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Corvette Racing's Magnussen and Gavin Qualify 1-2 for Sebring 12-Hour Race

11 Apr 2012

The Dane, Jan Magnussen qualified 2.5 seconds faster than last year.

2012 marks the 60th running of the legendary Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring endurance race. This year the New Hudson, Michigan, Corvette Racing team also commemorates their 60th year and to celebrate they posted their quickest lap times ever in the American Le Mans Series GT class. Running concurrently with the inaugural race of the FIA World Endurance Championship, the two K&N backed Compuware Corvette C6.Rs driven by Jan Magnussen and Oliver Gavin were third and fourth respectively in combined ALMS/WEC GT qualifying.

This is the ALMS season-opening debut for the new wide-body Corvettes and all indications are this will be another stellar season for the team, as their qualifying lap times are more than 2.5 seconds faster than last year. Magnussen ran his quickest time in his fifth and final lap around the historic 3.7-mile, airstrip-turned-race track circuit, running a 1:58.996 (113.147 mph) in the No. 03 Corvette C6.R, while Gavin posted his best time on his fourth lap at 1:59.007 (113.136 mph) in the No. 4 Corvette C6.R.

"There is a lot of difference from last year - 2.5 seconds difference!" Magnussen said. "It's a big step forward for the category. Qualifying was the first time that everyone showed what they can do, and I think it's going to be 12 hours of really hard racing."

Oliver Gavin, driving the number 4 Corvette C6.R qualified behind his teammate for the 60th running of Sebring.

"With the WEC here with ALMS, there is only going to be one winner," continued the Dane. "My point of view is that we're here to win Sebring in the GT category, and that includes everybody. There is a championship for us in ALMS and the points are very important, but this is Sebring."

"We definitely got the most of what we had today with both cars, and Oliver did a fantastic job," noted Magnussen. "We didn't work on a qualifying setup. It was a little warmer today, but there was a tailwind down the back straight that actually makes the lap a little faster. The wind helps you turn into Turn-16, helps on the exit of Turn-1, and in Turns-13 and 15. I had a feeling that we'd be going faster - but not this fast!"

The difference between the two Corvettes was a scant 0.011 seconds.

"It was intense," Gavin said. "We kept finding a little more time with every lap we ran. I wanted to go for it again on the last lap, but ran low on fuel. Jan just pipped me and two Ferraris are in front of us, but we're starting at the sharp end.

"Looking at the lap times, Jan and I were almost dead even all the way through," Gavin explained. "It's great that both Corvettes are equally fast, and now it's up to the drivers and crews to take the fight to the other cars tomorrow. I feel that we're well poised for the race. We want to beat everyone else in GT, and that's the plan. I'm very proud to be part of Team Chevy and representing Corvette in the 60th anniversary of Sebring."

The Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series and the Corvette Racing team will be at Long Beach April 13 and 14, 2012 for the next round of spectacular racing.

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Duck Tape Racing's Michael Beard Scores First Win of 2012 Season

11 Apr 2012

When the Ironman Classic got rained out Michael Beard moved to the Carolina Class Racer Association season opener at Piedmont Dragway for his first win of 2012.

Although the Ironman Classic was canceled due to rain, Michael Beard and his Duck Tape Racing team had no problem simply going with the flow. When the sun came out on Sunday, Beard and his crew were ready to roll at the Carolina Class Racer Association (CCRA) season opener at Piedmont Dragway, just outside of Greensboro, North Carolina.

"The CCRA provides a great-paying, one-day race for class racers in-between the regular schedule of IHRA and NHRA national and divisional races," explained Beard. "It's also a great turnkey 'show-in-a-box' the host tracks can promote to spectators."

