Atlantic: John Edwards take first series sweep and is now five points away from lead

From the Atlantic Championship

John Edwards picked up his second series victory and led a 1-2 sweep for Newman Wachs Racing on Saturday... before wining again on Sunday!

Edwards started from the pole position of Race #1 and led every lap, beating teammate Jonathan Summerton to the stripe by 6.486 seconds to get the win.

Summerton came home second to score his first podium since rejoining Newman Wachs Racing prior to last weekend's round at Lime Rock Park.

Summerton gained the second place spot after Simona De Silvestro - who started second - jumped the race start and was ordered to surrender her position. That occurred on the second standing start of the race, as a malfunction with the lights required the initial start to be aborted.

De Silvestro kept the pressure on Summerton throughout the 45-minute race but was never able to retake second place. She settled for third and retained the lead in the championship standings.

Edwards completed his weekend sweep with another lights to checkered victory on Sunday. It was his third victory of the season and also of his Atlantic career, and he is now tied with Simona De Silvestro for the series lead in 2009 victories.

The 18-year-old started from the pole position for both races of the doubleheader - the first two poles of his Atlantic career - and earned a total of 42 points from the weekend. He now trails championship leader De Silvestro by just five points, 119-114, with five races remaining.

One day after finishing third in the first race of the Illinois doubleheader, De Silvestro earned her sixth consecutive podium result with a second-place run.

As she did on Saturday, De Silvestro chased Jonathan Summerton for much of the race. This time, however, the alternator failed on Summerton's car, enabling De Silvestro to move up one step on the podium.

She finished 12.654 seconds behind Edwards, while Summerton was relegated to 11th in the final race standings.

Summerton's heartbreaking mechanical failure also led to joy for Tonis Kasemets, who picked up his first podium of the year with a third-place run. The Estonian spent the entire race with his mirrors full of rookie Frederic Vervisch, but he managed to keep the Belgian driver at bay throughout.


Race #1:
1. (1) John Edwards, Cincinnati, Ohio, No. 36 Newman Wachs Racing, 20.
2. (3) Jonathan Summerton, Kissimmee, Fla., No. 34 Newman Wachs Racing, 20.
3. (2) Simona De Silvestro, Switzerland, No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds, 20.
4. (5) Frederic Vervisch (R), Belgium, No. 17 Genoa Racing, 20.
5. (4) Tonis Kasemets, Estonia, No. 35 Polestar Motor Racing, 20.
...
10. (6) Markus Niemela, Finland, No. 1 Jensen MotorSport, 1.

Race #2:
1. (1) John Edwards, Cincinnati, Ohio, No. 36 Newman Wachs Racing, 22.
2. (3) Simona De Silvestro, Switzerland, No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds, 22.
3. (5) Tonis Kasemets, Estonia, No. 35 Polestar Motor Racing, 22.
4. (6) Frederic Vervisch (R), Belgium, No. 17 Genoa Racing, 22.
5. (4) Borja Garcia (R), Spain, No. 6 Condor Motorsports, 22.
6. (7) Markus Niemela, Finland, No. 1 Jensen MotorSport, 22.
...
11. (2) Jonathan Summerton, Kissimmee, Fla., No. 34 Newman Wachs Racing, 14.

Unofficial Series Points Leaders:
1. De Silvestro, 119; 2. Edwards, 114; 3. Summerton, 92; 4. Vervisch, 84; 5. Kasemets, 66; 6. Garcia, 64; 7. Niemela and Muniz, 48; 9. Winslow, 41; 10. Lefevre, 30.

Next Race: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course; Lexington, Ohio - Saturday, August 8.