd after having started in 53rd was great" said Negri, that plans
to race in Grand-Am again in 2005. "It was first of all a great party
and fun. I loved to race here, but now I want to sleep until monday"
said de Ferran.

Race
results of the 500 Miles of Granja Viana
1 Kart 72 - Rubens Barrichello/ Tony Kanaan/ Felipe Giaffone/ Dan Wheldon
2 Kart 73 - Helio Castroneves/ Gil de Ferran/ Osvaldo Negri/ Ruben
Carrapatoso
3 Kart 1 - Christian Fittipaldi/ Mário Haberfeld/
Charlie Fonseca
4 Kart 888 - Clemente Faria /Felipe Guimarães
/Rodrigo Piquet
5 Kart 116 - Wagner Ebrahim /Nathan Silva /Bruno Bari
6 Kart 91 - Roberto Moreno /Allan Helmeister /Nonô
Figueiredo /Matt Jakso l/ Renato Jader David
7 Kart 8 - Pedro Serrano /Luiz Matarazzo /Carlos Araújo
/Guiliano Salzano
8 Kart 121 - Marcelo Dias /Rafael Daniel /Thiago Camilo
/Norberto Gresse
9 Kart 99 - José França /Renan Goffredo
/ Hermes Moreira/ José Raul Girondi
10 Kart 511 - Osvaldo Badula/ Mário Maia/ Rogério
Garcia/ Eduardo Abrantes/ Bruno Miloni/ Rafael Frigeri
11 Kart 57 - Jorge Borelli/ Felipe Ferreira/ Eduardo
Cândio/ Rodrigo Marcheschi
12 Kart 128 - Daniel Landi/ Dennis Dirani/ Alberto Valério
13 Kart 18 - Vítor Meira/ Juliano Moro/ Felipe
Maluhy
14 Kart 10 - Guido Palenga/ Jorge Thompson/ Eduardo Corrêa
da Fonseca/ Rogério Secco/ Ricardo Bigliazzi/ Roberto Palenga
15 Kart 41 - Roberto Gomes/ Pedro Gomes/ Fernando Wortmann/
Juliano Moro/ Lucas Rodrigues
16 Kart 204 - Tommy Muth/ Wagner Rossi/ Demian Borba/
Sergio Lobo/ Carlos Teixeira/Sergio Slaviero
17 Kart 2 - Eduardo Martins/ André Martins/ Mário
Haberfeld/ Charlie Fonseca
18 Kart 4 - Guilherme/ Pedro Biachini/ André Gouveia
19 Kart 102 - Carlos Iaconelli/ Galid Osman/ Felipe Polehtto
20 Kart 142 - Patrik/ João Preto/ Nelson Rangel

João
Clemente Vasconcelos
55 11 9736-2398
Pictures by João Vasconcelos
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Negri
termina em sétimo na Califórnia
01/11/2004
O brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, que compete na Grand-American Rolex Sports
Car Series, terminou a última etapa da temporada 2004 da categoria,
na sétima colocação. O piloto da equipe Michael Shank
Racing (MSR) deu uma grande largada, pulando da sétima colocação
para o terceiro lugar, mas para evitar uma batida na primeira curva saiu
do trilho e perdeu várias posições.
Antes
mesmo de fecharem a primeira volta, a corrida já estava sob bandeira
amarela, com Negri completanto a volta na 12ª colocação.
Na relargada o brasileiro partiu em busca do tempo perdido, e evoluiu
na prova até o terceiro lugar, quando entregou o carro ao companheiro
de equipe, o norte americano Burt Frisselle.
Frisselle
voltou a corrida na oitava colocação, e com um ritmo tão
forte quanto o de Negri, já ocupava
o quarto lugar. O norte-americano travou uma espetacular batalha com o
ex-piloto de F-1, Jan Magnussen, e só cedeu a muito custa a posição.
"Lutei
o que podia para manter o Jan atrás. Infelizmente um carro GT me
atrapalhou, e para não bater no muro deixei o Jan passar",
contou Frisselle.
Após
a nova rodada de pit-stops, Negri retomou a direção voltando
no oitavo lugar. O brasileiro passou a imprimir um ritmo tão forte
quando o da classificação, mas não foi possivel evoluir
além do sétimo posto.
"Fizemos
uma bela corrida nas fases
iniciais. No final o carro começou a apresentar uma forte vibração,
que acabou impedindo de conseguirmos chegar nos que iam à nossa
frente", comentou Negri. "Foi uma pena, porque estavamos muito
motivados a dar um bom resultado a MSR", disse ainda Negri.
"Esta
foi uma grande temporada, não somente para mim, mas para toda equipe.
Tivemos grandes momentos, e também passamos por maus bocados, mas
nosso time nunca perdeu o enfoque", falou o brasileiro. "Acho
que mostramos o quão forte é este pequeno grupo", continuou
Negri.
"Espero
que nós possamos trabalhar juntos novamente no futuro, porque esta
foi uma das melhores equipes pela qual competi em toda minha carreira",
completou Negri.
O
dono da equipe, Mike Shank também estava desapontado com o resultado,
mas ficou muito contente pelo fato de conseguirem terminar sem se envolver
em acidentes com outros carros.
Negri,
que ainda não revelou seus planos para 2005, viaja para o Brasil
onde disputará as 500 Milhas da Granja Viana junto com Hélio
Castroneves e Gil de Ferran. A vitória ficou com a dupla Max Papis/
Scott Pruet, que também conquistaram o título de 2004 da
Grand-Am.
Wayne
Forbes Robinson/ Butch Leitzinger terminaram em segundo lugar e Darren
Manning/ Scott Dixon completaram o pódio.
Resultado
final da Lexus Grand American 400
1 - Papis-Pruett (Riley-Lexus) - Ganassi - 89 voltas
2 - Forbes Robinson-Leitzinger (Crawford-Pontiac) - Howard
Boss - 89
3 - Manning-Dixon (Riley-Lexus) - Ganassi - 89
4 - Angelelli-Taylor (Riley-Pontiac) - Suntrust - a 1
volta
5 - Theys-Magnussen (Doran-Lexus) - Doran - a 1 volta
6 - Morales-Diaz (Riley-Lexus) - Ganassi - a 1 volta
7 - Negri-Frisselle (Doran-Lexus) - Shank - a 1 volta
8 - France-Haywood (Fabcar-Porsche) - Brumos - a 2 voltas
9 - Duno-Wallace (Crawford-Pontiac) - Howard Boss - a
2 voltas
10 - Martini-Wagner (Doran-Bmw) - G&W - a 3 voltas
11 - Lewis-Rice (Fabcar-Bmw) - Southard - a 3 voltas
12 - Borkowski-Nolte (Riley-Pontiac) - Margraf - a 5
voltas
13 - Milner-Collins (Bmw M3) - PTG - a 5 voltas
14 - Said-Hand (Bmw M3) - PTG - a 5 voltas
15 - Valentine-James-Gleason (Porsche 911) - Racers -
a 6 voltas
JV5Racing – 01/11/2004
Foto crédito: Motorsport
João Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing finishes 7th in Fontana Finale
10/31/2004
Fontana,
California - The Michael Shank Racing Lexus-powered Doran finished seventh
in the season-ending Lexus Grand American Champions Weekend at California
Speedway after running as high as third in the early stages of the eighty-nine
lap event. Oswaldo Negri took the green flag from seventh on the grid,
but was shuffled down the order after going off-track to avoid a spinning
car on the first lap, falling to twelfth in the ensuing yellow flag period.
On the restart, Negri put his head down and made a charge towards the
front, passing car after car on his way up to third before handing the
car over to Burt Frisselle, who rejoined the field in eighth after the
pit stop. Frisselle made some moves of his own, moving up to take fifth
place before holding off former Formula One driver Jan Magnussen for several
laps before finally ceding the position.
“I held him off as long as I could, but a GT car chopped down on
me in the banking, and I had a big loose moment but was able to catch
the car and keep it off the wall but Jan was able to get by me,”
said Frisselle.
Frisselle held on to sixth as he turned the car back over to Negri, who
rejoined in eighth in the closing stages of the race. Negri fought back
again, but the car just didn’t have the pace in the closing laps,
preventing him from moving up beyond the seventh position.
“We did pretty well in the early stages, but we had a vibration
develop in the car, and in the end, I was just hanging on to it,”
said Negri. “It’s a shame because we were hungry to get Mike
further up in the championship, but at least we were able to get to the
finish today.”
“This has been a great season for me and this team-we have had some
huge highs, and some tough races, but the team never lost focus and I
think we showed how strong this little group is all season,” continued
Negri. “I hope that we are able to work together in the future,
because this has been one of the best experiences I have had in my career.”
Team owner Mike Shank was also disappointed with the result, but was happy
that the car made it to the finish without suffering from contact with
any other cars.
“It’s a disappointing result given how fast we were early
in the race,” said team owner Mike Shank. “But it’s
a finish, and after the last two races we’ve had, its pretty good
to get to the finish and still be fighting for it at the end.”
Shank still considered the season a success, and is looking forward to
the future with his team.
“It’s really been a banner year for Michael Shank Racing,
and I want to thank our drivers Burt and Oswaldo, and everyone who supported
us this season, especially Kevin Doran, the Frisselles, TRD and Lexus,
and of course my guys, who really made this happen all season.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Negri
larga em sétimo na Califórnia
31/10/2004
Negri
e Frisselle querem bom resultado para premiar o trabalho da MSR nesta
temporada
A equipe Michael Shank Racing (MSR) parte da sétima posição
no grid para última etapa da Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series,
que terá neste domingo a prova Lexus Grand American 400, no autódromo
do California Speedway. A equipe do brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, que corre
com um Lexus-Doran conseguiu deixar o carro bastante competitivo, apesar
do traçado não favorecer a este chassis.
Negri
estabeleceu na melhor volta, no circuito baseado no traçado oval,
o tempo de 1m32s598. Este tempo está a somente 0s4 do terceiro
colocado no grid. A prova terá 89 voltas, com Negri sendo o encarregado
da primeira parte da corrida, e depois cedendo o carro ao seu companheiro
de equipe, o norte-americano Burt Frisselle.
"O
carro estava realmente muito bom. Infelizmente o (Darin) Manning decidiu
tentar sua volta rápida no mesmo momento que nós, e acabou
me atrapalhando um pouco", contou Negri. "Nós melhoramos
muito desde o início dos treinos, e estamos bastante otimistas
para esta corrida. Queremos dar ao Mike e aos mecânicos um belo
presente de final de temporada", comentou o brasileiro.
Mike
Shank, que ontem anunciou seus planos para temporada 2005, viu seus mecânicos
trabalharem muito neste final de temporada para prepararem o carro, e
agora está bastante confiante para esta última corrida do
ano.
"Somos
somente alguns décimos mais lento que o terceiro. Fizemos um progresso
gigantesco neste final de semana, se formos olhar para os primeiros treinos",
falou Shank. "Nossa equipe trabalhou duro nesta últimas provas,
por alguns acidentes de pista. Mas agora está tudo bem, e esperamos
sair daqui com mais alguns pontos, e uma boa posição no
campeonato", completou Shank.
A
pole position ficou com Lexus-Riley de Max Papis, que corre em dupla com
o norte-americano Scott Pruett, e estabeleceu o novo recorde para o circuito,
com o tempo de 1m 30s962. Ao seu lado na primeira fila aparece o Riley-Lexus
de Darren Manning/ Scott Dixon. A largada para prova acontece às
15:00 (horário de Brasília).
Veja
o grid para a Lexus Grand American 400
1 Papis-Pruett (Riley-Lexus) - Ganassi - 1m30s962
2 Manning-Dixon (Riley-Lexus) - Ganassi - 1m31s820
3 Morales-Diaz (Riley-Lexus) - Ganassi - 1m32s160
4 ForbesRobinson-Leitzinger (Crawford-Pontiac) - Howard
Boss - 1m32s306
5 Angelelli-Taylor (Riley-Pontiac) - Suntrust - 1m32s486
6 Borcheller-Fittipaldi-Barber (Doran-Pontiac) - Bell
- 1m32s531
7 Negri-Frisselle (Doran-Lexus) - Shank - 1m32s598
8 Gregoire-Goad (Crawford-Pontiac) - Spirit of Daytona
- 1m32s823
9 Law-Donohue (Fabcar-Porsche) - Brumos - 1m33s445
10 Theys-Magnussen (Doran-Lexus) - Doran - 1m33s886
11 Borkowski-Nolte (Riley-Pontiac) - Margraf - 1m34s109
12 France-Haywood (Fabcar-Porsche) - Brumos - 1m35s249
13 Lewis-Rice (Fabcar-Bmw) - Southard - 1m35s269
14 Duno-Wallace (Crawford-Pontiac) - Howard Boss - 1m35s314
15 Guenette-Miller (Chevrolet-Chase) - Chase - 1m35s711
16 Martini-Wagner (Doran-Bmw) - G&W - 1m35s845
17 Milner-Collins (Bmw M3) - PTG - 1m37s819
18 Said-Hand (Bmw M3) - PTG - 1m37s878
19 Auberlen-Marks (Bmw M3) - PTG - 1m38s092
20 Buckler-Flanagan (Porsche 911) - Racers - 1m38s577
21 Assentato-Earle (Maserati Light) - Washington - 1m39s137
22 Cicero-McQueen-Vance (Porsche 911) - Stevenson - 1m39s891
23 Segal-Buchwald (Maserati Light) - Washington - 1m40s413
24 Greenberg-Pumpelly (Porsche 911) - G&W - 1m41s046
25 Valentine-James-Gleason (Porsche 911) - Racers - 1m42s256
26 Bunting-Lally (Porsche 911) - TPC - 1m42s836
27 Escalette-Plumb (Porsche 911) - Stuttgart - 1m43s123
28 West-Faieta (Ferrari 360) - Washington - 1m43s212
29 Alfonso-Traver (Porsche 911) - Grease - 1m43s339
30 Sigal-Brix (Porsche 911) - Grease - 1m43s638
31 Schmitt-Halsmer (Honda Nsx) - Honda America - 1m44s324
32 Del Vecchio-Espenlaub-McKenz (Pontiac) - Horizon -
1m44s517
33 Littlechild-Dumoulin (Porsche 911) - TPC - 1m45s611
34 Ward-Baughman (Porsche 911) - Baughman - 1m45s821
35 Hanson-Yeakle (Corvette) - Baughman - 1m46s045
36 Davis-Bell (Mustang) - ACS - 1m47s177
37 Van Wijk-Stanton (Porsche 911) - G&W - 1m48s704
38 Levitas-Pobst (Porsche 911) - TPC - sem tempo
39 Nonnamaker-Nonnamaker (Porsche 911) - Planet Earth
- sem tempo
JV5Racing
foto Crédito: Motorsport
João Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing takes 7th on the grid for Fontana finale
10/30/2004
Fontana,
California - The Michael Shank Racing Lexus-powered Doran took seventh
on the grid for the season finale Lexus Grand American Champions weekend
at California Speedway. The team is feeling competitive after their best
lap time of 1:32.598 seconds on the oval-based road course was just .4
of a second behind the best time of the third-place car. Sunday’s
89-lap race is scheduled to get underway at 1:00 local time and will be
televised live on Speed Channel.
Oswaldo Negri took the wheel for the qualifying session, and will start
Sunday’s race before turning the driving duties over to teammate
Burt Frisselle.
“The car was quite good, actually,” said Negri. “Unfortunately,
(Darin) Manning decided to give himself a gap in traffic on my fastest
lap and blocked me. We have improved a lot since the beginning of the
weekend, and should be pretty competitive tomorrow. We just want to give
Mike and the guys a strong finish to the season.”
Team owner Mike Shank, who announced plans today for the 2005 season,
has seen his guys put in some late nights this season preparing the 6
car, and is feeling much better about the team’s chances after the
improvements made during the weekend.
“We are just a couple of tenths from being in the top three, so
we’ve made a ton of progress already this weekend, considering where
we started out,” said Shank. “We are back in the ball park
now, and should be good for the race. The guys have been working hard
to fix some niggling problems, but have got everything sorted and are
hoping we can get some good points tomorrow for the championship.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Mears
and Borkowski join Michael Shank Racing for 2005
10/30/2004
Fontana,
California (30 October 2004)--Mike Shank announced today that his team
will campaign the Mears Motor Coach-liveried Pontiac-Riley with drivers
Mike Borkowski and Paul Mears Jr. for the 2005 Rolex Sports Car Series
season.
“We are excited to be announcing that we will be competing the full
2005 season with Mike and Paul,” said Shank. “The Riley-Pontiac
combination has shown itself to be a strong package this season, and we
are looking forward to getting familiar with the Riley chassis and beginning
to prepare for next season.”
Michael Shank Racing made the transition from the sprint format of Toyota
Atlantic competition into the endurance racing format of the Rolex Sports
Car Series look easy this season, scoring a podium with drivers Burt Frisselle
and Oswaldo Negri in just the teams second start in the category and going
on to regularly compete in the top five.
Having seen first-hand the effort and results that the MSR team has produced
this season, the decision about which team to work with for 2005 was not
a difficult one for Mears and Borkowski.
“Mike and his guys do a great job, and have shown that week in and
week out this season,” said Mears. “It’s going to be
an exciting partnership, and I look forward to seeing the results that
it yields.”
With one round yet remaining, the Riley chassis has scored a total of
eleven pole positions and six wins during the 2004 season, with three
of those victories utilizing Pontiac power. Shank is looking forward to
getting the most out of the combination, but is also working to keep his
Lexus-Doran active next season as well.
“My long-standing relationship with Toyota and Lexus is important
to me, and Kevin (Doran) has built an excellent race car and provided
phenomenal support all season, so I am working on keeping that side of
our program together for next season. Hopefully we will have something
positive to announce about that in the near future, as we would like to
continue our Lexus-Doran program as well.”
Matt
Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Michael
Shank Racing looks for strong finish to debut season
10/28/2004
The
little team that can looking to reverse their own curse after a tough
October…
Michael
Shank Racing is looking forward to the season-finale Lexus Grand American
Champions Weekend at California Speedway this weekend as they hope to
overcome two consecutive tough finishes in the last two races and work
their way back up the standings in an ultra-competitive championship battle.
The Michael Shank Racing Lexus-powered Doran has been near the sharp end
of the team championship standings all season, but two consecutive 14th
place finishes in October, spurred on by contact from other cars, have
left the team fighting for fourth in the championship.
The championship battle is close indeed, with the sister Lexus-powered
Doran of Doran/Lista Racing holding on to fourth just three points ahead
of the MSR car, with the Barber Motorsports Park-round winners in the
4 car two points back in sixth, and the 2004 Rolex 24-winning 54 car just
six markers behind in seventh.
The Michael Shank Racing team has been impressive in their first season
of Rolex Sports Car competition, running consistently in the top five
all season long, with highlight podium finishes at Homestead and Watkins
Glen. The team has adapted quickly to the endurance format of the Rolex
Sports Car Series after several successful seasons in the sprint-format
of the Toyota Atlantic Championship.
While the team has performed quick pitstops and prepared well-engineered
cars all season, drivers Oswaldo Negri and Burt Frisselle have also both
held up their end of the deal, showing good speed, feedback, and consistency
all season long. The opportunity to race with Mike Shank has been one
that Negri has grabbed hold of, providing an important element of the
development of the car, as well as serving as a key part of teammate Frisselle’s
own progress.
Frisselle, who is one of the youngest drivers in the series, has blossomed
in the category, bringing his cut-throat mindset from the open wheel ranks
to the closely competitive racing that Rolex provides. Frisselle has had
some outstanding drives this season, including his run to the podium at
Watkins Glen, where he moved from seventh to second in the closing stages
of the race.
Negri and Frisselle will be fighting to make their way into the top ten
in the driver championship, which is impressive given that the two were
not even entered in the season-opening Rolex 24 race at Daytona.
“I just want to help Mike finish as high up in the championship
as possible,” said Negri, who made his Grand American debut at the
California facility last season, scoring a podium finish in the GTS class.
“The track doesn’t have much grip, but there a couple of good
overtaking spots and so hopefully that will help with the slower traffic.
This has been a great season for me personally, professionally, and as
a team member with these guys, so hopefully we can get a result to go
with all the effort that the guys have put in this season.”
Team owner Mike Shank has kept a close eye on the championship battle
all season, and knows that if any team can fight back strong, it’s
his.
“For us the most important thing is to do as well as we can in the
championship at this point,” said Shank. “This has been a
tremendous season, with lots of ups and downs, and I am proud of the group
of guys who work on this team. Our goal at the outset was to run in the
top five all season, and while we haven’t had the finishes we wanted,
we have absolutely shown that we are competitive everywhere we go. Hopefully
this track will help us get the most out of our Lexus engine, which loves
to run fast.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Negri
viaja para Fontana para última etapa da Grand-Am
27/10/2004
Oswaldo
Negri testa nesta quinta os pneus que irão equipar a categoria
em 2005
O piloto brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, viajou nesta quarta-feira para Fontana,
onde neste domingo acontece a última etapa da temporada da Grand
American Rolex Sports Car Series, com a Lexus Grand American 400, no autódromo
do California Speedway.
