Disappointing 18th Place Finish For Skerlong
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Aug 18, 2008
PCM Racing
Trois Rivieres, QC- The weekend was as bumpy as the track at Trois Rivieres for Pacific Coast Atlantic Drivers Carl Skerlong and Frankie Muniz. Carl finished in the top-three in both practice sessions, but just outside of the top-three in both qualifying sessions. In the race, he was forced to come into the pits under green flag conditions for a new nose, due to contact with Markus Niemela. Although it seemed like trouble, he was back on track in a flash, coming out just behind the current race leader, Jonathan Bomarito. He stayed on Jonathan’s tail, and even snagged the fastest lap at one point, before a mechanical issue beckoned him back into the pits, where he had to park the King Taco car.
Frankie’s race followed his plan, he drove a clean and consistent race, gaining six positions and finishing up in 12th position. He just missed the point for gaining the most track positions by one place; Simona de Silvestro gained seven positions.
Although the weekend was filled with ups and downs for the drivers, they fought hard against everything that stood in their way and still came out of the weekend with some championship points and a hunger for victory in New Jersey next month.
Carl on the race: “Today was a disappointing end to the weekend. We’ve had a fast car at every track we’ve been to all season, and if we don’t have any incidents, we’ve finished at the front. This weekend, we had a car that if not capable of winning, was at least close to it. Unfortunately, I got hit by (Markus) Niemela right at the beginning of the race and had to come in for a new nose under green. The guys did a great job getting me back out there quickly. I then raced for about 20 laps before having to park the car because of a broken rear sheer plate. We had a tough weekend, but I want to thank the guys for all their continued hard work with the King Taco car.”
Frankie on the race: “First of all, I’m very happy to have finished the race today. I struggled all weekend with this track and the right mind set to race on it, so to finish and to finish in 12th makes me so happy. I’m really glad I was able to drive a clean race and stay in it until the end. I want to thank the guys for sticking with me when things got tough. I’m really looking forward to New Jersey next month. It’s my real home race, so it’s going to be great.”
Shane Seneviratne, Team Manager: ”We didn’t necessarily get the results we were hoping for this weekend. Unfortunately, Carl had some bad luck in the race. He had contact with Markus Niemela on lap 3 and had to come in for a new nose under a green flag. The guys did a fantastic job changing the wing so quickly. Despite such a short track, Carl ended up returning to the track right behind the leader (Jonathan Bomarito). He hung right in there with Jonathan (Bomarito) and even had the fastest track time at one point before his rear sheer plate failed near the end. Frankie drove a decent and consistent race. He gained six positions, moving from 18th to 12th. It seemed like he had a good battle going with (Douglas) Soares and (Dominick) Muermans and was having fun out there. I want to thank the team for all the hard work and dedication they’ve put into this weekend. We’re looking forward to New Jersey next month.”
