Finale at Infineon Raceway; Group Champions Announced

Posted on November 9, 2010 by admin
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Info: Greg Franz
949.851.4731
gfranz@competentms.com

Finale at Infineon Raceway; Group Champions Announced

Newport Beach, CA.
November 9, 2010

Pirelli Drivers Cup USA, featuring Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup Cars, is a racing series dedicated to providing a safe racing environment for all participants where on race weekends drivers compete on challenging venues and as a good wine you must be patience and wait for the right time to harvest the grapes and this past weekend in the Sonoma/Napa Valley was the right time for competitive racing.

The final race weekend (November 5th – 7th) for the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA was held at the Infineon Raceway located in Sonoma, California in conjunction with NASA and the INEX World Finals. This event represented the last two races for the season, Race #11 and Race #12, for the series. The Pirelli Drivers Cup US A series experienced an assortment of weather conditions during the weekend which provided some exciting moments for the drivers in determining the Group champions for the season. The backdrop of the wine country provided the new drivers and regulars an opportunity to enjoy the region and their race craft on the track.

The course at Infineon Raceway (2.52 miles) provided a level playing field for both the Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup Cars as the aero package, horsepower, and gearing are per factory specifications requiring the drivers to make the difference.

Qualifying on Saturday morning for Race #11 had the entire field within nine seconds with Steve Goldman (Competition Motorsports) on the poll joined by Rich Walton (Mercer Motorsports) in the first row.

On Saturday afternoon, Race #11 lived up to its expectations and gave everyone an exciting race to watch in determining the Group champions. As the flag dropped, the race to Turn 2 and 3 became a dash for position which carried through the entire race. Group A brought both Doug Baron (911 Design) and Jim Walsh (Jim Walsh Racing) head to head in driving towards the championship…the battle from the very first race of the season until this weekend was in full swing. At the end, Doug Baron prevailed in Race 11th with Jim Walsh in second with the local driver and vintner, John Trefethen (Trefethen Vineyard) in third.

Group B (2006-2009 997 GT3 Cup Car) had a number of series regulars testing each other and the track to find out how to pull a victory out from a very competitive group. At the end Richard Walton stayed in front of Steve Goldman with John Kreig (Aasco Motorsports) finishing out the podium.

Group C (2010 997 GT3 Cup) had Brent Holden (GMG Racing) winning his group and claiming the championship for the season.

Sunday brought a mixture of weather conditions. Morning practice and qualifying were competed in the rain for Race #12…and then the sun came out for the final race of the season providing the drivers with a clean track for the finale. As in Race #11, when the flag dropped, the Porsche GT3 Cup Cars headed to Turn 2 with the pedal to the metal. When the checkered flag came down in the sunshine, Doug Baron lead Group A with Jim Walsh and Lorne Liebel following him to the finish line. In Group B, Rich Walton passed a number of the drivers in winning the race with Fred Poordad (Competition Motorsports) coming in second and John Kreig joining them on the podium. Brent Holden finished in first for Group C and captured the championship.

Also, this weekend the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA announced the 2010 Champions for each Group accordingly:

  • Doug Baron (911 Design) – Group A (2000-2005 996 GT3 Cup)
  • Rich Walton (Mercer Motorsports) – Group B (2006-2007 997 GT3 Cup)
  • Brent Holden (GMG Racing) – Group C (2008-2010 997 GT3 Cup)

The Pirelli Drivers Cup USA staff would like to thank the drivers and sponsors for a great year of racing and excitement throughout the season.

As we go into our 5th season, we are excited about the program we are putting together for the 2011 season which will continue in providing the drivers, race teams and sponsors one of the most competitive racing series in North America.

See you in 2011!!!!

Posted in 2010 Archives | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Pirelli Drivers Cup Highlighted at Global Tuner Grand Prix

Posted on October 25, 2010 by admin

For results and story of the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA participation at the Global Tuner Grand Prix held on October 22nd – 24th at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, go to the following link:

http://www.montereyherald.com/sports/ci_16427203

Posted in 2010 Archives | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Pirelli Drivers Cup Challenges Miller Motorsports Park Raceway

Posted on September 28, 2010 by admin
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Info: Greg Franz 949.851.4731
gfranz@competentms.com

Newport Beach, CA.
September 28, 2010

Newport Beach, CA, September 28, 2010 – Pirelli Drivers Cup USA, featuring Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup Cars, is a racing series dedicated to providing a safe racing environment for all participants where on race weekends drivers compete on challenging venues and as with yacht racing this past weekend showed how local knowledge along with good driving wins races.

