Wade Cunningham Takes Mid-Ohio Alliance Motorsports Ride

2005 Series Champ Returns to Duty for Double-Header Weekend

by Allan Brewer
allan@indyproracer.com

Wade Cunningham. Photo: RonMcQueeneyIRL

From Alliance Motorsports media reports:

Former Indy Lights Series champion Wade Cunningham returns to the cockpit this weekend at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course near Mansfield, Ohio. The 2005 winner of the Firestone Firehawk Cup will compete for Alliance Motorsports in the eleventh and twelfth rounds of racing scheduled to commence Saturday morning in the Buckeye State.

The chance to drive the newly-liveried dark blue and white No. 24 car spurred the twenty-three year old racer to continue one of the most productive careers in the Firestone Indy Lights Series: one that has spawned thirty-five top five finishes in 44 starts, including seven poles and five victories.

Cunningham won the series championship in 2005, and narrowly missed winning again in 2006 when emergency surgery for appendicitis sidelined him early in the season. His close-quarters wheel-to-wheel oval-track duels with 2007 series champ Alex Lloyd were marvels of high-speed car control and driving skill.

Alliance Motorsports co-owner Tyce Carlson summed up the good fortune for racer and race team by adding, "We're fortunate to have Wade drive for us this weekend. Doug Zoster, our engineer, has been part of Wade' s successful runs in the past. We think this will be a positive for us and look forward to taking to the track on Friday."

Cunningham's four previous starts this season have come in the black and red Brian Stewart Racing car, which Wade has driven to a season's best finish of third at the Freedom 100 for the team and a total of three top-ten finishes.

Cunningham finished second in the first Mid-Ohio race in 2007 on his way to third-place in the end-of-season standings for AFS Racing.