- Bernoldi 16th with Camara 24th at ABC Supply / AJ Foyt 225
It was a long day at the Milwaukee Mile for Conquest Racing at the ABC Supply / AJ Foyt 225. The team had high hopes heading into the race with Enrique Bernoldi starting in eighth position, but a first lap contact sent Bernoldi to the back of the pack. He ended up 16th when the checkered flew with teammate Jaime Camara in 24th.
Rookie Bernoldi was hoping for a good start but a first lap contact with Oriol Servia sent the Brazilian to the pits with a left rear tire puncture, which consequently sent him to the rear of the field. The Brazilian made up some spots as the race went by and after pitting earlier than anyone else during the final round of pit stops moved up to 18th once everyone had cycled through. Bernoldi ended up crossing the finish line in 16th, three laps behind.
Conquest’s second rookie, Jaime Camara, had a strong consistent race for the most part, gaining valuable experience and confidence. Camara moved up a couple of positions at the start but struggled in traffic aboard his Dallara which caused him to lose laps to the leaders early on in the race.
After his first stop, Camara was able to run competitive lap times in conditions that were not ideal for the IndyCar Series competitors, but it was too late for the Brazilian to make up any ground. He finished the race in 24th, seven laps down.
Next Up:
Next up for the Conquest squad is the Bombardier Learjet 550 at Texas Motor Speedway next weekend, Saturday June 7.
CONQUEST QUOTE BOARD
16th - Enrique Bernoldi #36 Sangari Dallara/Honda/Firestone
"I’m not sure what Oriol was thinking at the start, he was trying to pass me but he hit my left rear tire and it kind of ruined my race from then on.
I was running competitive but I struggled a little bit in traffic and that cost me some laps. At the end I was able to gain some positions and finish 16th but overall it’s still a disappointing result."
24th - Jaime Camara #34 Sangari Dallara/Honda/Firestone
"It was a long race. It was tough on the start for me. By myself the car was great but in traffic I was struggling a lot and I just wanted to finish the race and have consistency.
The first stint I didn’t have much consistency and I lost laps because of that. On my second stint, the car was a lot better. We made some tire pressure adjustments and the car was there and my pace was really good but I was already a lot of laps behind.
The last stint it was the same thing. I kept my rhythm, my pace was good but I was too far behind. It’s just frustrating because the guys worked really hard and I didn’t give them a good result. At least we finished the race and it gives us momentum going into the next race."
Eric Bachelart, Conquest Team Owner
"We are still on a steep learning curve as a Team with our two rookie drivers but we showed lots of good things this weekend. Enrique qualified very well and Jaime has made good steps on rebuilding his confidence.
We expected a good result in the race and we are a bit disappointed with the final outcome but both our cars finished the race and we are now looking forward to Texas in a few days. We don’t have much time to breathe for sure!"
- Karina Redmond -
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