News

TRG ADDS SECOND GT CAR WITH GUATEMALAN ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Wednesday, 19 January 2011 00:00 |

Homestead, FL —

As a last-minute addition to their lineup for this weekends Grand Prix of Miami, TRG is proud to announce the signing of Enrique Saravia in a second car for the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. Piloting the No. 67 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car, Saravia will be joined by TRG regular Spencer Pumpelly.

Saravia joins TRG as an accomplished veteran of Latin American sportscar racing. As the 2010 FIA America’s Award Winner, the Guatemalan driver has twice been named as Guatemala’s Athlete-of-the-Year, and is a proven winner in a number of GT categories. Making his GRAND-AM debut with TRG, Enrique is the reigning two-time Central American GT1 champion, as well as the reigning GT1 champion of the Caribbean. Beyond his driving accomplishments, Enrique is also a former professional baseball player for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“Joining TRG for this weekend is a great honor and a great opportunity,” stated Saravia. “I look forward to finally getting to race in North America. Having a team with their reputation, as well as with a co-driver such as Spencer, I know that I’ll be in good hands and I look forward to a competitive race.”

For the Grand Prix of Miami, the team will be featuring a significant presence for the country of Guatemala, which both Enrique and the team look forward to spreading awareness. For Team Owner Kevin Buckler, this is a great opportunity to bring another talented driver to the team, as well as possibly opening some new opportunities for sponsors.

“Enrique is a very accomplished driver and a superstar in his home country,” stated Buckler. “His list of championships and wins is very impressive, and I look forward to helping him transfer his talent to one of our Porsches. We also look forward to carrying the Guatemalan flag on our car, it’s a great country with some fantastic business and tourism opportunities, and I hope we can make everyone proud.”

The GRAND-AM Rolex Series Grand Prix of Miami will be broadcast live on March 6 on SPEED at 5:00 PM EST.

TRG was founded in 1993 and has been competing at the top level of motor racing ever since. The team has the most wins of any team in the Grand-Am Rolex Series with 26, including the 2005 and 2006 Rolex Series GT championship trophy to go along with wins at the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

TRG is a manufacturer and distributor of high-performance racing parts. The group specializes in engine and chassis tuning as well as full service professional race car preparation. The company also provides electrical and mechanical engineering services, driver development and arrive-and-drive opportunities. TRG is based in Petaluma, California, near its home track of Infineon Raceway in Sonoma. The company’s NASCAR operation is based in Mooresville, North Carolina and a new state-of-the-art facility is coming on-line at New Jersey Motorsports Park in 2010.

More information and a complete press kit can be found at www.theracersgroup.com. Please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 707-935-3999 for additional information.

TRG, AXA REUNITE FOR FULL HOMESTEAD ASSAULT

Tuesday, 18 January 2011 23:59 |

Petaluma, CA —

Following a successful start to the 2010 season with a podium result, AXA and Brent Koch have reunited their partnership with TRG headed in to the Grand Prix of Miami on March 6th.

Not only will the two organizations partner in their traditional entry in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, but they will also partner together in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, the first time AXA and Brent Koch have competed in the series.

As partners in the Rolex Series, the team will be competing in their traditional No. 66 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with drivers Ted Ballou and Andy Lally. Ballou and Lally started the season on a strong note, qualifying as the top Porsche in the field and leading several laps before finishing in third place. Having driven together since 2007, the duo scored Ballou’s first ever professional race win in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge at Barber Motorsports Park.

As a former winner in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Ted Ballou will return to the series on Friday with Spencer Pumpelly in the No. 41 Porsche 911. Pumpelly is off to a great start in the 2010 GS season, having scored a third place with co-driver Steve Miller, a great sign of a strong program for 2010.

AXA Financial is a leader in financial protection strategies and wealth management, supporting individual and business clients. The organization and Brent Koch have long been supporters of the team, as evidenced in their partnership throughout much of the 2009 season and now in to 2010.

For Team Owner Kevin Buckler, the opportunity to continue with AXA in 2010 is a strong sign of both organizations.

“AXA is a fantastic organization and re-defines the standard of a true partner in this business,” stated Buckler. “They help us and many others in the sport in so many ways and GRAND-AM provides a great platform for AXA to spread their message and look for unique opportunities to forge strong business to business relationships. I’m proud that they’ve continued with TRG as a means to do so and we work very well together to help accomplish our mutual goals. We have a fantastic history at Homestead, and I really look forward to showing what our programs in both series can do.“

For Brent Koch, Principal of Wealth Management Strategies, LLC, the opportunity to bring AXA in to sportscar racing and field opportunities for their financial services has been a welcome one. “We’re excited to continue our relationship in to 2010. TRG has created a great platform for us to further our business development, and I really hope to see both AXA cars take the top step of the podium in Homestead.”

