With Early Accident - Mont Tremblant, Quebec, Canada
In a race that had hoped to be Jan Heylen’s (#34 Champ Car Grand Prix of Belgium / Cosworth / DP01 / Bridgestone) first complete event, tricky conditions seemed to follow the Belgian driver once more. His race was ended in lap 25 due to a spin in turn nine. Heylen had trouble from the beginning of his race with a stall at the standing start which forced him to use the yellow flag time to catch back up to the field.
Fortunately, after his stall, he remained on the lead lap and made his way up to eleventh place by the time the first pit stop was called. However, soon after his pit stop, a light rain started to fall over most of the track making the course slicker. An overuse of the throttle caused the #34 car to slid off in turn nine which damaged the right rear of the car forcing Heylen to end his day.
Jan Heylen #34 Champ Car Grand Prix of Belgium / Cosworth / DP01 / BridgestoneStart Position 12th / End Position 16th / Result DNF – off course
Jan Heylen Quote
“Well, we had some difficult conditions to contend with out here in Mont Tremblant,” said Heylen. “The spin off was a result of the wet track and when I gave the car some power in the curve it just spun. I feel bad for the team because they have been working very hard. It is disappointing because I would have liked to stay in the race.”
Eric Bachelart Quote
“I’m very disappointed that we weren’t able to finish our race today,” said Eric Bachelart, Conquest Racing team owner. “We were once again prepared and ready to do well but that contact with the wall forced us to end our day early. The conditions on the track weren’t easy and the contact with the wall in turn 9 and it cost him what could have probably been a good finish. The team will be working hard to make sure that the back end is fully repaired for Toronto and see if we have a better result there.”
Event Information
The seventh round of the 2007 Champ Car World Series will be held at the Steelback Grand Prix of Toronto on Sunday, July 8th at 1:00 p.m. EST. The race will be broadcast live on ESPN beginning at 1:00 p.m. EST as well as broadcast live on XM Satellite Radio Channel 205.
Toronto is the second leg of the Champ Car Canadian Triple Crown which will pit teams against each other over the three successive Canadian races. The competition began in Mont Tremblant on July 1st and will conclude in Edmonton on July 22nd. Standings in the Triple Crown will be based upon a combined average finish for each team.
About Conquest Racing
1991 Indy Lights Champion Eric Bachelart started Conquest Racing in 1997 to compete in the Indy Lights series, scoring a podium finish with driver Christophe Tinseau in the team's first season. Conquest Racing competed in the next four seasons in Indy Lights, winning races with Felipe Giaffone and Kristian Kolby.Conquest Racing contested the 2002 Indy Racing League season with rookie Laurent Redon, netting a podium finish in just the third race of the season and clinching the Rookie of the Year award.Conquest Racing rejoined the Champ Car family in 2003, stepping up to the Champ Car World Series with Brazilian Mario Haberfeld and scoring eleven top-ten finishes despite competing with a Reynard. Conquest Racing continued its tradition of working well with young drivers in 2004 as Justin Wilson took second in the Roshfrans Rookie of the Year battle, with Nelson Philippe scoring two top-ten finishes after joining the team in the closing stages of the season. Conquest continued a long history of developing young drivers in 2006, as Andrew Ranger returned for his sophomore season to take tenth in the driver’s championship, the third consecutive season for the team to have a driver in the top-ten. 2005 Champ Car Atlantic Champion Charles Zwolsman finished thirteenth in his rookie season, taking seven consecutive top-ten finishes with the team as he improved progressively throughout the season.
