Facing elimination from the Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford championship hunt, American Champ Car star A.J. Allmendinger (#7 Indeck Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) decided that a sunny Sunday in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin was no place to hold a championship celebration. source: champcarworldseries.com Needing to finish better than two-time defending Champ Car World Series champion Sebastien Bourdais (#1 McDonald's Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) in today's Champ Car Grand Prix of Road America, Allmendinger benefited from timely cautions and quick work from his Forsythe Championship Racing crew and not only finished ahead of Bourdais, he topped the entire field to win his fifth race of the season. Allmendinger overcame a pair of large deficits where he trailed Bourdais by more than 10 seconds, then used a fast fuel stop to get in position for the pass that would give him the lead. Allmendinger passed Bourdais with six laps to go, taking advantage of the fact that the champion was on cold tires after his final pit stop, taking the lead with a pass in Turn Four. After a 40-minute red flag to clean up after Katherine Legge's (#20 Bell Micro Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) hard impact in Turn 10, Allmendinger then held off Bruno Junqueira (#2 Hole In The Wall Camps Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) and Bourdais to score his fifth win of the year. The result shaved five points from Bourdais' championship lead and ensured that the title fight would carry to Surfers Paradise in four weeks. Things happened early and often in today's 51-lap race, beginning with contact on the opening lap of the race. As has happened on more than a couple occasions this year, it was Junqueira who was the victim as he spun after contact with Will Power (#5 Aussie Vineyards Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone). Junqueira's car was undamaged and he was able to continue - albeit from the back of the field. Bourdais stormed to the lead when the green flag waved on Lap Four, passing polesitter Dan Clarke (#14 CTE Racing - HVM Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) and then Charles Zwolsman (#34 Mi-Jack Conquest Racing Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone), who had passed Clarke for the lead on the restart. Once in front, Bourdais checked out on the field, building a 15-second lead even after the first cycle of green-flag pit stops.
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