Before racing got underway at Piedmont Dragway, Beard was honored for his 3rd place overall finish in last season's CCRA point chase. Then Beard went out and continued his winning ways by knocking down three consecutive 6.67 ET's in qualifying, the last of which was a dead-on 6.672 on a 6.67 dial-in to capture the bonus money in the Kenny Koonce, Jr. Memorial Dash for Cash, sponsored by Ronnie Hamlin. That performance also qualified him for the first of just eight positions available in a special "Shootout" program at the end of the year. Beard went on to win the event, topping defending CCRA series champion Homer Carty in the finals with a solid .019 reaction time and another dead-on 6.678 on a 6.67 dial-in to collect a healthy payday, an Iron Tree trophy, and the early points lead.

Beard won the CCRA event with a solid .019 reaction time and a dead-on 6.678 on a 6.67 dial-in.

"It has been a great start to the year, and that just gives me even more confidence for later in the year," remarked Beard. "A glance at the results so far gives me a win, two runner-ups, two semis, and two quarterfinals, along with the points lead in two different series. It may not look like it, but I'm actually fighting a couple issues with the car. I know that when it's 100%, things could be even better!"

Despite the calendar having barely turned to March, Beard is already embroiled in the points chase in multiple series. He leads the CCRA as well as the IHRA Div. 2 Super Stock standings, and is double-entered in the Carolina Bracket Series, currently claiming both the 6th and 12th place in points.

Before the CCRA race Beard was honored for his third place finish in last year's point chase.

"2011 was a building year," reflects Beard. "I started out the season racing Stock Eliminator with my 2.2L front wheel drive 1985 Turismo, while Sloan Racing Engines built a new 2009 Dodge DragPak 5.9L fuel-injected engine for the Volare to run in Super Stock. We hit the track with the new combination in June, and made it to the finals the second week out. We struggled with a bit of a learning curve and some issues elsewhere in the car, but as soon as we hit on what it needed, we immediately scored a win and a runner-up back-to-back. Since it was tough for me to get both cars to the track, Terry Knott let me drive his Dart Sport, the car he was driving when he won the 2003 IHRA Stock World Championship with. I drove it two weekends, coming away with a Nitro Jam win, a Sportsman Spectacular runner-up, and a semifinal in the Tournament of Champions. Altogether, the Duck Tape cars were on the track 37 weekends last year, totaling four wins, five runner-ups, and six semifinals."

"The off-season wasn't overly busy," continues Beard, "Just some maintenance and preventative maintenance. We installed a new set of Moser axles, put a good hardened input shaft in the trans, and replaced a broken output shaft. Then we filled 'er up with six fresh quarts of CAM2 Blue Blood Racing Oil flowing through a K&N Wrench-Off Oil Filter."

What's next on the 2012 schedule for the Duck Tape Racing team? "I've been wanting to upgrade the rear-end for over a year now, and since the car is a Super Stocker now, I think it makes sense to go all the way and make it a back-half, big tire four-link car. The plan is to do it right once, and never touch it again! That way, the chassis will be ready if we ever decide to throw some more power to it. I'll be chasing multiple series, including IHRA, NHRA, CCRA, the Carolina Bracket Series, and fill in the schedule with a large number of big money bracket races as well as local bracket races."

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Mitchell DeJong Wins LOORRS Rounds 1 & 2 in Pro-Buggy at Glen Helen Raceway

10 Apr 2012

DeJong says his biggest challenge moving into the Pro Buggy was adjusting to the H-pattern shifter and the floor clutch - you wouldn't know it by watching him.

Mitchell DeJong is a typical 14-year-old Temecula, California eighth-grade kid. Okay, just kidding. He might be a regular-Joe in the land of wunderkinder, but in the real world the force is exceptionally strong in this one. DeJong is quickly developing into the real deal possessing mad-skills and brains; he's grounded, and he's not allergic to hard work.

Not yet street-legal to drive, in 2011 DeJong collected his 8th championship title in only five years. This season the Traxxas/Red Bull athlete continued were he left off by winning round 1 and 2 of the Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Regional Series at Glen Helen Raceway, setting a new track record of 47.6 seconds during the round 2 main event, besting the previous record by 0.3 seconds.

