Milka Duno and Jan Lammers will co-drive the #2 CITGO Racing Team Pontiac Crawford this weekend in the Comp USA 200 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International in upstate New York. The race will mark the second time this season that the road racing duo has shared driving duties in the #2 CITGO entry. On June 30th, Duno and Lammers posted a 5th-place finish in the Brumos Porsche 250 at the Daytona International Speedway.
The Comp USA 200 at The Glen will actually be the fourth Rolex Series race during the season that Duno and Lammers have competed in the CITGO Pontiac Crawford. The duo teamed with veteran Andy Wallace for the two six-hour endurance races on the 2005 schedule. The trio won the 6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant in Quebec, Canada on May 21st and posted a 12th-place finish in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen at Watkins Glen on June 12th.
The Comp USA 200 at The Glen will provide a different format for the #2 CITGO Racing Team than the earlier Rolex Series event at the historic track. This week, the competitors will race on the “short course”, a 2.45-mile, 11-turn track, compared to the “long course” of 3.4-miles raced at Watkins Glen in June. Plus, the Comp USA 200 will be 200-miles, 82-laps with a two-hour time limit compared to the six-hour endurance test earlier this season.
“This will be our second of three races at Watkins Glen, said Milka. “As we did last year for this race, Tony Stewart will join the CITGO effort and will team with Andy (Wallace) in the #20 CITGO Pontiac Crawford and Jan (Lammers) and I will drive the #2 CITGO Pontiac Crawford. Last year’s race was run under very heavy rain conditions that affected our results – and everyone else’s too. I’m hoping that rain won’t be a factor this year. Jan and I were last paired at the June race in Daytona and we earned a top-five. I’m hoping that we can carry that momentum with us for this race.”
“This race also marks our second of three races in which one of our cars will feature a special Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) paint scheme and synergistic ‘Energy to Care’ logo,” Duno continued. “For this race, the special paint scheme will be on the #20 CITGO Pontiac Crawford that will be driven by Andy and Tony. I know that when I raced our last race proudly carrying the banner, it gave me extra incentive because it is for such a special cause. I’m sure it will energize Andy and Tony for this race as well.”
“The Watkins Glen course has always been a favorite of mine, and I look forward to this weekend,” Lammers stated. “The CITGO Pontiac Crawford should really be good on this course with its high-speed layout. We didn’t have much luck with us during the first race here (Watkins Glen) this year, so I’m looking forward to a much better performance for all of our CITGO and MDA guests on Friday.”
Practice and qualifying for the ninth race of the Rolex Sports Car Series season will be on Thursday, August 11th. The Comp USA 200 at The Glen is set for a 6 p.m. ET start on Friday, August 12th. The race will be televised same-day tape-delayed on Speed Channel beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
