Bruno Massel Ignites 2011 with Pro-Import Win at Palm Beach International Raceway
- Mar 29, 2011
With that victory the Chicago-area native and one-time University of Iowa football player, DePaul University law-school student, and Ralph Lauren underwear model, extended his winning streak from last season, to four consecutive races and 19 successive round wins. "Winning the Shakedown at Palm Beach was a great way to not only start the year, but my new relationship with Autogeek.net," stated Massel. "It was the first time we raced the car in heads-up competition and it really was a lot of fun. Not having to worry about our comp-index was such a luxury, and it allowed us to just focus on going fast, rather than how the ladder was falling, or if I could get by the next round clean or not. We are actually looking at running some more heads-up stuff this summer if time allows."
"In 2009 we had some pretty good stretches, but I would have to say that this is probably my longest winning streak. I just hope to keep it alive once we get into points earning events in Competition Eliminator." Now in his fifth year of co-hosting the TruckU show, Massel's racing has been referenced often on the show, "So I guess it was it was time to show off my new colors to the viewing audience," said Massel about his sponsor introduction on the show. This past off-season was very different from the past for Massel, as he literally did nothing to his car, instead, he spent untold hours putting together sponsorship proposals and presentations. "My nine year relationship with WyoTech had run its course and I had the daunting task of finding a replacement in this brutal economy," said Massel. "I had a few really big deals fall through that each would have taken us to the 'next level' and it all seemed to come at the last minute. Fortunately, Bob McKee, the CEO of Autogeek.net and I were able to get together in late January, and we put a plan in place that I think will help both of our causes in 2011. So now it's just a matter of freshening our ECOtec engines and go racing." Since Massel lists underwear modeling on his bio we felt it only fair game to ask whether he ever hears any smack-talk at the track about it. "I used to get it all the time, but I don't do much of the underwear stuff these days," laughs Massel. "When I was doing the IHRA racing broadcasts, I used to get a lot of ribbing over it. I once showed up in an Alcohol drivers pit to do an interview, and he had taken ads of mine, and had blown them up into posters, and he hung them on the side of his trailer – good times." Massel may have hung up his skivvy modeling career, but he continues to keep himself busy, having created, produced and hosted a 30 minute show called "Behind the Helmet." The show provides viewers with a behind the scenes glimpse at some of the biggest stars in motorsports. "The pilot episode features my buddy Jeg Coughlin JR and it looks to be coming to a major cable this fall," adds Massel. "I'm looking forward to a busy, and hopefully successful 2011, both on and off the track!" Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world. |
