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Driver Jessica Brunelli in the #3 NASCAR Modified car with N&N Products
While most 16-year-old teenagers are still besieged with parallel parking woes and earning their driving permits, Jessica Brunelli was busy being crowned the youngest Rookie of the Year ever in the NASCAR American Modified series.
16-year-old Jessica Brunelli is the youngest Rookie of the Year ever in NASCAR American Modified series
"I think that my rookie year in NASCAR went really well, I had a great team to work with and great drivers to learn from. This year we worked with Nascimento Motorsports, and we had a killer set up every time we hit the track, the car was always very well prepared," comments Brunelli, sounding every bit like a seasoned veteran. The crowds were enthusiastically supportive at Roseville for Brunelli, each time her name was announced the applause-meter redlined. "It was really exciting to be racing in front of a crowd for the first time. I loved it," she adds.
This wasn't the first time that Brunelli has received Rookie of the Year, in '07, running in the Skip Barber Race Series, she was also award that honor. Clearly though, she understands the importance of the NASCAR award and her level of exhilaration and confidence has been dialed up several notches to reflect it. "I was really surprised when they called my name," says Brunelli. "As for being the youngest in the NASCAR Modified Series ever, I guess that is just icing on the cake."
Jessica Brunelli feels that her rookie year in NASCAR went well
Brunelli first caught the racing-bug at age eight watching her first quarter-midget race. That night after the race she walked out on the track to get a racers view and something just happened, she remembers. "It was like I knew I belonged there." From that point on her sights were set on her tenth birthday, when her dad Bill promised to buy her first go-kart, "and that's when it started."
"I have always thought of myself as a racer, no matter what my age, and for the most part, my fellow competitors have treated me fairly. They can see that I'm there to race and that I take racing very seriously," explains Brunelli.
Her prior racing experience includes Formula Road racing and USAC Focus Midgets, but it's in her first full season in a NASCAR seat that she's made her greatest gains as a driver. "I am glad we chose to race at All-American Speedway at Roseville for my first year. The competition is some of the best around, which made me a better driver and the third-mile track taught me some really good habits, especially since I was driving something as wild as a Modified. It has over 600HP and not the best of tires and it's hard to keep under you unless you're really smooth with the wheel and the throttle. Driving the NASCAR Late Model was very different, less HP, better tires and suspension. I can't wait to put these skills to use at the '09 D4D (Drive for Diversity Program) Combine."
Being accepted into the '09 Drive for Diversity Program was yet another milestone into a young, but already storied race career. The call that she'd been accepted came to her dad's cell phone since Brunelli was home from school, sick with the flu. "I was really happy and relieved to hear that I was being invited back. I think I would have been much more excited if I hadn't have been so sick, but it really hit me later that day, as I started feeling better, that I had really reached a significant goal in my life."
"Our relationship with K&N has been great. They took a chance on me this year and it has been an honor to have K&N's support. Everybody knows who K&N is, how great their products are, on and off the race track, and what it means to have their support behind you. I hope I was a great representative for K&N. We use K&N air filters and air cleaner assemblies (both two and four barrel assemblies), as well as the K&N cleaning and charging products. We also use a K&N pre-cleaner. For the engine we use K&N breather elements."
Next season is wide open and filled with options, which Brunelli says is just fine with her. "We have begun to be contacted by teams looking at me as a driver. They seem to be leaning towards NASCAR Late Models, or in the NASCAR Camping World Series next year. I will also continue my on and off track training with Ron Sutton's Winners Circle. After that, well, I guess we will see where 2010 leads us. Hopefully, all leading to my dream which is to race in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, of course."
This just came in to Jessica's camp: In addition to the D4D Combine, she has been invited to test in front of several Sprint Cup and Nationwide Teams, while in Charlotte, at an unrelated test. "This never would have happened without this years NASCAR experience," she adds excitedly.
The Stockton 99 Speedway recently hosted the USAC California Pavement Ford Focus Series. Driver Michael Lewis went to the Stockton, California track with high expectations. Lewis was looking for another win in the No. 60 Western Speed Ford Focus.
Western Speed Racing driver Michael Lewis prepares for USAC California Pavement Ford Focus Series event at New Stockton 99 Speedway in Northern California
Lewis qualified in second place before a packed house of Northern California race fans. That placed him inside the third row for the start of the 40 lap feature.
Michael Lewis is fifth overall in the Ford Focus Midget Series with two more races left in the 2009 season. The final event will take place at Toyota Speedway in Irwindale on Thanksgiving Day
In the main, Lewis and teammate Cody Gerhardt made a clean start but both took a few laps to move past traffic. This allowed the leader of the ¼ mile asphalt oval track to pull away. The feature event ran without incident. Lewis and Gerhardt drove the two Western Speed team cars to third and fourth place.
