DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 31, 2010) - David took on the Goliaths and won Sunday's 48th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona. In a race marked by unusual weather, heavy attrition and a record number of lead changes, Joao Barbosa held off Scott Pruett by 52.303 seconds to win the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 race in the No. 9 Action Express Racing Porsche Riley.
It was the second consecutive runner-up finish in the race for Pruett, a three-time Rolex 24 winner who teamed with Memo Rojas, Max Papis and Justin Wilson in Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates' No. 01 TELMEX/Target BMW Riley, a team that won three of the last five Rolex 24 races.
Scott Tucker, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Richard Westbrook and Lucas Luhr finished third, four laps behind in the No. 95 Crown Royal/NPN BMW Riley. A jammed seat belt early Sunday morning - resulting from a piece of tape - cost the team two laps, taking them out of the fight.
Ricardo Zonta, Tracy Krohn, Nic Jönsson and Colin Braun finished fourth in the No. 75 Krohn Racing Ford Proto-Auto Lola, followed by Ozz Negri, John Pew, Burt Frisselle and Mark Wilkins in the No. 60 Crown Royal XR Ford Riley.
Sylvain Tremblay, Jonathan Bomarito, Nick Ham and David Haskell won the GT race by four laps in SpeedSource's No. 70 Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8.
The race started under caution Saturday due to a deluge that soaked the track during the two hours prior to the start. While the rain quickly let up, conditions remained treacherous for several hours due to damp conditions, particularly off the racing line. Sunday's portion was run under dry but very chilly and windy conditions.
It was Barbosa's second consecutive victory in Rolex Series Daytona Prototype competition; he and Hurley Haywood won the 2009 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway for Brumos Porsche. Barbosa led a race-high 129 laps; the four Action Express Racing drivers combined to lead 316 of the 755 circuits.
"It's just unbelievable," Barbosa said. "For the team to perform under really difficult circumstances like 24 hours, they did an amazing job."
For Borcheller, it was his third class victory in the Rolex 24 and first overall.
"It's really special," Borcheller said. "'04 was amazing, just because the way the race ended up in the last 15 minutes with us winning when Tony Stewart driving the Crawford broke. But that was also the first year I believe that a Daytona Prototype won overall. So the competition was - it's always there, but it was nothing like it is now."
It also marked the second consecutive and 22nd overall victory for Porsche in the event. David Donohue, Darren Law, Buddy Rice and Antonio Garcia won in 2009 in a Brumos Porsche Riley, using a flat-six Porsche engine. A Cayenne-based V-8 engine - built in Germany but highly modified in America by Lozano Brothers - powered Sunday's winning entry.
It was an emotional day for the defending race winners. Moments after five-time Rolex 24 winner Haywood turned a sizzling time of 1:42.2 in his final lap in professional competition, Raphael Matos went to the garage and retired the car they shared with Donohue, Law and three-time Rolex 24 winner Butch Leitzinger with two-and-a-half hours remaining.
Ironically, a false alarm gave the Action Express team some breathing room when Justin Wilson, driving the No. 01 BMW Riley, drove to the paddock as a precaution.
"We just had one hiccup," Wilson said. "I came out of the bus stop and heard a large clunk. I thought I'd blown a tire and I dove into the pits, but they told me it was all okay. Maybe it was just some debris on the track."
The race featured a record 53 lead changes among 29 drivers. All but two of the Daytona Prototypes led in the event, and all but two of them experienced heart-breaking problems that dropped them out of contention.
Scott Dixon, Dario Franchitti, Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray combined to lead 139 laps in Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates' No. 02 TELMEX/Target BMW Riley. Montoya was leading the race at midnight when his car began smoking. Moments later, he went to the garage and the car was retired with engine failure.
The defending Daytona Prototype champion No. 99 GAINSCO Chevrolet Riley was retired while running fifth. An oil pump failure led to a variety of complications that eventually forced four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson to take the car he shared with Jon Fogarty, Alex Gurney and Jimmy Vasser to the garage.
Michael Shank Racing had both of its cars running at or near the front for most of the race before both broke in the closing hours. Burt Frisselle went out in the team's No. 60 Crown Royal XR Ford Riley co-driven by Ozz Negri, John Pew and Mark Wilkins, while NASCAR regular A.J. Allmendinger's day in the No. 6 Ford Riley co-driven by Michael Valiante, John Pew and Mark Patterson went up in smoke with 75 minutes remaining.
The No. 10 SunTrust Ford Dallara started from the pole by Max Angelelli, but had to recover from an incident early in the race to finish sixth. The car was also driven by team owner Wayne Taylor, his 20-year-old son Ricky Taylor and Pedro Lamy.
A team that experienced problems with cold tires at the pit exit was the new No. 7 Starworks BMW Riley driven by Ian James, Mike Forest, Bill Lester and Dion von Moltke.
Derek Johnston, the 2008-2009 British Radical UK Cup champion, drove in the event after winning the inaugural Sunoco Rolex 24 At Daytona Challenge, and finished 10th in class, sharing the No. 77 McDonald's Ford Dallara with Memo Gidley, Brad Jaeger and Fabrizio Gollin.
Defending race winners Rice and Garcia, sharing the No. 90 Menards Porsche Coyote with Paul Menard and Darren Manning, finished 13th in Daytona Prototypes.
Action Express Racing was formed during the offseason when Brumos cut back to a one-car team. Longtime team associate Bob Johnson leased a Riley chassis and mated it with a Porsche Cayenne-based V-8 engine.
The dawn hours saw terrific racing between Barbosa and Papis, who battled nose to tail for several laps.
"That's why Chip hired me," Papis said. "He hired me to run fast and take chances. I leave my friends at home."
The winners' average speed was 111.930 mph. The race was slowed 16 times by caution for 74 laps.
SpeedSource Takes GT Honors In Rolex 24
In the GT class, SpeedSource's "never give up" motto was evident in making up several positions and laps during the latter stages of the race. Once down seven laps to the class leaders, No. 70 Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8 co-drivers Sylvain Tremblay, Nick Ham, David Haskell and Jonathan Bomarito climbed back from a deep deficit to give the team its second Rolex 24 victory in three years. It was the second Rolex 24 class victory for Tremblay, Ham and Haskell, and Bomarito's first. It also marked Mazda's 23rd class victory in the Rolex 24.
"This win is for all the dealers, 900 of them all across North America and Mexico," Tremblay said. "And I think we have over 9,000 members in Mazda Speed Motorsports and club racers, that have the same will to win, the will to never give up. And that's what it was all about."
Tremblay started third in the No. 70, but wasn't able to stay up front early. The car lost two laps between the third and fourth hours and several more when Bomarito radioed to his crew the car was suffering from a vibration. By the 14th hour, the car was sixth in GT, but seven laps off the leader's pace. However, problems - mechanical woes and running out of fuel, among them - plagued SpeedSource's competitors, and by the 20th hour, the Mazda RX-8 led the class. Additional misfortunes by other competitors, coupled with SpeedSource's efforts, put the quartet ahead by four laps over the No. 67 ShoreTel/Openwave Porsche GT3 and co-drivers Seth Neiman, Johannes van Overbeek and 2009 co-winners Jorg Bergmeister and Patrick Long.
The SpeedSource drivers let the race come to them, and then stayed in position to take the victory. For 16 consecutive hours, no car from a team other than TRG or Stevenson Motorsports led the GT class. In fact, the two teams held the top five positions for most of that time as well.
