Negri and Patterson Score First Victory; Bergmeister Takes Championship in Discount Tire Sunchaser
TOOELE, Utah (September 2, 2006) – In a breathtaking final hour of racing in the season-ending Discount Tire Sunchaser at Miller Motorsports Park, Oswaldo Negri Jr. held off a hard-charging Michael McDowell to score the first Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Special Reserve victory for himself and co-driver Mark Patterson, while German driver Jörg Bergmeister wrapped-up his first Daytona Prototype driver championship with a sixth-place performance.
Driving the No. 60 Flight Options/Net App Lexus Riley, Negri claimed the lead when he beat Michael McDowell in the No. 19 Playboy/Uniden Racing Ford Crawford off pit road following the final pit stop of the evening for both cars with just over one hour remaining. Negri withstood several challenges from McDowell over the final hour of the race, but the Brazilian managed to keep McDowell at bay to win by 2.94 seconds. The victory comes in Negri’s 35th career Rolex Series start.
“It’s absolutely fantastic,” said Negri. “Mark did a great job to keep us in contention up front during his stints, and we also had a great last pit stop. (Team owner) Mike Shank has put together an unbelievable team and the support we get from Lexus is fantastic. I just want to thank my wife and kids and everyone who has had to put up with all the sacrifices we have to make to do this, but winning a race like this makes everything worth it. I’m just so happy I can’t believe it.”
While many teams elected to use three drivers for the nine-hour marathon, Michael Shank Racing opted to run just Negri and Patterson. That would prove to be an advantage on the final pit stop, where Negri stayed in the car while the Playboy/Uniden team replaced Memo Gidley with McDowell in the No. 19 machine for the final charge to the finish.
It was Patterson’s third career Rolex Series podium result and his first since the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona, where Patterson co-drove to a second-place result with Negri and Champ Car World Series stars A.J. Allmendinger and Justin Wilson. The victory also clinched the first Daytona Prototype engine manufacturer’s championship for Lexus, and Patterson also claimed the 2006 Jim Trueman Award for the top sportsman driver in the Daytona Prototype class.
“Many thanks to Lexus, Flight Options and to Mike Shank, he runs an absolutely fabulous team,” said Patterson. “It’s amazing to be on the top step of the podium. The realization that we’ve won this race hasn’t even begun to sink in. Oz did an amazing job today and all season, and all credit goes to him and Mike Shank. We started the season off on the podium, and it’s great to go one better to finish the season.”
As Negri, Patterson and the entire Michael Shank Racing team celebrated their maiden victory in Rolex Series competition, Bergmeister and his No. 76 Krohn Racing Ford Riley teammates uncorked their own celebration in honor of the German’s first Daytona Prototype driver championship. After entering the race with a 19-point advantage in the driver standings over No. 01 CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley co-drivers Scott Pruett and Luis Diaz, Bergmeister only needed a solid performance to take home the title.
Although neither he nor his No. 76 co-drivers Nic Jönsson and Colin Braun ever challenged for the race victory, Bergmeister’s title hopes were never in danger. The car ran comfortably inside the top 10 positions throughout the race, and Bergmeister drove the car across the stripe to win the championship by 16 points, 462-446, over Pruett and Diaz. Bergmeister finished inside the top nine in all 14 feature races this season in taking the crown.
“I was really happy when it was over,” Bergmeister said. “The whole team did an excellent job all year long. We always finished. That's a great effort for the team, especially with all of the long races we've run. All of my teammates did super, super well. Especially today, Colin and Nic did a great job with making no mistakes. I can't thank them enough. I have had many teammates this year and they all did good for the team. I've run with Boris (Said) and Max (Papis) and have been able to stay in the top nine of every race."
For McDowell, Gidley and their No. 19 co-driver, Guy Cosmo, the second-place result was a season-best. It was also the best result for McDowell and Gidley since they earned their first victory in the 2005 season finale at Mexico City. The result was all the more impressive given the fact that all three drivers had to battle a power steering failure in the first third of the race.
"It was a great battle with Oz,” McDowell said. “I thought it (passing for the lead) could happen for a while. The Playboy/Uniden car was great. Memo and Guy did the legwork and I was able to finish it out."
"It's a great result,” Gidley added. “A nine-hour race is tough and when the power steering went out, I felt like pulling over and making a career change. I'm stoked to finish second. Let's go party!"
"It's an honor for me to driver for this team and with two outstanding drivers,” contributed Cosmo. “They are great and I look up to them.”
In the closing minutes of the race and under total darkness, No. 4 The Boss Snowplow Pontiac Crawford driver Butch Leitzinger—who missed Thursday’s night practice session—fought past Pruett to take the final position on the podium. It was the second-consecutive podium result for Leitzinger and co-driver Andy Wallace, following a second-place outing last weekend at Infineon Raceway.
Pruett, Diaz and 2003 Indy Racing League IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon combined to lead 52 laps on their way to a fourth-place result. The performance was enough to clinch the second Daytona Prototype team championship in three years for the No. 01 CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley organization. Mike Borkowski and Burt and Brian Frisselle capped a banner night for Michael Shank Racing as they brought the No. 6 Playboy/Mears Motor Coach Lexus Riley home to a fifth-place result.
Defending Daytona Prototype co-champion Max Angelelli combined with his car owner and co-champion Wayne Taylor and open-wheel standout Ryan Hunter-Reay to lead a race-high 53 laps in the No. 10 SunTrust Pontiac Riley. However, electrical problems ruined their bid midway through the race and left the No. 10 trio 14th in the final rundown. As a result, Angelelli finished third in the Daytona Prototype driver standings.
All of the 2006 Rolex Series champions will be honored in the Rolex Champions Banquet on Monday night at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on Monday evening.
