NEWS _ Rebel Rock Racing Looking For A Great Result At Home Race In Sebring
Rebel Rock Racing Looking For A Great Result At Home Race In Sebring
This week in Sebring, Rebel Rock Racing will enter three Porsche race cars in round 2 of the 2014 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. For Rebel Rock Racing, the team created by Grammy Award winner and music producer, Jim Jonsin, racing at Sebring is almost like racing at home. Their Coconut Creek racing shop is located only 140 miles from Sebring International Raceway and the entire team has an additional incentive to do well on Friday.
Like at Daytona, Rebel Rock Racing will race two cars in the GS class and one car in the ST class. The No. 7 Eagle Tech Systems / B+ Foundation /Sideskinz/Stinkerz Porsche (GS) will be co-driven by Al Carter and Brett Sandberg and the No. 08 MBRP Inc. Performance Exhaust Porsche (GS) by Kyle Marcelli and Martin Barkey. The No. 88 Ingersoll Rand / Brewster Porsche /Joe Gibbs Driven/ Oakley /Western Star/Alliance Truck Parts Rebel Racing Porsche Cayman (ST) will be co-driven by Jim Jonsin and a new Rebel Rock Racing driver, Johnny Kanavas, from San Clemente, CA. “Johnny K” has competed in IMSA/GRAND-AM, World-Challenge, Mazda MX-5 Cup, Vintage/Historic Racing, Formula Drift, NASA, SCCA, with both privateer and factory teams. When he is not racing, Johnny works as a professional driving coach and instructor, stunt & precision driver. He is also a Senior Driving Instructor at the Ford Racing School. Most recently Johnny has been competing in both a BMW and Nissan in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge over the past few seasons.
For their first race together at Daytona last January, Brett Sandberg led a total of 3 laps and he and Al Carter finished just outside the top five in 6th place, showing that they mean business for the rest of the season. Al Carter is entered in three different races this week at Sebring. The Continental Tire series event with Rebel Rock Racing, the Mobil1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida with TRG-AMR and the Lamborghini Super Trofeo with Lamborghini of Palm Beach. Al Carter will be very busy but a top-five finish on Friday with teammate Brett Sandberg is one of his Sebring priorities.
Kyle Marcelli and Martin Barkey were not too lucky for their first race together for Rebel Rock Racing at Daytona. After showing great speed in practice, the No. 08 car finished 26th in class due to an unexpected incident on lap 2 that damaged the front suspension. The crew was able to repair and did a fabulous job so the car was able to return on track and finish the race. Marcelli and Barkey, the owner of MBRP Inc. Performance Exhaust, are looking for redemption at Sebring and are ready for the new challenge. Martin Barkey and Kyle Marcelli are pleased to announce their most recent sponsor, Turn 14 Distribution. Turn 14 Distribution is a Performance Warehouse Distributor located in PA offering today’s most popular products. State of the art facilities along with exceptional customer service is what makes Turn 14 Distribution a leader in today’s automotive wholesale markets.
Jim Jonsin had a very positive first race at Daytona. He went from 16th on the grid to 5th then his co-driver Jarett Freeman had a good stint too and finished 19th in the ST class. Jim is highly motivated and he is looking to do well with new experienced teammate Johnny Kanavas at Sebring.
Hired during the pre-season, technical Director Ron Mathis has done a tremendous job with Rebel Rock Racing Team Manager Mike Morgan to prepare for the season and both have been working hard with the crew to prepare the three cars for the second round of 2014. Rebel Rock Racing has a plan in place for the season and one of the goals is to run at the front of the pack race after race.
The first two practice sessions for the CTSCC are scheduled for Wednesday at 11:20 a.m. and 5:20 p.m. ET. Qualifying for CTSCC is set for Thursday at 1:20 p.m. ET and the race for Friday, March 14 at 1:00 p.m. ET. The Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge event at Sebring International Raceway will be streamed live in its entirety on IMSA.com beginning at 1 p.m. ET. The two-hour broadcast will air March 19 on FOX Sports 1 at 1 p.m. ET and will re-air March 23 on FOX Sports 2 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
REBEL ROCK RACING DRIVER QUOTES:
Jim Jonsin No. 88 Porsche Cayman driver (ST class) and team owner: “I’m excited to see our cars on this historic race track on this amazing 12 hour race weekend, I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the Rebel Rock, Planet Pit, Ingersolll Rand, Joe Gibbs, Driven Porsche Cayman ST, car. I will be driving with Johnny Kanavas. Our Rebel Rock team is ready to run up front, see you on the podium.”
Johnny Kanavas No. 88 Porsche Cayman driver (ST class): “I’m thrilled to be in a Rebel Rock Racing Porsche. Jim Jonsin and Al Carter have put together one of the best teams in the CTSCC paddock and I’m excited to be part of it. The RRR Cayman is very well prepared and I believe Jim and I bring a strong driver pairing in the No. 88 car. I want to thank Brewster Porsche, Jim Jonsin, and Al Carter for the opportunity and can’t wait for Sebring.”
Al Carter No. 7 Porsche 997 driver (GS class): “I have a love and hate relationship with Sebring. I hate the track because it is very challenging and difficult to race but I also love it for the same reasons. The 12 Hours of Sebring is the most difficult race that I have competed in and I am looking forward to racing there a second time with TRG-AMR. This weekend I am doing triple duty and will be driving three cars that will be very competitive. Lamborghini Super Trofeo with Lamborghini of Palm Beach that I’ve done really well with last year then the No. 7 Porsche with Brett Sandberg in the CTSCC, coming off with Rebel Rock Racing team’s best finish at Daytona. I will also race the No. 007 Aston Martin on Saturday with James Davison and David Block in the grueling 12 hour event.”
Brett Sandberg No. 7 Porsche 997 (GS class): “I am super excited to get back behind the wheel of our No. 7 Rebel Rock Racing Porsche. The team has been working very hard to get our car in perfect condition for what is to be a grueling race at the historic Sebring International Raceway. This is personally one of my favorite tracks and cannot wait to race here with my teammate Al Carter!! Rebel Rock On!”
Kyle Marcelli No. 08 MBRP Inc. Performance Exhaust Porsche (GS class): “Really looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the Rebel Rock/ MBRP #08 Porsche at Sebring, It’s been a long time off since Daytona! Following a successful pre-season test at Sebring, I’m confident in our program going into this weekend’s race. As always it’s going to be smart, clean, consistent and quick laps that will win the race.”
Martin Barkey No. 08 MBRP Inc. Performance Exhaust (GS class): “I am very excited to be heading to Sebring. I love the heritage of this track. Our No. 08 MBRP Rebel Rock Racing Porsche should be a good car on this track. The team has prepared the car well, I have no doubts we will perform well.”
Ron Mathis, Technical Director: “Rebel Rock’s technical staff is meeting the engineering challenge of the Continental Tire series. We’ve applied the lessons we learned at Daytona and expect the 7, 08 and 88 to be strong at Sebring.”
Follow Rebel Rock Racing’s live on track activities at www.imsa.com and on Facebook www.facebook.com/rebelrockracing and visit the team’s website www.rebelrockracing.com.
source: Rebel Rock Racing
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