All posts by ARP Trish

Gary Scelzi Motorsports

Giovanni Scelzi Caught Up in Crash While Competing for Podium at Plaza Park

Giovanni Scelzi Caught Up in Crash While Competing for Podium at Plaza Park

Inside Line Promotions – VISALIA, Calif. (Aug. 15, 2016) – Giovanni Scelzi was in contention for a podium finish last Friday at Plaza Park Raceway before he was caught up in a late-race crash.

Scelzi kicked off the micro sprint event by qualifying third quickest. He then advanced from third to second place in a heat race to make the feature inversion, which lined him up on the outside of the third row for the main event.

“We were fighting mechanical problems all night,” he said. “We were running third with about three laps to go. The guy in front of us wrecked and we were involved in it. He spun backwards and backed up the track and pinned me between him and the fence.”

The incident occurred in turn one and the damage was too much for Scelzi to resume racing. He was credited with a 15th-place finish.

“It bent the left front radius rod so the arm fell off the axle and we didn’t have any front suspension,” he said. “It was a really rough race track. It would have been pretty good to hold on for third, but sometimes that happens in racing.”

Honda Racing

Sunday Troubles End Top-Five Streak For RealTime Acuras in Utah

Sunday Troubles End Top-Five Streak For RealTime Acuras in Utah
• Ryan Eversley finishes fourth in Saturday’s opener
• Saturday’s finish extends streak of top-five finishes to six straight races
• Both Acuras fail to finish in Sunday’s finale
• Eversley earns Best Start and Hard Charger Awards for Saturday efforts

TOOELE, Utah – (August 14, 2016) – The RealTime Racing Acura TLX GT squad kept its march toward the front of the Pirelli World Challenge grid going on Saturday at Utah Motorsports Campus, but Sunday’s event showed that all good things must come to an end.

Ryan Eversley had another one of his vaunted starts on Saturday, taking advantage of some contact to gain 10 places on the opening lap on his way to a fourth-place finish in Round 16 of the PWC GT championship – marking his sixth consecutive top-five result. Meanwhile, new Acura driver Spencer Pumpelly fought tooth-and-nail with Jon Fogarty on Saturday to earn his second eighth-place run in his first three races in the Acura TLX GT.

But as strong as Saturday was for the Wisconsin-based RealTime Racing squad, Sunday was every bit as disappointing for the hard-charging Acuras. Pumpelly suffered an uncharacteristic drivetrain problem that kept his #34 machine from completing a single lap of the 3.048-mile course, while Eversley saw a chance at a seventh consecutive top-five go by the wayside when his #43 machine was felled by a left-rear suspension problem.

“Overall, a tough weekend in Utah. A rare mechanical issue on Sunday in the driveline of Pumpelly’s car turned into a double mechanical when a small component in the left rear broke on Eversley’s TLX GT,” said Senior Program Engineer/Honda Performance Development, Lee Niffenegger. “Ryan had some heads-up driving to move to second early in Race 1, then held on with a great drive against cars that were faster this weekend to pull off a fine fourth place. Unfortunately, our run of good finishes ended, and now we need to start a new one to finish the season strong in California.”

Eversley ran as high as second in Saturday’s opener before settling for a hard-fought fourth-place finish. The second-year Acura pilot fought off a last-lap charge from Colin Thompson’s McLaren to keep the fourth spot, beating Thompson to the line by a microscopic .008 seconds. Pumpelly battled back after losing ground due to early contact ahead of him, and fought equally hard on the final lap of the weekend’s first race, finishing just .101 seconds behind Fogarty in the battle for seventh.

“The #34 car was very good this weekend, but two competitors took each other out ahead of me in the first race,” Pumpelly reported. “The crash forced me to take evasive action going wide in Turn 1. Once I got back on track the field had gone by, relegating us to the back. We never recovered. Today [Sunday], the car had a drive-line issue before the race started, so we were not able to take advantage of the car’s pace in Race Two.”

