Valiante nominated for Greg Moore Award

Valiante nominated for Greg Moore Award
By Dan Hilborn, Burnaby NOW assistant editor
Published Nov. 17, 2002

A banner season for Burnaby racer Michael Valiante has paid off with his nomination for one of the most prestigious racing trophies in the world.
Exactly one week before Valiante's 23rd birthday on Remembrance Day, the second-place finisher in this year's CART Toyota Atlantic Championship series was nominated for the Third Annual Greg Moore Legacy Award.
"It's quite an honour just to get nominated, never mind winning it," said Valiante's mother Bev. "The thing that really makes this exciting is the fact that Greg (Moore) used to race go-karts with us."
The award was created in honour of Maple Ridge racing star Greg Moore, who lost his life in the final race of the 1999 CART season. The award, will be presented on Nov. 22 in Miami, Fla., to the driver who best typifies Moore's legacy of talent on the track and dynamic personality with fans, the media and within the CART community.
The other nominees are CART FedEx Championship Series winners Paul Tracy and Patrick Carpentier, and Barber Dodge Pro Series champion A.J. Allmendinger.
As a member of the Lynx Racing team, Valiante earned three victories this season in the Toyota Atlantic Championship series to tie for the series lead in most wins and second place overall.
"Michael is an absolute natural to be a CART star in the future," Lynx racing co-owner Peggy Haas said when she initially signed the young Canadian driver.
Last season, Valiante was chosen as an official mentor at the Vancouver Molson Indy, meaning he experienced all the press conferences and media attention of the big name racing stars.