Category: Other Series PR

National Guard Team Ready for IndyCar Series Debut of New DW12 Chassis on St. Pete Streets

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – (March 9, 2012) – As the IZOD IndyCar Series gets set to kick off the season, Panther Racing anddriver JR Hildebrand are looking to improve on the Californian’s impressive rookie season beginning this weekend at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. After a series of successful preseason tests, Hildebrand, the Indy 500 Rookie of the Year, and Panther are looking forward to the season opener this weekend on the 14-turn, 1.8-mile course twists through the city streets of St. Petersburg.Panther Racing’s pre-race notes are posted below:

Chris Mower Promoted to General Manager of Panther Racing:

Panther Racing has promoted Chris Mower to the position of General Manager of the team’s IndyCar Series effort. Mower, formerly Team Manager since joining the team in 2008, has overseen the team’s racing operations for the past four seasons after moving to Panther from Conquest Racing. Previously, Mower spent two seasons with Team Lotus in 1992-1993 with drivers Johnny Herbert and Mika Hakkinen. During his time working in Europe, Mower helped earn F-3000 championships in 1991 with Christian Fittipaldi and again in 2001 with current IndyCar Series driver Justin Wilson.

“I’m very happy that JB and Jane (Barnes) trust me to do this job right and that they both have the faith in me to know I’m not going to let anybody down,” Mower said. “It gives me a great deal of confidence knowing they trust me, because my experience at Panther Racing has always been great. As a team I still don’t think we’re taken as seriously as we should be in IndyCar and I believe we can fight for that position – we’ve got a great core group that has been here a long time and we have an unbelievable partner in the National Guard. This team works really well together and we’re all on the same page. I’ve been on teams before where it doesn’t gel and that always leads to second-guessing of one another and I’m thankful that I always know all our guys are going to do their job. If I was given the chance to work anywhere in the paddock it would be right here at Panther, and I’m very happy to be a part of this team.”

As Panther’s involvement with the National Guard has expanded over the years, and with the team’s recent partnership with the White House and the US Chamber of Commerce’s Hiring Our Heroes initiative, Managing Partner and CEO John Barnes is devoting more of his time to the team’s partnerships and off-track initiatives.

Barnes worked together with Mower’s father Derek at Vel’s Parnelli Jones Racing and again at Bob Fletcher Racing over 30 years ago.

“I’ve had a long relationship with Chris and his family and he’s always done a great job for us,” Barnes said. “Chris is a guy with a lot of integrity and business smarts that comes from his experience running his Dad’s team in Europe, where he won a lot of races and championships. As I continue to spend more of my time with the National Guard and focused on our efforts this season to help fight the unemployment issues facing their Soldiers, it only made sense to continue to expand his role with the team. We’ve got a great group of people here and we feel like we’ve got the individuals in place to get Panther Racing back at the top of this series.”

Last Year: Panther at St. Petersburg, 2011:

Hildebrand competed in his first IZOD IndyCar Series race with the Panther team at last year’s Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, where he improved 13 positions during the race to finish in 11th position. The young rookie showed promise as he climbed into the Top Ten before being hit by Danica Patrick on the last lap of the race, which forced him into 12th position at the conclusion of the race. Patrick was penalized for avoidable contact following the incident, and Hildebrand was moved ahead of the former Andretti Autosport driver for his 11th-place finishing position.

Additional notes from last year’s race:

Hildebrand’s first start with Panther Racing and first IndyCar start in St. Pete. Qualified for the race in 24th position. Was running in tenth position when, on the final lap, Danica Patrick hit the rear of Hildebrand’s National Guard car, allowing both Danica and Justin Wilson to pass the No. 4 car. Patrick was penalized for avoidable contact; Hildebrand moved up a position ahead of Patrick to finish in 11th place. Climbed a total of 13 positions; Started 24th and finished 11th. Hildebrand was the highest finishing rookie driver. Highest in-race position was 10th. Hildebrand’s 11th place finish was Panther Racing’s highest finish in St. Petersburg since Vitor Meira finished fifth in 2006.