The venue this last weekend (September 24th-26th) was Miller Motorsports Park Raceway, as part of the Porsche Club of America event, located outside of Salt Lake City, Utah. The Pirelli Drivers Cup USA series brought along beautiful weather for the event that was enjoyed by everyone present. This event represented both Race #7 and Race #8 of the twelve (12) race series for the 2010 season. Six newcomers who had never raced with the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series participated and made their statement on the track that they were not going to allow the series regulars own the podium at the end of the day.

Local knowledge of a race track is always a big plus for any driver and with local knowledge from Melanie Snow, Ricky Johnson, Dave Leyvas, and Madison Snow, the first timers were able to get the inside story on how to best drive the track and understand its nuances.

The long full course at Miller Motorsports Park (4.486 miles) provides a level playing field for both the Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup Cars as the aero package, horsepower, and gearing are per factory specifications requiring the drivers to make the difference.

Qualifying on Saturday afternoon for Race #7 had the entire field within eight seconds with Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup cars, with Melanie Snow (Snow Racing) on pole with Steve Goldman (Competition Motorsports) on the first row, with Doug Baron leading the Group A 996 GT3 Cup cars in the fourth slot.

On Saturday afternoon, Race #7 lived up to its expectations and gave everyone an exciting race to watch as three drivers including Snow, Goldman, and Brent Holden (GMG Racing) went three wide into Turn 1 of 23 turns on the full course. As always, racing was found through out the pack as every 996/997 GT3 Cup car was racing both in group and overall with the other determined racers on the track. Group A brought both Doug Baron (911 Design) and Jim Walsh (Jim Walsh Racing), our series leader back together after Doug’s mechanical at Portland in June. The other drivers in the Group A field were not going to give up easily. Newcomer to the series, Ricky Johnson (Race Technik) brought home second place with John Trefethen (Trefethen Vineyards) finishing third. Jim Walsh had a racing incident that ended his run for a podium in this race.

Group B (2006-2009 997 GT3 Cup Car) had a number of first time 2010 season drivers testing each other and the track to find how to pull a victory out from a very competitive group. At the end Melanie Snow stayed in front of Steve Goldman with Blair Chang (Competition Motorsports) to finish out the podium. Melanie reached her personal best time for the full course and was the overall winner for Race #7 as the home court advantage played out.

Group C (2010 997 GT3 Cup) had Brent Holden winning his group after running back and forth with Melanie for most of the race.
With six and one half hours of track time for the drivers of the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series during the event weekend; Sunday with perfect weather and no wind would bring out the best in cars and drivers. Morning practice got the field ready for the qualifying session for Race #8 when the entire field was just less than seven seconds between pole sitter and the rest. The results of qualifying had Melanie Snow again on pole with Brent Holden second, and Steve Goldman third. Doug Baron lined up next to Jim Walsh on the grid, so you knew that there was going to be plenty of racing going throughout entire field for this race.

With the drop of the green flag, Race # 8 started out with a dash to Turn 1, with Brent Holden’s Group C (2010 997 GT3 Cup) showing why Porsche has been so pleased with the results of this race car this season in all the racing series they participate throughout the globe. With the 45 minute race format for Pirelli Drivers Cup one needs to pace themselves and plan their strategy to achieve the result they want and not make any mistakes. Melanie, driving in Group B, won with her best time on the full course and again the overall Race # 8 winner, with Steve Goldman repeating his second place finish from Race #7, and third place went to Madison Snow (in his first Pirelli Drivers Cup and Porsche 997 GT3 Cup car race) with a very proud and rightfully so, Mother and Father (Martin) looking on.

In Group A, Jim Walsh succumbed to Doug Baron as he suffered a flat tire and broken axle that ended a contest everyone was looking forward to seeing. Doug Baron drove a hard race and was able to keep Greg Ross (Greg Ross Racing) and Ricky Johnson from coming up on him. Steve Streimer (Steve Streimer Racing), racing his first event with Pirelli Drivers Cup, found these racers require you bring your best driving to the track for every race.

Group C, had Brent Holden victorious and also the fastest time in the race of 2:57.5. Holden is looking forward to the 2010 997 GT3 Cup car turn out at Laguna Seca in three weeks.

The Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series is now into the 2nd half of the 2010 season with drivers figuring out what they need to do to achieve a Championship in the Series. The remaining venues and dates are:
Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway – October 22 – 24, 2010 (Unlimited Decibels) Infineon Raceway – November 5 – 7, 2010.

