November 7, 2004
Canadian Racer Stuns In Qualifying For Mexico Champ Car Race
Rising Canadian Racing Star Michael Valiante Wows Champ Car Insiders with 12th-place qualifying effort in his debut Race.
Michael took his game to a new level today. After setting the 17th-fastest time in preliminary qualifying on Friday, the 23 year-old Burnaby native and former Toyota Atlantic standout with the legendary Lynx Racing driver development program powered his #15 Walker Racing / Wildlife Conservation Network Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone to a lap of 1:27.642 (114.438 mph/184.170 kph) in final qualifying. Michael’s Walker Racing teammate, veteran Mario Haberfeld, qualified 17th with a time of 1:28.200 (113.714 mph/183.125 kph).
Michael’s time today was 2.8 seconds faster than his time from Friday's first round of qualifying and he will start an impressive 12th on the grid for tomorrow’s Champ Car World Series season finale, the 64-lap Gran Premio Telemex Tecate. The race is scheduled to take the green flag at 3:00 pm (ET) Sunday afternoon, November 7.
Michael’s qualifying effort placed him on the grid ahead of veteran Canadian Champ Car driver Alex Tagliani 1:27.841 (114.179 mph/183.874 kph), and just 3/10ths behind Patrick Carpentier 1:27.338 (114.837 mph/184.934 kph). Carpentier, like Valiante, is a graduate of the legendary Lynx Racing driver development program in the stepping-stone Toyota Atlantic series.
Last year’s Mexico City winner and 2003 Champ Car World Series champion, Paul Tracy, qualified 6th with a time of 1:27.172 (115.055 mph/185.285 kph). The front row for the race will consist of Sebastain Bourdais and Bruno Junqueira, teammates at the powerhouse Newman-Haas Racing team. Bourdais turn a lap of 1:25.919 (116.733 mph / 187.987 kph), while Junqueira set a time of 1:26.545 (115.889 mph / 186.628 mph) around the 9-turn, 2.786-mile Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track.
“I learned a lot between yesterday and today,” says Valiante, who prepared for this event by driving a racing go-kart every day and watching an in-car camera tape of Tracy’s drive from last year. “There’s such a lot to think about at this level of racing, the pit stops, fuel strategy, tire wear, the effect of fuel loads on the handling of the car, and so on. But I’m getting the hang of it. My confidence level is up, and the car is working better, but I’m a bit disappointed to have left about 3/10ths of a second on the table during qualifying. There’s one really fast turn on the track where the car is still moving around quite a bit and I’m just not comfortable taking it flat-out. The Walker Team will be working late into the night tonight to get that sorted out, and I’m confident of having a good car for the race tomorrow.”
Michael is competing in the Mexico City event with sponsorship from the Wildlife Conservation Network, JV Investments, Lynx Racing, Italkart, Wasteco, Serengeti Design Group, CMSI Canadian Mortgage Strategies & Investments and Premier Pacific Developments.
"We knew Michael was good, so his performance today does not surprise me,” says Walker Racing team owner and renowned talent-spotter Derrick Walker. “We have to get Lolas for these guys next year."
Valiante and Haberfeld are the only two drivers competing in Reynard Champ Cars this weekend. The remainder of the field is made up of faster and more aerodynamically-advanced Lola Champ Cars. Haberfeld is Walker’s regular driver and has been racing a Reynard throughout the 2004 season.
Michael’s Mexico City appearance is a one-off opportunity provided by his sponsors. Walker Racing is working with those and other sponsors to try and move up to a full-time, 2-car effort for 200
Fans and companies interested in sponsorship opportunities – both for the Mexico City event and the 2005 Champ Car season can find more information at www.michaelvaliante.com.