Van Overbeek, Bergmeister and Long all led laps, both Saturday evening and early Sunday morning, and fought No. 71 TRG Porsche GT3 teammates and two Stevenson Camaros for the top spot.
But during the final quarter of the race, that all changed. Stevenson Motorsports driver Andrew Davis in the No. 57 BryanMark Financial/Stevenson Automotive Group Camaro vacated the lead when he brought his car behind the wall with transmission problems; all three drivers led, and combined for a race-high 217 laps. In the next two hours, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Bobby Labonte in the No. 71 TRG machine ran out of fuel on the superstretch. Though it occurred under caution, it was the last time the No. 71 led during the day.
The No. 67 Porsche GT3 also suffered setbacks - in fact, twice - while leading during the race's final six hours. A broken spring and a stuck throttle forced the team from the point both times.
"There were times where I'm sure the Stevenson guys thought they had it in the bag where we thought we had it," Long said. "The 71 and, of course, the Mazda guys, did a great job."
SpeedSource's No. 69 FXDD Mazda RX-8, featuring polesitter Jeff Segal, regulars Emil Assentato and Nick Longhi as well as veteran Anthony Lazzaro, was a solid top-five performer until a water leak did the car in after 17 hours. The No. 69 was relegated to 16th in class.
That left Tremblay's No. 70 up front, and by four laps. Overall, Tremblay, Ham, Haskell and Bomarito finished seventh. They finished with 145 laps led among them. Bomarito crossed the start/finish line under the checkered flag to complete the 707th GT lap.
"Amazing," Bomarito said. "I was fortunate enough to do this race with these same three guys last year. And to be able to come back and have that continuity and that relationship, we just felt so confident in all of each other's ability, the car, and we knew what we had to do. We just had to stay out of trouble and keep the car on the track, and we did that. And here we are. I got a new Rolex. I can't believe it."
Ham, who joined Tremblay and Haskell in the 2008 Rolex 24 victory, said prior to the race's finish he would be relinquishing his role as Tremblay's fulltime co-driver for 2010.
"It just feels really wonderful," Ham said. "And it's been an honor and a pleasure to represent SpeedSource and Sylvain and all these people...thank you very much for the opportunity. And it means a lot to me."
Bergmeister, Long, van Overbeek and Neiman finished second. TRG's Andy Lally, Wolf Henzler, Kelly Collins, Ted Ballou and Pat Flanagan finished third in the No. 66 AXA Porsche GT3 after overcoming a sensor failure before the race's halfway point. The field's only three-driver team - Davis, Robin Liddell and Jan Magnussen - finished fourth in the No. 57 Camaro, the new car's first race in Rolex Series competition. Craig Stanton, John Potter, Jeroen Bleekemolen and Richard Lietz were fifth in the No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche GT3. Fourth through seventh places were separated by only one lap.
The next race for the GRAND-AM Rolex Series will be the Grand Prix of Miami on March 6 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
From J.J. O'Malley // Grand-Am
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Ice Races (AMEC) at Tupper Lake, New York... Jan. 31, 2010
Photos courtesy of Rick Young, www.rickattheraces.com
Thanks to Sean Gibbs for the photos.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – January 31, 2010 . . . Lou Cicconi Jr. joined some elite company by winning Saturday night’s Gambler’s Classic 40-lap TQ-Midget feature at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J. The Aston, Pa., veteran became only the second driver in the eight year history of the race to have won the Gambler’s Classic twice. Cicconi, who collected $5000 for the 40-lap victory, won the event in 2006. Joey Payne is the only other driver to have won twice (2004 and 2007).
“It’s all because of the crew,” Cicconi said. “They work hard in giving me a great car. I love racing in this event, and I’m very proud that I won it with Tony Stewart here.”
Stewart made an unannounced visit to Boardwalk Hall to watch both nights of racing action.
Cicconi defeated Mike Stefanik of Coventry, R.I., while Stewart Friesen of Niagra-on-the-Lakes, Ontario, was third, Ryan Smith of Kunkletown, Pa. was fourth and Mike Lichty of Innerkip, Ontario, was fifth.
It appeared early in the main event as if Mike Tidaback had the upper hand over the field. Tidaback jumped into the lead over Friesen at the start of the race and led until he was involved in a multicar crash on lap seven.
Friesen inherited the lead as a result of the crash, while Smith, Stefanik and Cicconi followed closely behind.
Cicconi went into passing mode on the restart as he blitzed by Stefanik and Smith for third and second, respectively, on the restart.
Then, on lap 11, he passed Friesen for the top spot.
The race was stopped on lap 19 when a multi-car incident on the backstretch saw Tidaback’s car catch fire. Track personnel extinguished the fire and Tidaback escaped without serious injury. Other top drivers involved were Davey Hamilton, Mike Iles, Matt Janisch, Jeff Kot and Glenn Heverin.
Stefanik hounded Cicconi for a few circuits until he lost second to Friesen on lap 32. However, Friesen slid high in turn three, which allowed Stefanik to sneak under for the runner-up spot.
Heat races for the TQ-Midgets went to Chris DeRitis, Iles, Stefanik and Cicconi. Ian Cumens and Tim Adams won consolation events. Danny Shirey, Randy Cabral, Bruce Leote and Mike Lichty won semi-qualifying events.
Kyle Hieber of Langhorne, Pa. was victorious in the Herr’s Snack Bowl 25 for Slingshots. The 17-year-old high school junior led the entire distance.
Jim Houseworth was second, followed by Gary Hieber, Todd Dippel and Shannon Smith.
AJ Roderick of Chardon, Ohio, won the National Guard 25 for Champ Karts. It was his first win at Boardwalk Hall.
Justin Bonsignore was second, followed by Chris Daley, Bobby Timmons and Ron Midford Jr.
TQ-Midget Feature Finish, 40 Laps: 1. Lou Cicconi Jr; 2. Mike Stefanik; 3. Stewart Friesen; 4. Ryan Smith; 5. Mike Lichty; 6. Joey Payne; 7. Russ Bailey; 8. Timex Morgan; 9. Ted Christopher; 10. Christopher Allen; 11. Don Zrinski; 12. Ian Cumens; 13. Steve Craig; 14. Rob Vivona; 15. Chris DeRitis; 16. Matt Janisch; 17. Mike Tidaback; 18. Davey Hamilton; 19. Mike Iles; 20. Jeff Kot; 21. Glenn Heverin; 22. Paul Lotier Jr.; 23. Robin Johnston; 24. Tim Adams; 25. Tim Buckwalter; 26. Billy Pauch
Champ Kart Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. AJ Roderick; 2. Justin Bonsignore; 3. Chris Daley; 4. Bobby Timmons; 5. Ron Midford Jr; 6. Evan Beaulieu; 7. Nick Hadden; 8. Bryan Shields; 9. Andrew Swisher; 10. Gavin Soraghan; 11. Andy Burkholder; 12. Paul McCollum; 13. Adam Gage; 14. Coby Cressinger; 15. Eric Zeh; 16. Keith Blumenstein Jr.; 17. Todd Root; 18. Steve Milford; 19. Shawn Solomito; 20. Norm Hynes; 21. Kyle Ellwood; 22. Tammy Smith; 23. Timmy Solomito; 24. Tracy Blumenstein.
