Re: 2019 Silly Season Thread

[Mother of Invention]

New Chattanooga Track may host TMMC event.


The new Chattanooga Superspeedway in Soddy-Daisy, TN is reportedly a candidate for a TMMC date. The new track to be built in Soddy-Daisy Is attempting host both ASCC and TMMC races in 2019. The new 1.522 mile oval is a state of the art facility is located about one mile west of the Sequoyah Nuclear facility in Soddy-Daisy, TN a northern suburb of Chattanooga. The as potential for big races with TMMC and ASCC events.

No word yet on if the track will get a date.

[Cynon]

Rossini Re-Signs with Volpi

Volpi Racing Team announced that the TM Master Cup series's lone Italian driver will return with the Italian Volpi Racing Team. In the 5 years Rossini has spent at Volpi, he continues to average at least one race win per season and has made serious runs for the championship.

"Alessandro [Rossini] is like family to us. I can't begin to express how proud I am to have him back in one of our cars." team owner Cyril Volpi stated during the announcement.

While he has matched up quite well with Leonid Roderick in the intra-team matchup, beating Roderick in 3 of their 5 years together, but neither Volpi driver beat the other convincingly, until 2018. In 2015, both drivers finished 1 point apart, in Rossini's favor. In Roderick's 2017 championship run, Rossini had only finished 13 points behind his teammate.

Rossini's confirmation raises one of the more puzzling questions during this silly season; what of Leonid Roderick?

Coming off of some of the best on-track seasons in his TM Master Cup series career, Roderick found himself in an unusual position. Rossini beat him convincingly, finishing third in the championship, while Roderick was 188 points behind, in 9th. The 41 year old Leonid Roderick hinted after the 2018 season that the upcoming season may go on without him on the grid. Late in the 2018 campaign, Roderick expressed that he regretted "missing some opportunities", but refused to confirm if they were related to on or off track activity.

Volpi Racing Team refused to confirm or deny Roderick's status for the upcoming 2019 season.

TM Master Cup Running in Gravis City, California Twice? Returning to Pittsburgh, Minnesota?

2019 is set to see two TM Master Cup series rounds in the state of California and the Gravis City area.

After an unfortunate return of pack racing at Fontana in 2018, the series opted not to return there, but remained dedicated to run races in America's most populous state. While there are plenty of venues to choose from, the series appears all but set to announce a date at the Maxwell Center, a multipurpose stadium in Los Angeles that will open in 2019. The Maxwell Center intends to follow in the footsteps of Remembrance Field, and aims to host more than just the TM Master Cup series.

Other venues in the state reportedly in consideration for a race include Sears Point Raceway, which has hosted TM Lights races after the Champ Cars left, and Golden State Motorsports Park, another road course in the Bay Area. While those are not the only tracks in consideration, it's widely believed that a second California race would be in the Bay Area.

The TM Master Cup series had been rumored to add a second race in Gravis City only weeks before the second Grand Prix of Gravis City was held in 2015. While the location of a possible second race was not disclosed, it is strongly rumored to be in a facility currently owned by the Ohrling Corporation. Should the series race there, it would likely be just as rough on the cars as Industrial Zone 7 is, since the facility regularly is visited by very large military vehicles.

Two additional venues that might join the TM Master Cup series calendar include a race in the Pittsburgh area, either at PittRace (formerly Beaverun), which has hosted TM Lights races, or at the refurbished Steelback Stadium. Steelback Stadium, when it was called Pittsburgh Motor Speedway, hosted the TM Master Cup series from its inaugural season up until 1989, when it was dropped from the calendar due to poor upkeep and inadequate safety measures.

Another date reportedly joining the TM Master Cup series calendar is a race in Minnesota, where the series has not raced in this millennium. Duluth Raceway is a leading contender to join the calendar, but there are multiple other tracks closer to Minneapolis and St. Paul that appear to be stronger candidates for TM Master Cup dates.

[Magus978]

OFFICIAL: Tom Delgado Racing to Mount Independent's Trophy Challenge

Former ASCC & Dash Cup champion Tom Delgado confirmed on Twitter this afternoon that he is ending his search for a full season contract and will instead compete for the 2019 Independent's Trophy as well as an attempt at the 2019 Indianapolis 500. He cited lack of interest from other teams as his reasoning for this decision.

Delgado, 44, will be contesting the Independent's Trophy for the first time. He has competed in Master Cup intermittently from 2008 to 2014, with a best points finish of 9th in 2010. He owns two Master Cup wins, both coming in the 2011 season. In 2014, he won the ASCC championship, and added another series title in 2017 by winning the Dash Cup title in what has become known as the "Miracle in Manhattan", by overcoming a 79-point deficit in the final race to win the title.

Delgado had expressed an Independent's Trophy interest in the past, but never pursued it further until now. He had said he was open to signing for a smaller team if their long-term planning was sound, but reports indicate that teams were put off by several factors, which were his high price tag, his unpredictable attitude, and his health. Most of all, interested teams were concerned by the fact that on his best days Delgado still considers himself the best in the world and that he would be unwilling to step aside if asked to.

Delgado also posted a few days ago on social media that he had acquired a 2019 customer car as a "Plan B", but it is not currently known which car he has acquired. It appears as though he is now ready to act on that "Plan B" and attempt to add to his Hall of Fame-caliber resume. Winning the Independent's Trophy as well as the Indianapolis 500 in the same year would certainly do that, and above all else, that is what Delgado cares about the most.

[NascarAwesomeSquid24]

Nathan Ormond to join Dan Mullen in the booth for races that he did not make the field.
While racing for the Independent's trophy for the 2019 TM Master Cup Series Season, there are going to be some races that Nathan Ormond will not make the field. For those races that he is not racing in, Nathan Ormond had announced that he is very much interested in joining the long-time TM Master Cup Series Announcer Dan Mullen in the booth. "There will be times where I won't be a part of the race this coming TM Master Cup Series season and I won't be doing anything during the race." Ormond said. "So I have made a decision that when I'm not in my car, then the 2nd thing I want to contribute to the TM Master Cup Series is to join the legendary Dan Mullen in the booth."

[NascarAwesomeSquid24]

Independent's Trophy Ride Announced for Nathan Ormond.
Nathan Ormond Motorsports had announced that they have finalized a ride for Independent's Trophy contender Nathan Ormond. Nathan Ormond is going to be driving the #241 Youtube Omecha. "With my new ride for this upcoming season, I will make sure that my first season in the TM Master Cup Series is going to be a great one for me and my team."

[Cynon]

Webster and Jonser Earn DeGarmo Enterprises Rides

DeGarmo Enterprises welcomed their driving lineup for the 2019 TM Master Cup season -- Zack Webster and, making a surprise return to the series, Craig Jonser.

Webster is still eligible for Rookie of the Year, and will join what appears to be a strong rookie class in 2019. After spending the last 5 years as one of Power Steering Incorporated's third drivers, winning two consolation races in a PSI car, both at Decatur. DeGarmo Enterprises owner Owen DeGarmo claimed that Webster's signing was "overdue", and that Webster "should have been in the series last year with us". DeGarmo did not explain what prevented Webster from being part of the team's 2018 efforts. Webster has had Supercharged Energy as a regular sponsor throughout his career, but it doesn't appear to have been a factor in his signing.

Craig Jonser's signing is seen as a surprise, even though Jonser has anchored DeGarmo's TM Lights team since 2014. Jonser was the only driver to be able to beat Saul Fischel in a head to head battle. While allegedly bringing sponsorship of his own, Jonser's sponsors don't appear to have held enough sway to give him the drive.

