Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen the great success of the Mazda Road to Indy ladder system created by Tony George, Jr. and Jason Penix. While much emphasis is placed on the graduation of drivers from one series to the next, they’re not the only ones picking up skills and looking to advance into the IZOD IndyCar Series.
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Drivers move up from karts or small formula cars such as the 1600cc Skip Barber machines into the USF2000 National Championship. From there, they step up to a higher-horsepower, more aerodynamic sensitive Star Mazda machine, and then into the 450hp, 190+ mph Firestone Indy Lights racers. A number of drivers have already demonstrated how successfully each of these series have prepared them for the next level of competition.

We need only to look at former Star Mazda champion, and Indy Lights driver Conor Daly and his first win in the highly competitive GP3 series. The IZOD IndyCar Series is now replete with graduates from these junior formula series, with the notable standouts being James Hinchcliffe, and former Indy Lights champions JR Hildebrand and Josef Newgarden.

Seldom given any airtime and recognition in the press, many of the mechanics and engineers in USF2000, Star Mazda, and Indy Lights are also seeking to move up the ladder and one day find themselves on the grid on Race Day morning as a participant in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

​For one young engineer, that dream will be realized this month as Star Mazda Quality Control Engineer Kate Gundlach, a mechanical engineer graduate from the University of Pittsburgh, will join forces with Simona de Silvestro at HVM Racing beginning with this year’s Indianapolis 500 Mile Race as the teams Data and Electronics Engineer.

It’s fantastic to see the graduation of professionals of all kinds through the Mazda Road to Indy program. It benefits the teams at the higher levels by creating a pool of experienced and seasoned engineers and mechanics from which to recruit. It also benefits the teams at the lower levels by providing a clear and tangible avenue for career advancement beyond the initial job for which they were hired. Successful recruiting of the best talent means first having the ability to provide them with a dynamic career environment.

​Ms. Gundlach’s example should be a ray of hope and a model for young aspiring race engineers.

John Walko Racing Alum moving up the ladder!
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Official Star Mazda Press Release
Pacoima, CA / May 7, 2012 – Proving yet again that the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear is one of the most effective and prolific motorsports development programs in racing today, the series is proud to announce that yet another graduate has made the big jump… directly from Star Mazda to IndyCar.

It’s a different kind of graduate this time, however. Not a driver, but rather Star Mazda Quality Control Engineer Kate Gundlach, who will immediately join HMV Racing as the Data and Electronics Engineer (DAG) for Simona De Silvestro and the #78 Entergy Nuclear Clean Air Energy Lotus Dallara. This move creates a rare pairing of female driver and female engineer, both of whom achieved substantial success climbing the open-wheel ladder and are poised for success at the top level of the sport.

“I worked with HVM during the Long Beach Grand Prix weekend and was very pleased when they offered me the DAG position on Simona’s car,” says Gundlach, who moved from Vancouver B.C. to Indianapolis to take the job. “I was very impressed with Simona and the HVM team, with their level of professionalism and presentation. It’s a huge change, moving from working for a series to working for a team, but the professional – and personal – education I received while working for the Star Mazda Championship has prepared me to hit the ground running in IndyCar and be confident that I can contribute to Lotus HVM Racing’s success.”

Gundlach, during her almost three years with the Star Mazda Championship (2009 – 2012), was responsible for working with the teams and series management to produce a continuous mechanical and electronic (including data systems) upgrading of the Pro Formula Mazda race car; an evolution designed to improve safety, reliability and speed while maintaining the series’ focus on placing driver talent ahead of big budgets.

“We’re very happy for Kate, but not surprised,” says Star Mazda founder and President Gary Rodrigues. “She’s a very accomplished engineer who has done great work for our series, so it’s inevitable that she, just like the drivers who compete in our series, is moving up the ladder. Star Mazda has always been a launching pad for drivers, crewmen, engineers and even teams moving up to the next level. That’s our main mission, and it’s always a pleasure to watch our graduates succeed. She will represent us well in IndyCar.”

​A native of Pittsburgh, PA, Gundlach was raised in a motorcycling family, finally transitioning to open-wheel racing via the Formula SAE program while working on her mechanical engineering degree at the University of Pittsburgh. A trip out to the Beaver Run Motorsports Complex for a race led to a meeting with principals of the Andersen/Walko Star Mazda team – and a job offer, starting immediately.