Slingshot Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. Kyle Hieber; 2. Jim Housewith; 3. Gary Hieber; 4. Todd Dippel; 5. Shannon Smith; 6. Michael Glass; 7. Brandon Azzalina; 8. Chris Grbac; 9. Matt Hearn; 10. Stan Friedman; 11. Matt Carman; 12. Anthony Perrego; 13. Molly Chambers; 14. Kurt Bettler; 15. Jesse Hartman; 16. Tim Manieri Jr; 17. Tiffany Wambold; 18. Paul Lotier Jr.; 19. Clay Butler; 20. Rickey Yetter; 21. Bobby Dumchowski; 22. Marc Daniels; 23. Brandon Mullins; 24. Joel Smith. Disqualified: Ben Whitaker.
Race Result Story written by Jerry Reigle // Distributed by Ernie Saxton
IRWINDALE, Calif. (Jan. 30, 2010) – Joey Logano got his second NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown trophy and Sergio Pena nearly made a historic debut on the national stage. Logano, 19, held off the 16-year-old Pena and two-time race winner Matt Kobyluck for the victory in the 225-lap race Saturday before a sold-out crowd at the Toyota Speedway at Irwindale.
It was Pena's first career race in NASCAR's top developmental series and it came in the non-points, postseason event, which has earned the moniker the "Daytona 500 of short-track racing."
Logano made his mark by winning as a 17-year-old rookie in the 2007 edition; Pena, who only has one year of Late Model racing on his resume, nearly out-did that.
Logano and Pena waged a race-long battle for the lead from drop of the green. For most of the race it was the Pena in heated pursuit of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year. Pena was able to grab the lead on several occasions. Logano, however, got the best of two late-race restarts to pull away for the victory.
Kobyluck got by Pena briefly on Lap 218, and by the time Pena got back to second four laps later he didn't have enough time to track Logano back down.
It's been a whirlwind weekend for the Winchester, Va., native.
Pena, driving for Revolution Racing and Drive For Diversity, beat out three teammates Thursday in a race-off for a chance to qualify for the Showdown. He easily did that, earning the pole in Friday's qualifying.
The win was a vindication – of sorts – for Logano, who crossed the line first in last year’s NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, but was penalized to last place for aggressive driving on the last lap.
Logano led three times for a race-high 171 laps while Pena led three times for 54 laps.
Following Logano, Pena and Kobyluck across the line was Matt DiBenedetto and Andrew Myers. Eric Holmes, David Mayhew, Eddie MacDonald, Paulie Harraka and Steve Park rounded out the top 10.
Reigning NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Champion Jason Bowles finished 11th while K&N Pro Series East 2009 titlist Ryan Truex was relegated to 26th after a late-race accident.
NASCAR TOYOTA ALL-STAR SHOWDOWN-NASCAR TOYOTA ALL-STAR SHOWDOWN
Unofficial Results
Saturday
At Toyota Speedway at Irwindale
Irwindale, CA
Lap length: 0.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (2) Joey Logano, Middletown, Conn., Toyota, 225 laps, 54.253 mph, $31,000.
2. (1) Sergio Pena, Winchester, Va., Chevrolet, 225, $23,000.
3. (14) Matt Kobyluck, Uncasville, Conn., Chevrolet, 225, $22,550.
4. (11) Matt DiBenedetto, Grass Valley, Calif., Toyota, 225, $20,000.
5. (13) Andrew Myers, Newport Beach, Calif., Toyota, 225, $13,000.
6. (4) Eric Holmes, Escalon, Calif., Toyota, 225, $11,550.
7. (24) David Mayhew, Atascadero, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $10,000.
8. (17) Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, Mass., Chevrolet, 225, $14,500.
9. (16) Paulie Harraka, Wayne, N.J., Toyota, 225, $9,850.
10. (23) Steve Park, East Northport, N.Y., Chevrolet, 225, $13,750.
11. (10) Jason Bowles, Ontario, Calif., Ford, 225, $8,500.
12. (22) Jim Inglebright, Fairfield, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $8,250.
13. (6) Jeff Barkshire, Auburn, Wash., Dodge, 225, $6,500.
14. (36) Nick Joanides, Woodland Hills, Calif., Ford, 225, $10,250.
15. (26) Andrew Ranger, Roxton Pond, Quebec, Chevrolet, 225, $12,000.
16. (3) Greg Pursley, Newhall, Calif., Ford, 225, $6,800.
17. (30) Jason Patison, Corona, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $11,700.
18. (39) Troy Ermish, Fremont, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $6,600.
19. (38) Kyle Kelley, Huntington Beach, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $7,550.
20. (40) Justin Philpott, Tracy, Calif., Toyota, 225, $6,500.
21. (20) Brennan Newberry, Bakersfield, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $5,400.
22. (29) Jack Sellers, Sacramento, Calif., Chevrolet, 225, $6,300.
23. (35) Michael Self, Park City, Utah, Chevrolet, 214, accident, $6,250.
24. (37) Candace Muzny, Oklahoma City, Okla., Chevrolet, 208, suspension, $6,200.
25. (34) Daryl Harr, Edmonton AB, Chevrolet, 207, $6,150.
26. (9) Ryan Truex, Mayetta, N.J., Toyota, 205, accident, $11,100.
27. (19) Jamie Dick, Albuquerque, N.M., Chevrolet, 204, accident, $6,100.
28. (8) Josh Combs, Sacramento, Calif., Ford, 200, $5,100.
29. (27) John Salemi, Nashua, N.H., Chevrolet, 195, rear end, $11,100.
30. (28) Moses Smith, Tempe, Ariz., Toyota, 186, accident, $6,100.
31. (33) Jonathon Gomez, Twin Falls, Idaho, Chevrolet, 185, accident, $6,100.
32. (12) Auggie Vidovich, Lakeside, Calif., Chevrolet, 177, accident, $5,000.
33. (31) Derek Ramstrom, W Boylston, Mass., Chevrolet, 144, accident, $11,000.
34. (18) Brett Thompson, Jerome, Idaho, Chevrolet, 144, accident, $6,000.
35. (21) Blake Koch, West Palm Beach, Fla., Chevrolet, 144, accident, $6,000.
36. (15) Brian Johnson, Jr., Machensey Park, Ill., Chevrolet, 144, oil leak, $5,000.
37. (5) Sean Caisse, Pelham, N.H., Chevrolet, 128, drive shaft, $5,000.
38. (7) David Gilliland, Riverside, Calif., Toyota, 99, electrical, $5,000.
39. (25) George Brunnhoelzl, III, W Babylon, N.Y., Chevrolet, 93, accident, $11,000.
40. (32) Johnathan Hale, Rio Linda, Calif., Chevrolet, 39, rear end, $6,000.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 2 hours 4 minutes 25 seconds
Margin of Victory: .584 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: S.Pena (97.879 mph, 18.39 seconds)
Caution Flags: 15 for 72 laps.
Lead Changes: 5 among 2 drivers.
From Jason Cunningham, NASCAR Public Relations
Ford Racing- Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Notes and Quotes - Fresh From Florida 200
Daytona International Speedway
BRET SEAFUSE – No. 37 Mustang BOSS302R, JBS Motorsports– (finished 4th, qualified 13th) “We went down the board because I made a bit of a blunder on the second restart and I jumped the start so I had to come in for a stop-and-go. We went from seventh or eighth to last behind all the ST cars and everybody, so we battled our way back and we won it on pit strategy.” WHAT WAS YOUR STRATEGY? “I drove that new Boss 302R as hard as I could and passed as many as people as I could, got it as far back up as I could. We weren’t in bad shape when we put James [Gue] in the car; we were coming back and decided upon a fuel strategy we thought might work and it darn near paid off. WHAT ABOUT THE PENALTY? “I’m not really sure, I’ve not done that before. Something must’ve looked different to us than it did to others but I don’t plan to do it again because it makes for a lot of extra work to overcome.”
