Conquest and Tagliani give young racer a shot in arm

Conquest Racing and driver Alex Tagliani along with the Fondation du Sport Motorisé du Québec (Quebec Motor Sports Foundation) are teaming up to give a young promising driver the experience of a lifetime this week. The Excellence program, which is supported by Tagliani, consists of giving up and coming drivers the chance to get an up close and personal look at a professional race team as well as receive training in all facets of the sport from driving to public relations.

The foundation recently announced Jeffrey Petriello, from Terrebonne, Québec, as the first recipient of their Excellence program.

What does this entitle the 20-year-old racer to? Jeffrey will get the chance to test an Atlantic Championship and Star Mazda car at Putnam Park outside of Indianapolis today as well as receive valuable advice from Tagliani and the Conquest crew and engineers. His experience inside a professional race team won’t end there. Jeffrey will also be able to experience the Indy 500 as a special VIP guest of Conquest Racing at this weekend’s race and get to attend the Victory Banquet on Monday night in the company of Tag, team owner Eric Bachelart and other team members and partners.

“I can’t tell you what it means to me to support this Excellence program from the Fondation du Sport Motorisé du Québec," expressed Tagliani. “When you start out as a driver and make your way through the ladder system and different series, it’s important to have people that are there to help you. It’s also important to get your name out there, to have people know who you are and I want to help Jeffrey do that. He’s a very talented driver and I’m excited to be working with him today at Putnam Park as well as having him as our guest this weekend, so he too can experience his first Indy 500."

Conquest Racing team owner Eric Bachelart also understands the importance of helping young drivers. The Conquest team is known for having fielded many talented rookies who were making their debut in the big leagues.

“I’ve always liked helping young drivers and there is no better way to gain experience than to live it. Jeffrey will be able to experience what a real test feels like without the added pressure of an official test. He is here to learn all aspects of the sport and we’re very happy to have him with us, not only today at Putnam Park but also this weekend as our guest for the biggest spectacle in racing."

Jeffrey, who was chosen based on his age, past results, communication skills, competitive spirit and sportsmanship, has six karting titles. He won the 2007 Formula BMW scholarship and took part in nine rounds of the 2008 Formula BMW Americas claiming six podiums among rookies. As the team driver for SRA Karting he won four rounds in four starts at the 2009 Florida Winter Tour, an international level series.

Jeffrey will be on track today at Putnam Park before heading to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway tomorrow for Carb Day activities and Sunday for the 2009 Indianapolis 500.