Jonser is set to carry number 81 on his car, as he did for the last 2 years in TM Lights. It isn't known what number Webster will carry.

Soveral Looking at Hastert, BlackDiamond

After overly eventful 2017 and 2018 seasons, Luciano Soveral is reportedly close to a deal for the 2019 TM Master Cup campaign. The Brazilian clashed with seemingly everything and everyone under the sun in 2018, and, amusingly, he appears likely to sign with a team that he feuded with the previous year.

Soveral collided with both BlackDiamond Racing drivers during last year's Ohio race, triggering the now-infamous restart pileup. BlackDiamond Racing team manager Sean Rossiter called Soveral; "a living soap opera", and proclaimed; "I'll be dead before he walks into our shop". Supposedly, Soveral and BlackDiamond Racing have been in talks for a race seat in 2019, and reports indicate that negotiations are advancing.

Gene Hastert's motorhome collided with Luciano Soveral's back in late 2017, which led to a heated argument. Hastert referenced this incident on live TV after Soveral collided with his cars 3 times in the first 5 races of 2018, and was infamously blocked by both Hastert cars at the HLR Raceway on multiple occasions. Both men have apparently put any bad blood behind them, as Soveral has met with Hastert about a drive for 2019.

With many rides seemingly out of reach for the Brazilian, his options for the 2019 season appear to be limited.

[pennst24]

Eichholtz Looks For Career Revival

As a new season of racing looms, many free agents are set to nail down their plans for 2019. One such driver is Jacob Eichholtz. The Florida native has not made a TMMC attempt since the 2014 season, as he has battled through injuries and varying levels of success in Dash Cup competition since then. The two-time Spa GP winner battled back from a back injury sustained in the 2014 Dash Cup finale to become a Matthews-Atlantic replacement driver midway through the 2015 season, winning the Spa GP in stirring fashion. A move to his good friend Ben Atkins' team for 2016 mounted in several more race victories, but inconsistency plagued his chances at a title challenge.

Two further seasons at the underfunded Silverback team were highlighted by wins at Carlisle and Brands Hatch in 2018. However, Eichholtz has been replaced at Silverback for 2019, where Briton Jordan Vaughn has bought his seat with backing from his father, leaving Eichholtz to take on an advisory role with the team for the near future.

"Obviously, I'd like to be full-time somewhere. I feel like my career's just been a mixing and mashing of different cars and series, and I think a more stable home would be pretty good," Eichholtz said. "Dash Cup has a lot of younger guys and girls who show promise and have some money behind them. Obviously, I can't really complain about it, as being connected to racing from my dad helped me immensely".

The 29-year-old American has a past history running for his father's team in the American scene, coming up through modifieds before embarking on a career in ARLA (now FARC) competition, winning Rookie of the Year as he was still in contention for the drivers' championship at the finale race at Rockford. Moving up, he scored a podium at the 2012 TM Master Cup Round of Russia, as well as winning the 2013 Independent's Trophy Invitational on his way to a IT title run that fell short that season. Time will tell if he will get another crack at the top level of American racing after being a mainstay in the UK for several seasons.

[Magus978]

RUMOR: Delgado to Reach Out to Soveral?

Tom Delgado is reportedly set to reach out to free agent Luciano Soveral about driving a Tom Delgado Racing entry for Karjala and Gravis City, with Delgado not planning to travel out of North America for his 2019 Independent's Trophy challenge.

A source within the team said that Delgado holds Soveral in very high regard dating back to their short time as teammates in 2014 at Lenard International, and would be willing to give Soveral a per-attempt guarantee of $200,000 to pilot his proposed #37 entry in those two events, with bonuses to be had should the Brazilian be able to successfully qualify the TDR entry for those two races.

Delgado recently gave praise to Soveral on Twitter, in contrast to the drama that surrounded the Brazilian star in the 2018 season. However, sources within Tom Delgado Racing are not optimistic about being able to get a deal done, and have other meetings lined up with several other free agent drivers for a similar two race deal.

[RocketKnight]

Neucom to Make Independent's Trophy Bid

Neucom Motors, a team best known for their success in Japan and also in Formula B, recently announced their intention to run for the Independent's Trophy in 2019. Team owner Kira Hirose has expressed interest in the TM Master Cup Series, seeing a great opportunity to get their name out there in the world of stock car racing. A manufacturer is not confirmed yet, but rumors point to them running a Kanako, as they already have a relationship with them as their engine supplier in Formula B.

Neucom is looking to find a strong driver with experience to help them in their bid, and have reportedly approached Master Cup veterans such as Brian Sendack, Jacques Bouvier, and Azuma Kazeyama, although it is merely rumor. If they can't find a driver, it's possible either his daughter Rena Hirose or her Formula B teammate Kyoko Miyama will drive the car.

(DM me if you're interested in driving for the team. A Japanese driver and/or one with TMMC experience would be the most desirable, but I may still show interest in other drivers as well. FARC road ringers would also be seriously considered.)

[Cynon]

Gravis City to Host Two Races as Ohrling Park Secures Date

The Ohrling Corporation's application to host a TM Master Cup series race has proven successful, and starting in 2019, the Gravis City metropolis will host two TM Master Cup races. The venue will use service roads intended for large vehicles for Ohrling, in what is being called a roval. The asymmetrical oval layout has drawn comparisons to the Champ Car oval in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and to an airport racetrack because of its width. The race is presently called the Round of Ohrling Park. It is likely to come immediately before the Grand Prix of Gravis City and include the TM Lights as a support ticket race.

The race's inclusion to the calendar has received mixed reactions. A driver who wished to remain anonymous claimed that the track was; "the wet dream of one guy with too much money in a place nobody wants to go to". Another driver, who also wished to remain anonymous, said the venue; "will separate the champs from the chumps" because of the likely surface conditions.

[racingfreak1999]

FAC Motorsports hope to once again compete for Independent's Trophy in 2019; driver options open

FAC Motorsports, a team who has been a fixture in the Independent's Trophy roster since 2013, has announced their intentions to once again run for the Independent's Trophy for the 2019 TM Master Cup Series season.  If accepted, team owner Frank Azure also stated that all options are on the table as far as drivers go.  Possible contenders include former TM Lights winner Nick Azure and 2016 FARC champion Chuck Johnson.  The latter mostly depends on Johnson's plans for 2019.

[Cardinals5]

Leak Confirms Olenick to HWR?

It looks like confirmation on who would be filling one of the most coveted open seats in the TM Master Cup series - the Hodges-Walter car driven by Adrien Devereux - has finally come from an unlikely source; a leaked web page (the site is unknown at this time but is believed to be Hodges-Walter Racing's team site) with Joe Olenick listed as the primary driver, alongside David Kirkorian, whose place at HWR was previously announced. It's believed the page was only active for a minute as a quality-control measure, but a Twitter user was able to capture an image.

Olenick would, according to the image, remain in car 23. Sponsorship details were not listed on the site.

Olenick and representatives for HWR were not available for comment.

[Mother of Invention]

Ricky McKenzie draws eyes from Maximus?


There always seem to be some left field rumors during silly-season, but this one has traction, and is quite silly at the same time. FARC Larry Lemon Series driver Ricky McKenzie has been tied to a possible ride with Maximus racing. The FARC LL driver has been a steady but incredibly unspectacular presence in FARC's second tier. Many detractors are booing the idea saying he's out of his element. But many people are saying McKenzie could be a steal as they point to how clean he keeps his equipment and that if he was not using self owned equipment that he would be able to show more potential. The big holdup is likely weather the team brings Ricky

Lets face it though, the real reason Maximus has him on his radar isn't the driver. McKenzie has ties to Elsinore, Canada's second largest brewery. Supposedly Elsinore could pay a "significant 7 figure sum" to Maximus according to insiders. enough to let the team compete with the Tutino's and Ortegas of the TMMC world. This also wouldn't be the first time a Canadian driver drove for Maximus. Dan "small hands" McKay drove for the team on and off in the early 2010s.