Porém,
antes do início dos treinos livres, o piloto da Michael Shank Racing
(MSR) irá testar os pneus da Hoosier Racing Tire Corporation, que
será o fornecedor oficial da categoria na próxima temporada.
Negri foi um dos pilotos escolhidos pela companhia para o desenvolvimento
dos pneus, em um claro reconhecimento do brilhante desempenho do piloto
nesta temporada.
O
piloto da MSR teve seu carro totalmente reconstruído para esta
última etapa do campeonato, já que na prova de Birmingham
o carro sofreu outro acidente. O Lexus-Doran de Negri e Burt Frisselle,
já havia sofrido um violento acidente na prova da Virginia, exigindo
que a equipe trabalhasse exaustivamente para recuperá-lo a tempo
da prova em Birmingham, quando um retardatário acabou batendo na
traseira do protótipo nº 6, quando já vinha lutando
pelas primeiras posições.
"O
carro foi totalmente reconstruído, ao contrário da última
corrida, onde andamos com o carro apenas montado sem os detalhes que tinhamos
antes, devido ao acidente de VIR (Virginia International Raceway)",
contou Negri. "Apesar da pista não favorecer os chassis Doran,
estou confiante que a equipe vai poder me dar um carro competitivo",
declarou Negri.
A
Lexus está brigando pelo campeonato de construtores, e Negri prometeu
fazer todo possível para ajudar na conquista. Negri, que retorna
ao Brasil para as festas de final de ano e para as 500 Milhas da Granja
Viana, está perto de assinar contrato para próxima temporada
da Grand-Am.
"Ainda
estamos negociando, mas em breve devo ter boas notícias. Espero
terminar a temporada já de contrato assinado, e assim vou receber
meu presente de natal antecipado", comentou o brasileiro, que terá
Hélio Castroneves e Gil de Ferran como companheiros nas 500 Milhas
da Granja.
Programação
da Lexus Grand American 400:
Sexta-feira
(29/10)
12:40
às 13:20 Treino Livre - (somente para classe Daytona Prototype)
16:10
às 16:55 Treino Livre - Rolex Series
Sábado
(30/10)
12:00
às 13:00 Treino Livre - Rolex Series
13:30
às 14:30 Sessão de autógrafos
14:55
às 15:10 Treino de Classificação (classes GT e SGS)
15:20
às 15:35 Treino de Classificação (somente para classe
Daytona Prototype)
Domingo
(31/10)
12:00
às 12:15 Warmup
15:00
Largada para a Rolex Series California Speedway 400 (400km (89 voltas)
ou 2h e 45 minutos de prova)
*
(horários de Brasília)
JV5Racing
foto
Crédito: João Vasconcelos
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Granja
500
10/27/2004
November
13th is the 8th 500 Miles of Granja Viana. The 500 Miles of Granja Viana
race is already a tradition in the international calendar, atracting every
year more worldwide motoracing stars.
This
year is no different. F1 drivers Rubens Barrichelo, Juan Pablo Montoya,
David Coulthard, Felipe Massa, and Antonio Pizzonia are already confirmed.
From
Champ Car Mario Haberfeld, driving with Christian Fittipaldi. From IRL
the champion Tony Kanaan. One of the teams considered to be a runner up
has 4 Brazilian drivers.
Oswaldo
Negri Jr., Helio Castro Neves, Gil de Ferran and Rubens Carrapatozo are
also confirmed to race and should give everybody a lot of work to do.
"It
will be a big party. We will be in Brazil, see our friends & family
and try to be in the podium", said Negri Jr.
The 500 Miles of Granja Viana race at Kartodromo Internacional da Granja
Viana, in Cotia-Sao Paulo, in 1997 was just a big end of the year party,
but now it has transformed in a big motoracing meeting.
Drivers
from different categories like F1, Formula Cart, Indy Racing League, F3000
domestic, Formula Renault, Stock Car, and Copa Clio will be racing against
the best go kart drivers and tens of anonymous Brazilian drivers from
local championships from Granja Viana.
Something
new this year will be the qualifyng session on Friday, one day before
race day. Since 1997 the qualifyng session used to be hours before the
start of the race.

|
500
Milhas da Granja: Negri, Castroneves e De Ferran disputarão as
500 Milhas
27/10/2004
No
próximo dia 13 de novembro acontece a 8ª edição
das 500 Milhas da Granja Viana. A prova já se tornou uma tradição
no calendário internacional, atraindo a cada ano mais estrelas
do automobilismo mundial.
Este ano não será diferente, uma vez que já confirmaram
presença na prova, os pilotos Rubens Barrichello, Juan Pablo Montoya,
David Coulthard, Felipe Massa e Antonio Pizzonia da Fórmula 1.
Da Champ Car virá o brasileiro Mario Haberfeld, que mais uma vez
fará parceria com Christian Fittipaldi. Da IRL o campeoníssimo
Tony Kanaan. Uma das equipes que já pode ser considerada forte
candidata as primeiras posições, é composta por três
brasileiros.
Oswaldo Negri Jr., Hélio Castroneves e Gil de Ferran já
confirmaram a participação, e prometem dar muito trabalho
aos concorrentes.
"Vai ser com certeza uma grande festa. Vamos matar a saudades do
Brasil, rever os amigos e tentar um lugar no pódio", disse
Negri.
A prova que é anualmente disputada no Kartódromo Internacional
da Granja Viana, em Cotia, na região metropolitana de São
Paulo, chega a sua oitava edição, e aquilo que em 1997 era
somente uma festa de confraternização de fim de ano, se
transformou em um grande encontro do automobilismo.
Pilotos das mais conhecidas categorias internacionais – como Fórmula
1, Fórmula CART, Indy Racing League, Fórmula 3000 –
e domésticas – Fórmula Renault, Stock Car, Copa Clio
– medem forças contra os melhores kartistas do ranking brasileiro
e dezenas de anônimos que competem regularmente nos campeonatos
internos da Granja Viana.
Uma novidade deste ano será a realização das tomadas
classificatórias na sexta-feira que antecede a prova, e não
mais horas antes da largada, como vinha ocorrendo desde a criação
do evento em 1997.
JV5Racing
foto
Crédito: João Vasconcelos
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Mike
Shank says thank you
10/14/2004
A
message from Mike Shank
I
just wanted to thank everyone who was responsible for getting our car
repaired in time for the race at Barber Motorsports Park. Last week was
one of the toughest weeks I have ever experienced in racing, and it was
only because of everyone’s dedication, sacrifice, and hard work
that we even had the chance to get the car back together and go racing.
The race didn’t end up like we wanted it to, but that didn’t
take anything away from the effort everyone put in to get us there. I
wanted to thank my guys and also those who have been rooting for and supporting
us all season.
I am still overwhelmed when I think of all the support we got from not
just our team, but also the teams we go head to head against on the track,
and I feel as though my team and I have found a home here in Grand American.
Thanks, and see you in Fontana!
Sincerely,
Mike
Shank
Mike thanks-
Dale
Wise, Darin Pigg, David Kanning, John Hedges, Ralph Lohr, Bob Lohr, Scott
Manno, Dave Metz, Kevin Doran, Reggie Schmeiss, Chris Funderburk, Jeff
Graves, Eric Rankine, George Morrison, Brad Nelson, Coleen Delvecchio,Kathy
Jammal, and the entire Grand American community.
Matt
Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Retardatário
tirou Negri da prova em Barber Park
12/10/2004
Acidente tirou Negri e Frisselle da corrida em Birmingham.
Após a Michael Shank Racing (MSR), equipe do brasileiro Oswaldo
Negri Jr, e do norte-americano Burt Frisselle, ter reconstruído
em tempo recorde o Lexus Doran, da escuderia, um novo acidente acabou
com a ótima prova da dupla no último final de semana em
Birmingham. Negri havia conquistado o oitavo tempo para a Porsche 250,
em Barber Park, 11ª e penúltima etapa da temporada, e estavam
muito otimistas para corrida.
Na
corrida a equipe vinha fazendo uma corrida fantástica, graças
as mudanças efetuadas no warm-up.
"Mexemos
no set-up no warm-up e o carro ficou excelente. As condições
estavam muito difíceis, porque estava garoando, mas todos estavamos
de pneus slick", contou Negri. "Comecei a passar um a um, até
chegar em terceiro. Pouco antes da primeira bandeira amarela o Wayne Taylor
me passou, e fiquei em quarto", disse o brasileiro.
A
equipe foi para o primeiro pit-stop, e alguns carros optaram por uma estratégia
diferente, assim quando o carro da MSR voltou a pista, ocupava a 11ª
posição. Negri, que continuou ao volante, novamente começou
a passar um a um os adversários, inclusive superando com grande
facilidade os líderes do campeonato, Papis e Pruett, e logo estava
em quinto.
"Senti
que estava muito mais rapido que os da frente, e apenas esperando uma
oportunidade para continuar a passá-los.
De repente, em uma curva fechada para direita, senti uma batida forte
atrás. Pensei que havia sido o Papis, pois sabia que era um dos
carros da Chip Ganassi atrás de mim", contou. "Na verdade
fui atropelado pelo Luiz Dias, que estava uma volta atrás.
Ele me bateu com tamanha força, que saiu rodando, e foi parar somente
no guard-rail", comentou Negri, profundamente chateado.
"Foi
muito frustrante, pois realmente senti que estava muito mais rápido
que os líderes, e já estava pintando aquele gostinho de
podium outra vez. Lamentei ainda mais pela equipe, que virou duas noites
em claro para reconstruir o carro e deixá-lo competitivo",
finalizou o brasileiro.
A
vitória ficou com a dupla Wayne Robinson/ Butch Leitzinger, que
venceu pela primeira vez nesta temporada. A próxima etapa da Grand
American Rolex Sports Car Series, será no dia 31 de Outubro, em
Fontana, na California.
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing knocked from strong run at Barber Motorsports Park
10/10/2004
The
little team that can got knocked off-track by lapped car for second consecutive
race, ending potential run to podium.
Michael Shank Racing finished 14th in class in the Porsche 250 after the
lapped 02 Ganassi entry punted the number 6 MSR Lexus-Doran off-track
from its fifth position midway through the race, causing significant damage
to the rear suspension and derailing a probable podium finish. The incident
is the second time in as many weeks that a lapped car has taken the MSR
team out of contention. The team had fought all week to get the car repaired
in time for the eleventh round of the Rolex Sports Car Championship.
“I’m really upset about the race,” said driver Oswaldo
Negri. “It’s just incredible-I was in the lead pack, just
biding my time to see what was going to happen with the weather, and I
go to turn in, and bang! I’m off and into the barriers—that’s
how hard he hit me—it sent me all the way off track and into the
wall!”
Negri started the race from eighth, and was up to fourth by just the second
lap. Negri stayed in the car during the teams first pit stop, and rejoined
the field from tenth position before moving back up the order, passing
every car that finished the race on the podium including the race winning
4 car, before the incident with the 02 car put paid to any podium hopes
for the small team.
“It’s just so disappointing for the team because we were the
leading Lexus at the time, and the guys worked so hard to get the car
fixed and ready to race again here at Barber,” said Negri.
Team owner Mike Shank had been hoping for more after all the effort his
team put in to get the car ready, and after seeing how fast the car was
come race time.
“It’s a huge disappointment,” said Shank. “After
putting in the effort we did all week to get back on track, and then to
run so strong in the race—Oz had a great stint before he got crashed
out, and then to have a car that’s a lap behind us take us out,
its just hard to describe how frustrating that is. We are going to have
a word with the Grand-Am officials, because this kind of driving can’t
be tolerated.”
The team will pack up and return to the shop in Columbus, Ohio for some
much-deserved rest before preparing for the season finale Lexus Grand
American Champions weekend at Fontana at the end of the month.
Matt
Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Negri coloca seu carro na quarta fila em
Barber Park
09/10/2004
Negri
se classifica em oitavo no grid para a Porsche 250, em Birmingham
Oswaldo Negri classificou seu Lexus Doran, da escuderia Michael Shank
Racing, que foi reconstruido para esta prova em Barber Park no domingo,
na oitava posição do grid. O brasileiro marcou na sua melhor
volta o tempo de 1m22s665, depois de passar por grandes dificuldades ontem
com a pista úmida, e o grande tráfego dos carros da classe
GT.
Ontem
a equipe só havia conseguido o 10º tempo nos treinos livres,
mas agora com o carro reconstruído, a MSR vai brigar para manter
sua quarta posição no Campeonato de equipes do Rolex Sports
Car Series. Negri irá largar na prova deste domingo, ficando o
segundo turno da corrida para seu companheiro de equipe, o norte americano
Burt Frisselle.
Negri na tomada de classificação adotou uma estratégia
de risco, já que foi à pista somente quando faltavam 15
minutos, para poder tentar uma boa volta com pista limpa. A primeira volta
a tática deu certo, e o brasileiro registrou o tempo que lhe deu
um lugar na quarta fila.
Na
segunda passagem entretanto, o trafégo voltou a atrapalhar o brasileiro,
que poderia ter conseguido um lugar entre os cinco primeiros.
“A equipe trabalhou muito bem, conseguindo recuperar nosso carro
a tempo para esta prova, e a eles juntou-se a Doran (fabricante do chassis),
que nos ajudou muito. O carro ficou muito bom, mas ainda continua com
pouco grip na traseira", comentou Negri.
“Espero
que tenhamos sorte neste fim de semana. Uma boa colocação
seria a melhor forma de premiar o trabalho dos rapazes, que se esforçaram
muito para reparar o carro, e deixá-lo competitivo”, disse
ainda Negri.
A pole position ficou com o italiano Max Papis (Lexus Riley), que corre
juntamente com Butch Leitzinger e James Weaver. Papis marcou a pole, estabelecendo
um novo recorde para pista de Barber Park, com o tempo de 1m20s613. Esta
foi a 10ª pole de Papis nesta temporada.
A
corrida, de 250 milhas (109 voltas ou 2 horas e meia de duração),
tem sua largada programada para às 12:00 (horário local).
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing takes eighth on grid at Barber Motorsports Park
10/09/2004
Note---The
race will be broadcast live on Speed Channel Sunday, October 9th at 1:00
PM EST
The
little team that can returns to action with repaired car
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Oswaldo Negri qualified the Michael Shank Racing
Lexus-powered Doran eighth on the grid with a fast lap time of 1:22.665
seconds at Barber Motorsports Park for Sunday’s Porsche 250. The
team, which was fifth-quickest in the wet/dry morning practice session,
is fighting to secure forth in the Rolex Sports Car Series team championship
and has had to pull several all-nighters to repair the damage from an
accident in the last round race at Virginia International Raceway. Negri
will start the race and turn over the driving duties to teammate Burt
Frisselle during the teams first pitstop on Sunday.
Negri
waited in the pit lane at the start of the fifteen-minute session to try
and find a clear lap of traffic, and bolted to second on the charts with
just his second flying lap early in the session. Despite the strategy
employed at the beginning of the session, Negri caught traffic on his
two fastest laps, keeping the team from continuing its’ streak of
top-five starts.
“The car just didn’t have enough grip this afternoon,”
said Negri. “I just feel lucky to be racing this weekend. The guys
have put in one of the toughest weeks ever to get this car repaired and
competitive, so we are just going to try and make the most of the race
tomorrow. We had a good car in the difficult conditions this morning,
so we will see what tomorrow brings us as far as weather.”
Team owner Mike Shank had also been hoping for more in the session, but
knows how much fight his small team has in them.
“It’s obviously not where we wanted to be on the grid, but
given everything this team has gone through this week to even get here,
we’ll take it and concentrate on the race tomorrow. It’s the
teams first time at the track, and the first time Burt and Oz have run
here, so we have been just playing catch up this weekend. We were fast
in the wet this morning, so we’ll just have to see what the weather
looks like tomorrow.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Michael
Shank Racing working late nights
10/06/2004
The
little team that can fights through major setback to get their Doran repaired
and ready to race
Don’t be surprised if the Michael Shank Racing crew looks a little
tired this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park-they are.
After
a serious accident during last weekend’s VIR 400 caused significant
damage to their Lexus-powered Doran, the team has had little time for
sleep in an all-out effort to repair the car and prepare for this weekends
race.
The car was packed into the transporter and left Virginia International
Raceway last Sunday immediately after the race, and the team drove through
the night to the Doran factory in Cincinnati, Ohio, arriving at six in
the morning on Monday. No rest for the weary, the team immediately began
to make repairs to the car, tearing the Doran JE-4 to its bare chassis
to remove damaged sections as replacement parts were being fabricated
in the Doran shop. By late Wednesday afternoon, the car had been completely
repaired and reassembled, ready to be packed back into the transporter
for the trip down to Alabama.
“We never slept once we got to Dorans shop, and worked until midnight
on Monday, and then worked until midnight again on Tuesday, and will be
driving until midnight Wednesday to get down to Barber,” said Mike
Shank. “We got massive help from Kevin (Doran) and his guys, and
all the guys on my team have been here at the shop helping to make this
happen as well.”
While the accident was a setback for the small team, the experience has
left Shank with little doubt that he is racing in the right series.
“I got calls from suppliers, rivals, and people from all over, offering
help and support, and its been just amazing,” said Shank. “I
have never experienced anything like this at all. I think it shows the
strength of the Rolex series, and it’s been very much appreciated
by me and my guys. This paddock is extremely competitive, but its been
overwhelming how much support everyone showed us.”
The team is hoping for a return to the podium this weekend in a car that
Shank describes as being as good as new, although there wasn’t enough
time for everything.
“We didn’t have time to get her repainted, but that’s
the last thing we were worried about for this weekend…”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Doran
ajuda a Mike Shank Racing a reconstruir o carro de Negri para etapa
em Barber Park
06/10/2004
Fabricante
de chassis prestigia sua melhor equipe, e reconstrói carro
A equipe Mike Shank Racing (MSR), do brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, e do
norte-americano, Burt Frisselle, é de longe a melhor equipe da
Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series, que corre com o chassis construído
pela Doran. Por este motivo o fabricante se sensibilizou com o problema
da equipe após o fortíssimo acidente no VIR 4000, que destruíu
completamente a parte traseira do carro, e impediria a equipe de disputar
neste final de semana a Porsche 250, no circuito Barber Motorsports Park,
em Atlanta.
Na
prova disputada no último domingo em Virginia, Negri largou muito
bem, e durante algumas voltas ocupou a segunda posição,
até ser superado pelo vencedor da corrida, Wayne Taylor.
"Nosso
motor é menos potente que os Pontiac, mas consegui nos manter em
terceiro até o pit-stop, quando começamos a ter problemas.
Primeiro foi o segundo carro da Chip Ganassi que bloqueou a saida dos
nosso Pit, e o Burt não pode sair e perdemos alí quatro
posições", contou Negri. "No meu segundo turno
de pilotagem estava descontando o tempo que perdemos, e quando fui passar
um retardatário fui tocado, e saí da pista. Quando estava
voltando um outro carro não conseguiu desviar e bateu violentamente
atrás de mim", falou Negri, lembrando o acidente com Cort
Wagner.
Os
danos na traseira do Doran Lexus foram muito extensos, a ponto de Mike
Shank, dono da MSR, declarar que não conseguiriam recuperar o carro
a tempo da prova em Barber Park. Kevin Doran, dono da fábrica de
chassis Doran, saiu em socorro da equipe que melhor tem representado sua
empresa, e está ajudando na recuperação do carro.
"O
susto foi muito grande, mas tanto eu quanto o Cort Wagner estamos bem
e prontos para a prova em Barber Park. Vamos perder os treinos da quinta-feira,
mas na sexta nosso carro estará pronto", falou o brasileiro.
A
Porsche 250, 11ª etapa da temporada 2004 da Grand-Am, tem suas atividades
se iniciando na quinta-feira (07/10) com os treinos livres promovidos
pelos organizadores. Na sexta-feira (08/10) serão realizadas mais
três sessões de treinos livres, sendo uma exclusivamente
para os carros da Daytona Prototipe, classe onde competem Oswaldo Negri
Jr, e Christian Fittipaldi, o outro brasileiro da categoria.
No
sábado o treino de classificação acontece das 13:15
às 13:30 (horário local). A corrida, de 250 milhas (109
voltas ou 2 horas e meia de duração), tem sua largada programada
para às 12:00 (horário local).
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Lapped
car ends Negri's race
10/03/2004
Underdog
team suffers setback after contact from lapped car sends the 6 car into
harms way
The Michael Shank Racing number 6 Lexus-Doran finished a disappointing
14th in class in the VIR 400 after being sent off-track late in the race
while passing a Daytona Prototype that was two laps down as the MSR machine
chased down its third consecutive top-five finish. The car suffered significant
damage when another DP made contact with the 6 car as it rejoined the
track, ending the day for the MSR squad.
