Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Long Beach, CA (September 27th, 2014)
NASA Rally Sport recently announced the 2C - 2WD Challenge for the 2014 Prescott Rally, and drivers from all over the country responded. Offering fierce competition and a chance at a significant cash prize, 2C is what grassroots rally competitors are looking for. The 2WD Challenge is presented by Team O'Neil Rally School and Streetwise Motorsports, who believe learning to push the limits of 2WD rally cars is the best path to future success in the sport.
Hot off his 2014 NASA National Rally Championship win in 2WD, Matt Brandenburg, driving an e36 BMW M3, expressed interest in coming to Prescott shortly after Black River Stages last weekend! The challenge was made sweeter when Derik Nelson, an accomplished driver from the Northwest, who won 2WD at the 2014 Idaho Rally and is currently leading the points for the Pacific Rally Cup - signed up in his e36 BMW M3. This could be an incredible Bimmer showdown on the fast and flowing Prescott stages!
Markus Saarinen has been getting faster all year in his Mini Cooper. He will be recovering from a crash that removed the front right wheel and strut at the Gorman Ridge Rally a month ago. Markus will have his work cut out for him trying to get ahead of Kristopher Marciniak in his Dodge Neon. Kristopher is no stranger to Prescott and was the 2013 NNRC 2WD Champion and came in 4th overall last year to take the title. In the mix will be a Datsun 240Z driven by Brian Scott. Brian has extensive experience at this event in an AWD car, and took the 2WD class win last year.
Tony Chavez could take the Pacific Rally Cup home if Derik Nelson has issues, but Tony is driving a slower production class car for the California Rally Series. Tony made it clear though: "We already clinched the P-Stock championship. We will race for the 2WD win! No more points racing for us!" We couldn't have said it better, this is what 2C is all about!
Bret Robinson will be looking to shake out the gremlins from Idaho and Gorman that seemed to be giving his VW Golf some trouble. Other VW Golf hardware will be driven by Erik Christiansen who came from behind to set the fastest 2WD time on the 2014 High Desert Trails Power Stage earlier this year! Roger Matthews will be coming down from Colorado with one of two Volkswagen Rally cars. He's looking for a solid finish after his DNF at Idaho.
Some wildcards at this event include: Championship co-driver Chrissie Beavis, who pulled the family's VW Jetta out of storage for this event. Not having driven for a few years shouldn't mean much, as she is used to incredible speeds from the right seat in Open AWD cars. Also, Jason Lightner in a very fast Porsche 912 has been known to set some great stage times in his vintage rally machinery.
Rounding out the 2WD Competition will be Larry Gross in his Toyota Corolla, Deke Williams in a Dodge Neon, Steven Egger in a BMW 318i, and Jason Trubey in a VW Jetta. With the prize fund out to 5th place, look for any of these guys to be taking home some cash!
The stage is set for some absolutely fantastic 2WD competition. Follow live scores and text for the Prescott Rally at http://rallydata.com. On Twitter @NASARallySport #2WDRally #PrescottRally and on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/NASARallySport. Looking to learn to drive at the limit in a 2WD car? Go to the Team O'Neil Rally School at http://www.teamoneil.com. Looking to build a 2WD car? Talk to Streetwise Motorsports at http://streetwiseparts.com.
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FOR EDITORS:
Media Contact: Kristopher Marciniak / kris@nasarallysport.com / 646-535-4240
*More information is available on: http://www.nasarallysport.com/main/2WD_Challenge
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