Mobley Wins Round 9 of the 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup in Mexico

PUEBLA, Mexico, Sept. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- After yesterday's qualifying session at Autodromo Internacional Miguel E. Abed in Amozoc, Mexico, pole winner JD Mobley said that he knew he had to give it everything he had and leave it all out on the track.  The Castle Rock, CO native did just that today as he led Round 9 wire-to-wire to claim his first career Jetta TDI Cup victory.  Mobley arrived in Mexico in fifth place in the Championship point standings and was 44 points behind leader Jarvis Gennari.  After today's commanding win, Mobley has trimmed Gennari's lead to just ten points (after today's event, Gennari retains the lead in the Championship with 293 points).  Mobley will be starting on pole tomorrow as well, which definitely will put even more pressure on Gennari.

"Today just couldn't have gone any smoother," said Mobley after the race.  "I knew I needed to be perfect this weekend and so far I'm accomplishing what I need to.  Not only did I earn my first career Jetta TDI Cup victory this afternoon, but I also closed the gap in the standings to ten points.  I couldn't ask for a better scenario heading into tomorrow's race – I led wire-to-wire today and I'm starting on the pole.  I'm just going to go out there, stay patient and hopefully I will be able to clinch the title."

Puebla native, Juan Pablo Sierra Lendle, finished second in today's race and as a result sits just 11 points out of first place in the point standings with 282 points.  Ryan Ellis, winner of Rounds 1 & 2 earlier this season finished third, Chris Wehrheim finished fourth and Jake Thompson rounds out the top-five.  

There are just 25 points separating first through fifth place in the Championship standings heading into tomorrow's season-finale in Amozoc, which is located just east of the city of Puebla, home of the Volkswagen production facility where the Jetta TDI Cup racecars were fabricated.  Gennari will look to defend his lead in the Championship, but he'll have to keep his eye in the rearview as Mobley and Sierra Lendle aren't the only ones within striking distance; Jake Thompson sits in fourth place with 274 points and series rookie, Wyatt Gooden is in fifth with 268 points.  The 2010 Championship will most definitely come down to the final lap and it's anybody's guess who will climb to the top once the checkered flag  drops.

Not only is Gennari leading the Championship point standings, but he's also leading the Rookie standings as well; and with a successful campaign tomorrow he could capture both titles.  Gooden is second in the rookie standings, followed by Arie Ouimet (in sixth place in the Championship standings), Kevin Gleason (seventh in the Championship standings) and Michael Hogg (eleventh in the Championship standings).

Round 10 of the 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup will begin tomorrow at 1:25 pm CT.

Jetta TDI Cup News & Notes:

Qualifying for Round 10

As if the win today wasn't enough, JD Mobley also turned in his second pole-winning performance during this morning's qualifying session for the final round of the 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup taking place tomorrow.  Mobley improved on his pole speed from yesterday's session by over a second with a lap of 1:48.084.  Wyatt Gooden qualified second after turning a lap of 1:48.541 and Kevin Gleason rounds out the top-three after recording a lap of 1:48.840.  Mexico native, Juan Pablo Delgado qualified fourth (turning a lap of 1:48.842) and Ryan Ellis rounds out the top five with a lap of 148.984.

Guest Drivers Join the Field in Puebla

All three of the guest drivers in this weekend's Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup events are seasoned professional racecar drivers.  Fernando Acosta, a Volkswagen Mexico factory driver who won the 24 Hours of Mexico last year behind the wheel of a Volkswagen, was the highest-finishing guest driver this afternoon after he turned in a 22nd place performance.  Another Volkswagen Mexico factory driver, Leslie Gonzalez, finished 25th and British Formula Ford driver, Daniel Domit brought his Jetta TDI Cup car home in 26th place.

Follow the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Series action on:

www.vwmotorsportusa.com

Volkswagen Online Newsroom: media.vw.com  

Live Timing & Scoring: http://livetiming.net/scca/VW

Live Timing & Scoring for your Mobile Device: http://livetiming.net/SCCA/VW/html.asp

Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/JettaTDICup

Twitter: http://twitter.com/VWJettaTDICup

About the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup

The SCCA Pro Racing Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup was launched in 2008 as way to introduce clean diesel technology to the U.S. market and develop the best of motorsport's up-and-coming talent. During the season, young, up and coming drivers (between ages 16-26) compete on road courses around North America in identical factory-prepared clean diesel powered Jetta TDI's. Each driver competing in the Series earns a professional racing license from SCCA Pro Racing at the conclusion of the season. In addition to more than $50,000 in prize money at stake during the season, the Series Champion receives Volkswagen factory career advancement support with a value up to $100,000.

The Jetta TDI Cup car is powered by a 2.0-liter, 170 hp, four-cylinder TDI clean diesel engine mated to a six-speed, double-clutch, automatic DSG transmission. The car is only slightly modified from stock with Pirelli racing tires, an on-board Race Data system, race suspension and brake components, drivers racing safety seat, FIA roll cage and an on-board fire extinguisher system.  Series sponsors include: Pirelli, Bosch, ViON, Castrol, Oakley, Red Bull, Staubli, Aggreko, defNder, Lamin-X, Volkswagen Driver Gear, Volkswagen Parts & Service, iRacing, Safety-Kleen and Ringer Gloves.

About Volkswagen of America

Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen is one of the world's largest producers of passenger cars and Europe's largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Golf, GTI, New Beetle, New Beetle convertible, Jetta, Jetta SportWagen, Eos, Passat, Passat Wagon, CC, Tiguan, Touareg and Routan through approximately 600 independent U.S. dealers. All 2010 Volkswagens come standard-equipped with Electronic Stabilization Program. This is important because the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has called ESC the most effective new vehicle safety technology since the safety belt. Visit Volkswagen of America online at www.vw.com or www.media.vw.com to learn more.

About SCCA Pro Racing:

A wholly owned subsidiary of Sports Car Club of America, Inc., SCCA Pro Racing Inc. is a leading sanctioning body for motorsports events in the United States. A member of the Automobile Competition Committee of the United States (ACCUS), SCCA Pro Racing operates and sanctions the World Challenge Championships, the SCCA Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup, SCCA Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup, SCCA Pro Trans-Am Series, Spec Racer Ford Pro Series and Formula Enterprises Pro Series. For more information, please visit www.sccapro.com.

SOURCE Volkswagen of America, Inc.