McDONALD’S® DRIVER BOURDAIS AIMS FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT WIN AND THIRD IN CLEVELAND; MEDI | ZONE DRIVER RAHAL TO MAKE FIRST CHAMP CAR START AT HOME EVENT – THE GRAND PRIX OF CLEVELAND PRESENTED BY LASALLE BANK CLEVELAND, Ohio (June 21, 2007) --- Medi | Zone driver Graham Rahal, of New Albany, Ohio, is looking forward to returning to Cleveland for his first Champ Car race at “home” while McDonald’s® driver Sebastien Bourdais is back in the United States after a second place finish in his home event – the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France. Although Bourdais is not from Ohio, this weekend’s Grand Prix of Cleveland Presented by LaSalle Bank will also be a “home event” of sorts for him as well as the entire team due to the fact that new team partner Michael Lanigan’s Mi-Jack Promotions is the promoter of the event. Bourdais, who said a second place finish in Le Mans for the six-month-old Peugeot program is like a win, has already spent a day in his Champ Car since returning from France. He set the fastest lap time during the test on Tuesday in Elkhart Lake, Wis. before adding more variety to his driving duties by piloting his motorhome to Cleveland. Once on track at the 2.106-mile course at Cleveland’s Burke Lakefront Airport he hopes to return to the form that saw him win his first two races here in 2003 and 2004 but finished fifth and 18th, respectively, the past two years. “The McDonald’s team won the first two years in Cleveland but haven’t the past two so I guess we’re due there,” said Bourdais who won the past three races this season and could match his four consecutive wins, a series record, from 2006 with a victory here. “I would really like to go back and have a competitive car. We had a great car the first year and then the second year it was kind of a steal because the first row took itself out and we collected the points which was really good. In 2005 we were in the mix and 2006 in the mix again but never quite got to the racing. It would be good to be on top in Cleveland for (Michael) Lanigan and Mi-Jack Promotions. It’s another home race for us and it would be great to finish one-two like we did in Houston.” Bourdais became the first driver since 1948 to earn three consecutive titles last season but the Cleveland event produced the scariest moment of his year when Paul Tracy attempted to drive between Bourdais and then-teammate Bruno Junqueira’s car on the first lap. “The race in Cleveland was very short for me last year,” recalled Bourdais. “I had a big black out and don’t remember much of what happened. I just had a car on top of me then it went dark and that’s all I can remember. My car stopped in the grass and that was it for our day. I felt a little pain in the neck and I was still kind of unconscious so the Safety Team decided to take me right to the hospital for a checkup. It was a weird accident; Bruno and I had no idea PT (Paul Tracy) had his front wing between our rear wheels. We never saw him so we just got a little closer together and were heading toward Turn 3 and never got there.” Despite the 2006 Cleveland event providing a temporary setback to his championship aspirations with his only non top-eight finish of 18th place, Bourdais and the McDonald’s team went on to rack up top-three finishes in six of the eight remaining races. On a mission to be the first to earn four straight titles, he leads the point standings with 11 points over Will Power (105-94) and is expecting a good race this weekend. “It’s a very challenging track because it’s really fast and really bumpy; it makes for really good racing,” said Bourdais of the wide-open course utilizing the airport runways. “I think all the drivers really like it because you really can push it without taking big chances and hitting anything. In the meantime if you want to put a lap together you need to finish it and not make any mistakes so it’s always a give and take.” The Cleveland Grand Prix is the longest continuously-running temporary circuit in Champ Car, which is in its 26th running this year. Newman/Haas Racing (NHR) competed in the past 24 of those and will compete in their 25th as Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. NHR earned four wins, five poles and 15 podium finishes in their 24 races in Cleveland. Although Bourdais was taken out of the event on the first lap last year Junqueira finished second. While in the Atlantic series last year Graham Rahal earned two of his series-high five wins last year at this rack and would like nothing better than to earn another strong finish in his first Champ Car race in front of fellow Ohioans. “It was nice to win (the Atlantic races) last year because the crowd was pretty much going crazy,” said Rahal, 18, whose father Bobby won the first race in Cleveland in 1982. “It was nice for them to have a familiar face and a local name