Gran Premio Telmex-Tecate Presented by Banamex - First Session
(Friday)
source:
www.rocketsportsracing.com - Nadia Petrossi
Rocketsports drivers Alex Tagliani and Guy Smith today completed the first
qualifying session for the Gran Premio Telmex-Tecate Presented by Banamex in
Mexico City. Tagliani qualified seventh with a time of 128.278 (113.614 mph or
182.843 km/h), while Smith posted a time of 131.423 (109.705 mph or 176.553
km/h) putting him in 19th position. The Rocketsports pilots will make their
final qualifying attempts tomorrow for the Fourteenth and final Round of the
Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford on Sunday.
Determined to maintain his career-best sixth place in the Champ Car World Series
standings, Tagliani vowed to do whatever it takes to get a strong position on
the grid for his 90th career start. "The Mexico City circuit can be very
technical. We've used the last two sessions to make improvements to the No.8
Johnson Controls car to meet the demands of the track. We're headed in the right
direction and I'm happy with the changes we've made so far. I couldn't be as
aggressive as I wanted to be, but I know the car can be faster and will take no
prisoners tomorrow."
Unaccustomed to weak starting positions, sportscar ace, Guy Smith in the
No.17 Rocketsports Lola was disappointed with today's qualifying results on the
challenging Mexican road course. "The Autodromo course is new to me and a great
challenge to drive on. It's wide and sweeping in some areas and quite bumpy in
others. I'm actually torn about driving it. I'm excited by it, but also
disappointed with the qualifying session - it's not at all where I expected to
qualify," explained Smith. "I've learned a lot about the track and we're working
to get the No.17 Rocketsports car just right. We'll focus on the data we
collected today to be prepared for the next qualifying session and hope for a
better starting position on Sunday."