Pankl Racing Systems AG this month concluded a share sale and purchase agreement with the German turbo-supercharger development company APC-Advanced Propulsion Concepts GmbH and its shareholders.

Under the agreement, Pankl will acquire a 51 percent stake in a two-step transaction, and Pankl and APC will jointly develop the turbo supercharger business for motor racing.

"As a young company, we specialized in high technology applications in niche markets from the very start," said APC founder Professor Hans-Peter Schmalzl. "Especially motor racing provides us with excellent future perspectives. We consider our cooperation with Pankl Racing Systems AG an excellent opportunity to further strengthen our market position and to substantially accelerate our growth momentum."

According to Pankl CEO Wolfgang Plasser, his company had sought to enter the turbo supercharger business since 2007. "The combination of the extensive APC knowhow with our production capabilities, global presence and networks opens significant possibilities," he added.

For more information on APC, visit www.advanced-propulsion.com. For more on Pankl, visit www.pankl.com.

The World Karting Association has recently completed a review of the “ladder system” within the WKA Mazda / Bridgestone Manufacturers Cup Series. This review identified performance inconsistencies among the Sportsman, Junior and Senior classes.

The speed increase for the Sportsman drivers advancing to the Yamaha and Komet Junior classes has been too great. However, when the Junior drivers move to Yamaha and Komet Senior, lap times have been slower due to the added weight for the classes with no proportional increase in power.

Based on several months of monitoring and deliberation and a test session held Monday, September 17 at New Castle Motorsports Park, the World Karting Association Trustees approved several technical changes to the Yamaha and Komet Junior and Senior engine specifications to balance the performance across the Sportsman, Junior and Senior classes.

These changes will be effective at the 2013 season-opening Man Cup Sprint Championships this December 27-30 at Daytona International Speedway:

1. Yamaha and Komet Junior classes will use a special WKA filter cup that will reduce the air volume and thus restrict performance. Testing has shown this is a low-cost method for performance reduction and only requires installation of the cup and leaner carburetor settings. The filter cups will be available for purchase at the WKA office and at the Manufacturers Cup events. A number of kart shops and engine providers will also carry the filter cups.

2. The Yamaha Senior class will use a new tuned exhaust system, the RLV Y-SR. This system is similar in design to the models used on the KPV engines and will offer a higher level of performance over the four-hole can without raising the engine RPM’s. The length will be run at 8½” minimum head pipe length. This system includes the RLV #9110 straight header and a 1.75” straight connector tube.

A secondary benefit of this change is that the high levels of engine heat generated by the four-hole can will be reduced thus extending the life of the engines between rebuilds.

A similar exhaust system will also be introduced for the Junior Yamaha classes in 2014 after further development work is complemented.

Other notable changes for the 2013 competition year include:

- The Komet Senior class will be re-named “Komet Pro” and will use the KPV 2 pipe currently used in the Junior class. This will allow drivers moving up from the Junior ranks to compete by simply removing the restricted air filter cup. The pipe will be run at the current 10" Senior class minimum length.

- For 2012 participants in the Komet Senior classes, a special pipe exchange program is being offered by the KPV importer, Haddock, Ltd. Inc., for any senior driver needing to replace their current 4 pipe to comply with the new rule. To be eligible for this program, a driver must be one of the 23 competitors shown in the point standings for the 2012 season in the Komet Lite and Komet Heavy classes.

- The new Komet Pro class will run for the normal Man Cup awards as well as an additional cash prize package for each event and for the season's points series. More information on this new program will be available soon.

- The Leopard-only Senior class, formerly known as Parilla Leopard, will now be titled Parilla Senior and will include the Leopard and X30 engines at 365 pounds minimum weight.

A WKA’s Pit Board announcement will be released once the WKA filter cups become available for purchase.

Brockville-Canada's biggest annual fall racing festival continues to grow as the 2012 edition of the Thousand Islands RV Fall Nationals gets ready to roll at Brockville Ontario Speedway October 12-14.

