Kevin Kalkhoven & Stefano Coletti Press Conference Transcript
STEFANO COLETTI, NO. 4 VARIABLE BORE RAMS – KVRT CHEVROLET
YOU’RE NEW TO THE VERIZON INDYCAR SERIES BUT YOU’RE ALREADY LANDING NEW SPONSORS. HOW EXCITING IS THIS?
“I’m very excited to have Variable Bore Rams on the car. They are from Louisana, and the team is helping me a lot this year with sponsors. I met Chip (Marshall Jr.) a few months ago when he came here to drive IndyCars. We got along pretty well and I’m happy that he’s on board for this race."
YOU HAVEN’T BEEN OUT ON THE TRACK YET THIS WEEK BUT YOU HAVE TESTED. WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSIONS?
“All the changes they made to the track are great. They put a lot of gravel beds around and moved some tire barriers around to make it a lot safer. I like the track. The first time I came here, I thought the track was a lot of fun to drive. It’s going to be better this way. There are still some improvements to do, but they’ve come a long way. We have to thank the people from the track for making all these efforts."
HOW MANY PLACES ARE THERE TO PASS?
“To be honest, Turn 1 will be one of the biggest ones because you’re coming down the straight pretty fast and you have a pretty big braking point. Plus with the timing line they put on the outside of Turn 1 and avoiding us going wide, that will make the corner even slower so that’s where we’ll be able to pass a lot. I think the braking after the backstraight as well will be another one, and maybe between Turn 3 and Turn 4."
KEVIN KALKHOVEN, TEAM CO-OWNER, KV RACING TECHNOLOGY
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE STRONG START TO THE SEASON AND HOW STRONG BOTH CARS RAN AT ST. PETERSBURG?
“Obviously there is still a development base of knowledge we need to get with the new aero kits. We’re not there yet. However, I will say that Sebastien (Bourdais) has really come to grips with it. Stefano’s attitude is that ‘I have a right foot and that’s all I’m going to use!’ So we need to change that a little bit, particularly when he comes into the pits! No, we’re excited about Stefano. He has a great personality and fits in well with the team and leads his team extremely well. He’ll show a progressive development in driving an IndyCar over the course of the next few races, starting here I hope."