[navycook75]

Daniel Leckliter confirmed for Tonare Motorsports ride

The 30 year old will race full time for the first time in 10 years with the new Tonare Motorsports. The news came as weird to some people, as Leckliter hasn't been keen on running full time after his disaster of a season in 2009. He did respond to this by saying "They offered quite a bit of money, and at first I was still against it, but I said to myself "Why the hell not?" and signed on. It would be nice to give another full time season a shot."

For the first time in his Master Cup career, he'll be driving his usual FARC number 10. He's also planning on bringing aboard his 2018 sponsors Flex-Box and Flex Seal, and possibly his FARC sponsor, Binford Tools.

[racingfreak1999]

FARC Champion Chuck Johnson joins Hastert Racing

Five years ago, South Carolina's Chuck Johnson's racing career seem to be over.  Since then Johnson has shown he has potential for greatness.  His ability has caught the eye of not only his initial detractors, but also caught the eyes of TM Master Cup team owners.  Which culminated to today, where FAC analyst Jeff Gate reported that the 2016 FARC champion has signed to drive for Hastert Racing for the 2019 TM Master Cup Series season.

Johnson began his career driving for his family run race team, who own a local racing parts distributor.  Despite showing flashes of brilliance, he had a hard time breaking out of the local and regional level due to never getting any more substantial funding.  After showing some speed in the FARC Truck Series, his first opportunity came in 2014, where he ran the in National Pro Cup Championship, where he was a dominate force.  Unfortunately, the series overextended it's schedule by going to a number of street and larger road circuits despite being a late model series.  His small-budgeted family run team ran itself dry just to finish the season.  Johnson won the championship that year, but put his family in debt in the process.  Without funding, his career seemed over.  After being jobless in 2015, Johnson got another chance when he was picked up by KAT Motorsports to run in the FARC Lowe Dollar Series in 2016.  In his first season he was a championship finalist in FARC's short lived FARC-Off and beat his competition which included series veteran Bob Stephens to win the 2016 championship.  In three seasons in FARC, Johnson has had top 10 points finishes in each of them, five poles, and three wins.  Catching the eye of Hastert Racing owner Gene Hastert.

"I've been working for this moment my whole career.  To think a kid from South Carolina whose daddy, who owned a small parts supplier, would scrape just enough to fund his racing efforts would be good enough to get a chance to race against the best in the world.  To think that almost five years ago, this seemed like an impossibility.  Thanks to Gene Hastert for a shot to prove myself on a global stage.  I know FARC champions don't have the greatest track record in Master Cup, but I hope to change that"

At 33, Johnson will be one of, if not the oldest rookie on the 2019 grid.  He will also join fellow FARC champion Ryan Matthews as the only other FARC champion currently on the full-time grid.  Sponsors and number are still unconfirmed.

[Cardinals5]

Confirmed: Joe Olenick Signs with Hodges-Walter Racing

Confirming both the leaked screenshots of what were later confirmed to be beta versions of Hodges-Walter Racing's 2019 team site and the reports of Steve Payter, Joe Olenick confirmed on his podcast that he has signed with the team for the 2019 season.

"I can finally report that I will be in the TM Master Cup Series for 2019, driving for Alan Hodges and Carl Walter," Olenick stated as he opened the podcast. "For those of you keeping score, that is the same car Adrien Devereux drove for so many years."

Olenick followed the announcement with another; he would be driving his familiar car number 23.

"At this point, a lot of my identity as a driver is around that number. It's the number I drove in TM Lights and it's the only number I've had in Master Cup. I asked Alan and Carl if there was any way we could use the number and they surprised me - they'd already requested it."

There was no mention of the sponsors for the season beyond Olenick saying the team was working out which sponsors were going on which cars - his or David Kirkorian's.

[bsoyuz]

Ellison all but confirmed in Tutino

Eccentric personality aside, Trueman Ellison became a very hot commodity in the Master Cup scene. The driver/realtor/independent movie producer/leathr jacket aficionado has been in the crosshairs of TMMCS teams for at least two years, since his unlikely triumph at Talladega in 2016.

Ellison might now be with his path set for Scuderia Tutino. The italian team using older Volpi models has proceeded to turn enough heads that they built potential for 2019, and Ellisoncan be an extremely important cog in the overall machine, alongside Irish rally driver Gareth Hunt.

About the likely possibility of his signing, Ellison stated "So there’s this guy, Trueman, a true American hero, to be me. He has it all, good looks, make friends and also maybe is vampire. We’ll see... And then this beautiful girl. Anything for my princess...She betray him, she takes his kids. And then this guy Trueman, he go crazy."

Scuderia Tutino and Marino Tutino were approached, but did not respond until the publishing of this article.

Macena reportedly in talks with Hastert, Lawrence and Mitchell

A driver that made a lot of waves, but hasn't found a full-time slot, yet, is brazilian Gabriel Macena. The fiery, uncouth driver has a few strong Independent's Trophy results under his belt between 2014 and 2018, but his self-destructive personality has translated into marketing nightmares for whoever he drives for.

A "new, improved, humbled" Macena has been advertised by his agent during negotiations with multiple teams, with talks going back as early as 2018 with a possible BlackDiamond return, but BDR chose another brazilian instead, Luciano Soveral, who walked out of Lenard International following a disappointing 2018.

This left Macena without a safe haven to go under, and currently according to sources within the Master Cup garage, he's still actively seeking a team, the possible slots he may find go from unlikely seats at Volpi, to newcomers Hastert, passing through Frank Lawrence's team and traditional Mitchell and Sons, so far the only thing known is that regardless of where he lands, the brazilian would automatically play second fiddle.

The only team where he would be the #1 driver is Maximus, but he hasn't showed interest on them himself.

Macena was approached by the writers of this article, but refused to answer our questioning citing he "will not discuss rumours until they have a solid base under them. Any talk I may or may not be having are just speculations until otherwise stated".

[Cynon]

Marco Diaz Castañeda Signs Race Drive With Richter

Richter has finally answered the question on who will drive their second car in 2019. Mexican TM Lights standout Marco Diaz Castañeda will drive as teammate to Arto Kekkonen in 2019. Castañeda finished a distant 2nd in the 2018 TM Lights series points standings, but notably, ended the season 94 points ahead of 3rd place. Castañeda did not set low expectations for himself and for the team for the upcoming season.

"I fully expect to be talking to you in 12 months and talking about what my first win was like. This team just won the championship, and they have more than two names in their cars. Arto [Kekkonen] is an amazing driver and I got here by fighting my way up on my own." Castañeda said to the press.

Asked if his comments were a jab at former Richter driver Kevin Dwyer, Castañeda dismissed those accusations.

"I'm not here to talk about people that are not on the team anymore. I had no part in Kevin's deal. Ask him."

Carl Richter supported Castañeda's boasting in the press. "Marco is already a great cheerleader for the people at Richter Motorsports, not just on the TM Master Cup side, but his guts and heart have gotten to our Champ Car team as well."

Castañeda will likely drive car #2 in the first tire test at Golden State Motorsports Park in a few weeks.