JAMES GUE – No. 37 Mustang BOSS 302R, JBS Motorsports– (finished 4th, qualified 13th) “We sort of put ourselves in a bad situation right off the bat.” HOW ABOUT THE MUSTANG BOSS 302R? “This is a brand new car for us and have only had it for less than two weeks now. I just jumped in it [Thursday] for the first time so we’ve got a lot to learn though we learned a lot in the last couple of days. A FEW TEAMS HAD A FEW ISSUES TODAY. DID YOU EXPERIENCE ANY OF THAT? “So far, I’ve got no complaints straight out of the box after having had the car for only a handful of days, especially after having come from the back as we did. We were not necessarily the quickest car but we certainly know how to race.”
RAY MASON – No. 60 Mustang GT, Rehagen Racing– (finished 7th, qualified 7th) NOT TOO BAD OF A DAY FOR YOU? “Well Ryan [Winchester], my young rookie buddy here gave me a very good car. We put scrap tires on it. Our tread didn’t work quite as well as we thought it would, had to fuel early. That’s just the luck of the game, but the car was good. We had a great run and the old man and the kid did a very good so we’re pleased.” YOU HAD SOME TIRE ISSUES TOWARDS THE END. “The tires started going off in the last eight to 10 laps, so I was getting a little bit of an oversteer, but it was very manageable.”
ANDREW CADDELL – No. 59 Mustang GT, Rehagen Racing – (finished 9th, qualified 3rd) “We qualified well yesterday and had a good starting spot for the race today. The header got a crack in it right at the beginning of the race, so we were down a lot of horsepower. The Mustang was really good handling wise in the infield. If we would have had more horsepower, I think we would have had a pretty good shot at a top-five easily, but the BMWs were just way too strong. I’m happy with our result. Ken Wilden drove the Mustang like the champion he is. I think we finished pretty strong with that broken header. I’m excited about it, not excited as we should have been or could have been but ninth is better than what I did last year, so I can’t complain.” YOU AND WILDEN ARE BOTH MUSTANG CHAMPIONS. HOW WAS IT TO RACE WITH HIM? “I learned a lot from Ken Wilden this weekend. We looked at his data all weekend and I think it helped me improve my lap time from last year. He helped me a lot, I just we wish we could have made the finish a little bit better and got them a little higher in the championship standings.”
KEN WILDEN – No. 59 Mustang GT Rehagen Racing, – (finished 9th, qualified 3rd) NOT A BAD FINISH FOR YOU AND ANDREW TODAY. “It wasn’t the best day for us. It wasn’t what we had planned on happening going in. We just couldn’t get the car fast enough today. We have some time before Homestead to really work out the kinks and figure out a new strategy. Last year our worst finish was eighth, which isn’t horrible, but we need to do better in order to defend our title.” HOW WAS YOUR CO-DRIVER ANDREW? “Andrew is a talented driver. He really put forth his best effort today, but unfortunately we just couldn’t get the car up where we wanted it.”
GUNNER JEANNETTE – No. 16 Mustang BOSS 302R, Multimatic Motorpsorts – (finished 49th, qualified 12th) WHAT HAPPENED OUT THERE? “We had a couple of issues to start. First, we had something with the engine where it went down in power, some electrical issues, then it kind of fixed itself and it was going good. We had a really strong run coming back and I was coming up through traffic, but the engine was just cutting out so it was just really tough and then all of a sudden it just cut out completely. Then I cycled the ignition and it was fine and then I was going in the bus stop and I hit the brakes and the car wouldn’t stop and then it just stopped. Coming around in Turn 1 I hit the pedal again and just went all the way to the floor. HOW DO YOU LOOK AT RACES LIKE THIS? “It was a trying race but we use these as test sessions, so I’m sure that we’ll go to Homestead with all of the issues fixed. I’m very confident with that. There’s no way in testing to simulate what do you do during a race weekend like this. The last program when we introduced the Mustang FR500C we had pretty much a whole year of development to get the car right. This time we only had three months, so we’re just a little bit behind schedule, but I know without a doubt in my heart that this car is going to win a race season.”
FRANK MONTECALVO – No. 16 Mustang BOSS 302R, Multimatic Motorsports – – (finished 49th, qualified 2nd) “We had a really good race and started off well. We didn’t perform like we did in qualifying yesterday because we changed the car set-up but we made it up in the race. We had a couple problems in the race that we had in practice, so we started working on the car and didn’t find those problems this morning. We weren’t sure if it was a fuel pick up or ignition problem. Unfortunately, it hurt us. Hopefully, we’ll fix this and do better next race.” TALK ABOUT RUNNING THE MUSTANG BOSS 302R. “I had a lot more seat time in the BOSS than I did in the other Mustang. The BOSS has more development and will be very competitive this season.”
SCOTT MAXWELL – No. 15 Mustang BOSS 302R, Multimatic Motorsports– (finished 56th, qualified 2nd) YOU WENT BACK TO THE GARAGE MID-WAY THROUGH THE RACE. WHAT HAPPENED? “Typical with a new car there were numerous problems, but the main one that put us out is we keep either breaking a power steering belt or a pump, I’m not really sure but that’s what caused us to pit stop. We were also struggling with some engine issues and brake issues, more engine issues than anything, a bit of brakes towards the end, but that’s what you expect with a brand new car out of the box. We will get it right for the next race.”
MIKE MCGOVERN – No. 53 Mustang, Jim Click Racing – (finished 63rd, qualified 17th) – “We had a good qualifying effort by Mr. Click, he did a great job. We had a great start. We made it up to ninth and things went really well. We pitted, I think a bit too early, but the pit stop went really well. When we got back out on the track, we made it up to 15th and then we had an issue with the right rear tire. All the lug nuts came off and got a big vibration. We came into the pits and the wheel fell off. We were lucky there. We had minimal damage, the Mustang is in good shape and it is a learning process for Click Racing. We’re going to continue to progress and keep working at it.” YOU MUSTANG LOOKS PRETTY CLEAN WITH MINOR MARKS, THERE ARE OTHER CARS THAT HAVE A LOT OF DAMAGE. HOW WAS IT OUT THERE? “I think at certain points in time when I was on track, there was a lot going on. Any time you have so many cars in little spots and speed differences then you’re going to have issues. But it’s just one of those things – that’s racing.”
JACK ROUSH JR. – No. 61 Mustang, Roush Performance – (finished 66th, qualified 4th) WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE CAR GOING BEHIND THE WALL? “We had a little bit of contact with a car out there and I think it interfered with the cooling ducts, causing the oil and water temperatures to shoot up.”
BILLY JOHNSON – No. 61 Roush Performance Mustang – (finished 66th, qualified 4th) “Unfortunately we weren’t able to finish but, Jack [Roush Jr.] showed a lot of speed. He was able to move up to second place and he did an awesome job. We wanted to have a better result, but we ran into some problems. I’m not sure what happened to the motor. The team is showing that the car is capable of doing well and we look forward to going to the next race to have that results show for it.” WHAT DID YOU LEARN TODAY THAT YOU CAN APPLY TO THE NEXT RACE AND THE ENTIRE SEASON? “I think the biggest concern right now is fixing whatever happened to prevent us from finishing this race. Then with the continued speed that we showed, the result will come from that.” DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU MIGHT HAVE AN ANSWER ABOUT THE MOTOR? “I’m not sure. The team will take the Mustang back and work with Roush Yates guys to find out what happened.”