“I’m really proud of how well we got the car handling today,” Eversley said. “I felt like I was able to move into the top five and hold my position and pace. I’m bummed we couldn’t get the Acura the result it deserved.”

The RealTime Acuras will have a full month to recover from Sunday’s disappointment, as the series does not compete again until September 17-18 at Sonoma Raceway, where Rounds 18 and 19 of the 20-race season will be contested on the California road course.

Richard Childress Racing

Richard Childress Racing–Mid-Ohio Challenge

Rain Shows No Match for Sam Hornish Jr. and the
Rheem Team in Ohio

“It was a wild race from the drop of the green flag. Our Rheem Chevrolet was right where we needed it to be for dry conditions. When it’s that good in the dry, you know it’s probably not going to be as good in the rain. We kept it on the track when it counted. I got off there a little bit on the first restart in the rain. I slide off in Turn 1, got back on track and thought we were good, then got into the side of (Ryan) Blaney in Turn 4, got straightened out and got pushed back in the grass after that. We stuck with it and made up a lot of ground during the dry portions of the race. We just didn’t have what the (No.) 42 did in the rain. It’s been great working with this Rheem team. We almost had it today, but we’ll try again at Kentucky Speedway next month.”

– Sam Hornish Jr.

Ty Dillon Splashes in the Rain to a Fourth-Place Finish at Mid Ohio

“The rain wasn’t really my friend, my goal was to stay on track which put us in the front row at the end of the race. I was hoping it would go green and Justin (Marks) would slip up. I think I need to get over to GoPro Motorplex and do a little practicing in the rain. Our WESCO Chevy was one of the fastest in the dry, but the rain really forced you to change your line almost every lap. Today was all about being consistent in the rain and staying on track. I’m really proud of my guys and we’ll go on to Bristol (Motor Speedway).”

– Ty Dillon

Brandon Jones Survives First Race in the Rain to Finish 19th at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

“It was pretty wild first race in the rain. The rain started getting really heavy there at the end of the race. The inside of the windshield started fogging up and I could barely see anything. We were going to have a pretty good day in the Jeld-Wen/Mendards Chevrolet until that happened at the end of the race. We made up some good ground after pitting early for when the windshield wiper wasn’t working. At least we were able to put some Rain-X on the windshield and that helped a lot. Once the track started to dry out we made some gains. All-in-all, it was a pretty solid day for the No. 33 team. It was definitely a different experience for sure.”

– Brandon Jones

Gaughan Endures Through to an Eighth Place Finish at Rain-Soaked Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

“I’m really proud of my guys, they kept digging. We were the victim of a couple of circumstances today and they had to rebuild the entire right side of the South Point Chevrolet. It was a ton of fun at Mid-Ohio today. I hope the fans enjoyed it. The slipping and sliding and beating and banging was a great time. The crew did an excellent job today, combined with leadership from Shane (Wilson, crew chief), everyone earned it. I wish I didn’t have the one big mistake in Turn 4, we could have been better. That was an all-out war to get back to the front, and our team battled to get there. I’m extremely proud of our top-10 finish. We have one more road course this season, and I hope it rains at Road America as well. I welcome the challenge.”

– Brendan Gaughan

F4

EXCITING ON-TRACK ACTION ENDS AN EVENTFUL WEEKEND AT MID-OHIO FOR F4 U.S.

EXCITING ON-TRACK ACTION ENDS AN EVENTFUL WEEKEND AT MID-OHIO FOR F4 U.S.

