SCC: Mid-Ohio: Subaru Road Racing Team race notes

Subaru Road Racing Team Strengthens Title Points
- Aquilante, Skavnes climb to second in Driver Championship points -

Phoenixville, PA -- June 21, 2009 - Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) drivers Andrew Aquilante and Kristian Skavnes vaulted to second place in the Driver Championship points with a strong third place finish in the Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge Series in the Street Tuner race today at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course near Lexington, Ohio.

The successful finish also allowed Subaru to retain its fourth place in the Manufacturer Championship points.

"A podium finish against a tough field like this is really an accomplishment," said Skavnes, of East Sparta, N.J. "I had two tough competitors, one ahead of me and one behind me, and it was a fight for third place all the way."

His co-driver, Andrew Aquilante, added, "We were running as hard as we could to keep the

frontrunners in sight. Being able to finish in the top three against a tough field likes this says a lot about the strength of our Subaru."

Aquilante and Skavnes race the #111 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT spec.B race car, prepared by the SRRT Phoenix team in Phoenixville, which serves as a factory race partner for Subaru of America, Inc.

"We came to Mid-Ohio, joined by a large contingent of Subaru employees from our manufacturing plant (SIA) located in Lafayette, Indiana, hoping to win our third consecutive race at Mid-Ohio," said James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America.

"Although we were targeting a win here, it just wasn't to be today. A third place finish is a positive finish and substantiates the Legacy platform as a strong performer in wet or dry road conditions. I'm looking forward to our next race at Barber Park in Alabama to build upon today's finish."

Team owner Joe Aquilante added, "The crew and drivers really hung in there today and we're pleased with a third place, considering our competition."

The #111 Subaru qualified fifth quickest for today's race, and Andrew Aquilante moved into fourth place by lap five. He then took over third place on lap 41 before pitting on lap 44.

Skavnes started his driving stint in seventh place, and moved to third on lap 79 of 84 laps around the 2.258-mile road course.

-credit: srrt