Conor Daly Utah race notes

FRUSTRATION LEADS TO SPEED BUT NOT A RESULT IN UTAH

Tooele, May 17, 2009: After a frustrating qualifying session due to set up issues that put Mazdaspeed driver Conor Daly 12th on the grid, Daly and his Andersen Racing engineers took a calculated risk for the race, and made a series of dramatic suspension and aerodymanic changes for the race. The hard work paid off, and Conor quickly made up four positions in the opening laps. Unfortunately, on a Lap 5 restart, Daly attempted an assertive move for 7th place at the hairpin that resulted in contact. The incident necessitated a stop for a wing replacement. However, Daly unleashed a series of laps that confirmed that he could match the speed of the leaders -- in fact at times he was the fastest car on the race track. Although the effort was only good for P24 in the end, Conor's effort illustrated the team's persistence and outright speed throughout.

"I made an aggressive move to pass on the restart because I felt I could run with the leaders. Unfortunately it cost me a front wing and a pit stop. After that the car was as good as I have ever had it. We are close to being able to run right at the front" said Conor.

He current lies 7th in the Championship with a total of 83 points. Next up, Conor will test for the first time on an oval May 20th & 21st in Milwaukee, with a subsequent test at Iowa May 27th -28th. The Star Mazda Series will again race at Millville New Jersey at the New Jersey Motorsports circuit the weekend of June 14th.

-credit: derekdaly.com