The event will see an expanded lineup for this year with the Go Nuclear Late Model series and the T-USA Mod Lites now part of the fall festival of speed.

They join the 358 and Big Block Modifieds, Sprint Cars, Sportsman, Pro Stock and Sportsman as three different DIRTcar championship series come to a close at the fast quarter mile, Beast of the East.

Promoters Paul and Cheryl Kirkland have been amazed by the corporate support for this year's event as many local and regional businesses have stepped up to sponsor various parts of the weekend, including putting more dollars right into the hands of drivers by sponsoring all heat races along with bonuses in some features. 

Sponsors include Napa Auto Parts, King Edward Auto Parts, Splash Well Drilling, Trailer Country, Doug Jelly of Cobblestone Realty, Brighton Speedway, Pastime Motors, Valley Sales and Equipment and ET Performance.  

To make room for more cars, more teams and more fans, Tackaberry Construction has been hard at work adding to the pit area and the road that leads to the Thousand Island RV park. More food and retail vendors will also be on site for the weekend.

Full Fender Friday gets the weekend kicked off in style on October 12 with the final race in the 2012 Pro Stock tour plus the Go Nuclear Late Model series.
Time Trails for the Pro Stocks shift things into high gear at 6:40 with the green flag set for 7 p.m. 

Small Block Saturday will once again feature the final event in the 2012 358 Modified championship chase along with an open 360 sprint car event and for the first time the T-USA Mod Lite machines. Time Trials kick off at 12:15 with the heats going at 1 p.m. 

Big Block Sunday puts a wrap on the 2012 Beast of the East schedule as Modifieds best try to position themselves heading to Charlotte for the World Finals. 

The final event of the DIRTcar Sportsman tour, which includes many Brockville area competitors vying for the title and the Street Stocks are also part of Sundays events. Time Trials start at 11:30 with racing getting going at 1p.m.



The Thousand Islands RV Fall Nationals is presented by Bob-FM, CKWS-TV, the Brockville Recorder and Times, and Comfort Inn Brockville.

Tom Miller, VP of Sales and Marketing for Design Engineering, Inc. (DEI), has announced the addition of Steve Garrett to the DEI marketing team. The position is effective immediately.

Garrett, a professed bona fide “car guy” and performance enthusiast, has joined DEI to serve as a coordinator for all media and PR activities and to handle the company’s graphic design for collateral, print and online advertising, packaging and catalogs.

A talented graphic design artist, he is the prior owner of Highline Advertising located in Bay Village, Ohio.
 
Prior to joining the DEI staff, he worked as a graphic design artist for The Plain Dealer Publishing Company, publisher of The Plain Dealer daily newspaper, and was responsible for designing all print and online advertising for area automotive dealerships as well as product design for special advertising sections.

Additionally, he coordinated the graphic design for the Cleveland International Auto Show from 2007 through 2011.

Garrett also served as a graphic designer for several Cleveland-based automotive companies including Genuine Hot Rod Hardware and Stylin’ Concepts where he also served in inside sales.

Garrett is a graduate of Baldwin Wallace College and resides in Bay Village, Ohio.

For more information, contact Miller at tmiller@designengineering.com, or call 800/264-9472. To reach Garrett, email steveg@designengineering.com.

Eight NHRA rookie drivers, representative of all four NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series categories, are the eligible candidates for the 2012 Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award, it was announced this week by officials from NHRA and the Automobile Club of Southern California.

The award, which recognizes the top rookie competitor in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and offers a $20,000 prize and traditional trophy to the winner, will be presented during NHRA’s annual championship awards ceremony on Monday, November 12, at the Hollywood and Highland Center in Los Angeles. 



More than 150 of the nation’s leading auto racing journalists will select the winner through a voting system based on the following criteria: number of events participated, performance on and off the racetrack, participation in NHRA promotions, and relationships with fans, sponsors, and media.