Oswaldo Negri moved up immediately at the start of the 77-lap race to
slot into second place from third on the grid and turned the car over
in third place to co-driver Burt Frisselle on the first pit stop eighteen
laps into the race. Frisselle had to drive hard and regain some lost ground
after the 02 car blocked him from leaving his pit owing to the tight pit
boxes at VIR.
Frisselle stayed in the lead pack, staging a fierce battle for fourth
as the lead eight cars in the race ran nose to tail for over twenty laps.
Frisselle had an outstanding stint, turning the car back over to Negri
in third position for the final segment of the race.
“My stint was absolutely wild-I wish we had an in-car camera during
the race-it’s the only way people will believe me about how crazy
it was out there with everyone running so close and fighting all over
this track,” said Frisselle, one of the youngest drivers in the
field. “But the car was very strong-the tires went off a bit during
my stint, but we were still pretty consistent and quick at the end.”
Negri was once again in the thick of battle as he worked to pass a lapped
car, but was balked several times before he was sent off course by the
lapped car in a fast section off the track. Negri regained control of
the car, and worked his way back onto the track, but was hit as he was
doing so by a car that hadn’t seen him going onto the track, ending
the fight for the day.
“Its
really disappointing,” said Negri. “To struggle like we have
to even get here to go racing, and then to have a lapped driver knock
us off track like that and have the car so damaged, its disheartening,
for sure. But this team is made up entirely of fighters, and we are going
to do everything we can to get to Barber.”
Despite the setback, Negri focused on the positives from the difficult
race.
“The
car was awesome all day-we got up to second at the start, and Burt had
a fantastic stint and turned the car back over to me in third before we
had the problem, so we should be proud of what this little team was able
to accomplish today.”
Team owner Mike Shank had been hoping for yet another top-five result
for the team, and seeing his drivers run so competitively during the race
made the result that much more disappointing.
“We will get the car to the Doran factory as fast as we can, and
hopefully we can get it fixed in time to race next week,” said Shank.
“We had a lot of good momentum going into this race, so it’s
a big blow to the team, but at least Oswaldo and Cort were able to get
out of their cars unhurt and hopefully we can go from here.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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|
Negri
larga em 3º na VIR 400
10/03/2004
Mike Shank Racing ocupa lugar na segunda fila para prova em Virginia
Oswaldo Negri Jr, da equipe Mike Shank Racing (MSR), conquistou o terceiro
melhor tempo para a VIR 400, que será disputada hoje (domingo)
no Virginia International Raceway. A prova é válida pela
décima etapa da temporada 2004, da Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series.
Negri
marcou na sua melhor volta o tempo de 1m46s701 mesmo com o intenso tráfego
no momento da sua volta rápida. A pole foi otida por Max Papis
com um Lexus Riley, em 1m45s447.
"Tudo
correu muito bem na classificação. A pista é muito
difícil e rápida, mas mesmo sem nunca termos treinado aqui,
já de cara consegui ficar entre os três mais rápidos",
contou Negri. "Fizemos algumas mudanças no set-up, e melhorou
em algumas partes da pista e piorou em outras, já que o traçado
do VIR tem curvas de mais 150 mph (241 km/h) e outras de menos de 50 mph
(80 km/h). Estamos bastante confiantes para corrida deste domingo",
completou Negri.
O
brasileiro já foi contatado oficialmente por duas grandes equipes
para próxima temporada, e na próxima semana terá
reuniões para definir seu futuro. Christian Fittipaldi, que também
está competindo na Grand-Am, vai largar da quarta posição,
ao lado de Oswaldo Negri. A VIR 400 será disputada neste domingo
à partir da 13:00 (horário de Brasília).
Veja
os seis melhores no grid para VIR 400:
1 Pruett/Papis – Lexus Riley, 1min45s447
2 Taylor/Angelelli – Pontiac Riley, 1min46s210
3
Negri Jr/Frissele– Lexus Doran, 1min46s701
4 Fittipaldi/Barber/Borcheller – Pontiac Doran, 1min46s807
5 Law/Donohue – Porsche Fabcar, 1min46s958
6 Forbes-Robinson/Leitzinger – Pontiac Crawford, 1min47s031
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing takes 3rd in VIR qualifying
10/02/2004
Note---The
race will be broadcast live on Speed Channel Sunday, October 3rd at 12:00
PM EST
Oswaldo Negri drove the number 6 Michael Shank Racing Lexus-Doran to third
on the forty-car grid for Sunday’s VIR 400 with a fast lap time
of 1:46.701 seconds, despite not getting a clean run in traffic at Virginia
International Raceway today. Negri once again was able to step it up in
qualifying, netting the team’s fastest lap of the weekend so far.
The MSR squad will line up on the second row behind championship protagonists
Max Papis on pole in another Lexus-powered machine and Wayne Taylor.
The race weekend is the first time drivers Negri and Burt Frisselle have
run a Daytona Prototype at the track, and the team has fared well given
that most of the other teams tested at VIR just last month.
“This is a good demonstration of how strong this team is-we didn’t
test here, so we have been playing some catch up this weekend, but obviously
the Michael Shank Racing guys have done a great job to get us to third
in qualifying,” said Oswaldo Negri. “I was hoping we could
have made a front row start-I think our car was strong enough to do that--but
I just didn’t get the breaks in traffic during the session that
I needed, but we are looking forward to the race tomorrow.”
Team owner Mike Shank was pleased with how much progress the team has
made during the weekend so far, but he also knows that Sunday’s
race will be extremely competitive.
“Our top speed is pretty good around here, and we have made a ton
of progress so far this weekend, so while I know Os was a bit frustrated
with the traffic, we have to be pretty happy with the result,” said
Shank. “There are a lot of strong cars around us, so we will have
to see how things develop during the race.”
Frisselle, who will take the controls of the MSR Lexus-Doran during the
first pit stop of the race, has also been in action this weekend, and
has enjoyed running on the twisty natural terrain circuit.
“This is an intense experience-running through these fast corners,
just trying to manage the weight of the car through the transitions is
a constant challenge, but driving this thing at these speeds is an absolute
blast!” said Frisselle. “Like Oz mentioned, we have really
come along during the weekend, so hopefully we can put in a competitive
run tomorrow and keep up the good momentum we have in the second part
of this season.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Michael
Shank Racing gears up for VIR 400
09/30/2004
Note---The
race will be broadcast live on Speed Channel Sunday, October 3rd at
12:00 PM EST
The fan favorite number 6 Michael Shank Racing Lexus-Doran will return
to action this weekend for round ten of the 2004 Rolex Sports Car Series
in the VIR 400 presented by SunTrust at Virginia International Raceway
near Alton, Virginia. The Michael Shank Racing squad is coming off a
strong fifth place finish in the last round at Homestead earlier this
month, and is looking to move up from fourth position in the team championship
battle with drivers Burt Frisselle and Oswaldo Negri, Jr.
The
Homestead result netted the team’s sixth top-six finish of the season
thus far, with the small team just thirty-four points from the championship-leading
Ganassi squad, with thirty-five points going to the race winner. The team
is hoping that the series’ return to a natural road course, with
VIR’s fast corners and long straights will play into their hands.
“It’s an absolutely awesome track, with a little bit of everything,”
said driver Burt Frisselle. “It’s really nice to race at a
natural terrain track like VIR, and to give our Lexus engine a chance
to stretch its legs a bit! I think the car should be well suited to the
track-the car is so well engineered by Dale Wise and the guys, that hopefully
we can get another good result.”
Award-winning team owner Mike Shank, who has seen his team rebound from
a disappointing finish at the teams home race at Mid-Ohio to score a season-high
second place finish at Watkins Glen and go on to score the Homestead top-five,
is also hoping that the Lexus-Doran combination will be well suited to
the track.
“We
have got a good bit of momentum coming from the Glen and then Homestead,
so hopefully we can keep that going this weekend at VIR and work our way
up in the championship,” said Shank. “This team keeps improving,
every race, and Burt and Oz continue to impress in the car, so we’ll
just keep at it and look for a good finish this weekend.”
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Mike
Shank Racing segue otimista para VIR 400
09/29/2004
Negri motivado para o desafio em Virginia, após visita de De Ferran
e Castroneves
A
equipe Mike Shank Racing (MSR), do brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, e do norte-americano,
Burt Frisselle, disputam neste fim de semana a décima etapa da
temporada 2004, da Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series, no Virginia International
Raceway. A dupla ocupa a quarta colocação no campeonato,
e o objetivo e tentar subir ainda mais na classificação.
"Estamos vivendo uma situação meio estranha. Estamos
em quarto no campeonato, temos andado constantemente entre os cinco primeiros,
estivemos duas vezes no pódio, e no momento nossa maior luta é
conseguir um patrocinador para garantir nossa participação
até o final da temporada", comentou Negri.
O
brasileiro no entanto, está em alta na categoria, tendo sido sondado
por algumas equipes. "Realmente recebi alguns convites, mas no momento
quero me concentrar em manter as boas performances. Além disso
nossa equipe está dando o máximo de si, já que estamos
conseguindo testar somente nos finais de semana de corrida, e graças
a Deus temos conseguido fazer nosso carro competitivo", lembrou o
brasileiro. "Em Miami, erramos na estratégia, caso contrário
com certeza teríamos conquistado um pódio", disse Negri.
Para a VIR 400, Negri alertou que a dificuldade será ainda maior,
já que todas outras equipes testaram recentemente no traçado.
A pista é de altíssima velocidade, com subidas e decidas,
e uma reta bastante longa.
"Confio na capacidade do meu parceiro Burt, e da equipe, por isso
estamos bastante confiante", completou o brasileiro. Na etapa de
Miami, a Mike Shank Racing e Oswaldo Negri, convidaram os brasileiros
Gil de Ferran e Hélio Castroneves para acompanharem a prova, junto
com a equipe. O bicampeão de Indianápolis (Castroneves)
e o bicampeão da CART (De Ferran), prontamente atenderam o convite
do amigo e rival das pistas.
Negri, competiu com De Ferran no Brasil, na F-Ford, e depois foram vizinhos
na Inglaterra, quando disputaram a Fórmula 3 Inglesa. Com Castroneves,
Negri criou uma grande amizade, quando o piloto veio da Europa para competir
na Indy Lights, e passou a residir em Miami. Os três ainda se encontram
sempre que possível para animados "pegas" de kart, já
que Negri é importador oficial dos chassis Mini para os Estados
Unidos. A dupla comemorou bastante a quinta posição de Negri
e Frisselle no final da prova.
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Castroneves
and De Ferran visit Michael Shank Racing at Homestead
09/22/2004
IndyCar
stars Helio Castroneves and Gil De Ferran visited the Rolex Sports Car
race at Homestead Miami Speedway this weekend as guests of Michael Shank
Racing’s Oswaldo Negri. Negri has competed against, and been friends
with, the two for several years. The two Indianapolis 500 Champions
spent some time with Michael Shank Racing team members before the race
talking shop and getting an up-close look at the number 6 Lexus-powered
Doran.
Negri, who has made the most of the opportunity he has had this season
with Michael Shank Racing, first met De Ferran in their native Brazil
when they both competed in Formula Ford. The two were then neighbors
in England when they were trying to make names for themselves in British
Formula 3, where they battled each other for the championship.
“There was a lot of competition between us, but also too a good
friendship, and we have always kept in touch,” said Negri. “It
was great that they were both able to come out and watch the race.”
Negri became friends with Castroneves when they raced each other in
the Indy Lights ranks, and the fellow Miami residents still find themselves
racing each other from time to time, although its just for fun in Kart
Mini’s, a karting chassis which Negri imports to the States.
Negri’s teammate Burt Frisselle also spent some time with Castroneves
and De Ferran before the start of the Miami 250, and the talk naturally
drifted to racing, as Frisselle talked about the challenges of racing
with three different classes on the track at the same time, as is the
nature of Rolex Sports Car racing.
“Its basically as if you guys ran an IRL race at the same time
as they had the Infiniti Pro Series racing—it keeps you busy!”
said Frisselle.
Castroneves and De Ferran, two of the friendliest guys in any paddock,
enjoyed watching Negri race, and learning more about the Rolex Series
firsthand. Castroneves teased De Ferran, who retired at the end of 2003,
about getting back into racing in the Rolex ranks.
“Maybe he is getting a little tired of being retired and wants
to try one of these!” joked Castroneves.
Negri and Frisselle ran well during the Miami 250, and finished fifth
to retain fourth in the team championship. The team is hoping that the
strong finish will help the team develop the funding to race the next
round at Virginia International Raceway on October 3rd.
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Negri
foi quinto em Homestead
09/20/2004
Oswaldo
Negri terminou em quinto na nona etapa da Grand-Am, em Miami
O brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr. e seu companheiro de equipe, Burt Frisselle,
levaram o Doran Lexus da equipe Mike Shank Racing (MSR) à quinta
colocação na nona etapa da temporada 2004 da Grand Am Rolex
Sports Car Series, que foi disputada neste domingo no circuito de Homestead,
em Miami, na Flórida (Estados Unidos).
Na
largada Negri, que largou na mesma posição que ocupa no
campeonato (4º), já que por causa dos furacões que
atingiram os Estados Unidos nos últimos dias não houve treinos,
manteve sua posição. Negri conseguiu superar a venezuelana
Milka Duno, mas foi superado por Terry Borcheler, companheiro de equipe
de Christian Fittipaldi.
O
calor se mostrou o maior adversário do motor Toyota, do carro de
Negri, que sobre muito com a alta temperatura. O brasileiro inclusive
relatou que por este motivo ficou difícil fazer ultrapassagens,
já que precisava constantemente controlar a temperatura do motor.
“O
calor era tão forte, que quatro pilotos passaram muito mal ao saírem
do carro, e foram atendidos pelos paramédicos”, relatou Negri.
Negri
após algum tempo superou Borcheller e assumiu o terceiro lugar.
Quando aconteceu um acidente, que causou a primeira bandeira amarela,
o brasileiro pulou para segundo, arriscando uma estratégia diferente.
A
estratégia da MSR era até muito boa, já que o carro
estava excelente de chão, contou Burt Frisselle, mas o calor atrapalhou
muito o rendimento do motor.
“Estou muito feliz por termos conseguido completar a prova entre
os cinco primeiros novamente”, disse o norte-americano. “Esta
é uma das pistas que não é favorável ao nosso
carro, mas conseguimos um ótimo resultado”, completou o piloto.
A
Mike Shank Racing, correu em Miami com um novo patrocinador, a ZETA, empresa
também de Miami, que ficou felicíssima com o retorno obtido.
Negri havia convidado para prova seus amigos Gil de Ferran, e Helio Castroneves,
que foram prestigiar o brasileiro, e fizeram uma grande festa com o quinto
posto obtido.
A
vitória no final ficou com a dupla Milka Duno/ Andy Wallace, que
venceram pela segunda vez nesta temporada. Wayne Taylor/ Max Angelleli
foram segundo, e Butch Leitzinger/ Wayne Forbes-Robinson completaram o
pódio. A próxima etapa da Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series,
será VIR 400, no dia 03 de Outubro, no Virginia International Raceway.
Resultado
da Homestead Miami 250:
1 Duno/ Wallace - Pontiac Crawford, 104 voltas
2 Taylor/ Angelelli - Pontiac Riley, 104
3 Forbes-Robinson/ Leitzinger - Pontiac Crawford, 104
4 Morales/ Diaz - Lexus Riley, 104
5 Negri Jr/ Frisselle- Lexus Doran, 104
6 Maxwell/ Gue - Ford Multimatic, 104
7 Collins/ Theys - Lexus Doran, 104
8 Wagner/ Martini - BMW Doran, 103
9 Borcheller/ Fittipaldi - Pontiac Doran, 103
10 Papis/ Pruett - Lexus Riley, 102
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing takes fifth at Homestead
09/19/2004
Michael
Shank Racing finished fifth in the Miami 250 at the Homestead Miami Speedway
after starting from fourth on the grid and running as high as second during
the two-hour and forty-five minute event. The strong finish helped the
team reduce the gap to the championship leaders, and kept the team fourth
in the overall standings.
After the team posted the fastest time in morning practice, Oswaldo Negri
started the race from fourth position, and moved up to third at the start.
Negri fought amongst the top five throughout his first stint before turning
the car over to Burt Frisselle on lap 21 during a full course yellow.
Frisselle kept the car in the top five, and fought his way to second spot
by lap 40, holding back the charge from several championship contenders
before the Michael Shank Racing squad made the most of another full course
caution on lap 50 to change tires, add fuel, and get Negri back behind
the wheel.
The race, which saw some extreme heat in the humid Florida conditions
as well as a total of five full course yellow periods keep the lead pack
in close touch, had the final restart with fifteen minutes remaining as
Negri fought to keep the car in contact with the leaders after the balance
on the car went away in the closing laps of the race, but he was able
to hold on to fifth at the checkered flag.
“We are learning every race we run, and we just keep improving,”
said Oswaldo Negri. “I am so proud of this team-of all my years
in racing, this is a great opportunity for me to be working with some
of the best people in the sport. I also want to thank Clear Channel for
teaming up with us for the race so we could even get a chance to take
the green flag here today.”
Frisselle had a strong stint at the wheel and showed how much he has learned
this season, performing well on the restarts and holding off the charge
from eventual podium finishers to keep position. Frisselle is optimistic
about the MSR answering the bell in the upcoming events, and knows that
a top-five finish can help make that happen.
“I am happy to finish in the top five again,” said Burt Frisselle.
“We fought all weekend to get the car better, since the track layout
isn’t the best for us, but I am thrilled to get the points, and
to have a good result for our sponsor ZETA here in Miami.”
Award-winning team owner Mike Shank is never satisfied unless he is in
victory circle, but knows that the small team did everything they could
today to try and make that happen.
“This isn’t really our kind of track, but we did the best
we could today,” said Shank. “Our guys did a flawless job
in the pits, and Burt and Oswaldo got everything out of the car, so we’ll
put the points in the bank and go from here. I have been saying all season
that if we can finish in the top five every race, we will be good for
the championship, so we accomplished that today, but of course after being
fastest in the warm up this morning, we were hoping for more.”
The small team is hoping that the strong finish will help in the effort
to secure the necessary funding to keep racing to the end of the championship.
“It didn’t help us that the guys we are chasing in the championship
won, but this was a solid effort all around for us, and we moved closer
to the lead guys in the championship, so hopefully we can get the kind
of help we got from ZETA this weekend in the next events, as we know we
have what it takes to win and just have to keep fighting for it.’
Matt
Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Michael
Shank Racing partners with 94.9 ZETA for Miami 250
09/15/2004
Michael
Shank Racing will fly the colors of Miami-based Clear Channel Communications
radio station 94.9 ZETA for the Miami 250 Rolex Sports Car Series event
on September 10-12 at the new Homestead Miami Speedway. The partnership
will see the 94.9 ZETA FM #6 Lexus-Doran utilized in a number of promotional
activities in advance of the race weekend, as well as a race day ‘meet
and greet’ with the team and drivers Oswaldo Negri Jr, and Burt
Frisselle.
The
small team, hot off a season-best second place finish at Watkins Glen
in August, is looking forward to returning to the Homestead complex, which
hosted round two of the Rolex Sports Car Series, and saw the Negri Jr.
and Frisselle pairing score a podium finish with third place in just their
first outing with MSR.
“We are excited about the opportunity that this partnership creates
for both parties,” team owner Mike Shank said. “After the
strong finish we had at the Glen, we were that much more devoted to getting
the chance to race again and go for the podium again at Homestead, so
we can’t wait to make the most of this opportunity.”
Despite
a series of bad-luck finishes in the middle rounds of the season, the
MSR squad has managed to fight its way to fourth in the team championship,
and is now just five points from third, and thirty-nine points from the
powerhouse Ganassi squad in first.
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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Michael
Shank Racing has high hopes for Homestead
09/13/2004
Columbus,
OH - Michael Shank Racing is looking forward to racing in the rescheduled
Miami 250 at Homestead Miami Speedway this weekend and continuing to
fight for positions in the Rolex Sports Car Series championship with
their Lexus-powered Doran. The small team, hot off a season-best second
place finish at Watkins Glen in August, is eager to return to the Homestead
complex, which hosted round two of the Rolex Sports Car Series in April,
and saw drivers Oswald Negri Jr. and Burt Frisselle score a podium finish
in just their first outing with MSR.
“I just hope we get to go racing this weekend,” said Burt
Frisselle. “It was a smart decision for Grand American to postpone
the race for a week, and hopefully Ivan will stay well clear of Florida!
The car was obviously really good at the Glen, and now we get to race
on a track that we have some experience on, and hopefully we can put
that to our advantage this weekend.”
