The eligibility requirements for ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards race car bodies continue to evolve.

Effective in 2019, the Five Star flange-fit composite body will be the only body eligible for use on all paved oval tracks over 3/4-mile. Looking ahead to 2020, the composite body will be mandatory and the only body eligible for ARCA competition.

The composite body project, conducted in partnership with NASCAR and Five Star Race Car Bodies, is part of an overall cost containment initiative for the ARCA Racing Series.

“The look of the composite car really resonates with race fans and helps spectators identify with production cars that come straight from the manufacturers,” ARCA Senior Director of Competition and Operations Grayling Call said. “It also simplifies the technical inspection process. Right now, we're carrying so many different templates to accommodate the steel cars and the composites. As we streamline the template process, it frees up ARCA officials to focus on other things.”

Composite bodies are constructed with composite laminate blend materials engineered to be lightweight and durable and able to resist deflection at high speeds. The complete body is comprised of 12 flange-fit modular panels, for ease of installation and quick replacement, and weighs less than 135 pounds.

The ease-of-installation design allows teams to install the entire body in their respective shops, and to perform replacement of damaged panels at the team’s shop or the track, resulting in significant savings in time and labor required for repairs.

Plans have been finalized for the 2018 Woodhull Raceway Street Stock Challenge Series based at the 1/3-mile dirt track in Woodhull, New York.

The series will feature a three-race challenge format with drivers earning points toward the challenge series championship that will pay a point fund of $1,625 to the top 10 participants.

The three challenge races will take place on Saturday, April 21, Wednesday, August 8, and wrap up with the ‘Woodhull 100’ on Saturday, September 22.

Also included in the Challenge Series program will be contingency awards courtesy of Sunoco Race Fuels, American Racer Tire and Woodhull’s Street Stock division sponsor Joe Willcox Performance Automatics.

September’s running of the ‘Woodhull 100’ also carries a lap sponsor program that has generated $4,000-$5,000 in additional incentive dollars and prizes to be distributed annually at that event. Turn 5 Media will also sponsor a $55 Hard Charger Bonus for each of the three races on the Challenge Series.

Rules for the Challenge Series will follow Woodhull’s Open Street Stock rules which are as follows:
    •    Any steel small block engine

    •    Must run a two barrel carburetor

    •    10-inch maximum width on any tire

    •    No 3-Link or Late Model type chassis

    •    No weight rule


Visit www.woodhullraceway.com for more information.

Longtime engine builder and supplier Triad Racing Technologies (TRT) has announced its shop located in Mooresville, North Carolina, is for sale.

TRT builds NASCAR race engines and body parts and is a primary vendor for Toyota Racing Development. Its engines have raced in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series.

The assets for sale include all machinery and equipment associated with its engine building and R&D programs including full CNC capabilities, complete 800+ HP race engines, a large stock of engine parts inventory, and other miscellaneous equipment.

Global advisory, restructuring, and investment firm Gordon Brothers will assist and oversee the sale.

While Triad has made the strategic decision to exit the engine building business, it will continue to operate its other divisions focused on body parts and NASCAR racing.

“We’re proud of our track record in NASCAR and the success of our clients over the years. The sale of our engine facility will allow us to concentrate on our body parts business and continue to support our racing clients going forward,” TRT President & CEO Marty Gaunt said.

TRT has partnered with Toyota Racing Development since its entry into NASCAR over a decade ago and is said to have directly contributed to ten manufacturer championships, five driver championships, and over 100 wins in multiple series since 2004.

For more information, visit gordonbrothers.com/triad. For inquiries regarding the sale, contact Jim Burke at Gordon Brothers via email at jburke@gordonbrothers.com or call 617/422-6232.

(Photo courtesy of Auto Imagery).

The Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing has named the 2018 inductees to the museum's International Drag Racing Hall of Fame on Thursday, March 15, in Gainesville, Florida, adding Jeb Allen, Kelly Brown, Gary Densham, Roy Fjastad, Jim Oddy, Ollie Riley and Greg Sharp to its roll call of honorees.

Both Allen and Brown are former NHRA Top Fuel champions while Densham has been competing in Funny Car competition since the early 1970s. Fjastad, who passed away earlier this month, was a prolific race car builder in the 1960s and ‘70s while Oddy is a legend among supercharged doorslammer racers. Sharp is the curator for the NHRA Motorsports Museum and Riley the genius behind the Chrondek timing system that was so important in drag racing’s infancy.

The Patricia Garlits Memorial Award, presented by Mopar and Don Garlits, went to the late Terry Chandler for her support of the Infinite Hero and Make-A-Wish Funny Car teams and drag racing in general.

The Teen Mazda Challenge (TMC) is going national, as announced by the National Auto Sport Association (NASA). The new TMC is designed to add value and help drivers up to age 20 climb the ladder to success in racing and help them develop skills they need in their careers.

The program also will deliver a suite of contingency prizes to help make racing more affordable.

Mazda Motorsports will make each regional TMC champion eligible to win a $500 cash award from Mazda and for nomination to the Mazda Road to 24 Shootout. The grand prize is a scholarship valued at $100,000 applicable to a season of racing in the Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich Tires.

NASA will also award each TMC regional champion complimentary entry fees for the 2019 Spec Miata racing season. These scholarships will be tallied after each NASA region has completed its full season of racing.

In honor of TMC founder Ron Cortez, who passed away in January 2018, TMC regional competitors finishing in the three podium positions in their regions will be eligible for $1,000, $500, $300 in direct cash benefits to assist them with racing in the NASA Championships.

