For more information:
Linda Mansfield, Restart Communications
Cell: (317) 201-0729
E-mail: LindaKMansfield@cs.com
Romancini Qualifies Seventh, Jackson 11th
For RLR/Andersen Racing
In Firestone Indy Lights Action at Edmonton
EDMONTON, Alberta, Canada, July 24 - RLR/Andersen Racing's two Firestone
Indy Lights drivers competing at the 1.973, 14-turn temporary circuit at
Edmonton City Centre Airport this weekend qualified seventh and 11th on Friday in
preparation for Saturday's Firestone Indy Lights race there.
The one who will start seventh, Mario Romancini of Sao Paulo, Brazil, was
just 1.2610 seconds off J.R. Hildebrand's automatic new track record in
qualifying, since this is the inaugural Firestone Indy Lights race at this venue.
Romancini's fastest lap in the 45-minute session was his 12th of 25 laps,
which he did in 1:07.1675 for an average speed of 105.748 miles per hour.
His No. 5, which is sponsored by Andersen Racing, Revita Recycling, Win Brazil
Marketing, Allied Interior Products and Lafarge North America, will start
beside Andrew Prendeville's No. 2 in Row 4.
Romancini's teammate, Ali Jackson of Belfast, Northern Ireland, recorded
his best lap at the end of the qualifying session with a 1:07.4934 (105.237
mph) on his 22nd of 23 laps. His No. 9 advertises the Moyvalley Golf and
Hotel Resort and Allied Interior Products. Jackson, who like Romancini is a
rookie, will start on the inside of Row 6 beside the series' 2005 champion,
veteran Wade Cunningham.
It was sunny and 82 degrees Fahrenheit for qualifying. Romancini was as
high as third 20 minutes into the session, but dropped to sixth with a
half-hour gone. He remained in sixth until Charlie Kimball ran a faster lap with
just three minutes remaining in the session.
Jackson was 15th or 16th in the field of 16 until just after the half-hour
mark, when he leaped to 12th. He fell back to 14th and then 15th before he
jumped to tenth with just two minutes remaining in the session. His car's
rear wing was dragging after he tagged the wall late in the session, but he
only lost one more spot before the checkered flag fell
Tomorrow's schedule shows a half-hour warm-up at 8 a.m. local time followed
by the 50-lap/98.65-mile race at 2 p.m. local time. Live coverage is slated
for indycar.com/pro.
VERSUS's TV coverage is slated for 4 p.m. Eastern time on Monday.
Both of the RLR/Andersen Racing cars are sporting the logo of Best Friends
Animal Society here as a salute to that not-for-profit animal welfare group,
which celebrates its 25th anniversary this month. The donated signage
draws attention to Best Friends' quarter century of service to the welfare of
abused, abandoned animals at its 3,700-acre sanctuary in southwestern Utah,
and for its on-going work across the United States. Best Friends' No More
Homeless Pets program includes national campaigns in key American cities to
address the problems of saving pit bull dogs, speaking out against puppy mills,
addressing the problem of cat overpopulation and striving that one day there
will be no more homeless pets. More information on the organization can be
obtained at bestfriends.org.
For more information on Andersen Racing, which is sponsored by Allied
Interior Products and Lafarge North America and offers programs in karting,
Formula BMW and Star Mazda in addition to Firestone Indy Lights, see its Web site
at andersenracingteam.com. For more information on its 1-mile road course
test track in Palmetto, Fla., see andersenracepark.com.
Post-qualifying quotes follow:
Mario Romancini: "We started pretty good. The first practice we finished
third, and I was still getting used to the track. The qualifying session was
not as good as we hoped; we tried some stuff, but I think we can still
improve on it for tomorrow.
"We still have one warm-up before the race. We will change some stuff on
the car, but at least we are starting P7, which is not that bad compared to
some of our other qualifying results. I think we have a good chance of
finishing in the top five or even better than that. We'll change some stuff on
the car for the warm-up tomorrow morning and then see how it goes."
Ali Jackson: "The morning practice session went OK. We got quicker in the
qualifying session and we ended up qualifying P11.
"We struggled in the first part of qualifying. The gear linkage broke and
we lost a little time, but the guys did a good job getting the car back out
on track.
"Then we put new Firestone Firehawk tires on and we did a time that was
quick enough for P10. Then I tagged the wall, or I think we could have been a
bit quicker. We'll change some things for the morning warm-up and see how it
goes."
The stats so far:
First Practice (Friday, 8:45 a.m. to 9:45 a.m.):
1. J.R. Hildebrand, 1:07.0746, 105.894 mph, lap 24 of 32
3. Mario Romancini, 1:07.6560, 104.984 mph, lap 22 of 25
12. Ali Jackson, 1:09.1544, 102.709 mph, lap 22 of 30
Qualifying (Friday, 1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.):
1. J.R. Hildebrand, 1:05.9065, 107.771 mph, lap 19 of 23.
7. Mario Romancini, 1:07.1675, 105.748 mph, lap 12 of 25.
11. Ali Jackson, 1:07.4934, 105.237 mph, lap 22 of 23.
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 the Lafarge Group:
The Lafarge Group is the world leader in building materials, with
top-ranking positions in all of its businesses: cement, aggregates and concrete, and
gypsum. With 83,000 employees in 78 countries, the Group posted sales of
19.0 billion Euros in 2008.
Lafarge North America Inc. ("Lafarge North America" or "Lafarge"), a
Lafarge Group company, is the largest diversified supplier of construction
materials in the United States and Canada.
In 2009 and for the fifth year in a row, the Lafarge Group was listed in
the "Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World." With the
world's leading building materials research facility, the Lafarge Group places
innovation at the heart of its priorities, working for sustainable construction
and architectural creativity.
For more information about Lafarge North America, go to lafarge-na.com or
contact Louise Muth, director of external communications, at (703) 480-3707.
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, four-step program
utilizing multiple entries in four different platforms: karting, Formula BMW
Americas, Star Mazda and Firestone Indy Lights (televised on VERSUS). In 2008 it
fielded multiple entries in 42 races in 18 states and provinces at some of
the best facilities on the continent, including the famed Indianapolis Motor
Speedway.
Andersen Racing won the team championship for 2008 for both the F2000
Championship Series presented by Hoosier Racing Tire and the Star Mazda
Championship presented by Goodyear. Two of its drivers finished first and second in
the F2000 driver point standings, while another was sixth. Three of its Star
Mazda drivers placed third, fifth and sixth in that series' driver
standings. RLR/Andersen Racing finished sixth in the 2008 Firestone Indy Lights team
standings, while one of its drivers placed fifth in that series' driver
point standings.
Andersen Racing's principals, brothers 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. and Lafarge
North America. It is the official development team of Rahal Letterman
Racing. The team is headquartered at Andersen RacePark, an 18-acre facility in
Palmetto, Fla. that includes a 1-mile road course test track. For more
information see andersenracingteam.com and andersenracepark.com.