For media information:
Linda Mansfield, Restart Communications
Cell: (317) 201-0729
E-mail: LKMRestart@gmail.com
Andersen Racing's Vautier Wins Sunday at NJMP
While Krohn Finishes Third in Star Mazda Action
MILLVILLE, N.J., June 27 - New Jersey is home to Andersen Racing co-owners
Dan and John Andersen, so they were especially pleased when one of their
five drivers won Round 7 of the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear
Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park, and another finished third.
Although the Andersen brothers live in the Garden State, their drivers who
finished on the podium Sunday couldn't live much further away. Tristan
Vautier of Corenc, France out-dragged Conor Daly at the start and then led all
35 laps of the race. His teammate, Anders Krohn of Stavanger, Norway, ran in
second place for seven laps but had to settle for third on the last lap
when he lost all but sixth gear in his car two laps from the finish.
The strong showing continued the Palmetto, Fla.-based team's amazing record
at the 2.17-mile, 14-turn road course near Atlantic City, as other Andersen
Racing drivers won both ends of the doubleheader here last year and Krohn
finished second in the first half of the doubleheader Saturday. The races
were part of the Mazda Motorsports Festival presented by VisitFlorida.com,
which was covered live on HDNet.
It was the second victory of the year for Vautier, who won the season
opener and has vied for other victories only to see something thwart him from
taking the checkered flag first with his No. 38, which is sponsored by Moulin
T.P., Cecibon, Circuit du Laquis, Fontanel Promotion and Allied Building
Products Corp. Although he's a rookie in the series, like all successful race
car drivers he is convinced he can win every race he enters, and to his
thinking this victory was long overdue. He was especially frustrated when he was
served with a stop-and-go penalty Saturday for allegedly jumping the start of
that race, and finished sixth when he thought he could have won.
After holding off severe pressure from Daly at the start on Sunday, Vautier
had built up a 6.788-second lead by lap 27 with 10 minutes to go in the
45-minute race. On the next lap both Krohn and the driver who eventually
finished second, Joao Horto, got by Daly, pushing the point leader back to fourth
place. All of the front-runners were hampered by lapped traffic but Krohn
stayed in second place until the last lap, when his gearbox problem allowed
Horto to push him back to third. Krohn, who lives in Houston when he's in
the United States, is sponsored by Trallfa Industries, Colosseum Dental and
Norse Cutting & Abandonment.
A third Andersen Racing driver, Nick Andries of Pinellas Park, Fla.,
finished 12th on Sunday just like he did on Saturday. His car is sponsored by the
book "Indy 500: An American Icon;" Team Pelfrey and Andersen Racing's
primary sponsor, Allied Building Products Corp.
Dom Bastien of West Palm Beach, Fla., finished 19th Sunday in a car that
advertised the team's 1-mile road course test track in Palmetto, Fla.,
Andersen RacePark.
Mikael Grenier of Stoneham, Quebec qualified third, sandwiched between
Vautier and Krohn, but his hopes were dashed when he had contact with Daly at
the start. He was forced to make a pit stop for repairs to his car, which is
sponsored by Slow Cow relaxation drink, April Super Flow, NAPA Auto Parts,
HS Telecom and Desharnais. Although he returned to the action he ended up
21st in the final rundown.
Krohn is still second in the point standings with 248 points to Daly's 289.
Horto is third but Vautier moves up to fourth. Grenier is seventh. Andries
and Bastien aren't doing the complete season but they're 18th and 20th,
respectively. Andersen Racing continues to lead the team point standings, and
Vautier and Krohn are first and second in the separate "Visit Florida Cup,"
which consists of seven of the championship's 13 events.
The next Star Mazda event is another doubleheader July 31-Aug. 1 at the
Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, Ill. It will be shown on HDNet live too thanks
to VisitFlorida.com.
For more information see the series' Web site at starmazda.com.
This month Andersen Racing is supporting Give Kids the World's quest to win
the Pepsi Refresh Project by running decals on the team's race cars to
advertise the effort. The non-profit organization is asking everyone to log on
to www.refresheverything.com/givekidstheworld and vote to "Refresh the
Village." If Give Kids The World receives the most votes in June, Pepsi will give
the organization a grant for $250,000. The funds will be used to refurbish
the villas that children with life-threatening illnesses and their families
stay in during their visits to Give Kids The World, which is located in
Kissimmee, Fla. More information on the non-for-profit organization can be found
at givekidstheworld.org.
Andersen Racing is one of the leading development teams in North America.
It offers karting programs at Andersen RacePark and it has professional kart
teams in addition to its Star Mazda and Firestone Indy Lights teams. A
sister company, Andersen Promotions, administers the USF2000 National
Championship presented by Cooper Tires and powered by Mazda.
