May 17, 2006

Kevin Lacroix: optimism before Mid-Ohio

Kevin Lacroix will enter the Mid-Ohio Star Mazda round with plenty of confidence after a deserving second place finish in Houston last week. He will steer again his UniSélect #74 Star Mazda machine on a track he spent a few days testing recently. The 17 year-old Canadian driver made a good impression last weekend by starting fifth on the grid and completing in third place at the checkered flag. He was later awarded second step on the podium on account of second place finisher having an illegal car. Lacroix admits he is more relaxed when he performs on a dedicated racing facility like Lexington rather than a temporary track like the concrete strip in Texas.


“I’m happy with this first outing, analyses Lacroix. It usually takes a bit more seat time to reach the level of competition some of the guys enjoy after one or two seasons in this league. We did well but I realize we were third and still have two positions to grab. I come out of Houston with satisfaction of working well with the people at JWR (Johnny Walko Racing). I still have sad memories from previous street events but this time everything went according to plan. The car improved steadily and I felt more comfortable session after session. I have some ground to make in the standings but second place gave me a few more points.”

“We’re very happy to work with Kevin, adds Johnny Walko. For a 17-year old, he shows a lot of maturity. We were impressed with his skills on this new track and in a car he was still getting used to. We reasonably have high hopes for the Mid-Ohio weekend.”


Three days on the track
Lacroix’s weekend will start with a test day on Thursday. “We want to touch base with our previous sessions and mix it with what we have learned last week”, he claims. There will be two practice stints on Friday and a qualifying session on Saturday morning. The 45-minute race will go green the same afternoon at 4:05 PM.


Valuable sponsors
Named the Rising Star among kart drivers in 2004, Kevin Lacroix was a multiple kart champion and a 2005 Formula BMW USA scholar where he finished second in the 14-round championship. Lacroix enters the Star Mazda 2006 series with JWR with the support of sponsors that have trusted him over the years: UniSélect automotive network, SKF MotorSports, Raybestos, Tenneco, Pennzoil, Auto Parts Plus and Lacroix Auto Parts.