While both Michael Shank Racing drivers hail from different parts of
the world, Frisselle from Hawaii and Negri from Brazil, they both have
found a new home in Miami, and are looking forward to the race weekend.
“It’s kind of a home race for us, and we qualified well
(P3) and were on the podium here in April , so we are pretty confident
about the race,” said Negri. “We have got some good momentum
coming off of the Glen, so we hope we can do well at Homestead and keep
fighting for Michael Shank Racing in the championship. There will be
a lot of family and friends here for the race as well, and that always
makes it special.”
Despite a series of bad-luck finishes in the middle rounds of the season,
the MSR squad has managed to fight its way to fourth in the team championship,
and is now just five points from third, and thirty-nine points from
the powerhouse Ganassi squad in first. The event has been rescheduled
to be a two-day event, and will see the grid lined up by team championship
points.
The
race is scheduled to be aired live on Speed Channel at 11:00 am EST on
Sunday, September 19th.
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317.908.2975
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Negri
testa pneus Hoosier
20/08/2004
Oswaldo
Negri testa os pneus que irão equipar a categoria em 2005
Após o anúncio na última sexta-feira de que a Hoosier
Racing Tire Corporation será o fornecedor exclusive de pneus para
a Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series na próxima temporada,
três equipes da Daytona Prototype participaram de testes com os
novos pneus no circuito de Watkins Glen, nesta última quarta e
quinta-feira.
O
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, que no ultimo final de semana conquistou
junto com Burt Frisselle um belíssimo segundo lugar na Sahlen's
200 at the Glen, foi um dos pilotos escolhidos para o teste. O piloto
da Michael Shank Racing, testou com seu Lexus Doran os pneus da Hoosier.
Além
de Negri testaram os pneus da fábrica norte-americana, Kelly Collins
com o BMW Doran, da G&W Motorsports; e Scott Maxwell com um Multimatic
Ford. Os carros giraram um total de 1.100 milhas no teste, marcando a
primeira apresentação dos carros da Grand-Am com os pneus
Hoosier.
"Tivemos
a grata surpresa de perceber que estamos bem mais avançados do
que supúnhamos”, disse o gerente de produto da Hoosier, Mike
Kraemer, "Basicamente, pulamos uma fase inteira no processo de produção,
e poderemos trazer um lote menor de pneus para o próximo teste”,
disse ainda Kraemer.
O
gerente da Hoosier elogiou muito o trabalho dos pilotos, que lhes forneceu
uma quantidade gigante de informações, que ajudará
muito no desenvolvimento dos pneus.
"Foram
testes muito proveitosos. Posso adiantar que estes pneus tornam a pilotagem
mais fácil, principalmente pelo excelente grip que apresentam”,
falou Negri. “Para o primeiro teste realmente fiquei impressionado
com o desempenho”, disse ainda o brasileiro.
Burt
Frisselle, companheiro de Negri na MSR, endossou as palavras do companheiro.
“Estou
feliz por ter sido convidado para este teste, e fiquei impressionado com
o desempenho destes pneus, que me permitiram imprimir um forte ritmo,
já desde as primeiras voltas”, comentou o jovem norte-americano.
Segundo
Kraemer, a Hoosier planeja outro teste com seis equipes, desta vez na
pista de Miami. O teste acontecerá na segunda-feira após
a prova marcada para o dia 12 de setembro. Kraemer disse ainda que as
equipes chegaram a torcer por chuva em Watkins Glen, para avaliar os pneus
de chuva da companhia, mas contrariando as informações da
meteorologia, a chuva não veio.
"Estamos
todos sentados esperando por chuva, mas caprichosamente ela não
veio. Vamos ter de torcer por chuva em alguma outra pista, para testar
nossos compostos para pista molhada”. Disse Kraemer sorrindo.
JV5Racing
João Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing scores second place at the Glen
08/14/2004
The
little team that can, does, and scores their second podium of the season.
“What
I love about racing in this category is that if you have clever engineers,
good drivers, and a solid team working on the car, you can be competitive
week in and week out no matter what your budget is.”
Award-winning
team owner Mike Shank’s comment to a journalist just before the
Sahlen’s 200 at the Glen proved prescient, as the underdog Michael
Shank Racing team put all three things to work to earn their best finish
of the season with a strong second-place run to the podium to the delight
of the team and the Grand Am paddock, which has developed an enormous
amount of respect for what the team has been able to do with a limited
budget in just their first season of Rolex competition.
The second visit of the season for the Rolex Sports Car Series to the
famed Watkins Glen International facility brought plenty of highs and
lows for the MSR squad as the weather bounced between heavy rains and
dry conditions in the practice sessions in advance of the race. Drivers
Burt Frisselle of Kihei, Hawaii and Brazilian-born Miami resident Oswaldo
Negri, Jr., had found the sweet spot in the MSR Lexus-powered Doran in
wet conditions, but were less confident about the dry handling of the
car. The qualifying session was cancelled due to heavy rains, setting
the field by team championship points, giving the 6 car fourth on the
grid.
The race started in dry conditions, and despite uncertainty about the
cars dry set-up, Oswald Negri had a very strong first stint, keeping the
car within just seconds of the leaders while fending off several charges
from NASCAR’s Tony Stewart for fourth place. Heavy rains came on
lap 34, and Negri was able to get the car safely back to the pits for
a driver change and a switch to wet tires as several other competitors
went off track in the difficult conditions, bringing out a timely full
course yellow.
Frisselle took the wheel of the 6 car during the pitstop, which was quick
enough to move the 6 car into third position. On the restart, he held
position and staged a monster battle with former Formula One star and
eventual winner Jan Magnussen before finally ceding fourth place on lap
50. Frisselle kept in touch with the leaders, but felt as though he might
have over-worked his rain tires in the drying conditions.
“I keep learning more every lap I am in the car, and I definitely
learned a lot today!” said Frisselle. “I worked the rain tires
too hard on the first part of my stint and overheated them and began to
go backwards a little bit. But I was fighting with the Ganassi car, and
followed his lead to change my line and keep the tires cool.”
The changing conditions proved to be a challenge for the entire field,
and a full course yellow on lap 59 for a stranded car provided the team
with a perfect opportunity to make the brave move to slick tires. Frisselle
rejoined the field in seventh place on lap 63 and on the restart was some
thirteen seconds back to the leader.
Frisselle quickly to put his advantage to work, dispensing with the Porsche
traffic on his way to reeling off some of the quickest laps of the field
at that point in the race, reducing the gap to the leader by up to three
seconds a lap and at one point going three wide to make a double pass
for position. Frisselle kept his cool, streaking by everyone to move into
second place behind Magnussen, but ran out of laps in his pursuit of the
lead to score the best finish of the season to date for the small Ohio-based
team.
“The last laps were really exciting-we went from seventh to second
in ten minutes, running on a drying track in the dark making passes everywhere!
Its just an unbelievable result for the team-which has worked so incredibly
hard to give us the best car possible, and so its great to be able to
get it to the podium for them and for Mike.”
The victory podium celebrations were a happy release for the team, which
has seen its fair share of luck go someone else’s way this season.
Frisselle, Negri, and Shank were bombarded by congratulations from fellow
competitors.
“Unbelievable!” said a smiling Mike Shank with the teams trophy
in his hands. “This result finally shows the gains we have been
making all season. Our engineers-Dale Wise and Dale Kanning-made a great
decision with Burt to go to slicks-we took a big gamble, and it paid off
big time! This is the first race since Homestead that the luck has gone
our way and that we haven’t been knocked off track. Burt and Oswaldo
once again did a great job in the car, and getting second is fantastic
for all my guys who work so hard to make this happen on a very limited
budget.”
Negri was also excited about the result, and felt like it finally matched
the hard work the team has done all season.
“I am so happy and proud to drive for this team-we put so much effort
into every session, and we just haven’t had the results to show
for it, so this is absolutely fantastic,” said Negri. “The
car was much better in the dry than I thought it was going to be, so it
was a nice surprise! Every race we are more and more competitive, and
it showed here tonight.”
The team is hoping to use the strong result to help develop the budget
to keep racing this season, and will be doing everything possible to get
to the next round at Homestead Miami Speedway in September.
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317.908.2975
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Negri
conquista brilhante segundo lugar em Watkins Glen
14/08/2004
Negri
e Frisselle deram um show em Watkins Glen e subiram ao pódio
Debaixo de condições diluvianas Oswaldo Negri Jr., e Burt
Frisselle, conquistaram o melhor resultado da Michael Shank Racing nesta
temporada. A dupla, que largou da quarta posição no grid,
terminou em segundo lugar a Sahlen’s 200 at The Glen, disputada
na noite de ontem no circuito nova-iorquino, na oitava etapa da Grand
American Rolex Sports Car Series.
A
prova mais uma vez fez a preliminar da NASCAR, que volta a competir em
circuitos mistos. A chuva foi a grande vilã no dia de ontem, já
que após os treinos livres, castigou o circuito nova-iorquino,
impedindo que se fossem disputados os treinos de classificação,
e o grid foi formado segundo a classificação do campeonato.
Negri
e seu companheiro na MSR (Michael Shank Racing), o norte-americano Burt
Frisselle, largaram da segunda fila do grid (4ª posição).
Na largada, o Lexus Riley de Pruett pulou na frente, com Negri conservando
sua quarta posição.
“Mudamos
o carro para o seco, e mais algumas coisas que aprendemos na última
corrida em Mid Ohio. Tudo funcionou muito bem; larguei em quarto e me
mantive grudado com os três primeiros”, falou o brasileiro.
“Éramos um trenzinho passando pelos GT e SGS”, contou
Negri.
Os quatro primeiros (Pruett, Borcheller, Angelelli e Negri) seguiam em
um ritmo fortíssimo até que na volta de nº 33 a chuva
começou a cair de maneira muito intensa, e os quatro entram juntos
nos boxes.
“Fizemos
um ótimo pit-stop e o Burt passou para terceiro. A chuva ficou
ainda mais forte, e Burt perdeu algumas posições”,
disse Negri.
A
corrida começou a se definir nas dez voltas finais, quando Jan
Magnussen, que venceu a prova, e Burt Frisselle resolveram arriscar tudo,
e instalaram pneus slicks nos seus carros.
“Quando
estavam faltando 10 voltas para o final, o Magnussem entrou nos boxes
e colocou slicks e o Burt teve a mesma idéia uma volta depois.
Foi uma decisão perfeita. Eles passaram todos os outros competidores
em 5 voltas”, disse Negri. “Nas últimas voltas eu estava
com o coração na boca, pois sabia o quanto às condições
estavam difíceis para o Burt, e que o mínimo erro seria
fatal. Porém ele foi demais e chegamos ao pódio”,
comentou exultante Negri.
A
comemoração da equipe de Mike Shank, dos engenheiros da
Lexus e dos técnicos do chassis Doran foi muito grande. A vitória
ficou com Jan Magnussen/ Didier Theys, com Negri e Frisselle em segundo
e Max Angelelli/ Wayne Taylor completando o pódio.
A
vitória na classe GT foi da dupla Boris Said/ Joey Hand com o BMW
M3, com a nona posição na classificação geral.
Na SGCS vitória de John Littlechild/ Spencer Pumpelly com um Porsche
GT3 Cup.
A
próxima etapa da Grand-Am será no dia 12 de setembro, em
Homestead (Miami), com a Homestead – Miami 250.
Resultado
da Sahlen’s 200 at The Glen:
1 (DP) Theys/ Magnussen - Lexus Doran
2 (DP) Negri Jr/ Frisselle - Lexus Doran
3 (DP) Taylor/ Angelelli - Pontiac Riley
4 (DP) Gavin/ Barber/ Borcheller - Pontiac Doran
5 (DP) Papis/ Pruett - Lexus Riley
6 (DP) Martini/ Wagner - BMW Doran
7 (DP) Donohue/ Law - Porsche Fabcar
8 (DP) Stewart/ Wallace - Pontiac Crawford
9 (GT) Hand/ Said - BMW M3
10 (GT) Auberlen/ Marks - BMW M3
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Negri
larga em quarto em Watkins Glen
13/08/2004
Chuva
impediu treinos de classificação e ordem do grid segue classificação
do campeonato
O
paulista Oswaldo Negri Jr., único brasileiro disputando o Grand
American Rolex Sports Car Series, vai largar da segunda fila do grid para
oitava etapa do campeonato, que acontece nesta sexta-feira no circuito
de Watkins Glen, com a Sahlen’s 200 at The Glen. O circuito já
recebeu este ano uma etapa da Grand-Am, muito embora tenha sido utilizado
o traçado longo de 3.4 milhas (5.471 metros), e agora a prova de
200 milhas será no traçado de 2.45 milhas (3.942 metros).
A
prova mais uma vez fará a preliminar da NASCAR, que volta a competir
em circuitos mistos. A chuva foi a grande vilã no dia de ontem,
já que após os treinos livres, castigou o circuito nova-iorquino,
impedindo que se fossem disputados os treinos de classificação,
e o grid será formado segundo a classificação do
campeonato.
Negri
e seu companheiro na MSR (Michael Shank Racing), o norte-americano Burt
Frisselle, largam da segunda fila do grid (4ª posição).
“Ontem
choveu o dia todo e embora tivessem treinos livres, não tivemos
classificação.
Na hora da classificação, caiu uma chuva tremenda, e o grid
foi determinado pela posição do campeonato; assim largaremos
em quarto lugar”, contou Negri.
”Os outros treinos também foram no molhado, e o nosso carro
estava com um acerto ótimo para pista molhada. No último
treino, quando todos estavam na pista, eu tinha o melhor tempo, sendo
1 segundo mais rápido que o Papis”, disse o brasileiro. “No
final do treino a pista começou a secar rapidamente, com a diminuição
da intensidade da chuva, mas ninguém queria queimar os pneus de
chuva, já que a previsão para corrida é de mais chuva”,
disse ainda Negri.
“No
único treino que rodamos com pista seca, o carro não está
nem perto de estar bom. Fizemos uma modificação aerodinâmica
no ‘chão’ do carro na parte dianteira, para atingir
um balanço razoável, mas ainda precisamos de mais tempo”,
falou o piloto. “Fizemos esta mudança porque necessitamos
de mais pressão aerodinâmica, e com isto nosso carro acaba
consumindo muito mais pneus que os demais. Os Crawford e o Reiley que
tem mais downforce que a gente”, completou Negri.
A
pole position para a Sahlen’s 200 at The Glen, ficou com a dupla
Max Papis/ Scott Pruet da CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing, com seu Lexus Riley.
Em segundo no grid largaram a dupla Wayne Taylor/ Max Angeleli. A prova
será disputada hoje (sexta-feira) com largada programada para as
17:30 (horário de Brasília).
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Roda
atrapalha corrida de Negri e Frisselle em Ohio
09/08/2004
Uma
roda solta roubou sete voltas da Michael Shank Racing na EMCO Gears Mid-Ohio
Road Racing Classic.
A
Michael Shank Racing Doran-Lexus vinha na terceira colocação
na EMCO Gears Mid-Ohio Road Racing Classic, sétima etapa do Campeonato
de 2004 da Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series. Negri largou em quarto,
e imediatamente assumiu a terceira posição, conseguindo
segurar os carros mais potentes que o perseguiam.
Os
carros de Taylor/Angelelli e Pruet/ Papis fugiam à frente. O problema
para MSR (Michael Shank Racing) começou depois da parada para troca
de pneus e reabastecimento.
O
companheiro de equipe de Negri, o norte-americano Burt Frisselle, assumiu
o volante e conseguiu manter a terceira colocação, mas ainda
muito ameaçado pelos carros que vinham atrás. Na 44ª
volta, seis após o pit-stop, na Curva 1, a roda traseira direita
caiu. Burt saiu da pista e danificou a traseira do protótipo.
O
carro voltou rebocado aos boxes, e com isso a equipe perdeu sete voltas,
e a chance de um lugar no pódio.
"O
final de semana prometia bastante, mas infelizmente não conseguimos
o resultado que precisávamos. Melhoramos muito nosso carro, mas
ainda não conseguimos chegar no nível da Ganassi e da SunTrust",
contou Negri. "Neste fim de semana vamos correr em Watkings Glen,
na preliminar da Nascar. Vamos ver se desta vez a gente se acerta, só
que lá, a pista é de alta, e isso será ainda mais
difícil, já que ainda sofremos com uma potência menor
de motor", completou o brasileiro.
A
vitória ficou com a dupla Max Papis/ Scott Pruett, com a venezuelana
Milka Duno/ Andy Wallace em segundo. A dupla mexicana Morales/ Diaz completou
o pódio.
Resultado
das 250 Milhas de Mid-Ohio (EMCO Gears Mid-Ohio Road Racing Classic ):
1 (DP) Papis/ Pruett - Lexus Riley 96 voltas
2 (DP) Duno/ Wallace - Pontiac Crawford
3 (DP) Morales/ Diaz - Lexus Riley
4 (DP) Law/ Donohue - Porsche Fabcar
5 (DP) Hall/ Huang - Pontiac Crawford
6 (DP) Gregoire/ Goad - Pontiac Crawford
7 (DP) Theys/ Leuenberger - Lexus Doran
8 (DP) Taylor/ Collard/ Angelelli - Pontiac Riley + 1
volta
9 (DP) France/ Haywood - Porsche Fabcar + 1 volta
10 (GT) Auberlen/ Marks - BMW M3 + 1 volta
28
(DP) Negri Jr/ Frisselle - Lexus Doran + 8 voltas
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Mid-Ohio:
Michael Shank Racing race report
08/08/2004
Michael
Shank Racing finishes 12th in Daytona Prototype class at Mid Ohio
Lexington,
OH -The Michael Shank Racing Lexus-powered Doran finished 12th in class
in the EMCO Gears Road Racing Classic at Mid Ohio after a wheel fell of
at speed and sent the 6 car into the sandtrap, putting paid to the podium
hopes for the home town team after a strong start of the nearly three
hour event with drivers Oswaldo Negri Jr. and Burt Frisselle.
Negri
started the race at the controls of the Lexus-Doran, and stayed with the
lead pack in the early laps, threatening for second place before bringing
the car in to pit during a well-timed yellow flag period. Hawaiian native
Frisselle took over the driving duties, and was in the top five at the
restart when on his second flying lap, the right rear tire separated from
the car, and sending Frisselle off the track.
"It
was scary-I turned into the corner, and the car started to wiggle, and
then, it just went around, and I heard a large explosion at the back,
and the next thing I knew, I was spinning and I could see the rear tire
going by me," said a wide-eyed Frisselle. "I just tried to get
out of harms way at that point-we were lucky there to not lose the car
and only have the damage we did, since there were three other prototypes
right behind me."
The
team lost several laps waiting for the car to be towed back to the pits,
as the loss of the wheel made moving the car difficult for the recovery
crew. The team pulled off the damaged bodywork and reattached a new wheel,
and an undaunted Frisselle strapped himself back into the car and re-entered
the fray some eight laps down in thirty-second place. Frisselle ran the
entire second half of the race in the damaged car, hauling it up to finish
12th in the points, and demonstrating both his speed and bravery every
lap.
"Well,
obviously its disappointing to have something like this take us out of
such a strong position at our home track, but to focus on the positive,
Burt's last stint was really amazing-for him to get back into the car
and crank out those lap times lap after lap shows that he's really growing
up, and taking some big steps inside the car," said Shank. "We
will fix the car and head on up to the Glen."
Despite
the setback, Negri was also focusing on the positive after the race.
"We
had the car going so well, but you know, that's racing, and these kind
of things happen," said Negri. "The team did a great job all
weekend, and we were running so strong that it's a bit disappointing to
have this happen, but at least we have the chance to race again at the
Glen next weekend. We'll just have to regroup and go to the next one and
get back to the podium."
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Mid-Ohio:
Michael Shank Racing qualifying report
08/06/2004
Michael
Shank Racing rockets to fourth in qualifying at Mid-Ohio
The little team that can will start from second row in home race
Lexington,
OH -The Michael Shank Racing Lexus-powered Doran will start the EMCO Gears
Road Racing Classic at Mid Ohio from fourth on the grid after driver Oswaldo
Negri dug deep late in the qualifying session with a 1:20.772-second lap
for Saturday's race. Columbus-based MSR is currently in fourth in the
team championship, and is looking to make the most of the home track weekend
for points.
Negri
and fellow pilot Burt Frisselle of Kiheii, Hawaii, were second fastest
in the morning practice session, but some slower traffic during the qualifying
prevented the team from showing their true speed.
"I
am so proud of the guys on the team-we test the least of anyone, and still
we show up every race and are consistently in the top-five, so hats off
to the crew" said Negri. "It took some time to get the car up
to temperature, but we were fast once it did! The result is a little frustrating
since I got blocked by traffic on my fastest lap, but the car is quick
and consistent, so we are focused on doing well in the race."