SGT Christopher O. Campbell Named Panther’s St. Pete Hometown Hero:

Panther Racing has named SGT Christopher O. Campbell as its honorary Hometown Hero for the Grand Prix of St. Petersburgweekend. Panther began its Hometown Hero program in 2008 to help highlight an extraordinary Soldier from each respective state’s National Guard. Each hero participates in the IndyCar Series driver autograph session during the raceweekend and sits next to Hildebrand while signing a specialty-made hero card. The hero also takes an IndyCar Experience two-seater ride, is honored during an awards presentation in the team’s hospitality unit prior to the race and is also recognized on the pre-race stage in front of the crowd prior to the start of the race.

Additional notes on SGT Campbell:

Born in Tampa, Florida Enlisted in the Florida Army National Guard in July of 2008, and was a member of the Florida Honor Guard Team Was deployed to Kuwait with Alpha Company 53rd Brigade Support Battalion in 2010 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom Was selected as the Noncommissioned Officer of the Year for his Battalion in 2011

Hildebrand Recovers Well from ACL Knee Surgery:

JR Hildebrand did a good job concealing the fact he drove more than half of the 2011 IndyCar Series season with a torn ACL in his left knee, an injury he suffered during a PR stunt at Texas Motor Speedway. And while he insists the injury had no impact on his performance last season, the self-described “fitness geek” and “adrenaline junkie” was more bothered by the injury in the training room than on the racetrack. Following surgery to repair the injury in October of 2011 by Dr. Don Shelbourne at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, Hildebrand is recovering nicely as he rehabs daily at St. Vincent Sports Performance, and continues to pick up his workout regimen to include running, biking and a lot of other workout activities he enjoyed prior to the injury. He even went snowmobiling and ice climbing during a recent trip to Vail, Colorado and is recovering nicely from the surgery.

QUOTABLE:

JR Hildebrand, No. 4 National Guard Chevrolet:

“I’m ready to rock and roll. St. Petersburg is always a great race, and the first turn alone is always pretty exciting – especially with the double-file restarts because you’re going from a huge airport runway down to a pretty tight right-hander. It’s a great place for us to start the season, St. Pete is a cool town and everybody down there really enjoys our racing. You also never knowwhat’s going to happen with the weather; sometimes it rains while we’re there and sometimes you get typical beautiful Florida weather. For me personally this year, just knowing what to expect going into the season is really helpful. I feel like we’ve had a really productive offseason and the development on the National Guard Chevrolet has gone well. It’s nice to be part of working with the Panther guys and the Chevy guys this offseason, and we’ve found the car to be really responsive to all the changes we’ve made during the testing. All our test days have been more effective than what we experienced last year, and we’re confident that’s going to translate for us a lot of places we go this season.”

Broadcast Info:

The IZOD IndyCar Series Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will be broadcast live on ABC at 12:30 p.m. (ET), with additional coverage provided by the IMS Radio Network, XM Channel 145 ad Sirius Channel 121.

www.JRHildebrandRacing.com – www.pantherracing.com – www.NationalGuard.com

–Former NASCAR Champion to Compete in ASA’s Howie Lettow 150–

MOORESVILLE, NC (MARCH 22, 2012)–Officials of the ASA Midwest Tour and Rusty Wallace, Incorporated announced today that former NASCAR and ASA Champion, Rusty Wallace, will compete in the June 12th Howie Lettow Memorial 150 at The Milwaukee Mile. The race honors the late Lettow, a former standout ASA crew chief who mentored many young drivers.  The event will benefit the MACC Fund, dedicated to childhood cancer and blood disorder research.

The June event will mark only Wallace’s third time at the helm of a race car in competition, following his 2005 retirement from NASCAR’s premier series. Wallace will pilot a No. 66 super late model in the event; the car was previously campaigned in 2012 by his youngest son, Steve. The younger Wallace is also scheduled to compete in the Milwaukee event, piloting a sister car to his father’s.

The elder Wallace, the 1989 NASCAR and 1983 ASA Champion, has no lack of experience at the Milwaukee Mile. Wallace’s five victories at Milwaukee in USAC and ASA competition mark one of the most successful stock car careers in the history of “The Mile.”

Said Wallace, “I’m really excited about racing at Milwaukee again; I have a lot of great memories of that place from over the years. While I’m looking forward to having a lot of fun, believe me, we’re going there to try and win the race too. There are a lot of great race fans in the Midwest and hopefully the ASA Midwest Tour will put on a great show for them, all the while benefitting a good cause.”

