With 570 laps of pre-season testing behind him, Matt Lee is now looking forward to the real test: the opener of the 2007 Champ Car Atlantic season this coming Sunday, April 8, on the temporary, 2.4-mile street course in Las Vegas as part of the Vegas Grand Prix Fueled by VISA.
The 17-year-old rising star from Syosset, N.Y. is part of the Indianapolis-based Conquest Racing team this year. He is a rookie in the 12-race series, formally called the 2007 Cooper Tires Presents The Champ Car Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda. The series has produced many stellar racers in the last 34 years, including Jacques Villeneuve, Bobby Rahal, Michael Andretti and Jimmy Vasser.
If the series name is a mouthful, Lee s goal for the year isn t. Although he s one of the youngest drivers in a very competitive series, he wants to finish in the top five in the final point standings and win at least one race in his rookie season. It will be a tall order. More than 30 cars are expected on the starting grid at the season opener in Las Vegas, which would mark the largest field for a series race in over eight years.