Award
winning team owner Mike Shank was also hoping to be closer to the front
in qualifying, but he knows the team has prepared a quick car, and that
his drivers are up to the task.
"Os
did a really good job-there is a couple lap window with the tires to get
the optimum out of them, and he was able to set his fastest lap well after
that, so he's impressed us again," Shank said. "We have been
targeting being in the top-five in qualifying every race, so we were able
to do that and we should be very competitive tomorrow. We have a lot of
friends, family, and sponsors on hand for the event, so we are very excited
about the race."
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Negri
larga da segunda fila em Mid-Ohio
06/08/2004
Negri
coloca carro da Michael Shank Racing na quarta posição para
7ª etapa da Grand-Am em Mid-Ohio
O brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr larga da segunda fila do grid na Mid-Ohio
Road Racing Classic, com o Lexus-Doran JE4, da Michael Shank Racing, nesta
sétima etapa do Campeonato de 2004 da Grand American Rolex Sports
Car Series. Negri estabeleceu o tempo de 1m20s772 (média de 161,962
km/m) para os 3.633 metros do circuito.
"As
modificações na parte aerodinâmica melhoraram um pouco
o comportamento do carro, assim como o motor também melhorou no
torque. As outras equipes, porém também se prepararam muito
bem nos testes antes desta prova", contou Negri.
"Em
relação às duas grandes (Chip Ganassi e Sun Trust)
ainda não conseguimos reduzir a diferença", disse o
brasileiro. "Vamos largar em quarto, daria para ter largado em terceiro,
pois peguei trafego na volta nais rapida. Tudo está tranquilo,
o carro está muito melhor na parte de desgaste de pneus, melhoramos
bastante mas não o sufuciente ainda. O Burt está também
andando bem, ele já conhecia a pista, a primeira que ele corre
este ano já tendo andado na pista outras vezes. Vamos ver o que
dá", completou Negri.
Max
Papis conquistou a pole position ficou com o Lexus Riley da equipe Ganassi,
além de estabelecer um novo recorde para o circuito, com o tempo
de 1m19s496. Esta foi a sexta pole da equipe nesta temporada.
Em
segundo larga outro chassi Riley, este da equipe SunTrust equipado com
motor Pontiac, e pilotado por Wayne Taylor, que nesta etapa fará
dupla com o francês Emanuel Collard.
Mike
Borkowski com outro Pontiac Riley (Mears Motorcoach/SpeedSource) abre
a segunda fila, e a dupla Oswaldo Negri Jr./ Burt Frisselle defendem a
Doran frente os poderosos Riley. Na classe GT a pole ficou com Bill Auberlen
(BMW M3). A prova de 250 milhas (1101 voltas ou 2 horas e 45 minutos)
acontece neste sábado, a partir das 19:30 (horário de Brasília).
Veja
os 20 primeiros do grid da EMCO Gears Mid-Ohio Road Racing Classic Mid-Ohio
Sports Car Course:
1 (DP) Papis/ Pruett - Lexus Riley 1m19s496
2 (DP)Taylor/ Collard/ Angelelli - Pontiac Riley 1m19s733
3 (DP) Borkowski/ Mears Jr - Pontiac Riley 1m20s656
4
(DP) Negri Jr/ Frisselle - Lexus Doran 1m20s772
5 (DP) Morales/ Diaz - Lexus Riley 1m20s785
6 (DP) Law/ Donohue - Porsche Fabcar 1m21s332
7 (DP) Forbes-Robinson/ Leitzinger Howard - Pontiac Crawford 1m21s758
8 (DP) Theys/ Leuenberger - Lexus Doran 1m21s949
9 (DP) Gregoire - Pontiac Crawford 1m21s976
10 (DP) Hall/ Huang - Pontiac Crawford 1m22s299
11 (DP) Martini/ Wagner - BMW Doran 1m22s955
12 (DP) Duno/ Wallace - Pontiac Crawford 1m22s976
13 (DP) Lewis/ Rice - BMW Fabcar 1m23s310
14 (DP) France/ Haywood - Porsche Fabcar 1m23s384
15 (GT) Auberlen/ Marks - BMW M3 1m26s196
16 (DP) Barber/ Borcheller - Pontiac Doran 1m26s228
17 (GT) Policastro/ Policastro/ Fitzge - Porsche GT3 RS 1m27s250
18 (GT) Said/ Hand- BMW M3 1m27s579
19 (GT) Gleason/ James/ Valentine - Porsche GT3 RS 1m28s145
20 (GT) Halsmer/ Curran - Acura NSX 1m28s193
Classes:
DP = Daytona Prototipe
GT = Gran Turismo
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing Midseason Review
07/27/2004
Columbus,
OH - Award-winning team owner Mike Shank of Columbus, Ohio took a big
gamble during the off-season, making the bold decision to buy a new Daytona
Prototype race car and compete in a completely new format, changing gears
from the sprint racing format of Atlantic competition that the team had
so much success in, to the endurance racing that is the hallmark of the
Rolex series.
The
decision has paid off, as the team has been in the top five in points
the entire season despite not having any experience in the category and
working with a limited budget.
The
season has provided the team with its share of highs and lows-from the
grueling 18-hours of rain in the teams debut at the Rolex 24 at Daytona,
where the team led the first lap of Rolex competition for engine supplier
Lexus and came home fourth in class after fighting back through the night
when mechanical problems caused by the non stop rain crept up early in
the event.
The
team didn't skip a beat when drivers Burt Frisselle of Hawaii and Oswaldo
Negri of Miami joined the squad and were fast right away. Frisselle joined
the Rolex ranks as one of the youngest drivers in the field, in just his
second season of professional racing after competing in the ultra-competitive
Barber Dodge Pro series against drivers like A.J. Allmendinger and Colin
Fleming.
He
was joined by Brazilian ace Oswaldo Negri Jr., who had finally earned
the opportunity his career had been lacking to that point. Negri, who
took championships in his native Brazil and on into England racing against
guys with names like Barrichello, Coulthard, and de Ferran, brought speed
and experience in the Daytona Prototype to the team, having contested
a limited schedule of races in 2003. He also brought a wealth of experience
developing race cars, as his time in F3 and Indy Lights had led to him
being tapped by Barber Dodge and Formula BMW to develop their cars as
a test driver.
Eager
to show they were well-placed in the category, and working to make the
most of the opportunity, the duo scored a coup in just their second race,
hustling their way to third place in qualifying and backing that up with
a scrappy run to third in the race behind a Michael Shank Racing crew
that was adapting quickly to the special challenge of pit stops in sprint-format
endurance racing.
The
next race in Phoenix didn't deliver the fortune the team had been hoping
for, as the team was again quick in qualifying but suffered from contact
with another car, which damaged the right rear suspension and prevented
the tire from being changed during the subsequent pit stop. This severely
compromised Frisselle's last stint and the team had to settle for sixth
place.
The
MSR crew regrouped for the Mt. Tremblant round, held in the beautiful
mountain region north of Montreal, where the team was again quick in qualifying
but suffered during the seasons first six-hour event when Frisselle was
knocked clear of the track when another competitor made an overly adventurous
move to pass, taking the team out of contention for a top-five finish
for the second race.
The
Glen brought a similar result, with the team once again getting knocked
out of contention when a competitor made an ill-advised attempt at a pass,
and again thwarted a potential podium finish with the damage in the six-hour
enduro.
The
Daytona round saw the team once again show strength in the late night
race, leaping up to second at the start and running in the lead pack all
night until the teams final pit stop, where a balky airgun left the 6
car sitting still just long enough to fall off the lead lap, despite the
teams best efforts.
But
despite these setbacks, Shank and his crew are firmly confident not only
about what the team can do, but also about the decision to go Grand Am.
"Every
race we go to, we have what it takes to win, and we know that," says
Shank. "When we decided that we wanted to racing Daytona Protypes,
that's all we were looking for-a chance to win, and racing here gives
us that. We have shown that the guys in the car can bring the speed, and
my guys going over the wall do a great job, and we have a great partner
powering us in Lexus, so its really just a matter of getting the breaks
to go our way.
"It
was a big risk I took with my wife when we decided to race here in Rolex,
but we are really happy we did," said Shank. "We feel that we
can win any race we enter, and that is saying a lot, as the competition
here is fierce, and there are some big-budget teams with a lot of experience
in this kind of racing, so we are proud of how quickly we have been able
to be competitive."
The
EMCO Gears Mid-Ohio Road Racing Classic marks the return of Michael Shank
Racing to the legendary track for the Columbus-based team.
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Equipe
de Negri brilhou em Daytona
Negri
fez uma grande corrida, e a Michael Shank Racing terminou em 8º na
Paul Revere 250
A
Michael Shank Racing Doran-Lexus completou a Paul Revere 250, disputada
ontem (Quinta-feira) no Daytona International Speedway, em um excelente
oitavo lugar, graças ao brilhante trabalho dos seus pilotos, o
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri, e o norte-americano Burt Frisselle.
Oswaldo
Negri, que largou da quinta posição no grid, mais uma vez
fez uma largada estupenda, e ao final da primeira volta já ocupava
a secunda colocação.
“Eu
deixei um pequeno espaço para os que iam a minha frente, na certeza
que iriam frear mais cedo, e foi exatamente o que aconteceu. Chegamos
na primeira curva todos juntos, e a contornamos com três carros
lado a lado, acabei completando a volta na segunda posição”,
contou Negri.
Na quarta volta o protótipo da Ganassi, muito mais potente que
o carro de Negri, o superou. Mesmo assim o experiente piloto brasileiro,
se manteve perto dos três que lideravam. O ritmo imposto pelo três
que iam a frente se tornou muito agressivo, para os pneus macios que equipavam
o doran Lexus do brasileiro, mas ainda assim Negri conseguiu entregar
o carro ao seu companheiro na terceira posição.
A equipe MSR alterou a combinação de pneus durante o pit-stop,
e Frisselle pode voltar a imprimir um ritmo mais forte. O americano conseguiu
manter o carro entre os top 5 durante grande parte da noite.
“Foi até estranho, já que não encontrei muito
tráfego, a não ser de algumas Porsches aqui e ali. O carro
estava satisfatório, e estava conseguindo diminuir a desvantagem
para o quarto colocado”, contou Frisselle.
No
pit-stop final, um parafuso de roda teimou em não sair, e tornou
a parada mais lenta que o previsto, fazendo a dupla perder um volta em
relação ao líder. Para completar, na parada da MSR
aconteceu uma bandeira amarela, permitindo que os demais que iam a sua
frente pudessem parar sob esta condição de corrida.
Negri
ainda lutou muito, mas terminou em oitavo lugar. O resultado desapontou
um pouco a equipe MSR, que luta contra as poderosas Ganassi e SunTrust,
com um orçamento bem mais modesto.
“Os
rapazes fizeram um trabalho fantástico, e só estou triste
porque este resultado não mostra o quanto eles se esforçaram,
e o quão fortes estávamos”, disse o dono da equipe,
Mike Shank. “Tivemos um pequeno problema na última parada,
e não fosse a bandeira amarela, teríamos terminado outra
vez no pódio, mas estou muito orgulhoso de nossos pilotos, e de
toda equipe”, falou Shank.
Negri
fez coro ao ditos de Shank, e elogiou o trabalho de toda equipe.
“Tenho
que agradecer aos nossos mecânicos, que é a equipe mais unida
e esforçada que eu já vi nos meus vinte anos de competição.
Tenho um imenso prazer em trabalhar com eles”, falou Negri. “Espero
que possamos nas próximas provas ter melhores resultados, que serão
a melhor recompensa ao excelente trabalho que eles vem fazendo”,
completou Negri.
A
vitória nesta sexta etapa da Grand Am Rolex Sport Car Series, ficou
com a dupla Wayne Taylor e Max Angelelli, com Riley Pontiac. A dupla travou
um espetacular duelo com o Riley Lexus de Scott Pruett e Max Papis, que
perderam a segunda posição na última volta para Tony
Stewart e Andy Wallace ( Pontiac Crawford).
Resultado
das 250 Milhas de Daytona
1 - Taylor/ Angelelli - SunTrust Racing / Pontiac Riley
70 voltas em 2h26m00s485
2 - Pruett/ Papis - CompUSA Chip Ganassi with Felix Sabates
/ Lexus Riley a 7s311
3 - Stewart/ Wallace - CITGO - Howard - Boss Motorsports
/ Pontiac Crawford a 16s635
4 - Forbes-Robinson/ Leitzinger - Howard - Boss Motorsports
/ Pontiac Crawford a 16s753
5 - Donohue/ Law - Red Bull Brumos Goodyear Kendall /
Porsche Fabcar a 16s954
6 - Duno/ Lammers - CITGO Howard Boss Motorsports / Pontiac
Crawford a 30s227
7 - Morales/ Diaz - CompUSA Chip Ganassi with Felix Sabates
/ Lexus Riley a 1 volta
8 - Negri Jr/ Frisselle - Michael Shank Racing / Lexus Doran a
1 volta
9 - Tremblay/ Mears Jr/ Borkowski - Mears Motorcoach/
SpeedSource / Pontiac Riley a 1volta
10 - Leuenberger/ Theys - Doran Lista Racing / Lexus
Doran a 2 voltas
JV5Racing
João
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Negri
larga em 5º na pista de Daytona
01/07/2004
Michael
Shank Racing pronta para o desafio de Daytona, na Paul Revere 250
Oswaldo
Negri Jr, classificou seu Doran Lexus na quinta posição,
terceira fila, para a Paul Revere 250, que será disputada hoje
no circuito de Daytona. A prova é válida pela sexta etapa
do Campeonato da Rolex Sports Car Series, sendo preliminar da NASCAR.
“Mais
uma vez vamos largar da quinta posição, e é exatamente
a posição que esperávamos estar. Nosso carro está
muito bom com pneus novos, mas o desgaste está muito acentuado,
fazendo com que o carro se torne complicado de pilotar”, disse o
brasileiro.
A
equipe Michael Shank Racing trabalhou com vários compostos de pneus,
e alterou a pressão dos mesmos, buscando uma melhora e desgaste
mais uniforme.
“Trabalhamos
muito com diferentes compostos, e pressão de pneus. Melhoramos
um pouco, porém não sei se isso será o suficiente”,
disse o piloto. “De toda maneira estou muito otimista, e espero
que desta vez ninguém bote a gente para fora, como aconteceu nas
duas últimas corridas”, disse ainda Negri.
O companheiro de Negri, o americano Burt Frisselle, está fazendo
sua estréia em um protótipo nesta pista, e toda equipe ficou
muito satisfeita com seu desempenho. Hoje antes da corrida, que tem largada
programada para as 12:00 (horário de Brasília), Negri, Frisselle
e vários outros pilotos, farão uma visita a crianças
com doenças terminais.
A
pole position para Paul Revere 250 ficou com a dupla Scott Pruett/ Max
Papis (CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley), com o tempo de 1m49s906.
David Donohue/ Darren Law (Bull-Brumos Racing Porsche Fabcar) completam
a primeira fila do grid.
Programação:
01/06
Quinta-feria
12:00
Largada para as 250 Milhas de Daytona (Paul Revere 250)
Grid
de largada para as 250 Milhas de Daytona
1 Pruett/ Papis (Lexus Riley - DP) 1m46s906
2 Donohue/ Law (Porsche Fabcar - DP) 1m47s579
3 Morales/ Diaz (Lexus Riley - DP) 1m47s683
4 Tremblay/ Mears Jr/ Borkowski (Pontiac Riley - DP) 1m48s067
5
Negri Jr/ Frisselle (Lexus Doran - DP) 1m48s372
6 Stewart/ Wallace (Pontiac Crawford - DP) 1m48s473
7 Taylor/ Angelelli (Pontiac Riley - DP) 1m48s643
8 Forbes-Robinson/ Leitzinger (Pontiac Crawford - DP) 1m50s073
9 Martini/ Wagner/ Collins (BMW Doran - DP) 1m50s649
10 France/ Haywood (Porsche Fabcar - DP) 1m51s596
11 Gregoire/ Goad (Pontiac Crawford - DP) 1m51s852
12 Leuenberger/ Theys (Lexus Doran - DP) 1m51s968
13 Duno/ Lammers (Pontiac Crawford - DP) 1m52s513
14 Hall/ Huang (Pontiac Crawford - DP) 1m52s783
15 Barber/ Borcheller (Pontiac Doran - DP) 1m53s594
16 Rice/ Lewis (BMW Fabcar - DP) 1m53s614
17 Buckler/ Halliday (Porsche GT3 RS - GT) 1m55s352
18 Fitzgerald/ Ja Policastro (Porsche GT3 RS - GT) 1m55s659
19 Hand/ Said (BMW M3 - GT) 1m56s188
20 Gleason/ James/ Valentine (Porsche GT3 RS - GT) 1m56s306
21 Marks/ Auberlen (BMW M3 - GT) 1m57s034
22 Vance/ Stevenson (Porsche GT3 RS - GT) 1m58s354
23 Wa Nonnamaker/ Wi Nonnamaker (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m00s262
24 Halsmer/ Schmitt (Acura NSX - GT) 2m00s557
25 Earle/ Barbosa/ Assentato (Maserati Light GT - GT) 2m00s765
26 Bunting/ Lally (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m01s205
27 Levitas/ Pobst (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m01s459
28 Friedman/ Keen (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m01s658
29 J Nonnamaker/ Wa Nonnamaker (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m01s907
30 Espenlaub/ Quarterley (Pontiac GTO - GT) 2m01s980
31 Baughman/ Ward/ Yeakle (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m01s998
32 Littlechild/ Pumpelly (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m02s690
33 Tafel/ Baldwin (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m05s669
34 Sigal/ Castillo (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m05s836
35 Van Wijk/ Culver (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS) 2m09s672
36 Kelleners/ Lazzaro (Ferrari 360GT - GT) 2m11s487
37 Ju Pruskowski/ Jo Pruskowski (Ford Multimatic - DP) 6m10s145
38 S Marshall/ D Marshall (BMW Picchio - DP) Sem tempo
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João
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Nesta
quinta Negri disputa a Paul Revere 250 em Daytona
06/21/2004
Michael
Shank Racing volta a Daytona para a Paul Revere 250
A
equipe Michael Shank Racing (MSR), onde compete o brasileiro Oswaldo Negri
Jr, volta este final de semana a ação, no Daytona International
Speedway, para sexta etapa do Campeonato da Rolex Sports Car Series, com
a realização da Paul Revere 250. A equipe de Michael Shank
estreou na Grand-Am nesta temporada, exatamente na pista de Daytona, com
a prova de 24 Horas.
Nesta
ocasião a equipe terminou na quarta posição, embora
a dupla não era formada ainda por Oswaldo Negri e Burt Frisselle.
Nas quatro provas seguintes, a dupla sempre terminou entre os seis primeiros,
e ocupa no momento o quinto lugar no campeonato de Construtores.
“Estou indo hoje para Daytona onde correremos a preliminar da Nascar.
Este será um dos melhores eventos para nós, pela popularidade
da Nascar”, contou Negri. “O Scott Pruett correu de Nascar
na semana passada pela Ganassi, e terminou em terceiro (Sonoma) e deve
ter um buxixo muito grande ao redor disto. O Tony Stewart também
vai correr dividindo o carro com o Andy Wallace, e isso vai gerar ainda
mais interesse para o público”, contou o brasileiro.
A
equipe MSR está bastante otimista para esta prova, onde contará
com um novo sistema de escape, desenvolvido pela TRD (Toyota Racing Development).
A equipe utiliza o chassis Doran, equipado com os motores Lexus (divisão
da Toyota).
“Este
novo sistema nos dará uns 9,075 kgfm (20 libras) a mais de torque.
É exatamente isto que estamos precisando, pois nosso motor por
ser menor que os Chevrolet e os BMW, sofre muito em pista de altíssima
como Daytona”, contou Negri.
A
equipe ainda garantiu a verba para as provas subseqüentes, de Mid-Ohio
e Watkins Glen.
“Estamos
buscando urgentemente patrocínio para completar o budget desta
temporada. Nossa verba não é suficiente para todo campeonato,
o que é uma pena, porque estamos fazendo um papel excelente dentro
da nossa capacidade financeira”, completou Negri.
Negri
e Frisselle estão em quinto no campeonato de Construtores, atrás
somente das poderosas equipes Ganassi e Sun Trust. No campeonato de pilotos
a dupla tem 103 pontos (11ª colocação), 48 menos que
os líderes.
