TRG Goes 1-2 Again; Moves into GTC Class Lead with Win at Mosport

BOWMANSVILLE, Ontario, July 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- TRG moved into the GTC class lead by scoring its second one-two finish in a row with another powerful and consistent performance at the Grand Prix of Mosport, the fourth round of American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patron.  

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110726/FL41753-a )

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110726/FL41753-b )

This week, Spence Pumpelly in the Racer's Roast/Fox River Coffee No. 66 car passed teammate Dion von Moltke on the final lap in his No. 68 PR Newswire/South African Airways Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.  Two weeks ago at Lime Rock, it was von Moltke who passed Pumpelly on the last lap to create TRG's first ever 1-2 finish in the American Le Mans Series.

"Duncan just keeps getting stronger and stronger with this race being a real testament to his driving, his patience and his racecraft," said the team owner Kevin Buckler. "And I can't say enough about Marc for stepping into the car this week. That should really help him get ready for Mid-Ohio and Baltimore. Dion was a ROCK this weekend and drove his heart out & showed real professionalism in his driving again the whole weekend. We have a great team right now and today it really showed once again."

With both cars running strong and near the front most of the day, Pumpelly who was leading at the time, was tapped by GT leader Dirk Werner in his BMW with just a little more than 30 minutes left in the race.  Pumpelly fought off the opponent's punt, which dropped him into fourth, to gradually work his way into second behind von Moltke who was trying to conserve fuel to in order to avoid the fate of Alex Job's No. 23 car that ran out of gas while chasing von Moltke for the lead that he had held for the last 20 laps of the race.  Pumpelly, on fresher tires, was able to get by von Moltke to gain the win that he lost at his teammate's hand two weeks earlier.

"Hey, we're teammates and we drive for a great team," said Pumpelly, "but you always want to win and with me on fresher tires and Dion having to conserve his fuel, I was in position to get by him.  It was amazing, though, how even the cars were all day long -- a real tribute to the TRG guys."

"Of course I would have preferred the win, but we will happily take two podiums in a row, and I am especially pleased to have put on a good show for the guests of our sponsors, PRNewswire and South African Airways that were here today," said von Moltke while waiting for the podium ceremony. "The GTC class in the ALMS series is definitely proving to be highly competitive and exciting for the fans to watch, and I cannot say enough about how fantastic a job TRG is doing.  I absolutely love working with these guys!"

The consecutive strong finishes unofficially give TRG a one-point lead in the GTC class championship. Von Moltke, Pumpelly and Ende all moved into second place in driver points, 11 points behind class leader Tim Pappas of Black Swan Racing.

Information on Dion von Moltke can be found at www.dionvm.com, South African Airways at www.flysaa.com, and PRNewswire at www.prnewswire.com .

TRG is a full-service motorsports company offering a total driver ladder approach, as well as comprehensive sponsorship and business opportunities. For drivers, this approach starts with track days, goes to club events, up into street stock series and culminates in the ultimate goal of professional motorsports. For sponsors and business partners, this method starts with everything from executive events, to traditional sponsorship models, all the way to comprehensive business-to-business opportunities and experiential marketing. With facilities in Petaluma, California and Mooresville, North Carolina the team can offer turn-key marketing programs as well as arrive-and-drive support. The company's NASCAR operations are headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina. The team fields a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry and has the capacity to run ARCA, Nationwide and the Camping World Truck Series. The Racer's Group was founded in 1993 and has been competing at the top level of motor racing. The team boasts Rolex Series GT championships in 2005 and 2006 and holds the record for the most wins in Grand-Am with 32. The team's resume is highlighted by five championships, four Rolex 24 Hour at Daytona victories, and a Le Mans 24 Hour win. For more information and sponsorship details, please email [email protected]. Detailed team info can be viewed at www.trgmotorsports.com and www.theracersgroup.com.

SOURCE TRG