Genoa Racing Baltimore qualifying report

Genoa Racing Starts Third in Baltimore

#63 Genoa Racing Oreca FLM09: Eric Lux, Elton Julian

Photo by: Darren Pierson

BALTIMORE, MD., September 2, 2011 - On a day when little went as planned around them, Genoa Racing shined on the streets of Baltimore. With limited track time, the duo of Elton Julian and Eric Lux were consistently in the top three in all practice sessions of the LMPC class and will start third in the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix.

With on-track activity delayed much of the day, Genoa got its first taste of the scenic two mile, twelve turn street circuit in Baltimore's inner harbor in a one hour practice session Friday afternoon. The Zionsville, Indiana based squad was instantly up to speed, finishing with the third fastest lap in LMPC competition with Julian behind the wheel.

Genoa topped the charts in the subsequent 15 minute practice, with both Lux and Julian posting competitive times. Julian was tabbed for driving duties in qualifications and was the class of the field in the early laps. On his third lap, the Genoa Racing No. 63 green dot/p.u.r.e./ZaisGroup/Wheel Enhancement ORECA FLM09 snapped loose on Julian in the treacherous fourth turn, resulting in significant contact with the wall.

Despite the setback, the Genoa pilot's fastest lap was quick enough to hold on to third in class.

"I'm disappointed because I feel like we had a car that could have been on the pole," said Julian. "We were P1 in final practice, so we have the speed. I'd like to thank the team for their effort today and the extra work tonight to get the car ready to go. We should definitely be a factor tomorrow."

While the car did sustain damage to the under tray and rear wing, the crew expects to have the car repaired in plenty of time for the two hour race Saturday afternoon.

Genoa will be in chase mode in the early portions of the race, as championship rival Core Autosport's Gunnar Jeannette set the fastest lap in qualifications. Core leads Genoa by just five points heading into the Baltimore Grand Prix.