Anyway, back to Salt Lake and, in qualifying, he did it again and beat me, as he was second and I was fourth. It did show how tough he is as a racer and I was pleased for him that he did so well. I think the extra speed came from the fact that he was let out of 'jail', coming from working with Honda
F1 in the team's darker days, and back in a race car!
Our race didn't start that well either, as Scott [Sharp] had a problem with the electronics. The engine suffered some hesitation and dropped him from fourth to ninth after the first lap. Scott quickly fixed that and started fighting back and putting down some quick lap times so that, when a yellow came out, he found himself in third and ready to start again.
Unfortunately, he got caught out in the first corner and spun with the whole field behind him. They all got through except for Christian Fittipaldi in the AGR car and they hit, ripping the left rear suspension off our car. It took 45 minutes for the team to fix and I went back out with the hope of picking some points up. I got to the finish and two points were ours - not much, but it did keep us second in the championship.
Now the series goes on sleep mode as Le Mans takes over, and the Patron Highcroft team will get a chance to catch its breath and regroup to fight in the second half of the season.
I, however, will be going to Le Mans. I'm going to say it again, Le Mans..... mmmmmm. Sorry, I get carried away when that's mentioned. Le Mans, Aston Martin Racing and another win!
I feel very lucky to be at Le Mans this year, and it took a bit of doing. Acura and [Highcroft boss] Duncan [Dayton] gave me the all-clear to race and it's thanks to them really that I will be there. What I find interesting is that I have a very different feeling towards this Le Mans than I have had with any other. This is the first time I go back as a winner, and my attitude is 'okay, I know what to do, just give me the keys and let's do it'.
