Denver: Scott Pruett preview

Third championship in sight for Pruett at Denver

DENVER - Scott Pruett can put an exclamation point on his nearly flawless season at Round 9 of this year's Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup championship, Sunday, Aug. 31 during the Centrix Grand Prix of Denver weekend. Pruett, driver of the No. 7 Jaguar R Performance XKR, has won six races in eight starts this year, claimed six poles, and can clinch the title at Denver.

Although Pruett hasn't turned a lap on the current Denver circuit, the two-time Trans-Am Series champion proved that he can get up to speed quickly with victories at both Trois-Rivières and St. Petersburg.

"I don't know anything about it," said Pruett of the 1.647-mile temporary street circuit. "I've been here for TV; I was a commentator during last year's Champ Car World Series race here. I've heard it's a tight, rough circuit, but other than that, I don't know quite what to expect."

Due to his lack of experience on the circuit, Pruett will rely on his Rocketsports team for input. Rocketsports entered three cars in last year's event, the first on the current circuit layout.

"Teamwork is truly important when you haven't been to a track before," added Pruett, who returned to the Trans-Am Series this season after an eight-year hiatus during which he competed in the Champ Car World Series and Winston Cup. "However, another aspect of teamwork is that we have three cars from which we can get data, instead of just one. That teamwork going to play an even bigger part at a relatively new circuit like Denver."

Pruett said consistency will be the key at Denver for him to clinch the title. Pruett currently leads Rocketsports teammate Johnny Miller by 44 points in the championship chase.

"At Denver, we need to plan on having a good, consistent car and getting the most out of it," said Pruett. "We've focused on each race, and not necessarily on the championship. In my championship runs in the past, when I kept my head down and kept focused on the job at hand, things always turned out better, instead of laying back and looking at the points picture. You can't do that. It's too easy to get caught up in thinking about the points race, instead of concentrating on what you're doing on the race track. I'll just keep my mind on what I need to do on the track, and look at the points after the race.

"But Denver will be a challenge," added Pruett. "Street circuits are always tough, and I've heard this one is tougher than most. But it's a challenge we're up for."

The Grand Prix of Denver is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 31. The race will air on tape-delayed basis on Monday, Sept. 1 on SPEED Channel at 1:30 p.m.

-rsr-