These positions will be tallied according to regional points standings July 1, which will give drivers a chance to prepare for the Championships September 13-16 at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

In addition, the top finishing TMC competitor at the 2018 NASA Championships will be awarded $2,500 regardless of overall finishing position.

Finally, the top five finishing TMC competitors at the NASA Championships will be eligible for $400 in product certificates that will assist them in purchasing brake pads for the season.

For more information, visit www.nasaproracing.com.

Motovicity Distribution, an automotive performance aftermarket distributor, has launched another brand onto its line card, Radium Engineering.

Radium Engineering offers an expanding collection of motorsport parts and accessories for high-performance and racing, focusing on fuel surge tank lines and PCV oil catch can systems.

Radium’s comprehensive line of fuel system components includes fuel rails, filter kits, components and other specialized parts.

Motovicity points out that Radium Engineering sets itself apart from other companies by "paying special attention to detail" and "utilizing a well-thought-out design when making their products."

“All Radium products are carefully planned with thorough R&D and developed in-house using the latest computer simulation and modeling techniques. Extensive testing and evaluation ensure the performance of Radium products exceed consumer expectations. For these reasons, top motorsports competitors and enthusiasts worldwide rely on Radium Engineering products,” Radium Sales Manager Tina Powell said.

FIA World Rallycross Championship (World RX) organizer IMG has announced a new Americas Rallycross Championship (ARX).

The announcement follows the news that Red Bull Global Rallycross (GRC) will replace its headline Supercar category with the new Gold class which runs upgraded Lites cars in 2018.

The series will feature four events in 2018, beginning overseas at the Speedmachine Festival at the UK circuit of Silverstone on May 25–27, which will also include a round of the World RX.

Other stops on the schedule include the Trois-Rivières in Canada on August 4–5, and the Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas, on September 29–30. Details of a fourth event set in the US have not yet been confirmed.

Volkswagen and Subaru are among the manufacturers that have announced support for the ARX, with Cooper Tires also signed up as an official partner.

Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame will induct three drivers into its Class of 2018 in July.

Longtime DIRTcar luminary and Lebanon Valley Speedway legend Ken Tremont Jr., consummate Western region champion Brian Swartzlander and pioneer driver and car builder Bob Rossell add their names to a list of modified standouts that was started in 1992 when the Hall of Fame was established on the Cayuga County Fairgrounds.

The 27th annual induction ceremonies will take place Thursday, July 26, at 7 p.m. in the Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame and Museum in Weedsport, New York.

Along with the inductions announcement, the 2018 Gene DeWitt Car Owner Award goes to Ray Bramall.

Car builder Maynard Troyer is the recipient of this year’s Mechanic/Engineering Award.

Longtime DIRTcar official Gary Spaid will receive the Leonard J. Sammons Jr. Award for Outstanding Contributions to Auto Racing.

Journalists Don and Jo Ann Davies will be the recipients of the Andrew S. Fusco Award for Media Excellence in memory of Hall of Fame board member and legal counsel Andy Fusco, who passed away in 2015.

Linda Cosco, owner and promoter of Ontario’s Humberstone Speedway, will be honored with the Outstanding Woman in Racing Award.

Known as "Lightning" on the airwaves, Jay Tilles has been appointed as Banks Power’s latest brand manager, who will oversee the rollout of the company’s line of hardware, electronics and high-performance engines.

Tilles will oversee the launching of products for a number of applications in both gasoline and diesel markets, as well as racer and influencer outreach, as part of Banks Power’s new “2020 Vision” plan that began this January.

With a “wildly varied” and extensive media experience, Tilles has 26 years under his belt with the likes of KROQ-FM's Kevin & Bean Show and CBS Digital. He has also hosted events, interviewed celebrities and has been the spokesman for dozens of major advertisers, among many other duties.

"There was no way I could pass up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to join one of the automotive industry's most revered brands. [Banks Power President and CEO] Gale Banks is known worldwide for designing and manufacturing the most advanced engines and performance parts…I'm so honored to be welcomed into this elite team of innovators,” Tilles said.

“Jay intends to bring you inside our shop as we develop, test then head out to the track or down to the beach to lay down some horsepower. So, get ready to rumble, because Lightning's in ‘da house!” Banks said.

(Image courtesy of Merecedes AMG PETRONAS.)

Mercedes AMG PETRONAS Formula One drivers Lewis Hamilton (pictured at left) and Valtteri Bottas (pictured at right) helped open PETRONAS’ new $60 million Global Research & Technology (R&T) Center in Turin, Italy.

The pair were joined by Team Principal & CEO Toto Wolff and Managing Director Andy Cowell.

Acting as the global hub for PETRONAS Lubricants International’s (PLI) R&T activity, the center will be home to PLI’s automotive and industrial technology testing capabilities and expertise.

The facility will play a significant part in the development of fuels for the next generation of road car engines, using technology tested and proven on the race track through its partnership with the team.

PETRONAS is responsible for the design, development and delivery of the Fluid Technology Solutions (FTS) that have helped power the F1 team to four consecutive Drivers' and Constructors' titles.

"After visiting this state-of-the-art facility in Turin, and meeting the talented scientists who will be working here, it's clear how committed PETRONAS is to investing in an even brighter future through research and technology,” Wolff said.

Turin is the latest R&T center that PLI has established around the world, joining the $100 million investment in a lubricant blending plant and satellite R&T center for motorcycle lubricants at Patalganga in Maharashtra, India, and its 50 percent stake in the Guangxi Nanning Yuchai PETRONAS Lube Co Ltd Research & Development Centre in China’s Guangxi province.

For more information, including images and a video of the opening, visit here.