US RaceTronics once again has shown that they are able to compete against the best in the series and hold its own.
It was a great weekend for the US RaceTronics team. Though it started off a bit shaky for the Bakersfield based squad the team regrouped and it all came together for them. USRT driver Carl Skerlong (#24 King Taco/USRT) scored his first podium of his Champ Car Atlantic career on Sunday afternoon's Fast Trac 100 at the Grand Prix of Houston at JAGFlo Speedway at Reliant Park, while David Garza was able to finish the race with valuable points.
The race day started off on a positive note when Skerlong led the final practice session with a fast time of 1:05.382 (92.668 mph). That was another positive step in the right direction in what was a mixed weekend up to that point. Despite being involved in two incidents, Skerlong was able to qualify well (4th place). Now, with topping Sunday morning's warm-up, Skerlong was showing that he had put those incidents behind him. Sandwiched between the Sierra Sierra driver combo of Raphael Matos (#6 ProWorks) and James Hinchcliffe (#9 NOCO/ProWorks) at a new track Skerlong still had his work cut out for him.
As the race started Skerlong was able to excel off his starting spot, and in a bold move, gained two positions by going to the outside line. The move worked and Skerlong rocketed himself behind the leader Matos. Unfortunately for Skerlong's USRT teammate Garza, his own start was not as successful. Garza's start spot was directly over painted surface on the track and when he excelled his tires were not able to grip the surface as well, and as a result he lost precious positions in the seconds that it took for him to excel properly.
As the race progressed Skerlong was able to close the gap between himself Matos while at the same time continued to fend off Hinchcliffe's attacks from behind. The gap between Skerlong and Hinchcliffe grew while the battle between Matos and Skerlong continued. Skerlong was able to close in on Matos at several points in the race but the Brazilian from Belo Horizonte was able to protect his lead at every try. Garza on the other hand was able to pass for position after his disappointing start and would race from seventeenth to fourteenth. The youngster from Monterrey, Mexico was able to show that he could recover from a bad situation, race aggressive and smart, and get valuable points. Traffic never played a factor between Skerlong and Matos. Their incredibly fast pace was evident as they lapped all the way to the seventeenth place driver. As the checkered flag dropped it was Matos, Skerlong, and Hinchcliffe. The USRT team, including teammate David Garza were there to congratulate Skerlong as he drove up to the Start/Finish line. This represents the best performance for the team. In its history the team has had seven Top-3 finishes, including this race.
After the disaster at the Vegas Grand Prix this is truly a great result for the team. With the time off before the Portland race the team will do some testing and prepare for the Summer races.
About US RaceTronics: 2007 marks the third year of competition in the Champ Car Atlantic Championship Series for US RaceTronics. Led by former Dorricott Racing Team Manager Shane Seneviratne, US RaceTronics enters the 2007 season with Monterrey Mexico native David Garza and American Carl Skerlong.
For more information on US RaceTronics and its partners, visit www.usracetronics.com
