SAMAX Motorsport
Encyclopedia
SAMAX Motorsport was a racing team owned by Peter Baron that competed primarily in the Rolex Sports Car Series
but also spent one year in the IndyCar Series
.
The team was founded in 2005 by fielding a car for Mark Greenberg at the 6 Hours of Mont Tremblant. Shortly after that race the team ran the #7 Riley-Pontiac Daytona Prototype co-owned by millionaire businessman Brian Tuttle, Greg Wilkins and Dave Lacey and the #17 Porsche 911 GT3
in Grand Am. In 2006, Milka Duno
joined the Daytona Prototype team, bringing with her sponsorship from Citgo
. The team of Duno, Patrick Carpentier
, Darren Manning
, and Ryan Dalziel
finished 2nd overall in the 2007 24 Hours of Daytona
, the team's best Grand Am finish and the best finish in a major sports car race for a female driver. SAMAX fielded a second Prototype in the 2007 24 Hours of Daytona for Roger Yasukawa
, Tomáš Enge
, Chris Festa
, and Christian Montanari
that finished 6th.
On March 23, 2007, the team announced that it would enter the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series
. They ran Duno with Citgo sponsorship in 6 races during the 2007 season
, including the Indianapolis 500
. French-Canadian driver Jean-Francois Dumoulin
replaced her in the prototype. The team did not return to the IndyCar Series in 2008 as Duno moved to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
, but continued in the Rolex Sports Car Series with their BMW
-Riley
being driven by Dalziel and Henri Zogaib. The team of Dalziel and Zogaib captured the team's first Daytona Prototype victory in the 5th race of the season at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
. Despite the success, the team did not return for 2009. Reportedly, Zogaib had been funding the racing venture through employing a Ponzi scheme
in which he had conned the Dalziel family for $550,000 USD and owes SAMAX owner Peter Baron $450,000 in team expenses and $800,000 in investments Baron had made in the Ponzi scheme.
In 2010, Baron re-entered team ownership with the new Starworks Motorsport team.
Rolex Sports Car Series
The Rolex Sports Car Series is the premier series run by the Grand American Road Racing Association. It is a North American-based sports car series that was founded in 2000 under the name Grand American Road Racing Championship to replace the failed United States Road Racing Championship...
but also spent one year in the IndyCar Series
IndyCar Series
The IZOD IndyCar Series is the premier level of American open wheel racing. The current championship, founded by Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George, began in 1996 as a competitor to CART known as the Indy Racing League . Citing CART's increasing reliance on expensive machinery and...
.
The team was founded in 2005 by fielding a car for Mark Greenberg at the 6 Hours of Mont Tremblant. Shortly after that race the team ran the #7 Riley-Pontiac Daytona Prototype co-owned by millionaire businessman Brian Tuttle, Greg Wilkins and Dave Lacey and the #17 Porsche 911 GT3
Porsche 911 GT3
The Porsche 911 GT3 is a higher performance version of the Porsche 911 sports car. It is the latest in a line of high performance models, beginning with the 1973 911 RS...
in Grand Am. In 2006, Milka Duno
Milka Duno
Milka Duno is a Venezuelan race car driver who competed in the IndyCar Series, and competes in the ARCA Racing Series. She is best known for holding the record of highest finish for a female driver in the 24 Hours of Daytona....
joined the Daytona Prototype team, bringing with her sponsorship from Citgo
Citgo
CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a United States-incorporated, Venezuela-owned refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petróleos de...
. The team of Duno, Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier is a retired Canadian race car driver. He is best known for his career in the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series. In 2009, Patrick shared the #36 of Tommy Baldwin Racing with Mike Skinner and ran Michael Waltrip's #55 Toyota Camry in the road course races in the...
, Darren Manning
Darren Manning
Darren Manning is a motor racing driver, most recently racing in the IRL IndyCar Series for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.-Early career:...
