D’Alberto finds his footing at Hidden Valley

Tony D’Alberto has put in a solid day’s hard work at Hidden Valley Raceway today, quickly coming to terms with a new circuit and finishing Race 1 in 19th position.

D’Alberto began the day by qualifying in a time of 1:10.8161 for a start in 26th. With less than a second separating D’Alberto’s qualifying lap from pole position it was clear that Race 1 would deliver a fiercely competitive race. D’Alberto pressed his advantage on the opening lap to find a good racing rhythm and edge up the ladder to 22nd despite the traffic.

As the pit window opened D’Alberto was shuffled forward as cars peeled away from the pack to complete their stops. D’Alberto remained out on track, notching up clean laps in a bid to gain further ground. He brought the car in on lap 13 to complete his stop. A slight delay in the pits left D’Alberto no option but to push harder to gain position.

The crew had done a superb job in setting up the #55 Bottle-O Commodore to suit the conditions and as the race continued D’Alberto put the car’s fine tuning to good use, squeezing extra pace out of the corners to comfortably hold 19th by lap 31. D’Alberto sailed through the remainder of the race, defending his position to finish in 19th.

It was a very positive day for the team with advancement made on all fronts. Today’s efforts have set a concrete foundation from which to improve upon in tomorrow’s two races. Race 2 starts at 11:30am and presents another 42 laps. Drivers will be grateful for their cool suits with the temperature set to nudge up to 30 degrees, resulting in soaring temperatures on track.

Copyright © Rod Nash Racing 2008

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