win again. For me, there is no greater feeling of pride than winning there. To win both races there last year was a great feeling and to have my friends and family there made it even better. There is going to be quite a group of people coming to the race again this year and I’m looking forward to having a lot of fans there. I think the Medi | Zone team has a good shot at doing well in Cleveland. My family has had a lot of success at the track. Since it’s my home track its nice to go there and do well. Portland was difficult for us but we hope to turn that around and run well in Cleveland.” Rahal is ranked eighth in the Champ Car standings with 59 points and is second in the Rookie of the Year standings to former Formula One test and race driver Robert Doornbos who has 87. In four races this season he has earned three top-nine finishes including a second place in Houston­­ ­­-- the other Champ Car race Michael Lanigan’s company promotes. Rahal expects the experience in Cleveland to be slightly different now that he has moved up to the more powerful Champ Cars but he is hoping for the same outcome. “I think the speed will be the biggest thing to adapt to after moving up from the Atlantic cars,” said Rahal, who held a command performance autograph session at the Defense Supply Center in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday in advance of his home event. “The track is very fast and I think you just have to get used to the difference from the Atlantic cars, which are very fun to drive there. It wasn’t easy to drive the Atlantic cars but you are comfortable in them and Champ Car’s are a whole different step up.” Turn one at the Burke Lakefront Airport is one of the most infamous on the Champ Car schedule. Six out of the last seven years a lap one, turn one incident has sent at least one racing machine to the garage. This year, Cleveland will be the site of the second standing start in series history after the previous race in Portland was the first not to begin with a rolling start. Rahal began the Cleveland Atlantic races last year from a stranding start and knows that the only way to finish first is to first finish. “I’m not too worried about Turn 1 in Cleveland,” said Rahal, who not only ran, and won, two Atlantic races in Cleveland last year but also ran in two Formula BMW events in 2004 at the track. “Every time I have been there I have gotten through Turn 1 cleanly, not to say I’m going to this year but I think all the drivers know you’ve got to make it through the first corner to win the race. The biggest thing is its very tough to see since there are no reference points. I was driving in the rain (last year) and I couldn’t see a thing. I’m not too worried about it now that I’ve been there a few times though.” The Champ Car Grand Prix of Cleveland Presented by LaSalle Bank action gets underway Friday with a first practice session at 12:15 PM which will be followed by the first round of qualifying at 4:00 PM. The grid for Sunday’s race will be set on Saturday at 2:00 PM during the final round of qualifying while the yellow lights will go out for Round Five of the 2007 Champ Car World Series season at 1:00 PM on Sunday, June 24th. The race will be broadcast live on CBS Sports starting at 1:00 PM (all times eastern). 2003 & 2004 WINNER IN CLEVELAND: Will be his fifth race here. Experienced the scariest moment of the 2006 season here last year when he started third but was hit on Lap 1 when Paul Tracy tried to drive between Bourdais and Junqueira which caused Tracy to launch over Bourdais and roll over his helmet. Retired in 18th place and was admitted and subsequently released from a local hospital after a precautionary CT scan was negative for damage. Started third, ran as high as second and finished fifth here in 2005 due to the timing of the caution flag and his final pit stop. Started third, led 88 laps and won back-to-back races here in 2004 after having provisional pole taken away on Friday. Won from pole in his rookie race here in 2003 after having led 33 laps to earn his first win in the U.S. in the debut of having McDonald’s on his race car. SO FAR IN 2007: Crashed in final qualifying in Las Vegas season-opener and started 16th in the 17 car field. Overcame two unscheduled stops for punctured tires and charged into third place but brushed a wall and had to make another pit stop. Returned to the race in 11th place but his day ended when he made contact in Turn 4 on the 31st of 68 laps…Led 58 laps and won from pole in Long Beach to rebound to a third place rank…Was the provisional polesitter in Houston and set the fastest lap time in final qualifying but CCWS ruled he had interfered with the lap time of Power and took away that lap. He started second but took the lead at the start by cutting the chicane and was told to give the position up to Wilson on the next lap but regained the lead on Lap 14 and only relinquished it after pit stops. Set the fastest race lap en route to victory…Started third in Portland and brought the team their 100th victory in dominating fashion. After he started third he temporarily dropped to fifth but stretched his fuel two laps longer than race leader Wilson on the first stint and closed a +18-second deficit to take over the leader after the second stop, which he held through his third and won by a 13.5 second margin over Wilson. Increased his pre-race points lead of three to 11 over Will Power (105-94). 