“When I started there, I worked upstairs in the loft, with a cardboard box as a desk,” she recalls. “That was one of my earliest lessons about racing at the professional level; you have to be willing to start at the very bottom and do whatever needs doing. Over the course of my time with them I learned not only about racing, but also about working with a team, working with data systems, writing contracts, doing budgets, creating sponsor proposals and a dozen other things. I was definitely thrown into the deep end, and loved every minute of it.”

Gundlach won Star Mazda’s prestigious Performance Friction ‘Crewman of the Year’ award when the Andersen/Walko team made its series debut in 2005. When the team split up, she continued working for Walko Racing (while simultaneously graduating from Pitt with a Mechanical Engineering degree) from 2006-2007 before moving to the newly-formed Goshen Racing Star Mazda team in 2008. That team only lasted one year and she was invited to join the Star Mazda Championship at its headquarters in Pacoima, CA as series Engineer, a position that also included project management and trackside support.

“Timing is everything,” says Lotus HVM Technical Director Tom Brown. “We had an opening available in our Engineering department and Kate came highly recommended. We had a chance to meet at Long Beach and everything clicked. Having her on board will clearly strengthen our group.”

About Lotus HVM Racing
HVM Racing was founded by Keith Wiggins and is based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The 2012 season marks its eleventh year of competition since forming in 2001. Since its inception, HVM Racing has earned six victories, two pole positions, 22 podiums, 40 top-five finishes and 97 top-tens. The team also earned “Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year” honors with current driver Simona De Silvestro in 2010. HVM finished fourth and third, respectively, in the Champ Car World Series in 2006 and 2007, and earned drivers Mario Dominguez and Robert Doornbos Rookie of the Year honors in 2002 and 2007, respectively. Lotus HVM Racing can be found online at www.hvmracing.com. Follow the team on twitter at www.twitter.com/HVMRacing and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HVMRacing.
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About Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear
For 2012, the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear will be again be a major part of the Mazda Road to Indy. The 2012 schedule currently includes 17 races on 10 weekends, most with IndyCar. Rising stars from around the world will compete on road courses, street circuits and ovals in front of more than a million fans as they compete for prizes valued at $1.5 million, including a scholarship to move up and race in the 2013 Firestone Indy Lights series. Drivers 16 and older are welcome to compete and the Star Mazda Championship also features the Expert Series for drivers 30 and older. The Star Mazda Championship features standing starts, wheel-to-wheel racing at 160 mph and budgets a fraction of other top open-wheel ladder series. For more information on the Star Mazda Championship please visit www.starmazda.com.

TRAFFORD, Pa -- John Walko Racing (JWR) has announced a driver development program for the 2009 season. The JWR driver development program will work with young race drivers to enhance their climb up the motorsports ladder as they move from karting and school based formula car race series.

By using JWR Racing's extensive experience in the motorsports' world, the program will develop driver's skills through proven methods that have been used by John Walko's race drivers. Utilizing the Star Mazda and Formula Ford 2000 Zetec cars, JWR will custom develop testing programs to an individual drivers needs. 

Working within the JWR program drivers will begin to develop advanced skills beyond the world of school series and karting. Drivers will work with different chassis setup parameters including shock settings, spring rates, aerodynamics and general chassis dynamics.

By working with experienced race engineers JWR drivers will start developing the necessary communication skills between engineer and driver to improve and adapt a racecars setup to match their needs. Being able to utilize the Star Mazda and the FF2000 car will allow for a two tier approach to testing and racing. As the JWR drivers grow and develop in the FF2000 car they can immediately advance to the higher powered Star Mazda racecar within the same team. 

Along with advancing a drivers technical understanding of motorsports, JWR will work with drivers to help map out a path best suited to advance their careers. There are so many different options currently in the motorsports arena that having a proper plan is almost as important as having the fastest driver. 

"A proper testing program is so often overlooked as a young driver moves up the motorsports ladder," team owner John Walko stated. "What we want to do is shorten the learning curve for drivers by offering a development program that prepares them for the next step in their career, while allowing them to still focus on their karting or lower level formula car race programs. We have worked with several drivers within our race teams that have benefited from extensive testing programs. Our new development program is just a natural progression of our race programs." 