For more information see andersenracingteam.com, andersenkarting.com,
andersenracepark.com and usf2000.com.
Post-race quotes follow:
Tristan Vautier: "It was so hot today. It was really hard mentally.
"We were three wide at the start. My start was decent. It was hard to keep
the revs up. I guess I had a better start than Conor; I don't know. I
didn't focus on Conor; I focused on what I was doing. I was on the inside.
"When I got the lead I pushed like hell. I don't think I've ever pushed so
hard. I had to work hard, but the team gave me a great car that lasted all
day.
"This series is very competitive, but we knew we had a good race car. This
team just pushes so hard. They worked so hard at this doubleheader, and
their hard work paid off.
"I knew I had to stay patient. I told myself 'Don't try any stupid moves.
Stay calm!' I just tried to drive very clean. It is so easy to make a
mistake.
"I had a problem with my earplugs and I couldn't hear what the team was
saying on the radio. I could hear that they were talking, but I didn't know
what they were saying.
"And I had no dashboard at the end either.
"I really thought about the team during this race. I really wanted to end
this five-race nightmare. We should have won at Laguna, for sure. We have
been so strong and yet we haven't won since Sebring. I was so happy I think
I almost broke my dashboard on the last lap, I was pounding on it so hard.
"Yesterday still hurts. It feels so good to be back on top of the podium.
"Last night I was thinking 'When is this going to end?'
"I know I'm a rookie in this series, but I'm always looking to win. I have
less experience than some of the other drivers, but that doesn't mean I
can't win.
"It was good to have my dad here. He was feeling bad yesterday just like
me. He gives me so much of himself to let me race. He always supports me in
the hardest moments.
"My sponsors - Moulin T.P., Cecibon, Circuit du Laquis, Fontanel Promotion
and Allied Building Products Corp. - make it happen too. And I want to
thank Andersen Racing, Mazda, Goodyear and VisitFlorida.com too.
"I'm full of emotion today."
Anders Krohn: "My car got stuck in sixth gear on the last two laps of the
race, and I had to let Joao go in the left-hander after Turn 5. There wasn't
much I could do with just sixth gear.
"The lapped traffic bunched us all together at the end, so with the problem
I had I was glad to still get third.
"I got Conor when he overshot Turn 2.
"Yes, Conor has a sizeable lead in the point standings, but we'll try to
keep the momentum going and clip away at his point lead.
"We had a fantastic run!"
Nick Andries: "On the first lap I had contact in Turn 9, and it knocked
out the right-front toe. After that I was just hanging on. There wasn't much
to gain, so I was just on a Sunday drive in 13th and 12th place after that."
Dom Bastien: "My car was fantastic. I had a good start and I think for a
while all the other Masters drivers were behind me. I kept my position for
at least 15 laps. I was fighting for position when Tristan lapped me, and
then Conor and Anders snuck by. In trying to stay out of their way I lost my
concentration and I lost some positions with the cars I was battling. This
track is very busy, and the heat completely wiped me out. This was one of my
best races though!"
Mikael Grenier: "I went back out to try to get some points, but my race was
over right at the start. I hit Conor and it damaged my front wing. It was
just a racing incident, but it was my fault."
Sunday's stats:
Qualifying for Round 7 (Sunday, 9:05 a.m. to 9:50 a.m.):
1. Conor Daly, 1:15.840 seconds, 103.006 mph, lap 5 of 7
2. Tristan Vautier, 1:16.096 seconds, 102.660 mph, lap 3 of 5
3. Mikael Grenier, 1:16.122 seconds, 102.625 mph, lap 3 of 6
4. Anders Krohn, 1:16.207 seconds, 102.510 mph, lap 3 of 6
16. Nick Andries, 1:17.832 seconds, 100.370 mph, lap 11 of 15
20. Dom Bastien, 1:19.016 seconds, 98.866 mph, lap 11 of 12
Round 7 (Sunday, 3:05 p.m. to 3:50 p.m.):
1. Tristan Vautier
3. Anders Krohn
12. Nick Andries
19. Dom Bastien
21. Mikael Grenier
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 program utilizing multiple
entries in three different platforms: karting, Star Mazda and Firestone
Indy Lights.
A sister company, Andersen Promotions, administers the USF2000 National
Championship presented by Cooper Tires and powered by Mazda. It is part of
both the Indy Racing League's Road to Indy program and the MAZDASPEED
Motorsports driver development system.
Andersen Racing is sponsored by Allied Building Products Corp. 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, andersenkarting.com, andersenracepark.com and usf2000.com.