Lynxe Calls up Eklund to Partner Haddeland

Lynxe Racing has endured a difficult offseason, having gone from a team with a lot of momentum and energy to a team robbed of it in 2 weeks time. Losing Yuliya Nosova to maternity leave appeared to only be a surprise to the press, and Lynxe Racing simply moved the 2018 Rookie of the Year, Norwegian Ingrid Haddeland, over from her one year stint at Hastert Racing.

Then, Lynxe's team leader, Englishwoman Divina Henton, was injured after a testing crash, and their whole season appeared to be a wash. Mélanie Clévenot made it clear that she was not available to take the ride, as she was embarking on an assault at Le Mans. Clair Auxier, the anchor of Lynxe's deep development pool, turned down the offer of a full-time ride after she had a disasterous 2017 season in recalcitrant DeGarmo Enterprises cars. Auxier will return to her duty as the team's main TM Lights driver, but highly recommended one of Lynxe's other development drivers for the TM Master Cup series role.

Enter Liv Eklund. The Swedish-born Eklund only finished 17th in TM Lights points in 2018, never winning a race, but whose rate of improvement caught attention. Eklund is already eligible for a Master License, but she has never driven a TM Master Cup series car outside of a demo run.

Eklund said she was up for the challenge, but knew that 2019 would be a really rough season for her.

"I feel like my big sister lent me her car, and that I have to take care of it, because it's her ride. But at the same time, I have to do her proud and do my best in it." Eklund said.
"Divina [Henton] really is like that big sister, you know? Her, Ingrid [Haddeland], Juliette [Lauvais], and Clair, and all of the people make this team a really positive environment... and we haven't even gotten started yet."

Eklund ended her press conference with a now-infamous quote by the only woman to win the TM Master Cup championship, Alexis Rainsford;

"I'm not here to read history, I'm here to make it."

[Dexter249]

New Manufacturer Eyeing Part-time Master Cup Entry?
Grendel Auto Werke gmbh. The 6 time Spa 24 Hour winning manufacturer has been consistently eyeing a chance to break into Stock Car Racing. Grendel has announced it's car will be based on the Grendel Varcolac, the supercharged V8 variant of the GAW-4, 4 Cylinder Family sedan. The team will only be running the Road Course races and no photos of the Varcolac MCR (Master Cup Racer) exist as of the current announcement, no drivers have been announced as of yet, however it is rumoured Grendel sports car driver, Milosz Sulejmani will be driving one of the 4 2019 Varcolac MCRs, but Grendel has yet to confirm, the numbers will be the same as the first 4 24 hour winners, and the team running it will be Grendel's in-house team, now renamed Grendel Team MCR (Meisterchraft Racing), the numbers so far are the #58, #78, #109 and #160.
Grendel will be looking to go full time and be selling cars to privateers in 2020.

[DunnTheRacer]

Lucas Grabert Hopeful of a Master Cup Ride

25 year old German Lucas Grabert is eyeing a ride in the TM Master Cup Series in 2019, but has not yet been successful. Despite of that, he still believes there is a team that is willing to take a chance and sign him.

Although a very unknown driver to most people, he does have experience in a few racing disciplines, such as open wheel racing, rally racing, and GT racing.

"I've worked hard each and every day to try to get to this point in my racing career. I have always dreamed of racing and competing against the best in the TM Master Cup Series." Grabert stated. "You know, there hasn't been a lot of German drivers that have had success in the Master Cup. But I have always looked up to racers like Franz Redlich and Friedrich Jaeger who have tried to make a name for themselves. I want to change that this time around. It will be a unique and tough challenge for me to face, but if someone is willing to sign me, I will give it my all to redirect history for German racers in this series."

It is unclear as to whether a full-time team has considered signing him or not.

[bsoyuz]

Macena and Ellison reportedly on Tutino's final shortlist for the #50 car

Trueman Ellison's safe road into the #50 Scuderia Tutino Volpi is safe no longer. Sources within the Italian outfit mention Gabriel Macena and Trueman Ellison are now the two names that could wind up in the second Tutino car.

Both drivers bring personal funding, and previous FARC experience, with two wins each, though Macena also has Dash Cup experience. However, the potential 'PR nightmare' Macena might be, as mentioned by the Tutino insider, could sway the balance in favor of Ellison, but Ellison's 'uncertain Master license' status can sway the balance in favor of the controversial brazilian, who achieved solid results in his Independent's Trophy appearances from 2014-2019 and in TM Lights through 2014 and 2015.

Scuderia Tutino was contacted, but did not release any statement so far. Macena was also contacted and responded "I have been in talks with Marino Tutino indeed, but I cannot say if these talks are about a 2019 deal."

Ellison was also contacted and responded through an e-mail: "oh hi doggie".

Saar do Brasil goes under sale

Following Saar's economical crisis in Brazil, leading to massive cuts in funding, the brazilian branch of the manufacturer no longer directly supports the TM Master Cup Series operation started in 2014. The team proceeded to achieve multiple good results and contest for the Independent's Trophy title, but Saar Motor Company's near-bankruptcy in the brazilian market meant the team initially scaled back to a single car in 2018, and now is under risk of leaving the series completely.

Unless they find a buyer. It has been greatly rumored that brazilian racing outfits are looking to take over the outfit, but the funding will have to be secured with a sponsor, it is unknown how far into a potential acquisition process the team is, but it is known the operation currently known as Saar do Brasil will have a new name for the 2019 TM Master Cup Series season, there has been no confirmation if the team will "re-expand" to two cars, or the single car team set up will be maintined.

[Cynon]

Team Timothy Purchases Maximus Racing Entry, Confirms Dilks

In a surprising announcement, Team Timothy confirmed that they had purchased the Maximus Racing entry for the 2019 TM Master Cup series season, with Maximus Racing assuming Team Timothy's Independent's Trophy entry. In addition, Team Timothy confirmed New Jersey driver Jon Dilks to be driving its flagship #68 Gessler.

"When both myself and Max [Maximus Racing team owner, Max Imus] talked about the entry, both of us knew it was going to be the best interests of both sides." Timothy said to the media.
"He's got a team he can build up, and when they regroup, I'm sure they'll be back. We're going to try and make the most of the opportunity we have."

Team Timothy has never competed at the TM Master Cup series level on a regular basis, but they have a strong presence in the TM Lights series, and an operation in the TM Canada series. Team owner Dan Timothy previously drove in the TM Master Cup series from 1988 until he retired from TM Master Cup competition on his 50th birthday in 2004. He continued in the TM Lights series for a few years afterwards as a driver. Despite never winning a TM Master Cup series race, Timothy ran one of the more highly-regarded Independent teams for his willingness to help others, particularly younger drivers. Timothy holds the record for most TM Lights wins by a Canadian driver, with 19.

[The_Wall_91]

Long in Talks with Team Timothy?

With the surprising announcement of Team Timothy buying the Maximus Racing spot on the 2019 grid, a rumor has surfaced in the FARC garage that Tony Long is the rumored second driver of the team.

The background of this rumor has some traction. Long has expressed interest in joining the TM Master Cup Series alongside Team Timothy's owner Dan Timothy showing interest in running a FARC team where Long currently competes. Given Dan Timothy's reputation for his willingness to help young drivers, Tony's youthful age, 21, could put him as one of the favorites for Timothy's second car.

"I have not had contact with Dan (Timothy) since he announced his desire to enter FARC competition" Tony said. "Personally, I did not know about the news of Team Timothy taking over the Maximus entry until a few hours ago. I already have a commitment to drive in FARC for SWH Racing."

Tony is coming off a quiet rookie campaign in the FARC Lowe Dollar Series finishing in the top 40 in points for a struggling team. He collected 2 solid top-15 efforts but did not show the speed to compete for wins. Many in the garage, and in the team itself, attributed this to a struggling development for the team that hampered their speed.

