Salem, MO. (March 18-19^th, 2016) – As the second round of the 2016 Rally America National Championship approached, the weather radar was clear and the entry list long. Perfect conditions for HPD and Maxxis to once again showcase the 2015 B-Spec Honda Fit!

 

 

 

The stage roads of 100 Acre Wood Rally 2016 would see five B-Spec competitors challenge for championship points, the largest field to date. Alongside the HPD/Maxxis Fit, a Ford Fiesta, Toyota Yaris, and Chevy Sonic would be joined by the Rally America Star Car, a 2009 Honda Fit piloted by RealTime Racing drivers Peter Cunningham and Ryan Eversley! 

 

“I’m very happy to see the size of the B-Spec field at this event.” said HPD/Maxxis driver Jordan Guitar at Park Expose on Day 1. “It is shaping up to be a great event, especially with the weather looking spectacular. We are very excited to start the rally!” The roads of 100AW are famously fast, flowing, and mixed with tight and technical sections. Day One would consist of five stages, a service, and then four more stages that would carry into the night. 

 

 

After the first five stages, the 2015 Fit was sitting in first place in B-Spec with a very tight lead of only six seconds over fellow Honda teammates Cunningham and Eversley, and had pulled out three minutes ahead of the Toyota Yaris. “The stages we just finished actually have a lot of grip on them,” stated Guitar at service. “It looks like there may be some rain coming, so it could get slippery later.”

 

 

 

As the cars drove into the night, the team of Cunningham and Eversley started to pull out some time on the duo of Guitar and William Jang. The rain started at just over a drizzle and by the last stage was coming down harder. As the teams came into service, the 2015 Fit was sitting in second place, some 40 seconds behind the 2009 Fit. 

 

“We are happy with the car’s performance so far. The car is holding together just fine and the Maxxis tires had plenty of grip,”   Guitar noted after the finish. “We are going to try and step up our game tomorrow and see if we can make up some time!”

 

 

 

Although the temperature prediction for Day Two was around 40 degrees, it would be sunny and perfect for the fast roads in Salem. “Yesterday was great,” said Jang, first time co-driver for the HPD/Maxxis Fit, “These roads suit the Fit quite well and it really shows off its potential.”

 

After completing just two stages, the cars were back at the first service of the day. The HPD/Maxxis B-Spec Fit had gained only about two seconds on the first place team. “I made a mistake on Stage 11,” Guitar explained, “I carried way too much speed into a tight right-hand corner, and ended up spinning to the left side of the road under some caution tape. Luckily, we were able to make a speedy recovery and kept going.”

 

The roads of 100AW can be a trying place for rally cars, and this year was no exception. Two B-Spec cars would suffer damage which would eventually lead to DNF’s (Did Not Finish), joining  them with 19 other competitors by the end of the two-day event.

 

After a hard fought battle, the HPD/Maxxis team would finish first in B-spec and third in 2WD. “We are very pleased with our finishing position,” stated Guitar, “although it’s unfortunate that all the B-spec cars weren’t able to make it. The Maxxis tires had tons of grip out there. The Fit performed wonderfully, and we had tons of fun. We are looking forward to the next round out in Oregon.”

 

Look for the HPD/Maxxis B-Spec Fit to continue its hunt for the championship in April, at Oregon Trail Rally in Portland, OR.

 

Today Honda unveiled the new racing livery for its Civic Red Bull Global Rallycross racecar, announcing plans to campaign the all-new turbocharged 2016 Civic Coupe in the 2016 series in partnership with Red Bull and championship-winning race team Olsbergs MSE. The Honda Civic Red Bull GRC team will begin racing on May 21 in Phoenix at the first event of the season.

Developed from a production-model 2016 Civic Coupe chassis by renowned builders and racers Olsbergs MSE (OMSE) with technical assistance from Honda Performance Development (HPD), the all-new Civic Red Bull GRC car is built to withstand the rigorous demands of racing in a series that emphasizes repeated aggressive acceleration and varied terrain. The car will boast more than 600 horsepower, turn in a 0-60 mph time of 1.9 seconds and is designed to handle the 70 foot table-top jumps featured on each racetrack.

"Global Rallycross is seriously extreme racing, and it's a terrific platform to showcase the new Civic Coupe to an enthusiastic, performance-minded young audience," said Nick Lee, National Advertising Manager, American Honda Motor Co, Inc. "We won't encourage our customers to take 70-foot jumps out on the street, but we will use this platform to tell people about all the incredible technology and performance capabilities of our new Civic Coupe."  