Programação
da Paul Revere 250:
30/06
Quarta-feira
15:00
às 16:15 – 1º treino livre
16:30
às 18:00 – 2º treino livre
19:20
às 19:35 – Classificação DP (Daytona Prototipe)
01/06
Quinta-feira
12:00
Largada para as 250 Milhas de Daytona (Paul Revere 250)
Classificação
da Grand-Am no Campeonato de Pilotos (Classe DP)
1 Max Papis/ Scott Pruett, 151 pontos
2 Wayne Taylor/ Max Angelelli, 137
3 Andy Wallace, 134
4 Kelly Collins, 133
5 Cort Wagner, 132
6 Milka Duno, 126
7 Didier Theys, 124
8 Jimmy Morales, 120
9 JC France/ Hurley Haywood, 108
10 Elliot Forbers-Hobbinson/ Butch Leitzinger, 105
11
Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle, 103
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João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing finishes a battered eighth at the Glen
06/21/2004
Watkins Glen, NY--Michael Shank Racing (MSR) finished a hard-fought eighth
in the Sahlen's 6 Hours at the Glen for round five of the Rolex Sports
Car Championship after contact from another car once again hampered the
team's efforts for a return visit to the podium.
The
team, which is still working on developing the budget to continue racing
and make a return to the track when the series races at the Glen again
in August, knows it has all the ingredients for success, but just needs
to get the luck to go their way sometime soon.
"The
guys did another fantastic job today, but we were just too banged up the
second part of the race to be fast in the end," Mike Shank said.
"We know that we can get some results with these drivers and with
the Lexus-Doran, but we just have to get through a race without anyone
hitting us!"
Oswaldo
Negri started the race from fifth position and shot up to third on the
first lap as the six hour enduro got underway. Negri was involved in a
number of battles for position, and ran as high as second position before
handing the driving duties over to Burt Frisselle.
"It
was awesome out there, racing wheel to wheel with Jan (Magnussen) like
that," said Negri. "We were well matched-both in Lexus/Dorans,
so it was like being back in Formula 3 again, with me overtaking him on
one section of the track before he would get me back the next time around,
and we would go back and forth lap after lap. It was a blast."
Negri
was quick to praise the crew for keeping the car on track, despite the
all the damage to the car.
"The
guys did a fantastic job, keeping this car alive when it was so banged
up--I got hit on the side as well after Burt got hit-so the fact this
car was still doing fast laps at the end is a testament to the effort
and preparation that Michael Shank Racing puts into the car. We had a
top five car for sure, however, someone hit Burt (Frisselle) in the back
and that was the story."
Frisselle
put in two strong stints, and ran consistently quick laps despite feeling
a bit under the weather before the event. Frisselle was at the wheel when
he was hit from behind as he made his way through the section of the track
known as the boot.
"I
don't know what exactly the guy was thinking-I was already down at the
apex and I just felt this "bang" from the rear corner, and the
next thing I know, I'm going backwards."
Frisselle
was unhurt in the accident, and returned to battle the final stages of
the race, as the team fought to regain positions lost from the contact.
"It's
a disappointing result-eighth is certainly not what we were looking for
when we came out here, but on the other hand, it was encouraging how competitive
we were and that we were able to stay on the lead lap until I got hit,
and that's crucial in these kind of events," Frisselle said. "I
learned a lot today-the guys we are racing against are some of the best
drivers anywhere, so even though the result wasn't what we were looking
for, there is a lot of good to come out of this weekend, and are really
looking forward to racing again at Daytona!"
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Negri
chegou em 8º nas 6 Horas de Watkins Glen
21/06/2004
Chassi
estava excelente, mas acidente nos custou chance de pódio contou
Negri
Oswaldo
Negri Jr, e Burt Frisselle terminaram na oitava colocação
na Sahlen’s Six Hours at the Glen, quinta etapa da Grand-Am. A dupla
realizou uma grande apresentação, mas o motor menos potente
não lhes permitiu lutar por um lugar no pódio.
“Bem,
a corrida foi demais. Logo na largada eu pulei da quinta para terceira
colocação. Infelizmente o nosso motor não é
a mesma coisa que os demais, porém o chassi estava ótimo”,
disse Negri. “Tive um duelo com o Magnusen que foi fantástico.
A gente ficou brigando por mais de dez voltas, com ultrapassagens milimétricas,
e não nos tocamos nenhuma vez. Acabei levando a melhor, pois o
meu carro começou a melhorar e o dele piorar, e parti em busca
do carro #81 RX.com motor BMW”, falou o brasileiro.
Negri pilotou por 2 horas e 45 minutos antes de passar o carro para seu
companheiro. Quando Frisselle ia assumir o volante, a dupla estava na
segunda posição, mas um problema no reabastecimento fez
com que perdessem muito tempo nos boxes, e voltaram à pista em
quarto lugar.
Algumas
voltas depois Frisselle recebeu uma batida por trás de Sacha Maassen,
rodou, saiu da pista e bateu no muro. No choque a traseira do carro foi
danificada, quebrando o escapamento. A equipe trabalhou rápido,
trocando toda parte traseira, inclusive o escapamento.
“Voltei
ao carro, recuperei uma volta, porém ficou tarde demais e chegamos
em oitavo. Fiquei contente que o carro estava bom na corrida do inicio
ao fim do stint”, disse Negri. “Ainda vamos conseguir outro
pódio, mas está ficando cada vez mais difícil alcançar
os carros da Chip Ganassi e a SunTrust”, comentou Negri.
A
vitória ficou com a dupla Max Papis/ Scott Pruett, que haviam largado
na pole position. Em segundo ficaram Max Angelelli e Wayne Taylor, e os
mexicanos Diaz e Morales completaram o pódio. A próxima
etapa da Grand-Am será a Paul Revere 250, dia 01 de julho, em Daytona,
na Flórida.
Resultado
da corrida em Watkins Glen:
1 Papis/ Pruett - Lexus Riley (DP) 164 voltas
2 Angelelli/ Taylor - Pontiac Riley (DP), 164
3 Diaz/ Morales - Lexus Riley (DP), 164
4 Leitzinger/ Forbes-Robinson Pontiac Crawford (DP),
164
5 Magnussen/ Theys/ Lienhard - Lexus Doran (DP), 163
6 Law/ Donohue/ Maassen - Porsche Fabcar (DP), 163
7 Duno/ Wallace/ Lammers - Pontiac Crawford (DP), 162
8 Negri Jr/ Frisselle - Lexus Doran (DP), 162
9 Barber/ Borcheller/ Pilgrim - Pontiac Doran (DP), 162
10 Haywood/ France/ Luhr - Porsche Fabcar (DP), 161
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Negri
larga em 5º nas 6 Horas de Watkins Glen
19/06/2004
Negri
cumpre o previsto e larga da 3ª fila para a 5ª etapa da Grand-Am
Oswaldo
Negri Jr, cumpriu o previsto e marcou o quinto melhor tempo para a Sahlen’s
Six Hours at the Glen, com seu Doran-Lexus. O brasileiro estabeleceu o
tempo de 1m46s700 para os 5.435 metros do legendário circuito,
que fica nas proximidades de New York.
A
expectativa da equipe Michael Shank Racing é muito grande, já
que ocupa o terceiro lugar no Campeonato de Equipes, somente oito pontos
dos líderes, e espera se aproximar mais ainda, na prova de amanhã.
“Esta
é uma pista incrível. Quando era pequeno ficava encantado
em ler a respeito dela, nos textos que falavam das corridas do Emerson
Fittipaldi, e agora tenho a oportunidade de estar aqui”, disse Negri.
“Nossa equipe é pequena em comparação com a
Ganassi e a SunTrust, mas estamos motivados e esperamos repetir o desempenho
da classificação na corrida”, falou o brasileiro.
O otimismo de Negri é compartilhado por seu companheiro de equipe,
o havaino Burt Frisselle, e pelo dono da equipe, Mike Shank.
“Os rapazes fizeram um trabalho maravilhoso na classificação,
e espero que possamos repetir o brilhante desempenho apresentado nos pits
em Mont-Tremblant. Estamos aprendendo muito sobre o carro este ano, e
esperamos continuar com o aprendizado amanhã na corrida”,
disse Shank.
A corrida tem a largada prevista para as 10:00 deste domingo.
Grid
de largada (Categoria Daytona Prototipos)
1 Angelelli/ Taylor - Pontiac Riley 1m43s602
2 Wagner/ Martini/ Collins - BMW Doran 1m45s821
3 Diaz/ Morales - Lexus Riley 1m45s833
4 Law/ Donohue/ Maassen – Porsche Fabcar 1m46s694
5 Negri Jr/ Frisselle - Lexus Doran 1m46s770
6 Borkowski/ Mears Jr – Pontiac Riley 1m46s867
7 Magnussen/ Theys/ Lienhard - Lexus Doran 1m47s268
8 Leitzinger/ Forbes-Robinson – Pontiac Crawford
1m47s510
9 Haywood/ France/ Luhr - Porsche Fabcar 1m48s280
10 Goad/ Gregoire - Pontiac Crawford 1m48s431
11 Papis/ Pruett - Lexus Riley 1m48s671
12 Duno/ Wallace/ Lammers – Pontiac Crawford 1m48s710
13 Hall/ Huang/ Davis - Pontiac Crawford 1m50s207
14 Lewis/ Rice/ Southard - BMW Fabcar 1m50s303
15 Pruskowski/ Pruskowski/ Bentle - Ford Multimatic 1m50s797
16 Barber/ Borcheller/ Pilgrim - Pontiac Doran1m54s705
JV5Racing
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Negri
espera largar entre os 5 primeiros em Watkins Glen
19/06/2004
Mesmo
com tráfego Shank Racing foi uma das mais rápidas no 1º
dia em Glen
Oswaldo
Negri Jr, e Burt Frisselle da Mike Shank Racing, reclamaram bastante do
tráfego no primeiro dia de treinos para as 6 Horas de Watkins Glen,
que acontece neste domingo. A prova é válida pela quinta
etapa da Grand-Am, onde o brasileiro ocupa a nona posição
no campeonato, tendo disputado somente três etapas.
“O
primeiro dia foi bastante complicado, não consegui dar uma volta
limpa. São ao todo 16 protótipos e 29 GTs”, contou
o brasileiro. “No início do treino ainda consegui me manter
em primeiro, mas depois com o tráfego não achei mais nenhuma
volta limpa, e os carros da SunTrust nos passaram. O Burt teve a mesma
dificuldade no segundo treino livre”, falou Negri.
“A
minha Rolling lap no computador me colocaria em segundo no grid. Acho
que vamos conseguir um lugar nas três primeiras filas do grid”,
disse. “Nossa diferença de motor para os BMW e Chevrolet
são muito grandes aqui”, confessou Negri.
No
final do dia Negri estava com a sétima melhor marca nas folhas
de tempos, e a equipe está bastante otimista para a classificação,
que será disputada hoje em 15 minuto, a partir das 12:25.
“O
carro tem um bom equilíbrio, porém temos que fazer algo
para compensar o motor.
Se você olhar os tempos vai ver que estão todos muito fora,
alguns muito rápidos e alguns muito lentos, e isto e por causa
do trânsito. Hoje teremos uma hora de treinos livres antes da classificação,
e vamos fazer algumas mudanças na suspensão. Espero que
o carro fique mais rápido”, finalizou o brasileiro.
Neste
sábado acontece o 3º treino livre das 9:00 às 10:00,
e a classificação da Classe DP (Daytona Prototipe) onde
compete o brasileiro, acontece das 12:25 às 14:40. A corrida tem
a largada prevista para as 10:00 do domingo.
Classificação
da Grand-Am no Campeonato de Pilotos (Classe DP)
1 Max Papis/ Scott Pruett, 116 pontos
2 Kelly Collins/ Cort Wagner, 114
3 Andy Wallace/ Terry Borcheller, 110
4 Wayne Taylor/ Max Andglelli, 105
5 Milka Duno, 102
6 Didier Theys, 98
7 Jimmy Morales, 90
8 JC France/ Hurley Haywood, 87
9 Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle, 80
10 Forest Barber/ Joe Prukowski, 80
11 Larry Huang/ Stephan Gregoire/ Chris Hall, 79
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Negri
confiante para as 6 Horas de Watkins Glen
16/06/2004
Shank Racing vai em busca de pódio na 2004 Shalen’s Six Hours
of The Glen
Oswaldo
Negri Jr, e Burt Frisselle da Mike Shank Racing, disputam neste final
de semana, a 5ª etapa da Grand American Rolex Sport Car Series. Negri,
único brasileiro na categoria, corre em dupla com o norte-americano
Burt Frisselle, e são conhecidos como “The boys” (os
garotos), pela imprensa especializada norte-americana.
A
equipe de Michael Shank chega a Watkins Glen com bastante otimismo, e
espera conquistar mais um pódio nesta temporada. No mês de
maio passado Negri testou com o Doran-Lexus da equipe, na pista localizada
a 418 km de Nova York, e bateu o recorde do circuito de 5.435 metros.
“Estou
muito confiante para o final de semana, pois treinamos lá e batemos
o recorde da pista. Acredito que não tenhamos a mesma velocidade
dos carros da SunTrust e da Chip Ganassi, que tem um chassis mais bem
adaptado a pista”, falou Negri. “Mesmo assim estamos confiantes.
Vamos imprimir nosso ritmo, e pressionar do início ao fim”,
comentou o brasileiro.
O
Doran-Lexus da equipe Shank Racing, vem se mostrando um dos carros mais
confiáveis do campeonato, não tendo registrado nenhum abandono
na temporada, que já teve mais de 35 horas de corrida, e sempre
esteve andando entre os seis primeiros. A dupla Negri/ Frissellle só
não disputou a primeira etapa do campeonato, mas nas três
etapas que disputaram, conquistaram um 3º lugar em Miami, um 6º
em Phoenix e outra sexta colocação em Mont-Tremblant.
A dupla ocupa a nona colocação entre as 80 participantes,
com 80 pontos conquistados em três provas, e a 26 pontos dos líderes.
Esta será a segunda etapa consecutiva com 6 horas de duração.
Quarenta e cinco carros estão inscritos nas quatro categorias,
para a batalha de quase 1.000 Km.
Os
treinos em Watkins Glen começam nesta sexta-feira, com duas sessões
de treinos livres. Das 9:00 às 10:00 (horários de Brasília),
e das 13:10 às 13:50. No sábado acontece o 3º treino
livre das 9:00 às 10:00, e a classificação da Classe
DP (Daytona Prototipe) onde compete o brasileiro, acontece das 12:25 às
14:40. A corrida tem a largada prevista para as 10:00 do domingo.
Classificação
da Grand-Am no Campeonato de Pilotos (Classe DP)
1 Max Papis/ Scott Pruett, 116 pontos
2 Kelly Collins/ Cort Wagner, 114
3 Andy Wallace/ Terry Borcheller, 110
4 Wayne Taylor/ Max Andglelli, 105
5 Milka Duno, 102
6 Didier Theys, 98
7 Jimmy Morales, 90
8 JC France/ Hurley Haywood, 87
9
Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle, 80
10 Forest Barber/ Joe Prukowski, 80
11 Larry Huang/ Stephan Gregoire/ Chris Hall, 79
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Negri
e Frissele terminaram em 6º Mont-Tremblant, no Canadá
24/05/2004
Negri
terminou na sexta posição na 4ª etapa da Grand-Am
O
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, e o norte-americano Burt Frisselle, que competem
com um Doran Lexus da equipe Mike Shank Racing, conquistaram um excelente
sexto lugar na prova da Grand American Rolex Sport Car Series, ou mais
simplesmente Grand-Am, disputada neste domingo em Mont-Tremblant, no Canadá.
A
dupla, que havia largado da oitava posição no grid, teve
uma prova muito dura, com intensas disputas com o pelotão que ia
a sua frente. Negri pilotou da largada até a 35ª volta, quando
foi realizar o primeiro pit-stop.
“Aproveitamos
a bandeira amarela por um acidente entre um Porsche da (SGS) e um dos
Pontiac da DP (Daytona Prototipe). Completamos o combustível e
o Burt assumiu a direção, neste momento já estávamos
em sexto na corrida”, lembrou Negri.
Quatro voltas depois foi dada a relargada, com a liderança do Lexus
nº 27 de Jan Magnussen/Didier Theys, seguidos por Scott Pruett. Burt
Frisselle voltou à pista na oitava posição. O ritmo
da prova continuou muito intenso, com diversas brigas por posição,
até a 72ª volta, quando novamente foi dada bandeira amarela,
e Negri novamente assumiu o volante após o pitstop.
“A
bandeira amarela durou só duas voltas, mas na relargada um concorrente
bateu no muro, e causou bandeira amarela em todo circuito”, falou
o brasileiro.
A
relargada aconteceu na 79ª volta, e duas voltas depois Negri, que
ocupava o sexto lugar, subia para quinto na classificação
geral, e quatro voltas depois já era o quarto na corrida. Com quase
três horas de corrida Negri ocupava o terceiro lugar na prova, 49
segundos atrás do líder, que era Max Papis, companheiro
de Scott Pruet.
Com
146 voltas completadas Papis liderava, a Shank Racing subia para o segundo
lugar na prova. Com cinco horas de prova, Frisselle já estava na
vice-liderança da prova, atrás do Porsche de Dononhue. Pruett
vinha atrás em ritmo alucinante, e voltas depois passava por Frisselle,
e partia rumo a liderança novamente.
Na
volta 173 Frisselle se aproveitou da parada dos concorrentes que estavam
à sua frente, indo logo em seguida realizar sua parada, e Negri
voltava ao volante do Doran Lexus. O brasileiro retornou a pista em sétimo
lugar, e logo reassumiu o sexto posto, posição onde cruzou
a linha de chegada.
“Foi
uma corrida muito disputada, e chegamos até a liderá-la.
O equilíbrio entre os seis primeiros foi muito grande, tanto que
a nossa diferença para o vencedor foi inferior a 30 segundos”,
finalizou Negri.
A
vitória ficou com o Lexus Riley de Scott Pruett/ Max Papis, que
completaram 200 voltas nas 6 horas de competição. Jan Magnussen/
Didier Theys foram os segundos, e Terry Borcheler/ Forest Barber e Andy
Pilgrim completaram o pódio.
A
próxima etapa do Grand American Rolex Sport Car Series, será
dia 20 de junho, com as seis horas de Watkins Glen.
Veja
os 10 primeiros da prova em Mont-Tremblant:
1- Scott Pruett/ Max Papis - Lexus Riley (DP), 200 voltas
2- Jan Magnussen/ Didier Theys- Lexus Doran (DP), 200
3- Terry Borcheller/ Forest Barber/ Andy Pilgrim - Pontiac Doran (DP), 200
4- Butch Leitzinger/ Elliott Forbes-Robinson/ Paul Edwards
- Pontiac Crawford (DP), 200
5- Milka Duno/ Andy Wallace/ Jan Lammers - Pontiac Crawford
(DP), 200
6-
Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle - Lexus Doran (DP), 200
7- Cort Wagner/ Brent Martini/ Kelly Collins - BMW Doran
(DP), 199
8- David Donohue/ Darren Law/ Sascha Maassen - Porsche
Fabcar (DP), 198
9- Chris Hall/ Larry Huang/ Andrew Davis - Pontiac Crawford (DP), 197
10-
Jimmy Morales/ Luis Diaz - Lexus Riley (DP), 196
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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|
MSR
Drivers Burt Frisselle and Oswaldo Negri Jr. Race for a Cause
May
03, 2004
DAYTONA
BEACH, Fla. - Burt Frisselle and Oswaldo Negri Jr., drivers for Michael
Shank Racing (MSR), are thrilled to announce their new partnership with
American Humane (AH), the only national non-profit organization dedicated
to ensuring the welfare of both children and animals. Frisselle's mother,
Terrye Frisselle, sits on the AH board and passed her passion for its
cause onto her son, who in turn generated support among the entire MSR
team.
The
mission of AH, as a network of individuals and organizations, is to prevent
the cruelty, abuse, neglect and exploitation of children and animals and
to assure that their interests and well-being are fully, effectively,
and humanely guaranteed by an aware and caring society. AH envisions a
nation where no child or animal will ever be a victim of willful abuse
or neglect. As a recognized leader in professional education, training
and advocacy, and research and evaluation, AH joins with other similarly
missioned individuals and organizations to make this vision a reality.
Frisselle
and Negri Jr. believe strongly in the mission of AH, and have therefore
committed to raise awareness about the organization and the importance
of protecting children and animals from abuse. In order to achieve this
goal, Frisselle and Negri Jr. plan on visiting local shelters at as many
race venues as possible. In addition, MSR will provide a donation box
at each race weekend for fans to make a contribution to American Humane.
Finally, Frisselle and Negri Jr. have pledged that a portion of their
future earnings will be donated to American Humane.
"I
really believe in the work that American Humane does to prevent violence
against children and animals," Frisselle said. "Generating public
awareness of these issues is so important. I want to do what I can to
help American Humane achieve its goals and deliver its message."
"When you are in a position to reach people, to generate interest
in a cause, you have a responsibility to use that opportunity in the best
possible way," Negri Jr. said.
