The World Karting Association and Purdue University reached a three-year agreement that makes Purdue the exclusive engineering and technology academic partner of the WKA.

The WKA will become the sanctioning body of the annual evGrandPrix (electric vehicle grand prix) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway starting with the 2017 season. Purdue Motorsports will manage the educational aspects of the grand prix, and the WKA will manage the operation of the race, said Danny White, director of motorsports at Purdue.

Adding an electric karting division on the WKA circuit is a top priority, he said.

"Purdue Motorsports will work with the World Karting Association to see how we can assist in the addition of a professional electric division to WKA karting," White said. "We are honored to work with this group to expand the future of evKarting worldwide."

The university and WKA will work together to create programs that promote science, technology, education and math (STEM), and build the fan base of electric karting.

Known as the foundation of motorsports, WKA sanctions national, regional and local kart racing events every week across the United States and is an affiliate member of the Automobile Competition Committee of the United States, a liaison of the FIA. Since its inception in 1971, WKA has a place for everyone in karting and now expands its support to the growing electric branch of karting.

The Purdue Motorsports MSTEM3 program (Motorsports STEM for Manufacturing and Medicine) at Purdue is an education initiative designed to spark students' interest in STEM fields by taking advantage of Purdue's location near Indianapolis, the "Racing Capital of the World."

For the past 55 years, Kooks Headers and Exhaust has built a sterling reputation in the performance aftermarket and racing industry for their relentless dedication to quality, performance and innovation. Now the iconic performance manufacturer will have a lot more room to advance header and exhaust technology thanks to their new facility located just 25 minutes South of their Statesville, North Carolina headquarters in Mooresville.
 
Located in the heart of Race City USA (Mooresville, NC) the new 20,000 square-foot facility will be home to the Sales, Marketing, Logistics and Research/Development departments.

By opening the New facility in Mooresville, NC, Kooks is now able to expand its Statesville manufacturing capabilities. With the new equipment, Kooks has the ability to laser cut up to ¾-inch stainless steel plates which will enable the company to produce their own flanges and cut and bend their own brackets, making the company’s production entirely self-reliant. The new equipment includes:

- 6000 Watt Mitshibishi Laser Cutting machine
- 60-ton Dener break press
- Time Saver surface conditioning machine
- AIM 1CNC Wire bending machine

“Our customers continuously ask us to develop new products, and with this new expansion, we are showing our customers how devoted we are to continuing to provide the best technology in the industry,” Kook Jr said. “And a big part of that is our investment in cutting-edge machining equipment and engineering talent. We are now one of the only header and exhaust companies that can produce everything in house, and we are very proud of that.”

Kooks will also use their new equipment and to manufacture products for other companies.

“We look forward to providing custom machining and fabrication services for other companies with our investment in the new equipment” stated Kook Jr. “The Mooresville location will also feature a custom fabrication center where customers can have the best header and exhaust products on the market installed on their vehicle.”

The Mooresville location is the third facility for Kooks Headers and Exhaust. The company now occupies more than 100,000 square-feet total and employs 90 people.

To learn more about Kooks Headers and Exhaust, visit them at SEMA booth #24019, PRI booth #4651 or go to www.kooksheaders.com.

ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards officials have released the 2017 General Tire Superspeedway Challenge schedule featuring eight race dates across seven states at seven superspeedways.

"These tracks provided exciting race action in our inaugural season and just as we hoped, the General Tire Superspeedway Challenge came down to the end," said Travis Roffler, director of marketing for General Tire. "We can't wait to get back to these tracks to see what the 2017 season will bring. We know it will be worth watching." 

A tradition that began in 1964, ARCA's General Tire Superspeedway schedule kicks off at Daytona Int'l Speedway with the 54th running of the Lucas Oil 200 driven by General Tire Saturday afternoon, February 18.

ARCA's season opener precedes NASCAR's Unlimited, which follows under the lights.

