MECHANICAL PROBLEMS STRIKE RICHARD ANTINUCCI'S CAR AT EDMONTON

Water pump cuts short after 20 laps the Team 3G driver 3rd start

Sunday, July 26, 2009

SUNDAY'S NOTES
On his third start in the league the Italian-American rookie was making his first ever appearance at the 1.96 mile Northern Alberta street course where he started from the inside of Row 10. Unlike the previous rounds at the Glen and Toronto, the early stages kicked off quietly for Antinucci, who cruised in 18th place, behind Marco Andretti. The #98 Novicomm Led Lightning Technology Dallara-Honda was one of only three cars in the field to start on primary "black" tires and the San Diego-based driver managed to keep the 18th place pretty safe from the closest pursuer, Ed Carpenter. Unfortunately, on Lap 20, his pit wall called him in as the water temperatures were becoming a major concern, and after a quick check Antinucci had to end retire.

RICHARD'S TAKE
"Sadly this time out my fire suit barely needs washing... Jokes apart, we were one of the few cars that started on primary tyres, and with a fairly good load of fuel onboard it took us longer to generate the necessary heat temperatures compared to the alternate tires. Nevertheless after 10-12 laps I started to feel more comfortable and my laptimes, compared with Andretti Green's Hideki Mutoh --who at the time was the only other driver on the same rubber-- were 3, 4 tenths of a second quicker. This in spite of clutch overheating and shifting problems that hit the gearbox even before we had to retire! Whilst I was fighting with the downshifts and upshifts all over the place, the team radioed me to come in on the spot because the telemetry readings were awful and when I pitted they found a water pump failure. That was the end of it."