Delphi National Guard Driver Brent Sherman Starts Fifth

NEWTON, Iowa. (June 20, 2008) – Panther Racing had a busy first day at Iowa Speedway’s 7/8-mile oval, where the team tested for this weekend’s IndyCar Series race and Panther’s Firestone Indy Lights duo of Dillon Battistini and Brent Sherman both qualified inside the Top Five for tomorrow’s Jeld-Wen 100.

Delphi National Guard driver Brent Sherman secured his best starting position of the season after a fifth-place qualification effort Friday. The effort marks the team’s best two-car qualification effort in its history. Now the duo will look to duplicate their efforts from Homestead-Miami Speedway, where both drivers secured podium finishes with Battistini winning the event.

Sherman’s combined lap times of 40.3141 consisted of an average two-lap speed of 159.666 mph.
 

Sherman topped his previous best start of seventh place, which he attained at both Kansas Speedway and Indianapolis. His third place result at Homestead was his best of the season. The former NASCAR Sprint Cup driver has continued to acclimate himself well to open-wheel racing and hopes his break-through victory comes at Iowa.

Brent Sherman, No. 16 Delphi National Guard: “After we tested here last week I was a little nervous because the car wasn’t great, but when we ran today we started off fast without much drafting.  I’m a little greedy and thought that I could have done better, but I’ll take fifth.  The key to race will be to get out front early.  We weren’t that great in traffic today. We’ve got to move toward the front quickly and stay out of the traffic and the junk. I am going to race guys hard and hopefully move up in the race.”