Adrian Fernandez And Luis Diaz To Make Their First Start on The 1.7-mile JAGFlo Speedway
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Apr 21, 2007
Adrian Fernandez, #15 Lowe’s Acura Lola:
“First I have to thank Luis because it is my birthday and he let me qualify. It was his turn, but he let me qualify. As for today, we just struggle on tracks that are bumpy with the Lola chassis. When you go to smooth tracks where you can run the car low, it is good. The tracks that are bumpy like Sebring and here, we really struggle. The car doesn’t ride the bumps. You have to raise the car and it loses downforce. You basically lose overall grip. It is something that we have to work closely with Lola to try to improve. Obviously, a lot of things can happen in the race. The track is very tight and very bumpy, but I feel confident that we will have a good run tomorrow. ”
Adrián Fernández Fast Facts… is a veteran of a 12-year career at the top levels of open-wheel competition, winning in both Champ Car (CART) and IndyCar Series competition with a career record that includes 194 starts, 11 wins and 25 podiums… debuted in sports car competition in 2006, winning the Mid-Ohio Rolex Sports Car Series race and claiming four additional top-five finishes… began competing in select NASCAR Busch Series events in 2005, driving for Team Lowe’s Racing and Hendrick Motorsports and most recently finished ninth in the Busch race at Mexico City on March 4… finished fifth in the IndyCar Series championship in his inaugural season in 2004 with three wins and six top-five finishes… missed the 2000 Champ Car championship crown by only 10 points, finishing second in the series… has garnered numerous awards over the years including “Athlete of the Year in Mexico”… named one of Mexico’s 300 most influential people by a national magazine in 2006… 43 years old from Mexico City…resides in Scottsdale, Ariz., with wife Catalina.
Luis Diaz, #15 Lowe’s Acura Lola:
“Basically we were trying to learn the track today and work on setting up the car. We had a little bit of trouble with the setup and we still need to fine tune it a bit more for tomorrow. The good thing here is that with old tires, the car is pretty good – very ‘raceable’. We couldn’t find the time on new tires. I think we will show stronger in the race and that is the most important thing. It will be a tough race tomorrow – very difficult with traffic – but at the end, I think we should be competitive. ”
Luis Díaz Fast Facts… debuted in sports car competition in 2004 and has claimed eight wins over the past three years as well as Rolex Sports Car Series Team Championship honors in 2006 and a second-place result in the driver championship co-driving with Scott Pruett… was named “Driver of the Year” in Mexico in 2006… won the Mexico Formula 3 championship in 1998… earned Rookie of the Year honors in the Mexican Indy Lights Pan-American Championship, Mexico Formula 3 Championship and Formula Reynard Series Mexico… U. S. open-wheel success includes a fourth-place finish in the 2002 Atlantic championship… began racing go-karts at the age of 12, winning several national championships… 29 years old from Mexico City… resides in Toluca, Mexico, with wife Carolina… nickname is “Chapulín” (Cha-poo-leen) which means grasshopper.