John Walko Racing will use the Beaverun Motorsports Complex as the main track for the driver development program. The challenging 12-turn circuit, located one hour from the JWR race shop near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, offers significant cost benefits to drivers by limiting travel and track rental costs for the development program. 

JWR already has already signed Charles Anti to a 2009 test program and is in talks with several other drivers about testing programs for the 2009 season. The former Star Mazda Team of the Year is also working on race programs for the 2009 season and has cars available for every event on the Star Mazda calendar. 

John Walko Racing, the 2006 Star Mazda Team Champions, has established a national reputation as one of the top teams in Jr. Formula Car racing. Formed by race engineer John Walko, JWR has found success in SCCA Formula Ford, Formula Continental, the Formula Ford 2000 Zetec Championship and the Star Mazda Championship.

John Walko Racing drivers have amassed 4 SCCA Runoff wins, 11 professional and 22 amateur wins, 37 professional podiums, 12 amateur podiums and 30 pole positions. Operating out of a state-of-the-art race shop in the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania suburb Trafford, John Walko Racing currently competes in the Star Mazda Championship. 

For test and race opportunities please contact John Walko Racing via email, [email protected] or by phone (412) 414-3304.

TRAFFORD, Pa -- Charles Anti has announced that he will return to the cockpit of a Star Mazda car this season. After taking a year away from motorsports to focus on his studies, Anti will rejoin John Walko Racing for an extensive testing program in 2009. The focus of the tests will be to re-acclimate Anti to the Star Mazda car. Anti is currently planning to return to the Star Mazda Championship for a full campaign in 2010. 

"I didn't want to just jump back into racing cold turkey," Anti stated. "I want to get back in the car in 2009 to test to relearn the car, so I can come back prepared to race in 2010. John (Walko) and his team were able to put together a test program that will allow me to get back into the swing of driving as well as work on development for 2010. This will allow me to really focus on my driving as well as putting together a top notch marketing program for sponsors for the 2010 race season." 

"This is a great way for Charles to get back into the series," team owner John Walko said. "The cars have changed a little bit since he has been away, with the biggest difference being the radial tires. A season of testing will get him better prepared for 2010. We are really looking forward to continuing our relationship with Charles this year." 

Anti's Star Mazda Career spanned two seasons, both competing with series stalwart John Walko Racing. Anti scored a career high fifth place finish during his 2006 rookie season, which helped John Walko Racing score the series Team Championship. The Pittsburgh native's 2007 campaign showed a lot of speed, however bad luck negated what would have been solid results and Anti placed 13th in the championship. In 2008 Anti took a year away from motorsports to focus his attention on his studies at New York University. 

Anti is currently working on updating his official website www.CharlesAnti.com. 
Look for more announcements from John Walko Racing regarding their 2009 plans in the coming weeks. 

John Walko Racing, the 2006 Star Mazda Team Champions, has established a national reputation as one of the top teams in Jr. Formula Car racing. Formed by race engineer John Walko, JWR has found success in SCCA Formula Ford, Formula Continental, the Formula Ford 2000 Zetec Championship and the Star Mazda Championship.

​ John Walko Racing drivers have amassed 4 SCCA Runoff wins, 11 professional and 22 amateur wins, 37 professional podiums, 12 amateur podiums and 30 pole positions. Operating out of a state-of-the-art race shop in the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania suburb Trafford, John Walko Racing currently competes in the Star Mazda Championship. 

TRAFFORD, Pa. - The John Walko Racing (JWR) Team visited the New Jersey Motorsports Park for both rounds nine and ten of the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear. After having been absent from the previous three events the JWR Team was excited to have two drivers competing at New Jersey.

The JWR Team had never visited the New Jersey Motorsports Park complex and was excited to get back on track. The team was also excited to field two drivers new to their roster list. Rookie Kevin Toledo, a 17 year old Chilean who is also competing in the Formula Renault 1.6 Championship in Argentina piloted the #27 Eliseo-THL Pro Formula Mazda and veteran Master's class contender Michael Guasch from Molecule Labs Inc. piloted the #91 Molecule Pro Formula Mazda of John Walko Racing. In addition, neither driver had even completed a lap around the challenging Thunderbolt circuit.

Nevertheless, the team set their goals high for the weekend. 

Friday practice saw both drivers working steadily on setup and track knowledge. 
Eliseo Salazar, Kevin Toledo's manager had this to say, "He (Kevin Toledo) was always in the middle of the grid, 13th, 14th. The fact that he didn't make any major mistakes and that he ran with and was beating more experienced drivers is what we were looking for." 

