For more information:
Linda Mansfield, Restart Communications
E-mail: LindaKMansfield@cs.com
Cell: 317-201-0729
RLR/Andersen Racing's Hildebrand Is a Fast Learner;
Posts Second-Fastest Time in Firestone Indy Lights Practice Friday
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., April 4 - Even though he's never driven on St.
Petersburg's street course before, J.R. Hildebrand got things off to a great start for
Palmetto, Fla.-based RLR/Andersen Racing by setting the second-fastest time
of the day in Firestone Indy Lights practice here Friday.
The series will stage twin 40-lap races here Saturday and Sunday as part of
the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
With staff and guests of Allied Building Products Corp. looking on, the
Indianapolis-based driver posted a time of 1:07.5857 in the second practice session
to end up second for the day. His best lap for the 1.8-mile, 14-turn road
course in the Allied Interior Products No. 25 came at an average speed of 95.878
miles per hour.
Hildebrand's best lap was the 24th of 26 he turned in the one-hour afternoon
session. Only Raphael Matos was faster, but it wasn't by much. Matos's best
lap was a 1:07.4950 for an average speed of 96.007 mph.
Hildebrand was fourth overall in the first practice session with a 1:08.4615
at 94.652 mph.
His teammate, Andrew Prendeville of Las Vegas, was tenth in the afternoon
session with his Best Friends Animal Society No. 5 with a lap in 1:08.5725
(94.499 mph). He was 11th in the morning session with a 1:09.1862 (93.660 mph).
"It was a good showing for the team," Hildebrand said. "We came out strong
right out of the gate. I have a really good teammate in Andrew Prendeville.
We're working together to get our cars better, and we'll continue to do that
when we go over the data tonight.
"It's a big race for us as a team because we're based in Palmetto," he added.
"We also have a lot of people from Allied here."
Although Hildebrand is a series rookie and has never raced here before, he
said his Atlantic experience on street courses last year helped. Still, he said
the course is very unforgiving. "There are no run offs, and no margin for
error," he noted.
"I lived in St. Petersburg for a year, and I really like the area,"
Hildebrand continued. "Although today was the first day I've ever driven on the
course, I walked the track before they set it up this year. I also visualized the
track a lot in order to prepare for this weekend."
Qualifications to determine the starting line-up for Saturday afternoon's
race will be held Saturday morning from 10:05 a.m. to 10:35 a.m.
The first 40-lap race in the series doubleheader is scheduled to get the
green flag at 4:45 p.m. Saturday.
The starting line-up for Sunday's race will be based on the finishing
positions from Saturday's race, except a draw will determine if the first four, six
or eight finishers will be inverted, or if none will be inverted. The winner
of the first race will do the drawing.
The second race is slated for 10:45 a.m. Sunday. ESPN2 will show both races
at 2 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, April 10. Live timing and scoring is available
at indycar.com.
RLR/Andersen Racing is sponsored by Allied Building Products Corp. It is the
development team of Rahal Letterman Racing. Its Web sites are at
andersenracingteam.com and andersenracepark.com.
Friday's stats recap follows:
First practice session (Friday, 9:25 a.m. to 10:25 a.m.):
1. Raphael Matos, 1:07.8734, 95.472 mph
2. Richard Antinucci, 1:07.9280, 95.395 mph
3. Jeff Simmons, 1:08.2958, 94.881 mph
4. J.R. Hildebrand, 1:08.4615, 94.652 mph
11. Andrew Prendeville, 1:09.1862, 93.660 mph
Second practice session (Friday, 4:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.):
1. Raphael Matos, 1:007.4950, 96.007 mph
2. J.R. Hildebrand, 1:007.5857, 95.878 mph
3. Richard Antinucci, 1:007.6807, 95.744 mph
10. Andrew Prendeville, 1:008.5725, 94.499 mph
About Allied Building Products Corp.:
Allied Building Products Corp., headquartered in East Rutherford, N.J., is
one of the largest roofing and siding distributors in the United States. Founded
in 1950 with five employees and two trucks, today it is a $1.8 billion
building material distribution company with over 3,500 employees, more than 200
branches in 30 states, well over one million square feet of office and warehouse
space, and an inventory of approximately 85,000 products, from residential
roofing and siding to doors, windows, waterproofing, manufactured stone, interior
products and commercial roofing systems. For more information see
alliedbuilding.com.
About Andersen Racing:
Andersen Racing strives to provide the best and most comprehensive training
possible for future open-wheel superstars while giving its marketing partners
media exposure and hospitality opportunities at some of the most prestigious
events in North America. It provides a unique, three-step program utilizing
multiple entries in three different series: the F2000 Championship (webcast), Star
Mazda (televised on SPEED) and Firestone Indy Lights (televised on ESPN2).
In 2008 it will field multiple entries in 42 races in 19 states and provinces
at some of the best facilities on the continent, including the famed
Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Andersen Racing's principals, brother Dan and John Andersen, have extensive
experience in series administration as well as team management. They've worked
with many of today's top open-wheel stars, including several Indy 500 winners.
Andersen Racing is sponsored by Allied Building Products Corp. It is the
official development team of Rahal Letterman Racing, which competes in the IndyCar
Series and the American Le Mans Series. In addition, its F2000 team is also
the official factory team of Van Diemen. The team is headquartered at Andersen
RacePark, an 18-acre facility in Palmetto, Fla. that includes a 1-mile test
track. For more information see andersenracingteam.com and andersenracepark.com.