Driving the 2016 Honda Civic Red Bull GRC car for Team Honda are experienced competitors and former teammates Sebastian Eriksson and Joni Wiman. Eriksson, from Sweden, and Wiman, from Finland, have both made their mark in the series, with Wiman winning the 2014 Global Rallycross Championship and Eriksson finishing second in 2015. The two met in competition during the 2013 GRC Lites season, where Eriksson finished runner-up to Wiman, who swept the series.

Honda's entry into Red Bull Global Rallycross is the latest in a diverse portfolio of North American professional and grassroots auto racing programs supported by Honda that include the Verizon IndyCar Series, WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Pirelli World Challenge, United States F4 Championship and multiple Touring Car and Rally Car series.



Red Bull Global Rallycross is designed to produce some of the fastest and most exciting racing in motorsports, pitting small production-based cars against each other in door-to-door racing featuring dirt, asphalt, and table-top jumps. The 2016 Honda Global Rallycross Civic will make its racing debut on May 21 and May 22 with a double header event at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix, Arizona.  For more information visit www.RedBullGlobalRallycross.com.

Source: CRG-I Do Borrow

This last week at Sebring International Raceway for the Sebring 150, the second round of the 2016 Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge (CTSC) Series season, proved yet again that any team, no matter how big or small, has the opportunity to succeed through hard work.  Although the CRG-I Do Borrow team is small in numbers, they are vast in spirit and are as much of a family as they are a team.

Drivers Sarah Cattaneo and Owen Trinkler started the event out with a strong promoter test day to set the tone for the week in their #44 I Do Borrow/A&C Properties Honda Civic Si.  During the first and second official practices of the weekend the team mostly focused on making their car strong over the long run of the race as opposed to just quick on any given lap.  Overall pace wouldn’t rule the day come the race, as they weren’t anticipating many yellow flags in the race, so the car had to be as good at the end of a long green flag stint as in the beginning.

Cattaneo would qualify the car in the 14^th starting position, and at the drop of the green flag started making steady strides forward during her stint.  The team would call a great strategy by pitting for driver change and full service as soon as their window opened to finish the race on one stop.  Sarah would bring the #44 entry into the pits within the Top-10, and as the rest of the field cycled through their stops, Owen would find himself within the Top-5.  Poised for a strong run, Trinkler steadily began making his way forward, picking off one competitor at a time.  Before long the pink and black liveried Honda would be in the lead, and pulling away from the rest of the field.

In the end, the combination of Cattaneo and Trinkler would take the checker flag with a monumental win, set the fast lap in the race for the Street Tuner (ST) field, and take over the points lead in the Team and Drivers’ championships.  In true family fashion, this win would mean more than most, with high emotions all around.  Sarah clutching to her father and Team Owner Joe in celebration and Owen deep in thought as this marked the anniversary of his own fathers passing, who happened to last watch Owen race at the famed Sebring circuit.

“It’s been a while since Sarah and I were on the top step of the podium, and I’m so happy for her, Joe (Cattaneo) and the entire team that puts in so much work.  I had a feeling about this weekend, I wasn’t able to have my family here, but my wife kept the kids out of school today so they could watch the race online. 

Trinkler continues, “With the anniversary of my Dad’s passing, and this being the last place he ever watched me race, this win will go down as one of most important to me personally.  I want to thank Joe and the entire CRG team, Sarah, who’s grown so much as a driver, and my family for their never ending support.”

Cattaneo could be seen in pit lane pacing anxiously as the race wound to a close with her teammate in the lead, refusing to celebrate until it was official.  “Sebring was a real dream come true to win at such a historic place.  Owen and I, and the whole team have worked so hard for this, and for all that hard work to pay off is such an incredible feeling.

Sarah continues, “You can never explain what a win feels like until it actually happens, and this win feels earned.  We’ve put blood, sweat and tears into this program, and the reward was unbelievable.  I’m not sure it’s truly sunk in that we won yet.  It’s one of those moments that I’ll hold onto for the rest of my life.  Yes, we’re the smallest team in the paddock, but have such great people around us like the Rum Bum team doing our pit stops; it feels great to have captured this victory for everyone that’s put in so much effort and hard work.”

The victory was the sixth for Trinkler and second for Cattaneo in their CTSC career’s, and their first since 2012.  Sarah is one of only two female drivers with victories in the CTSC series’ history.  The Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Series Sebring 150 race can be viewed via tape delayed broadcast on Fox Sports 1 on March 27^th, 2016 at 12:30 p.m. EST.