INDYCAR: FAZZT Race Team Completes Shakedown Test

Yesterday, the FAZZT Race Team completed the second and final day of their first on-track shakedown of their #77 FAZZT Race Team Honda/Dallara/Firestone IndyCar on the oval at Homestead-Miami Speedway.  Driver Alex Tagliani and the team fought chilly temperatures but were still able to complete their planned sessions over the two-day test.

"These two days have been unbelievable," said Alex at the close of the test.  "It has been the best days at the track for me in a long, long time.  The team showed up and by all appearances you would think we had been working together for 10 years.  The crew worked unbelievably hard to keep the car running and running smoothly over the course of the test and I think we were all pleasantly surprised that our first test for this brand new team was so trouble free."

Alex and the crew ran a number of miles over the two days although chilly temperatures kept them off track in the early part of both mornings.  "Despite the air temperatures barely reaching 60 degrees and delaying our running each morning, as a new team at our first test we certainly met our objectives," said team General Manager Rob Edwards.  "This is a new team but it is a group of individuals with many years of experience and that was evident in the smoothness of the operation over the course of the test.  It was as much a test of the equipment as it was a test of our crew and how they would work together as a team and I must say I believe we met our goals this week."

Alex and the crew have now returned to Indianapolis where they will begin the preparations of a road course chassis for their next test to be held Jan. 18 and 20 on the road course at Sebring International Raceway.  "I hadn't been in an IndyCar since last September but this was an oval test so I really felt like I could drive another four days," explained Alex.  "I know when we go to Sebring in two weeks that it will be a bit of a different story as the road course testing is much more physically demanding on a driver.  But after these last two days, I'm confident we will all be prepared and ready for the Sebring test and we're looking forward to another successful outing."

In addition to their testing schedule, Alex and team principals Andre Azzi and Jim Freudenberg will be attending the Montreal International Auto Show on January 14 to unveil the livery of the #77 FAZZT Race Team car for the season opening race March 14 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

About FAZZT Race Team: The FAZZT Race Team was formed in July 2009 as a partnership between Andre Azzi of the Azzi Race Division, ATG, and Jim Freudenberg and Jason Priestley of the Rubicon Sports Agency. The team will field a full-time IndyCar Series team beginning in 2010. The team has four Dallara chassis and has signed Canadian driver Alex Tagliani to drive the #77 entry. Andre Azzi, a Montreal based entrepreneur, is the teams' Chief Executive Officer and motorsports veteran Jim Freudenberg is the teams' Chief Operating Officer. The team is housed in a 25,000 ft. race shop on the north side of Indianapolis with a second facility that will house their Research and Design division in Montreal. For more information, go to www.FAZZTRaceTeam.com.

Media contacts: Jana Watt  // FAZZT Race Team