INFINITI PRO SERIES: CALIFORNIA 100

September 20, 2003

Mark Taylor

MARK TAYLOR: It's difficult to say really. We were hoping that today would be the result to be able to complete the championship. We weren't really thinking about that. We were hoping we were really going to win the race, first and foremost. It was a great car. Panther Racing gave me a great car every single time I went out on track throughout the whole year. I was able to take advantage of it. We were able to get seven wins out of, what is that, 11 now? So just a great, great percentage for us really.

MARK TAYLOR: I mean the track changed quite a lot between the morning and the afternoon on both days. We found that yesterday afternoon we had an advantage over everybody else in the hot weather. So I was looking forward to the race, especially as the wind picked up, and we were able to take advantage of it once the conditions were like this. Just able to get Ed to sit behind me. All I wanted to do was that he had more understeer than I did. I figured the more he had to work his tires compared to me, then he's going to eventually have to drop back because I know that I was getting pretty close to the wall on the outside of turn two. It's just one of those things that you lose the front ends if you sat behind someone like that. He was trying to get me to go in low into turn one, take advantage of me that way. But I just had the car to be able to hold it down there in turn one. Going in, it was fine; it was coming out that was the problem. It's just a great result. We were able to pull away at the end. It made it easier for me, that's for sure. I think with something like five laps to go, I realized I was pull away from him. Thanks to everybody there. Thanks to Pancho, he was -- every race, he was out there, tell me what's going on around me. He's helped me learn a huge amount this year. It's partly because of him that we've been able to win so many races.

MARK TAYLOR: As soon as I got in that car in Miami, we came out winning that race, I knew -- I felt confident enough to say I was going to win the championship just because we couldn't seem to do anything wrong. The car was great every time I've been able to get into it. My confidence was high, especially the two early wins before coming to Indy. Indy was actually a disappointment. To finish third, it to be a disappointment, shows what a great year we've had.

MARK TAYLOR: I mean, I've had Brett Harvey. He worked with Tomas Scheckter last year. He's got a huge amount of experience when it comes to these types of cars. It's got to be an advantage for me with that. Chris Griffiths, he equally has a huge amount of experience. I think it shows because we have had no problems with the car. Makes sure everything is perfect every time we go out and race. It's just a great team. They're 100% behind me. I'm 100% committed to them as well. It shows on the racetrack. I think Nashville was a prime example. Going out and qualifying, I felt we were struggling to find a race setup. I wasn't 100% confident about being able to go in qualifying with it like that. And I just said to Woody, "He fixes the car, I go out and I drive it. I was going to keep it nailed all the way around, if he gets the car fixed, it will be fine. If the car isn't very good and I end up sticking to the wall, he'll just have to fix it." We were able to put it on pole there. That was an important race, as well. There were some big challenges at that point in the year, some people thinking that maybe they had a chance still at the championship. We were gradually able to pick them off one by one. I mean, with the flu coming along in Kentucky, it just lengthened the championship a little bit. But it was a great race at Chicago, to be able to win there really sealed it for me. I think that, along with Kentucky, were two great races. Do I mean Kentucky (laughter)? Kansas. Chicago along with Kansas were the two best races for me personally. Great cars, just able to in Kansas drive through the field. At Chicago, with Ed for so long, side by side. We were so close so many times. To be able to do that with a driver like that, to be able to learn, I mean, he's been in IndyCars. He's had that advantage. To be able to race alongside someone like that, all I can do is learn from him at the moment. Hopefully I'll be alongside him in an IndyCar race in the near future.

MARK TAYLOR: It's tough to say because I think the track was the challenging aspect of this race. The change in the weather has really affected a lot of cars. Ed and I obviously had great cars out there. It was a fight between the two of us rather than between a pack of cars. It's just a different type of race. We were fighting it out between ourselves. A very tactical race. He knew what he was trying to do. He just wasn't able to pull it off towards the end and stick with me. So probably he's fairly disappointed he wasn't able to do it. I was just trying to get him to have a bit more understeer than I had. We were able to take advantage of that.

MARK TAYLOR: Texas is going to be a special place for me because next weekend I'll be able to drive the IndyCar for the first time. That's got to be my sort of Texas, to get in that car, prove that I can drive that car. I'm going to have a teammate, Dane Carter, Pancho's son. That's going to be a new change for me. Very exciting going towards Texas. Even though the championship is sewn up, I'm actually happy about that because now I can probably learn more along with Dane, help him to come up to speed so that I can learn more. It's a new challenge for me. It will be great fun.

MARK TAYLOR: Thank you.