RSPORTS PRE-EVENT NOTES - ROAD AMERICA RSPORTS preparing to take it all the way to the top with Wilson and Tagliani at Road America source: rocketsportsracing.com Generac Power Weekend at Road America Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, USA Round 10 of 16 August 10-12, 2007 Provisional Qualifying: Friday, August 10, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. CT Final Qualifying: Saturday, August 11, 2:10 - 3:10 p.m. CT Race: Sunday, August 12, 2:00 p.m. CT TV Broadcast: ABC, August 12, 3:00 p.m. ET Notes EAST LANSING, Michigan (August 7, 2007) - RSPORTS return to Road America with a Champ Car veteran in Alex Tagliani who has had several good results at this track, along with a driver in Justin Wilson who has finished top five or better in the last five of six events this season. Wilson grabbed the pole in San Jose, while Tagliani knew he had a car capable of doing it, just missed out on the opportunity, with that, the team is revved up and ready for a double podium finish. Wilson currently sits fourth in the Champ Car 2007 championship standings with a total of 175 points, only 17 points out of the top three. Tagliani currently sits ninth, with a total of 140 points. For most of the season, the teammates have been found in the top six of the points standings, but a hard race weekend in San Jose ultimately hurt Tagliani dropping him down three spots. However, he is only 16 points away from moving back up into the top five. Road America is one of two recognized historical racing landmarks in the United States. The track, at just over four miles long, consists of fourteen turns and follows the natural terrain, creating many elevation changes. A long, uphill front straight sees drivers approaching speeds of 200 mph before getting hard on the brakes for Turn One, a 130 mph corner. One of the best known features of this course is a deceptively fast turn on the backside of the track known as "The Kink". Many cars and drivers have prematurely finished their race on this section of the track. This weekend, Road America will host Wisconsin's largest race event, as it will be anincredible weekend featuring non-stop racing by the world's fastest racing series. The American Le Mans Series will roar into the sunset on Saturday. Champ Carwill sizzle on Sunday afternoon. Support series include Champ Car Atlantics, Star Mazda, and Formula BMW. This weekend is also special because it will mark the 25th anniversary of Champ Car racing at Road America. In 2004, Tagliani took his Rocketsports Racing machine and team from the 13th spot all the way to the top, earning his and the then sophomore-year Champ Car team's first win in the series. This year, Tagliani is reunited with Paul Gentilozzi and the team, which is running under the banner name of RSPORTS this year, and several of his crew members that he competed with in 2003 and 2004. Tagliani was on course for another strong finish in the most recent Road America race in 2006 until a puncture slowed the Canadian. Tagliani pitted just as the race was brought to a halt due to the massive crash involving Katherine Legge, dropping him out of the top 10 finish. An afternoon filled with yellow flags, spins and crashes saw Wilson take fifth place in the 2007Champ Car Grand Prix of Road America, which marked his best finish in two runs at the Elkhart Lake circuit after starting sixth.
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