Talladega Superspeedway will host the tour next with the 55th annual General Tire 200 on the 2.66-mile superspeedway May 5. ARCA's first race at Talladega was in 1969.

Michigan Int'l Speedway is back on board for its annual Corrigan Oil 200 on Father's Day weekend Friday, June 16, the 36th ARCA race at Michigan since 1980.


Pocono Raceway, an ARCA tradition since 1983, returns with two races, the General Tire #Anywhere Is Possible 200 on June 9, followed by the ARCA Series 150 on July 28. The ARCA races at Pocono will be the tour's 64th and 65th on the 2.5-mile triangular superspeedway.

The 2017 season wraps with three consecutive superspeedway races at Chicagoland Speedway (Sept. 14), Kentucky Speedway on General Tire Super Weekend (Sept. 22) and the season finale at Kansas Speedway October 20. The events at Chicagoland and Kansas mark the 17th consecutive ARCA races at each track. The event at Kentucky is the 24th ARCA race on the Sparta, Kentucky mile-and-a-half track since 2000.

"High speed racing events at tracks over one mile in length have been a vital component of the ARCA Racing Series schedule since 1964, and the ARCA General Tire Superspeedway Challenge recognizes top performance across these venues," said ARCA President Ron Drager. "We value the opportunity to race at some of the greatest tracks in the world, and with every race car running General Tires it's fitting that the General Tire brand entitles the Superspeedway Challenge."

ARCA will share the announced race venues with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

"General Tire has truly stepped up to support ARCA’s superspeedway events," said ARCA's Vice President of Business Development & Corporate Partnerships Mark Gundrum. "In addition to the naming rights and financial support for the superspeedway challenge, General Tire has engaged in several of the race events via title sponsorship, presenting sponsorship and weekend sponsorship."

ARCA has crowned a General Tire Superspeedway Challenge champion every year since 1984, the late Davey Allison the inaugural superspeedway champion. Other superspeedway champions include Bill Venturini, Bob Keselowski, Mike Wallace, Tim Steele, Frank Kimmel, Erin Crocker, Chris Buescher and Brennan Poole. Dalton Sargeant, driving for Venturini Motorsports, is ARCA's most recent speedway champ (2016).

The General Tire Superspeedway Challenge champion team receives a $10,000 cash award at the year-end championship awards banquet each December.

ARCA officials expect to release the remainder of the 2017 ARCA Racing Series schedule in the near future.

Featuring new products and innovation from 1,100 exhibitors, along with expertise on the latest technology from industry leaders, the 2016 Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show is the premier venue for race teams to discover how to go faster, run safer and operate more efficiently.

“PRI is where the business of racing starts,” said Bill Miller, PRI Trade Show general manager. “Whether you’re in NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA or running at the local track, there’s something here to improve your program.”

Drag racing power Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) fields eight cars and has won six world championships in the past five years with a turn-key operation that builds its own chassis and engines, yet, the company relies on PRI as a key piece of its operation.

“We do a lot of work with PRI. We’ll probably have 20 to 30 people walking the halls of PRI each day – making contacts with suppliers, talking engineering, talking safety needs and from a machine and tooling standpoint,” said Mike Lewis, DSR senior vice-president. “We do over 1000 parts in-house, including all of the key parts that determine performance and safety, but we have partners in EVERYTHING we make.

We have technology partnerships with a lot of different vendors. PRI anchors all of that. Shortly after PRI, we’re ordering pallet-loads of parts that will be coming before Christmas and those are the parts that we’ll run the first half of the subsequent season. PRI is so critical from a timing standpoint, from a gathering of vendors, from a technology and engineering standpoint.  People that we rely on to help DSR are in Indy in December.”

Yet, it’s not just the turnkey operations that thrive at PRI.  Michael Shank Racing is a mid-size team that has been a proven contender in the sports car ranks for more than a decade and regularly has taken advantage of what PRI has to offer.