“As always Kevin Gerhardt gave me a great car and we qualified well,” said Lewis. “For the first ten laps of the feature it looked like I could quickly get to the front. Suddenly the brakes went away and I did not want to force the issue with Cody.
Fourth place was about the best we could achieve.”
Western Speed Racing is owned by Rick Lew and Rick Gerhardt. Western Speed cars are equipped with K&N products. “Our K&N products give us extra power and excellent filtration,” said Gerhardt. “The K&N air filters are washable and reusable and protect our engines from track debris.”
Lewis is now fifth in the USAC California Pavement Ford Focus Series’ points. Two more races are scheduled in the Ford Focus Series in 2009. One will be at Madera Speedway on October 24 and the final event of the year will be at Toyota Speedway in Irwindale on Thanksgiving Day.
"If we can keep the pace we've maintained throughout the year and finish well at
the final two races in the USCA California Pavement Ford Focus Series, we have a shot at the car owners championship," said Lewis. "We could even make the top
four in the final driver's standings in the No. 60 Western Speed Ford Focus midget."
Corvette Racing scored its fifth podium finish in five races with GT2 Corvette C6.R. Teammates Jan Magnussen and Johnny O’Connell were runners-up in the season ending Monterey Sports Car Championships at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
After qualifying first and third, twin Corvettes ran one-two until the first round of pit stops during the ALMS season finale at Laguna Seca, photo by GM Corp.
Corvette Racing pit crew works on Corvette C6.R at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, photo by GM Corp.
The American Le Mans Series race ended as Magnussen spun across the track and hit a wall in the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R. The Danish driver was examined and released from the trackside medical center after his encounter with the concrete barrier. The Corvette’s safety systems and energy-absorbing structure performed as designed during the impact.
Corvette Racing scored its fifth podium finish in five races with GT2 Corvette C6.R, photo by GM Corp.
Corvette Racing's next event is the season opening Mobile 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in Sebring, Florida in March of 2010, photo by GM Corp.
The finish capped off a battle between the No. 3 Corvette and the No. 45 Flying Lizard Porsche driven by Patrick Long and Joerg Bergmeister.
Magnussen had cut down the lead of the class leading Porsche in the final 50 minutes of the four hour race. With the checkered flag on display for the winner, the Corvette and Porsche had contact in the final corner and raced side-by-side to the finish line.
“It was really good, hard racing,” said Magnussen. “It was a drag race up the hill, and I managed to get a little ahead of Joerg. Then he turned me into the wall, and he kept turning in. Then I spun around the nose of his car.”
In the end, the No. 45 Porsche was credited with a 1.037 second victory over the No. 3 Corvette C6.R and Corvette Racing scored its fifth podium finish in five races since moving to the GT2 category.
The Corvette C6.Rs use K&N air filters. “The filters K&N makes for Corvette are critical to the design of our intake system,” said Mike Atkins, Pratt and Miller Program Manager. “K&N makes the best air filter for horsepower and filtration.”
The No. 5 Compuware Corvette C6.R of Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta finished 10th, 12 laps down to the leader after hard contact in a restart at the one-hour mark. After qualifying first and third, the twin Corvettes had been running one-two until the first round of pit stops during the second caution period.
“Jan and I were working the traffic really well and managed to open up a gap over the third place Ferrari,” said Gavin. “When we got to the first pit stop, the crew did a fantastic job and we got out in front of our sister car. On the restart, I came down the inside of the first turn and was trying to see if I could get ahead of the BMW. I went too far to the inside and got on the dirt. The BMW was squeezing me and I hit the brakes too late. I didn’t want to hit the prototype ahead of me, so I went even farther left onto the sand. I started to spin and started hitting people. It’s embarrassing for me. I’m sorry for the crew. I think we had a car that was fast enough to win. I don’t think I make many mistakes, but I made a big one.”
Corvette Racing’s program manager Doug Fehan commented on the finish of the race. “Those last six laps were as exciting as I’ve seen in motor racing in a long time, two great teams, two great cars and two great drivers,” Fehan said. “It’s unfortunate it ended the way it did. I’m sure we’ll be working with the sanctioning body to address it and put into place safeguards to make sure incidents like this won’t happen again. Now we go back to the shop, make repairs and get ready to race at Sebring.”
Corvette Racing’s next event is the season opening Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in Sebring, Florida on March 20, 2010.
