“There is a strong field in this Firestone Indy Lights race, but I think we’ll be able to race with the leaders in the race tomorrow,” says Unser III, who managed to finish in the top ten in all but one event he entered in 2007. “I’m really proud of my guys for what they’ve been able to accomplish in the off-season and leading up to this race.”
The Firestone Indy Lights race will begin at 12:30pm on Saturday, and patience is the key according to the driver’s father, Al Unser, Jr., a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner.
“The key is going to be patience out there tomorrow,” says Unser Jr, who is working with all Indy Racing League drivers as an official driving coach in 2008. “There are going to be a lot of guys out there trying to win the race on the first lap, but that’s not what’s important. The goal is to lead the last lap, not the first.”
“We’re really proud of how our whole team has come together the past month to make this race happen,” says Gary Sallee, co-owner of PDR. “There’s a plethora of solid cars in the field at this season’s opener, and I think we will demonstrate that we are one of them.”
Playa Del Racing is debuting the new Ethos forEarth livery on the No.21 machine in Homestead. The vibrant green color supports the mission of Ethos forEarth to bring a cleaner and more efficient driving experience to the market place through widespread use of their product, Ethos Fuel Reformulator.
“Our car is a reminder to the fans, officials, and teams that it is our responsibility to promote ingenuity and progression in our fight to protect our resources,” says PDR co-owner Susan Schafer. “Our goal is for everyone to have a bottle of Ethos Fuel Reformulator in their garage at home to increase their gas mileage, and boost our fuel efficiency in this country.”
Al Unser III raced at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2005 race with Brian Stewart Racing. Unser expects a smooth return to the 1.5 mile oval.
“This is a smooth track, and it’s very fast,” says Unser III. “We’re pretty happy with our race setup, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow. A balanced and steady run is what we’re looking for tomorrow, and I think the Playa Del Racing team, and my new engineer, Doug Forker, have given me a setup to make that happen, so now it’s up to me to contend for the win and bring the car home.”
In 2007, PDR entered the Indianapolis 500 with Phil Giebler driving the Ethos Fuel Reformulator car No.31, and Jaques Lazier driving the Indiana Ice/Venture Logistics car No.21. Giebler won the Chase Rookie of the Year award and Lazier won the Hard Charger award for passing the most cars during the race. Giebler also shared driving duties in PDR’s Indy Pro Series car in 2007 when the team finished tied for 10th in the season-ending entrant’s points race.
For more information on PDR, Ethos forEarth and all the PDR drivers please visit www.playadelracing.com, or email Ryan Smith at ryan@playadelracing.com
