Category: Featured Other Series

As teams continue to prepare for the upcoming season ahead and fans begin planning the events they’re going to attend, OSCAAR has released their 2013 tentative Super Late Model schedule. The schedule includes 13 dates at seven different tracks, spanning from the beginning of May till the beginning of October. The Super Lates will also be accompanied by the OSCAAR Modifieds at 11 of the 13 stops on the schedule.

“It took a bit longer than expected to get everything finalized,” OSCAAR president Dave Gainforth said. “The end result will be well worth the wait. OSCAAR fans are going to be treated to great Super Late Model and Modified racing action at their favourite track throughout the entire summer.”

As revealed earlier this year with the release of Sunset International Speedway’s schedule, the OSCAAR Super Late Model season will begin on Sunday May 19th, Victoria Day weekend, on the 1/3 mile oval located in Innisfil, Ontario. The speeds that they reach on this oval with the side-by-side racing throughout the field always puts on a show for the fans. ho could forget last year’s Velocity 250? Jeff Hanley and George Wilson made contact while battling for the lead with Wilson in the inside wall, with Hanley driving his way through the field to take the win.

The season opening night will be known as  Lucie Alywin Memorial Night. Alywin was the finance of Gary Grendron, a crew member for driver George Wilson, who was tragically killed in the collapse of the Algo Centre mall in Elliot Lake, Ontario on June 23, 2012.

Following opening night, the series will head to the oval at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park on Saturday June 1st. Formally known as Mosport, CTMP has gone through changes over the past two years. However, the oval still offers the same classic racing as always.

On June 15th, the Super Lates will be at Barrie Speedway, which is where Jesse Kennedy scored his first OSCAAR win.

Then to complete the month of June, they will return to Sunset International Speedway on June 29th and 30th for Don Biederman Memorial weekend. Instead of a one-night 75-lapper for the Super Lates, they will run a 50 lapper on Saturday and then a 50 lapper on Sunday, each having their own qualifying heats and counting for points seperately. They will combine the two days to crown a Don Biederman Memorial Champion. The exact formula to determining the Don Biederman Memorial Champion has yet to be determined, but will be released to fans once it is.

To begin July, the Super Lates will be at the beach, Sauble Speedway on July 13th. Last year saw George Wilson pick up the victory.

They will then make their return to Flamboro Speedway on July 20th. It will mark the first race for the Super Lates there since 2008, when Derrike Tiemersma picked up the victory.

July will finish off with a return visit to Sunset International Speedway on July 27th. The Super Lates will be joined by the OSCAAR Modifieds and the CANADA-USA Pro 4 Modified Shootout.

August will begin with a trip to Peterborough Speedway on the 3rd. This will mark an important race for the season as it is the OSCAAR Chase for the Colors event. The driver that finishes first on August 3rd will start the coveted Autumn Colors Classic 50-lap feature on the pole in October. The driver that finishes will start that race from the second position. The drivers that finish third and fourth will start no worse than 13th and 14th come October.

Then on August 11th, the Super Lates will be at Kawartha Speedway for a special Sunday afternoon show. It will mark only the second show on Kawartha’s 2013 calendar as they cut back their schedule.

The end of August will see OSCAAR return back to Peterborough Speedway where they started the month for a Saturday night show on August 24th.

The second last event of the season for the Super Lates will be at Sunset International Speedway on Sunday September 29th, part of Sunset’s Velocity 250 weekend. The three-day weekend is meant to see seven different divisions compete, putting the top drivers from across the province against each other on one track.

The season will finish off at Peterborough Speedway on October 12th and 13th as part of the 21st Annual Autumn Colors Classic weekend. The 2013 OSCAAR Super Late Model Champion will be crowned as part of this weekend long event. Last year, Brandon Watson took home his second AC win on his way to his first OSCAAR Championship.

The Rolex 24 at Daytona always bring out the stars as NASCAR and Indy Car drivers alike try to tackle sport car’s toughest race. After making his debut last year, two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip will return to the race, once again driving a Ferrari 458 Italia.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Waltrip said. “Last year was a lot of fun to get to race in that historic famed event.  I always grew up admiring the guys that got to run in that race, and it was quite an honor to be part of it.”

The draw to the event is the experience, doing something that you never thought you’d do.

“That’s been the most fun thing about getting to race the Ferrari all around the world is just to get to experience different venues and different parts of the world racing cars,” Waltrip commented.

The event also is a special opportunity for different drivers to connect at different times, and Waltrip brought up having breakfast in Le Mans with Allan McNish.

“The guy had so much success in road racing,” Waltrip said. “You just are sort of in awe of what some of those guys have been able to do.

“Tom Kristensen who sat right beside me one morning, he’s won Le Mans like a hundred times, I think.  But just to be able to rub shoulders with guys you’ve seen have success in road racing, and it’s really cool to get to know them a little bit.”

Other experiences that stand out for Waltrip including hanging out with Brian Johnson from AC/DC and seeing Harley Haywood make some laps.

“When I was a kid, he was one of my favorite racers,” Waltrip said of Haywood. “So, yes, it’s unique and it’s fun, and you actually sort of get used to it, and you’re able to battle side beside with them. It’s really rewarding to be able to match skills.”

Waltrip will be joined by co-team owner Rob Kauffman, Michael Waltrip Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Clint Bowyer and Portuguese Endurance veteran Rui Aguas.