Josh McGuire began racing Late Models full time in 2005
Josh McGuire says racing has always been part of his family, and that his uncle Wayne McGuire, who raced in the 1950's and 1960's was one of the best there ever was. "He greatly influenced my career; from the #41 I run (which was his number), to my mechanical knowledge. I have big shoes to fill to even be half the driver that he was."
Josh McGuire's childhood interest in racing pays off at the winners circle.
His whole life, Josh had told his parents all he wanted to do was to be a racecar driver. His grades weren't the best in the world, but it was because his interest was in racing...so they made him a deal...If he'd promise to finish college, they would help buy him his first car. And so during his sophomore year in college at the University of Kentucky, he began his racing career with a Bomber (1978 Firebird). After a successful first year in the Bomber class, they started venturing into Late Models (although not full time until 2005).
The beginning of this year (2009) Josh ran with the Lucas Oil Series, but dropped off half way in hopes to run for the Rookie of the Year title in 2010. They then began jumping between series anywhere from Lucas Oil, World of Outlaws, Battle of the Bluegrass, Mid Atlantic Championship Series and others. Josh has had wins with the following series: Lucas Oil, Battle of the Bluegrass, MACS, NASRA and IRS.
"To date, winning my first $10,000 Lucas Oil Series Event at one of my home tracks (Portsmouth Raceway Park) was one of the most memorable ever, " says Josh. "We were able to celebrate this victory with my friends, family, sponsors and fans who have supported me and cheered me on throughout my entire career--there is not much more rewarding than getting to celebrate your accomplishments with those who have helped you get there. It still seems like a surreal experience".
With continuing racing success, Josh realized that having sponsors to help mitigate costs of broadening his reach to more and more venues would be a great help. He approached K&N since he had always used their product and is convinced they are the premier filters in the dirt racing industry. "While at the Performance and Racing Industry show in Orlando, Florida., they accepted my offer. I now not only represent their company, but promote their products during all of our racing ventures."
"I would use their product whether they sponsored me or not," says Josh. "K&N filters flow more air into the engine while maintaining their ability to stop more dirt and dust than a paper air filter. This is very important in the dirt late model world because our motors are state of the art technology and must be able to run for long periods of time without failure. We must remove as many variables as possible and dirt in the engine/oil is a constant concern. K&N filters can remove that variable to a point that we know there will not be a problem."
Rain made a big difference in Pennsylvania at Mercer Raceway Park where Del Rougeux Jr. raced his Chevy powered race car in the Big Block Dirt Modified Division’s Fall Brawl.
BRP Modified Tour Racer Del Rougeux took first place at Mercer Raceway Park, photo by Oyler Action Photo
Del Rougeux worked his way to the front of the pack in the Dirt Late Modified Series, photo by Oyler Action Photo
The track was heavy and rough because of the amount of water and crews were constantly working and packing it to make sure it was the best racing surface possible.
Heavy Rain turned Mercer Raceway Park into a rough track where Del Rougeux hit a rut and had to pit for repairs, photo by Oyler Action Photo
The final race in the 2009 BRP Modified Tour will be at Lernerville Speedway in Pennsylvania on October 23-24, photo by Oyler Action Photo
“In our heat race we started outside of the front row,” said Rougeux. “But, as I went into turn one I hit a bad rut and pushed up the track. After that, the car was a handful to hold on to. We settled for 2nd place in the heat and went to the pit for some major adjustments to handle the rough surface.”
In the 25 lap feature Rougeux took the 5th place starting position. “I moved up into 4th place on the drop of the green and the car was running much better,” said Rougeux. “On lap nine, I made an inside pass and settled into 2nd place.”
The Frenchville, Pennsylvania racer set his sights on the lead car. “He was running on the outside,” said Rougeux. “I moved up the track to try his line. It was faster but rougher. I moved back to the bottom where the groove was easier on the race car.”
Rougeux said his plan was to race hard until the final five laps then throw caution to the curb and run the top groove. The decision paid off and he took the lead with only two laps remaining.
“I opened the throttle up and pushed it to our second win of the year at Mercer Raceway Park,” said Rougeux. “We race in muddy and dusty conditions. When I pull my K&N air filter off after a race there is absolutely no dirt in my carburetor. The seal on the air filter lid also does a great job of preventing debris from passing by the air filter element. My K&N oil filter is also great. With all the movement and ruts we deal with on the track, there is never any pressure fluctuation on the gauge.”
The next race for Rougeux Motorsports will be at Lernerville Speedway in Pennsylvania on October 23 and 24. “It’s the final points night for the BRP Modified Tour,” said Rougeux. “We are second in points, only ten points away from winning the series.”
