Mosport: B-K Motorsports preview

B-K Motorsports Heads to Mosport, Looking for Continued Success

Saukville, Wis. -- Riding the wave of it's best finish of the season at Road America two weeks ago, B-K Motorsports heads north of the border for the Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport, round eight of the American Le Mans Series. Drivers Ben Devlin and Gerardo Bonilla are pumped up for Sunday's two-hour and 45-minute race, not only for their recent momentum, but also because of the team's past success at the classic Canadian circuit.

Last year at Mosport, B-K Motorsports' Mazda MZR-R-powered Lola B07/46 prototype led for the first time in Series competition, finishing fourth in the LMP2 category. Now, Devlin, Bonilla and the whole Bob Bach-owned organization return hoping to deliver more of the same.

"The 2007 event at Mosport marked our best run of the season for the MZR-R Lola package," said John Doonan, Manager, Motorsports Team Development for Mazda North America. "It also marked the first time we led a race. We are approaching the 2008 Mosport event hoping that 2007 was a sign of things to come here. The team has done a great job in moving up the results sheet in recent weeks. We hope that this coming weekend is another opportunity to show the strength of the BP Lola Mazda."

Mosport has been known to be one of the few circuits in North America to remain relatively intact from its original layout, built in the late 1950s. The 10-turn, 2.459-mile layout has a certain mystique about it, making it a driver's favorite, but also one of the most challenging tracks the Series races on each year.

"Mosport is such a thrill, and that's the way we like it," Devlin said. The level of g-forces, the non-stop high-speed sections all the way. There's like three braking points, but they're not really braking points. There's one hard one and a couple of breathers. It's a real man's track and we all love going there. We're especially looking forward to it because of our good finish there last year. With the engine developments and the new Dunlops, we're even more motivated this time around."

After the team's eighth place overall finish in the four-hour enduro at Road America, B-K Motorsports is determined as ever to take the fight to the Porsches and Acuras in LMP2. It's a fact that the No. 8 BP Lola Mazda is well suited to Mosport, and given the team's recent strides in development, expectations are high for this weekend.

"I started looking forward to Mosport before the end of the cool-down lap at Road America last week," Bonilla said. "B-K Motorsports has a lot of momentum today, and while it's been exciting to think about it, we've kept our focus. We still have much to improve, driving to refine, setups to try, pit stops to practice, the list goes on and on. Everyone on the team is focused and getting ready. Ben and I love the fast turns at this classic race track."

The Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 24 from Mosport International Raceway just outside of Toronto. The eighth round of the 2008 American Le Mans Series race will be aired live on SPEED. XM Satellite Radio will air the race live on XM Channel 166. Live radio coverage also will be available from American Le Mans Radio at americanlemans.com, which also will feature IMSA's Live Timing & Scoring.

-credit: b-k motorsports