Press Releases
08 September 2009
Three Guest Drivers to Compete in the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Races at New Jersey Motorsports Park
Guests include freestyle motocross rider, former MLS all star and a journalist
HERNDON, Va. — After a trip to Canada, the SCCA Pro Racing Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup will return stateside for its next race at New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, New Jersey. When action begins at the 14-turn, 2.225-mile road course, series regulars will be joined by three guest drivers including freestyle motocross rider, Mat Rebeaud; former MLS all star, Mike Ammann and journalist, Mike Guy. The trio will compete in all of the weekend's events that begin with practice and qualifying on September 11 and conclude with the series' two races at the track on September 12 and 13.
While Rebeaud and Guy have past motorsports experience, Ammann earned his rookie stripes last week when participated in a training course at VIRginia International Raceway. He received on-track coaching by series instructor, Jan Heylen who gave him high praise.
"I think every person goes through a stage in their life where they dream of being a racecar driver," Ammann said. "I've been around racing for most of my life but never been behind the wheel. My test at VIR gave me my first taste of this, but it left me wanting more. Jan was extremely helpful and got me very comfortable in the car and familiar with the proper racing lines. It definitely gave me a better appreciation for how talented professional racecar drivers really are. Hopefully, I'll be able to take what I learned at VIR and be able to run competitively in New Jersey."
About the guest drivers:
Mike Ammann – Ammann resides in Round Hill, Virginia and is employed by ViON Corporation, a series sponsor that provides IT solutions and focuses on data storage and server consolidation for clients across the U.S. Prior to joining ViON, he was a professional soccer player. Ammann played eight years professionally, two years with Charlton Athletic in England followed by stops in Kansas City, New York and DC United with Major League Soccer (MLS). He was the starting goalie in the 2000 MLS All Star Game before retiring in 2002.
Mike Guy – Guy is a New York City-based journalist who writes for Rolling Stone, Men's Journal, Playboy, United Airlines' Hemispheres and other publications. His work will appear in the Best American Sports Writing 2009 anthology (October 2009, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), and was nominated for the 2009 Los Angeles Press Club award for feature writing. He is finishing his first novel. No stranger to motorsports, Guy has written on the subject and has also driven at Baja 1000.
Mat Rebeaud – Rebeaud is a freestyle motocross rider and Red Bull athlete from Payerne, Switzerland. Freestyle motocross has been dominated by American riders since the sport's official recognition in 1998, but Rebeaud changed that. Over the past three years, he has made it a habit of taking the podium from some of the top American riders, starting with the FIM Freestyle Motocross World Championship in 2006 and ending with the 2008 Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour series championship. In between, he's won five Red Bull X-Fighters contests (including Texas in 2008), placed second in four others, and has won three X Games silver medals. His silver in 2006 marked the first time a European had ever won a motocross medal at the X Games. In 2009, Rebeaud, placed fourth in the Freestyle Motocross event at X Games in Los Angeles.
About the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup
The 2009 season marks the second year of competition for the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup, which is sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing. During the season, young, up and coming drivers (between ages 16-26) will compete in 10 events on eight road courses around North America in identical, factory-prepared clean diesel Jetta TDI's powered by Syndiesel® B5 blended biodiesel fuel. Each driver competing in the series will earn a Pro Racing license from SCCA at the conclusion of the season. In addition to more than $50,000 in prize money at stake during the season, the series champion will win $100,000.
The Jetta TDI Cup car is powered by a 2.0-liter, 170 hp, four-cylinder TDI clean diesel engine mated to a six-speed, double-clutch, automatic DSG transmission. The car is only slightly modified from stock with Pirelli racing tires, race suspension and brake components, driver's racing safety seat, FIA roll cage and an on-board fire extinguisher system. Series sponsors include: Pirelli, Bosch, ViON, Castrol, Oakley, Red Bull, HYPERFUELS, Aggreko, defNder, Lamin-X, Meguiar's, Sherwin-Williams, Chicagoland VW, Safety-Kleen, Ringer Gloves, Jim Russell Racing School and Trellis Earth.
Follow the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup series action on:
- www.vwmotorsportusa.com
- www.tditruthanddare.com
- SCCA Pro Racing Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Live Timing & Scoring:
- http://www.livetiming.net/SCCA/VW/livetiming.asp
- Volkswagen Online Newsroom: media.vw.com
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/VWJettaTDICup
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/VWJettaTDICup
Volkswagen of America, Inc.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen is one of the world's largest producers of passenger cars and Europe's largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Eos, Rabbit, New Beetle, New Beetle convertible, GTI, Jetta, Jetta SportWagen, GLI, Passat, Passat wagon, Tiguan and Touareg 2 through approximately 600 independent U.S. dealers. All 2009 Volkswagens come standard-equipped with Electronic Stabilization Program. This is important because the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has called ESC the most effective new vehicle safety technology since the safety belt. Visit Volkswagen of America online at vw.com or www.media.vw.com to learn more.
CONTACT: Adam Hoover – Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup
(440) 540-4670 – office / (440) 258-2462 – mobile
ahoover@automotive-events.com
