• O, Canada:
The Rexall Edmonton Indy field will feature three Canadian drivers, including two who hail from Toronto. James Hinchcliffe, who drives the No. 3 Indeck/Tire Rack/NOCO entry for Forsythe/Pettit Racing, makes his home in Toronto, as does Eurointernational rookie Daniel Morad in the No. 70 Metro Directories of Georgia machine. Second-year racer Kevin Lacroix is from Saint-Eustache, Quebec. He drives the No. 25 Uni-Select/Deans Knight/Wasteco machine for Walker Racing.
• Doubling Up: This weekend features the first of two consecutive doubleheader race weekends for the Atlantic Championship. Rounds 4 and 5 of the 11-race championship will be contested at this weekend’s Rexall Edmonton Indy, followed by Rounds 6 and 7 at Road America on August 9 and 10. While a month or more separated each of the first four races on the schedule, the final eight races will be contested in a span of 12 weeks.
• 35 Years and Counting: The 35th Anniversary celebration for the Cooper Tires Presents The Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda continues with this weekend’s Rexall Edmonton Indy doubleheader.
Over the years, the Atlantic series has seen more than its share of legendary drivers pass through the series on their way to greatness, from Formula 1 superstars such as Gilles Villeneuve, Keke Rosberg and Jacques Villeneuve to IndyCar racing heroes such as Bobby Rahal, Jimmy Vasser, Michael Andretti, Danny Sullivan, Sam Hornish Jr., Dan Wheldon and Buddy Rice.
This year, Atlantic graduates will compete for race victories and championships in top-tier North American series such as the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the American Le Mans Series and the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series. Atlantic has earned the distinction of being North America’s longest-running driver development series, and also one of the best.
• International Flair: This weekend’s race will feature drivers representing 10 different countries. The United States is best represented with a total of five drivers; followed by Canada with three; Finland, England and The Netherlands with two each; and one each from Mexico, Brazil, Switzerland, Venezuela and the United Arab Emirates.
• Rookies Aplenty: This weekend’s field will include 10 rookies. The first-year drivers are Henri Karjalainen (No. 2 GNLD), Greg Mansell (No. 5 Sunseeker), Markus Niemela (No. 8 Mr. Jones Bar & Kitchen/Rauma Town/Turku Karting), Dominick Muermans (No. 9 Hugenholtz Property Group/Jumbo Supermarkten/ Muermans Group), Douglas Soares (No. 11 Banco BMG), Leo Mansell (No. 15 Sunseeker), Dane Cameron (No. 19 MAZDASPEED/Finlay Motorsports/Lynx Racing, Jonathan Summerton (No. 36 Newman Wachs Racing), Christopher Zoechling (No. 45 X8ment4u.com), Luis Schiavo (No. 46 Constructora Iriaca/Astaltatora Maracay/Transporte Jumbo/Energy Freight System) and Daniel Morad (No. 70 Metro Directories of Georgia).
• Past Winners: Chances are good that the driver who wins the races at the Rexall Edmonton Indy will be visiting Victory Circle for the first time in his Atlantic career. Only five drivers in the field have previously won Atlantic events: James Hinchcliffe (No. 3 Indeck/TireRack.com), Kevin Lacroix (No. 25 Uni-Select/Deans Knight/Wasteco), Jonathan Bomarito (No. 26 Del Taco/RLM Investments/Stone Brewing), Simona De Silvestro (No. 34 Nuclear Clean Air Energy/NEI/Entergy) and Junior Strous (No. 6 NEM/Shell/HTP/Muermans Group/Red, White & Bluezz).
REXALL EDMONTON INDYFAST FACTS
WHAT: Rexall Edmonton Indy
WHERE: Rexall Speedway – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
ATLANTIC CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND SCHEDULE (All times local, MT): THURSDAY, JULY 24: Practice, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.; Race #1 Qualifying, 3:45 – 4:30 p.m.; FRIDAY, JULY 25: Race #2 Qualifying, 11:45 – 12:30 p.m.; Race #1, 5:15 – 6:00 p.m.; SATURDAY, JULY 26: Warm-up, 8:15 – 8:45 a.m.; Race #2, 12:45 – 1:30 p.m.
TRACK LAYOUT: 1.973-mile temporary circuit
RACE LENGTH: 45-minute time limit for each race
TRACK RECORDS (based on current layout):
Qualifying (one lap) – 7/22/06, Raphael Matos, 1:05.333, 108.717 mph
Race (full distance) – 7/23/06, Simon Pagenaud, 41:54.492, 101.691 mph
RACE ROUNDS: Round 4 and 5 of the 11-race 2008 Cooper Tires Presents The Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda
NEXT RACE: Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wis., August 9
EDMONTON HISTORY (9 events, 1974-77, 1981, 2005-Present)
Year Race Winner Pole Winner
1974 Bill Brack Bertil Roos
1975 Bertil Roos Tom Klausler
1976 Gilles Villeneuve Gilles Villeneuve
1977 Gilles Villeneuve Gilles Villeneuve
1981 Tim Coconis Rogelio Rodriguez
2005 Katherine Legge Charles Zwolsman
2006 Simon Pagenaud Raphael Matos
2007-1 James Hinchcliffe Raphael Matos
2007-2 Raphael Matos Raphael Matos
- Nate Siebens -
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