Atlantic
Michael David Gateway Preview
CONSISTENCY MOVES MICHAEL TODD DAVID AMONG ATLANTIC FRONT-RUNNERS AS SERIES HEADS TO ST. LOUIS CORONA, Calif. (May 18, 1998) – If consistency precedes momentum, then Michael Todd David and the PDR/Water Joe Racing team are headed in ...
Edited: May 8, 2001, 12:19 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
CONSISTENCY MOVES MICHAEL TODD DAVID AMONG ATLANTIC FRONT-RUNNERS AS SERIES HEADS TO ST. LOUIS
CORONA, Calif. (May 18, 1998) – If consistency precedes momentum, then Michael Todd David and the PDR/Water Joe Racing team are headed in a title contending direction as they set their sites for the Motorola 300 at Gateway International Raceway (Madison, Ill.) and round three of the 13-race KOOL/Toyota Atlantic Championship, Friday, May 22.
David’s 10th place showing at Nazareth Speedway was his third consecutive top-10 Atlantic finish and propelled him into fourth place in the Atlantic championship with 16 points. David opened the season at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach with a sixth place showing which continued his momentum from last year’s season close at Laguna Seca where he finished fourth.
"It’s just as important to finish races as it is to win them," David said while reflecting on Nazareth. "That’s the real difference this year. The guys on the Water Joe Team are putting a very reliable car on the grid every race. When we got the car back to the race shop after Nazareth they discovered a broken engine mount which no doubt contributed to the car getting loose, especially in turns one and two. I could have fought for a better finish but when your going 150 m.p.h., position becomes a secondary issue. Nazareth was a real turning point in my career. It felt like I was trying to break a wild horse the way the car was going out on me. My arms felt like jelly the last few laps but I pushed through and brought it home for tenth. When your going for a championship every point is important. A podium finish in St. Louis will put me real close."
Despite this being the first time the Atlantic championship has raced at Gateway, David’s experience on the other Atlantic oval circuits have provided him with the depth of experience and confidence needed to quickly adapt to a new oval track.
"I’m really looking forward to Gateway and Wednesday’s test day. It’s going to be hard enough finding the groove quickly there. The last thing we need to worry about are safety concerns if the Series starts messing with the Ralt. They want to slow it down to help the Swift’s be more competitive. Most of the veterans have their Ralt’s dialed in for oval racing, with a few track-to-track set-up adjustments. We know what to expect and what to correct to make a good race out of it. "
PDR Enterprises, which is in its fourth season as a year round professional motorsports operation, is owned by David and managed by his father, Mike. Its strategic business plan includes expanding into a multi-car team, and to place a team into the CART FedEx Championship Series by the year 2000. Race results, team, sponsor, and driver updates may be viewed on the PDR’s revised web site, www.pdrmotorsports.com.
# # #
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Roda America Starting Grid
Next article Gateway Results
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
Latest news
Tom Cruise interested in racing ARCA car, per NASCAR CEO Steve O'Donnell
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
55 min
Tom Cruise interested in racing ARCA car, per NASCAR CEO Steve O'Donnell
Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
3 h
Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction
William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
4 h
William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix
Alexander Rossi takes over IR-28 testing as IndyCar pushes new chassis to the limit at Sebring
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 4 h
Alexander Rossi takes over IR-28 testing as IndyCar pushes new chassis to the limit at Sebring
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe