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Michael Jordan Motorsports's new racing livery was inspired by the Air Jordan XX8 basketball shoe.
Here's a peculiar conundrum - why in the world is there a motorcycle parked in a glass elevator 103 flights above Chicago? The answer - because the Skydeck on the top of the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), is where Michael Jordan Motorsports was founded ten years ago. Michael Jordan, by most accounts the greatest NBA superstar ever, has no shortage of interests outside of basketball. In addition to honing his golf skills, owning the Charlotte Bobcats and serving as one of the most recognizable faces of the NBA, Michael Jordan is a colossal motorcycle racing enthusiast, and his race-winning team is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2013. As a part of the festivity Michael Jordan Motorsports soared to extraordinary new heights in Chi-town as Danny Eslick unveiled the team's bike and new livery.
Danny Eslick unveiled the team's new colors 103 flights above Chicago.
Combining motorcycles with one of Michael Jordan's other loves - sneakers - has resulted in the creation of these strikingly distinctive Suzuki motorcycles that were inspired by the Air Jordan XX8, which also recently dropped at shoe stores everywhere. However, unlike Jordan's signature kicks, the Air Jordan inspired bikes will not be available for purchase. Instead, in addition to celebrating an impressive decade in road racing, the Michael Jordan Motorsports team will debut their new racing colors as the 2013 AMA Pro National Guard Superbike Championship season kicks off at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. This is the team's first time at the prestigious Daytona 200.
This is the team's first time competing at the prestigious Daytona 200.
For the 2013 season K&N has signed Michael Jordan Motorsports teammates, Danny Eslick (No. 23) and Daytona Superbike podium-finisher, Roger Lee Hayden (No.54). Both riders will be competing on a Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000 donning the dynamic new colors. The team will also run James Rispoli's National Guard Celtic Racing Suzuki GSX-R600 (No. 43) and National Guard Celtic Racing teammate Corey Alexander (No. 5) in the new colors. Rispoli is a former Daytona SuperSport winner, while Alexander finished on the podium in that class last year.
"The whole Michael Jordan Motorsports team is looking forward to Daytona," said Kreig Robinson, MJM Vice President of Corporate Relations. "We expect solid results from Danny and Roger in AMA Pro National Guard Superbike, and we're excited about James racing the Daytona 200 for the first time. Additionally, we look forward to supporting Corey in AMA SuperSport. Overall, 2013 is a landmark season for Michael Jordan Motorsports as we reflect on the significance of a successful decade in road racing and the unlimited potential of the future."
Andy Gregg's GUTS Racing kicked off 2013 in grand form, leading 9 of 10 laps at Marysville Raceway Park.
Racers call winter "the off-season" which is somewhat of a misnomer, they may not be battling on the track, but there's nothing "off" about the off-season. Winter is a seriously busy time when teams like Andy Gregg's GUTS Racing restructure, rebuild, and reassess. It's the intense labors of love during winter that sustains his team during the "on-season."
"I am excited to hit the track and show off our new K&N logo and our other new sponsors," Gregg said before his season opener at the Marysville Raceway Park. "We have partnered up with some great new companies for 2013, and I'm eager to show their colors off on our car."
Gregg is a big fan of Marysville Raceway; in 2007 he started there in 13th position and went on to win a California Civil War Series event. More recently, in 2011, he put together a strong third place run with the King of the West Series at MRP.
"The Marysville Raceway Park seems to fit my driving style," Gregg remarked. "It has long straights and sweeping corners, and we have been able to put together some good runs on it. I hear they added some clay towards the end of last year, so I'm curious to see how it races."
Last weekend Gregg found out firsthand how the new MRP clay suits his driving technique. "The first race of the season was great. We set the fastest lap in qualifying and passed the most cars in our heat race. Also, I led the first nine laps of the10-lap main event. Unfortunately, I had to pull in to the pit with a mechanical problem so we didn't get the win, but it was still a great night."
Gregg first ignited his competitive fire racing motocross when he was five. "I raced through the ranks and got my AMA pro license at 16," he explains. "But when I was 18 I got hurt, so I looked for a new adventure. I found sprint cars and fell in love. I knew immediately that this is what I wanted to do next in my life when I healed up."