Rusty and Steve Wallace will join other NASCAR drivers such as David Ragan, David Stremme and Tony Raines in the event, with others to be named soon. In addition to attending the race, fans can get up close and personal with the drivers at a pre-race VIP event, including a question and answer session and a private dinner with the drivers. Only 500 tickets for the VIP event will be sold. Fans can purchase tickets for the Howie Lettow Memorial 150 and the pre-race VIP event by visiting .

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About Rusty Wallace, Inc.

Founded in 1984 by auto racing legend, Rusty Wallace, Rusty Wallace, Inc. (RWI) is a multi-faceted enterprise with a strong focus on the automotive sector. The company’s capabilities include sports marketing, retail automotive sales, sports facility design and television broadcasting. RWI operates alongside sister entity Rusty Wallace Racing, from a state-of-the-art campus in Mooresville, NC. For more on RWI, please visit the award-winning rustywallace.com and follow on twitter at @RustyWallace.

[media-credit name=”www.gpstpete.com” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]TEAM PENSKE EXCITED TO OPEN 2012 IZOD INDYCAR SERIES SEASON AT GRAND PRIX OF ST. PETERSBURG

FAST FACTS

Drivers: Ryan Briscoe (No. 2 IZOD Team Penske),

Helio Castroneves (No. 3 Shell V-Power Pennzoil-Ultra Team Penske) and Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske)

Event:    Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

Streets of St. Petersburg, Fla.

(1.8-mile street circuit)

When:    Qualifying – Saturday, March 24 at 1:55 p.m. ET

Race (100 laps) – Sunday, March 25 at 12:30 p.m. ET (Live on ABC)

TV/Radio: ABC-TV/IMS Radio Network and XM Channel 145 and Sirius Channel 211

Sebring Sweep: Team Penske is coming off a very successful open test at Sebring where it swept the top three fastest times. Helio Castroneves paced the group with a lap time of 52.14 seconds with Will Power and Ryan Briscoe just behind him. The three drivers were separated by a mere 0.066 seconds.

St. Pete is So Sweet: Team Penske has a strong history at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Of the six previous IZOD IndyCar Series race run at the track, Team Penske has produced four wins, three poles and seven podium finishes. Helio Castroneves has two wins and a pole at the venue, Ryan Briscoe has a win and two podium results to his credit and Will Power has won the last two consecutive poles with a win in 2010 and a second-place finish in 2011.

Striving for Another Strong Start: Team Penske has opened the season with a podium finish in five out of the last six years. In the first four races of 2011 Power won all four poles and had two wins with Briscoe recording two podium finishes in the same span.

Triple Play: For the third straight season, Team Penske will compete as a full-season, three-car team. Team Penske finished second (Power), sixth (Briscoe) and 11th (Castroneves) in 2011 championship standings.

New Year, New Car: In 2012 Team Penske will begin its pursuit of a championship with a new engine partner as Chevrolet rejoins the IndyCar Series this season with Ilmor Engineering providing support. The IZOD IndyCar series also welcomes the new DW12 chassis design in 2012 and the new car is expected to be a faster and safer car for the competitors.

Premier Partners: Team Penske is proud to continue its relationship with existing partners and welcome several new sponsors to its family in 2012. Briscoe will continue to compete with IZOD as a sponsor of the No. 2 car, Shell-Pennzoil will serve as the primary sponsor of the No. 3 car driven by Castroneves at St. Petersburg and Power will drive the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske for the entire season.  Team Penske also features Hitachi (new in 2012), AAA, PPG and Penske Truck Rental as primary sponsors in 2012 along with associate sponsors Coca-Cola, Meijer, PTC and SKF.

King of the Road: Power has won the Mario Andretti Road Course title in each of the past two seasons and begins his quest for a third road crown this weekend. Last season, seven of Power’s eight poles and five of his six wins came on road/street courses.

Street Success: Team Penske excels at street course circuits. Castroneves, Briscoe and Power have all earned temporary road course victories over the last several seasons and the team overall has produced 27 poles and 17 wins at road/street course venues since 2007. Team Penske is well positioned to start the 2012 season as the first four races are all held at street or road circuits.

No Place Like Home: The sunshine state has a Team Penske connection. Castroneves is a longtime resident of the state and maintains an office in Miami and his home Ft. Lauderdale while team advisor and four-time Indy 500 champion Rick Mears has a home in Jupiter, Fla.

