CONTACT SPOILS GREAT PERFORMANCE FOR SIMONA DE SILVESTRO
As the green flag dropped Simona immediately picked up a position and by lap # 7 she had a 2.3 second gap between her and the 7th spot of E.J. Viso. Simona continued carving the No. 78 Stargate Resistance Dallara/Honda entry around the 1.96 mile temporary street/airport course and settled into a fast race pace. By lap # 17 her gap had increased to 6.7 seconds. She pitted on lap # 32 and after a perfect pit stop Simona exited and rejoined the race back in the 11th spot. After a complete round of stops, Simona returned back to the 6th spot. She and Ryan Hunter-Reay enjoyed an on-track battle and she soon settled herself into the 7th spot. The race took an ugly turn for Simona on lap # 49 as she was forced into the tire barrier in turn # 11, as a result of contact from behind by E.J. Viso.