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (January 29, 2010) - The Multimatic Motorsports squad's hopes of debut success with the Ford Mustang Boss 302R at the Fresh from Florida 200 came up short today after the Canadian team dealt with 'new-car' gremlins at the Daytona round of the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge.
Despite showing encouraging speed, the #15 car of Joe Foster and Scott Maxwell had issues with the power steering of their Ford Mustang Boss 302R and Frankie Montecalvo and Gunnar Jeannette's #16 Bayshore Recycling machine retired late in the race on account of mechanical and electrical issues.
Things looked good early for Multimatic Motorsports - immediately turning competitive times on the opening day of practice. Starting second aboard the #15 Ford Mustang Boss 302R, Foster maintained his position in the lead pack throughout his stint despite slight engine issues. By the time the team made a driver change and put Maxwell behind the wheel, the #15 car was sitting in fourth.
Meanwhile, aboard the team's second car was Frankie Montecalvo. The teenager, who drives beyond his years, put in a good run in his debut with Multimatic Motorsports. Having qualified the car 12th yesterday, Montecalvo immediately improved his position to ninth on the first lap. The team's newcomer consistently made his way through the field, getting as high as fifth. Unluckily, due to some engine problems, the American had fallen to seventh before entering pit lane to hand driving duties to teammate Gunnar Jeannette.
With the first round of pit stops of the season completed flawlessly by the crew, things were looking up for the team which enjoys a championship winning pedigree in this class. Half way through the race the #15 car was sitting third with the #16 car right behind in fourth. Sadly for the crew things started dwindling in the second half of the two and half hour event.
While the 16 car piloted by Jeannette continued its run in the top five, the #15 Multimatic machine driven by "Mustang Master" Scott Maxwell encountered problems with the power steering. After losing nine laps to the leaders while making repairs, Canadian Maxwell returned to competition with about 40 minutes to go.
By the time the Canadian driver returned to the track, his teammate Jeannette had fallen to 14th in the #16 car having faced problems of his own. Electrical gremlins had caused the car to stop on track, thus getting his Mustang rear-ended by another competitor. After having lost time restarting the car, Jeannette continued to push hard and had made his way back up to eighth before once again losing some positions. While trying to make another attempt through the field with about 15 minutes to go, Jeannette suffered a brake issue that put an end to his day.
As for Maxwell, he also retired before the checkered flag fell due to recurring problems.
Next up for the Multimatic Motorsports squad will be the Grand-Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race at Homestead-Miami Speedway March 5 and 6, 2010.
Multimatic Motorsports Quoteboard:
26th - Frankie Montecalvo, #16 Bayshore Recycling Ford Mustang Boss 302R
"I had a pretty good start and everything was going great. I had a good run on one of the BMWs at the start and got by him. After that I had to work a little behind a few cars. I went through my stint the best I could, finding a rhythm and trying to keep the car in good shape for Gunnar. Unfortunately I started having some issues and the problem was getting worse as my stint went on so I ended up pitting a little early. Things didn't get any better for Gunnar and things went downhill later on. Even with these problems, I think we have a really competitive car and I'm confident that the issues we faced will be sorted by our next race."
26th - Gunnar Jeannette, #16 Bayshore Recycling Ford Mustang Boss 302R
"It was a tough race. We had several mechanical and electrical issues that haunted us today. The engine would miss and then it would get better but then the problems kept coming back and getting worse, to the point the car shut itself off on me. That caused us to get rear-ended. Once I got the car started again I was picking up time but then we had the brake failure. There have been better days but as they say, there is no better testing than during a race. On the bright side, we learned a lot and we were competitive despite the problems we faced."
30th - Joe Foster, #15 Ford Mustang Boss 302R
"Things went well at the start of the race. But then we had an engine problem and then the power steering problem occurred. They're what you call new car development problems but the car ran great and in the top two or three for about an hour and everything was going according to plan until those gremlins snuck in but those things happen sometimes. The BMWs were really hard to catch up to but all in all it was a very encouraging weekend."
30th - Scott Maxwell, #15 Ford Mustang Boss 302R
"We already had an engine issue when I got in but we still remained in third and fourth for a while. Unfortunately the engine was not getting any better and then I started having problems with the power steering and our day sort of ended there once we had to go behind the wall to fix the problem. It wasn't what we were looking for, but I think if we look at it as a brand new car it was an encouraging debut. We qualified well and we were in the top two in practice. We need to take the good from the weekend and build on that. There's still work to do but everyone at Multimatic Motorsports is up for it."
FURTHER INFORMATION
Karina Redmond // Multimatic Motorsports PR
US Phone: +1 (317) 956-9910 // Canada Phone: +1 (514) 451-4959 // Email: racepr@multimatic.com // Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/multimaticrace
IRWINDALE, Calif. (Jan. 29, 2010) – Sergio Pena highlighted an action-packed day in Toyota Speedway at Irwindale on Friday as he captured the pole for Saturday’s NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown.
In his first competition in a NASCAR K&N Pro Series race car, the 16-year-old Pena captured the 21 Means 21 Pole Award presented by Coors Light for the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown with a fast lap of 18.390 seconds (97.879 mph) during qualifying Friday evening.
Pena, a member of the Drive for Diversity initiative, earned his way into the event by competing in a qualifying race among his three teammates at Revolution Racing in similarly prepared cars from one of Toyota Speedway’s entry divisions on Thursday evening. A run-away win in that run-off allowed Pena a shot at competing on Friday.
Pena’s pole run bested that of 2007 NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown winner and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Joey Logano. Logano qualified second at 18.421 (97.715).
The second row for Saturday night’s 225-lap NASCAR K&N Pro Series race will consist of Greg Pursley (18.475 seconds/97.429 mph) and Eric Holmes (18.498/97.308). Sean Caisse was the fifth-fastest qualifier (18.520/97.192).
Jeff Barkshire filled out the third row and the fourth row will consist of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver David Gilliland and Josh Combs.
The two fastest in afternoon practice, Jason Bowles qualified 10th and Ryan Truex ninth. Defending winner of the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown Matt Kobyluck qualified 14th.
Friday night’s action at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale concluded with the NASCAR K&N Pro Series last-chance “Open” race to determine the final six starting positions for Saturday’s feature. Michael Self came away victorious while Justin Philpott earned the final slot.
In the Super Late Model portion of the 2010 NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown earlier in the evening, multi-time track champion at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale Rip Michels once again returned to Victory Lane. Michels was challenged mid-race by Alex Haase and Travis Thirkettle, but the two were involved in the same accident on Lap 60. Michels eventually had to hold off Gilliland during a green-white-checker finish to earn the victory.
It was the first NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown victory for Michels, a three-time track champion at Irwindale. Michels has twice been runner-up in NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown races: 2004 in the Elite Division and 2007 in the Super Late Model Division.
From Jason Cunningham, NASCAR Public Relations
ATLANTIC CITY, NJ –January 30, 2010 . . . Ted Christopher served notice on Friday night at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., as he claimed the 30-lap TQ-Midget preliminary main event. Christopher of Plainville, Ct., the 2008 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion, got the lead from Joey Payne on a lap 19 restart and he held off Billy Pauch to claim the victory.
Christopher enters as the favorite for Saturday night’s 40-lap prestigious Gambler’s Classic. He is the defending champion of the race.
“I like my chances,” Christopher said. “I didn’t see anybody go as fast as us in the heat race. We’ll see what the Gambler’s Classic brings.”