“I’ve been going to PRI for years now – it’s really a target-rich environment for guys like me just because everyone is there,” said team owner Michael Shank. “We’ve had press conferences there, we’ve done deals there, and I’ve had a ton of meetings there because all the key players are there. They can be long days, but it’s always super productive. I bring my guys along as well and they usually are working on finding new equipment for the shop and for us to use on the road, so it’s one stop shopping for our whole Acura Motorsports program.”

PRI also has proven to be just as important to the grassroots racers trying to make a name for themselves in the industry.

“I actually came in with another racing family on a 32-hour drive to get to PRI (in 2015) to network and meet people,” relayed 21-year-old Ariel Biggs, who races POWRi and Western Midgets. “This is the biggest racing industry Trade Show in the world and I want to see what’s new in racing. I love it. I’m like a kid in a candy store there - just stopping booth-to-booth, talking to people and looking at the latest products.”

While the 29th annual PRI Show takes place December 8-10, at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, IN, related activity begins on December 5 with the start of Race Industry Week. More 45 conferences, seminars and other special events are set for Race Industry Week.

For additional information on the 2016 PRI Trade Show, or hotel and travel information, visit www.pri2016.com.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, widely acknowledged as the nation's premier dirt late model tour, announced a record-breaking 2017 schedule.
 
The ambitious 2017 schedule, which includes 54 events at 35 different venues across 22 states, begins with the February 10th-11th Super Bowl of Racing at Golden Isles Speedway, and concludes on October 20th-21st at Portsmouth Raceway Park for the 37th Annual Dirt Track World Championship, which is set to offer a $100,000 top prize for the third consecutive year.
 
The 2017 schedule will feature 15 events that will pay $12,000-to-win, along with 11 crown jewel events that will pay $20,000-to-win (or more). The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will sanction some of most prestigious dirt late model events of the season, including:

Bad Boy 98 ($20,000-to-win); Lucas Oil Show-Me 100 ($30,000-to-win); Clash at the Mag ($20,000-to-win); Silver Dollar Nationals ($53,000-to-win); Sunoco North/South 100 ($50,000-to-win); COMP Cams Topless 100 ($40,000-to-win); Hillbilly Hundred ($25,000-to-win); Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals ($40,000-to-win); Jackson 100 ($20,000-to-win); Pittsburgher 100 ($20,000-to-win); and the season finale - Dirt Track World Championship ($100,000-to-win).
 
Four tracks on the 2017 schedule will host the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series for the first time, including:

Port Royal (PA) Speedway on April 23rd, Luxemburg (WI) Speedway on May 19th, Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, MN on May 20th, and Brown County Speedway in Aberdeen, SD on July 20th. In addition, Duck River Raceway Park in Wheel, TN returns to the series docket for the first time since 2009 on March 30th, 2017.
 
"We are thrilled to release our 2017 schedule. We're extremely honored to have such great relationships with our promoters, from all over the country, that have worked so diligently to help us get the schedule to completion. We feel that we have the best show in dirt late model racing, and I can't thank our promoters, our staff, drivers, car owners, sponsors, and of course, our great fans enough for their continued support. Lucas Oil Products has put together a great infrastructure for making the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series the best dirt late model national touring series in the country," stated Rick Schwallie, Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Director.

In an announcement that will put an even brighter spotlight on the next generation of stars and bolster the identity of all three of its national series, NASCAR announced on Wednesday driver participation guidelines for the 2017 season. The new guidelines limit the number of events a premier series driver can race in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
 
Starting next season, premier series drivers with more than five years of full-time experience will be eligible to compete in a maximum of 10 races in the XFINITY Series and seven races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
 
Additionally, drivers with more than five years of full-time premier series experience will be ineligible to compete in the final eight races in each series, as well as the Dash 4 Cash races in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. The final eight races are comprised of the regular season finale and the entirety of the Chase in each series.
 
