Text 28, 83 rader
Skriven 2004-09-26 20:52:00 av Michael Powell (1:2320/105.0)
Ärende: A.J. Foyt Iv Finishes Fou
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A.J. Foyt IV Finishes Fourth In Supermodified Debut
 
A.J. Foyt IV made a spectacular debut in the Supermodified Racing League
Saturday night at Madera Speedway in Madera, Calif. 
 
_I had a lot of fun, everyone treated me really good and I_d like to do it
again,_ said Foyt IV.
 
Driving the No. 1 car owned by IndyCar driver Davey Hamilton, Foyt IV served
notice by setting quick time along with Troy Regier, a two-time SRL champion.
Both drivers lapped at 12.49 seconds around the 1/3 mile banked asphalt oval
located about 15 miles northwest of Fresno.
 
In his heat race, Foyt IV started eighth and had moved into fifth by the
second lap. However, he spun coming off turn four and had to restart in the
rear. He worked his way back to fourth by the end of the eight-lap event.
 
_The car was pretty loose,_ said Foyt IV. _It was the first time the team had
raced at the track all year so we had some challenges with it being my first
race. It was hot during the day when we practiced but it cooled down pretty
good at night and that changed the track a lot. We tried to compensate in our
set-up but the car was still loose in the feature._ 
 
In the feature, the fastest eight cars were inverted and Foyt IV started
eight. Coming down for the green, Foyt IV spun on the front stretch.
 
_I got on the gas too hard, I just wasn_t used to all that power,_ said Foyt
IV. 
 
There was a complete restart so young Foyt was allowed to restart in his
original position of eighth. He was fifth by lap 11. Maneuvering through
traffic among drivers he had never raced before was a new experience but he
adapted very quickly. On lap 37, he moved into fourth which is where he
finished. 
 
Jim Birges won the SRL portion of the Harvest Classic. He battled Regier down
to the wire. Bobby Dalton, Foyt IV and Mike McCann rounded out the top five.
 
_I couldn_t drive up off the corner, so it was pretty hard to pass,_ said Foyt
IV. _But I had a lot of fun. It was over pretty quick, I wish the race was
longer. 
 
_The drivers and the fans made me feel welcome. I met a lot of Foyt fans at
the autograph session. It was a good time._
 
Foyt IV_s grandfather, A.J. Foyt was not present but he received reports on
how his grandson fared.
 
_I heard that he ran a really good race,_ said Foyt. _I think it was good for
him to run a different type of race car on a different type of track because he
can learn from that experience which I_m sure he did. It_s hard to go into
someone else_s backyard and run against them. He did a good job and I_m proud
of him._
 
At this time, there are no plans for any more extracurricular activities as
Foyt IV focuses on competing in the last two races of the IRL IndyCar Series.
The next race is the Toyota Indy 400 at California Speedway in Fontana on
October 3rd. The race will be televised live on ABC starting at 3 pm eastern
time.
 
A.J. Foyt IV Firsts (as a professional driver)_
 
raced a supermodified 
 
tied for fast time 
 
raced on a one-third mile pavement track 
 
raced against another A.J. (A.J. Russell) 
 
raced in a heat race 
 
tied for fast time 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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