For more information:
Linda Mansfield, Restart Communications
E-mail: LindaKMansfield@cs.com
Cell: 317-201-0729
Andersen Racing's Krohn and Dempsey
Finish First and Second
In Saturday's F2000 Race at Road Atlanta
BRASELTON, Ga., May 10 - Two Van Diemens prepared by Andersen Racing took the
checkered in first and second place, another one was fifth and yet another
one finished ninth in Saturday's F2000 Championship Series race at Road Atlanta
Motorsports Park.
Anders Krohn posted a 2.643-second victory over Peter Dempsey to lead the way
for the Palmetto, Fla.-based team in the 33-car, 18-lap race around the
2.540-mile road course. Doug Prendeville came on strong at the end to finish fifth,
while Jonny Baker placed ninth. A fifth Andersen Racing driver, Scott
Willard, took fifth in the master's class with a 16th-place finish overall.
Krohn, a 20-year-old rookie from Sandnes, Norway, started second, took the
lead from the polesitter, Jordan Taylor, in Turn 6 on lap one, and was never
again headed.
Krohn's lead was wiped out by a full-course caution on lap 11 for contact
between Brendan Puderbach and Kyle Marcelli in Turn 7. Krohn said the yellow was
actually a blessing because it allowed the Hoosier tires to cool on his Van
Diemen, which is sponsored by Trallfa Industries, Colosseum Dental and Kruse
Smith.
Dempsey gave him a tap in the rear at the restart but Krohn needed no
prodding to run the remaining six laps, take the checkered and pad his point lead
after winning both rounds at VIRginia International Raceway last month and
finishing second here Friday. In addition to the team members on site, he was
immediately congratulated via telephone by team co-owner Dan Andersen, who is at his
home in New Jersey recuperating from eye surgery.
Unofficially Krohn now has a 75-point advantage in the championship over the
driver who finished third on Saturday, Matthew Inge, 202 to 127.
Dempsey, one of Andersen Racing's Star Mazda drivers, got to drive the team's
No. 2 F2000 car here this weekend when it became available and he was able to
get some gear together faster than RLR/Andersen Racing Firestone Indy Lights
driver Andrew Prendeville, who was also on hand and also volunteered to fill
in.
As it turned out there were actually two drivers on the podium wearing
uniforms that said "Krohn," because Dempsey borrowed a spare suit from Krohn and a
helmet and HANS device from the defending F2000 champion, Cole Morgan, in order
to compete here. Dempsey, of Ashbourne, County Meath, Ireland, originally
planned to just help the crew here and get a look at the track, where he'll race
this fall when the Star Mazda series visits here. He pitched in on Friday
night to help fix the clutch in the car he drove to the runner-up honors here
Saturday.
Dempsey started third and like Krohn, he also passed Taylor on lap one. He
ran in second place the rest of the way.
Doug Prendeville of Whippany, N.J. started seventh on Saturday in the No. 5
Van Diemen sponsored by Andersen Racing, Allied Interior Products and Restart
Communications. He dropped as low as ninth, ran the majority of the race in
eighth place, and then came on like gangbusters in the last four laps to nail
down a thrilling top-five finish.
Jonny Baker of Farnham Common, Buckinghamshire, England qualified fifth and
was one spot in front of Prendeville during the middle of the race before his
Allied Interior Products No. 6 Van Diemen faded to ninth at the end.
Scott Willard of Weston, Conn., worked hard to keep fellow Masters class
driver Robert Wright behind his BroadReach Partners No. 14 Saturday. Although
Willard dropped to 19th in the early going, he finished right where he started in
16th place overall.
The results of Saturday's race are provisional. Series officials said they
didn't expect to issue official results until sometime next week.
Andersen Racing is Van Diemen's factory team in this series. The Palmetto,
Fla.-based team is sponsored by Allied Building Products Corp. It is the
development team of Rahal Letterman Racing.
The team's Web sites are at andersenracingteam.com and andersenracepark.com.
More information on the series is available at eformulacarnews.com and
f2000championshipseries.com.
The next F2000 doubleheader is scheduled for June 13-15 at Watkins Glen
International in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
Some post-race quotes follow:
Anders Krohn: "Today's start was good. I passed Jordan in Turn 6. The
opening laps I drove as hard as I could. I had confidence in my car. I knew I
could push it hard, and it was amazing.
"I was glad for the full-course caution. It was a blessing for me. My tires
were going off halfway through the race, and the yellow gave me a chance to
let them cool off. Before the yellow my lead had been decreasing. It went
from 1.4 seconds to under 1 second before the safety car came out.
"I dropped two wheels off at the exit of Turn 7 once before the caution came
out, but that was it.
"I strengthened my championship lead. I want to thank Andersen Racing and
all of my sponsors. My sponsors gave me the opportunity for this adventure, and
Andersen Racing is giving me a car that can win. I'm thrilled!"
Peter Dempsey: "I passed Jordan [Taylor] in 10A and 10B on the first lap, and
I had a good race with him. I went across the grass in some corners to stay
ahead of him. Then he caught the back of me in Turn 7. I looked to the back
and he was gone.
"I hit Anders [Krohn] a bit in the rear under the safety car. I pushed him
down the hill to make sure he was ready for the green.
"My car was perfect. I want to thank everyone at Andersen Racing. This was
the first time I've ever driven here, and the first time I've driven a F2000
car. This is an '08 Van Diemen, and I have to say they did a great job
designing this car. Our Hoosier tires worked to perfection too.
"I also have to thank Anders for the suit, and Cole Morgan for loaning me a
helmet and a HANS device.
"They told me to bring the car home in one piece and get some laps in here.
I did!"
Doug Prendeville: "It was fun. I'm really happy. I want to thank Steve
[Thexton], Corey [Center] and everyone else on the Andersen Racing team who worked
extremely hard and put in very late hours to get my car ready for this
weekend after the crash at VIR. They did a complete rebuild, and you couldn't tell
any difference in the car this weekend from how it was before the crash at VIR.
"I was able to pick up some spots due to some other people's mistakes. My
car handled fine, and it was a good result. The Restart Communications people
were thrilled when we were able to move up to fifth at the end."
Jonny Baker: "First off the race was pretty good. I had a little moment
where my car popped out of gear in Turn 1, but it popped back in and it was
handling well.
"After the safety car the car was still handling great, but for some reason
it lost straight-line speed. We'll look at the data and the video and try to
determine what happened so we can fix it.
"On the last lap Tim Minor drafted by me. I was trying to maintain my
position and I braked late. Luckily for me he avoided me. I had to take a chance on
the last corner, and fortunately it worked out. That was my closest call,
but there was no contact. It was very close on a couple occasions and my car
may have a couple scrapes, but no real contact.
"I see no reason why we can't be challenging for the win at Watkins Glen."
Saturday's stats follows:
Qualifications for Race 1 (10 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.)
1. Jordan Taylor, 1:25.811
2. Anders Krohn, 1:25.894
3. Peter Dempsey, 1:26.305
5. Jonny Baker, 1:26.936
7. Doug Prendeville, 1:27.404
16. Scott Willard, 1:27.929
Race 2 Provisional Results (1:35 to 2:35 p.m.):
1. Anders Krohn
2. Peter Dempsey
5. Doug Prendeville
9. Jonny Baker
16. Scott Willard
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.