While it may seem like an easy switch from one car to the other for a driver, there is drastic differences in the performance as Waltrip referenced the amount of horsepower the Cup cars have compared to the sports cars, as well as the braking.

“The Cup cars have so much horsepower,” he said. “That’s their main commodity is all the power that it has.  They don’t stop real well, and honestly they don’t handle too well.  And the Ferrari is the opposite.

“It has a significant amount of power, but nothing like a Cup car.  But when you go to hop on the brakes, that baby comes to a stop, and you can really whip it through the infield.  So that’s what’s so fun about getting to drive the Ferrari.”

That difference between the two is what makes it fun and that’s why Waltrip brought forth Bowyer to join him at the event. At first when Waltrip asked Bowyer, he declined the offer. However, over time, Bowyer changed his mind and decided he wanted to be apart of it.

“It was just him thinking about how cool it would be to be in Daytona, racing the road course, something that he had never done before, and driving the Ferrari for 24 Hours,” Waltrip said. “It just was more than a dirt racer from Kansas could pass up.”

Waltrip added that Bowyer did good during the test and began to pick up things quite quickly. However, that wasn’t a surprise as Waltrip knew Bowyer would do good after winning the race at Sonoma last year.

“The best in the world run NASCAR, and he was able to win the race,” Waltrip continued. “So I knew he would do pretty good, and he did just that.”

On the flip side, when Bowyer did originally decline, Waltrip had asked Denny Hamlin to join them and Hamlin had accepted. Now Waltrip had the job of telling Hamlin things had changed.

“Denny understood though,” Waltrip said. “He’s kind of having a busy off-season himself with the new baby coming, so he understood.”

The race will present its challenges, including the unique infield road course that they run at Daytona, as well as the disparity between the DP class and the GRAND-AM class.

“You always have to be on your toes,” Waltrip commented. “You rarely get a free lap or a full lap without having one of those guys closing on you.  So you really have to watch your mirrors.”

Beyond the disparity in speed, you also have to watch the talent level of some guys as some will be really good, while others not so much.

“What’s most important, in my opinion, is to remember that you’re there to take care of the car the best you can, and make it for 24 Hours and see if that gives you a shot to get a podium finish,” Waltrip commented. “We were able, fortunately enough, back in 2011, we got a third place podium finish in the 24 Hours of Spa, so that was pretty cool to have success in NASCAR, win the Daytona 500, and be in Europe, standing there on the podium, getting champagne sprayed on you because you’ve got a top finish in a Ferrari.  That was something that was probably my favorite moment so far in my road racing.”

AF Waltrip Entry of Michael Waltrip, Rob Kauffman, Clint Bowyer and Rui Aguas to Compete at Daytona Jan 26 & 27.

CORNELIUS, N.C. – Michael Waltrip Racing owners Rob Kauffman and Michael Waltrip announced today they will race in the 51st annual Rolex 24 at Daytona on Jan. 26-27. Joining the pair behind the wheel of the Grand Am version of the Ferrari 458 GT that will test in Daytona this weekend will be NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Clint Bowyer and road racing veteran Rui Aguas.

“The Rolex 24 at Daytona is the pinnacle of sports car racing in America and a world class event with huge historic relevance,” said Kauffman. “We made it to the finish last year in our first attempt. The GT category is large and strong this year, but we are going to give it our best shot. You have to be in it to win it.”

The AF Waltrip entry is a joint project of the Italian championship sports car team AF Corse and MWR. AF Waltrip fielded Ferraris for Waltrip and Kauffman at sports car races around the globe since 2010 including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Sebring and last year’s Rolex 24 in Daytona.

Waltrip, a two-time Daytona 500 champion, said the Rolex 24 should be on every race fan’s bucket list.

“Daytona is always special whether it’s the 24 Hours or the Daytona 500,” he said. “Last year was my first year in the Rolex 24 and it was so cool. The road course is awesome. During the day you can see families walking around the infield taking in all the sights and at night the place comes alive when the Ferris Wheel and all the race cars light up. The drivers are having fun and the fans are having fun.”

Bowyer will be the newest member of the AF Waltrip driver lineup that has included Travis Pastrana and Brian Vickers in previous races.

“I’m not really sure what I got myself into,” laughed Bowyer who won three races and finished second in the 2012 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup driving for MWR. “Rob asked me to race and I said I would do it. Everyone has told me how much fun this race is. So, I’m ready. Running 24 hours is a long time, but we will give it our best shot.”

Kauffman partnered with Waltrip in October 2007. MWR fields Toyota Camrys in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series from its 140,000-square-foot shop in Cornelius, N.C., for Waltrip, Mark Martin, Vickers, Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr.

MWR’s participation in international racing events is part of a worldwide business strategy and a way to promote the team on a global stage. MWR’s international effort has included visits to Le Mans, the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England, Toyota Motorsports Festival in Japan as well as appearances in Dubai, Bahrain, Shanghai, Spa, and Road Atlanta among others. The AF Waltrip team finished 22nd in the GT Class in the 2012 Rolex 24.

The famous twice-around-the-clock challenge kicks off the international motorsports calendar, as well as the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series and features a star-studded line-up of drivers from around the world battling on Daytona’s demanding high-banked road course.