Mitchell DeJong continues his winning ways with two 2012 Pro Buggy victories at Glen Helen Raceway.

Coming off his impressive 2011 modified kart season, DeJong's off-season was short, as his preparation to step up into the more competitive Pro Buggy Unlimited class started almost immediately. Having only enough time for two test sessions in his new Pro Buggy before the start of the 2012 LOORRS Regional Series, DeJong proved that was plenty good enough. During his very first practice runs around the infamous Devore, Southern California track, DeJong was already turning lap times comparable to the top-dogs in the class. To keep that in perspective, DeJong is the youngest driver ever to be given approval to compete this class.

There's really nothing at all typical about being able to carry his kart success over into Pro Buggy, where new elements like turning brakes, foot pedal clutch, H-pattern shifting and open wheels need to be dealt with in precise proportions. Yet, this young straight-A middle school kid seems not to adhere to the same laws of physics as the rest of us.

"Well, first let me start by saying that the Pro Buggy is a blast to drive!" remarked DeJong. "I'd say the biggest challenge so far would be going from the sequential shifter to the H-pattern shifter and the floor clutch."

The 14-year-old driver set a new track record of 47.6 seconds during the Round 2 main event, besting the previous record by 0.3 seconds.

When he's not racing and his schoolwork is done, you can find him working with his dad prepping his race vehicles, which explains his keen grasp on the overall workings of his car. "I spend a lot of time at my parents business, DeJong Off Road Mfg.," DeJong explains, "Where they design and manufacture some of the coolest off-road vehicles and develop components for the race, medical and aerospace industries in the machine shop."

DeJong says his long-term goal is to become a race champion like his heroes, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Travis Pastrana and of course his dad, Vince.

So what sort of goals have you set for 2012?

"It's funny you ask that question," says DeJong, "Because the first time I went out to the track for a test I had set a personal goal to run the same times as the top competitors in the class," he replied. It looks as though he may want to re-set the bar for the rest of the year.

What are you feeling about heading to the first round of the Lucas Oil Off-Road Series in Arizona?

"I am really excited to get back on the track! We are still learning the car set-ups for the Pro Buggy, but just knowing I have some of the best products in the world on my Pro Buggy, like the K&N Air Filters, gives me a lot of confidence. Being the youngest driver to be approved to compete in this class is really awesome and I hope to earn the respect of the other competitors on the track."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N Filters Announces 2012 Horsepower Challenge Sweepstakes

9 Apr 2012

Riverside, Calif., April 9, 2012 - The 28th annual K&N Horsepower Challenge will once again include the participation of the fans, as K&N officially announces the launch of the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge Sweepstakes. In addition to potentially winning a tremendous prize package including a custom Toyota Tundra, fans will once again be able to vote for their favorite driver as the eighth and final participant in this year's event, which will be held on July 7 at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.

2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge

"We're celebrating our fifth year as the title sponsor of the K&N Horsepower Challenge in 2012, and we are confident this is going to be the best one yet," said Steve Williams, Vice President for K&N. "With today's announcement of this year's sweepstakes, we reintroduce one of the greatest elements of the entire promotion, which is the fan involvement. Not only will they dictate the eighth and final driver participating in this year's Challenge, but one lucky fan will take home a one-of-a-kind Toyota Tundra designed and assembled by Toyota Racing Development with an assist from K&N, which promises to be our greatest grand prize yet."

The longest-running specialty event in the NHRA, the K&N Horsepower Challenge is a unique race-within-a-race pitting the seven Pro Stock racers who have accumulated the most qualifying points over the last year and one driver selected by the fans in a three-round, high-dollar shootout, with the winner pocketing $50,000. The fans can also take part in this annual celebration of the "factory hot rods" by entering the K&N Horsepower Challenge Sweepstakes. From the entries received, eight finalists will be chosen who will receive a trip for themselves and a companion to the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk.

