RACE NOTES/QUOTES---- Birmingham, Alabama, April 1,
2012
Fast Facts:
- Servia qualified 26th for the race and finished 13th. As he
crossed the start/finish line at the end of the race, Oriol came
over the radio to the guys saying, "How do you eat an elephant? One
bite at a time. Great job guys, we will keep getting there."
- The strategy worked for Lotus DRR today. They went with a
three-stop strategy, going off sequence and pitting early. Servia
came into the pits for the first time on Lap 14, switching from the
Firestone Firehawk primary (black-sidewall) tires to the alternate
(red-sidewall) tires and filled the car full of fuel.
- Servia pitted again on Lap 38, receiving a full fill of fuel
and switched from the Firestone Firehawk alternate (red-sidewall)
tires to a new set of "red" tires. With each stop he gained
positions.
- Oriol came in for the final time on Lap 63 to fill full with
fuel and switch from the Firestone Firehawk alternate
(red-sidewall) tires to a new set of "red" tires. He would need a
yellow to come out to help see him to the end and that's exactly
what happened. On Lap 66 the yellow came out for Katherine Legge
and he was able to save enough fuel to get him to the end.
- On the Lap 74 restart, Servia started in 15th position and
passed Dario Franchitti and James Jakes, putting him in 13th
position. He lost a position to Franchitti on Lap 79, putting him
in 14th position, but that wouldn't last for long as he passed JR
Hildebrand on Lap 88 for 13th position.
- Servia had very limited track time this weekend. During
yesterday's qualifying session, Lotus DRR used it as a test. Servia
was able to complete 8 laps and saved a set of Firestone Firehawk
alternate (red-sidewall) tires for today's race. He only ran 7 laps
in Friday's first practice session. There was an electrical problem
and the Lotus DRR crew had to fix the issue, and as a result Servia
was unable to get back out. During the second practice session,
Oriol ran two laps and had to bring the car back into pit lane.
There was a problem with the motor and the team had to change it.
Due to the unapproved engine change, Servia was penalized 10 grid
positions for the race.
- This weekend marked Servia's second start at Barber Motorsports
Park. In 2011, he qualified 6th and finished 5th.
- Servia piloted the No. 22 Charter primary livery for the first
time this season. Charter is a leading broadband
communications company, and the nation's fourth-largest cable
operator providing broadband entertainment and communications
services that includes advanced Charter TVTM, Charter InternetTM
access, and Charter PhoneTM to homes and businesses across 25
states.
- Last year Oriol Finished fourth in IZOD IndyCar Series
standings....Recorded 11 top-10 finishes, with a best of second at
New Hampshire and Baltimore....Among three drivers to be running at
the finish in all 17 races..... Led all drivers in laps completed
(2,103 of 2,011)....Oriol was the only driver to finish in the top
10 in first five races of the season.
- This year will be Lotus DRR's 13th season of IndyCar
competition, making them one of the longest tenured teams in the
series.
- This weekend marked the team's 3rd time to compete at Barber
Motorsports Park. In 2010, the team started 2nd with Mike Conway
and 11th with Justin Wilson at Barber and finished 7th with Wilson
and 9th with Conway in the race. Last year Wilson started 5th and
finished 19th and Simon Pagenaud started 23rd and finished 8th in
the race.
Oriol Servia, No. 22 Lotus DRR, on the Honda Indy Grand
Prix of Alabama:
"Once again, my team and engineer rose up for the battle. We
didn't have much practice time and we were guessing on the setup.
They came up with a great one for the race and I'm very happy, they
did an amazing job. We were as good as anyone in the corners for
sure, and that's what helped me move to the front. We had good lap
speed, a good strategy, pitted early and put good laps together and
passed a couple of cars, which is an odyssey with the lack of speed
that we have on a straight line. I know it's 13th place, but it
feels like a podium."
Dennis Reinbold, Co-Owner Lotus DRR:
"I feel like that we got everything out of the car and out of
Oriol that we could get. We ran all day and had good pit stops. We
got everything that we could get today, I couldn't be more proud of
the way the entire organization persevered."
Back on Track:
Lotus DRR back on track in two weeks for the Toyota Grand Prix
of Long Beach at 3:30 pm ET. The race will be telecast live on NBC
Sports. Please visit www.dreyerreinboldracing.com for more
updates.