NA-F2000: Indianapolis (IRP): Andy Brumbaugh debut report

Andy Brumbaugh oval race debut.

Andy Brumbaugh made his oval track racing debut in round five of the 2002 Formula Ford 2000 Zetec Championship at Indianapolis Raceway Park in the famous "Night Before the 500" event Saturday night. Andy put in a fine performance by climbing the oval racing learning curve and putting down front running times before bringing a broken car home to a safe smart finish.

"I've never driven on an oval track before this week so I had a lot to learn. It is very different from the road racing I am used to but I really liked it. It is a different challenge and a skill set I need to develop in order to advance my career. The team was really good in working with me as I got up to speed. By the afternoon of the test day I was within two tenths of the top runners," said Brumbaugh. "On race day the morning practice went well. We were battling for a top five time. In qualifying I followed Allen May, the morning's fastest driver, and stayed right with him. I thought that would be good enough but it was off a little. In the race the car went wicked loose and it was all I could do to hang on and bring it home."

"Andy's car should not have gone loose in the race the way it did. We suspected something must have broken. After the race we went though the car and found a broken front sway bar. We'll check some other things as well," said Ian Willis of AIM Autosport. "Andy put in a heads up mature drive to finish cleanly with that car."

Andy is the defending pro Canadian Formula Ford Champion, the first American and the youngest driver ever to win this highly competitive series. He was the U.S. Club Ford champion in 2000 and the N.A.S.A. Formula Ford champion in 1999.

Just hours after finishing the race at IRP Andy was on a plane home to South Carolina to attend his high school graduation. He'll then fly back to re-join the team in Milwaukee for this weekend's races at the Milwaukee Mile with CART. This will be the final oval races for the series and its "Road to Indy" championship for this year.

You can follow Brumbaugh's progress at www.brumbaughracing.net, www.aimautosport.com, or www.usf2000.com.

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