Meet Team Penske: All three Team Penske drivers will meet fans and sign autographs on two different occasions this weekend. The first opportunity will be at the Team Penske merchandise trailer at the St. Pete circuit from 5:00-5:30 pm on Friday, March 23 and the second will be in the IndyCar fan village on Saturday March 24 from 4:00-5:00 pm.

Legacy of Success: Team Penske continues to set the standard of success in open-wheel racing. Throughout its storied history, the team has posted 159 race wins, 12 National Championships and 204 pole positions. In addition, Penske Racing has won the Indianapolis 500-mile race 15 times. Across all of its disciplines, Penske Racing teams have produced 351 major race wins, 404 pole positions and 23 National Championships.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING ABOUT THE HONDA GRAND PRIX OF ST. PETERSBURG

Helio Castroneves: “Finally the 2012 season is starting in St Pete and we are very anxious to start. We had a lot of great testing and I really feel like we are prepared for what will happen with the new car and Chevrolet engine.  The No. 3 Shell Pennzoil was very strong in the open test and we want to make sure we get off to a strong start. We have won here before and hope to do it again.”

Ryan Briscoe: “We are all very excited at Penske racing for the season to start with brand new cars and Chevy engines. I have high expectations for this year and a lot of hard work has gone in to be ready for this race in St. Petersburg. Hopefully we can come away with the win for Penske and Chevrolet.”

Will Power: “I’m looking forward to getting the season started – it is going to be very interesting to see how all the new cars and engines stack up against each other. We have had some strong practices with our new Chevy engines so far and should have a great package put together for the race. It is important for us to get off to a good start and I feel good about competing for the win in St. Pete.”

More information and statistics on all Penske Racing teams is available to registered members of the press at http://media.penskeracing.com. For updated stats and quotes during race weekend, please visit http://media.penskeracing.com/teampenskemedia/stpete.

[media-credit name=”bristolmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]Nelson Piquet Jr won the first race of his NASCAR career at Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend driving for X Team Racing on his K&N East championship debut.

Nelson now joins an elite club of just eight foreign-born drivers to visit Victory Lane in the NASCAR ranks. His seven compatriots include Mario Andretti (Italy), Earl Ross (Canada), Juan Pablo Montoya (Columbia), Marcos Ambrose (Australia), Ron Fellows (Canada) and two K&N winners from Mexico.

Your first NASCAR win. Can you put your feelings into words? It was a great result and a very important day for me. We were fastest in free practice, I got my first NASCAR pole and then my first win. To achieve my first victory in the USA and my first victory in a stock car, is a very special emotion for me. To carry the Brazilian flag to Victory Lane was part of the dream for me and now I’ve conquered that it is such a motivation for the rest of the year.

It looked like a pretty perfect weekend, fastest in final practice and pole in qualifying. Was it more complicated than it seemed? It was much harder than it looked! We weren’t the quickest car and during the race I got into traffic and dropped to fifth at one point in the middle stages of the race. The car improved and luckily got better throughout the run and kept improving to the end. I got a little lucky as two guys in front of me had an accident but I managed to put myself in the right place and overtook the two other cars and got the win.

As a proud Brazilian, what did it mean to win in a Latin American team? At the end of the day it is the same feeling to win in any team but it’s good to be able to give a Brazilian team a first victory and being a Brazilian driver it’s always going to be remembered by the team.

How does it feel to be the first Brazilian to win a NASCAR race? I want to be the first Brazilian to win a Sprint championship so my goals are definitely higher but this is a good start.

What has the reaction been from your fellow NASCAR community? It’s been really great, I’ve had a lot of congratulations. It’s good for people to see that I’m learning and improving and dedicating myself to competing in NASCAR.

Can you explain how this win sets you up for the rest of the NASCAR season? It’s definitely good to have this right at the start of the year and it’s good practice for me. Seat time, especially on short tracks where you are running close to the other cars, has been something I needed experience in so I’m focused on ironing out any place that I need more experience. I’ll probably race the K&N series again at Richmond for that reason.

Nelson’s next NASCAR race will take place on 31 March in the Camping World Truck Series at Martinsville, but ahead of that he will run a late model race in Kingsport next weekend.