Cameron Das scores first F4 U.S. Championship victory

LEXINGTON, Ohio (August 13, 2016) – The final race of the Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course may have ended in yellow, but the excitement during the weekend finale left spectators on their feet. Continue reading EXCITING ON-TRACK ACTION ENDS AN EVENTFUL WEEKEND AT MID-OHIO FOR F4 U.S. →

F4

KIRKWOOD, ROBINSON TAKE F4 U.S. VICTORIES FRIDAY AT MID-OHIO

KIRKWOOD, ROBINSON TAKE F4 U.S. VICTORIES FRIDAY AT MID-OHIO
New series kicks off second race weekend in Lexington, Ohio

LEXINGTON, Ohio (August 13, 2016) – Kyle Kirkwood of Jupiter, Florida, claimed the first race of the weekend, while Skylar Robinson of Augusta, Georgia, won Race 2 as the second event of the Formula 4 United States Championship powered by Honda kicked off Friday at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Continue reading KIRKWOOD, ROBINSON TAKE F4 U.S. VICTORIES FRIDAY AT MID-OHIO →

F4

DRIVER DOESN’T HAVE TO CROSS THE FINISH LINE FIRST TO BE RECOGNIZED AS A WINNER

DRIVER DOESN’T HAVE TO CROSS THE FINISH LINE FIRST TO BE RECOGNIZED AS A WINNER
Crawford Composites to honor F4 U.S. Championship driver with $1,000 prize pack

LEXINGTON, OHIO (August 12, 2016) – Drivers in the Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda series can win without ever taking the checkered flag starting this Saturday during the championship’s second event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Continue reading DRIVER DOESN’T HAVE TO CROSS THE FINISH LINE FIRST TO BE RECOGNIZED AS A WINNER →

Honda Racing

F4 U.S. TEAMS WILL PUT ADJUSTMENTS TO THE TEST IN SECOND EVENT AT MID-OHIO

F4 U.S. TEAMS WILL PUT ADJUSTMENTS TO THE TEST IN SECOND EVENT AT MID-OHIO

F4 U.S. Championship returns to Mid-Ohio for three races from Aug. 11-13

INDIANAPOLIS (August 10, 2016)- With the opening race weekend in the books, the teams in the Formula 4 United States Championship powered by Honda will put their adjustments to the test when they race again at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course from this weekend. Continue reading F4 U.S. TEAMS WILL PUT ADJUSTMENTS TO THE TEST IN SECOND EVENT AT MID-OHIO →

Honda Racing

RealTime Racing Acuras Carry Momentum Into Season’s Homestretch

RealTime Racing Acuras Carry Momentum Into Season’s Homestretch

• Acura TLX GT has scored five consecutive top-five finishes in World Challenge
• Ryan Eversley climbs to fifth in series driver points
• Acura in top five in Manufacturer’s Championship with five races to run
• Eversley leads the series in points scored over last six races Continue reading RealTime Racing Acuras Carry Momentum Into Season’s Homestretch →

Gary Scelzi Motorsports

Scelzi Challenges for Top Five at Freedom 40 Before Late-Race Restart

Scelzi Challenges for Top Five at Freedom 40 Before Late-Race Restart

Inside Line Promotions – CHILLICOTHE, Ohio (Aug. 9, 2016) – Dominic Scelzi was a contender during the first half of the night last Saturday at Atomic Speedway.

Scelzi opened the Freedom 40 by qualifying third quickest overall before he finished second in a heat race to make the feature redraw. Continue reading Scelzi Challenges for Top Five at Freedom 40 Before Late-Race Restart →

World of Outlaws

At a Glance: Outlaws Young Guns Target Nationals

At a Glance: Outlaws Young Guns Target Nationals
The World of Outlaws-sanctioned 5-Hour ENERGY Knoxville Nationals kicks off on Wednesday

CONCORD, N.C. – Aug. 9, 2016 – As the best sprint car drivers in the World converge in Knoxville, Iowa this week for the 5-Hour ENERGY Knoxville Nationals, Wednesday, Aug. 10 to Saturday, Aug. 13, some of the young stars of the World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series look ahead as they compete for one of motorsports’ most coveted titles.