The candidates for the prestigious award are, in alphabetical order: Khalid alBalooshi (Top Fuel), Blake Alexander (Funny Car), Alexis DeJoria (Funny Car), Courtney Force (Funny Car), John Hall (Pro Stock Motorcycle), Todd Lesenko (Funny Car), Chris McGaha (Pro Stock), and Scotty Pollacheck (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

alBalooshi, 45, a native of Doha, Qatar, who resides in Los Angeles, raced to his first Top Fuel victory at the Auto-Plus NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading in October. He qualified a season-best third in Norwalk in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster. With his win, he became only the third driver from outside North America to win a Full Throttle Series event.

Alexander, 24, of Smith Mountain, Virginia, qualified for six of the 10 events he entered in the Paul Smith-tuned Auto Service Plus Chevy Monte Carlo. He qualified a season-best 11th in the 16-car field at the AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals.

DeJoria, 35, of Los Angeles, raced to a runner-up finish at the Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Tri-Cities Area Ford Dealers in Bristol and qualified a season-best fifth at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals presented by Auto-Plus in Indianapolis in her Tequila Patron Toyota Camry.
 
Force, 24, of Yorba Linda, California, raced to her first victory in Seattle in only her 15th start. She also posted runner-up finishes in Chicago and Denver and No. 1 qualifying efforts in Indianapolis and Dallas behind the wheel of her Traxxas Ford Mustang. After qualifying for every race during the season, she also qualified for the Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship playoffs, guaranteeing a top 10 points finish.

Hall, 41, of Hamden, Connecticut, raced to a semifinal finish in Brainerd on his Sovereign-Star Racing Buell and qualified a season-best sixth in Norwalk.

Lesenko, 49, of Alberta, Canada, drove "Big Jim" Dunn’s Tap It Brewing Co. Chevy Impala to four quarterfinal appearances and qualified a season-best 13th in Phoenix and at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Charlotte.

MaGaha, 33, of Odessa, Texas, advanced to the semifinals in his first race appearance of the season at the Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals presented by NAPAFilters.com in Florida. He qualified a season-best 10th at that race in his Harlow Sammons of Odessa Dodge Avenger.

Pollacheck, 43, of Medford, Oregon, qualified for every Pro Stock Motorcycle event during the season and earned a spot in the Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship, guaranteeing him a top 10 points finish. He raced to a season-best fourth starting spot in Houston aboard his Sovereign-Star Racing Buell.

In 2002, the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award and the NHRA Rookie of the Year Award were combined to create one award recognizing the future stars of the sport. 



Past winners of the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award have developed into some of NHRA’s biggest stars, including Tony Pedregon (1996, Funny Car), Ron Capps (1997, Funny Car), Doug Kalitta (1998, Top Fuel), Antron Brown (1999, Pro Stock Motorcycle), Melanie Troxel (2000, Top Fuel), GT Tonglet (2001, Pro Stock Motorcycle), Gene Wilson (2002, Pro Stock), Brandon Bernstein (2003, Top Fuel), Jason Line (2004, Pro Stock), Robert Hight (2005, Funny Car), J.R. Todd (2006, Top Fuel), Ashley Force Hood (2007, Funny Car), Mike Neff (2008, Funny Car), Spencer Massey (2009, Top Fuel), LE Tonglet (2010, Pro Stock Motorcycle), and Hector Arana Jr. (2011, Pro Stock Motorcycle).

NHRA Rookie of the Year winners prior to the merger of the awards included the late Darrell Russell (2001, Top Fuel), Don Lampus (2000, Top Fuel), Scotty Cannon (1999, Funny Car), Jeg Coughlin Jr. (1998, Pro Stock), Gary Scelzi (1997, Top Fuel), and co-winners in 1996, Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Matt Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

In addition to the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award, the company is the title sponsor for the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals, November 8-11 at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.



The company also is a major sponsor for John Force Racing, providing primary sponsorship for the Ford Mustang driven by Hight, as well as associate sponsorship for the Mustangs driven by John Force, Neff, and Courtney Force. In addition, the company is the presenting sponsor for the California Hot Rod Reunion and the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum.