[media-credit name=”www.asa-racing.com” align=”alignright” width=”200″][/media-credit]DAYTONA BEACH, FL (Friday, March 16, 2012) – ASA Racing is proud to announce a two-year partnership with Source One Digital as their “Official Signage Supplier.” The benefits of this partnership will be available for ASA Racing, ASA Member Tracks, ASA Sanctioned Series and ASA Members.

“This is a great opportunity for Source One Digital to be involved with ASA Racing,” Jim Sowa, National Sales Director for Source One Digital said.  “This will be a great addition to our resume of clients that include the NCAA, major corporations, major and minor league sport teams, and more.  We recently added new printers that will produce higher quality products and faster turn around times.”

Based in Norton Shores, MI, Source One Digital recently added the Fuji Inca Onset S40, Fuji Acuity and Fuji UviStar2 to their lineup.  With their printer lineup and talented production staff, there is nothing they can’t produce.  They are one of a few companies in the United States to offer high-resolution Grand Format Printing, finishing and fulfillment all under one roof.

“We are proud to welcome Source One Digital to the ASA Family,” Dennis Huth, ASA President said.  “We look forward to working with Source One Digital for our banner and sign needs along with providing their great service and very competitive cost to our ASA Member Tracks, Series and Members.”

For more information on Source One Digital, please visit their website at www.sourceonedigital.com.

To learn more about the ASA Member Tracks and Sanctioned Series in your area, please visit www.asa-racing.com. Follow ASA Racing on Facebook at www.facebook.com/american.speed.assocand on Twitter at @ASARacing.

You can also look for the nearest ASA Member Track, get the weekend schedule, ASA Series information right on your smartphone by downloading the ASA Racing App for the iPhone and Android phones for free.  Just search for ASA Racing on iTunes and the Android Market and get the app today for FREE!

The American Speed Association started as a single racing series in 1968 and is a fast growing racing sanctioning body today. The ASA Member Track program sanctions dirt and asphalt short tracks along with road courses around the United States, as well as a variety of regional and national touring series. For more information call (386) 258-2221, or send an email to info@asa-racing.com. The latest news and information from all the racetracks and tours involved in the ASA can be found by visiting www.ASA-Racing.com.

ASA®, ASA Racing®, American Speed Association® are registered trademarks of Racing Speed Associates, LLC.

[media-credit name=”arcaracing.com” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit](IRVINGTON, Ala.) – The customary purple Hoosier band draped around his neck, the Mobile ARCA 200 winner paused for a moment on the frontstretch at Mobile International Speedway, waiting for a quieter moment to answer a question.

That’s because the winner was Mobile’s own Cale Gale, and he was surrounded by excited, loud fans and friends from his hometown just minutes after holding off Chad Hackenbracht and taking the checkered flag for his second ARCA win.

The race was the first trip to the track for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards, and the first short track race of ARCA’s 60th Anniversary Season.

Gale (No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet) led 76 of 203 laps, including the last 28, in a race extended by a green-white-checkered finish. Just days after celebrating his 27th birthday, Gale passed fellow Alabama driver Grant Enfinger on Lap 176 and held the advantage through four late caution periods and the subsequent restarts. A full-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver, Gale now has 11 ARCA starts, and a second win to back up a 2006 triumph at Gateway.

“This worked out better than we ever could have expected it to,” said Gale, standing in Mobile’s victory circle and approximately 100 yards in front of his own infield billboard reading “Thanks Mobile! Gotta Have A Dream” and featuring pictures old and new from his racing career.

“We came here with intentions to win but actually being able to pull it off is awesome and it comes at a good time,” he said. “What a packed house today. (Promoter) Rick (Crawford) has done an awesome job promoting this thing, and Tommy Praytor too. It’s especially special, because my grandfather passed away last year and we spent many a night down here on Saturday nights and it’s my first race to win since he passed away.”

The win was the first for Eddie Sharp Racing since Craig Goess scored his only career ARCA victory at Pocono in 2010.

Driving to the front took some work for Gale. He started ninth, four rows behind Menards Pole Award presented by Ansell winner Alex Bowman (No. 22 eBay Motors/St. Jude Children’s Hospital Dodge). Bowman led the first 28 laps in his fourth ARCA start, keeping the lead even after a Lap 19 restart.

Chase Elliott (No. 9 Aaron’s Dream Machine/Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet) passed Bowman on the inside on Lap 29 after looking close a lap earlier, turning what had been as much as a 0.733-second Bowman advantage into his own lead. Elliott drove away easily after finding clean air, and even Gale passed Bowman for second on Lap 31.

