Mixed results for TRI-Point at Virginia

Virginia International Raceway delivered mixed results for Tri-Point and MAZDASPEED in the second round of the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge Touring Car series. The threat of serious weather and blue and white MAZDA6s scattered throughout the field kept teams and fans guessing right up to the checkered flag.

Ultimately Charles Espenlaub was able to lead the Tri-Point team home with a fourth-place finish after starting on the front row in second and suffering contact early in the race.

Teammate Jeff Altenburg battled with the SRT-4 of Payton Wilson for several laps before securing eighth position as the rain began to fall. A shifting issue on Jason Saini’s qualifying lap meant the No.74 MAZDA6 would have to start from the back of the grid, though he would pass five cars during the race and land just outside the top-10 in 11th place.

The Tri-Point squad worked late into the night before qualifying and the race to dial in their MAZDA6s, but it remained to be seen how they would fare against their BMW and Acura rivals. When the dust settled from qualifying, Espenlaub found himself in an all-Mazda front row, starting second alongside fellow MAZDASPEED pilot Chip Herr.

“Everyone worked hard and got the car much better for qualifying, and then I followed Cunningham around on our flying lap,” Espenlaub said. “He bobbled a couple of times and I was able to stay in his draft. I”ve got to tell you, I was really surprised; I was hoping for a fifth, but second was really nice!”

Espenlaub’s elation with qualifying would be short lived, as contact on the first lap knocked the alignment on his MAZDA6 out and left him struggling to maintain position. “I was able to get along side Chip and tried to box in Wittmer going into Turn One,” Espenlaub continued. “Chip got knocked in front of me and we all got tangled up and went off to the outside. I had a little bit of contact with the back of Kuno at that point; my car smoked for a little bit and then stopped. I guess I wore off the part that was rubbing! After that Cunningham and I had a great battle for most of the race with good, clean racing. It was enjoyable; I just wish it had been for the lead.”

Meanwhile, 2007 series champion Jeff Altenburg was having a fight of his own, as a misstep in qualifying meant he would have some ground to make up during the race. “I had a pretty good qualifying lap going and I made a mistake at the end of the back straight. With this class as tight as it is, that small mistake cost me big. During the race I battled with the SRT-4 that would pull me on the straight and I would close that gap within a couple of corners, and it took me a while to get by him. When I did, I’d pretty much used up my car and any chances of advancing.”

Overhead, the ominous storm clouds that had been threatening to swamp the Touring Car field throughout the race finally produced a half-hearted shower with a few laps to go. Altenburg wisely kept the No. 1 MAZDA6 out of harm’s way. “A couple of slippery spots got my attention, but with little pressure from behind it would have been silly to throw it off at that point, so I just took it down a notch and brought it home.”

Jason Saini and his No. 74 continued to have some tough luck in qualifying in the second race of his debut World Challenge Season. “Qualifying was a disappointment; we had a transmission problem on the out lap and had to start from the back. When the lights went out I had a pretty decent start – almost jumped it – practice has helped my launch a lot.”

After making up a couple of spots on the opening lap, Saini had his hands full as he advanced forward. “We had made some changes right before the race that didn’t really work like we’d hoped, so I was kind of mired down where I was. I had a little battle with Curran; I took a stab at him in Turn One and over-cooked it a bit and went wide with four wheels off. I probably lost about six seconds. Though I caught back up to him by the end of the race, it was too late for another try. I think I had something for him if I hadn’t botched that first attempt.”

As the team heads west to Utah, Saini looks to position himself a bit further up the grid. “I’ve been to Miller the past two years in the MX-5 and I have a lot of laps there. I’m excited to go to another track I know and hopefully qualify up in the top six and have THAT view of one of these standing starts!”