Limoges Takes First Career KONI Challenge Pole Position at Homestead

Courtesy Nate Siebens, Grand-Am Public Relations Manager

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (April 14, 2007) - Canadian racer Valerie Limoges, from Longueuil, Quebec, became the first female driver to earn an overall pole position for a Grand-Am-sanctioned race when she turned a best lap at 1:28.800 (93.243 mph) in the No. 4 USG Sheetrock/Ramset Tools Ford Mustang GT to secure the top starting spot for Sunday's Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series Miami GS 400k at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Limoges will share the front row with her car owner and Blackforest Motorsports teammate Tom Nastasi, who placed the team's No. 5 USG Sheetrock/Ramset Tools Ford Mustang GT second on the grid with a lap at 1:29.979 (93.056 mph). Limoges enters the Miami 400k looking to exceed her previous best KONI Challenge Series result of fourth, which she achieved last year at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

"I'm very happy," Limoges said. "The team did a very good job this weekend. We were fast all weekend long and it paid off. It ranks pretty high. I'm very happy. We have a good car, and I have a good co-driver, Tom Nastasi, so we should do pretty good for the race."

Nastasi enters Sunday's second round of the 12-race 2007 KONI Challenge Series as the Grand Sport (GS) class points leader by virtue of his victory alongside co-driver David Empringham in January's Fresh From Florida 200 season-opener at Daytona International Speedway. Nastasi's co-driver in the No. 5 machine this weekend will be Ian James.

"First of all, I'm sorry to say (Blackforest Motorsports team owner) Brian Nott's not here, because he's sick and we miss him," said Nastasi. "This front row was for him, I just thought it was going to be the other way around. I'm very proud of Valerie, finally, because her weak link has been qualifying, like mine has always been. I screwed up so bad with this, but I'm lucky to have second. She just really tackled it. I saw I was holding her up, too. I knew we didn't have a lot of time, and just winged one out."

Starting third will be Bryan Ortiz with a best lap at 1:29.284 (92.738 mph) in the No. 79 Said Head Performance/ Savvion BMW M3 for Kinetic Motorsports. Ortiz is in his first full season of KONI Challenge Series competition and will share the ride this weekend with Shawn Price, who will drive in place of his regular co-driver Boris Said.

Joe Foster put the No. 55 Supercuts/Hyper Sport Ford Mustang GT fourth on the grid with a lap at 1:29.314 (92.707 mph). Foster started the Fresh From Florida 200 from the pole position and finished second in the race with co-driver Scott Maxwell, and the duo could charge to the top of the GS standings with another strong performance this weekend in South Florida.

Steve Mahre, a celebrated downhill skier who won a silver medal in the slalom in the 1984 Winter Olympics, completed the top five with a lap at 1:29.483 (92.532 mph) in the No. 17 Team Centurion Ford Mustang GT. He is sharing the car with his brother, Phil Mahre, who took the gold medal in the same Olympic slalom event in 1984.