The race was Elliott’s first in the ARCA Racing Series. The son of NASCAR champion Bill Elliott had previously raced in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series but never in an ARCA car.

Elliott kept the lead on a Lap 42 restart resulting from the race’s second caution, but chose to pit during the race’s third caution period, allowing Bowman to return to the front. Erik Jones (No. 55 Paragon Corvette Reproductions Chevrolet) – making his first ARCA start at just 15 years old – rose to second, just ahead of Hackenbracht (No. 58 CGH Motorsports Chevrolet) and Frank Kimmel (No. 44 Ansell/Menards Toyota).

Bowman built a gap on the Lap 56 restart, finding himself more than a second ahead of Jones within six laps. His advantage was not meant for long, though. Two cars lost control and drove off the track and over the hill in Turns 3 and 4, an unusual occurrence but not at all unexpected at Mobile, where the only retaining wall is on the frontstretch.

Bowman pitted on the ensuing caution period, allowing Jones to move to the front. Jones led for 15 laps, but Gale – who had been fifth when Jones took the lead – quickly closed the gap. Jones led by 0.748 second at Lap 75 and 0.863 second at Lap 77, but saw that advantage sink under 0.1 second two laps later. On Lap 80, Gale took the first spot, with Elliott following for second.

Matt Lofton (No. 16 Strutmasters.com Chevrolet) followed the lead pair in third, with Enfinger (No. 61 Breland Homes Ford) and Bowman moving back to the top five by Lap 100, the race’s halfway point.

Enfinger, of Fairhope, Ala., passed for third on Lap 103, just before another caution period, and it was clear that he was ready to take aim at Gale and form a true Alabama battle at the front. He moved into second nine laps later, and slowly infringed upon Gale’s lead. The leaders hit lapped traffic at Lap 126, and with one driver in front of them struggling with a broken sway bar and creating a slight traffic jam, Enfinger closed Gale’s lead to 0.076 second at Lap 127. He passed for first the next time around.

With Enfinger now in front of Gale, the Alabama drivers easily put some distance on the field. At Lap 133, they led by three seconds over third. Twenty laps later, they had more than seven seconds on third-place driver Mikey Kile (No. 1 ModSpace Ford) – an advantage of about one-third of a lap.

At Lap 168, though, a 59-lap green flag run ended with a spin in Turns 3 and 4. Enfinger pitted as the leader, and kept the lead over Gale as he exited. Behind them were Mason Mingus (No. 32 Call 811 Before You Dig Toyota), Clint King (No. 66 Warehouse Design Chevrolet), and Hackenbracht.

Hackenbracht passed King almost immediately after the Lap 175 restart, a precursor to Gale’s pass of Enfinger for the lead the next time around. Mingus then lost control and drove over the Turns 3 and 4 hill, bringing out another caution with Gale the leader and Hackenbracht having passed Enfinger for second.

Gale led Hackenbracht out of the Lap 182 restart, another restart five laps later, and two more as the final laps ran down. The final caution period came with just four laps remaining, setting up an extension of the race and a final green-white-checkered finish on Laps 202 and 203.

Hackenbracht stuck to Gale’s back bumper and tried to drive under Gale in the second turn of the final lap, but Gale held his line and Hackenbracht struggled. In front of a screaming hometown crowd, Gale drove to victory by 0.634 second, with Hackenbracht, Bowman, Kile, and King trailing him.

Chris Buescher (No. 17 Roulo Brothers Racing Ford) finished sixth, just ahead of Brennan Poole (No. 25 Adcetera Toyota). Jared Marks (No. 12 Dodge Motorsports/UNOH Dodge) was eighth, edging Tom Hessert (No. 52 Federated Auto Parts Chevrolet) and Elliott.

Southern short track ace Bubba Pollard (No. 29 Grease Monkey/M&E Construction Chevrolet) finished 11th over Ryan Reed (No. 15 JDRF Toyota), Enfinger, Sean Corr (No. 82 Empire Racing Ford), and Tyler Reddick (No. 18 Broken Bow Records/Stoney Creek Records Chevrolet).

Kimmel, the nine-time ARCA champion, ended the day 17th. Jones, who led 14 laps in his debut, finished 29th after his car stalled coming off of pit road. The full results are available at ARCARacing.com.

