Press Release about Charles Buxton

[NickHolt]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Contact: Chuck Licata 512.736.8230

 

Charles Buxton Race Preview at Houston Motorsports Park, Saturday, Oct. 4, 2003

 

The Checkered Flag: Round Rock resident Charles Buxton, who runs in the Texas Super Race Series (TSRS), will run in this weekend’s TSRS race, The Space City 125, at Houston Motorsports Park. Buxton and the #77 White Knuckle Racing (WKR) racing team are coming off a season-high 6th-place finish at last week’s race at Thunder Hill Raceway. Buxton and WKR plan on racing in the last two TSRS races of the season, this Saturday at HMP and next Saturday at San Antonio Speedway.

 

Q: How did you car do during qualifying last Saturday? Did you make any adjustments to it before the feature race?

 

A: The WKR racing team tested Friday night and ran some fast laps. But, when we practiced on Saturday morning, the track had changed a lot, so we changed the setup on the car and thought it would be good. The right-rear shock was bad, which made our car real loose. We qualified for the feature race in a time of 16.177 seconds, and that was about 4-tenths slower than what we had run in practice. We replaced the shock and made some adjustments to the suspension and checked the car for anything that might have needed adjustments. After that, we felt we were ready for the feature.

 

Q: How happy is your team with the 6th-place finish?

 

A: Our team was very happy with our 6th-place finish. I started the race with less-than-normal air pressure in the tires, hoping for a long green flag run. In the longest green flag run, we were able to improve our position from 15th to 5th. On the restarts, the #77 WKR car was real loose, so it took about five or six laps to get the pressures up. Once the tire pressures came up, we ran several 15.7- to 15.8-second lap times on a consistent basis, and that was while we were dodging lap cars. There were several cautions which allowed Jeff Pollard (#17) and Matt Brune (#18) to get under me for position. I don't think many people expected us to run that well, because we don’t have a great ‘track’ record in the past. But, we are finally starting to understand this car and what I need, as far as setup and what it takes to run fast on different tracks. The last couple of races at THR, we had been fast – even after leading the first 10 laps of the last race. We ran there before cutting the right front tire down in that particular race.

 

Q: You ran pretty consistently throughout the race. Did you ever feel like you had a chance to challenge for a Top-3 spot?

 

A: If we would have qualified better, we might have had a top-3 finish, but the guys that finished in front of us are very deserving of where they finished it. It felt great to run with the front pack like we did the at the beginning of my racing career.

 

Q: What are your team's thoughts as you get ready for Houston?

 

A: We have been racing faster in Houston every time we race there. The first race of the year, we were running in 8th-place but the motor let go. At the second race at Houston, we had a right-front shock blow out on the 10th lap and the car was a handful. However, we were still able to pull out a 12th-place finish.At the last race in Houston, we were running with the lead group of cars and the distributor broke.If all goes well we should be close to the front. Houston is a blast to run you can really muscle the car around the track. Brad Hudak has done a great job with this race and should get a lot of credit for what they have done. Thanks to everyone involved with making the Space City 125 happen, and we look forward to putting on a great race for the fans that come to see it.