"We have a solid group over at SWH, we just never got to show our true potential" Long said. "2019 should be a better year for us as we are all sticking together and the new rules that FARC has implemented for the championship is going to help our cause tremendously."

When asked if he was open to changing plans for 2019, Tony said, "I would hate to change plans at the last minute. I like where I am at currently, maybe some time in the future but my plan is quite clear. If Mr. Timothy wants to contact me, he knows where to find me in the FARC garage and I am willing to talk whatever he has on his mind. I don't expect to be on his shortlist of drivers but if it happens, it happens. I am sure if a deal gets reached of some sort, I know the guys and gals at SWH will be supportive in whichever direction I go. But as of this moment, I am sticking with SWH for 2019."

[bsoyuz]

Macena achieves consortium, takes over Saar do Brasil

In news that shocked the brazilian racing world, it has been announced that Brazilian driver Gabriel Macena, together with Patrícia Alencar, entrepreneur and heir to the Alencar racing family, one of the most traditional dynasties in brazilian motor racing alongside the Macenas, have bought the ailing Saar do Brasil operation.

The team is to be known now as PowerTeam Brazil, a nod to the current team Alencar manages over, PowerTeam-Havan, sponsored by the brazilian department store chain Havan, which has the Statue of Liberty as its main iconography.

It is expected the store sponsors the team partially as Unitron, national technology company, Venum, french-brazilian sportswear company and Cicero, american company that has been sponsoring Macena's since his FARC forays, will front the bill for the team.

There has been no confirmation whether or not the team will feature more than one car in its challenge for the Independent's Trophy Crown.


Trueman Ellison confirmed as Tutino's 2nd driver

With Macena acquiring his own team, this leaves the Scuderia Tutino team without any meaningful options aside from FARC driver Trueman Ellison to drive the #50 automobile.

The FARC driver that hails from an unknown location in eastern europe, driving under the american flag will contest his first full-time season in Master Cup, and due to his undisclosure of age, rumoured to be between the late 40s and early 50s, Ellison effectively becomes the oldest rookie in recent memory, and the eldest driver to be confirmed in the 2019 Master Cup field of battle.

It is unconfirmed, but expected that Ellison brings his sponsors Genuine Stolen Parts, Korea Leather Imports, JANET Airlines, The Bank, Mark's and High Mark to the team.

About the official announcement of his entrance into Tutino, Ellison had to say "hi yeah gimme a dozen red roses, hi trueman did not know it was you, yes that's me, that will be 18 dollars, okay keep the change thank you, you're my best customer, hi doggie bye bye"

[Syzygy]

RUS Autosport Announces Split, Master Cup Plans

In a surprising move, RUS Autosport Team Principal "Team Boss" Vitaly Tsolikov announced that his two race shops would be separating and splitting operations. The Kill Devil Hills, NC shop, which currently houses the FARC Lowe Dollar Series and TM Lights efforts, will become known as RUS Autosport America. RUS Autosport America is expected to continue operations in both the FARC LDS Series and TM Lights Series in 2019. A Master Cup effort is also in the works for RUS Autosport America, with plans to attempt several of the Lights-Master Cup companion races with current TM Lights driver Lev Azarov. The American effort is also expected to attempt the American over-capacity rounds and Gravis City. Longtime RUS Autosport-affiliated driver Yevgeny Kuznetsov is expected to co-own the American operations along with Lev Vladimirovich Polzin.

The Moscow, Russia shop, which currently houses the TM Master Cup and TM Europe efforts, are expected to scale back their Master Cup efforts to the Karjala Grand Prix, Round of Russia, and Gravis City. Vitaly Tsolikov will continue to operate the European operations. Their driver lineup will be announced at a later time.

[Jonny683]

Jon Dilks Comments on Team Timothy Entry

Jon Dilks was excited to finally be able to secure a ride in TM Master Cup, and even a reunion with a car number he drove years ago in the TM Lights when he started a Team that was eventually shut down due to the unknown toll it took to field cars in each region on the then 3 series TM Lights.

Dilks told reporters that, "I'm excited for this. I'm hoping to turn this into a oppurtunity to help grow a new team and be a driver they can go to in this time. Running a team in FARC has helped me learn the other side of owning a team, and this effort, hopefully, will help grow me as well as a driver. My last few years have been rough and it's been hard to keep my head above the water, missing races, and the Spice Cola team eventually letting me go was a huge blow. Maybe if Spice wanted to sponsor this team, it would help us grow faster, but if they don't it'll be fine as well. I'm looking forward to the new car and the new tracks on the schedule. Can't wait!" He said, before departing.

[Groribe]

Timothy Ruiz rumored to run full time

FARC Elite Series driver Timothy Ruiz, who got multiple 2nd place finishes and just finish in the top 15 in points last season while running part time, is rumored to have been contacted by Team Timothy and Hastert Racing to run full time in the TM Master Cup series. If the rumors are true, then Timothy would be running both the FARC Lowe Dollar series (either part time or full time) and the TM Master Cup Series. We tried to reach out to Timothy Ruiz and what his future might be at this time, but he politely declined to comment saying quote "Running both series is difficult, but if I did have the opportunity to run two series full time, I would try it and see how it goes"

Timothy Ruiz has rather been known that if he's not wrecking his equipment or having issues, he's either competing for a win or running in the top 5 or 10. What's more is that he finish 2nd when there were a large amount of scouts from the TM Master Cup back at race 11 of the 2018 FARC series and bested some of the TM Master Cup series driver, so that could be a factor. We'll hear more if we do get any updates.

**literally an hour later**

Ruiz confirmed to run both FARC and TM Master Cup

It is official, Timothy Ruiz will be driving Hastert Racing in the TM Master Cup Series full time in 2019. Hastert Racing is rather new to the series and also got 2016 FARC Elite Series Championship driver Chuck Johnson, so Timothy Ruiz will at least have someone the he knows. The number he got was 33, which he liked. In an introduction interview, he said "FARC is a great place that help me honed my skills and lead me to get this ride." He also mention that while he has yet to win the Lowe Dollar series, he has proven time and time again that he's no pushover. When asked about the future of his team, all he said was "Polito's is on board, whoever drives the car, whatever be me or someone else." This could a hint that if Xavier Ruiz does okay enough, he might be able to just get Timothy's ride. Then again, Timothy could just run full time in both series.

2019 is looking to be a big year for Timothy Ruiz. We'll see how he'll do in new equipment and a top tier series.

[Cynon]

Roderick Announces Sabbatical

6-time TM Master Cup series champion Leonid Roderick announced through his website and twitter account that he would not be driving for the 2019 season, citing a desire to recover from an injury he sustained last season and to reassess his priorities after the passing of his father after New Years. Roderick did not say he was retiring, and expressed a desire to return to driving in 2020. He plans to still be at most of the races, but will assume a race strategist role on the #4 Volpi.

Cyril Volpi confirmed the new arrangement, and that the likelihood of Roderick returning in 2020 was very high.

"We had a conversation about what he wants to do. As long as he wants to drive, I'll do what I can to get a car for him, but what he wants to do now is help the team in other ways." Volpi stated.

The 41 year old Roderick has equaled or beaten most of his early rival Benny Dwyer's records, except for winning the Karjala Grand Prix a fourth time. The lack of a fourth Karjala Grand Prix victory could be the biggest motivating factor for Roderick to return.

No replacement has been named, but Chris Davenport and Tom Moore are currently the leading candidates.

