Race No. 11
Molson Indy
Toronto — Ontario, Canada
July 18 — July 20, 1997
Friday Quotes from drivers and managers at Toronto:| Index of Quotes available | ||
|---|---|---|
| MICHAEL ANDRETTI | ADRIAN FERNANDEZ | GIL DE FERRAN |
| MAURICIO GUGELMIN | PARKER JOHNSTONE | HIRO MATSUSHITA |
| MAX PAPIS | ANDRE RIBEIRO | GUALTER SALLES |
| AL UNSER JR | CARL HOGAN | |
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Kmart/Texaco/Havoline Swift Ford Cosworth XD Provisional Qualifying: 1st |
| MICHAEL ANDRETTI | |
| "It's become a game here to figure out the right combination. Today was a huge improvement from last year. Last year we were out of the ballpark. It was totally undriveable. We were able to transfer a lot of data from the Lola for our basic set-up of the shocks and springs. That's why we haven't been out to lunch all season on the new car. I enjoy the race track. I love to drive here. At the last two races, we've given a way a lot of points. During this stretch last year, we lost the championship. That's why this race is so important. The tire was has definitely made things interesting and more challenging. They (Goodyear and Firestone) are bringing softer tires to the races and more rubber is going down on the tracks. I think the times will get better tomorrow." | |
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Marlboro Penske Mercedes Provisional Qualifying: 18th |
| AL UNSER, Jr. | |
| "We're lacking overall grip and a big reason for that is because of the increase in track temperature (from this morning). Also the track is really green so that makes it even more slippery. Our biggest problem is through the corners where there's a transition from cement to blacktop. It's like driving on ice. All I can say is Marlboro Team Penske will be working very hard tonight to make a lot of major changes to our cars." | |
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MCI Arciero Wells Reynard Toyota Provisional Qualifying 21st |
| MAX PAPIS | |
| "We improved the car a lot today. In the morning session we had an engine problem that we solved for the afternoon. The car was quite decently balanced. We had a decent amount of understeer, but we were making progress on tuning it out. The problem on the second set of tires I went out and the first lap was a very, very good lap. In turn eight the car slid and I hit the rear right wheel on the tire barrier so I decided to pit. They decided to show a red flag for the damage to the tire wall, so we received an eight minute penalty. We had only one lap after that and we moved up one spot. The achievement was good. I think there is more in the car, a good four or five tenths." | |
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Pennzoil Special Reynard Ford Davis/Craig Racing Provisional Qualifying: 19th |
| GUALTER SALLES | |
| (On morning practice)"(This was) a slow session for us because we had to take care with new
brakes and work on our suspension. At the end of the session, We got a little closer to the front-runners but we ran out of time to get
a good time. We know what to do now and how to make the car go faster, so I think we'll be ready for qualifying this afternoon. The
track is very much the same as last year, when I won the Indy Lights race. It's nice to come back to a circuit you've won on before." (On provisional qualifying) "We've got a problem finding grip out there. When you're running on the concrete, the car won't stay in line. The traction coming off the corner is not good and I can't get a good jump. The tires seem to be going off pretty quickly; so we may have to change from the options to the primary tire tomorrow. We'll make that determination in the morning. For now, it's just a matter of getting as much grip to the rear as possible and still keep the side grip up." | |
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Team Kool Green Reynard Honda Provisional Qualifying: 14th |
| PARKER JOHNSTONE | |
| "14th fastest: '~ke everyone else, we have no grip, less than none. We treated qualifying pretty much like another practice session and tried a couple of different set-ups, looking for a combination that will work tomorrow." | |
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LCI International Reynard Honda Tasman Motorsports Group Provisional Qialifying: 16th |
| ANDRE RIBEIRO | |
| (On morning practice)"The track is very slippery. We are working with the car to make it better but I think it's track-related right now. I definitely am feeling more comfortable with the car." | |
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Tecate Beer/Quaker State Lola Honda Tasman Motorsports Group Provisional Qualifying: 22nd |
| ADRIAN FERNANDEZ | |
| (On morning practice)"The car is not any better at the moment. We have a massive amount of push. The changes to the car from Cleveland and for this weekend are not helping yet. We have to stay positive and keep our fingers crossed." | |
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Valvoline/Cummins/Craftsman Special Reynard Ford Provisional Qualifying: 4th |
| GIL de FERRAN | |
| "Valvoline/Cummins Special: "I'm quite happy with qualifying so far. We had a
difficult session this morning in which we weren't able to run as much as we'd hoped, so we weren't sure how we would stack up this
afternoon. I think that we are still capable of making a run for the pole tomorrow. Since we ran so few laps this morning we didn't
really have a handle on the car at all. We're happy with where we are, but that's not to say there isn't room for improvement." Question: "What's the most difficult part of this race?" "It's a tough track on tires and it is extremely hot, which makes it particularly hard on the drivers. You have to be in great physical shape in order to stay focused and drive well here in these challenging conditions." | |
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Hollywood Reynard Mercedes Provisional Qualifying: 7th |
| MAURICIO GUGELMIN | |
| "To be honest, I'm quite happy with 7th place because the car felt like a 14th-place car. We fixed some of the problems we had in the morning, but the car is still pushing at mid-turn and loose on exit. We have plenty of work to do to improve the car, but fortunately we have a pretty good idea what needs to be done. If the weather is cooler tomorrow, that could be a factor as well. I'm just happy we have another day to improve our position." | |
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Panasonic/DUSKIN Arciero/Wells Racing, Reynard Toyota Provisional Qualifying: 27th |
| HIRO MATSUSHITA | |
| (On morning practice)"The Panasonic car is pushing through every corner. Whenever I get on the throttle, the rear end starts to come around. Obviously we need much more grip…and we have a long way to go. With a minute to go in the session, our motor let go down the back straight." | |
| Hogan Racing Team Owner | |
| DERRICK WALKER | |
| (On morning practice)"I'm a little disappointed with our session. We lost our third gear when we were doing well. The ten or twelve minutes we lost changing from our primary car to our second car cost us in our test time. There is a lot of work for us to do before our next session." | |