Third consecutive podium for Carpentier
source:
f1.racing-live.com
The season-long chase for the Bridgestone Presents
the Champ Car World Series powered by Ford championship has come down to three
drivers, two races and one chassis after tonight's Bridgestone 400 Presented by
Corona on the 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway oval.
Point leader Sebastien Bourdais won a thrilling and safe race in his #2
McDonald's Lola/Ford-Cosworth/Bridgestone Champ car by 0.066 seconds over his
Newman/Haas Racing teammate Bruno Junqueira's #6 PacifiCare Lola. Patrick
Carpentier earned third podium slot with the #7 Indeck/Forsythe Championship
Racing Lola to keep his title hopes alive. Only this trio have any hope of
taking home Champ Car's Vanderbilt Cup after the final two races of the 14-event
2004 campaign are run.
Bourdais battled to the finish with Junqueira, overcoming the team's need to
make two engine swaps on race day and a pit stop refueling problem to lead 100
of 166 laps on a warm desert night, taking his sixth win of the season. "I was
flat out all around and all credit to the team who gave me a perfect set-up for
the race," Bourdais reflected. "I could run anywhere on the track with my Lola."
Junqueira was aggravated to take second to the Frenchman but said, "I'm very
frustrated with the outcome because my Lola was perfect tonight. This was a
clean race with Sebastien and Patrick and, anytime you bring it home in one
piece with a race like this, it's a good race."