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13.05.2008
Raimondo prepares for first Formula BMW Americas race
– After a long winter of testing and three official spring training sessions, seventeen-year-old Gianmarco Raimondo is looking forward to his first competition in the Formula BMW Americas Series. Driving for Concord, Ontario- based Team Autotecnica, Gianmarco seems well prepared – and excited about the first two races at Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey, California. "It's great to finally get the season underway" commented Gianmarco, who was awarded a Formula BMW Junior Scholarship earlier this year. "We have put in a lot of track time since January but there is nothing like competition to really get you going. It's very exciting to run my first race at a famous track like Laguna Seca. I am looking forward to competing with Autotecnica and challenging for the rookie and series championships," The St. Catharines, Ontario teen was most recently testing at tracks in Utah (Miller Motorsport Park) and northern California (Thunderhill Raceway Park) in preparation for this weekend's race. Gianmarco returned from the west coast to squeeze in a couple of days at school – and to get a change of clothes, then heads back to California on Wednesday (14th) for pre-race activities. Team Autotecnica manager Enrico Diano also expressed excitement about the beginning of the season. "We are looking forward to being in race mode" he said between test sessions. "We followed a plan with Gianmarco through testing to bring him up to speed with the car and with the team. Communication and trust are important components of any team and especially under racing conditions." Diano continued, " We are very happy where we are with Gianmarco right now and we all hope for a good race at Laguna this weekend." Gianmarco will be on track Friday (16th) for practice with qualifying and race one taking place on Saturday. More qualifying and race two are on Sunday. The event is part of the Monterey Festival of Speed which also features Formula Atlantic and the headlining Rolex Grand Am Series. Updates will be provided throughout the weekend on Gianmarco's web site www.gianmarcoraimondo.com Driver Facts: Seventeen-year-old Gianmarco Raimondo is a 2008 Formula BMW Americas Junior. A graduate of the Sunoco Ron Fellows Karting Championship (SRFKC) where he raced Intercontinental C (ICC) shifter karts, He also raced in the Stars of Karting series with Hamilton, Ontario-based Cameron Motorsports. At the end of the 2007 racing season, Gianmarco was awarded a scholarship by SRFKC to compete in the Skip Barber Southern Region Championship where he scored a podium result in a race at Sebring in January of this year. He now races with Team Autotecnica in the Formula BMW Americas series. Team Facts: Team Autotecnica has been in the Formula BMW Americas series since its inception in 2004 (then called Formula BMW USA). The team has recorded a number of wins and podium results in that time. Autotecnica won the series championship in 2005 with rookie driver Richard Phillipe. In 2007 the team recorded a record nine pole positions with rookie driver Esteban Gutierrez. The team also collected the rookie championship in 2007 with Gutierrez. Team web site: www.autotecnicagroup.com
- Chris Jameson, Credit: E. Raimondo-
Author: maggy (admin2)
Last modified: Tuesday, 13.05.2008 - 05:58 More reports from this category all copyright automobilsport.com.
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Season opening event at Laguna Seca Raceway in California this weekend
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