[JMac525]

BREAKING NEWS: Tom Moore Signs Deal to Drive #4 Volpi

After the shocking announcement of legendary driver Leonid’s Roderick’s step away from driving, news has emerged Seattle, Washington’s Tom Moore has been announced as the new driver. Moore has found much success on the short tracks on the TMMC circuit and has shown progressive improvement on road courses and super speedways. Moore said, “I am honored to drive for Volpi and its vast array of great engineers and crew. I will do my very best to follow up one of the best drivers of all time and make my own story in the #4. Working with him (Roderick) will be a great honor and fantastic opportunity in my racing career.” More announcements are to come from Moore.

[Rykia]

Ike Durbin Full Time for Team Timothy in 2019

Since his Independent's Trophy championship with Terra International Motorsports in 2014, Ike Durbin has become somewhat of a journeyman, making limited appearances in the TM Master Cup paddock for various full time outfits, while also briefly running in the European Dash Cup. Despite this, he is still most well known for his Independent runs.

Heading into 2019, however, Durbin will finally make his own full-time debut, as he'll join Jon Dilks as a driver on the Team Timothy squad, who will return to full-time TM Master Cup competition in their own right, after taking over the Maximus Racing team's grid slot.

"It's refreshing," Durbin claimed in an interview, "I've been spending the past several seasons trying to string driving opportunities together at the top level. Now that I have something lined up for the full schedule, I feel like I can take a deep breath now, relax, and get set to focus on the season instead of being worried about finding the next gig."

Durbin will pilot the second car for Team Timothy, with a number and sponsor that are To-Be-Announced at the time of writing this article.

[DunnTheRacer]

Lucas Grabert Snags Second Lawrence Gravity Racing Ride

After all of the shenanigans that have ensued for Lawrence Gravity Racing during the offseason, they have finally completed their full-time driver lineup for the team. In an interesting move, they have signed German rookie Lucas Grabert to race alongside Packer Carroll for the full season in 2019.

"I am very ecstatic to be given the opportunity to drive for a team that believes in my capabilities like Lawrence Gravity Racing." Grabert emphasized in an interview. "Frankly, I am still at lost for words and I don't know what else to say other than to truly thank the team for getting me to this point. Obviously, my first season will be a huge challenge for me, but I hope to make a good impression and race 110% to get the job done."

"Lucas Grabert will be a good driver to give us a fresh start of things." Team co-owner Frank Lawrence said in an interview. "Normally I don't sign rookies that much, but this is an exception. I have seen how that kid races in person, and that kid can drive the wheels off of any car. He's going to be a huge benefit for us in the long run."

Number and sponsors will be announced at a later date.

[Alpineopossum]

Taylor reportedly returning to Lenard, offers thoughts on the 2019 season

It has been some time since Cameron Taylor raced regularly in the TM Master Cup Series. For the past few seasons he Ohio-born driver has been more commonly seen in GT racing. However, Taylor has been announced as a driver for the Lenard International team, partnering rookie Saul Fischel. First competing for the team in 2014 as a temporary sub for the injured Jacob Kard, he has never won a Master Cup Series event, though he has reached victory lane in the TM Lights Series.

"I feel that it was good to be away from full time racing in a sense. I will say that I do not think I was ready for it then (in his first stint in the series from 2011-2014). I look back at what I said and did then, and think I wasn't necessarily ready and was a bit arrogant at times - I really regret being a bit full of myself and talking all the time, but I think that is common when you're on a large stage for the first time. I think I've learned a great deal. And I've enjoyed being able to do these other races; running at the Nürburgring, for example, was always a dream of mine." said Taylor.

"But I think it's good to be back. I've felt I have some unfinished business there. Lenard International has been good to me, and I think they're an excellent team. Saul and I, as well as (reserve driver) Jacob (Kard) should be an excellent combination." Taylor spoke to a reporter from a café in Koblenz, Germany, shortly after competing in a GT race at the Hockenheim veuue. Taylor has made occasional appearances in European racing over the past few seasons.

Commenting on the schedule Taylor said, half jokingly, "I don't know what it is about Canada - the weather, the excellent bacon, the style of racing - but I always seem to do well there. I love having three Canadian races on the calendar!"

On his expectations for this season, he stated "I hope to be competitive. If I'm able to get a win this season, I'll consider the season to be an enormous success. I'd hope that I would do well enough, often enough, to get in the top ten or at least the top fifteen in points. That's a high goal, and I don't know it'll happen, but I think Lenard is a strong enough team that I will have the opportunity to make a run for it."

[Woody]

Watts to run PSI's third car
One of the worst-kept secrets of the offseason has finally been confirmed. Woody Watts will be driving Power Steering Incorporated's third car, #61 for the 2019 TM Master Cup Series season. This is Watts' first confirmed regular entry in the series since 2011 when he suffered life-threatening injuries in a horrific crash at Daytona International Speedway. Since his comeback to Master Cup with a miraculous one-off entry at Decatur in 2014, Watts has had only one-off entries, sporadic substitute drives, and the occasional testing role.

At a press release with PSI owner William Power, Woody expressed his gratitude.

"I'm truly very thankful to be where I am right now. The support I've had lately is unbelievable and I'm looking forward to giving it my all out there on track in this Lycoia Intimidator," Watts said pointing to the throwback Valvoline scheme unveiled at the press release.

"Getting to drive a car sponsored by Valvoline is a dream come true. I grew up watching my heros race in Valvoline cars and now I get to do it too!" He exclaimed - before taking a deep breath.

"This is just so awesome. Everybody on this team is really welcoming and I have a tremendous amount of respect for Kurt [Plissken] and Greg [Woodard] - they are both very skilled and knowledgeable drivers. I hope I can grow as a race car driver here and be an asset for this organization as we work toward winning a championship."

Watts will drive the Valvoline scheme only once this season. Woodwings will feature as the primary sponsor on the #61 in most races, although there is a third Pizza Planet scheme that will be run at least once as well.

More details are to come.

[NascarAwesomeSquid24]

Nathan Ormond will not be racing for the 2019 season.
Nathan Ormond just announced that he will not be participating in the 2019 TM Master Cup Series Season. Instead of racing, Nathan Ormond has told the reporters that he will join Dan Mullen in the booth for the entire season. "It is a tough decision to make, and the decision I made is clear because I want to mainly focus on commentating the 2019 TM Master Cup Races with Dan Mullen for the entire season. Maybe next season, I will be racing in the TM Master Cup Series."

[Cynon]

Kevin Dwyer Scales Back TM Master Cup Involvement; Will Run Indy 500, Le Mans, Bathurst

Kevin Dwyer announced that he will not be competing full-time in the TM Master Cup series in 2019, but he will stay with Richter Motorsports as their third driver. After two painful near-misses at the TM Master Cup championship in 2017 and 2018, Dwyer's ride at Richter Motorsports was filled by Mexican rookie Marco Diaz Castañeda.

"I recommended to Carl [Richter] to pick Marco. He's a really quick learner and I knew he'd be a good fit at the team." Dwyer stated to the press.

Dwyer unveiled plans to compete at Le Mans in one of Gessler's LMP1 cars, "at least three" TM Master Cup series races, the Indianapolis 500, and the Bathurst 1000. All but the latter will be in entries affiliated with Richter Motorsports or Gessler. The Bathurst 1000 entry will be in an AuStar Racing Inglesby.

"Gessler really helped put this deal together, because I've always wanted to do Le Mans. Alan Foster told my dad about Le Mans after he ran there a few times, and dad only got to do it once, and I got to be there for it." Dwyer stated.
"The Indy deal came together pretty fast, since [Carl Richter] owns cars over there, I told him I wanted to run that race, and he said if a test went well, then we could do it... so in May, we are."

