Runner-up result in race two caps stronger event of the year for California driver REDLANDS, CALIF. – It was a historic weekend for California open-wheel formula car star Neil Alberico at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this past week. The inaugural Allied Building Products Grand Prix of Indianapolis was held on May 7-10, as Alberico contested rounds five and six of the Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires. Piloting his Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing machine, the Redlands, California racer drove to his first series podium finish in Race #1 of the doubleheader event, improving on that performance the following day with an extremely impressive runner-up result in Race #2 to position himself as a championship contender for the remainder of the season.
The four-day event began on Wednesday, May 7 with the Pro Mazda series contenders getting their first taste of the re-designed IMS road course. Two one-hour test sessions provided the teams and drivers with the opportunity to grow familiar with the 2.439-mile course. Alberico acquainted himself quickly with the smooth and fast layout, posting a fast time within the top-10 in both sessions. Neil’s lap times continued to improve the following day during the event’s two official practice sessions on Thursday, as he improved into the top-seven.
Qualifying for Race #1 took place on Friday morning, with all drivers recording their quickest laps of the week. Alberico’s fast lap of the session came just as the time expired, moving him to the eighth position and the outside of row four on the starting grid. Later in the afternoon, the thrilling opening race of the twin bill began with an early caution just after the start, but not before Alberico improved his position by six spots to sit second when the yellow flags waved. Neil took full advantage of the chaos in turn one at the start, using racecraft and experience to avoid the ensuing carnage. Quick on cold Cooper tires, Alberico put himself into the lead on lap five just after the restart. The series rookie was hounded by a trio of drivers lap after lap, and was even struck by another competitor during a misjudged overtaking maneuver. Alberico continued on and was under attack once again following another caution. Teammate Scott slipped through at turn two after some minor contact, which allowed Shelby Blackstock to slip through as well, dropping him back to third. Neil completed the 19-lap event in the third position, earning a spot on the prestigious IMS podium.
“We got a great initial start and led most of the race after the first restart,” said Alberico, detailing his run in the Round Five event. “I was a sitting duck on the last restart and got drafted around the outside before we got into turn one. It was a hard fought battle at the front and even though we came shy of the win, it felt great to earn my first podium for Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing.”
The grid for Race #2 was set by the second quickest lap during the qualifying session, placing Alberico in seventh. He was poised for advancement to the podium once again when the lights went out to begin the race. Crazy mischief began once again as the cars scattered for position and in the opening corner of the race, Neil was struck hard from behind and spun around at the apex. This dropped him to 14th in the order, but Alberico kept his machine running and was able to avoid hitting another car. It was time for a heroic recovery and Neil proceeded to power his No. 2 Rising Star Racing/Arai/OMP Racing/J&M Trophies/Oakley/Bondurant School of High Performance Driving/SAFEisFAST/eFormulaCarNews.com steed forward in the order throughout the 20-lap event, eventually reaching the top-five when the final caution waved on lap 15. The restart provided the perfect opportunity to strike, as Alberico took over the second position when the turn one action fired up one final time. Crossing the line in second, Alberico recorded his first runner-up finish in the Pro Mazda series, giving his team a 1-2 finish by placing behind Hargrove.
“The first corner incident dropped us to dead last,” added Neil. “Thankfully for me, there was a full course restart that bunched up the field and I was able to get a few more positions on that start. We knew we had the pace to run up front, so it was just about timing calculated moves to get to the front and taking advantage of other guys’ mistakes. Overall, it was a great weekend for the Cape Motorsports with WTR crew, being on the podium both days at the inaugural Grand Prix of Indy. I can't thank the guys at Rising Star Racing enough for all their faith in me as a driver. It's great to have this kind of momentum in the middle of the season. We just have to continue to work together as a team to carry our results over into the ‘Night Before the 500’ race next week.”
Neil will now shift his focus toward oval racing as the Pro Mazda Championship series will be testing with his Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing operation on May 13 at the 5/8-mile banked Lucas Oil Raceway, which is located just outside Indianapolis, to prepare for the Round Seven on May 24 as part of the popular Night Before the 500 festivities.
About Neil Alberico:
A native of Los Gatos, Calif., Alberico first started racing karts at the age of 10, competing in IKF Region 11 action. Over the course of four seasons (2004-07), the young talent captured the Junior Sportsman, Junior Super Sportsman, and Junior Puma championship titles. Continuing to race in the karting ranks while raising funds to pursue a career in motorsports, Alberico won the Snap-On Stars of Karting Series National finale in Las Vegas in 2009, before finishing third in the CKI National TaG Senior championship, and winning the 2010 TaG Senior class in the WSK North American Series. That same year, Alberico won the Bondurant Championship Race Series, winning 10 races as a junior formula car rookie. In 2011, Alberico made his European racing debut, competing in the world-renowned Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain with Irish-based Cliff Dempsey Racing. Finish ninth in his maiden FF season, the Californian earned a Team USA Scholarship, subsequently capturing a Semi-Final win and third place finish in the historic 40th Formula Ford Festival. Alberico joined the Mazda Road to Indy program in 2012, earning a podium finish and nine top-fives in his rookie season of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda. The California standout followed that up with 11 wins in 2013, en route to the Cooper Tires Winterfest title and second in the USF2000 Championship with multiple champion Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing. For 2014, he has continued his relationship with CMWTR to run for the Pro Mazda Championship.