AJ Foyt Racing NOTES & QUOTES: INDYCAR Grand Prix at the Glen

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NOTES & QUOTES: INDYCAR Grand Prix at the Glen
Takuma Sato: No. 14 ABC Supply Honda
Jack Hawksworth: No. 41 ABC Supply Honda

Takuma Sato On:

  • Watkins Glen International: “Watkins Glen is an outstanding track. I’m very happy to hear this venue is returning to the series. I’ve raced there only once in my debut season in IndyCar in 2010 but I really enjoy this challenging road course. Unfortunately we couldn’t come to the test here unlike everyone else, so we will face a big challenge but I trust we can catch up quickly and have a strong weekend.”
  • What he likes about the track: “Watkins Glen has lots of flowing high-speed corners with elevation changes. It is just a beautiful track. I enjoy street courses a lot but this road course is an amazing one so I’m very excited.”
  • What the differences will there be with the different chassis: “The DW12 with the Honda aero package is lighter, has more downforce and more power, so it’s going to be fast. On top of that, I’ve heard there was a lot more grip than before because of the recent track resurfacing, so I’m sure it’s totally different speed-wise from 2010. The racing line should be the same as long as the corners are the same, but we’ll be braking later, on the power sooner and we’ll have more apex speed.”
  • His first US Open: “I had an opportunity to visit the US Open after Texas. Kei Nishikori, the best Japanese tennis player who collected a medal at the Olympics, and I knew of each other through a mutual friend who is a professional tennis coach who comes to see me race in St. Pete every year. After Kei and I missed meeting each other a couple of times, I was finally able to see him this week and we had a great dinner together in N.Y. I watched his first match in the US Open and he won. I was inspired a lot from all the professional tennis players and very motivated for this weekend. It was a great way to relax and but also get back to business.”

Jack Hawksworth on:

  • Watkins Glen International: “Watkins Glen is a proper race track from what I have seen. A variety of corners and very unforgiving in terms of run off. I look forward to hanging it out there myself on Friday.”
  • How he will prepare for this event: “I like to watch onboard video and visualize laps. This helps to prepare the mind.”
  • What he has heard about the Glen: “It is very quick and the grip level with the new surface is extremely high. I have no idea how it will race.”
  • How long it takes to learn the track: “Four laps and I will be on it I would imagine. A session or two to start to pick at the little details and extract the last couple of tenths.”
  • On how he’s feeling (after Texas accident): “I am fine, I just caught my knee on the side of the chassis but it’s all good and I’m ready to go.”

Past performance at WGI: In his only race here, Takuma Sato qualified 5th and finished 15th. Jack Hawksworth has never competed or tested at the 3.4 mile road course. The Foyt team competed six times. Darren Manning gave the team its best start of 8th in 2008 and its best finish of 2nd the same year. The team finished in the top-10 twice more: 9th with Manning in 2007 and 5th with Felipe Giaffone in 2006.

This season’s performance: Takuma Sato’s best start is 3rd (Pocono) and his best finish is 5th (Long Beach and Toronto). Hawksworth’s best start is 4th (Grand Prix of Indianapolis) and his best finish is 11th (St. Petersburg and Elkhart Lake).

ABC Supply Co. is in its 12th season as marketing partner of AJ Foyt Racing: ABC Supply began sponsoring the AJ Foyt Racing team with the 2005 Indianapolis 500, and is the second longest active team sponsor in the Verizon IndyCar Series. With this season, the company ties U.S. Tobacco’s Copenhagen brand in length of sponsorship of Foyt’s team. ABC Supply has leveraged its involvement by sponsoring races at Milwaukee (in the past) and now at Pocono Raceway with the ABC Supply 500, and by entertaining over 75,000 associates and customers during the past 11 racing seasons. Over 250 guests will be entertained this weekend.

ABC Supply roofing customer, Boghosian Bros. Construction & Development, located in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., won the ‘Your Name Here’ contest for this weekend. The company name will be atop the sidepods of the No. 41 ABC Supply Honda. Guests will receive the VIP treatment plus a Meet and Greet with Jack Hawksworth.

Headquartered in Beloit, Wis., ABC Supply was founded by Ken and Diane Hendricks in 1982. The company operates over 600 branches in 49 states plus the District of Columbia and is dedicated exclusively to serving professional contractors. ABC Supply has distinguished itself by following a simple guiding principle – take care of contractors better than any other distributor. It remains an “employee-first” company that treats its associates with respect and gives them the tools they need to succeed. As a 10-time winner of the Gallup Great Workplace Award, which recognizes the best-performing workforces in the world, ABC Supply is one of only three companies in the world to have earned this honor every year since its inception in 2007. More information is available at www.abcsupply.com.

The INDYCAR Grand Prix at the Glen will be televised live Sunday, Sept. 4, starting at 2:00 p.m. ET on the NBC Sports Network.

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