####

Posted in 2010 Archives | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Pirelli Drivers Cup Featured at the Rose Cup Festival

Posted on June 16, 2010 by admin
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Info: Greg Franz 949.851.4731
gfranz@competentms.com

Newport Beach, CA.
June 16, 2010

Pirelli Drivers Cup USA, featuring Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup Cars, is a racing series dedicated to providing a safe racing environment for all participants where on race weekends drivers compete on challenging venues and this last weekend reinforced the goal of the series…On Track with Competence.

The venue this last weekend (June 11th – 13th) was The Rose CupRaces at the Portland International Raceway (PIR) as part of Portland’s Rose Festival, a month long event for the city of Portland and surrounding communities. The Rose
Festival is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year which made it a special opportunity for the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series to hold both its Race #5 and Race #6 of the 2010 season. As part of the Rose Cup Races, Race #6 was designated as the Festival Trophy Race for the Rose Festival which was well attended by Oregon race enthusiasts.

Local knowledge of a race track is always a big plus for any driver and with local knowledge from Jeff Gamroth, Jim Walsh, David Cormier, Jay Culbertson, Chris Pallis, and Peter Wong, the first timers were able to get the inside story on how to best drive the track and understand its nuances. In addition, Craig Stanton, the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA driving coach, who had just returned from competing at Watkins Glen in a Grand Am Rolex Race the previous weekend, was available for individual coaching sessions with all the drivers. Craig brings a unique perspective to the sport resulting in the drivers improving their race craft.

A short track like Portland International Raceway (1.945 miles) provides a level playing field for both the Porsche 996 and 997 GT3 Cup Cars as the aero package, horsepower, and gearing are per factory specifications requiring the drivers to make the difference.

Qualifying on Friday afternoon for Race #5 did just that as Peter Wong (Rothsport) 2010 997 got the pole, with Chris Pallis (Rothsport) 2007 997 in the second position followed by Jeff Gamroth (Rothsport) and Doug Baron (911 Design) both in 996 GT3 Cup Cars.

On Saturday, Race #5 lived up to its expectations and gave everyone an exciting race to watch.Race #5 also provided the grid positions for Race #6 (e.g. Festival Trophy Race). In Group A (2000-2005 996 GT3 Cup Car) Doug Baron remained undefeated while fighting off David Cormier (VI Racing) from Canada and Jim Walsh (Jim Walsh Racing). Both of these drivers have raced many times at PIR and looked to give Doug his first defeat of the season. Doug used all his racing skills to bring another victory home, while Jim Walsh had a mechanical during the raceand had to retire with two laps to go. That left David Cormier to chase after Baron with past champion John Trefethen (Trefethen Vineyards) finishing third.

Group B (2006-2009 997 GT3 Cup Car) had a number of first time 2010 season drivers testing each other and the track to find how to pull a victory out from a very competitive group. At the end John Crosby from Louisiana (TCM) beat out local Jay Culbertson (TCM) by .0296 of a second! Both were racing 2009 997 GT3 Cup Cars and the crowd loved the action. Guy Dreier (911 Design), who was racing for the first time in 2010 rounded out the podium with a 3rd place finish.

Group C (2010 997 GT3 Cup) had Peter Wong winning both his group and first overall with the fastest time in the race at 1:17.36.

As they say, time flies fast when you are having fun and the drivers of the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series certainly experienced that as Sunday brought out the pageantry and spectators for the two featured races of the Rose Cup Races (Festival Trophy Race and Rose Cup Race). The drivers after a brief warm-up session were escorted with their cars down the front straightaway for introductions, interviews and spectator acknowledgment.

With the drop of the green flag, the Festival Trophy Race (Race #6) started out with a dash to the chicane and into Turn 1 with everyone understanding that to finish first, first you must finish. All the drivers were aware of their surroundings the entire race, which Stanton had reinforced during his coaching sessions, and the spectators enjoyed close and competitive racing from the Pirelli Drivers Cup racers.

In Group A, Jim Walsh raced to 1st place ahead of David Cormier and Greg Ross (Jay Jarvis Motorsport) respectively. David started at the rear of the pack due to some last minute mechanical adjustments and drove through the field to capture a spot on the podium. Doug Baron, who qualified on the pole for the race, was not able to start due to an incident in the warm-up session that the 911 Design crew was unable to rectify in time for the race.

Group B, found John Crosby leading this group again with Jay Culbertson behind him and Chris Pallis coming from the last row (due to a mechanical during the Saturday race) to take 3rd in this group.

