Trans-Am

Lime Rock: Round four logbook

The Mohegan Sun Presents the Lime Rock Grand Prix Round 4 of the Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrichÂ® Tires Cup Championship Friday, Saturday and Monday, May 23, 24, 26, 2003 Monday, May 26, at 2 p.m. 66 laps/100.98 miles The race will be run on ...

Published: May 21, 2003, 11:13 PM

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The Mohegan Sun Presents the Lime Rock Grand Prix Round 4 of the Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich® Tires Cup Championship

Friday, Saturday and Monday, May 23, 24, 26, 2003
Monday, May 26, at 2 p.m.
66 laps/100.98 miles
The race will be run on the 1.53-mile eight-turn permanent road course

Tire Talk:
Gary Blalock, tire engineer for spec tire supplier BFGoodrich® Tires, is bringing 460 g-Force T/A® tires to Lime Rock in two dry compounds--200 (medium) and 75 (hard)--and a one full wet compound.

"Lime Rock is a turn-right track, with the exception of one left turn," said Blalock. "The top teams last year were successful using hard left-side tires and medium right-side tires. The track is old and it results in fast tire wear. The fast guys last year were running hard-compound left-side tires, and we'll make that same recommendation this year, unless it's really cold."

Lime Rock Logbook:

* Nineteen drivers have won the 22 Lime Rock races, with only Dorsey Schroeder (1989, 1995, and 1996) scoring three victories. The late Mark Donohue won twice, in 1968 and 1971, and is the only other multiple race winner here. The 16 other winners (listed in chronological order) are: Peter Revson, Sam Posey, Parnelli Jones, George Follmer, Milt Minter, Al Holbert, Greg Pickett, Paul Miller, Paul Newman, Pete Halsmer, Scott Pruett, Ron Fellows, Tommy Archer, Tommy Kendall, Lou Gigliotti, Brian Simo, and Boris Said.

* Pruett (1988 winner from pole in a Merkur XR4Ti) seeks his second Series Lime Rock victory, pole, and fastest race lap. Pruett set fast lap in 1987.

* Stu Hayner seeks his second consecutive pole after dominating the race last season. Hayner fell out late in the event with mechanical problems, and Said went on to win. Hayner, however, isn't winless at Lime Rock, as he earned a GTS-1 class victory during an IMSA race here in 1997.

* In the 17 seasons of Trans-Am competition at Lime Rock (beginning with 1972) during which the official Drivers' Championship was awarded, only four Lime Rock race winners have gone on to clinch title: George Follmer in 1972, Dorsey Schroeder in 1989, Kendall in 1997, and Said in 2002.

* Roush Racing leads all teams in Lime Rock Trans-Am victories with four.

* Ford Mustangs posted a five-race win streak at Lime Rock from 1995-1999. The streak ended in 2002 with Boris Said victory in a Panoz Esperante. Overall, Ford Motor Co. has won 12 of the 22 races; Porsche, three; AMC and GM, two apiece; and Chrysler, Nissan and Panoz, one apiece. Ford leads the marques with nine victories, Mercury and Porsche share runner-up honors with three wins apiece to two each for AMC and Chevrolet and one each for Dodge, Nissan and Panoz.

* Mercury's Merkur has won twice (1987 and 1988) as has Porsche's Carrera (1973 and 1974) and the AMC Javelin (1971 with Donohue, 1972 with Follmer). Chevrolet's Camaro has one victory (Donohue, 1968), as does Corvette (1981, Pickett). Mercury's Cougar won in 1967 (Revson), Porsche's 924 Turbo in 1985 (Miller), Nissan's 300ZX Turbo in 1986 (Newman), Dodge's Daytona in 1993 with Archer, and the Panoz Esperante in 2002 with Said.

* Interestingly, Jaguar hasn't won at Lime Rock, and, along with Panoz, is gunning for its first Lime Rock pole.

* The 1995 Lime Rock race set a record for lead-lap finishers, 13.

* Victory margins in Lime Rock Trans-Am Series races have ranged from 0.227 second in 1988 by Pruett (11th on the all-time victory margin list) to five laps by Donohue in 1971.

* Eight (36.4%) Lime Rock races have been won from the pole, with Donohue doing so twice (1968 and 1971). Other race-winning polesitters are: Posey (1969), Follmer (1972), Pruett (1988), Schroeder (1989 and 1996), and Simo (1999). Kendall's 1997 victory came from a "drawn" third starting position after he qualified first. Schroeder's 1996 win came from an "inverted pole" after he qualified fifth. Fellows won from second in 1992, Schroeder from third in 1995, and Said won from third in 2002. The furthest back a race winner has started is seventh (Minter, 1973).

* Donohue is the only driver in Lime Rock history to win three Lime Rock poles. Fellows, with his 1993 and 1995 poles, and Brian Simo, with consecutive 1998 and 1999 honors, are the only other drivers with more than one fast-qualifying effort here.

* Said and Donohue are the only drivers with more than one fastest lap here. Each has two, with Donohue achieving the feat in 1968 and 1971, while Said's fast laps were consecutive (1995-1996).

-scca pro racing/trans am-

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