Drivers earning premier series points in 2017 also are not eligible to compete in the 2017 NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship Races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
 
“The updated guidelines will elevate the stature of our future stars, while also providing them the opportunity to compete against the best in professional motorsports,” said Jim Cassidy, NASCAR senior vice president of racing operations. “These updated guidelines are the result of a collaborative effort involving the entire industry, and will ultimately better showcase the emerging stars of NASCAR.”
 
Drivers with more than five years of full-time experience in the premier series still can run for an XFINITY Series or Camping World Truck Series championship, provided they have declared for championship points in the respective series.
 
Wednesday’s announcement signals the next step in NASCAR’s driver participation guideline evolution. Prior to the 2016 season, NASCAR announced that members of the 2015 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field would be ineligible to compete in the 2016 Championship Race in both the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. In 2011, NASCAR implemented a rule requiring drivers to select one of the three national series in which to collect championship points.

Audi is realigning its motorsports strategy, and in turn will terminate its FIA WEC commitment, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, at the end of the 2016 season. Instead, Audi is taking up a factory-backed commitment in the all-electric Formula E racing series.

Speaking to 300 employees of the motorsports department recently, Chairman of the Board of Management Rupert Stadler put this strategic decision in the context of the current burdens on the brand, pointing out that it was important to focus on the things that would keep Audi competitive in the years ahead.

In the future, Audi plans to use the know-how and skills of motorsports experts from Neuburg and Neckarsulm partially in motorsports and partially in production development.

“We’re going to contest the race for the future on electric power,” said Stadler. “As our production cars are becoming increasingly electric, our motorsport cars, as Audi’s technological spearheads, have to even more so.”

The first all-electric racing series matches the strategy of offering fully battery-electric models year by year starting in 2018, with Audi currently in the greatest transformation stage in the company’s history.

The commitment in FIA Formula E will commence in 2017. Because it is regarded as the racing series with the greatest potential for the future, Audi has intensified the existing partnership with Team ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport in the current 2016-2017 season. On the road toward a full factory commitment, the manufacturer is now actively joining the technical development.

The commitment in the DTM, where Audi will be competing with the successor of the Audi RS 5 DTM in 2017, will remain untouched. In mid-October, the premium brand won the manufacturers’ and teams’ classifications.

No final decision has yet been made concerning a future involvement in the FIA World Rallycross Championship (World RX). In the current 2016 season, DTM factory driver Mattias Ekström in his Audi S1 EKS RX quattro clinched the World Championship title early, competing against numerous factory teams.

Up to now, Audi’s involvement has been limited to supporting the private EKS team. The brand is currently evaluating a possible extension of the commitment, with the topic of electrification being on the agenda in rallycross racing as well.

The departure from the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) marks the end of a successful era. For 18 years, the brand was active in Le Mans prototype racing. During this period it scored 13 victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and set numerous technical milestones. At Le Mans, Audi clinched the first victory of a TFSI engine (2001), the first success of a race car with a TDI engine (2006), and the first triumph of a sports car with a hybrid powertrain (2012).

In the brand’s 185 races contested to date, Audi’s Le Mans prototypes have achieved 106 victories, 80 pole positions and 94 fastest race laps. On two occasions, Audi won the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) with the Audi R18 e-tron quattro race car. In addition, from 2000 to 2008, Audi, nine times in succession, secured the title in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS).

“After 18 years in prototype racing that were exceptionally successful for Audi, it’s obviously extremely hard to leave,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “Audi Sport Team Joest shaped the WEC during this period like no other team. I would like to express my thanks to our squad, to Reinhold Joest and his team, to the drivers, partners and sponsors for this extremely successful cooperation. It’s been a great time!”

In response to the news, Automobile Club de l'Ouest Pierre Fillon said: “It was with emotion that we all learned this morning about Audi’s decision to withdraw from endurance racing. Although prepared for this, we regret the departure of a major figure in endurance racing for a different adventure. We salute the work carried out by the Audi Sport and Team Joest teams who have done a remarkable job, and a particular thought goes to my friend Wolfgang Ullrich.”