Pauch of Frenchtown, N.J., was second, followed by Stewart Friesen of Niagra-On-The-Lake, Ontario, Canada; Matt Janisch of Nazareth, Pa; and Ryan Smith of Kunkletown, Pa.
Payne, a two-time Gambler’s Classic winner, paced the field early in the main event.
Christopher, who started fourth, moved into third on lap three. He moved by Janisch for the runner-up position on the fifth tour.
The first caution period of the race came out on lap eight when Mike Tidaback spun in turn one.
Christopher tried to pass Payne on the outside line, but he never mustered enough speed to pull off the lead pass.
“Joey had a strong car,” Christopher said. “He could keep it down on the inside line, and that’s the key line around the track.”
Payne’s car broke with mechanical problems on lap 19.
Tim Buckwalter finished sixth, Tidaback was seventh, Don Zrinski was eighth, Joe Lord Jr. was ninth and Chris Allen was 10th.
The top eight are guaranteed starting spots in the Gambler’s Classic.
Heat events winners for the TQ-Midgets went to Friesen; Lou Cicconi Jr., of Aston, Pa; Pauch; and Christopher.
Consolation races went to Chris DeRitis of Philadelphia, Pa, and Dan Dunigan Jr. of Jackson, Mich. DeRitis has the quickest lap in time trials with a lap time of 9.9098 seconds.
Slingshot qualifying event races went to Kyle Hieber of Langhorne, Pa.; Shannon Smith of Kunkletown, Pa; and Anthony Perrego of Montgomery, NY.
The Slingshot division will compete in the Herr’s Snack Bowl 25 on Saturday night. Paul Lotier Jr. of Lebanon, Pa. is the defending champion.
Champ Kart qualifying race winners were Bobby Timmons of Windham, Maine; Norman Hynes of Lithicum Heights, Md; Evan Beaulieu of Durham, Maine; and Coby Cressinger of Selinsgrove, Pa.
The Champ Kart division will be in action on Saturday night with the National Guard 25.
Preliminary action begins Saturday at 4:30 p.m. A Fanfest, which includes, the top eight finishes from Friday night’s TQ-Midget feature, the Slingshot heat winners and the Champ Kart heat winners, is scheduled at 6:30 and final round events start at 7:30.
TQ Midget Feature Finish, 30 Laps: 1. Ted Christopher; 2. Billy Pauch; 3. Stewart Friesen; 4. Matt Janisch; 5. Ryan Smith; 6. Tim Buckwalter; 7. Mike Tidaback; 8. Don Zrinski; 9. Joseph Lord Jr; 10. Chris Allen; 11. Justin Moensch; 12. Anthony Sesely; 13. Richie Coy; 14. Joey Payne; 15. Timex Morgan; 16. Steve Craig; 17. Lou Cicconi Jr; 18. Mike Stefanik; 19. Russ Bailey; 20. Dan Dunigan Jr; 21. Chris DeRitis; 22. Ian Cumens; 23. Rob Vivona; 24. Glenn Heverin.
Written by Jerry Reigle // From Ernie Saxton
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 29, 2010) - Matt Plumb pitted during a caution late in Friday's Fresh From Florida 200, and watched out his windows as the rest of the field flashed by down the main straightaway. That decision, however, proved to be the right one, as Plumb took series debutants Gianluis Bacardi and Rum Bum Racing to Gatorade Victory Lane.
Plumb took command of the race from Charles Espenlaub on Lap 64 of 66 and sprinted to a 0.107-second advantage over Espenlaub in the two-and-a-half hour event. It proved to be fresh tires on Plumb's No. 13 RumBum.com BMW M3 E92 that made the difference, as he shaved off several seconds after falling to sixth after pitting.
In Street Tuner, Lawson Aschenbach made it two consecutive victories for himself, putting Compass360 Racing back in winner's circle at Daytona for the first time since 2007. Aschenbach passed Jameson Riley to give himself and No. 74 HPD/Skunk2 Honda Civic Si co-driver David Thilenius the victory.
Bacardi, in his first career professional motorsports race, started 19th and moved up to second before pitting and handing the BMW M3 - ironically purchased from Fall-Line Motorsports, the team fielding Espenlaub's entry - off to Plumb.
"Traffic is a big deal around here and can kill your momentum," said Plumb, whose car was involved in a first-lap crash in last year's Daytona race. "I got very lucky with a couple batches of traffic that let me gain the most amount of time behind them. We were pretty even up until that point. I believe we changed right-side tires whereas I think they stayed out. I had the sights pretty set on (Espenlaub) and we had a great car. He didn't make it easy for me, but I didn't expect much as far as courtesy, and I wouldn't give him the same. But it was clean when we came out the other side. I've raced with Charles many times and it's always a pleasure."
Plumb led six laps, taking the point from Espenlaub, before the fourth and final caution - for an exhaust pipe on the track - came out. Plumb pitted, while Terry Borcheller - running second - drifted back onto the racing surface just before the pit entrance. Most of the remaining GS cars stayed on the track as well, leaving Plumb to pit on his own and then back onto the track fighting through the field.
It didn't take long for Plumb to make his return to the front. While Borcheller and Espenlaub fought for the lead, Plumb sliced through the field, and took second with under 10 minutes remaining from Borcheller, who pitted later that lap. Espenlaub drove in deep and his No. 48 Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3 drifted wide, allowing Plumb to make up more distance.
Plumb, who set the race's fastest lap on the 63rd circuit, cut the advantage to under a second, then dropped in right behind Espenlaub to set up the winning pass. He pulled alongside Espenlaub on Daytona's Superstretch and completed the pass coming into the chicane. From there, he held on for his fifth career victory, while Bacardi is now one-for-one. Ironically, last year's ST co-winner Pat Iannucci also triumphed his first career car race.
"I thought it was going to take a couple more months to get the car into place," Bacardi said. "I just thought it was going to take a while to tune the car and get everything right. I guess we did it in a short period of time and it worked."
Espenlaub led twice for 15 laps in attempt to give co-driver Charlie Putman and Fall-Line their first victories. However, they settled for second.
"We have battled each other quite a bit through the years and today was also a great clean, fun race with him," Espenlaub said. "I was surprised. I told him I wasn't going to give it to him easy. He told me that I gave him more room than he thought I would. Next time we'll have to work on that a little bit."
Finishing third were Spencer Pumpelly and another series debutant Steve Miller in the No. 41 Colo Logistics Porsche 997, ahead of two-time series runners-up James Gue and Bret Seafuse in the No. 37 Trumansburg ShurSave Ford Mustang GT. Fifth were Jeff Bucknum and defending race co-winner Matt Bell in the No. 6 Stevenson Automotive Group Chevrolet Camaro.
All three Fall-Line Motorsports cars led laps. Polesitter Andy Pilgrim led the opening 29 laps in the No. 46 Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3 before pitting. However, he drove through his pit box into his teammate's, and was forced back, losing valuable time. Team owner and co-driver Mark Boden drove the car to 11th. Borcheller and rookie Andrew Hendricks finished sixth in the No. 45 Fall-Line/Stable One BMW M3.
Defending race co-winner Bill Auberlen did not compete in the race after mechanical problems forced the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 out with Paul Dalla Lana in the car.
The GS race featured the first-ever finish in the series for the Dodge Challenger, as well as the Subaru WRX STI, and the return of the Audi S4. Defending series champion Ken Wilden and co-driver Andrew Caddell finished ninth in the No. 59 Rehagen Racing Products Ford Mustang GT, extending the team's top-10 streak to 18 consecutive races.
