Drivers battle traffic as they feel out Mid-Ohio course, cars, in preparation for qualifying
August 15, 2014
LEXINGTON, Ohio (Aug. 14, 2014) –Trans Am competitors took to the track at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in mass twice today for practice sessions this morning in preparation for the 3Dimensional Services Next Dimension 100.
With two practice session within an hour of each other and over 53 cars participating in the sessions, the 2.4 mile course saw plenty of action. And while traffic kept most drivers far off the track records for their class, they gained valuable seat time feeling out the course and preparing to navigating the 59-car field come race day, an entry that is now tied for the series all-time high.
After the conclusion of both sessions, it was former Champion Tomy Drissi, in the No. 4 Tony Ave Racing Chevrolet Corvette, who led the way for the TA class and Trans Am field with a 1:22.238. Following him in the TA class was last year’s Champion and teammate of Drissi, Doug Peterson, in the No. 87 3Dimensional.com Chevrolet Corvette, and Amy Ruman, driver of the No. 23 McNichols Company Chevrolet Corvette, defending this, her home track.
Rounding out the top five was Simon Gregg, in the No. 59 Derhaag Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette, as he debuted the C7 Corvette for the Trans Am Series, and Cliff Ebben, in the No. 36 Stumpf Ford/ McMahon Group Ford Mustang.
Ron Keith, in the No. 23 Mike Cope Racing/Offsite Management Ford Mustang, led TA2 with a time of 1:27.714, with John Atwell, in the No. 02 A&J Lab Chevrolet Camaro, second and NASCAR Nationwide star Ty Dillon, in the No. 12 CTEK/NorthStar/Miller Racing Chevrolet Camaro, third, with times of 1:28.648 and 1:28.673, respectively.
Adam Andretti, in the No. 44 Engineered Components Chevrolet Camaro, was fourth and Joe Ebben, son of Cliff Ebben and driver of the No. 14 Stumpf Ford/McMahon Group Ford Mustang, was fifth.
Ernie Francis, Jr., led TA3’s American Muscle group in the No. 9 Breathless Performance Chevrolet Camaro, beating out Rich Jones, in the No. 37 IndHdwe/IndTubStl/JOMAC Ford Mustang, and Todd Napieralski, in the No. 3 Tremec/SKF/Backstreet/Chevrolet Performance Chevrolet Camaro.
Likewise, in the International Group, Jerry Greene, in the No. 93 Ever Greene Jewelry Porsche GT3 Cup, led Milton Grant, in the No. 5 Courtyard Porsche 997, and Lee Saunders in the No. 84 Landsearch LLC Dodge Viper.
Also of note was the official debut of the Dodge Challenger in TA2, driven by Trans Am legend Tommy Kendall. Kendall would power the No. 11 Miller Racing Dodge Challenger SRT to the tenth best time of the session as Miller Racing and SRT Motorsports continue to refine the platform.
Trans Am will return to the track at Mid-Ohio at 4:45 p.m. EDT for qualifying in preparation for the 100-mile Trans Am race tomorrow, Saturday August 16, at noon.
Keep up with all the action at www.gotransam.com, on Twitter at @gotransam, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/gotransam.
###
About Trans Am:
The Trans Am Series dates back to 1966. Throughout the years, some of the greatest names in motorsports have participated in the Trans Am Series. Past Trans Am Champions include Paul Gentilozzi, Tommy Kendall, Mark Donohue, Scott Pruett, Wally Dallenbach, Jr., George Follmer, Greg Pickett, Scott Sharp, Bob Tullius, Tony Ave, Bob Stretch, Simon Gregg, Doug Peterson, Cameron Lawrence and Chuck Cassaro.
The iconic Trans Am Series – America’s Road Racing Series–is operated by the Trans Am Race Company, LLC. Through a five-year agreement, the Trans Am Race Company manages the marketing rights to the series and is responsible for Trans Am Series public relations and promotions. SCCA Pro Racing sanctions Trans Am events and provides event operations services to the series. To learn more about Trans Am visit www.gotransam.com, www.facebook.com or @gotransam.