Not only are sections of the Raceway at Belle Isle being repaired, but the circuit for the 2013 Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix is being modified to enhance the competition, event organizers said this week.

The course will be extended one-quarter mile entering the right-hand Turn 3 to 2.346 miles, which was the track length utilized from 1997-2001.

Team Chevy IZOD IndyCar Series drivers visited the venue recently as construction workers continued replacing sections of concrete.

“It will be a more suitable racetrack for us with more passing opportunities,” said Sebastien Bourdais, who competed for Dragon Racing this past season. “It’s all good news. (Event chairman) Bud Denker is planning quite a few more things to improve passing, which is a sign of commitment. What I had to say as a suggestion he already had thought of."

The Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix on June 1-2 will be the first of three doubleheaders during the 2013 season. Both races will be broadcast on ABC.

Indycar racing returned to Belle Isle in June after a three-year absence, with Scott Dixon of Target Chip Ganassi Racing winning the race that was red-flagged to repair two sections of the circuit. Sixty of the scheduled 90 laps were completed.

After an engineering evaluation of the circuit, workers began removing deteriorated concrete areas of the racing surface, evaluating and repairing storm drainage systems and installing reinforced concrete areas. About 80,000 square feet of concrete and 3000 square feet of asphalt will be installed.

POWRi Racing has signed a multi-year agreement to become the promoter at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, starting with the 2013 season.
 
The historic one-third mile clay oval owned by the Sun Prairie Fire Department will feature the Badger Midget Auto Racing Series. POWRi’s Lucas Oil National Midget Series will co-sanction several to-be-determined events. Badger and POWRi co-sanctioned 10 events in 2012 including two at Angell Park.
 
POWRi was founded by Ken Brown and Jim Siner, and completed its eighth season on October 6. It also operates the Speedway Motors 600cc Outlaw Micro Series and the Lucas Oil West Midget Series, and promotes events at Belle-Clair Speedway in Belleville, Illinois, and the Southern Illinois Center in Du Quoin, Illinois.
 
“Our goal is to strengthen midget racing in Wisconsin and Illinois, and the opportunity to promote Angell Park and work with Badger offers us a tremendous opportunity to do that,” Brown said. “We’ll keep the Angell Park traditions of racing on Sunday nights, starting on Memorial Day weekend and closing on Labor Day weekend with the Pepsi Nationals.”
 
Badger, the world’s oldest midget sanctioning body, has raced at Angell Park since 1946.
 
“We’ve co-sanctioned a couple of events the past couple of years with POWRi and they all were well represented with good competition and car counts,” Badger President Harlin Kittleson said. “We were kind of in a bind for a little while and co-sanctioning with POWRi helped our car counts. Kenny Brown and Jim Siner have always been willing to work with us and it’s been a good relationship.”
 
Angell Park will announce its schedule in the future.
 
For more information, go to www.POWRi.com.

After two months of grueling competition at nine events set across the United States and Canada, the field is finally set for the 2012 Summit Racing Equipment SuperSeries World Championship presented by AMSOIL and Moser Engineering at this weekend’s IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals at Memphis International Raceway.
 
With an expanded field now including a world championship in Junior Dragster, a total of 48 participants advanced to the championship runoff from competitions in Virginia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Texas, Michigan, Alberta and North Carolina and will now compete for a world championship and lucrative championship prize package in one of the most prestigious grassroots racing programs in the world.
 
The competition in Top, Mod and Junior Dragster will feature 16 drivers in each class competing for the title. The winners and runner-ups at Summit Team Finals competitions in Divisions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 9 and winners in Divisions 5, 6 and 7 plus one wild card recipient in each class will make up the field.
 
This year’s Summit SuperSeries participants are in Top Alan Glatt, Jason Blankenship, Tim Butler, Sammy Hollingsworth, Jonathan Robin, Ken LaBoe, Rich Zemrose, Sheldon Gerlach, Michael Keylich, Aaron Gee, Rick Baad, Brian Barby, Tammy Chamberlain, Chad Brewer, Chris Dean and Greg Hoffard.
 
