Conquest Racing Homestead Test Wrap Up and Race Preview

The test was deemed successful by team owner Eric Bachelart as well as drivers Enrique Bernoldi (#36 Opes Prime Dallara/Honda/Firestone) and Franck Perera (#34 ARES/Opes Prime Dallara/Honda/Firestone), who were making their first appearance on an oval track.

While the first day was dedicated to getting the drivers acclimated to driving on an oval, day two was focused on finding speed, preparing for the first race of the season and getting used to the wind, who decided to be a factor in the second day of testing.

Bernoldi completed a total of 186 laps aboard his Opes Prime machine and set his fastest lap on day two. His lap of 25.4470 seconds (210.084 mph) was a little over three tenths of a second off the best time registered during the test.

"I’m happy with how the test went," expressed Bernoldi who ended up fourth quickest overall and second amongst the transition teams. "The times from the transition teams were very close but we do know that we still have to catch up to the established IndyCar Series teams which will take some time but it’s a good start for us.

I look forward to the race this weekend. My goal will be to simply finish it in the best position possible and to keep the car intact. It’s the best way to gain experience and keep getting better. Racing at night will also be new to me. I thought it would affect our vision but it wasn’t too different because the lighting is very good."

Perera, the 2007 Atlantic Championship runner-up, completed 172 laps over the two days and put in a fastest lap of 25.5560 seconds (209.188 mph).

"Yesterday was better than Monday, for sure," said Perera. "The more laps I put in, the more I build my confidence level. We were able to find a little bit more speed and focus more on the set up of the car yesterday and we had the added difficulty of dealing with the wind.

There is still a lot to learn, but the best learning experience will be the race itself. Our expectations for the weekend are realistic and our goal is to soak up the most experience possible. I also look forward to racing at night because I never have done that before. Racing under the lights is even more exciting and it creates a completely different atmosphere than during the day, making it even more interesting."

Conquest Racing owner Eric Bachelart commented: "It was a very satisfying test on the oval. We can now better quantify the progress we have to make to be more competitive and run at the front on this type of track. This being said, the test went very smoothly and I am proud of what this whole team and the drivers have achieved in such a short period of time.

Enrique and Franck progressed well over both days and did a very good job for never having driven on an oval. But these last two days were only the beginning of what will be a year of learning ovals, the best experience they will get, will be in a race situation starting this weekend. Our goal is to do the best we can and learn as much as possible and to keep improving over the season."

Conquest Racing will be back on track Friday at 11:30 a.m. for the first practice session of the Gainsco Auto Insurance Indy 300 which takes place at 8:00 pm Saturday, March 29. The 200 lap race will be broadcast live on ESPN 2.

Homestead-Miami Indy 300 Conquest Racing Pre-race Notes

Conquest Racing is one of five teams making the transition to the new unified IndyCar Series. Previously the team founded by 1991 Indy Lights Champion Eric Bachelart competed for five seasons in the Champ Car World Series, claiming 2 podium finishes and 55 top-tens in 73 races.

Contrary to other transition teams, Conquest Racing already has a full season of competition in the IndyCar Series, it was in 2002 with French driver Laurent Redon, who took "Rookie of the Year" honors that season. The team has one podium finish to its credit, a third place finish in Fontana that same year.

The team will be making their 18th IndyCar Series start.

Drivers Enrique Bernoldi and Franck Perera will be making their first IndyCar Series start this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway and will be taking part in their first oval and first night race.

Franck Perera, the 2007 Atlantic Rookie of the year, is the only Frenchman to compete full time in the IndyCar Series since Laurent Redon ran the full season with Conquest Racing in 2002.

Enrique Bernoldi will be the only former regular Formula 1 driver in the 26 car field.

Bernoldi drove for the Arrows Formula 1 team in 2001 and 2002 before becoming a test driver for the BAR Honda Team in 2004 and 2005. Some career highlights include a third place in the final standings of the Formula Nissan World Series, a runner-up position in the British F3 Series and a European Formula Renault Championship.

Perera’s outstanding performance in the 2007 Atlantic Championship made him one of the most sought after drivers for the 2008 season. The former GP2 driver finished runner-up behind, now Indy Pro Series driver, Raphael Matos. Perera completed every lap of 2007 on his way to three wins, eight consecutive podiums and 116 laps led. The Frenchman also finished all 12 races in the top-five.

"There is still a lot to learn, but the best learning experience will be the race itself. Our expectations for the weekend are realistic and our goal is to soak up the most experience possible. I also look forward to racing at night because I never have done that before.

Racing under the lights seems to make it even more exciting and it creates a completely different atmosphere than day races making it even more interesting."

"My goal this weekend will be to simply finish the race in the best position possible and to keep the car intact. It’s the best way to gain experience and keep getting better.

Racing at night will also be new to me. I thought it would affect our vision but it wasn’t too different because the lighting is very good. I look forward to it."

"Following our test we can now quantify better the progress we have to make to be more competitive and run at the front on this type of track. This being said, the test went very smoothly and I am proud of what this whole team and the drivers have achieved in such a short period of time. Enrique and Franck progressed well over both days and did a very good job for never having driven on an oval.

But these last two days were only the beginning of what will be a year of learning ovals, the best experience they will get, will be in a race situation starting this weekend. Our goal is to do the best we can and learn as much as possible and to keep improving over the season."

"We made it! It’s been a crazy few weeks for everyone on the team getting ready not only for the two tests but to be in Homestead this weekend for the season opener. We had successful tests in Sebring and Homestead that allowed us to gain important knowledge of the Dallara but we are well aware that the learning curve will continue throughout the season.

Nevertheless, the team has done an amazing job and is well prepared to take on this new chapter. It should be a very interesting season."

- Karina Redmond -