Good news for the American Le Mans Series fans, José Guillermo "Memo"
Gidley will attend the American Le Mans Series season opener. Petersen
Motorsports/White Lightning Racing made the announcement today that they
have nabbed the talented racer as their reserve driver in the debut of
their new LM GT2 entry for the Twelve Hours of Sebring.
"Honestly, in my career, I've never been hired as a reserve driver for
a race. When I got the call to do this from Dale, it was a different
conversation than I'm used to. He said he knew it might be unusual for
me and if I didn't mind being at the race track that they could really
use me as a backup," explained Gidley on his thoughts on the offer.
"My immediate thought was; be at the racetrack, great. Drive a Ferrari
F430 GT, nice. Have the chance to work with the championship-winning
Petersen/White Lightning team, awesome!"
Gidley, who brings vast experience as a driver from open-wheel to
sportscar racing will drive the test day and practice sessions in
the team's new Ferrari F430 GT. For the race on March 17, he will be
in the team's pitbox in case needed to jump into the Ferrari. The
America/Mexican driver of German and Canadian heritage will share the
practice days with the team's two new drivers, Tim Bergmeister and Tomas
Enge.
"Unusual for me to potentially not race but, hey, if it wasn't for
unusual experiences my bio would read a lot different than it does. So,
I'm excited," Gidley said.
Petersen/White Lightning are taking on a new adventure this year for
the second time. Their first adventure ended on January 21 when Michael
Petersen and navigator Matthew Stevenson made it to Dakar in the team's
debut of the challenging Dakar cross-country rally. Next year, they
will entry in their own car after renting a buggy to take on one of the
events they were missing on their resume.
This year, the 2005 GT2 championship team have switched to a Ferrari
which will bring on new challenges in their chase for another ALMS GT2
crown. Team Manager Dale White always has a plan and even though it
is unusual for a team to take on a long endurance race, like the 12
hour one at Sebring International Raceway, with just two drivers, White
believes that signing Gidley puts the ace in the pocket if needed.
"Adding Memo to the team is a major plus for us. Memo has a terrific
reputation in and out of the car and we knew he was the right guy from
the first phone conversation. Both Tim and Tomas feel confident and
comfortable running the race on their own," commented White.
"However, it is important to have a reserve driver in case there are
any problems. Finding that driver is difficult because you have to have
someone that can step in at the last minute and start turning quick laps
but who can also put their ego to the side," added White. "Memo can do
that. He understands what we are asking him to do and his role within
the team. We think this will be the start of a long-term relationship
with Memo and we are all excited about that."
The former karting star worked as a mechanic as he built his career as
he climb the ladder to the Atlantic Championship series and landed his
first Champ Car (formerly CART) ride in 1999 with a team owner that
still looks for drivers to develop their talent: Derrick Walker. Over
his 40 races with four Champ Car teams, Gidley's best finish was second,
the first time at the 2001 Cleveland venue with Chip Ganassi Racing and
again later at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
A few stints became available in the IndyCar Series but he found his
niche in sportscar racing in 2005, teaming with Michael McDowell in the
Grand American Rolex Series. The duo notched the Mexico City win in 2005
in their Daytona Prototype.
Gidley who has been known for driving anything with wheels has his own
company and is already a known author in the world of karting. Along
with being very involved in karting, Gidley and Jeff Grist, co-authored
three books in the Memo Gidley's Secrets of Speed book
series.
His first ride in the ALMS came in 1999 -- the inaugural year for the
new sportscar series -- at the Petit Le Mans event on the Road Atlanta
circuit. Gidley co-drove a Panoz LM P1 roadster with Jan Magnussen and
Johnny O'Connell. After the event, Gidley commented, "It was fun racing
for Panoz in that car, and it's a good series."
He returned to the Petit Le Mans event with Highcroft Racing last
October driving with Vitor Meira and team owner Duncan Dayton. The trio
placed third behind the factory Audi R10 TDI and the Zytek Engineering
team in the 1,000 miles or 10-hour race.
Now he takes on his own new adventure in a GT2 class Ferrari. One that
he looks forward to with the Petersen/White Lightning team. "I think the
car is super nice, the team has had a lot of success and I can respect
what the team's drivers; Tim and Tomas, are trying to do by driving the
entire race with just two drivers," remarked Gidley.
"Heck, if it wasn't for mandatory drivers changes in sports car
racing in general, I would elect to do the entire race by myself!
But ultimately, the goal is to win," he continued. "I know how to
win races and I look forward to doing whatever is needed to help the
Petersen/White Lightning team win the 12Hours of Sebring."
While Gidley was being added to the team, Bergmeister and Enge, along
with team owner Petersen and White are preparing for the delivery of
their new GT2 entry. The team will be present in Fiorano, Italy for the
delivery plus the two racers will turn their fist laps on the official
Ferrari test track next week.
"We're looking forward to Memo coming on board. We think we have a
strong driver lineup and we're looking forward to stacking it, and the
new Ferrari, up against the other GT2 competitors," commented Petersen.
"Dale and I have been saying all along that this is the most competitive
field that there has ever been in GT2. We're really excited about
getting out there and fighting for wins starting at Sebring."
