Lexington, Ohio (August 10, 2003) - Jonathan Macri, driver of the #84 NTN Bearings swift, started on the grid of the Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio in 5th and remained there throughout the 30 lap race. Although Macri wasn’t able to advance in positioning, he did produce the fastest lap of the race with a best time of 1:16.405 on lap 17.
“Although I am not on the podium, I am pleased with this weekend and the communication that is developing with the team”, Macri stated. “We are really beginning to gel. I am also pleased with the developments to our car and producing the best lap time. Overall, it was a fairly good race weekend.”
With a yellow flag in the very first lap, the crowd knew they were going to witness an exciting and eventful race. The spectators proved correct as Joey Hand (#27 DSTP) was able to pull ahead from 7th position into 4th, with Macri following closely behind early in lap two. Shortly thereafter in the same lap, A.J. Allmendinger (#4 RuSport) made contact with Michael Valiante (#19 Lynx) on Turn 7 and was propelled off the course into the tire barrier causing a full course yellow. With Allmedinger out of the action, Valiante, Dalziel (#28 Sierra Sierra), Justus (#3 RuSport), Hand and Macri took over the top five positions, where they remained until the checkered flag.
Macri earned a total of 11 points at Mid-Ohio this weekend, keeping him at third place in total championship points. Confidence and positivity never low, Macri has already begun thinking about Montreal. “I am really looking forward to returning home to Canada in the next race”, said Macri. “Montreal is definitely a second home to me. I will have a lot of family, friends and fans there and I look forward to doing well.”
The 30 lap race in Lexington/Mid-Ohio was televised with a one hour same day delay on the Speed Channel on Sunday, August 10. It will be re-aired on Monday, August 11 at 3:00 p.m. EST and again on Friday, August 15 at 5:00 p.m. EST. Round ten of the 2003 Toyota Atlantic Championship takes place in Montreal, Quebec for the Molson Indy Montreal on August 23.
To track Macri’s race results, log on to www.jonathanmacri.com. For further information on the Toyota Atlantic series, go online to www.toyotaaatlantic.com. To schedule an interview with Jonathan, please contact Kate Unger of All Sports Publicity at 602-750-1720.
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