Dempsey takes the Turn 2 chicane in the No. 2 TMR car HOUSTON, Texas (October 6, 2013) – Piloting the No. 2 TMR / Global Tubing / ALS Association car this weekend, Peter Dempsey gave an impressive run in yesterday’s race on the streets of Houston. After starting eighth due to a canceled qualifying session, the Irish racer had charged his way up to third and was challenging for second when a car issue forced him to retire with just three laps to go.
The weekend’s series of unfortunate events began with a delayed practice on Friday due to issues with the track. After just 18 laps of track time, Dempsey’s car suffered a broken drive shaft, and he was unable to complete the session. When the second practice session was canceled that day, Saturday’s qualifying was changed to an alternate practice session, and the drivers were forced to line up for the race according to entrant points. In another stroke of bad luck, Dempsey, who sat fifth in the championship, was required to assume the eighth spot on the grid, where the No. 2 car was ranked in the points.
Against the odds, Dempsey proved his capabilities as a driver in the race; he consistently turned the fastest laps on track during the first half and had already gained several positions when a caution came out at the midway point. After a couple of back to back yellow flags and restarts, Dempsey pushed on to overtake the No. 77 car of Jack Hawksworth, claiming the third spot on track. As the end of the race approached, Dempsey was hot on the gearbox of Gabby Chaves’ No. 7 car and battling for the second step on the podium. With three laps to go, Dempsey’s race was cut short when a mechanical issue arose, causing him to fall out of contention and end the race back in ninth position.
“First of all, I would like to thank my team, Team Moore Racing, and their sponsors, Global Tubing, the ALS Association, and Xtreme Drilling and Coil Services for giving me a great opportunity to compete this weekend,” said Dempsey. “We certainly had some obstacles thrown at us from the very start of the weekend. It was a shame qualifying got canceled and we ended up having to start eighth. We fought really hard in the race, had the fastest car out there, and had moved all the way up to third. Obviously it was unfortunate to have the mechanical issue, but that’s racing. The car was an absolute pleasure to drive, and I’m disappointed that we couldn’t finish out the race with a strong result.
“It was great to see Conor [Daly] get the team on the podium and congratulations to him. I would also like to thank all of my personal sponsors this weekend, Classic HTI, Door Doctor, and S&D Sealants, for their continued support during this season. Now, I’ll turn my full attention to securing an IndyCar drive for next season with the aim of getting a test in the near future.”
Despite a disappointing finish to the weekend, Dempsey was able to clinch fifth place in the driver’s championship with 360 points.