AIM's BMW Team Victorious at Mid-Ohio
A Pair of Top-Fives to Open Season

2006.05.23: The opening rounds of the 2006 Formula BMW USA Championship series were held at one of America's classic tracks, the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. Twenty-six drivers showed up to kick off the season, including AIM Autosport's Daniel Morad, a rookie from Markham, Ontario, and second-year BMW driver Doug Boyer of Munster, Indiana. When all was said and done, AIM had shown good potential and left Ohio happy with two top-five finishes, including a win from Daniel.

Testing and Practice
The Mid-Ohio track is sporting new pavement this year, so test and practice sessions were very important. AIM's Formula BMW team soon had a handle on the new surface and the drivers, having set some very competitive times, were brimming with confidence as they looked ahead to qualifying. Of course, expectations often lead to disappointment.

Qualifying
Qualifying for race one looked promising as Doug posted a lap of 1:29.084 that placed him sixth on the grid. Daniel’s best lap, 1:29.362 put him eleventh and the fact that three-tenths of a second translated into five grid spots underlined the competitiveness of the series.

Unfortunately, during technical inspection, it was discovered that Daniel’s splitter (an aerodynamic device under the car) had been broken when he spun off the track. The car was therefore no-longer in original configuration and violated series regulations, so Daniel's qualifying times were nullified and he was moved to the back of the grid.

The second session was much faster with lap times dropping by more than a second. With a 1:27.826 lap, Doug had shaved nearly 1.3 seconds from his sixth-place time in the first session yet would start the second race from tenth. Daniel did not let the morning's drama bother him and qualified twelfth with a lap of 1:27.861.

Race One
The opening race of the season took place under beautiful skies. Doug made a great start and immediately began pressuring Ryan Phinny for fourth place. After overtaking Phinny and then losing a place to Simona de Silvestro who had also overtaken Phinny, Doug spent the duration of the event battling for fifth with Race Johnson.

Starting from the last row, Daniel had made steady progress picking his way through the field. Having claimed six places in the first three laps, he found himself behind fellow Canadian rookie, Philip Major. The gap between them was three seconds, but Daniel reeled in Major at a pace of a second per lap.

After taking Major's place, then overtaking two more cars, Daniel had made his way to 14th when an incident involving Matt Lee and Joel Jackson caused a full-course caution that prevented any further racing. Finishing the race under yellow flags, Doug was ahead of Johnson, starting the season with a fifth-place finish.

Race Two
Race two started on a damp track following morning showers so the field lined up on rain tires. After a clean start, Doug and Daniel made the best of others' misfortunes and both AIM cars were in the top five when the yellow flags came out for Reed Stevens and Simona de Silvestro who had collided at the Keyhole.

Having set the cars for drying conditions, everyone in the AIM camp hoped for a short caution as, once the track dried, their advantage would be lost. The race restarted on lap four. The track was still damp and AIM's cars were quick. By lap seven, Daniel was in the lead and easing away from second placed David Garza while Doug fought for third place with John Zartarian.

Once the track was dry, the field was very evenly matched. Daniel, with a cushion of just over a second, was not pulling away but wasn't losing ground either. The team looked forward to seeing two AIM Autosport drivers on the podium , but with four laps remaining, Doug's throttle stuck and he slid off at the Esses. Daniel carried on to take the checkered flag, scoring his maiden victory in cars and giving the AIM's Formula BMW team its first win of the season.

Afterthoughts
Despite a few ups and downs, AIM Autosport left the first event of the 2006 Formula BMW USA Championship a happy group. They proved themselves quick, and are confident of much to come.

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