On the day of the event, each finalist will be randomly paired with one of the eight qualified drivers, with the finalist whose driver wins the race taking home the "K&N Horsepower Challenge Edition Toyota Tundra", a unique 2012 V-8 Double Cab specifically created by Toyota Racing Development (TRD) and K&N Filters for this event with modifications to include a supercharger, custom wheels and exhaust, as well as other touches inside and out. As a four-time champion of this specialty race and the two-time defending winner, Greg Anderson appreciates the scope of K&N's involvement with the Pro Stock category, as well as the excitement the Sweepstakes brings to the fans.

"K&N has probably become the biggest supporter of the Pro Stock category, for which we are very grateful," said Anderson. "They put so much into it and do so much for the racers and the class itself. On top of that, they put out fantastic products, including several that we use on our race cars. Then, there's the K&N Horsepower Challenge, which is the coolest race of our year. You don't have to worry about points, so you can just go out there and race for a lot of money.

"I can honestly say from past experience that it's a fantastic feeling when you win the race, but it's no comparison to looking across the winner's circle and seeing the look on the face of the person who just won the sweepstakes. You end up feeling better for them than you do for yourself. It's just really cool to be able to do something for somebody else. It's really a neat deal, and I have to once again thank K&N for helping me put a smile on someone's face, something I hope to do again this year."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N Engineering Expands Partnership with NHRA/IHRA Racer and TV Personality Kathy Fisher

5 Apr 2012

K&N's Husband and Wife Drag Racing Duo, Kevin and Kathy Fisher who can be seen on their own online reality series, "Married With Dragsters".

In a joint announcement from K&N Engineering, Inc. and Performance by Fisher Racing, Kathy Fisher's new 2012 American Race Cars dragster will boldly carry the K&N colors starting with this season. Husband and fellow teammate, Kevin Fisher will continue to fly the K&N banner as well on his Top Dragster entry. With the news, K&N will commence in their fifth consecutive year as a major associate partner with the husband and wife duo from Lima, Ohio and their first as a major presence for Kathy and her 8.90 category ride.

Carefully tailored after Kathy Fisher's K&N 2012 Dragster scheme, the crew's new sublimated crew shirts are poised to be a hit.

"It would be an understatement to say that we are quite blessed to be able to work so closely with a company the caliber of K&N Engineering," said Kathy. "Our relationship may have only started five years ago, but Kevin and I have been loyal K&N product users and endorsers for decades. We couldn't be more excited to be extended the newly expanded opportunity that K&N has afforded us, to widen our marketing of their full line of air and oil filters, as well as other specialty lines such as their composite scoops and heavy duty filters."

Fisher's soon to be completed American dragster will proudly be emblazoned with a savage looking K&N in-house designed paint scheme, thanks to the handiwork of Adam Stadler, Creative Manager for K&N. The car will feature several standout colors from DuPont and DuPont's Hot Hues lines that will be carefully laid down by the highly coveted talents found at Todd's Extreme Paint in Milan, Michigan. All will highlight the bold K&N diamond plate logo and K&N Wrench-Off Filter that will be surrounded by a carbon fiber effect to tie in with Fisher's 2nd Generation K&N composite dragster scoop [100-8512] and the exceptional powder coating colors that will soon be expertly applied by Aesthetic Finishers in Piqua, Ohio [afipowder.com]

The Very Bold and Flashy Rendering of Kathy Fisher's All New 2012 K&N American Race Cars Patriot Swing Arm Dragster

"K&N is very proud to continue working with Kathy and Kevin Fisher and Performance by Fisher Racing for 2012," commented Steve Williams, Vice President of K&N Engineering. "We are looking forward to helping them compete with their updated Top Dragster and brand new Super Comp car. K&N's commitment to all types of sportsman racing across many different types of racing shows the importance of supporting this important racing community."

Performance by Fisher Racing will duplicate the new eye-catching K&N scheme for Kathy's American dragster by carrying it right into the team's sublimated crew wear again utilizing the expertise of Advertising Edge/CustomRaceShirts.com, as they have since 2008. They look forward to debuting the whole new look during their season opener and at the first NHRA Div. 3 event in late April in Indianapolis.