The race was slowed by 11 cautions for 65 laps, and finished in one hour, 48 minutes, and four seconds.

The next race for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards will take place Sunday, April 29 at Salem Speedway. The 200-lap, 111-mile Kentuckiana Ford Dealers 200 is scheduled to start at 2:15 p.m. Salem will host practice and Menards Pole Qualifying presented by Ansell on Saturday, April 28. The event at Salem will be ARCA’s 91st at the track, where nine-time ARCA champion Frank Kimmel has nine wins.

2012 is the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards’ 60th Anniversary Season, featuring 20 races at 18 tracks. The complete 2012 event schedule is available at ARCARacing.com.

The ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards has crowned an ARCA national champion each year since its inaugural season in 1953, and has toured over 200 race tracks in 28 states since its inception. The series has tested the abilities of drivers and race teams over the most diverse schedule of stock car racing events in the world, visiting tracks ranging from 0.4 mile to 2.66 miles in length, on both paved and dirt surfaces as well as a left- and right-turn road course in its most recent season. This year, the series visited Alabama’s Mobile International Speedway for the first time. In June, the first event at Minnesota’s Elko Speedway will give ARCA a race in a 29th state.

Founded by John and Mildred Marcum in 1953 in Toledo, Ohio, the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) is recognized among the leading sanctioning bodies in the country. Closing in on completing its sixth decade after hundreds of thousands of miles of racing, ARCA administers over 100 race events each season in three professional touring series and local weekly events.

MOBILE, Ala. (March 10, 2012) – Milka Duno delivered a stellar 18th place finish in today’s inaugural ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards Mobile ARCA 200 at Mobile International Speedway in Irvington, AL. Starting the race dead last Duno reached as high as 15th and ended her race in 18th – a gain of 17 positions.

It was also Duno’s first race at the 0.5 mile track and without an opportunity test at the circuit she knew it was going to be challenge.

“I’m very encouraged by our result today given the circumstances we faced,” said Duno. “We didn’t test here last week and that affected us, but after practice and qualifying we still very much felt that we could be competitive in the race. We uncovered an issue with the brakes that I feel affected our times yesterday but we caught it in time for the race. Starting from the very back of the pack, in my first race, at a new and fast short track, with no testing is not an easy thing to do. But my crew chief and my crew were just outstanding and together we earned every bit of our 18th place finish today!”

Hitting the track for the first time on Friday in a rain-shortened practice session Duno was disappointed with their 29th place result. Only two hours later qualifying for the 200-lap race began and disappointment struck again as they were 29th quickest and needed a provisional to start the race 34th on the 35-car grid.

One of only two of the top-29 qualifiers to not have tested the week before at the first-ever ARCA test at the track, Duno, her crew chief Dave Leiner, Jr. and her Eddie Sharp Racing team were encouraged nonetheless by the fact that even without the several days of prior testing her qualifying time was only 1.085 seconds off the pole winner’s time.

Duno had also sensed a problem with the brakes during the practice and qualifying sessions and that issue was confirmed this morning before the start of the race. The skilled crew quickly made the needed repairs in time for the start – but as a result of the repair they now had to start the race in 35th.

Taking the green flag in last place Duno rapidly advanced into the top-30 and reached as high as 15th and then solidly in 23rd at the mid-point of the race. Having to apply tremendous control after twice being bumped, Duno remained tough and very competitive and as a result broke into the top-20 in the last quarter of the race and crossed the finish line 18th.

“I’m extremely pleased with Milka’s performance today,” said crew chief Dave Leiner, Jr. “This was absolutely Milka’s best performance on a short track that I have witnessed. We lost a bit of time in some areas and we’ll surely improve on that going forward – but I’m very happy and very encouraged by our effort here at Mobile.”

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About Milka Duno:

Duno has eight major race wins in the highest classes (Prototype) in the American Le Mans Series and Rolex Series and the highest finish ever by a female driver (2nd Place) in the Rolex 24 at Daytona in the 48-year history of the race. Off the track, Duno is a certified Naval Engineer who holds four master’s degrees, earning the last three simultaneously.

Duno is also working through her “Milka Way” program to inspire youth to “Aim for the Stars” and achieve academic excellence. For more information on Milka Way, visit www.milkaway.com.