The GRAND-AM Rolex Series Grand Prix of Miami will be broadcast live on March 6 on SPEED at 5:00 PM EST, and the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Homestead 200 will be broadcast on March 13 at 1:00 PM EST.

For more information on AXA and their variety of services in wealth management and equity, visit www.axa-equitable.com, or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for more information.

Pumpelly and TRG: Continental Tire Program Set for Breakout Year

Tuesday, 18 January 2011 23:58 |

Petaluma, CA —

When Spencer Pumpelly joined TRG in the fall of 2006, few who would have predicted that it would be the beginning of a four-year relationship. Headed in to next weekend’s Grand Prix of Miami, the team is hopeful to continue that relationship despite a tough economy and sponsorship challenges.

“TRG has been a great home for me and I’ve been really proud of the programs we’ve run since I came to the team,” stated Pumpelly. “This is one of the few places where you can come in and align with a professional roster of teammates, and drive in any number of categories, from amateur and club events, to the top levels of sportscar and even NASCAR. When I look back at the last several years, I’ve been really proud to have taken the wins that we have, and in particular watch some of my teammates grow and mature as professional drivers.”

Known as a key figure in TRG’s development program, Spencer has played a major role in the development of several drivers. Having driven with such teammates as Duncan Ende, achieving his first professional race win last year, and working with Scott Schroeder, who has achieved podium results in both the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge and Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, Pumpelly is one of a very small group of drivers who has not only the patience and personality to coach, but also the talent and tenacity to win. With six wins in Grand-American competition, including the 2006 Rolex 24 at Daytona, Pumpelly is one of the most sought after drivers in the series.

“Spencer is a really rare find in sports car racing,” stated TRG CEO Kevin Buckler. “He’s great with new drivers, he really enjoys taking the time to develop someone and examine their approach to driving and racing, but he’s also brutally fast. With a field as deep as both series are, I’ve seen Spencer do things that are just amazing. At Laguna Seca in 2008, we had a pit miscue sent him to the back of the field, and with only a few laps left he still found his way to the front.”

Looking towards the remainder of the 2010 season, Spencer is signed full-time to be part of TRG’s GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge GS program, yet at the moment the team is in a state of limbo as it continues to search for sponsored teammates.

As evidenced in the team’s podium finish in the season opener at Daytona, the new rules package is very favorable toward Porsche, and with three years of experience running in the category, the team feels confident that they have a top program under their tent. With the very respected and championship winning Tucker Merten running the program, the team has been allowed a major performance boost with a 3.8liter engine, a huge gain over last year’s 3.6.

“The 3.8 engine will have a major impact on our team’s performance in 2010,” stated Pumpelly. “Having more power is of course always an advantage, but the real advantage comes from the side benefits. Since we now have a strong power plant, we can run a much more stock program, meaning our reliability will be solid. With Tucker and his team we have a consistent and strong group of guys and are some of the fastest on pit road. I believe all reliability issues and the little gremlins that have haunted us in the past are finally gone.”

With the Grand Prix of Miami just over a week away, the search for a teammate continues. With multiple wins and podiums at Homestead-Miami Speedway, everyone at TRG is really hoping that they can find the necessary sponsorship or teammate to keep the program going.

“We’ve spent three years building this program, and I’m proud of the success we’ve achieved,” stated Kevin Buckler. “When I think about how much drivers like Duncan Ende and Scott Schroeder have grown and improved under our umbrella, I take it as a great compliment to the quality of our program and leaders like Spence. Our program is stronger than ever. Tucker is as good as they get for this type of program, and with the new 3.8 engine we can compete at any track. The time is now to make this program happen, I certainly hope we can find the means to. This car and team will be a threat to win every time it is on the track and some young driver is going to find an unbelievable opportunity to launch his career with us this year.”

With the next event just barely over a week away, the time is now for someone to join TRG’s team or even development program. For more information, contact Martin Steger at 707.935.3999, or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

TRG CONTINUES SUCCESSFUL DAYTONA RUN WITH PODIUM FINISHES

Tuesday, 18 January 2011 23:58 |

Daytona Beach, Fl —

For the third consecutive year, TRG took two positions on the podium in the Rolex 24 at Daytona, finishing second and third in the prestigious event.