David Gravel, Brad Sweet, Jacob Allen, Logan Schuchart and Clyde Knipp, the Outlaws young guns, are ready to take their shot at winning the most coveted title in sprint car racing and the $150,000 prize. Continue reading At a Glance: Outlaws Young Guns Target Nationals →

Red Horse Racing

Brett Moffitt Returns to Red Horse Racing for Three Events

Brett Moffitt Returns to Red Horse Racing for Three Events

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (August 9, 2016) – Brett Moffitt will return to the No. 11 Red Horse Racing Toyota Tundra for the next three NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events, at Bristol Motor Speedway, Michigan International Speedway and Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.

“Brett has done a great job in the No. 11 so far and we’re glad to welcome him back to the team for the next three races,” said team owner Tom DeLoach. “Hopefully we can continue to ride the momentum that Scott Zipadelli and the team have built and get to Victory Lane.”

Moffitt has driven the No. 11 Tundra twice this season, once at Kentucky Speedway where an engine failure ended his day early after a strong run, and also at Pocono Raceway, where the 24-year-old finished third.

“I’m excited to get back in the No. 11 Tundra,” said Moffitt. “I feel like this is a great opportunity and we’re on the right track to keep improving and get some strong finishes.”

The 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year has 38 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts, one XFINITY Series start and four Camping World Truck Series starts.

Richard Childress Racing

Richard Childress Racing–Mid-Ohio Preview

Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR XFINITY Series at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course … In 10 Series starts at the 2.25-mile road course, RCR has accumulated three top-five finishes, four top-10 finishes, led 51 laps and averages a starting position of 8.8 and finishing position of 13.0. The Welcome, North Carolina, organization has completed 850 laps of the 852 (99.8 percent) that they have competed.

Watkins Glen Review … Paul Menard was the highest RCR finisher in second, Brendan Gaughan eighth, Ty Dillon 11th and Brandon Jones 13th, respectively, at Watkins Glen International.

The Points … All three RCR XFINITY Series full-time drivers remain in the top 10 of the driver point standings as the series heads to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the 21st event of the season. Ty Dillon is currently third, Brendan Gaughan is sixth and Brandon Jones is eighth. The No. 2 RCR team is second in the owner point standings. Brandon Jones is currently third in the XFINITY Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year point standings.

Catch the Action … Coverage of this weekend’s Mid-Ohio Challenge at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will be televised live on Saturday, Aug. 13, beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA. It will also be broadcast live on Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM channel 90.

Follow A Dream Racing

Follow A Dream/Permatex TA/FC team’s Eas

Follow A Dream/Permatex TA/FC team’s East Region Title Hopes Fall Short

MARSTONS Mills, Massachusetts (August 9, 2016) – Jay Blake’s Follow A Dream/Permatex Top Alcohol Funny Car team went to Atco Dragway (Atco, New Jersey) this past weekend with high hopes of winning the 2016 Lucas Oil East Region championship.

Unfortunately, those hopes went up in smoke as the car lost traction during the first round of eliminations. Even though driver Phil Burkart qualified No. 3, he lost to Dan Pomponio, bringing both the day and Burkart’s championship bid to a premature end. Continue reading Follow A Dream/Permatex TA/FC team’s Eas →

Ross Hoek Motorsports

Ross Hoek Motorsports: TORC Bark River Report

Ross Hoek Motorsports: TORC Bark River Report

Holland, Mich. (August 9, 2016) – Ross Hoek continues to perform well as the TORC Series presented by AMSOIL heads into homestretch of the 2016 season. After committing to run the entire season in his Greaves-built PRO-4×4, the Michigan native impresses the competition with his privately funded team. The TORC “Showdown in the UP” event saw the Auto Trans Design #21 PRO-4×4 challenge the top drivers in the class. Continue reading Ross Hoek Motorsports: TORC Bark River Report →

Folk Racing

Folk Racing Update

Yes, it is a good Monday, when the saying of the day is “three Wallys in six days”!
Reason being, we made it to the winner’s circle in Super Stock Class at the St. Louis Division III Race with the Folk Race Cars Super Stock Colbalt.

