Santa Clara, CA – July 19, 2005 – It turned out to be only the second practice session of the weekend, and clearly one of the most challenging so far this season for Scott Bradley and the Circuit City/Protomotive team when they took to the track for round six of the SPEED World Challenge touring car series. The July 17 race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, Bradley’s home track, was part of the American Le Mans Series Infineon Technologies Grand Prix of Sonoma.
“This was the first time we just struggled from the very start,” said Bradley, 28, of Santa Clara. “Some parts we ordered arrived late and forced us to miss the test day on Thursday. In the first practice on Friday, it was obvious the gains we made at both Cleveland and Lime Rock were not going to transfer to the weekend at Infineon.”
Although the changes the team made for the second practice session were an improvement, the front splitter mount broke early in the session and required a significant amount of time in the pits to repair.
Prior to qualifying, Bradley said the team worked with the guys at Moton Suspension Technology, a leading worldwide provider of high performance shock absorbers used by many prominent manufacturers and racing teams, including Protomotive, to come up with a few things to try to get the car back to where it needed to be. In qualifying they were able to make some progress, but not enough.
“Missing the test day and the lost track time really caught up to us,” explained Bradley. “I gave it all I had and we ended up qualifying 16th.”
Realizing they were out of the ball park and needed some drastic changes to remain competitive, Protomotive made several big adjustments for the race. At the start, the car felt better, said Bradley. In the opening lap, he was held up by the Audis who jumped the start and were able to get ahead. Once the Audis were blacked flagged, Bradley got some clear track and started to push hard, only to find a problem.
The water temperature in the car started climbing. About halfway into the race, Bradley said the temperature got into dangerous territory, forcing him to back off to keep the motor from failing. Bradley spent the second half of the race short-shifting and coasting a lot just to keep the temperature down.
“It was pretty frustrating. Cars I knew were slower would catch up then pass me,” he said. “I just had nothing for them.”
”Everyone worked their butts off to get me out there this weekend and, being my home track, I was hoping for a better result,” explained Bradley. “In the end, I limped home the car in 15th place just to get points and prize money.”
”Thank you to Circuit City, Kicker, Peak Travel Group and Travel Promotions Network who continue to support the team and make it possible for us to keep moving forward,” he said.
Round eight of the SPEED World Challenge Touring Car challenge takes place July 29-31at Portland International Raceway in Oregon. The race is part of the American Le Mans Series Grand Prix of Portland. Then Bradley and the Circuit City/Protomotive team head to CENTRIX Financial Grand Prix of Denver, Colorado, August 12-14 for round nine of the SWC competition.
Support the team by joining them at the races. Event tickets are available in advance by visiting the websites of the raceways. For information and more on Bradley’s race schedule, visit www.speedrcr.com.
Scott Bradley Motorsports
Born in 1976, Scott
Bradley is the new generation of racing professional, who expects the highest
level of technology, precision and expertise from himself, car and team. He
began racing at the age of 13 winning regional victories, continuing on to win
national series and professional titles. His speed, adaptability and broad experience
driving formula, sedan and prototype sports cars make Bradley a winning contender
at races and championships. He lives in Santa Clara, California. For more information
and a racing schedule, visit www.speedrcr.com.