The No. 71 car, considered one of the top contenders in the 24, sat atop the leader board for a good portion of the race, but lost nearly an hour of track time after running low on fuel and being plagued with a clutch failure. After a valiant effort to recover, the team finished ninth in the GT class.

Following a near-flawless 18-hour run, the No. 67 TRG/Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car team fell victim to a shock problem, but battled their way back through attrition, strategy and speed to finish as the top TRG and Porsche in the GT class.

After a strong pace early in the race, a rare electronic malfunction caused the the AXA TRG Porsche to lose speed for a number of hours. Once the problem was diagnosed, the team depended heavily on their talented drivers to battle their way to a third-place finish.

The Guardian Angel Motorsports TRG No. 18 had a strong and steady pace, climbing many positions over the course of the first half of the race. The team, unfortunately, dropped out due to a gear box failure and finished 19th in the GT class.

The No. 63 TRG Porsche battled a number of obstacles over the course of the 24-hour race. Following an early incident, the car underwent multiple overnight repairs and worked its way to an eventual 20th-place GT finish with some great performances by all the drivers.

TRG Team Owner Kevin Buckler was pleased to have all five of his entries finish in the top 20 positions in the GT Class.

“It’s really amazing to come to a race as historic as the 24 Hours of Daytona and visit Victory Lane eight times within the last nine years,” Buckler said. It was one of the most up and down races for TRG that we have ever participated in, have led the race for so long with several different cars. It was a heartbreak to lose the race and the win but a real testament to the team in general to field 5 strong cars and take 2 spots on the podium. Every single crew member and driver really really gave it their all. THAT, is really cool."

TRG’s No. 71 entry played off of the company’s sister organization, TRG Motorsports, in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series by featuring the same number and having driver Bobby Labonte in the car.

The Grand American racing series continues March 5 – 7 with the Grand Prix of Miami at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

About TRG
TRG was founded in 1993 and has been competing at the top level of motor racing ever since. The team has the most wins of any team in the Grand-Am Rolex Series with 26, including the 2005 and 2006 Rolex Series GT championship trophy to go along with wins at the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

TRG is a manufacturer and distributor of high-performance racing parts. The group specializes in engine and chassis tuning as well as full service professional race car preparation. The company also provides electrical and mechanical engineering services, driver development and arrive-and-drive opportunities. TRG is based in Petaluma, California, near its home track of Infineon Raceway in Sonoma. TRG Motorsports, the company’s NASCAR operation, is based in Mooresville, North Carolina and a new state-of-the-art facility is coming on-line at New Jersey Motorsports Park in 2010.

TRG CONTINUES TO RUN STRONG AT HALF-WAY POINT OF THE ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA

Tuesday, 18 January 2011 23:57 |

Daytona Beach, Fla. —

The first half of the Rolex 24 at Daytona is officially in the history books with two of TRG’s cars running first and third in the GT class.

Johannes van Overbeek has his teammates on the No. 67 are holding down the top position on the GT leader board. The 71 has had some of the world’s best drivers behind the wheel with NASCAR Champion Bobby Labonte, followed by Spencer Pumpelly and Timo Bernhard, and the car currently sits in third position. Problems with a break change put the car two laps down, but the team is confident it can make those laps up in the next 12 hours. The 2010 Rolex 24 marks Labonte’s first behind the wheel of a Porsche in the GT class.“I’ve been really excited about running in the 24 with TRG,” Labonte said. “This is my first time running the race in the GT category and it’s obviously much different from the stock car I’m used to driving, but it’s been a lot of fun. We’ve still got a long day ahead of us, but it’s been an awesome race so far.” Problems early in the session with the failure of a sensor caused the 66 car to fall 10 laps, but the team currently sits 11^th with Andy Lally behind the wheel poised to make up some lost time.The 18 car of Bruce Ledoux, David Quinlan, Dan Watkins, Bob Doyle and Tom Sheehan has been making consistent strides throughout the treacherous overnight portion of the race and currently sits in 15^th position. Bad fortune has plagued the No. 63 car, which has spent much of the last six hours with the team feverishly working to replace a good portion of its front body. The crew chief expects to have the car back on-track by 8 am.

More Articles...

GRAND-AM Road Racing - Official Web Sitegreat free widgetsWidgetboxMore info

TRG Motorsports Copygreat free widgetsWidgetboxMore info