Andy Gregg's GUTS Racing is looking to build on their highly productive 2012 Sprint Car season. Last year Gregg had 17 starts with four top-3 finishes, 11 top-10 finishes, including a 9th place effort at the prestigious Dave Bradway, Jr Memorial, two Last Chance Qualifier Wins, to go along with three heat wins, and two dash wins. "I also finished 8th in 2012 Cancel Oil King of the West Series," he says.
This season Gregg also welcomes the addition of crew chief, Brian Cannon, to help take the team to the next level. "Brian and I have worked together on a limited basis in the past and we have had some success," Gregg said. "In 2011 I filled in for Brett Miller on occasion, and we were able to win a race and finish third at the Gold Cup Race of Champions, so I'm excited to hit the track this weekend. Having Brian onboard this year gives the team a ton of confidence. He's had a lot of success over the years with different teams and we're looking for the same."
"Teaming up with K&N for 2013 is huge for the team, adds Gregg. "K&N is the premiere air and oil filter company for high-performance racing. We are looking forward to representing K&N for years to come."
Aston Martin Racing will use custom manufactured K&N air filters specifically developed for the Vantage GTE cars.
"Aston Martin Racing is very excited to announce that they will be working with K&N Filters. K&N Filters are the best filters in the world and to be working with them is a great privilege. The partnership of these two great companies working together at the highest level of GT Racing will focus on one goal - to win!"
Following extensive test sessions at Portimao and Road Atlanta, the new V8-powered Vantage GTE will debut this week at the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Warren Jones, Technical Partner Manager at Aston Martin Racing makes his objective crystal clear. 2013 marks the most ambitious motorsport program for Aston Martin Racing to date, as it aims to win both the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) - as the distinguished marque celebrates its 100th Birthday.
This week (March 13-17) Aston Martin Racing's 2013 motorsport season will get underway at the legendary 12 Hours of Sebring in Highlands County, Florida. The new V8-powered Vantage GTE - a revised version of the race-winning 2012 Vantage GTE - will make its competitive debut ahead of Aston Martin Racing's four-car campaign, all of which will be sporting the K&N logo. K&N has been a longtime supplier to Aston Martin Racing; however the technical partnership for the 2013 season in essence takes their relationship to the next level.
Aston Martin is celebrating its 100th this year which will bring increased attention to AMR.
"The partnership covers the entire AMR team," outlines Joost Adriaans, K&N's EMEA R&D Manager and OEM Account Manager. "This includes K&N logos on the four white iconic Aston Martins with the baby blue Gulf livery, the team transporter truck, the garage and hospitality unit, and on their website."
Adriaans first met with Warren Jones at the renowned Silverstone race track in Northamptonshire, United Kingdom in August 2012, during round 5 of the WEC. "We ended up chatting about AMR's plans for the upcoming season, and from a technical standpoint, I was very interested in the air filter construction on the new car as well. This is where the initial contact was made and formed the foundation for the technical partnership which is in place today," explains Adriaans.
2013 is slated to be Aston Martin Racing's most exhilarating and rewarding season to date.
"I feel as a manufacturer of high quality air filters, it is important to team up and compliment other high quality automotive corporations. With Aston Martin stepping up with its most ambiguously exciting racing program to date, it was an excellent opportunity for K&N to join this program and provide them with the best support possible. The team will use custom manufactured air filters, specifically developed for the Vantage GTE cars. With the knowledge that K&N has gathered in 40 plus years of air filter development, we feel we can make a valuable contribution to the goals of AMR for the 2013 season. It's an honor to work so closely with a brand that has such a rich racing heritage. At the same time, Aston Martin is celebrating its 100th year Anniversary this year, which will draw even more attention to the luxury brand and its racing team."
For 2013 CKR sports a new paint scheme on their car.
Every winter, sprint car racer Chad Kemenah diligently hunkers down in his shop, painstakingly preparing his No. 63 cars for the coming season. 2013 saw no let up on that winning process.
"It was really just the normal maintenance of the race cars and reorganizing for the next season," explains Kemenah. "At the end of the year we always strip our cars to the bare frame and start over rebuilding them. They take a lot of abuse during the season and it's good to go over things closely when you have the extra time. We also worked on our motor program a little more and we are hoping it helps this season. I think we've prepared the best we can for this season.
K&N backed Chad Kemenah opened his World of Outlaws season with a solid second place.
It's tough to run with these guys night in and night out, and we are a smaller budget team, so we rely on our work during the off season to help us in our preparations for the upcoming season."