Preparing and loading for the Lucas Oil “Thunder at the Lakes” Division IV Race, followed by the Lucas Oil National both taking place in Brainerd, Minnesota. Hope to see you!

Summit Racing

TEAM SUMMIT RACING MAINTAINS POINTS LEAD AFTER WESTERN SWING

TEAM SUMMIT RACING MAINTAINS POINTS LEAD AFTER WESTERN SWING

Seattle, WA (August 8, 2016) – Team Summit Racing finished the Western Swing at the rain-soaked Protect The Harvest NHRA Northwest Nationals. While Greg Anderson and Jason Line did not make it to the final round, they retain their very comfortable points leads over their Pro Stock competition.

The final rounds for Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock were cancelled due to rain. The final rounds of Top Fuel and Nitro Funny Car will be decided at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minnesota. The Pro Stock final will be run at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Top Fuel: Antron Brown vs. Steve Torrence
Nitro Funny Car: Del Worsham vs. Ron Capps
Pro Stock: Aaron Strong vs. Vincent Nobile Continue reading TEAM SUMMIT RACING MAINTAINS POINTS LEAD AFTER WESTERN SWING →

Roush Yates

3-FOR-3 FORD SHELBY GT350R-C!

3-FOR-3 FORD SHELBY GT350R-C!

ELKHART LAKE, WISC. August 8th, 2016 – The No. 15 of Billy Johnson and Scott Maxwell of Multimatic Motorsports took home their third win in a row and their fourth overall for the year. This win marked their first win at Road America in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Series and secured their position on top of the leader board in the Grand Sport (GS) class with 228 points.

The race at Road America came down to the last few laps with the No. 15 in second place, but their position would quickly change in the last lap as the race leader ran out of fuel. The No. 15 Multimatic Motorsports car with Billy Johnson driving, did an outstanding job of managing his fuel and tires to take the lead and checkered flag. Continue reading 3-FOR-3 FORD SHELBY GT350R-C! →

Roush Yates

BACK-TO-BACK WATKINS GLEN VICTORIES FOR LOGANO WITH FORD PERFORMANCE!

BACK-TO-BACK WATKINS GLEN VICTORIES FOR LOGANO WITH FORD PERFORMANCE!

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y., August 8, 2016– Team Penske takes home their first NASCAR Xfinity win in 2016 with the No. 12 of Joey Logano. Logano’s Ford Mustang dominated the race from the pole position. Taking home his third overall win at The Glen and collected the sixth overall win for Team Penske in the 2016 season. Continue reading BACK-TO-BACK WATKINS GLEN VICTORIES FOR LOGANO WITH FORD PERFORMANCE! →

Honda Racing

Honda Racing–Statement on the passing of Bryan Clauson

Statement on the passing of Bryan Clauson

Art St. Cyr, president, Honda Performance Development:

“The highest praise we can give Bryan Clauson is that he was a ‘racer’s racer’. Whether on a quarter-mile dirt oval or at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, his talent and personality was appreciated by fans and respected by competitors throughout the racing world.

“All of us at Honda and Honda Performance Development mourn his passing, and extend our heartfelt sympathies to his fiancée, Lauren Stewart; his parents, Tim and Diana; his sister Taylor; and his many, many friends and fans.”

Honda Racing

F4 U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP ATTRACTS NEW DRIVERS FROM CHINA AND GEORGIA

F4 U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP ATTRACTS NEW DRIVERS FROM CHINA AND GEORGIA
Field continues to grow heading into second F4 U.S. race weekend

INDIANAPOLIS (August 4, 2016) – The Formula 4 United States Championship powered by Honda continues to attract drivers from all over the world, expanding its field for the second event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.
Two newly signed drivers, Jackie Ding of Shenzhen, China, and Skylar Robinson of Augusta, Georgia, will join the series during its second stop at Mid-Ohio scheduled for Aug. 11-13. Continue reading F4 U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP ATTRACTS NEW DRIVERS FROM CHINA AND GEORGIA →