Aschenbach earned his fourth victory in 11 starts, and Thilenius his second career in his first start for Compass360. Thilenius started second, and the pair never fell from the top 10 in giving defending series class champion Compass360 a good start toward winning a second straight title. Aschenbach, who led Thursday's opening practice session, led twice for 18 laps, including the final 17.
"We had a pretty good race," Aschenbach said. "David did a great job keeping the nose clean and saved some brakes for me. Luckily we had a great pit stop. The guys did a great job. Everybody at Compass360 did a great job this weekend setting the car up. Fortunately, I was able to bring it home."
Thilenius was joining Compass360 after several seasons with Bill Fenton Motorsports. He acknowledged Aschenbach's skills following the race.
"We had a pretty good race," Thilenius said. "I've never had a co-driver like Lawson. He's just been fantastic for me. The car has been spot-on from the very beginning. I wasn't even at the test and we were still ready to go. I'd be happy to run all the races for the rest of the year here at Daytona."
Following Aschenbach, 1.771 seconds behind, was Seth Thomas in the No. 81 BimmerWorld/GearWrench BMW 328i, sharing the car with Bill Heumann. The car was damaged in the first of three practice days at Daytona earlier in the month, and was completely rebuilt. The runner-up finish signified the depth of one of the series' newest teams.
"The BimmerWorld crew, unfortunately, we've had our share of hiccups like that in the past," Thomas said. "That's one of the things that makes them one of the best crews out there. They're able to take a car that's pretty smashed up and turn it into a podium finisher. My hats off to those guys. They worked hard to put us here."
Third were Andrew Carbonell and Rhett O'Doski in the No. 26 Freedom/Mazdaspeed Mazda MX-5; Carbonell finished fourth in points a season ago, while O'Doski missed last year's Fresh From Florida 200 after a practice incident. However, the pair, team and Mazda lost five points each after the car was deemed underweight during post-race technical inspection.
Aschenbach and Thilenius were not the lone Compass360 co-drivers in the top five. Brothers Benoit and Donald Theetge finished fourth in the No. 77 HPD/Skunk2 Honda Civic Si, while Ryan Eversley and Zach Lutz were fifth in the No. 75 HPD/Skunk2 Honda Civic Si. Both Donald Theetge and Lutz were making their first career series starts.
Four caution periods for 15 laps slowed the race's average speed to 93.455 mph.
The second race of the 2010 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge comes March 6 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, running in conjunction with the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No.16.
From Michael Harker
PHOTO #1: Canadian Daryl Harr was in a driver's meeting when this shot was taken, but his father Carl and the rest of the team can be seen by the No. 2 Westworld Chevy as they prepare for the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown this weekend in California.
PHOTO #2: (l to r) Dave Jacombs, Andrew Ranger and Bill Burns at Irwindale.
PHOTO #3: Andrew Ranger in front of the car he'll race in the Toyota All-Star Showdown.
PHOTO #4: NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Joey Logano and the Home Depot Toyota.
PHOTO #5: Andrew Ranger with his manager Alan Labrosse. Labrosse's Autodrome St-Eustache is a sponsor of Ranger's car at Irwindale.
Thanks to Sean Gibbs for the photos!
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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., January 29, 2010 – Forty years ago, racing legend Parnelli Jones piloted a Mustang BOSS 302 to a championship title. Starting Friday, five Ford Racing BOSS 302R teams look to channel the spirit of Jones’ success and go for another championship while Jones himself looks on.
To commemorate the 40th anniversary of Parnelli Jones’ 1970 Trans-Am Championship in a Mustang BOSS 302 prepared by Bud Moore Engineering, Ford Racing recently introduced the new BOSS 302R, a factory-built race ready Mustang for track days and road racing in a number of SCCA and NASA classes.
Built with a special Grand Am Homologation Package, the BOSS 302R will compete in the Grand Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series (formerly known as KONI Challenge), starting with the season-opening race in Daytona on Jan. 29, 2010. Multimatic Motorsports, Jim Click Racing, JBS Motorsports and Racer’s Edge Motorsports will campaign for their first victory this weekend, and Parnelli Jones will be on hand at the track, visiting with the teams and drivers.
“The original BOSS 302 was a championship-winning icon,” said Jamie Allison, director, Ford North Motorsports. “The new Mustang BOSS 302R will be ready to carry on that tradition. The Mustang was born to race from the start, and this new Mustang is born to win.”
The BOSS 302R features the Ford Racing Boss 302 crate engine, based on the new 5.0-liter 4-valve V-8 found in the 2011 Mustang GT. With the Grand Am Homologation Package, this turnkey race car also includes a 6-speed manual transmission with a roll cage, race seats, a safety harness, race dampers and springs, upgraded brakes and tires. The total ready-to-race package will cost $129,000 (MSRP).
The BOSS 302R follows in the very successful footsteps of its most recent road racing predecessor – the Mustang FR500C from Ford Racing. In 2005, when the Mustang FR500C debuted at Daytona, the first car was delivered on Wednesday of that week and won the KONI Challenge race on Friday.
In five years of competition since then, the FR500C has won three drivers’ championships, including back-to-back (2008 – 2009) Triple Crown championships of driver, team and manufacturers titles in KONI competition. The FR500C has also seen success in European FIA GT3 and FIA GT4 competition, and also by the recent E-85 fueled land speed record set by Hajek Motorsports at the Bonneville Salt Flats.
“We expect the BOSS 302R to continue the successful tradition of winning, factory-built race cars from Ford Racing,” said Allison. “The FR500C and FR500S road racing Mustangs, and the CobraJet drag racer have proven to be competitive right out of the box for our customers, helping teams win races and championships. We have high hopes for the BOSS 302R to provide that same sort of competitive product for our customers with the tradition you can only get from Ford Racing.”
Ford Racing engineer Andy Slankard has been instrumental in the development and testing of the new BOSS 302R. Slankard attended the recent Daytona test sessions and is confident with the performance of the purpose-built race car.
“We have won three championships in five years, so we know how to make a Mustang fast,” said Slankard. “So far, everything is looking really solid. I don’t anticipate any major changes. We are pretty sorted with the content that will be in the car. We are just working on things to make sure they are durable and reliable.”
Available through the Ford Racing warehouse, a total of 50 BOSS 302R Mustangs will be built by Ford Racing. Delivery is anticipated in third quarter of 2010. For those who miss out on the initial lot of 50, Ford Racing Performance Parts will sell all the parts necessary to convert a Mustang to a BOSS 302R including the BOSS 302 engine.
For more information on Ford Racing Performance Parts, please visit: www.fordracingparts.com.
About Ford North America Motorsports: Ford North America Motorsports, based in Dearborn, Mich., is responsible for major racing operations in North America, including NASCAR (Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series, Camping World Trucks), Grand American sports car racing, NHRA drag racing, USAC midget car racing and the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge for the Miller Cup. The department also oversees the development and marketing of Ford Racing Engines and Performance Parts, the outreach programs with all Ford Clubs and Ford enthusiasts, and the marketing of the Ford Racing brand through initiatives such as Team Ford Racing. For more information regarding Ford Racing’s activities, please visit www.fordracing.com.
From Susan Pollack // PCGCampbell | Ford Racing // Multimatic Ford Photo by DaveFranksPhotos.com
ATLANTA, Michigan (January 27, 2010) – Defending North American rally champion Andrew "ACP" Comrie-Picard is heading for a snowy season start in Michigan this weekend at the first round of the 2010 Rally America championship. The NOS Energy-backed rally team will take on Sno*Drift in their familiar, top-spec Evo IX. Despite tough competition from factory-backed teams, Comrie-Picard remains a favorite for the win.
