PANTHER DRR AND ORIOL SERVIA QUALIFIED 18TH FOR THE GRAND PRIX OF BALTIMORE PRESENTED BY SRT

QUALIFYING NOTES/QUOTES---- Baltimore, Maryland, September 1, 2012

Fast Facts:

  • Servia was in Group 2 for today's qualifying session. Unfortunately, he missed a spot in the Fast 12 by three tenths of a second. He clocked the 18th fastest time today of 1:19.3365 (92.568 mph).
  • During this morning's wet and dry practice session due to the weather, Servia was 19th quickest with a time of 1:21.2168.
  • Yesterday morning's practice session was red flagged and then was ended early to get driver opinion on the state of the course. Oriol's thoughts were that a chicane needed to be put in by the railroad tracks. As a result of the issues, Servia only completed three laps in the first session. Track officials put tires in to represent the permanent chicane that was constructed last night. Practice was delayed due to the changes so the drivers only had 30 minutes to try out the new improvements.
  • Panther DRR decided to try something different during yesterday's second practice and the changes didn't work as planned. Servia completed 12 laps in the second session and clocked the 25th fastest time (1:24.6311).
  • This weekend will mark Servia's second start at Baltimore. Last year he started 14th and finished 2nd.
  • On Thursday Oriol visited Oriole Park at Camden Yards and threw out the first pitch at the Baltimore Orioles versus the Chicago White Sox game.
  • In recognition of his first name being a near-match with Baltimore's MLB team, Servia debuted a special helmet design for this year's Grand Prix that incorporates an oriole. Servia hails from Catalonia, Spain, also home of artist Salvador Dali, which prompted his series of unique, Dali-inspired helmet designs.
  • Servia currently sits 13th in the championship with 249 points and is 37 points from 10th place.
  • WIX Filters is the primary on the No. 22 machine this weekend. Since 1939, Wix has been an innovator in filtration products. Wix designs, manufactures, and distributes filtration products for automotive, diesel, agricultural, industrial, and specialty filter markets. Its product line includes oil, air, cabin interior, fuel, coolant, transmission, and hydraulic filters for automobiles, trucks and off-road equipment.
  • In eight races, Servia has gained a total of 98 positions (7 positions in St. Pete to finish 16th, 13 positions in Barber to finish 13th, 7 positions in Long Beach to finish 16th, 12 positions in Brazil to finish 11th, 23 positions in Indianapolis to finish 4th, 11 positions in Detroit to finish 5th, 16 positions in Milwaukee to finish 4th and 9 positions in Toronto to finish 5th).
  • Since making the switch to Chevy power, Panther DRR and Oriol Servia have earned four top-five results in nine races, tying with a season best of fourth place at the Indianapolis 500 and in Detroit.
  • 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.

Panther DRR

  • This weekend will mark the team's second time to compete at the temporary street circuit. Last year, Ana Beatriz qualified 22nd and finished 18th, Tomas Scheckter started 24th and finished 22nd , and Giorgio Pantano started 15th, but was at the wrong place at the wrong time when he made contact in all of the mayhem in Turn 3. His day was ended early on Lap 43 and he finished the race 26th.
  • It was announced in May that the Indianapolis-based squad has united with two-time IndyCar Series champion Panther Racing to form a strategic alliance on Oriol Servia's entry for the remainder of the 2012 season. The No. 22 Panther/DRR team will utilize Panther's second Chevrolet engine lease and work in conjunction with the No. 4 National Guard team and driver JR Hildebrand.

Oriol Servia, No. 22 Panther DRR, on qualifying for the Grand Prix of Baltimore Presented by SRT:

"We didn't get the result that we wanted, but I'm smiling and I'm happy. The WIX Filters car was good and we ended up six tenths from the almighty Will Power in that qualifying group, which is the closest we've been to the superman. Like I was saying, we were six tenths off and sometimes he puts a whole second on the field like he did now. I hate to say it and I never like to have excuses to blame anybody, but on our fourth lap which was a good one on tires and I was up a lap from my previous time and I lost my time because I ran into Ryan Briscoe who was having a slow lap. That is fine, but you should move away when you have somebody catching you on a fast lap and he didn't and that messed us up because I didn't have the tires to do it again. Overall, I'm happy because the car was a lot better and we have something to play with tomorrow."

 

Back on Track: Panther DRR will be back on track at 9:45 am ET tomorrow for warm-up for the Grand Prix of Baltimore Presented by SRT. The race is scheduled for Sunday, September 2nd at 2:30 pm ET. Live coverage will be on the NBC Sports Network and the IMS Radio Network. Please visit www.dreyerreinboldracing.com for more updates.