"I am personally very pleased to see these young stars involved in
the fight to protect those who cannot protect themselves," director
of the AH board John Nobil said. "We can all learn from their example
of building public awareness for American Humane's cause to protect millions
of children and animal from cruelty, abuse and neglect in America."
Based in Columbus, Ohio, MSR was formed in 1989 when Michael Shank first
began driving race cars professionally, taking the award as SCCA-Ohio
Valley Region's Novice Driver of the Year. Shank retired from the cockpit
in 1997 after moving up the motorsports ladder to focus his efforts on
running the team, which quickly found success in the CART Toyota Atlantic
Championship, with several race wins leading Shank to be named as Team
Owner of the Year twice in four years. MSR has campaigned drivers including
Johnny Rutherford Jr., Kenny Wilden, and 2001 and 2002 Indy Racing League
champion Sam Hornish, Jr. MSR is making the transition to the Rolex Series
from open-wheel competition for the 2004 season in the Rolex Sports Car
Series, campaigning a Lexus-powered Doran JE4.
The Michael Shank Racing No. 6 Lexus Doran can next be seen in the Rolex
Series 6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant, May 21-23. Tickets to the race
can be purchased by calling 800-517-5725.
|
Negri
foi 6º na Food City 250 em Phoenix
11/04/2004
Shank Racing brilha mesmo com problemas após um choque na pista.
O
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr. e Burt Frisselle da Mike Shank Racing, conquistaram
um brilhante sexto lugar na Food City 250, que aconteceu na noite do último
sábado no Phoenix International Raceway.
No warm-up para corrida, a equipe testou novas molas e o problema de desgate
acentuado dos pneus dianteiros, foi minimizado. Na largada, Negri perdeu
a posição para Cort Wagner, que havia largado da quinta
posição, mas queimara a largada. Duas voltas depois Negri
superou Wagner, e reassumiu a terceira colocação. “Teve
muitas bandeiras amarelas, e como a pista é apertada e curta, ficou
muito difícil passar os carros da classe GT.
Quando
começou escurecer, ficou mais difícil ainda”, comentou
Negri. O brasileiro se manteve durante muito tempo em terceiro, evitando
forçar, e economizando seus pneus dianteiros. A equipe controlava
a diferença de Negri para Papis, que liderava, e algum tempo depois
o desgaste começou a aumentar os tempos de volta. “Depois
de uma bandeira amarela, tive um contato com o Fabcar-BMW do Shawn Lewis,
e o carro perdeu um pouco o rendimento. Pilotei por duas horas ininterruptas,
mas tivemos azar no momento de realizar o pistop”, falou Negri.
“Assim que entrei no box, apareceu uma bandeira amarela, mas o pior
foi que ao tentarem trocar os pneus, a roda traseira direita teve o eixou
entortado na batida com o Shawn, e não saiu. O Burt, que assumiu
o stint, teve de voltar a pista com somente três pneus novos”,
falou Negri.
Com
o problema, a equipe perdeu uma volta nos boxes. Burt Frisselle, companheiro
de Negri, mais uma vez fez um trabalho excelente, e mesmo com o grande
desequilíbrio por causa do pneu gasto, conseguiu levar o carro
a sexta colocação. “No final da corrida os nossos
mecânicos descobriram que corremos todo tempo após a batida,
com o triangulo da suspensão traseira torto. Ficamos muito orgulhosos
do resultados, e já subimos para terceiro no campeonato”,
completou Negri.
A Michael Shank Racing foi a única das equipes, que não
treinou após a prova de Homestead, e agora tem um teste agendado
para o início de maio, no circuito de Watkins Glen. "The Boys",
como estão sendo chamados Negri e Burt pela imprensa especializada
norte-americana, vem fazendo frente a milionária equipe de Chip
Ganassi, e promete mais para próxima etapa do Grand American Rolex
Sports Car Series, que acontece no dia 23 de maio, em Mont Tremblant,
no Canadá. Negri viaja nesta segunda-feira, para Sebring, onde
estará supervisionando os treinos oficiais da F-BMW.
A
vitória na Food City 250 ficou com Max Angelelli e Wayne Taylor,
com um Pontiac Riley. A dupla completou as 133 voltas da prova em 1h45m46s811.
Em segundo lugar ficaram os pole positions, Max Papis e Scott Pruet. O
pódio foi completado por Cort Wagner/ Kelly Collins, que colidiram
com o carro de Negri durante a prova. Na classe GT a vitória foi
de Bill Auberlen/ Boris Said, com um BMW M3.
Resultado
da Food City 250 (Phoenix):
1-
Wayne Taylor/ Max Angelelli - Pontiac Riley (DP) 133 voltas em 2h45m46s811
2- Max Papis/ Scott Pruett - Lexus Riley (DP), 133 voltas
3- Cort Wagner/ Kelly Collins - BMW Doran (DP), 133 voltas
4- Luis Diaz/ Jimmy Morales - Lexus Riley (DP), 133 voltas
5- Elliott Forbes-Robinson/ Butch Leitzinger/ David Brule
Sr - Pontiac Crawford (DP) a 1 volta
6- Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle - Lexus Doran (DP) a 1 volta
7- Stephan Gregoire/ Doug Goad - Pontiac Crawford (DP)
a 1 volta
8- Joe Pruskowski/ Justin Pruskowski - Ford Multimatic
(DP) a 2 voltas
9- JC France/ Hurley Haywood - Brumos - Porsche Fabcar
(DP), a 2 voltas
10- Bill Auberlen/ Boris Said - BMW M3 (GT), a 4 voltas
11- Gunnar Jeannette/ Kyle Petty - Porsche GT3 RS (GT),
a 5 voltas
12- John Lloyd/ Darius Graia – Lexus Fabcar (DP).
A 5 voltas
13- Forest Barber/ Terry Borcheller - Pontiac Doran (DP),
a 6 voltas
14- Michael Levitas/ Randy Pobst - Porsche GT3 Cup (SGSC),
a 7 voltas
15- Craig Stanton/ David Murry - Porsche GT3 Cup (SGSC),
a 7 voltas
16- Marc Bunting/ Andy Lally - Porsche GT3 Cup (SGSC),
a 7 voltas
17- Milka Duno/ Andy Wallace - Pontiac Crawford (DP),
a 8 voltas
18- RJ Valentine/ Ian James/ Chris Gleason - Porsche
GT3 Cup (SGS), a 8 voltas
19- Robert Julien/ Jean François - Porsche GT3
Cup (SGS), a 9 voltas
20- Gary St Amour/ Mike Yeakle – Corvette (SGS),
a 9 voltas
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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|
Michael
Shank Racing Finishes Sixth at Phoenix International Raceway
04/11/2004
Oswaldo Negri Jr. and Burt Frisselle, drivers of the #6 Michael Shank
Racing Lexus powered Doran Daytona Prototype, finished sixth in the Food
City 250 Saturday night. Oswaldo Negri Jr. took the green flag from third
position and kept the car close to the front, running in the top five
for the first eighty laps of the race. Unfortunately, Negri suffered contact
when the #7 car turned down on him while Negri made a pass on the inside
of the slower BMW Fabcar. While Negri was able to maintain his position
on the track, the contact caused damage to the right rear tire of the
#6 machine, which later led to a lengthy pit stop that knocked the MSR
team out of front-running contention.
Disaster
struck when Negri Jr. brought the Lexus powered Doran into the pits for
the team's first stop, as the right rear tire would not come off the car
due to the damaged suspension. The team quickly identified the problem
and completed the driver change, sending Burt Frisselle onto the track
to battle from the twelfth position.
Frisselle
put his head down and despite being knocked off track twice, managed to
power the car through the field to claim an impressive sixth place finish,
nearly claiming fifth on his final lap. It was a strong stint for the
twenty-two year old driver in just his second race in the Rolex Series.
Frisselle's performance was made even more impressive given the fact that
he had to finish the race with a damaged rear, which severely compromised
his race pace.
Team
owner Mike Shank was hoping to have reached the podium, given the teams
strong qualifying performance and good pace in the first part of the race,
but knows the team has what it takes to get back on top. "We had
a podium car tonight, no question, but we just didn't catch the breaks
in this race," Shank stated. "We got a bit unlucky with the
pit call, and then the damage to the rear was a big problem, which delayed
our stop. But my crew did a great job on the car, and Oswaldo and Burt
both raced really well. From here we will focus on our up-coming test
and get ready to race again at Mt. Tremblant."
"We
were just cruising at the beginning, keeping the leaders in sight, but
when that car hit me, it really affected our race, unfortunately,"
lamented Negri. "But it was still a solid finish and we know we have
the package to be competitive, so we have to just be happy with the points
we earned here and move on to the next race."
Burt
Frisselle continues to improve in the car and was glad to emerge relatively
unscathed from the tight confines of the Phoenix track, and is looking
forward to getting back in the car as soon as he can. "I really got
knocked around a lot out there, and that part of the race really wasn't
that much fun," said Frisselle. "But chasing down those cars
in the closing laps was very exciting and pretty satisfying. I feel more
confident every time I am in the car, and this race was certainly a big
test for me to deal with all the traffic. The crew did a great job all
weekend, we should be happy with this result, but we are of course hungry
for success, so we will keep working toward it."
The
team will now return to the shop in Columbus, Ohio, and prepare for the
upcoming test in advance of the next round of Rolex competition at Mount
Tremblant in Canada on the weekend of May 21-23.
Stephanie Frisselle
310.968.1558
stephanie@frisselleracing.com
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Negri
larga da 3ª posição em Phoenix
10/04/2004
Negri
e Frisselle são candidatos ao pódio hoje em Phoenix.
O
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, e Burt Frisselle da Mike Shank Racing, vão
largar da segunda fila do grid para a Food City 250, que acontece na tarde
hoje no Phoenix International Raceway. Esta será a terceira etapa
do Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series, e a dupla está muito
otimista, após o excelente resultado da corrida passada, quando
após um toque de um concorrente tiveram o sistema de refrigeração
danificado, mas conseguiram levar o carro ao pódio.
“A classificação foi excelente, muito acima até
do esperado. O carro não estava tão rápido quanto
ontem, e continua saindo de frente”, disse Negri. “O consumo
de pneus dianteiros continuava muito acentuado, e não havia nenhuma
solução imediata para o problema. Nossa regulagem era para
temperatura mais baixa, exatamente o que iremos encontrar na corrida,
que será noturna”, disse o brasileiro.
A
prova da Food City 250, no Phoenix International Raceway, será
disputada à partir da 18:00 (horário local). “O
tempo esfriou um pouco, e nossa estratégia se mostrou perfeita.
Como entraram 19 protótipos juntos na pista, sabíamos que
o tráfego seria um fator crítico”, falou Negri.
Por
este motivo a equipe utilizou a mesma estratégia que varias equipes
utilizam na NASCAR, para evitar ficar presa por um carro mais lento, e
perder tempo na sua volta ideal.
”O
Brad Frisselle, pai do meu companheiro, foi fazer o papel de 'spoter',
e com um rádio foi para a parte alta das arquibancadas, e nos deu
a dica da melhor hora para acelerar”, contou Negri. “O trabalho
foi perfeito, consegui dar duas voltas livres, e na segunda forcei ao
máximo, e consegui fazer as três parciais perfeitamente”,
disse alegre o piloto.
Mais
uma vez a Michael Shank Racing vai partir da terceira posição
no grid, atrás somente dos dois carros da Chip Ganassi. Negri e
toda equipe ficaram felicíssimos, com o trabalho excelente realizado
“Estou
contente demais, e para o warm-up hoje, vamos tentar um novo acerto, para
minimizar o desgaste dos pneus dianteiros. Queremos manter um bom ritmo
na prova, e tentar um novo pódio”, disse alegremente Negri.
A
pole position para a prova em Phoenix ficou com o italiano Max Papis,
e o norte-americano Scott Pruett, com um Lexus Riley, que marcou o tempo
de 56s005. Em segundo vai Luis Diaz e Jimmy Morales largam ao lado dos
companheiros de equipe, com um tempo 0s449 mais lento.
Na
classe GT a pole ficou com Bill Auberlen e Boris Said, com um BMW M3.
Veja
os 20 primeiros do Grid para a Food City 250 (Phoenix):
1- Max Papis/ Scott Pruett - Lexus Riley 56s005 (DP)
2- Luis Diaz/ Jimmy Morales - Lexus Riley 56s452 (DP)
3- Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle - Lexus Doran 57s038 (DP)
4- Wayne Taylor/ Max Angelelli - Pontiac Riley 57s065
(DP)
5- Cort Wagner/ Kelly Collins - BMW Doran 57s791 (DP)
6- Elliott Forbes-Robinson/ Butch Leitzinger/ David Brule
Sr - Pontiac Crawford 57s945 (DP)
7- Stephan Gregoire/ Doug Goad - Pontiac Crawford 58s234
(DP)
8- Milka Duno/ Andy Wallace - Pontiac Crawford 58s331
(DP)
9- Shane Lewis/ Vic Rice - BMW Fabcar 58s401 (DP)
10- Chris Hall/ Larry Huang - Pontiac Crawford 59s059
(DP)
11- JC France/ Hurley Haywood - Brumos - Porsche Fabcar
59s347 (DP)
12- Forest Barber/ Terry Borcheller - Pontiac Doran 59s846
(DP)
13- Joe Pruskowski/ Justin Pruskowski - Ford Multimatic
1m00s219 (DP)
14- Fredy Lienhard Sr/ Didier Theys - Lexus Doran 1m00s341
(DP)
15- Selby Wellman/ Sylvain Tremblay - Ford Multimatic
1m00s650 (DP)
16- Bill Auberlen/ Boris Said - BMW M3 1m01s639 (GT)
17- Gunnar Jeannette/ Kyle Petty - Porsche (GT)3 RS 1m01s686
(GT)
18- Joao Barbosa/ Emil Assentato/ Stephen Earle - Maserati
(GT) 1m01s801 (GT)
19- Justin Marks/ Joey Hand - BMW M3 1m02s077 (GT)
20- Kevin Buckler/ Liz Halliday - Porsche (GT)3 RS 1m02s362
(GT)
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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|
Equipe
Mike Shank Racing, treinou em duas sessões nesta quinta em Phoenix
09/04/2004
O brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, treinou em duas sessões
nesta quinta-feira no Phoenix International Raceway, onde neste sábado
será disputada a terceira etapa do Grand American Rolex Sports
Car Series.
O piloto da Mike Shank Racing gostou muito do rendimento do carro, tendo
terminado como o quarto mais rápido na primeira sessão.“O
primeiro dia começou muito bem. O carro se mostrou rápido
logo de saída, embora ainda saia um pouco de frente nas curvas
de alta, e nas reacelerações em saídas de baixa”,
contou Negri.
A segunda sessão de treinos livres foi disputada à noite,
e a equipe procedeu algumas modificações, para tentar corrigir
a tendência do carro. “Fizemos alguns ajustes para
a segunda sessão, que foi noturna. O carro ficou um pouco melhor,
porém não consegui dar nenhuma volta sem pegar trânsito,
a pista é pequena, e com tantos carros ficou difícil fazer
uma volta limpa”, comentou o piloto. “Acredito que estamos
entre os quatro primeiros.
Ainda temos de fazer algo no tocante ao desgaste de pneus. O carro começa
a sair de frente, e aí o desempenho piora rápidamente”,
falou Negri. Negri e seu companheiro de equipe, o norte-americano Burt
Frisselle, estão confiantes de um bom resultado na classificação,
que será disputada hoje.
A Michael Shank Racing está em terceiro no Campeonato com 58 pontos,
atrás da Bell Motorsports que tem 60, e da Howard-Boss Motorsport
que lidera com 65 pontos.
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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EUA:
Negri pronto para o desafio em Phoenix
06/04/2004
A última etapa do Campeonato de 2004 da Grand American
Rolex Sports Car Series, aconteceu no último dia 28 de fevereiro,
em Miami. A equipe Mike Shank Racing, onde compete o brasileiro Oswaldo
Negri Jr, aproveitou o intervalo de mais de um mês, para dar prosseguimento
no desenvolvimento do Doran Toyota, que terminou em terceiro lugar na
corrida de Miami.
“Estamos
trabalhando intensamente no desenvolvimento do carro. O nosso engenheiro
esteve trabalhando arduamente para tirar peso do carro”, contou
Negri. “Foram fabricadas novas barras ajustáveis, já
que o projeto original do Doran, não previa ajuste de barras de
dentro do cockpit. Também foram feitos novos ajustes de válvulas
e pistões nos amortecedores, com a finalidade de diminuir
o consumo de pneus”, disse o brasileiro.
Na
prova de Miami (250 Milhas) a grande reclamação de Negri,
e seu companheiro de equipe, Burt Frisselle, era quando ao consumo dos
pneus.
“Em
Miami nosso carro era muito rápido, porém após poucas
voltas tínhamos de diminuir o ritmo, devido à perda de aderência
pelo elevado desgaste. Agora para esta corrida em Phoenix, acreditamos
que o problema já estará resolvido”, completou Negri.
Negri
viaja nesta quarta-feira para Phoenix, onde no sábado acontece
as 250 Milhas de Phoenix , no Phoenix International Raceway, terceira
etapa do campeonato. Negri e Frisselle não disputaram a etapa de
abertura da temporada, mas a Michael Shank Racing já aparece em
terceiro no Campeonato com 58 pontos, atrás da Bell Motorsports
que tem 60, e da Howard-Boss Motorsport que lidera com 65 pontos.
Calendário
da Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series:
29 de Janeiro - 24 Horas de Daytona (Daytona International Speedway)
28 de Fevereiro - 250 Milhas de Miami (Homestead-Miami Speedway)
10 de Abril - 250 Milhas de Phoenix (Phoenix International Raceway)
23 de Maio - 6 Horas de Mont-Tremblant (Le Circuito Mont-Tremblant)
20 de Junho - 6 Horas de Watkins Glen (Watkins Glen International)
03 de Julho - 250 Milhas de Daytona (Daytona International Speedway)
08 de Agosto - 250 Milhas de Mid-Ohio (Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course)
14 de Agosto - 200 Milhas de Watkins Glen (Watkins Glen International)
12 de Setembro - 250 Milhas de Miami (Homestead-Miami Speedway)
03 de Outubro - 400 Km da Virginia (Virginia International Raceway)
10 de Outubro - 250 Milhas de Barber (Barber Motorsports Park)
31 de Outubro - 400 Km da Califórnia (California Speedway)
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing Moves up in Championship Battle
03/01/2004
Michael
Shank Racing improved in the Rolex Sports Car Series Team Owner Championship
after posting a strong podium finish at Homestead Miami Speedway this
weekend to move up to third in the overall championship standings.
Oswaldo Negri and Burt Frisselle had a fantastic weekend in just their
first start together in the #6 Michael Shank Racing Lexus-Powered Doran,
converting third starting position into a hard-fought third place finish.
“It doesn’t get any better than this,” said Frisselle,
who like Negri, suffered from car contact on multiple occasions during
the 250-mile event. “To get on the podium in just our first start
with the team after such a tough battle is so fantastic. The guys did
a great job, and we learned a lot this weekend, so we are looking forward
to the battle at Phoenix next month.”
Michael
Shank Racing was fourth in the points battle heading into the Homestead
weekend after making a strong run in the closing hours of the Rolex 24
at Daytona in the teams first start in Grand-Am competition. The podium
result moved the #6 entry up to third in the standings, and the MSR entry
kept the points difference to the lead the same with just seven markers
separating MSR and the current championship leaders, Howard-Boss Motorsports.
The exciting Homestead race, which saw the MSR entry launch from seventh
position in the late going up into third place, will air on Speed Channel
on Sunday, March 7 at 4 pm. ET. The Michael Shank Racing crew will be
in action again on the weekend of April 8-10 at Phoenix International
Raceway.
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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EUA:
Negri conquista pódio em Miami
29/02/2004
Oswaldo Negri e Burt Frisselle conquistaram ontem (sábado) o terceiro
lugar na 2ª etapa da Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series, disputada
no Homestead Miami Speedway. A corrida de 250 Milhas, foi um verdadeiro
jogo de xadrez, com várias equipes se alternando na liderança,
até a bandeirada final, que coube a Andy Wallace e a venezuelana
Milka Duno.
Logo
na largada, Negri, que partiu no comando do Lexus-powered Doran JE4, assumiu
o segundo lugar, atrás de Scott Pruett, que buscava fugir da perseguição
do brasileiro. Negri conseguiu superar Pruett no tráfego dos retardatários,
e entregou o carro na liderança para Frisselle no primeiro pitstop.
Frisselle
conseguiu manter o carro no pelotão da frente, e escapou brilhantemente
de um incidente, quando Max Papis e Jan Magnussen, que vinham na liderança
da corrida, rodaram à sua frente. Papis no retorno a pista ainda
bateu no carro de Frisselle, danificando um dos radiadores. A temperatura
se elevou bastante, com o alarme do motor se acendendo durante várias
vezes na prova, contou Frisselle.