, and Ryan Dalziel
Ryan Dalziel
Ryan Dalziel , is a Scottish race car driver. He spent three years in the Toyota Atlantic championship, finishing runner-up twice, before moving to the American Le Mans series in 2005. He also contested one Champ Car race for Dale Coyne Racing at Toronto, finishing 9th. In 2006, he drove a...
finished 2nd overall in the 2007 24 Hours of Daytona
24 Hours of Daytona
The 24 Hours of Daytona, currently known as the Rolex 24 Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on a combined road course, utilizing portions of the NASCAR tri-oval and an infield...
, the team's best Grand Am finish and the best finish in a major sports car race for a female driver. SAMAX fielded a second Prototype in the 2007 24 Hours of Daytona for Roger Yasukawa
Roger Yasukawa
Roger Yasukawa is a Japanese-American auto racing driver.Yasukawa started karting in Southern California, winning the California State Championship in 1991 in Junior Sportsman. He then moved to Italy to compete in JICA...
, Tomáš Enge
Tomáš Enge
Tomáš Enge is a motor racing driver from the Czech Republic, who has competed in many classes of motorsport, including three races in Formula One.-Career:...
, Chris Festa
Chris Festa
Chris Festa, born in Atlanta on September 5, 1985, is an American auto racing driver.Chris raced the #9 Dallara for Chip Ganassi Racing in the Indy Pro Series in 2007. As of the end of the 2007 season he has made 39 IPS starts with a best finish of 2nd and won the pole for the first race of the...
, and Christian Montanari
Christian Montanari
Christian Montanari is a racing car driver from San Marino.He started racing in Formula Renault 2.0 in 2002, finishing 6th in the Italian championship and moving up to Italian F3 for 2003...
that finished 6th.
On March 23, 2007, the team announced that it would enter the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series
IndyCar Series
The IZOD IndyCar Series is the premier level of American open wheel racing. The current championship, founded by Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George, began in 1996 as a competitor to CART known as the Indy Racing League . Citing CART's increasing reliance on expensive machinery and...
. They ran Duno with Citgo sponsorship in 6 races during the 2007 season
2007 in IRL
The 2007 IndyCar Series season began with a night race on Saturday March 24 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The season's premiere event, the 91st Indianapolis 500 was held May 27. The season finale was held at Chicagoland Speedway on September 9...
, including the Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...
. French-Canadian driver Jean-Francois Dumoulin
Jean-Francois Dumoulin
Jean-François Dumoulin is a Canadian race car driver who drives in the Rolex Sports Car Series and drove one NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Montreal and finished 7th.-Grand-Am career:...
replaced her in the prototype. The team did not return to the IndyCar Series in 2008 as Duno moved to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing is an American motor racing team in the open wheel Indy Racing League IndyCar Series, with one series win by co-owner Robbie Buhl, who owns the team with Indianapolis BMW, Infiniti, Volkswagen and Maserati dealer Dennis Reinbold....
, but continued in the Rolex Sports Car Series with their BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
-Riley
Riley Technologies
Riley Technologies LLC is an auto racing constructor and team which specializes in the design and manufacture of complete race cars, as well as prototype development for racing and manufacturing applications.-Grand Am:...
being driven by Dalziel and Henri Zogaib. The team of Dalziel and Zogaib captured the team's first Daytona Prototype victory in the 5th race of the season at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is a paved road racing track used for both auto racing and motorcycle racing, originally constructed in 1957 near both Salinas and Monterey, California, USA....
. Despite the success, the team did not return for 2009. Reportedly, Zogaib had been funding the racing venture through employing a Ponzi scheme
Ponzi scheme
A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to its investors from their own money or the money paid by subsequent investors, rather than from any actual profit earned by the individual or organization running the operation...
in which he had conned the Dalziel family for $550,000 USD and owes SAMAX owner Peter Baron $450,000 in team expenses and $800,000 in investments Baron had made in the Ponzi scheme.
In 2010, Baron re-entered team ownership with the new Starworks Motorsport team.