Peter Wong, won both Group C and was the overall winner of the 2010 Festival Trophy. Good consistent racing and almost a second faster than Saturday’s race put Wong on top of the podium.

The Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series now heads into the 2nd half of the 2010 season with drivers figuring out what they need to do to achieve a Championship in the Series. The remaining venues and dates are:

Miller Motorsport Park – September 24 – 26, 2010
Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway – October 22 – 24, 2010 (Unlimited Decibels)
Infineon Raceway – November 5 – 7, 2010.

####

Posted in 2010 Archives | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Pirelli Drivers Cup Shines at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

Posted on May 3, 2010 by admin
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Info: Greg Franz 949.851.4731
gfranz@competentms.com

When you are having the chance to race on one of the Top Ten Driver’sRace Tracks in the world- then bring everyone from the West Coast, EastCoast, Canada, and Costa Rica and let them have the One and Only-Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Monterey, CA.
May 3, 2010.

As always as the weather goes at Laguna Seca; it only gets better over thecourse of the weekend. The drivers arrived on Thursday, April 29th, withit cold and windy and returned on Friday morning for a day of practice tomild temperatures and sunny skies.

Seven 996 GT3 Cup cars (Group A), nine 997 GT3 Cup cars (Group B), andFour 997 2010 GT3 Cup cars (Group C) used this day for some to drive a track that theyHave only dreamed about racing on and for the others a time to reacquaint themselveswith a track that you always need to approach with respect.

At the end of the day; it looks that with this field of cars there were going to beplenty of “races inside the race”.

Saturday, May 1st, had Qualifying with Doug Baron (911 Design) taking honors in Group A, Brian Wong (Aasco Motorpsorts) in Group B, and Darrell Carlisle (Kelly-Moss Racing) showing he came to play in Group C.

As we sensed earlier, all the Groups had great action for both thedriversand the spectators during the first race of the weekend on Saturday (Race#3 for the 2010 seasonfor Pirelli Drivers Cup USA).

The Porsche 2010 997 GT3 Cup car has already proven to racers and spectators alike who have witnessed this car in action or in the paddock that the engineers from Weissach have gotten “a real deal race car” for the Porsche faithful to race this season.

Carlisle, Jorge Trejos (Aasco Motorsports), Peter LeSaffre (Kelly-Moss Racing), and Peter Wong (Rothsport) who were all in the Group C cars traded back and forth all race long to finally have Trejos first, Carlisle second, and LeSaffre third.

Group B also brought their cars out to make a race out of it and did with hard and cleanracing; that at the end had Rich Walton (Mercer Motorsport) first, Steve Goldman (Competition Motorsports) second on the podium, and Paul Camusi (Mercer Motorsport) with a new car for him this season coming in third.

Group A was again as tight racing as shown at Auto Club Speedway earlier in the month.These drivers were not to be out shown by their 997 GT3 Cup big brothers.Three names that have and will continue to be fighting out all season showed up at the podium that had all the 996 racers within seconds of each other during the entire race.The winner was Doug Baron, Jim Walsh (Jim Walsh Racing) running second, and John Trefethen (Glenn Yee Motorsports) finishing 3rd.

Sunday, May 2nd, brought even better weather to enjoy and race in.Carlisle (Group C), Wong (Group B), and Baron (Group A) were again the topqualifiers in their respective groups.

This race (#4) was every bit as exciting to both drivers and the crowd that wasassembled to watch the race from the many vantage points available at LagunaSeca.

Group A had as winner again Doug Baron (911 Design), Jim Walsh (Jim WalshRacing) ran second, and from Canada, Loren Leibel finished third.

Group B saw Brian Wong (Aasco Motorsports) put on a driving demonstration andwon his group and also gave the Group C guys a run for their money and finishedthird overall in the race. Again, Rich Walton (Mercer Motorsport) race second andSteve Goldman (Competition Motorsports) had another podium finish in third place.

Group C had the top qualifier stay the course of the race and Darrell Carlisle (Kelly-Moss Racing) won over his all weekend long challenger Jorge Trejos (Aasco Motorsports) with again Peter LeSaffre (Kelly-Moss Racing) finishing out with another third place podium finish in his second race of the weekend.

Next round for the Pirelli Drivers Cup USA racing series takes us to Portland International Raceway, June 11-13, 2010 for The Rose Cup Festival; where wewill be competing in both Races #5 and #6, but also racing for The FestivalCup Trophy. Come out and race or join the spectators and watch some goodracing from the Porsche 996/997 GT3 Cup cars and their drivers.

####

Posted in 2010 Archives | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment