Richard
Antinucci

· 28-year-old who will
be making his first IndyCar
Series start this weekend at Watkins Glen International
· Driving the No. 98
Novicomm LED Lighting Technology car for Team 3G
· Nephew of 1998
Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie
Cheever Jr.
· Runner-up in 2008 Firestone
Indy Lights championship
·
Won one race and finished second in the other during the Firestone
Indy Lights Corning Duels at Watkins
Glen in 2008
· Recorded two
victories and nine top-five finishes overall in 16 Firestone Indy Lights
races

***
Q. You've
raced at The Glen and recently tested the Team 3G car there. What did
you learn from the test?
RICHARD
ANTINUCCI: "I was very impressed with the IndyCar; it's been
the fastest car
I've had a full day to test in and will race in. I had a great day. My
fitness isn't exactly like Scott Dixon's might be at this point because
I haven't been racing. I've been training and preparing as much as I can
without driving the car. As they say, the best training is driving the
car. I covered about a race distance, and working with the team we just
started immediately picking up where I left off last year professionally
and they get to work with someone with experience on a road course. We
made immediate inroads and set a decent pace. I'm competitive so I
always want to do better, and I left there with ideas and notes that we
can pick up where we left off and hopefully gain another big chunk.
"
Q.
What are your goals for the weekend and your thoughts about The Glen?
RICHARD
ANTINUCCI: "It's a great venue for
fans. Being on the hills, you can situate yourself in a sweeping corner
and get a real idea of the speed. For a driver, it's an amazing place. I
believe it's one of the more demanding tracks physically and technically
on the calendar and in North America. It's so nice to be going through
the winding road and the elevation changes and the high-speed corners,
where you really need to trust the car and it tests your mettle. When
you work with your team and you make the car good for that track, you
get great satisfaction. Last year, I had a great setup with Sam (Schmidt
Motorsports) and we finished second and first in the two races. Those
results have given me a lot of confidence as a precursor to what I have
to do this year. I don't have the same target or goal; I'm going in
without a goal or number in my head."
Q.
What are your long-term objectives, using this race weekend as a
springboard?
RICHARD
ANTINUCCI: "(Team co-owner) Greg
(Beck) and I got together at the beginning of the year, and we have a
similar target. He doesn't want to be at the back (of the field) and
he's good enough not to be that guy at the back. I don't just want to
make this one-off appearance and have a nice Sunday drive on a beautiful
track. There's no way I can impress too much here. I want to make
something here where I pave a path for a long career in IndyCars. My
intention is to graduate into full-time IndyCar (Series) driver, but not
just a driver -- a race winner and someone who contends for the
championship and thinks every day about how to win races. That's how
I've always raced. It's contagious and hopefully this is the final
category in racing."