Mike Guasch, with the aid of Speed Secrets driver coach Gordon Bentley, was focused on getting comfortable in the car and learning the track. "We did not have the opportunity to test before the race which really set us back. This meant that I had to learn the track while working really hard at getting the car setup for my driving style." 

Saturday JWR qualified Kevin Toledo in the 13th spot and Mike Guasch in the 23rd position. The hot, humid, and often very dirty conditions tested the John Walko Team. Both drivers achieved outstanding results with both drivers moving up quickly. Kevin Toledo finished 10th and Mike Guasch saw a final result of 17th. 

Eliseo Salazar was excited after Saturday's race. 
"This was by far the biggest Challenge of Kevin's career. In his first Star Mazda race he ended up finishing 10th. Top ten was our goal." 

Eric Langbein, Kevin Toledo's engineer commented post race, 
"On a whole I feel we accomplished our goal. Kevin did an excellent job to overcame unfamiliarity and adverse conditions." 

Sunday saw conditions that were again hot and humid but the team was set for another day of tough competition. Sunday's schedule did not include any practice sessions and the drivers only saw the track for qualifying and the race. 

Mike Guasch started to feel comfortable in his car and was able to move forward several spots. He brought the #91 John Walko Racing machine home in the 19th position which was three better than his starting position. 

"Overall I had a really fun weekend! I loved working with my mechanic Scott and engineer John Walko. It was just unfortunate that we did not get to test beforehand. Although, I feel that I drove as well was I could have driven given the circumstances." 

Kevin Toledo battled an ill handling chassis in qualifying and as a result started the 10th round of the Star Mazda Championship Series in 17th. Adjustments were made to the car but little improvement was found. After completing the first 22 laps Toledo brought his car into the pits and retired. 

Eliseo Salazar talked about Kevin Toledo's experiences on Sunday. 

"We made some changes to the car that didn't work with the track and the day, but this was a try out for next year. The car wasn't handling right and Kevin lost a few positions so we decided to bring him in."

TRAFFORD, Pa -- Despite the disappointment of missing several races, the John Walko Racing team is preparing for the season's last three weekends, actively developing new drivers and supplementing the workload by getting back their roots consulting club teams and preparing vintage race cars. 

But their main focus is on the 2009 Star Mazda Series Championship presented by Goodyear. 

Current activities are centered on the rigorous testing, training and development, on and off the track, of the Filipino sister/brother team of Michele and Mark Bumgarner. 

Michele Bumgarner, coined the "Asian Queen of Karting," currently fields the #43 Spectrum-OSO Asia, Petron Star Mazda and has won numerous Karting Championships, "Driver of the Year" awards and racing scholarships. At 18, her racing accomplishments earned her the acknowledgement as being one of the 7 most respected women in the Philippines. 

"Michele is a real joy to work with, just because she really enjoys driving the racecar, and she gets quicker every time out and her results have shown it," John Walko said. 

Her younger brother Mark, a rookie this year and recent podium-finisher in the BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Championship Series presented by Mazda, plans to test and race with his sister, making a Star Mazda championship run in 2009. 

Walko said Mark might race in a Star Mazda event by year's end, noting "he's shown a really good pace in the Skip Barber Series so far, and I think he'll be really easy to work with like Michele is." 

Michele and Mark current: The Bumgarners have recently been in Indianapolis developing their racing careers with new manager Charlie Patterson, learning more about their off-track responsibilities by meeting with Indy Racing League teams and Firestone Indy Lights Series teams. 

"I'm here with my brother and our new manager Charlie Patterson, just trying to get our names out there," said Michele. 

"Charlie has been a really recognized face around Indy for over 40 years and he knows a lot of people," Michele said. "That's one thing about racing, who you know, and we're meeting them from Charlie, and it's going really well." 

Additionally Michele and Mark are actively pursuing new sponsorship opportunities, "anywhere we can find different people for different things," said Michele. 

"We're trying to take advantage of me being a female in Motorsports, and we're getting a lot of positive feedback, especially in the United States." 

A female driver in a traditionally male-dominated sport offers JWR several new opportunities, but to have Michele work with female engineer Kate Gundlach could be the key to the team's success. "The relationship between her and her engineer has been building and getting stronger," Walko said. 