Na
bandeirada Frisselle se sentiu aliviado e feliz por conseguir levar o
carro até o final, já que toda sua família saiu do
Hawai até Miami, para assistir a prova. Oswaldo Negri, que classificou
o carro em terceiro para a prova, e pilotou na primeira metade da corrida,
declarou que estava muito contente com o resultado, que foi um prêmio
para sua estréia e de Frisselle na Mike Shank Racing.
“Aprendemos
muito este fim de semana. O início da corrida foi realmente ‘violento’,
e vi quão agressivos podem ser estes pilotos durante a corrida”,
disse Negri. “No final fomos muito bem, e serviu a experiência.
Conquistamos um pódio, o que definitivamente é um excelente
lugar para se começar a temporada”, comentou o brasileiro.
O
dono da equipe, Mike Shank, estava radiante, e com o troféu do
terceiro posto nas mãos, declarou que está ansioso para
levantar o troféu de vencedor em breve.
“Tivemos
a infelicidade de chocar com um carro que rodou a nossa frente, mas felizmente
tudo terminou bem para nós”, disse Shank. “Esse foi
só o começo, muito mais está por vir. Estes dois
sujeitos (Frisselle e Negri) mostraram o quão rápidos são,
e com certeza querem muito mais”, comentou exultante Shank.
Shank lembrou ainda que a sua equipe, foi a que deu o melhor resultado
à Lexus, e que em breve espera conquistar o lugar mais alto do
pódio. Milka Duno e Andy Wallace (Pontiac Crawford) completaram
as 109 voltas da prova em 2h33m20s509.
Em segundo terminou o trio Cort Wagner, Brent Martini e Kelly Colin com
um Doran-BMW, com Negri e Frisselle completando o pódio.
Resultado da Toyota 300 (Grand Prix de Miami):
1 - Milka Duno/ Andy Wallace (Pontiac Crawford - DP),
109 voltas
2 - Cort Wagner/ Brent Martini/ Kelly Collins (BMW Doran
- DP), 109
3 - Oswaldo Negri Jr/ Burt Frisselle (Lexus Doran - DP), 109
4 - JC France/ Hurley Haywood (Porsche Fabcar - DP),
109
5 - Wayne Taylor/ Max Angelelli (Pontiac Riley - DP),
109
6 - Forest Barber/ Terry Borcheller/ Andy Pilgrim (Pontiac
Doran - DP), 108
7 - Scott Pruett/ Max Papis (Lexus Riley - DP), 108
8 - Justin Pruskowski/ Joe Pruskowski/ Ross Bentley (Ford
Multimatic - DP), 107
9 - Shane Lewis/ Jack Baldwin (BMW Fabcar - DP), 106
10- Chris Hall/ Larry Huang (Pontiac Crawford - DP),
105
11- Mike Borkowski/ Paul Mears Jr (Ford Multimatic -
DP), 105
12- Boris Said/ Bill Auberlen (BMW M3 - GT), 105
13- Selby Wellman/ Sylvain Tremblay (Ford Multimatic
- DP), 104
14- Justin Marks/ Joey Hand (BMW M3 - GT), 104
15- David Murry/ Craig Stanton (Porsche GT3 Cup - SGS),
103
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Michael
Shank Racing Scores Podium Finish at Homestead
02/28/2004
Oswaldo
Negri of Miami, Florida, and Burt Frisselle of Kihei, Hawaii, delivered
a third place finish in the Rolex Sports Car Series race at the Toyota
Grand Prix at Homestead Miami Speedway Saturday for Michael Shank Racing
in just the first race for the driver combination in the Lexus-powered
Doran JE4.
The
250-mile sprint event produced plenty of excitement from green flag to
checker, with the lead changing hands several times. The race got off
to a fast start, as Negri took the green flag from third position, and
quickly jumped to second place behind pole sitter Scott Pruett as the
two quickly broke free from the field and built up a gap before beginning
to lap cars in the slower classes.
Negri battled back from being spun by another car early on, and eventually
moved the car into the lead before handing the car over to Frisselle on
the first pitstop. Frisselle adapted quickly in his first Rolex Series
start, staying cool in the heavy traffic, even taking his first corner
with cars on both sides of him in a hectic restart.
Frisselle kept the car in the lead group, which saw the two cars of Max
Papis and Jan Magnussen eliminated from the front when late-race contact
between the two caused Magnussen to suffer a cut tire, sending him spinning
in the very fast first corner, and taking Papis with him. Frisselle bravely
held his line as Papis re-entered the track and made contact with Frisselle,
causing even more damage to the Lexus-Doran machine. Frisselle was eager
for the race to end after the contact, as it had caused damage to the
radiator, and was sending the engine temperatures soaring.
“I was actually praying in the last few laps that the car would
make it to the end after Max hit me,” said Frisselle. “We
had so many alarms going off on the car for all the temperatures, the
race couldn’t have ended any sooner for me!”
Frisselle was well relieved to make it past the checkered flag, and was
excited to share the strong result with his whole family, many of whom
had traveled from Hawaii to be on hand for the event.
“This is an awesome way to start our season! Taking a podium in
our first race with the team, it doesn’t get any better than that,”
said Frisselle. “I’m just thrilled with the whole team. Dale
(Dale Wise—Team Engineer) gave us a great car, and Lexus gave us
a great engine, and we were able to be in the right spot at the right
time to get on the podium.”
Award-winning team owner Michael Shank was happy to get his hands on the
third-place trophy, and is looking forward to picking up a winners trophy
in the future.
“We got behind early when another car spun us, but it was a good
finish for us,” said Shank. “At the end, everybody but the
pace car was hitting us! Now we have a fourth place finish from Daytona
and a third place finish here in just our first two starts, and I think
there is a lot more to come. These guys (Frisselle and Negri) showed they
can run with the fastest guys out there, so we are looking for more. We
are also proud to be the highest finishing Lexus, and hopefully we can
get them to the top step of the podium soon.”
Oswaldo Negri, who had qualified the car a strong third, and went for
the lead in the early laps of the race, was initially frustrated not to
have been able to be more competitive early owing to the contact from
the other cars, but was truly excited to score a strong podium finish
in his first race with the Michael Shank Racing crew.
“We learned a lot this weekend,” said Negri. “I saw
how aggressive the guys were during the race, and then I got spun, so
it was a tough start, but it was a good finish and a good experience for
us, and getting a podium is definitely a good place to start the season
for us.”
The race will air on Speed Channel on Sunday, March 7 at 4 pm. ET. The
Michael Shank Racing crew will be in action again on the weekend of April
8-10 at Phoenix International Raceway.
Based in Columbus, Ohio, MSR was formed in 1989 when Michael Shank first
began driving racing cars professionally, taking the award as SCCA-Ohio
Valley Region's Novice Driver of the Year. Shank retired from the cockpit
in 1997 after moving up the motorsports ladder to focus his efforts on
running the team, which quickly found success in the CART Toyota Atlantic
Championship, with several race wins leading Shank to be named as Team
Owner of the Year twice in four years. MSR has campaigned drivers including
Johnny Rutherford Jr., Kenny Wilden, and 2001 and 2002 Indy Racing League
champion Sam Hornish, Jr. MSR is making the transition to the Rolex Series
from open-wheel competition for the 2004 season in the Rolex Sports Car
Series, campaigning a Lexus-powered Doran JE4.
For additional information:
Michael Shank Racing:
www.michaelshankracing.com
Grand-American Rolex Sports Car Series:
www.grandamerican.com
Burt Frisselle:
www.frisselleracing.com
{note—Frisselle was chasing Kelly Collins in the closing laps; Collins
was a driving instructor for Burt (at Skip Barber) as he worked his way
up the ladder. Burt thinks that will be the last time he will be finishing
behind Collins…}
Matt Cleary
Matt Cleary Communications, L.L.C
matt@cleary.net
317-908-2975
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EUA:
Negri foi 3º no primeiro treino em Miami
27/02/2004
Nesta
quinta-feira, o brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr., foi o terceiro mais rápido
no primeiro treino livre para a Toyota 300, que será realizada
neste final de semana, no Homestead Miami Speedway. O piloto corre em
dupla com o norte-americano Burt Frisselle, em um Doran–Lexus.
“Não
poderia ter sido melhor. Ficamos em primeiro durante quase todo treino,
até que um problema elétrico nos forçou a ficar nos
boxes por um bom tempo”, contou Negri. “Como o Angelleli e
o Papis melhoraram meu tempo, ficamos em terceiro”, disse o piloto.
O
dono da equipe, Mike Shank, estava radiante com o desempenho dos seus
novos pilotos, e está extremamente otimista para prova deste sábado.
"Nós
estamos esperando ansiosamente pela corrida deste final de semana. Já
tínhamos tido um teste excelente com o Oswaldo e o Burt na semana
passada, e nos treinos de ontem, já pudemos ver que estamos realmente
na briga”, disse Shank.
O
treino teve a duração de quarenta e cinco minutos, e a melhor
marca acabou nas mãos de Max Angelleli, com o tempo de 1m15s262.
Angelleli baixou o recorde da classificação da pista, que
havia sido estabelecido ano passado por David, em 1s720.
Max Papis foi o segundo mais rápido, com um tempo 0s326 mais lento.
Negri veio logo a seguir com seu Doran-Lexus.
“O acerto estava funcionando bem desde o início, e ainda
podemos melhorar bem o carro. A equipe vai trabalhar nos amortecedores,
e esperamos melhorar ainda mais”, disse Negri, exultante com o desempenho
do carro.
O treino que definirá o grid de largada para o Grand Prix de Miami
(Toyota 300) acontece nesta sexta-feira.
Resultado dos treinos livres da Grand-Am nesta quinta:
1 - Taylor / Angelelli - Pontiac Riley 1m15s262 (DP)
2 - Pruett / Papis - Lexus Riley 1m15s588 (DP)
3 - Negri Jr / Frisselle - Lexus-Doran 1m15s705 (DP)
4 - Theys / Magnussen - Lexus-Doran 1m16s179 (DP)
5 - Morales / Diaz - Lexus Riley 1m17s316 (DP)
6 - Wallace / Duno - Howard - Pontiac Crawford 1m17s404
(DP)
7 - Donohue / Law - Red Bull - Porsche Fabcar 1m17s422
(DP)
8 - Haywood / France - Porsche Fabcar 1m17s554 (DP)
9 - Hall / Huang - Pontiac Crawford 1m17s626 (DP)
10-Borkowski / Mears Jr - Ford Multimatic 1m18s171 (DP)
11-Pruskowski / Pruskowski / Bentley - Ford Multimatic
1m18s676 (DP)
12-Tremblay / Wellman - Ford Multimatic 1m18s815 (DP)
13-Wagner / Martini / Collins - BMW Doran 1m18s935 (DP)
14-Leavy / Miller - Pontiac Chase 1m19s007 (DP)
15-Lewis / Baldwin - BMW Fabcar 1m19s336 (DP)
16-Auberlen / Said - BMW M3 1m20s278 (GT)
17-Marks / Hand - BMW M3 1m20s425 (GT)
18-Policastro / Policastro / Fitzgerald - Porsche GT3
RS 1m21s770 (GT)
19-James / Valentine / Gleason - Porsche GT3 RS 1m22s350
(GT)
20-Barber / Borcheller / Pilgrim - Pontiac Doran 1m22s40854
(DP)
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Saturday,
February 28, 2004
Grand
Prix of Miami
At the Homestead Miami Speedway.
Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series Race stars at 3:00 pm.
Come and join us support our drivers Oswaldo Negri Jr. and Burt Frisselle, car # 6.
For more information go to www.homesteadmiamispeedway.com or www.grandamerican.com.

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Michael
Shank Racing Drivers Frisselle and Negri Jr. Complete First Test in Daytona
Prototype
Savannah,
Georgia (Feb. 18-19, 2004) Burt Frisselle and Oswaldo Negri Jr., new drivers
for Michael Shank Racing (MSR), completed their first test in the Lexus
powered Doran Daytona Prototype car in Savannah, Georgia this past week.
The test, held at Roebling Road, went extremely well, as both Frisselle
and Negri were able to take to the car quickly.
"I
really enjoyed driving the car for the first time. It was different from
any car that I have driven before, but I had a great time," Frisselle
stated. "I am definitely pleased with my performance, and I am thrilled
to have the opportunity to work with Michael Shank Racing. They are a
first rate team, and I look forward to working with them this season."
Teammate Oswaldo Negri Jr. had this to say, "I feel very confident
in the car and I am so happy to be racing with Michael Shank Racing. I
look forward to our first race at Homestead next weekend; I believe that
we will be able to be competitive."
Team
owner Michael Shank was very pleased with his drivers, stating, "The
test went even better than I had hoped. Both drivers came right up to
speed and were able to help our engineer make some significant gains in
the chassis area. Looking forward to Homestead, I feel that we have a
talented combination that can run consistently in the top five all weekend.
I am very excited."
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Negri
realiza primeiro teste com o Doran-Toyota
20/02/2004
Piloto brasileiro realizou o primeiro teste com seu novo
carro na pista de Savannah
Nesta quinta-feira, o brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr., realizou o seu primeiro
teste com o Daytona Prototype, da equipe Mike Shank Racing. Negri foi
contratado pela equipe, juntamente com o americano Burt Frisselle para
disputar as três primeiras etapas do Campeonato de 2004 da Grand
American Rolex Sports Car Series, que terá sua segunda prova da
temporada no próximo dia 28 de fevereiro, em Miami.
“Foi meu primeiro teste com o Doran-Toyota, e também meu
primeiro contato com a nova equipe. A equipe é extremamente profissional,
sem dúvida é uma das melhores oportunidades que tenho desde
de quando vim da Europa", falou Negri. A equipe trabalhou bastante
com acertos de suspensão, amortecedores e testou um novo pacote
aerodinâmico.
Os
tempos obtidos por Negri foram excelentes, surpreendendo até o
próprio piloto. “Já deu para sentir que o Doran-Toyota
é muito rápido, e nos acostumamos rapidamente às
reações do carro.
O
Burt (Frisselle), meu companheiro de equipe, tem mostrado uma adaptação
fantástica a qualquer tipo de carro, e isso nos deixa muito otimistas”,
completou o brasileiro. "Estou muito contente com esta oportunidade
que me apareceu, e vou trabalhar duro para conquistar um bom resultado
na Toyota Indy 300, que acontece no Homestead Miami Speedway", disse
Negri.
O
brasileiro testa novamente nesta sexta-feira em Savannah, onde a equipe
irá dar especial atenção na avaliação
de molas e amortecedores.
Calendário
da Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series:
29
de Janeiro - 24 Horas de Daytona (Daytona International Speedway)
28 de Fevereiro - 250 Milhas de Miami (Homestead-Miami Speedway)
08 de Abril - 250 Milhas de Phoenix (Phoenix International Raceway)
23 de Maio - 6 Horas de Mont-Tremblant (Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant)
20 de Junho - 6 Horas de Watkins Glen (Watkins Glen International)
01 de Julho - 250 Milhas de Daytona (Daytona International Speedway)
08 de Agosto - 250 Milhas de Mid-Ohio (Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course)
13 de Agosto - 200 Milhas de Watkins Glen (Watkins Glen International)
12 de Setembro - 250 Milhas de Miami (Homestead-Miami Speedway)
03 de Outubro - 400 Km da Virginia (Virginia International Raceway)
10 de Outubro - 250 Milhas de Barber (Barber Motorsports Park)
31 de Outobro - 400 Km da Califórnia (California Speedway)
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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02/19/2004
The
second day of testing, today, could not have been better, we made a lot
of changes and were able to improve the car further.
It was great to getting to know and working with the team some more, so
we all have a better understanding of each other.
The TRD guys did a fantastic job giving us the best of what the Lexus
engine has to offer.
Finishing
the two days of testing on such a strong note was encouraging and excitng
for the team as we all now look forward to our first race together at
Homestead.
Ciao,
Ozz
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02/18/2004
Hello
everyone,
Today I had my first test with the Daytona Prototype at Savannah. It was
a great day where I got to know my new Team, Mike Shank Racing.
The
Team worked fantastically, and it was easy to get to a good fast pace.
We tried a few set up changes and we got a good direction where to go
with it. The Doran-Toyota powered, felt pretty quick by the end of the
day.
Burt Frisselle, my team mate did a fantastic job getting used to the car
and also set a quick pace.
We are very excited about the opportunity and we will work hard on getting
the best out of it.
Regards,
Negri
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Read
it in English
Negri
assina com a Shank Racing na Grand-Am
05/02/2004
Negri
e Frisselle farão dupla na Grand-Am, com a Shank Racing
A
Michael Shank Racing anunciou ontem (quarta-feira), a contratação
dos pilotos Oswaldo Negri Jr. e Burt Frisselle, para disputarem as três
próximas etapas da Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series.
O
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr., que reside em Miami, e Burt Frisselle, pilotarão
um Doran JE4 equipado com motor Lexus. A dupla que já disputou
junta as últimas etapas da ALMS (American Le Mans Series), fará
sua estréia no dia 28 de fevereiro, no GP de Miami.
O
dono da equipe, Michael Shank, está ansioso pela seqüência
do campeonato da Grand-Am, para comprovar que tem uma equipe forte. Na
prova das 24 Horas de Daytona, sua equipe terminou em quarto na classe,
após uma brilhante recuperação no terço final
da prova.
"Minha
prioridade era encontrar dois pilotos que se adaptassem a este tipo de
prova de curta distância, onde se é necessário manter
um forte ritmo o tempo todo", disse Shank.
"A maneira como as regras foram criadas, nos obriga a ter um pacote
resistente e veloz o tempo todo. Tenho certeza que estes pilotos nos ajudarão
a atingir este objetivo", continuou. "Um exemplo, embora a corrida
de Mont-Tremblant em maio seja de seis horas, é necessitamos de
uma dupla que consiga virar sempre muito rápido em todas as voltas,
e estes sujeitos são capazes disto", falou Shank.
O grande trunfo da equipe, é a combinação do talento
e experiência de Negri, que já testou centenas de milhas
com os Daytona Prototype nas últimas temporadas, e com a juventude
e talento de Frisselle.
O
brasileiro Oswaldo Negri Jr, é muitíssimo conceituado nos
Estados Unidos, onde exerce a função de consultor técnico
da Barber Dodge Pro Series, além de ajudar no desenvolvimento do
monoposto. Negri tem no seu currículo o título da Pan-american
Indy Lights de 1998, além de diversos outros títulos. Negri
também defendeu em várias corridas a JMB Racing, que é
a equipe oficial da Ferrari nos Estados Unidos.
Frisselle por sua vez conseguiu destaque na última temporada, onde
conquistou o título de Rookie of Year, da Barber Dodge Pro Series,
e terminou em sexto no campeonato.
JV5Racing
João
Vasconcelos – (011) 9736-2398
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Leia
em Português
Michael
Shank Racing Names New Drivers for Rolex Series
02/05/2004
Reynoldsburg,
Ohio (February 04, 2004) Michael Shank Racing announced that it has signed
two drivers for the next three events in the Grand American Rolex Sports
Car Series.
Burt Frisselle of Kihei, Hawaii, and Oswaldo Negri Jr, of Miami, Fla.
will share driving duties in the No. 6 Lexus-powered Doran JE4 beginning
with the Grand Prix of Miami, a 250-mile sprint event which will take
place on February 28 as part of the Toyota INDY 300 weekend at Homestead-Miami
Speedway.
Team owner Michael Shank is looking forward to the upcoming races to show
that his team"s strong finish in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, where the
team made a late-race charge to finish fourth in class, was just the beginning
to a strong first season in the Rolex Series.
"My
priority was to find two guys that are used to the sprint-type format
where every lap is driven as hard as possible," said Shank. "The
way that the rules are set up, the competition is so close that you have
to bring the best package to every race, and we feel that these guys will
help us do just that. For example, even though the race at Mont-Tremblant
in May is a six-hour event, we are still going to have to be running flat
out every lap, and these guys can deliver in those conditions."
The pairing is a strong combination of talent and experience. Negri has
logged hundreds of miles in the Daytona Prototype class doing development
work last season ,third in the Britsh F-3 championship, Brazilian and
South American F-3 Champion. He was the Pan-American Indy Lights Champion
in 1998 and has also raced in for JMB Racing, an official Ferrari team
and Inline Racing in ALMS 2003. In addition to his racing activities,
Negri has also worked with the Barber Dodge Pro Series for the past five
seasons as the development test driver and driver coach.
Frisselle spent the 2003 season contesting his rookie campaign in the
Barber Dodge Pro Series, where he showed impressive speed against a deeply
talented field after winning a Barber-Champ Car Scholarship to compete.
Frisselle had a strong season, scoring second in the rookie standings
and sixth in the overall championship standings.
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