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AIM Autosport’s Ostella fourth in Illinois Joliet, Ill. (August 1, 2010) — AIM Autosport’s Formula Mazda team celebrated its best result of the season yesterday as driver David Ostella, in the Global Precast car, claimed fourth place in round eight of the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear. Walt Bowlin, driving a second AIM entry, sponsored by Tampa Bay Jaw Surgery, finished third in the Masters Class. The result serves as a welcome boost for AIM’s Formula Mazda squad which has not had much to shout about this season. This weekend’s double-header on Autobahn County Club’s difficult 3.56-mile road course began with testing on Thursday and official practice on Friday. Walt managed to get some miles under his belt, trying to make up for sitting out most of the season with a broken collarbone. David, under the tutelage of driving coach, Lee Bentham, worked on adapting his driving style. Chief Engineer, Keith Willis, is collaborating with Lee to help David reach his potential in the current generation of Formula Mazda. Qualifying for the race took place in the morning in rainy conditions. The rain stopped toward the end of the session, making it critical to post a quick lap in the final minutes. Unable to get a clear lap, David qualified tenth, but had the pace for a much better starting spot. Walt, in just his third race of the season, was tentative in the rain and qualified third in his class, 22nd overall. The 45-minute race, which totalled 17 laps, took place in dry conditions. David got away well, climbing two places on the opening lap and reaching fifth by lap three. In the Maters Class, Walt held his starting position and kept pace with his classmates. David suffered two setbacks during the race, both occurring when he lost places during restarts. However, the work on David’s driving seems to be paying off as both times he rebounded and found his way back to fifth. When the checkered flag came out, David was fifth and later promoted to fourth when a competitor ahead was penalized. Walt had a good run, maintaining his position in the Masters Class, but moving up and down the overall order as he battled with Championship and Expert Class drivers. After a late race spin, he finished third in his class. David’s result has elevated him to tenth in the Driver Standings while AIM remains fifth in the Team Standings. Today’s schedule begins with qualifying at 8:25am (CT) followed by a 45-minute race starting at 2:00pm (CT). HDNET will provide live television coverage.
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Established in 1995 with a mandate to identify, train and manage emerging motorsport talent AIM operates multi-car teams competing in the Formula BMW USA Championship and the Star Mazda Series North American Championship. Among those drivers who have graduated from AIM Autosport are former series and rookie champions james hinchcliffe, Andrew Ranger, Andrew Bordin, J.F.Veilleux, Jonathan Macri, L.P. Dumoulin, Anthony Simone and Dan Burchill. Other notable AIM graduates include, Sam Hornish Jr., Billy Asaro, mark wilkins, Ashley Taws, Paul Dana, Tom Dyer, Josh Schreiber, Dan McMullen and Antoine Bessette. |