JWR's main focus is on the Bumgarners, but the next few weeks will be dedicated to testing and developing other drivers. Currently there is another car being prepared for the New Jersey weekend, keeping the team focused and excited to be in the hunt for a win.

TRAFFORD, PA (October 29, 2007) -- The 2007 Star Mazda Series closer at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca was a successful effort for the John Walko Racing team both on and off the track with a top five finish, two top tens and a highly coveted year end award for crew member Kate Gundlach. 
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Gundlach, JWR's data acquisition engineer for all three entries, was awarded the Performance Friction Crew Member of the Year Award at the season ending awards banquet, a consensus award for the most valuable member of a particular team whose efforts have also benefited other teams and the series. For team owner John Walko, it was a much deserved award for an integral member of the team. 

"We had a very good race weekend but the high point had to be Kate winning the Star Mazda Crew Member of the Year Award. It was a total surprise to everyone so it was very exciting for the team as well as Kate. This award is particular significant I think as it is voted on by peers and then the final decision is made by Star Mazda management. To even be considered for the award, let alone win it, requires impressing a lot of people along the way." 

The award was also particularly important in that Kate is truly a homegrown talent. Like Walko, she is a Pittsburgh native with family ties to the local racing community. Her first professional work though was as an intern with JWR while working toward her mechanical engineering degree at the University of Pittsburgh. Along the way she has parlayed the opportunity in to a full time career that also involves the roles of team parts manager, test engineer and soon race engineer of the team's third car. 

"I am proud of what Kate has accomplished. She came to the team with the raw tools and has developed in to an integral part of our organization. Kate is the second member of the team to have earned the Star Mazda Crew Member of the year award along with Caleb Stream. Developing talent outside of the car as well as inside is very important to our team and something we take considerable pride in." 

Kate echoed the sentiments of her team owner regarding the team's approach. 
"Winning this award was a big surprise to me! I have to thank John and the whole crew; they are responsible for developing me to where I am today and deserve the credit for this award. >From John to engineers Steve (Dreizler) and Eric (Langbein) to mechanics Caleb and Scott (Gates) each has invested time in helping me develop as part of this team. Their commitment to the overall team is what makes this group successful. I also have to thank John Walko Sr. and drivers Charles (Anti) and Russell (Walker) as well as their families. It has been a very rewarding experience working with everyone associated with John Walko Racing." 

Of course the trip to Monterey, California involved more than the awards banquet as the team returned to a three car effort with Californian John Zartarian behind the wheel of the third car for the first time since the second round in Houston. Zartarian lead the way with a fifth place finish followed by Russell Walker in tenth. 

According to Walko, the return to a three car effort always seems to provide an extra spark for the team. 

"As usual the team works better with three cars, things were automatic, the atmosphere was more upbeat, everybody was doing their normal jobs and everything worked great. In all it was a pretty good weekend." 

"Johnny did a great job, for only driving the car twice this year and to finish top five in this field is an accomplishment. He was actually second in one of the early sessions and that always helps to get all the cars moving forward. Russell had a good race as well, picking off some spots in the race and running a smart, clean race" 

Both drivers found speed early, netting second fastest laps in different practice sessions. JWR's other full time entry Charles Anti had an uphill battle at times but was very fast on race day. 

"Russell followed John's lead, setting the second fastest lap in the following session, and stayed in the top ten almost all weekend. Charles had a slow start on the weekend but moved up some spots early in the race and was running very quick laps. He was just all by himself after going off in turn five so his results didn't actually reflect how competitive he was in the race. 

The team now moves in to the off season but does not plan on resting for long. Testing has already begun at BeaveRun Motorsports Complex with more dates being added to the schedule soon. There are also ongoing discussions about racing in the Star Mazda Winter Series that begins in November at Buttonwillow in California followed by dates at Firebird Raceway and Phoenix International Raceway in December and January respectively.

Drivers interested in testing or discussing racing plans for the Winter Series or the 2008 season should contact John Walko Racing as soon as possible. 

Charles Anti
"It was a solid, clean weekend but we just never seemed to get fully on-track. The new car worked well and I was comfortable within a few laps. The changing conditions all weekend made it difficult to get in to much of a flow though. It was a strange race too, starting dry and then raining on the second lap. We actually had to make a green flag tire change pit stop which was kind of cool. The yellow came out though right after and all the cars that didn't pit when we made the call had a lap on us. From that point on it was just a matter of finishing the race near the front of the group on our lap which we did."