Dwyer discussed his Bathurst plans coming together after talking to fellow drivers that had competed in Australia's greatest race.

"I heard about how insane Bathurst is to run from [Leonid Roderick] and Zachary Fitzwater, so I started getting a deal to run down there back in 2017. I've run endurance races before at Laguna [Seca] and Road Atlanta, so I can't wait until the track opens!"

The Dwyer name has been associated with the TM Master Cup series for over 30 years. Benny Dwyer won 6 championships over a career that lasted until he was killed in a crash in 2001. The Dwyer clan has also been prolific in stock cars, with over 10 different members of the family having participated in national tours, either as crewmen or drivers. Despite this, none of them have made a serious mark in any other category of motorsport as a driver or lead engineer.

Kevin Dwyer has been quite the opposite, as he has already carved himself a unique path to the top. He began in midgets and sprint cars before shifting his attention to prototypes and sports cars, mostly in North America. Dwyer was scheduled to compete at Le Mans in 2009 in a LMP2 car, before he was replaced in the driving lineup at the last minute.

Santa Clara Testing Lineups Revealed

The driving lineups for the first open test session for the 2019 TM Master Cup series, at the Golden State Motorsports Park, will be the same as their respected regular season driving lineups. At the time of writing, all teams are expected to make the trip. The only Independent's Trophy entrant that will be participating is Alex Harrison Racing, with driver Casey Lester, acting as a tire test team. They will be bringing multiple cars.

[Magus978]

CONFIRMED: Tom Delgado Racing to Skip Preseason Testing

With the lineups for the first open test released to the public, Tom Delgado Racing was not on the list. While their entry has not been confirmed at this time, it is a 99% certainty that they will be approved to race this season. The team had not planned on participating in the open test anyway, but Tom Delgado has reportedly flown out to Santa Clara to observe.

"While we're not there to perform, myself and a few TDR reps are there to scout the competition. We want to see what we're going to be up against and how hard we're going to have to work to keep up. If we're going to be a factor this season in anything, we have to work harder than anyone else, and we also have to work smarter than anyone else, and coming here to watch testing is a good start to that" Delgado said in a brief interview.

Tom Delgado Racing has not participated in a Master Cup event since the 2013 season. Tom Delgado himself has not competed in a Master Cup event since 2014.

[Todd Abedrabbo]

New York, New Jersey Superstar Entering TM Master Cup Series for Independent's Trophy bid

Todd Abedrabbo, who has won multiple track championships in the past few years and has been widely regarded as one of the next big superstars of auto racing, will be making an Independent's Trophy run this year in the TM Master Cup Series, driving the 24 Mountain Dew Saar for his own team Todd Abedrabbo Motorsports. Abedrabbo, who is also running full time in the FARC Lowe Dollar Series schedule and part time in the FARC Super Series this year, has been widely compared to the lights of former champions Leonid Roderick and Benny Dwyer for his aggressive racing style, but he admitted in his announcement that his team will be slow to start, but he said to expect them to pick up the pace by the end of this season. He is also a former high school football and lacrosse player, and is an amateur competitive eater during the off weeks.

In addition, his longtime school friend Andrew Ziegler and former amateur hockey player will contest a partial TM Lights schedule in 2019, driving the 98 Saar for Todd Abedrabbo Motorsports with sponsorship from the New York Giants and John Madden's Quickpop Popcorn Popper. He is the reigning Syracuse Raceway late model track champion and is also running full time in the FARC Super Series and part time in the FARC Lowe Dollar Series. Abedrabbo and Ziegler hope to run full time in the Master Cup series in a two car effort within the next couple of years.

[zfitzwater599]

Black Diamond Racing, Volpi Rumoured for the 3rd driver role for Aussie Zachary Fitzwater

Black Diamond Racing, and Volpi are 2 teams rumoured for Australian Driver Zachary Fitzwater for the Australian Round in the 2019 TMMC Season. Fitzwater" I've got 2 calls already for a 3rd ride offer, both of those 2 teams know my track record for the Road Courses and both teams have told me the races they would put me the Rd of Australia and one reportedly Steelback and I'll be waiting for my phone to ring on whoever signs me".

[gwoodard41]

Terra Int'l Motorsports finally settles into the ITC field.

The team announced that they were able to secure the numbers 94 and 95 for Castle and Dempsey respectively. It is not known at this time which group they're going to be a part of but the team plans to work as hard as possible to do well in their races.

[SnakePlissken]

PSI, Plissken Reach Tenuous Truce

Well it seems as if the grass wasn't greener for William Power's search to upgrade his team. Kurt Plissken looked to be the odd man out as Power went on a "shopping spree" of sorts. While Power searched the "want ads" so to speak, Plissken had to silently be boiling at the prospect.
  Everything was tossed into tumult as Power attempted to court some marquee names such as Adrien Devereux and Tom Delgado. Devereux eventually signed with Mitchell & Sons Racing while Delgado snubbed PSI for the umpteenth time. Plissken had to privately be seething. While his owner was publicly seeking different dancing partners, Plissken quietly sought out possible future landing spots.

  After all the dalliances with prospective partners, it seems as if neither party could find anything better that the status quo had to offer. So Power and Plissken have made an uneasy alliance to remain together for the time being. How long no one knows. Plissken was coming off his best season with PSI and seemed genuinely surprised when he started reading about Power's push to land Devereux. He was miffed and didn't hide it either.

"As the owner of the team, I was doing my due diligence to evaluate the state of my team and the talent available. It had nothing to do with Kurt's performance-- it is just the nature of the beast that is the racing business." Is Power playing mind games and trying to push Plisskens' buttons or was he truly looking to kick Plissken to the curb?

With all of this uncertainty, Plissken has been left behind the 8 ball when it comes to sponsorship deals. As the season start approaches, he has found it more difficult than ever to secure sponsorships.

  "I'm hoping that once it's known that my ride finally is stable, the sponsors won't be so reluctant to invest in me. I understand it's a business thing, but it has definitely put a squeeze on the funds we have available. Hopefully as the season progresses, we'll be able to right the ship when it comes to nailing down some sponsorship deals," Plissken stated. "Right now I'm scrambling and hustling to just be able to make the races at this point."

To illustrate what he is referring to, longtime Plissken sponsor Yoo-hoo jumped ship and signed a deal with PSI teammate Greg Woodard. Whether this has caused any animosity or friction between to two men remains to be seen.

Power eventually locked up a deal with the talented Woody Watts to replace Zach Webster as their third car wheel man. Webster was lured away by a full time ride offer and signed with DeGarmo Enterprises.

About the only thing known at this point is that longtime sponsor Snake Coils will continue adorn the #16 car-- although in what capacity is still unknown. PSI will be running the new Lycoia Intimidator in 2019.

[Kornography]

Craig Jonser "Just happy to be back" for 2019

Connecticut native, Craig Jonser was all smiles at a brief press conference at DeGarmo Enterprise's Headquarters. The #81 Scarabs Lenard was unveiled prior to the conference.

"It's been great in Lights. After my Independents run fell through, DeGarmo saw something in me, and helped me out. I'm proud to have run for DeGarmo for so long, so to get another chance at Cup is a real honor."

When questioned about his sponsors, he appeared calm. "I have no worries. Scarabs has done me well for years now. We're also working out a deal with McDonalds or one of their promotions."

On his prospects of winning, he responded "I'm just happy to back."

With this signing, Jonser will make his first start in Master Cup since 2013.

[zfitzwater599]

Black Diamond Racing and Aussie driver Zachary Fitzwater agree to a deal to drive the 3rd car for the team.

