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LEXINGTON, OH. (June 27, 2004) - Local Ohio resident and Defending
Mid-Ohio
Champion Michael Galati thrilled his hometown crowd by leading the
SPEED World
Challenge GT race from pole to podium today at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car
Course.
Michael's record breaking qualifying time (1:27.956) put he and his
teammate
Randy Pobst (grid 2nd) in prime position to dominate today's race. It
was
"follow the leader" as the pair of Audi RS 6 "Competition" cars
maneuvered the
13-turn, 2.258-mile track. Several incidents throughout the scheduled
50-minute race shortened race time to only 41 minutes (24 laps).
Randy Pobst, driving the No. 1 Audi Certified pre-owned Audi RS 6, set
the
fastest lap of the race with a time of 1:29.647. While the third place
car of
John Heinricy driving a Cadillac CTS-V caught up to Pobst during
several
caution periods, it was the power of the 4.2 liter, V8, bi-turbo
engine coupled
with Audi's quattro, all-wheel traction that helped to keep him and
Galati's
No. 2 RS 6 up front.
The SPEED World Challenge series next heads west to Infineon Raceway
in Sonoma California for round four, July 16-18.
Michael Galati (Olmstead, OH). "I'm so happy for the Certified
pre-owned
people, Champion Racing and Rod Bymaster. This team never quits. Last
year
was a disastrous year for me so coming back like this is great. I
never give
up and more importantly, I never follow!"
Randy Pobst (Gainesville, GA). "I think Mid-Ohio is an Audi Certified
Pre-owned race track. Both our cars were perfect today. I personally
want to
thank my crew chief, James, for all his hard work. My RS 6 was fast
today! I
had that Cadillac breathing down my neck all race. It was a great
battle and I
congratulate Michael on his win."
Louis Milone (RS 6 Team Leader). "Our cars were hooked up today. The
race
ending early caught us off guard. Our cars were just getting to the
point
where they were starting to get loose. The tire situation was kind of
brutal.
We were at the critical point so the race being cut short was our ace
in the
hole today."
Michael Diol (Audi Certified Pre-owned Promotions Manager). "This was
unbelievable today. It was great to see a finish like that, to see our
Certified Pre-owned cars finish one and two. I know it was cut short
today but
it was still just so exciting. I cannot say how much I loved being
here and
seeing us win like that."
1) Michael Galati/N. Olmsted/OH Audi RS 6
2) Randy Pobst/Gainesville/GA Audi RS 6
3) John Heinricy/Holly/MI Cadillac CTS-V
4) Tommy Archer/Duluth/MN Viper CompCoupe
5) Lou Gigliotti/Dallas/TX Corvette ZO6
Margin of Victory: 00.249 Seconds
Fastest Race Lap: Car #1 Randy Pobst 1:29.647 (90.675 MPH) |
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