Russell Walker
"The whole race was pretty crazy. Pitting under green to change tires unfortunately cost us a lap. It was frustrating as we were really fast in the wet, making up spots, but we were a lap down so we could only move up so far. It's another one of those races, frustrating, but we'll just move on to Atlanta and look for that first win. We've been fast there in testing and it is almost like a home track for me so I'm really looking forward to being there."

Steve Dreizler, Engineer for Charles Anti
"It's not often we have to deal with pit stop strategy but we did this week. Looking back at where we were though, given the conditions, we made the right call. Unfortunately the yellow came out before everyone pitted and it ended up costing those of us that did a lap. From Charles' stand point, he toned it down for the conditions this race and did exactly what he needed to do. He was clean every session, went faster each session and drove well in the race. He did as much as he could have done under the circumstances with the yellow and losing a lap."

Eric Langbein, Engineer for Russell Walker
"Russell had a better weekend than the results showed. He was P1 in the first session, demonstrating his speed in the wet once again. In the race he was turning some of the very fastest laps of the race before his off. If there was one thing that we came away with from Mosport it was that we need to maybe adjust our intensity - Russell needs to push harder earlier in the event, which will allow us to improve the package more for the race, and leave a little more room for error in the race. He continues to be very, very fast so it just comes down to a little fine tuning now to put him on the podium."

Mosport Results:
1 James Davison
2 Lorenzo Mandarino
3 Dane Cameron
10 Charles Anti
20 Russell Walker

Drivers interested in joining JWR for upcoming tests are encouraged to contact the team soon. Also, drivers interested in discussing their 2008 racing programs should contact John Walko Racing at john@johnwalkoracing.com

TRAFFORD, PA (August 13, 2007) – With a trio of stout entries for the Star Mazda race at Road America, the John Walko Racing crew headed in to the eighth race of the season with a lot of confidence.

Early indications were promising as newcomer Steve Welk topped the charts early and JWR stalwarts Russell Walker and Charles Anti flirted with the top ten in practice early and often. Welk's success from the very start turned heads in the paddock but was not a huge surprise to John Walko.

"I've known Steve a long time and to be honest he went out and did exactly what I thought he was capable of in this series, which is run up front. He has the benefit of knowing Road America intimately with it being his home track but to be up front the very first time in a brand new car and staying there for the whole event was impressive."

Welk's impressive run continued in qualifying as the Wisconsin native stayed atop the leader board until the very end of qualifying. Unfortunately he had an off that resulted in a red flag and the loss of his fast lap as per Star Mazda rules.

"One small mistake cost Steve his fast lap but he still started in the top ten. We made some adjustments to the car before the race and he quickly moved up to the top five. He was on his way to a solid finish for his first time in the car but ended up on the wrong end of an incident that took him out of the race."

Anti showed flashes of speed all weekend long as well, never dipping far from the top ten in practice, qualifying or the race.

"Charles had the speed this weekend and really came to the track focused and ready to race. He was on a very fast lap in qualifying, probably one that would have put him in the top five to start the race, but made a mistake on the final turn dropping him to eleventh."

At the end of the day Anti came home with the top finish for JWR, placing eleventh. The results did not reflect where he had been running much of the race however.

"A top five was certainly within reach for Charles as he was running right in the mix with the lead pack. Another very small mistake cost him a great finish though as he bent a front wing after making contact with another car by just barely an inch. After that he did a great job just holding on to the car and reaching the end."

For Russell Walker the weekend seemed to be coming to him, placing in the top three in the final practice followed up with a seventh quick qualifying time.

"Russell had another strong run going at Road America. He was fast in practice and was solidly in to the top ten in qualifying as well. Each race it seems that he puts another piece of the puzzle together and inches closer to the front. Unfortunately it wasn't to be at Road America as he ended up off track, losing two laps in the process."

"Overall it was a strong showing in terms of speed but a few small mistakes kept it from being a completely successful race weekend. Hopefully we can turn that speed in to results as we head in to the last stretch of races. This crew never stops working so I'm confident that breakthrough race is coming soon."

Drivers wishing to join JWR for upcoming tests or races should contact John Walko Racing as soon as possible.