Intersport Racing Fast But Jinxed At Grand Prix of Mosport

Hoping to carry on their podium capturing momentum of Long Beach and Lime Rock, Intersport Racing had high-hopes heading into the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport. It wasn't in the cards.

Canadian Kyle Marcelli had the right idea grabbing the LMPC pole in the No. 89 Merchant Services / Lafarge / DynaPep prototype. Kyle's 1:11.331 set a new qualifying lap record for Mosport and was .615 faster than the second fastest car of Gunnar Jeanette. Jon Field qualified the No. 37 Lenco Mobile LMPC car third with a 1:12.252.

But luck would not be on the team's side for Sunday's race. With Chapman Ducote (No. 89) and Ricardo Vera (No. 37) taking the first stint, both drivers did a fantastic job of keeping the cars on pace and, more importantly, in one piece. Traffic at Mosport was once again, in a word, rough. That roughness brought out the first caution ahead of the scheduled pit stops. Both cars pitted under the yellow.

Back under green, Kyle was busy setting the fastest race lap for LMPC. Unfortunately, his luck would run out on lap 48 as he was collected by a spinning Porsche GTC car. The contact damaged the rear suspension ending the day for Kyle and co-driver Chapman Ducote.

Jon Field pushed the No. 37 car to second place in LMPC and continued his charge all afternoon. With time running out, so was Jon's supply of fuel. In a situation without options the team went for the finish hoping to hang on for third. Adding insult to injury, the third place car caught a timely flag to run an additional lap relegating the stalled No. 37 to fourth.

"We gave it our best shot," said team manager, Brian Alder. "We had no choice in the fuel situation with Jon. We had to leave him out there and go for it. It just didn't go our way."

"We all felt pretty bad for Kyle and Chapman in the No. 89 car," Alder continued. "Kyle's a local favorite and he didn't disappoint all of the fans who showed up to support him and see him run. Both his qualifying session and driving in the race were nothing short of spectacular. He has a lot to be proud of. He'll be back in the hunt at Mid-Ohio."

Ricardo Vera also enjoyed a successful weekend. The young Puerto Rican debuted in LMPC sharing the No. 89 car with Jon Field and took second place in Sunday's Cooper Tire Prototype Lites race.

"Ricardo did a great job," said Alder. "We're really excited about his progress. He's fast and shows maturity out on the track. We see a great future for him racing here in the states and with Intersport. Both he and Kyle Marcelli have been fantastic examples showing how Intersport's ladder system can work for young and developing drivers."


Next up is The Mid-Ohio Sports Car Challenge, the fifth round of the 2011 ALMS championship, is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 6 with ESPN2 airing the race starting at 10 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 7. Live video coverage on race day will be available at 3:15 p.m. ET on ESPN3.com in the US, and americanlemans.com for international viewers. Canadian fans may also watch live coverage on Rogers Sportsnet. Worldwide radio coverage will be available on American Le Mans Radio at americanlemans.com. For more information on the broadcasts, go to americanlemans.com/tv.

Intersport Racing

One of the founding teams of the American Le Mans Series, Intersport has established itself as a premier independent team in sports car racing. The Dublin, Ohio-based team has taken on mightiest of factory prototype teams in recent seasons and posted noteworthy class victories within that span including an LMP1 triumph at Detroit in 2008 and 2006 at Sebring. You can find out more about Intersport Racing at http://www.intersportracing.com, join our Facebook Fan Page or follow us on Twitter at Intersport37.

The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón

The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón is the world`s leading sports car championship and is recognized as the Global Leader in Green Racing. In the tradition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, multiple classes of cars - purpose-built prototypes and production-based Grand Touring automobiles - race on the track at the same time to create compelling race action and constant passing. All cars in the Series compete using one of five approved alternative fuels or energy sources: clean sulfur-free diesel, cellulosic E85 or E10, Isobutanol and electric hybrid technologies. The Series has more automobile marques involved than any other major race series in the world as manufacturers develop relevant technologies on track that transfer directly to the customer showroom. The ALMS competes at North America`s premier road racing tracks and selected temporary street circuits in major urban markets.

The Prototype Lites mission is two-fold: present an opportunity for semi-professional race car drivers to compete in a world-class environment while also providing an avenue for drivers to move up the ladder into the LMPC or LMP classes in the American Le Mans Series Presented by Tequila Patrón. The series is divided into two classes: Lites 1, featuring the Élan DP02 chassis, powered by a 2.3-liter, four-cylinder Mazda MP2 engine; and Lites 2, utilizing the West WX10 and WR1000 chassis, with either a Kawasaki ZX10R or a Suzuki GSXR motor.