In Mod are Kris Bunch, George Page, Chris Adams, Aaron Brock, Shane Kay, Jay Landry, Randy Biddle Jr., John Janu, Jay Robinson, Tim Ray, Mark Gubinski, Steven Breitkreuz, Tim O’Moore, Jay Norris, Scott Yates and Monte Soper.
 
Finally in Junior Dragster are Tyler Macedo, Austin Johnson, Toni Salsgiver, Jennifer Craft, Wesley Mayfield, Dylan Kiser, Randi Teed, Lewie Wrotman, Chris Pearson, Cory Tankersley, Ryan Paquette, Kaden Bergos, Lizzie Low, Connor Caulder, Robert Vogler and Josh Jones.
 
Representing their home tracks, the 48 participants from across North America will travel to Memphis International Raceway this weekend to compete in the Top, Mod and Junior Dragster championships with the title of World Champion and over $200,000 in cash and prizes available to the top finishers.
 
The drivers will get their first hit at the track on Saturday, October 13 with time runs throughout the afternoon. The Summit SuperSeries World Championship will take place Saturday evening with champions crowned in all three classes.
 
The winner of the Top class will take home $10,000 from Summit Racing Equipment, a brand new dragster courtesy of American Race Cars with a Trick Flow engine, a trip to Aruba, an IHRA Gold Card, World Champion Ironman and more.

The winner of the Mod class will receive $10,000 from Summit Racing Equipment, a 26’ Pace trailer, custom golf cart, IHRA Gold Card, a trip to Aruba, World Champion Ironman and more.

The winner of the Junior Dragster class will receive $3,000 from Summit Racing Equipment, a brand new Vic Puglia Junior Dragster with an engine courtesy of Steve Waller, IHRA Gold Card, World Champion Ironman and more.
 
An awards celebration recognizing the winners and other seasonal programs including the Summit Pro-Am Tour will take place Saturday night immediately following the Summit SuperSeries competition.
 
The IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals are this Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Memphis International Raceway. Tickets are free with a coupon available at www.ihra.com.

Nancy Knapp Schilke at motorsport.com is reporting that Lola Cars International, which entered administration—with $32 million in debt—in May 2012, has effectively ceased operations after failing to locate a buyer for the troubled business.

Green Savoree Racing Promotions has announced a pair of agreements with Pirelli World Challenge and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda.
 
These partnerships ensure the owners of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and Honda Indy Toronto will have both exciting series run at each track through 2014.

Pirelli World Challenge and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda will support the IZOD IndyCar Series events at all three tracks next year, competing at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 22-24, the Honda Indy Toronto on July 12-14 and the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on August 2-4 in 2013.
 
Pirelli World Challenge made its first appearance at Mid-Ohio in 1994 and has had the track on its schedule 14 times, including every year since 2002. The series has run at St. Petersburg eight times since 1990, each year from 2010 to the present. Toronto has played host to World Challenge twice previously, in 2007 and 2010.
 
USF2000 debuted at Mid-Ohio in 1995 and has run at the Lexington, Ohio circuit 12 times, returning on the schedule in 2011 after a five-year break. The series made its first appearance at St. Petersburg in 2010. USF2000 will be holding its inaugural pair of races at Toronto in 2013.
 
Founded in 2009 by veteran motorsports executives Kim Green and Kevin Savoree, Green Savoree Racing Promotions is a privately held motorsports event ownership and management company. In working together since 1993, Green and Savoree have won four IndyCar championships, three Indy 500s and the 12 Hours of Sebring as team principals, and established the Indy Racing League’s first street race in 2004.

Headquartered in Indianapolis, the firm owns and promotes multiple professional racing events in North America, including Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, The Mid-Ohio School, Honda Indy Toronto and Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. More information about the company is available at gpstpete.com, hondaindytoronto.com and midohio.com.