The preparations paid off as Chad Kemenah Racing successfully opened their season with World of Outlaws action at Volusia Speedway Park in Volusia, Florida, where they nearly stole the show, much to the delight of the keyed up, ready for action fans. During the 30-lap feature Kemenah, Cody Darrah and Danny "The Dude" Lasoski, the winningest dude in Volusia Speedway Park history, were three wide exiting turn two on the opening lap. Lasoski secured the lead as the cars slid around turn four and he remained the leader for the first five laps before Kemenah drove under him entering turn one on lap six.
"One thing I really wanted to focus on during the winter was our engine program, and Bob Hampshire definitely stepped up to the plate as he always does for us," Kemenah said. Volusia Speedway has always been a power track and we found a little extra power this winter with our motors."
The trio continued to put on a show after the first restart of the race on lap 13, and then with only three laps to go, Kemenah had a sizeable lead before another caution halted racing once again. During the restart Kemenah inadvertently drove beneath the cone on the front stretch, bringing out yet another caution and penalizing him two positions. There was contact during this restart so the race went back to green with the drivers running in single file. Lasoski held to the bottom groove while Kemenah rode the cushion. The shorter distance around the inside allowed Lasoski to come up just in front of Kemenah and Lasoski edged Kemenah by a car length at the finish line.
"I thought I was out of tear-offs, but the tear-off ear was broke off and that's just like being out of tear-offs," Kemenah said. "I couldn't see. I'd come by there and I thought, 'Well, why didn't they put the cone out?' But they did and I was completely underneath of it. It was just a mistake on my behalf."
"Well, can't say as though I've ever had that happen the way it did, but I guess anything can happen in racing, it's just unfortunate for us because we lost the win over a 10-cent tear off. I did make things a little worse by trying to wipe my shield because all I did was smear the mud even worse, which made it even more difficult to see. We were still happy to finish second and not last, but I really feel like we had that win wrapped up."
"Overall I am happy with the way our Florida trip went, we learned a lot about our car, tires and overall program. I also have to thank Tony Depalma of Radio City Hospital, Bob Hampshire, Maxim Chassis, K&N Filters and Champion Racing Oil for helping us out this year and I can't forget about my new crew member, Brandon Ikenberry, he worked his tail off this week and I am looking forward to Las Vegas.
CKR heads to Las Vegas on March 6 and 7, then the team stays out west for about seven weeks before returning back east.
Never underestimate the power of longevity. TUF Racing fielded their first Supercross team in 1985, making them the longest running privateer team in the history of AMA. That unrivaled resilience speaks volumes about team owner Dave Antolak and his keen eye for talent and knack for motivation. TUF Racing's list of past riders reads like a who's who of two-wheeled battlefield winners. This year the perennial Arenacross team will compete in the frenetically competitive East Coast AMA Supercross series. TUF Racing will field a two rider effort featuring Kyle Bitterman and new teammate, Vince Freise.
TUF Racing's Vince Freise earned a solid 6th place in round 3 of the East Coast AMA Supercross series.
"Vince is a 22-year-old former amateur champion that has moved up to the pro ranks and he has improved every year since," said Antolak. This year Vince has split his riding up by racing the 450 class on the West Coast and the 250 class on the East Coast for TUF Racing." Vince will be riding the TUF Racing modified CRF250.
The team, says Antolak, is concentrating fully on the 250 East Coast Supercross series and after three rounds TUF racing already sits squarely in fifth place overall in the championship. It was in preparation for this round at Saint Louis that Scott Venning, TUF Racings' Engine guru, made some key changes during the week leading up to the race to help Vince get off the line a little quicker.
The engine changes worked as planned as Vince earned a good gate pick for the main, which he then converted into a great start. After the first turn Vince was locked on the rear fender behind eventual race winner Wil Hahn. "I got a little tight the first few laps because I was kind of excited being in second and I lost a few positions," admitted Vince. "The more I run up front though, the more I feel like I belong up there. The bike is great, the suspension is perfect, and I can't wait until next week in Daytona."
"We had a couple of small mishaps at the first two rounds that held us back a few places, but we have been consistently getting better each week and are happy to be in the top five overall. Our goal is to make the podium this year and I think that is a very obtainable target," commented Antolak. "The season started three weeks ago in Dallas with stops in Atlanta and Saint Louis and we will be heading to Daytona this weekend."
Note: In round 4 of 250 Supercross East series contested at Daytona Vince Freise finished tenth.
