COOPER TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY (NYSE: CTB) and the Champ Car Atlantic Championship proved that a grid rich with talent, power and performance is what it takes for aspiring racers to bring the highest level of racing competition to motorsports. The 2007 Atlantic season was no exception, as drivers put rubber on the racetrack and performed record-setting achievements.
An advanced open-wheel racing series, the Cooper Tire presents the Champ Car Atlantic Championship powered by Mazda series offers the most skilled drivers the chance to shift their passion for motorsport into high gear. For this select group of driving talent, the Atlantic series is an ideal introduction to the world of professional racing, and with the addition of Cooper Tire as the new series presenting sponsor and exclusive tire supplier, the bar has been raised. Putting physics, technology and performance into one of its best open-wheel race tires ever built, the Cooper Atlantic tires allowed drivers to perform ground-breaking miracles of speed and endurance from both automobile and driver, setting new track records at half the season’s races.
With his sights set firmly on the top step of the podium, Raphael Matos (Sierra Sierra Enterprises) ended the 2007 Champ Car Atlantic season as he began it – a winner. On his way to winning the series championship, he secured six wins and a total of nine podium finishes. In addition to taking home the crown, Matos placed himself in the record book a total of five times setting a new race record (full distance) in Las Vegas, Nev., qualifying and race records in Long Beach, Calif., and captured qualifying and full distance race records in Houston, Texas, with every mile driven on Cooper Atlantic tires.
The impressive season for Matos wasn’t the only performance causing a stir in the 2007 season. There were numerous other Atlantic drivers that also created exciting race action. Drivers such as Canadian Robert Wickens (Red Bull Team Forsythe), Rookie of the Year Franck Perera (Condor Motorsports), Carl Skerlong (US RaceTronics) and Jonathan Bomarito (PR1 Motorsports) joined Matos as 2007 record-breaking race winners.
In the rookie rankings, Wickens broke his first track records on Cooper Atlantic tires at the first race of the series in Las Vegas, with a 96.598 mph qualifying record, proving in his first Atlantic season that he is capable of racing with some of the best open-wheel drivers motorsport has to offer.
In fact, in an era of record-setters, Perera also set track records by volume, becoming the first driver since 1996 to finish all 12 races in the top five with three wins, two poles and eight podium finishes. Not only did he take first place in his Condor Motorsports racing car at the Grand Prix of Mont-Tremblant in Canada, but also setting a new track qualifying record of 1:26.426, and a full distance race record traveling 104.686 mph.
The 2007 season also saw Skerlong post two new one-lap race records at Houston and Mont-Tremblant, while Bomarito was in familiar territory posting record-breaking qualifying speeds with a blazing 93.962 mph and a new full-distance track record of 50:08.871 at the San Jose, Calif., race.
As the first Atlantic race in Las Vegas ended with track-setting record results, so did the final race of the season at the Road America circuit. Ending on a fast note, Perera set a new qualifying record with a run of 1.58.883 seconds.
The countdown for the 2008 Atlantic season has started, where Cooper Tire presents the Champ Car Atlantic Championship powered by Mazda will again set the stage for drivers to beat what is already considered to be the best and continue with its tradition of providing dominance in racing with record breaking results. If the past race season was any indication, the shot at the next title will prove to be even more exciting.
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