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Marco Starts an Andretti Sweep |
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By Bill Bernett – fromthetrack.com
April 3. In his initial Mendards Infiniti Pro Series race, Marco
Andretti sat on the pole and won the first Pro Series road course race.
The Grand Prix of St. Petersburg was held on a 14 turn circuit on the
city’s streets. But Marco’s weekend accomplishments weren’t simple. The
post-qualifying inspection revealed what was described as an illegal
aerodynamic setup on the car. The penalty relegated Marco to last
position on the starting grid. Now Jeff Simmons and Wade Cunningham
took over the 1-2 positions.
Andretti Green Racing appealed the decision, and officials ruled that
the changes provided no benefit to Andretti’s car. Now Marco was
again on the pole, and Cunningham back in the second row.
At the start of the race Andretti took the lead, and Jeff Simmons was
out of the race after one lap. Wade Cunningham, of Brian Stewart
Racing, was in hot pursuit. Cunningham had shown he had the
fastest car in all four previous practices.
Wade passed Marco on lap 13 of the 40 lap event. Cunningham held the
lead until lap 31, when his car developed continuous braking problems
which allowed Marco to slip by him in a tight turn. Wade was unable to
recover and couldn’t pass Andretti again. Cunninghan did,
however, record the fastest lap in the race. It was his second
fastest race lap this season.
For father Michael Andretti, as well as grandfather Mario, it was an
historic day in many ways. In addition to Marco’s win, the
Andretti Green Team took the top four places in the IndyCar follow-on
race: Wheldon, Kanaan, Franchitti, and pole sitter Herta, consecutively.
Marco Andretti, at age 18, became the youngest driver to win a Pro
Series race. On the all rookie podium beside him were Cunningham and
Nick Bussell. Bussell drives for J. L. West Motorsports.
Cunningham’s teammate, Al Unser, finished fourth, Arie Luyendyk, Jr. was fifth, and Travis Gregg sixth.
With Jon Herb’s eleventh place finish the Series driver points
standings changed. Gregg is now back in first (110), Cunningham
second (107) and Herb third (106). The Indianapolis Motor
Speedway is next on May 27th. |