Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit – Raceway at Belle Isle Park
IZOD IndyCar Series
RACE NOTES/QUOTES for DUAL 1 – Saturday, June 1, 2013
RAHAL CLIMBED 14 SPOTS IN DUAL 1 OF THE CHEVROLET INDY DUALS IN DETROIT TO FINISH 9TH; JAKES EARNED HIS BEST FINISH OF THE SEASON WITH 10TH
GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 Midas / Big O Tires Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “Obviously I’m happy with the finishing result. You always want to finish higher up but some days you’ve got to take what you can get. The Midas / Big O Tires guys worked awfully hard, we had good stops and ultimately we got ourselves a top-10. It was a good day for the team overall. Clearly we need to keep working but I’m pretty happy with where we finished relative to where we started.
(On if there was something from today that can be applied to tomorrow’s race:) “Without a doubt I think that set-up wise we are going to learn quite a lot overnight here. There are a lot of things that we can work on to make the car a little bit better but overall I am pretty pleased.
(On physical demands of duel races:) “It’s a tough race, there’s no doubt about that. I feel all right but everybody is going to want their rest tonight.”
JAMES JAKES, No. 16 Acorn Stairlifts Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “The first stint was tough. The first few laps were okay, we lost a couple of positions but then got them back. And then just could not drive on the reds and I don’t know why. The guys did a great job in the pits. Hopefully we can make a few changes tonight and get right up there tomorrow. (On trip through the runoff area on L31:) I was struggling with the tires and struggled to stop so I went straight in to the runoff, had to turn back around and get back on track.
(On if there was something from today that can be applied to tomorrow’s race:) “We can learn a lot from today for the race tomorrow. We will have a look at the data now. It will be a long night tonight. We have a session in the morning, make a few changes and then see where we end up.
(On physical demands of duel races:) “It’s going to be tough tomorrow. It’s a tough race track. We’ll just get on with it and do it.”
RAHAL LETTERMAN LANIGAN RACING IN DETROIT … The 2013 event will mark the 14th year for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) to compete at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park. The team’s highest start of second place and highest finish of first in the event came in the inaugural running on Belle Isle in 1992 by Bobby Rahal. Jakes matched the team’s best starting spot of second for Duel 2 on Sunday. In total, the team has earned two podiums (Max Papis 2000 – 2nd), three top-five finishes and nine top-10’s here (chart available). Prior to 2013, the team prepared a total of 21 entries for drivers such as Bobby Rahal (1992-1998), Mike Groff (1993-94), Raul Boesel (1995), Bryan Herta (1996-99), Max Papis (1999-2001), Kenny Brack (2000-01), Ryan Hunter-Reay (2007-08) and Takuma Sato (2012). Last year Sato qualified 12th and was sixth when he hit a curb that wrenched the steering wheel from his hands and retired in 20th place after he hit the wall. The No. 15 Midas / Big O Tires entry for Graham Rahal and the No. 16 Acorn Stairlifts entry for James Jakes will bring that total to 23 in 2013.
NEXT UP: A 30-minute warm-up will take place tomorrow from 9:30-10:00 and the 70-lap Chevrolet Duel 2 in Detroit will take the Green Flag at 3:40 p.m. ET Sunday and be televised live on ABC beginning at 3:30. Timing and Scoring information is available for all sessions from www.indycar.com.
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