2007 24 HOURS OF LE MANS: Teamed with Pedro Lamy and Stephane Sarrazin for Peugeot in his first effort with a factory team and finished second overall despite the program only being six months old. Set the fastest lap (3:26.707, a new lap record) in the pre-race test on June 3 and was 1.5 seconds faster than Pirro in the lead Audi that won last year. Started from pole. HISTORY MAKING THIRD CONSECUTIVE TITLE IN 2006: Became the first open wheel driver to win three consecutive championships since Ted Horn accomplished the feat from 1946-1948 and only the second in the 98 year history of the sport. Both Horn and Bourdais clinched their titles in the penultimate event but Horn was unable to attempt four after he died in a crash in the season finale…Bourdais earned seven wins, seven poles and finished on the podium 11 times in 14 races. FOUR IN A ROW RARE IN SPORTS: Bourdais has the rare opportunity to win four consecutive championships this year if he can again capture the Vanderbilt Cup for the fourth time since 2004. No Champ Car driver has ever won four straight titles. Four in a row is very rare in professional sports in fact it has never been done in either NASCAR or NFL and it hasn’t been accomplished in the last twenty years in the NBA, NHL or MLB. FOX SPORTS BEST NON AMERICAN ATHLETES: Recently made a list complied by Fox Sports of the 10 best non American athletes. Others on the list include reigning F 1 champ Fernando Alonso, Brazilian soccer stars Ronaldinho and Adriano, golf stars Luke Donald (England) and Padraig Harrington (Ireland) as well as four others. 26 WINS IN 63 RACES (41percent): (’03 – England, Germany & Cleveland; ’04 – Monterrey, Portland, Cleveland, Toronto, Denver, Las Vegas, Mexico City; ’05 – Long Beach, Edmonton, San Jose, Denver, Las Vegas, Australia; ’06 Long Beach, Houston, Monterrey, Milwaukee, San Jose, Montreal, Mexico City; ’07 Long Beach, Houston, Portland). He earned his 20th career victory in just his 49th start with a win in Milwaukee. The feat obliterates the former record of 79 starts to reach 20 wins, held by A.J. Foyt. Mario Andretti (80), Tony Bettenhausen (96) and Rick Mears (97) as the only other drivers to reach 20 wins in 100 starts. 26 CCWS POLES IN 63 RACES (41percent): (’03 – St. Pete, Monterrey, Germany, Cleveland, Australia; ’04 – Monterrey, Portland, Toronto, Elkhart Lake, Denver, Montreal, Laguna Seca, Mexico City; ’05 – Monterrey, Toronto, San Jose, Montreal, Las Vegas; ’06 – Long Beach, Monterrey, Milwaukee, Edmonton, San Jose, Denver, Montreal; ’07 Long Beach). Sebastien Bourdais, #1 McDonald’s Cosworth/DP01/Bridgestone: “The race in Cleveland was very short for me last year. I had a big black out and don’t remember much of what happened. I just had a car on top of me then it went dark and that’s all I can remember. My car stopped in the grass and that was it for our day. I felt a little pain in the neck and I was still kind of unconscious so the Safety Team decided to take me right to the hospital for a checkup. It was a weird accident; Bruno and I had no idea PT (Paul Tracy) had his front wing between our rear wheels. We never saw him so we just got a little closer together and were heading toward Turn 3 and never got there. “The McDonald’s team won the first two years in Cleveland but haven’t the past two so I guess we’re due there. I would really like to go back and have a competitive car. We had a great car the first year and then the second year it was kind of a steal because the first row took itself out and we collected the points which was really good. In 2005 we were in the mix and 2006 in the mix again but never quite got to the racing. It would be good to be on top in Cleveland for (Michael) Lanigan and Mi-Jack Promotions. It’s another home race for us and it would be great to finish one-two like we did in Houston. “It’s a very challenging track because it’s really fast and really bumpy; it makes for really good racing. I think all the drivers really like it because you really can push it without taking big chances and hitting anything. In the meantime if you want to put a lap together you need to finish it and not make any mistakes so it’s always a give and take.” 2 WINS IN CLEVELAND: Will be his fifth race here and first in a Champ Car. Won both Atlantic races here last year after starting fifth and second, respectively. He