Zachary Fitzwater gets the call he was waiting for. The Aussie himself was excited when he talked to reporters after a deal with Black Diamond Racing was signed this is what he said to the media. "I'm so happy for Black Diamond Racing to give me an opportunity to drive the 3rd car for the team. Good chance my number 59 will be there I'm so excited for this opportunity".

[Carolina Crew]

Freya Mast To Get Big Independent's Trophy Break
After a road racing career that has seen both ups and downs, 22 year old Freya Mast got a break to compete in the 2019 Master Cup Independent's Trophy.  Mast has competed in several big name events in the last few years, and has gained the reputation as a road ringer, and she has the ability to make the most of a bad situation.  She and her team finished in the top 10 in the 2018 12 hours of Sebring, despite being down a cylinder.  She was also a part of the team that dominated the 2018 24 hours of Daytona.  However, Mast also has the tendency to put herself in the holes that she digs herself out of.  She lost the cylinder by pushing the car with no pressure from behind at Sebring, and cut a tire while roughing up a lapped car, While leading, at Daytona.  She ended up finishing 3rd, completing all 808 laps, but was over a minute behind the leader. 
Upon the news that She had been accepted to compete in the Independent's Trophy, Mast had this to say about her chances, "I know that are chances are slim, especially compared to people with the experience levels of Delgado, Zavala, and Lester.  However, they say anything can happen.  I'll race like hell, and who knows what'll happen".
It is likely that Mast will compete in the first group of the Independent's Trophy, but she has been given the opportunity to swap groups with Keegan Mallory if needed.

[Backmarker]

Richard Scott Signs with Maximus, Eyeing "Redemption"
A few weeks after they traded their full-time space on the TM Master Cup grid with Team Timothy, Maximus Racing announced that Richard Scott would drive their #92 car in their first campaign for the Independent's Trophy. The 27-year old Virginian cut his teeth in the FARC Lowe Dollar Series before attempting to break out in 2014, running full-time in FARC while also making his first Independent's bid with Big Mac Racing.

Scott was then also surprisingly signed by defending TM Lights champions Roderick Motorsports, partnering with the eventual 2014 champion and current Master Cup star, Hector Serrano. He managed to respectably finish in the top 30 in the FARC standings and 16th in the Independent's Trophy, but struggled to find the same speed and consistency as Serrano, and was released halfway through the season in favor of Brayden Rosenthal and Treck Tauger.

With his FARC team, Wesley Family Racing, scaling back due to budget issues, and little interest from other teams in Master Cup and Lights, Scott was forced to look elsewhere to reinvent himself, turning to the ASCC with its' new division and playoffs system. He managed to secure enough funding to drive for Trinity Motorsports, putting in impressive top 10 performances in a car that was down on power from the top teams in the series. For 2016, he was signed to McDermott Motorsports, taking home a win, several top 5s, and a playoff seed, though he was eliminated in the first round after a rash of engine failues. Scott complemented these results with a victory in his qualifying race for the FARC season opener at Daytona.

For 2017, Scott sought to continue his redemption with a return to TM Lights, signing a one-year deal late in the offseason with EV Racing. He continued to show improved confidence and consistent speed despite only a few top 20 finishes, and remained busy searching for sponsors and funding off the track. He was then able to sign with Wolfesport for 2018, and was a regular presence in the top 20, with a handful of top 10s and his first top 5 in Lights.

Scott spoke to reporters how he felt that his persistence and determination was finally paying off, as he looks to make his return to Master Cup outside of special events for the first time in 5 years. "I thought I had this same kind of work ethic and dedication when I was younger, but looking back now I was in way over my head, trying to do way too much. It definitely hurt my stock when I couldn't get results in Leonid's #4. My goal since then has been to show that I'm not a bust, that I deserve another opportunity like that and I'm better and more focused than ever. This season is all about taking my redemption to the next level."

Prior to signing with Maximus, Scott has also been linked to a potential test driver role with Tonare, who did not respond to requests for comment. With Maximus yet to announce a chassis supplier, some have suggested that they may reach an agreement with the American sports car manufacturer and become the only Independent team to field a Tonare in 2019, complementing the full-time Tonare Motorsports team.

[SnakePlissken]

Plissken Secures 11th Hour Sponsorship For The Round Of San Antonio

Kurt Plissken has announced that Spark Boy has come on board to sponsor his car for the Round of San Antonio at Remembrance Field.

"Since he went on that fishing expedition trying to land a big named free agent trophy fish, it's been difficult for me to secure sponsorships." Plissken stated. "I've been scrambling ever since and it hasn't been an easy task. It's never easy, but this sure made it a lot harder."

Plissken continued, "First we've looked for large national and international sponsors with deep pockets looking to make an investment. We have a few irons in the fire but not enough for the entire season. Hopefully we can work some things out for further down the road."

"We have been forced to narrow our search and have been considering regional and even local sponsorships if necessary. Hell, we'll even take one time events or festivals or anything of a celebratory nature-- walkathons-- whatever it takes. If you want to advertise it, contact us," Plissken clarified. "Pretty much everything is on the table. I can't afford to be too picky."

[vetch]

25th June 2019

Champ Car Team Blackburn Incorporated to go Master Cup Racing

It has been confirmed that the long-standing Champ Car team Blackburn Incorporated will be going Master Cup racing this year, attempting the round of Indianapolis and potentially more rounds.

The team is intending to enter three 2019 Lenard Cheyennes into the race (numbered 401, 402 and 403), for two of their three Champ Car drivers, the Italian Marciano Stabile and the Czech Samuel Vesela. Their third driver, Alwin Coemans, turned the opportunity down, citing their disinterest in stock car racing. Instead, the team looked to their protege Ryan Gould, who currently races in Champ Car Lights for the team and is currently 2nd in the Champ Car Lights championship.

During the announcement, team owner Edgar Blackburn stated "We are planning to do more than start the round of Indianapolis. Starting a Master Cup team has been something I've always wanted to do, but only now have I had the opportunity."
"Lenard themselves offered to support us after we consulted with them to start a Master Cup team."

Stabile and Vesela will both be attempting the race, with Stabile making his second attempt after failing to qualify last year with a Saar he bought. It will be Vesela and Gould's first attempt at the race and both of their Cup debuts.

In the announcement, Gould said "It will be a great honour to be making my TM Master Cup Series debut, racing alongside some of my racing heroes. I'm honoured to have this opportunity, even if I don't qualify for the race."
Stabile said, "I am far more confident with my equipment this year than compared to last year. Edgar Blackburn really knows his stuff."
Vesela did not say much of note.

Gould will be bringing one-off sponsorship for Nando's, who are looking to expand in America.
Stabile will be sponsored by Lurpak, which has drawn comment for complementing Stabile's "buttery smooth" driving style
Vesela will be bringing his own sponsorship for the race, but it's not clear which sponsor it is.

The three cars will be crewed by some of Lenard's staff as part of the agreement.

It is rumoured that if this arrangement goes well, then Blackburn may attempt to run the 2020 season as a full-time team.

26th June 2019

Redemption Racing expands to a Master Cup effort

Redemption Racing, a GT racing team out of Valparaiso, Illinois, has purchased two Gesslers after hiring Brian Sendack for this race and one other driver.

The other driver is not yet known but Redemption Racing tends to chase down drivers who previously competed in the TM Master Cup Series but no longer do.

Some names have been suggested, such as Danny Savin, who left Full Throttle Racing a couple of years ago among others. This is further attributed as the team has attempted to register the number #391. Savin is known for his use of the #91 for most of his Master Cup Career, save for his 2011-2013 efforts with Full Throttle Racing where he used the #81 instead.

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