Jaime Camara to drive for Sam Schmidt Motorsports in 2005
Miami, January 24, 2005 - Brazilian Jaime Camara, 24, a South American
Formula 3 graduate, has secured a seat to race the 2005 Menards Infiniti
Pro Series with Sam Schmidt Motorsports, the 2004 Championship winning
team. Camara is backed by CELG, a power and energy company from his
native state in Brazil.
To date, he is the only Brazilian signed for the series, having previously
tested with the team last October at Kentucky Motorspeedway. "The
opportunity to race with Sam (Schmidt) and the team this season is
fantastic," said Camara. "For me, it will be a year of learning, from oval
racing to my first experience living away from home in Brazil, but we have a
good structure set up and I expect to get acclimated quickly in every sense.
I look forward to working with the whole team, everybody wants to win and I
already like the atmosphere there".
"We are very pleased to have Jaime joining our team this season,"
said team owner Sam Schmidt. "He showed great potential when we
tested him a few months ago and was immediately on the pace last week in
Homestead. We believe his substantial experience on road courses in cars
with similar horsepower and tire packages, will greatly benefit the team
as a whole. With the addition of Jaime, we are confident we have a
driver line up that should be competing for the Championship from the
beginning".
Camara joins previously announced drivers Travis Gregg, who raced three
MIPS races last year with the team, and Chris Festa, coming from Toyota
Atlantics. Jaime believes that diversity will be a huge benefit to the
team. "Theoretically, with three drivers," said Camara, "we
will have access to a lot of information at each track which should help
us quite a bit. We also have engineers and crew members who have won the
last two series championships. With the other drivers on the team, I
expect a healthy competition."
Camara tested briefly on the road course at Homestead last week. "The car
surprised me a little bit as it brakes well and the 450hp on the Infiniti
motor really pull. I can't wait to drive it again!" He also completed 187
laps on the oval on Friday with a best lap of 28.45, fastest on the day.
For Ava Sports' Fernando Avallone, Jaime's manager, "All
three drivers in the team have different backgrounds, but none less
important, and their experiences complement each other. The engineers are
simply best in class, and so is the crew. We are very, very happy to be
joining such a talented group of people".
The Menards Infiniti Pro Series follows the Indy Racing League to
America's premier oval and road course tracks. Powered by a Q45, 450
horsepower engine with a six speed sequential gearbox, the Dallara built
chassis can average speeds in excess of 190 MPH on a 1.5-mile
superspeedway. The Menards Infiniti Pro Series kicks off its 14 race
season at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 6, 2005.
-avasports-
