Munroe Falls, Ohio – In round 5 of the Trans Am Series Presented by Pirelli Amy Ruman provided another captivating race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this past weekend, bringing the No. 23 McNichols Co. Corvette across the yard of bricks in fourth place. Another hot and sultry Indy weekend saw 87º F air temps, 144º F track surface temps, and 150º F plus cockpit temps making for an additionally challenging race for the competitors.
Ruman qualified the No. 23 fifth on the grid to start Saturday afternoon’s feature TA race. Ruman had a strong start and was in a three-way battle with the No. 57 of Pintaric and the No. 86 of Andretti vying for third position. After moving into fourth position, Ruman made an error and had a slight spin dropping her to last place overall. With no cation flags to help close the gap, Ruman went on a drive of her life to fight back and finish in fourth place.
“Man, this was a repeat of last year when I had to come back from last place after an unscheduled pit stop. Unfortunately, with no yellows, I only had time to make it up to fourth place and missed out on a podium finish. I really felt bad for my team after they worked so hard all weekend; I made that mistake and took us out of the running. Hopefully I will make it up to them at Mid-Ohio this weekend!” stated Ruman.
Ruman’s comeback during the race, which included numerous overtaking passes, earned her the Trans Am COOLSHIRT Systems Cool Move of the Race during the podium festivities. With this solid finish, Ruman gained valuable points and has now moved into third overall in the Championship points standings heading into Round 6 at Mid-Ohio.
The Series is running back-to-back weekends and is ready to compete at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend for Round 6 of the 2019 Trans Am Championship presented by Pirelli. Trans Am will be running alongside the NASCAR Xfinity Series once again. Trans Am will feature two races, The First Energy Trans Am 100 and the First Energy Muscle Car Challenge. 51 competitors are entered for the weekend, 12 in Ruman’s TA class, with both races being 103.86-miles, 46 laps around the 13-turn, 2.258-mile legendary course in Lexington, Ohio.
Last year mechanical transmission issues took Ruman out of the race early and she finished in 12th place. Ruman only lives about an hour away from the track she calls home and is determined to do well here in front of her hometown crowd.
“I love having a home race that all of my fans, friends, family, and McNichols associates come out to see, but unfortunately the last few years we haven’t had great results here,” Ruman commented. “I am hoping for a successful podium finish, if not a win, at our hometown track in front of everyone! We are very busy with four races in six weeks on the schedule. It takes a lot to finish all the races with such a short turnaround. The crew has done a lot of pre-race prep to keep everything mechanically working and out of trouble. Not having any damage to repair is key, so I’m looking to have a clean safe race here.”
The weekend will start off with a promoter test day and official practice 1 on Thursday August 8th. Practice 2 and qualifying will take place on Friday, August 9th. The First Energy Trans Am 100 – TA/SGT/GT race will start at 9:00am EST, followed TA2 First Energy Muscle Car Challenge at 12:40pm EST. Visit gotransam.com or midohio.com for ticket, full schedule, and all other weekend information.
CBS SPORTS NETWORK COVERAGE! Fans can tune in for a highlight show from the Mid-Ohio weekend that will broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network, Sunday September 15th at 5:00pm.
In the 2019 chase for the Trigon Trophy heading into Round 6 at Mid-Ohio, Chris Dyson leads the TA class championship with 138 points, Ernie Francis Jr. is in second with – 127, Amy Ruman is third – 109, Simon Gregg in fourth – 100, and Lawrence Loshak in fifth place – 100 points.
SPONSORS: McNICHOLS CO. is the nation’s largest distributor of Perforated and Expanded Metals; Wire Mesh; Bar, Plank, and Safety Gratings; Stair Treads; Matting; and more. Products are carried in all styles and materials–stocked for 24-hour shipment. “Inspired to Serve”™ 800.237.3820 mcnichols.com.
OMP Racing, Inc., OMP Racing is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of racing safety equipment and tuning accessories with a catalog of over 3,000 different items. Operating from a technologically advanced 80,000 sqft facility in Italy, OMP products are renowned for its quality, the meticulous attention to details that is constantly challenged by setting higher standards. For products and information visit ompamerica.com or ompsport.com.
For quick news and updates during race weekends, please follow us on all social media! Twitter: @rumanracing, @mcnicholsco, @opmracing and @gotransam. Facebook: Ruman Racing, Amy Ruman (Official Fan Page), McNichols Company, OMP Racing, and The Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli.
Race Info/Scoring/Results: www.gotransam.com
Ruman Racing, Inc., is based in Munroe Falls, Ohio.