ran in two Formula BMW events here in 2004 where he finished 8th and 6th. Graham’s father Bobby won the first Champ Car race at this track in 1982 and also earned one pole here in 1985. SO FAR IN 2007: Had an electrical problem in Friday’s qualifying in the season-opening race in Las Vegas and had to qualifying his backup car on Saturday due to crashing in the morning practice. Started 10th but had to make an evasive move to avoid a swerving Dan Clarke who hit him prior to Turn 1 on the first racing lap. Retired in 17th place… Qualified fifth in Long Beach but pit strategy of others and slow fuel flow on two pit stops led to an eighth place finish…Started sixth in Houston and finished second to bring the team it’s first 1-2 finish since Las Vegas in 2005…Started eighth in Portland but struggled to pass Dan Clarke and went off course twice while trying and ultimately finished ninth…Is ranked 8th in the series standings with 59 points. ALSO IN 2007: Rahal competed in the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona (water pump failure) and 12 Hours of Sebring (battled back from opening lap crash to finish sixth in GT2 class). RUNNER-UP TO 2006 ATLANTIC CHAMPION: Rahal finished second in the 2006 Champ Car Atlantic championship after a title hunt that concluded in the season finale. Led 129 laps to champion Pagenaud’s 31. He earned a series-high five wins (42 percent), four poles (33 percent) and six podium finishes (50 percent) in the 12 events and at 17 years old was the youngest race winner in series history (Monterrey, Mexico on 5-21-06)…He led the most laps (129, 32 percent) and set a series-high five fastest race laps …He was awarded the BBS of America Rising Star Award. DID YOU KNOW: Graham Robert Rahal, 18, was born in Columbus, Ohio on 1-4-1989 and resides in New Albany, Ohio…The 6’2” driver is one of four children of Bobby Rahal, three-time open wheel champion, Indy 500 winner and Hall of Fame race car driver…Has two sisters (Michaela and Samantha) and one brother (Jarrad)…He graduated from New Albany High School with a 3.8 GPA on June 3, 2007…When he is not racing he likes to work on cars, hang out with friends and family or play other sports for fun…To prepare for the physicality of racing he spends many hours doing cardiovascular training and weightlifting, skiing, running or bicycling…He drives a 2007 Atomic Orange Corvette Z06 and his favorite type of clothing is anything made by Puma…His favorite food is sushi and his weaknesses are ice cream and white chocolate mocha drinks at Starbucks…His favorite books are those written by Lance Armstrong (and anything he reads other than for school)…His favorite thing to watch on TV is any Ohio State Buckeye game, his favorite actor/actress are Owen Wilson and Eva Longoria and favorite movie is “Wedding Crashers.” ABOUT MEDI | ZONE: MEDI | ZONE is a leader of medically supervised weight loss, weight maintenance, wellness and performance programs, products, and services as well as the exclusive provider of the leading cutting edge health, wellness and performance systems by Dr. Barry Sears, the best selling author of the Zone Diet series. MEDI | ZONE owns and operates medically supervised weight loss, weight maintenance, wellness, and performance centers. Graham Rahal, #2 Medi | Zone Cosworth/DP01/Bridgestone: “I think the Medi | Zone team has a good shot at doing well in Cleveland. My family has had a lot of success at the track. Since it’s my home track its nice to go there and do well. Portland was difficult for us but we hope to turn that around and run well in Cleveland. “It was nice to win (the Atlantic race) last year because the crowd was pretty much going crazy. It was nice for them to have a familiar face and a local name win again. For me, there is no greater feeling of pride than winning there. To win both races there last year was a great feeling and to have my friends and family there made it even better. There is going to be quite a group of people coming to the race again this year and I’m looking forward to having a lot of fans there. “I think the speed will be the biggest thing to adapt to after moving up from the Atlantic cars. The track is very fast and I think you just have to get used to the difference from the Atlantic cars, which are very fun to drive there. It wasn’t easy to drive the Atlantic cars but you are comfortable in them and Champ Car’s are a whole different step up. “I’m not too worried about Turn 1 in Cleveland. Every time I have been there I have gotten through Turn 1 cleanly, not to say I’m going to this year but I think all the drivers know you’ve got to make it through the first corner to win the race. The biggest thing is its very tough to see since there are no reference points. I was driving in the rain and I couldn’t see a thing. I’m not too worried about it now that I’ve been there a few times though.”