"I'm feeling good about our chances this weekend," says Comrie-Picard. "Between the heavy development of the Subaru team cars and the new threat from Ken Block in that European Ford, there's a lot of amazing new machinery out there -- but we've got reliability and experience on our side."
Comrie-Picard will be accompanied by co-driver Jeremy Wimpey at this event. The duo ran select events together in 2009, scoring a mid-season win together in Colorado.
The driver took the win at Sno*Drift in 2006 and has finished on the podium in each of the past two years. The team is counting on a combination of tactical aggression and experience to get them to the top as they take on a 100 mile course that will see them hit speeds of 130 mph on glare ice and snow.
"Snow and ice driving is a real artform and I love it," says Comrie-Picard. "I grew up with this weather; I'm right at home in these conditions."
The Rally America national championship is a challenging, all-season series comprised of six events across the country. The 2010 season will also see the launch of the European-style rally cross discipline mid-year. Comrie-Picard is expected to take on both of these US rally series and make a return to the X Games for a fifth year. As part of his bid for the North American title, he will also compete in the Canadian Rally Championship. The multi-talented driver, who made his debut in short-course off-road truck racing in 2009, is planning a cross-disciplinary push this season that will also see him take on Formula Drift events.
Rally car racing is considered the extreme sport of automobile racing and is often described simply as "real cars, real roads, real fast." This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover more than 100 miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads.
The sport is also featured in the annual X Games, the premier action sports event on the globe featuring athletes competing for medals and prize money in sports including BMX Freestyle, Moto X, Skateboard, and Rally. Comrie-Picard has been among the dozen invited drivers in each of the four years since the rally discipline was introduced to the contest and expects to return in 2010.
Special thanks from the team to the Garland Lodge and Resort in Lewiston, Michigan, and to Mitsubishi Research and Development.
ABOUT THE DRIVER: Defending North American Rally Champion Andrew Comrie-Picard is a contender for the American, Canadian, and North American rally championships and expects to return to compete in X Games this summer for fifth time. When he isn't racing, Comrie-Picard works in film, television, and print media as an automotive expert and divides his time between Toronto, Canada, and Los Angeles, California.
ABOUT THE CO-DRIVER: Jeremy Wimpey first paired with ACP at the 2009 Colorado Rally where they quickly gained confidence and an overall win. A trail scientist by day, Wimpey brings his attention to detail and warped sense of humor to the team. He has been competing in rally car competition since 2002.
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The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), Yokohama Canada (www.yokohama.ca), Bully Dog (www.bullydog.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Öhlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), Team Dynamics (www.teamdynamicsracing.com), Pfitzner Performance Gearbox (www.ppgearbox.com.au), Endless (www.endlessusa.com), NBB (www.nbblights.ca), Sparco (www.sparcousa.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com) and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).
For more information and video highlights, visit: www.acprally.com. To arrange interviews or find out more, contact +1647-500-2729 or ACP(at)acpracing(dot)com. Find us on Twitter, YouTube or Facebook under ACP Rally. Photo courtesy of Scott Rains.
DEARBORN, Mich., Jan. 29, 2010 – The all-new Ford Fiesta is fun to drive, but for World Rally Team driver Ken Block, fun takes on a different meaning. When you spend your time dreaming up ways to push your rally car to new limits and create stunts that will create the next “must see” YouTube video, fun is a mixture of horsepower, race fuel and adrenaline. This weekend, Block and his newly formed World Rally Team will debut their Ford Fiesta Rally America program at Sno*Drift in Atlanta, Mich. as they demonstrate their definition of fun.
Block and the team will campaign seven rally events in North America in 2010 for Ford, including the Summer X Games in August. Block will pilot a 2011 Ford Fiesta based on the race-winning European Rallycross Fiesta prepared by Olsbergs Motorsports Evolution.
“I am very excited to finally be in the Fiesta,” said Block. “The Fiesta is the car that beat me last summer at X Games. Ford has a great platform with the Fiesta, and I can’t wait to see what I can do in the Rally America championship and at the X Games later this year.”
Fiesta’s North American racing debut came at the 2009 Summer X Games where it took the Gold in rally competition. Block's 2.0-liter turbocharged Fiesta, modified to the Open Class specification for Rally America, is capable of producing over 490 hp at 8,000 rpm, but due to a required turbo-inlet restrictor by the series, the Fiesta will be running in the range of 330 hp.
Block, who will be co-driven by Italian Alessandro Gelsomino, will tackle all six rounds of the Rally America series in his Fiesta. His North American program will culminate at X Games 16 in Los Angeles in early August.
“Ford has a long, winning tradition in European rally and with Ken Block and Fiesta, we’re bringing that to North America for fans to experience first hand,” said Jamie Alison, director, Ford North American Motorsports. “There will be a little bit of rally in every Fiesta. It’s the right form of motorsports to showcase the driving dynamics of Fiesta.” Allison continued, "What people need to remember, as Ken races down the course this weekend, his car started off as a production vehicle. It is a true testament to the capability built into every Ford Fiesta.”
For the complete Ken Block schedule and to see Block in his 2011 Ford Fiesta, please visit www.fordracing.com.
About Ford North America Motorsports: Ford North America Motorsports, based in Dearborn, Mich., is responsible for major racing operations in North America, including NASCAR (Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series, Camping World Trucks), Grand American sports car racing, NHRA drag racing, USAC midget car racing and the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge. The department also oversees the development and marketing of Ford Racing Engines and Performance Parts, the outreach programs with all Ford Clubs and Ford enthusiasts, and the marketing of the Ford Racing brand through initiatives such as Team Ford Racing. For more information regarding Ford Racing’s activities, please visit www.fordracing.com.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K37p0vw9cU
From Brent Maurer // Ford Racing PR / PCGCampbell
By Dean Reynolds - SYRACUSE, NY – As the Lucas Oil Empire Super Sprints (ESS) venture north to the Montreal area of Quebec, the events that boast the largest purses of any full point events on the championship tour just got a little richer. With the help of the Poirier family business Fondations 4 Saisons ten teams will now be splitting from a special point fund that has been set up for 2010.
The special Quebec Five Star Series will involve the two events each at Autodrome’s Granby and Drummond as well as the first ever ESS appearance to Motordrome St. Marcel. Fondations 4 Saisons sponsored the A-Main events at Granby and Drummond the past three seasons but with the new point fund their contribution was increased substantially.
“Steve is not only a great driver and champion with ESS, but his family has been huge supporters over the years with sponsorship programs.” said ESS President Chuck Miller. “Before only one driver (the A-Main winner) took home extra dollars from each event. Now ten different teams will be awarded for their solid efforts on the five events.”
Quebec stars like Poirier, Michael Parent, Alain Bergeron, Normand Beaudreault, Daniel Lampron, Kayle Robidoux, Dale Gosselin, Donald Lemire and Sylvain Ericksen will be ready to take on the best from the province of Ontario and the United States with more money on the line.
Last year ESS had five special point fund categories topped by the overall Lucas Oil champion. This has now been increased by one with more in the works. Having different point funds proved very popular with the teams as many shared in the wealth.
The full schedule for the 2010 season is right around the corner with the first event being the annual Motorsports Expo held at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse, NY on March 13 and 14.
For more information you can log on to www.empiresupersprints.com where the 27th Anniversary Tour is being showcased where once again it will be excitement guaranteed!