"With the newly expanded K&N program put into place for Kathy and her new dragster, it will allow us to continue to hone our marketing efforts in even more directions," remarked Bob Harris, K&N Series and Track Support Manager/Sports Marketing. "I'm just glad to know and work with such great people and with Kathy's understanding of business, racing and her growing fan base that will surely arise from her newly announced national television series, increasing our association with both Kathy and her husband, Kevin is a no-brainer on our part."

K&N's Kathy Fisher, shown here with one of her numerous 8.90 class victories over the years.

"Our continued, and now broadened affiliation, with K&N not only as a company, but maybe even more importantly with the people who continue to make K&N even better every day, is not something that we take lightly," Kathy confided. "To align with the best in the industry at this level, one must strive to reach absolute perfection in all aspects of their product, which in our case is our race team as a whole, and that means on and even more so, off the track."

"We are honored to have come to know, and the good fortune to work with, Steve Williams, Bob Harris, Tony Yorkman, Greg Boutte and Ryan Fellman, many of which are seasoned drag racing vets and that's just to name a few," she continued. "These guys are right there to help when you need it and more than understand what sportsman racers put their race cars and rigs through, too for that matter. They take much of the info that various racers supply them with and that's why their R&D department never rests, turning it into new and better products for racing and everyday applications."

Joining the long list of K&N products that can be found on both the Fisher's race and everyday vehicles, they are highly anticipating the addition of one of K&N's newest offerings and their inline fuel/oil filter for both the Kathy's new K&N dragster and Kevin's Ohio Crankshaft Top Dragster. Since they can be used with a variety of fuels, including Dragon Racing Fuels methanol that both team cars run on, they will be a great enhancer to their filtration needs. The filter material is made from stainless steel and the housing is a contemporary black anodized aluminum.

A full chronicalization of both the addition of the fuel filters along with all of the K&N products that the team uses and installs and the benefits of each, will be featured on a special webpage within the team's website, www.teamKNfilters.com.

Kathy Fisher can also be found again in 2012 competing in the team's K&N 2010 Corvette during select events.

In addition to a full race schedule planned for the 2012 season, The Fisher's also continue to own and operate their shop, now in its 20th year, Performance by Fisher, Inc., which offers complete auto repair, custom exhaust and numerous high performance upgrades including installation available for the full line of K&N Engineering products. Kathy also maintains her involvement with Frank Hawley's Drag Racing School, weekly contributions to knfilters.com, covering the plethora of winning racers that use K&N products as well as her on-camera work for Masters Entertainment, where she hosts several nationwide TV series for the award winning production company based in Bristol, Tennessee. She was recently tapped to co-host the new weekly series "Performance TV" with Tommy Johnson, Jr. that will begin airing later this year on Fox Sports Net nationwide.

Much of the new K&N car build, and the racing season to come, is currently being featured on the second season of the team's online reality series, "Married With Dragsters", a full in-house production in which Kathy handles everything from filming to editing the finished product. The reality series is offered in conjunction with Competitionplus.com and their special CP.TV video section.

The unique series can also be found by visiting www.marriedwithdragsters.com, where viewers can obtain complete details on the "Watch and Win" contest that is now underway. Viewers can enter for a chance at some of the over $1,500 in prizes up for grabs from companies including K&N Engineering, B&M Racing, Dragon Racing Fuels, Hawk Performance, Snap-On Tools and a bonus prize that is soon to be announced.

To learn more about the Riverside, California based K&N Engineering, their full line of industry-transcending products, including the World's Best Air Filter and the long line of championship competitors who use and win with them, visit www.knfilters.com.

Additional information on Performance by Fisher Racing, team bios, 2012 event schedule and details on how you can "Watch and Win" with "Married With Dragsters" can be found by clicking over to www.performancebyfisher.com.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

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