SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS (#1 McDonald’s Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“I am very surprised, not really expecting to be in the top three with the way the weekend was going. I got real pumped up before the race. It was a good race for me and my career, starting P4 and finishing P1. The McDonald’s crew did an excellent job today. It is good for Newman/Haas Racing, it has been a while since they brought home a victory from Long Beach, and I happy to be able to do that today. The
Bridgestone alternate tyres were real fast today, and they helped me get around Paul [Tracy] to hold on to the lead, and take the win. It is a great day, and a great start to the season.”
PAUL TRACY (#3 Indeck Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“This is great. I think we could have had more, the Indeck car was there. We had a good first stint but, after that, the car did not improve any. I was basically running the same pace throughout the whole race. Sebastien [Bourdais] came up on us hard, so there was not a whole lot I could do. I gave him room and played fair. I tried hard to closed ground before the last pit-stops, but he maintained his distance. I was trying to keep a steady pace in order to finish where we were, in second. I think it was a good day, a good race, a great event for the fans, so it has been overall a great weekend.”
BRUNO JUNQUEIRA (#2 PacifiCare Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“The day went okay. At the start of the race, the PacifiCare car was running real well - I was just running behind PT and trying to save fuel. I got lots of miles out of the car today. When I had a free track at the end of the race, the car was running real well, but it was not as good as it had been running all weekend, although it was good enough to get around [Mario] Dominguez at the end of the race and finish third. I am happy with the result today - I think it was a good race for the fans and I look forward to returning to the streets of Long Beach next year.”
JUSTIN WILSON (#9 SanDisk Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“I’m very proud of the SanDisk/RuSPORT team. The whole crew did a great job all weekend and today, [Race engineer] Todd [Malloy] did a great job calling the race and the crew gave me great pit-stops. We were just a fraction of a second from second place out of my last stop, but we fell back and battled for third. Bruno [Junqueira] went sliding wide, and I almost had him. Today is a good start, but next time, we plan on getting those Newman-Haas guys!”
MARIO DOMINGUEZ (#7 Indeck Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“I’m satisfied, but not super happy. We ran well, but the brakes weren’t working as well as I would like and I used all my Push-to-Pass early in the race so, when Bruno [Junqueira] made a run on me at the next-to-last restart, there was nothing I could do. Then Justin [Wilson] got by after I made a small mistake. I only got one day of testing in the off-season, so I’m still a bit rusty, but the team has been great and we scored some good points. I’ve got a few test days coming up before Monterrey, so I think we’ll be in good shape. I’m really looking forward to putting the Forsythe #7 car up front when we go there.”
TIMO GLOCK (#8 Rocketsports Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
"It was really tricky for me at the beginning. The start was not too bad, but Alex [Tagliani] took me out on the third lap. Then, ten laps into the stint, the rear tyres started going off and I was losing time to Wilson because I had too much understeer. Our first pit-stop was really good, but my timing was bad on the out laps because I pushed too hard on the second lap and the front tyres weren't up to temperature. I lost two or three seconds and then I was behind Tagliani again. At the end, the car was really good and I was able to overtake some guys - I was having a really good time at the end. The Rocketsports team did a really good job this weekend."
RONNIE BREMER (#55 HVM Inc. Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
“HVM did a great job all weekend; they made my job a bit easier. I led a few laps and I suppose, for a rookie, that is not too bad for my first race! There were no big dramas out there for me today, I just tried to push as hard as I could. Unfortunately, [Timo] Glock passed me when I exited the pits and was on cold tyres while he was hot. The pit-stops were great though, a bit nerve-racking, as you don’t want to make any mistakes, but a lot of fun. I am pleased with the entire weekend and certainly looking forward to Mexico.”
AJ ALLMENDINGER (#10
Red Bull Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone):