Added Gérard Neveu, CEO of FIA WEC: “We understand this decision, although obviously we regret the departure of a major player in the WEC. Audi has been involved in endurance racing for 15 years, and more particularly in the first five seasons of the FIA World Endurance Championship. One manufacturer is leaving, others will soon be arriving. This is the life of a championship.”

MotoGP riders know the Sepang racetrack like the back of their hands, considering that, as well as the race, the Malaysian track also hosts winter tests. But this time, they will face a slightly different layout. Jarno Zaffellis' Dromo company was responsible for carrying out the track updates.

The resurfacing was just one of the many operations carried out in order to make the track safer and more spectacular. The potholes resulting from car races have been removed, track draining has been improved and certain run-off areas have been modified.

The turn that received most attention is turn 15, the last one leading onto the straight. In this case, the incline has been modified in order to: prevent the formation of channels in case of rain, reduce speed through the turn and, consequently, maximum speed along the straight, increase the show in that this is the final point at which to make a pass.


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Sunnen Products Company and PRI continue their 28-year partnership to present the Sunnen Engine Charity Sweepstakes at PRI 2016, December 8-10 in Indianapolis. Sunnen sponsors the Sweepstakes, which to date has donated over $500,000 to various charities around the country. 

This year’s proceeds will go to Victory Junction, a year-round camp in Randleman, NC founded by NASCAR’s Petty family for children with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses.  Nick Ferri, co-owner of Patterson Elite Performance and builder of the engines behind 57 national NHRA Pro Stock victories, has volunteered to create a custom-tuned racing engine for the event.

“PRI is the biggest three days in the motorsports industry in terms of racing technology and products, and we are proud to honor the legendary racing Petty family by bringing the important work they do at Victory Junction to the forefront,” said Ferri. “The engine we’ve created is world-class; we brought our A-game for Victory Junction.”

Ferri's team built the engines that delivered consecutive national championships in 2014 and 2015 for NHRA Pro Stock driver Erica Enders-Stevens.

Tickets for the Sunnen Engine Charity Sweepstakes can be purchased through a banner ad on the PRI trade show website, as well as www.sunnen.com. Tickets will also be available at the Sunnen Engine Charity Sweepstakes booth in Machinery Row at PRI, sold in sets of two for $5. The 2015 sweepstakes generated more than $59,000 for Victory Junction.

For additional information visit www.sunnen.com.
                                                                                                        

DIRTcar Racing confirmed Tuesday that Volusia Speedway Park will be resuming weekly racing later this year after shutting its doors earlier this month.

VSP Racing LLC and DIRTcar Racing have come to an agreement to finish out the racing season.

Racing is scheduled to resume Nov. 18 with an open practice for all divisions, and a full racing program on Nov. 19 that will include late models, hobby stocks, thunderstocks and gladiators.

VSP Racing LLC is newly founded and owned by John Allen of De Leon Springs, Fla. Allen has been a sponsor at the track for the past three years.

“Everyone at VSP Racing, LLC cannot thank World Racing Group enough for this opportunity to finish out the 2016 racing season,” said Allen. “We also cannot thank Gary Risch and Tom Deery from World Racing Group enough for this opportunity, because the deal was done on such short notice to bring the track back to life.”

Other racing action this year will include racing dates on Nov. 26, Dec. 3, and Dec. 10, which would conclude the racing season.

With the track re-opening in November, VSP Racing LLC points for all racing divisions are now final per the old schedule (final points race was Oct. 29). The Youngs Enterprises Iron Man Series will still run the remaining two events, and details for those events will be announced in the near future.

The track is still owned by DIRTcar Racing, who takes over operations annually in January and February for the DIRTcar Nationals, which includes racing action from DIRTcar Racing, the Super DIRTcar Series, the Artic Cat All Stars, the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series, and the World of Outlaw Craftsman Late Model Series.