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2005 CHAMP CARS - CART

CIRCUIT

• 2.104 mile road course (permanent)
• race: 72 laps ; 151.48 miles
• 2003 winner: Paul Tracy
• 2003 pole: Sebastian Bourdais 1m 14.938s
• 2002 winner: Da Matta
• qualifying record: De Ferran 1m 7.494, 2000
• LAST YEAR: 2004 MONTERREY RESULT
• 1. Sebastien Bourdais, Newman/Haas, 72 laps
• 2. Bruno Junqueira Newman/Haas +3.8s
• 3. Mario Dominguez, Herdez +5.2s
• 4. Patrick Carpentier +6.1
• 5. Alex Tagliani
• 6. Justin Wilson

• Sebastien Bourdais started the 76-lap Tecate/ Telmex Monterrey Grand Prix race from pole and led a total of 17 laps but had to settle for a fifth place finish due to a race hindered by contact with Paul Tracy. He earned the provisional pole on Friday and the broke his own track record in qualifying on Saturday but was unable to experience the McDonald's team's potential in the race on Sunday. The temperatures continued to rise during the weekend and race day saw conditions approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit. He held his position at the start of the race and thorough the first two of nine caution periods during the race. During the second caution period he made his first pit stop and returned to the track behind Paul Tracy who the team felt had violated the pit procedure by driving in the "slow" lane entering the pits. Despite a quick stop by the McDonald's team he returned to the track in fourth place behind two drivers that were out of sync with the pit sequence of the front runners and behind Tracy. He held the position through a caution period for Ricardo Sperifico and until he moved into third place on Lap 29 when temporary leader Nelson Philippe pitted for fuel. He held third place through two more caution period and subsequent restarts when he moved into second place behind Tracy on Lap 39 when previous second place runner Bjorn Wirdheim made a pit stop. He made his second pit stop on Lap 46 during the caution period for Timo Glock and Jimmy Vasser and the team felt that Tracy again violated a pit rule by crossing over the directional lines. He returned to the track in sixth place behind others out of pit sequence. On Lap 48 he attempted to pass Tracy for position and the Canadian did not give him space to complete the pass and the two collided. Cristiano da Matta was apparently included in the accident as the three each returned to the pits for repair. Tracy was unable to continue but Bourdais received a replacement for his right rear tire and returned to the track with da Matta. He steadily moved up in the ranking and was in seventh place by Lap 63 of 76 before a caution came out to remove the car of A.J. Allmendinger who spun and stalled his car. Be held his position through the restart and the ninth and final caution of the race when Timo Glock and Philippe made contact. He passed Ryan Hunter-Reay after the restart and then was briefly passed by da Matta when he was held up behind slower cars. By the time the checkered flag flew he had moved into fifth place. He collected 23 points for his finish and a total of 25 during the weekend.

• BOURDAIS: "After such results at Monterrey you cannot help but hope to win again. It's definitely a track I like very much. I like the setup, the hotel is right in front of the track and the track is in the middle of Fundidora Park, which is a beautiful park. It's really a lot of fun; the track is really slippery and it's a big challenge for the drivers so I'm looking forward to it and I hope we can repeat a win "
• JUNQUEIRA: "The last two years I did very well in Monterrey, Mexico. I had the fastest race lap in 2003 and finished fifth and last year I finished second so hopefully we can get an even better result for the PacifiCare team. It's a very difficult track, there is not much grip but it's a proper race track and it's very smooth. It's always a big challenge for everybody."

• VASSER: "It has been a long break since the last race and PKV Racing has made some significant changes in the structure of our team particularly in the engineering department. We have done a lot of testing during the break, so I am looking forward to getting back to racing in Monterrey and seeing how things pan out"
• MEXICAN WILDCARD DRIVER: Jorge Goeters: "I am very excited about the opportunity to drive the PKV Racing/Team Mexico car ... This is a tremendous opportunity for me and one I have dreamed about for a long time. It will take me a little time to get used to the car, but I am confident that with the help of Russell Cameron and all the guys at PKV Racing I can get up to speed quickly. I am really looking forward to competing against some of the same drivers I raced against in Indy Lights and giving the race fans here in Mexico another driver to cheer for"
• DA MATTA: "PKV Racing has done quite a bit of testing since Long Beach and we have made some changes to the team. Going into the Monterrey Grand Prix, I am actually quite excited because I feel we are a lot stronger as a team. We have done a lot of work together over the last five weeks and I feel we are just better,"

JUSTIN WILSON:

• The Champ Car World Series heads into its second round of the season in Monterrey, Mexico this weekend, with Justin, team-mate A.J. Allmendinger and the whole RuSPORT team keen to get back to racing. The team has been busy since the season-opener in Long Beach, with preparations including a successful test at the Portland road course where A.J. and Justin posted the top two times. Both drivers are eager to put those results to the test this weekend. Justin likes the Fundidora Park circuit and it showed in 2004 when he qualified 3rd and brought home an impressive 6th place finish in just his second Champ Car race. Justin got off to a strong start this season with a 4th place finish at Long Beach and he comes to Monterrey aiming for a podium.

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