source:
conquestracing.com
While many are scrambling to get their last-minute Christmas shopping done,
the Mi-Jack Conquest Racing team has been hard at work, preparing for the 2005
Champ Car season with some winter testing. This week, Brazilian ex-F3000
standout Ricardo Sperafico and French Porsche factory ace Romain Dumas took
their first laps in a Champ Car in testing at Sebring International Raceway.
The test was a reunion of sorts, as Dumas and Sperafico had both tested with the
team when it contested the Indy Lights series, and had kept in touch with
affable team owner Eric Bachelart, who liked what he saw during the two days of
running.
"Romain and Ricardo both did well, particularly considering it was the first
time either of them had been in a Champ Car," said Bachelart. "I think both
drivers are talented, and despite the fact that neither had been in open wheel
cars for quite some time, they were on the pace quickly, and we were able to
work through our program without any issues so it was very positive for the
team."
Sperafico took a close look at competing in Indy Lights before making the
commitment to race in Europe, where he scored the Italian F3000 championship in
2000 and went on to prove himself as a race winner in the F3000 ranks against
drivers with names familiar to Champ Car fans including Sebastian Bourdais,
Mario Haberfeld, and Justin Wilson. After taking second in the 2003 F3000
championship, he has been restless to get back into a competitive environment,
and his first Champ Car experience left him looking for more.