DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – After a rainy first day, it was all sunshine and fast cars at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Va., Thursday as the 2011 Drive for Diversity Combine concluded with 26 talented drivers participating in the on-track testing.

The drivers are competing for spots on the 2012 Revolution Racing team as part of Drive for Diversity, one of NASCAR’s most successful initiatives.

“Every year it’s great to see the quality of talent is improving and the word’s getting out,” said Max Siegel, CEO and owner of Revolution Racing. “We had some really talented young drivers here today and we’re just excited to get them on the track.

“It’s going to be tough to fill the spots on the team because we had so many talented drivers here.”

Revolution Racing is in its third year as a partner with the NASCAR Drive for Diversity initiative. In 2011, Revolution Racing drivers Darrell Wallace Jr. and Sergio Pena accounted for six wins in the 12-race NASCAR K&N Pro Series East season.

“It’s exciting to see the evolution in the program,” said Marcus Jadotte, NASCAR vice president of public affairs and multicultural development. “The success on track in 2011 certainly attracted additional talent to the Combine, and based on what we saw today, there are a couple of new standout drivers who are ready to follow in Wallace’s and Pena’s path.”

The drivers who participated in the Combine ranged from ages 16 to 24, and represented 10 U.S. states, Mexico and Puerto Rico. It attracted drivers from various racing disciplines, from open-wheel sprint cars to Legends cars and Bandoleros. The drivers with limited stock car experience impressed with how quickly they adapted to the heavier cars, while the returning participants continued to show improvement.

After waiting out the showers that cancelled Wednesday’s on-track testing, the drivers were looking forward to the chance to get behind the wheel – and they weren’t disappointed.

“We had a really great Combine run; we did really well, I’m proud of my run,” said Jessica Brunelli, 18, from Hayward, Calif., who was trying out for the third time after being part of Revolution Racing for the previous two seasons. “It’s a great opportunity and a great program, and I’m really lucky I get to drive with all these amazing people.”

“Today was really cool, the car was awesome and the people were really great to work with. The car was really good. When the track was really cold it took a while to get the tires heated up, but it was awesome and I hope they were good results,” said Julian Albarracin, from Bogota, Colombia, who then provided a recap of his day in Spanish. “El carro estuvo muy bien, la gente trabajo muy bien, nunca habia visto gente trabajando asi. Nunca habia provado un carro tan bueno como un late model que prove hoy. La pista estaba muy fria, tomo mucho tiempo para calentar las llantas y calentar el motor pero salio muy bien, me senti muy bien y espero buenos resultados.”

“It’s been a great day so far,” said newcomer Ryan Reed, a 17-year-old from Bakersfield, Calif. “I logged some really good laps, I’m really happy with myself, and we’ll see what that has in store for us when they announce the driver lineup for next year.”

The drivers attending the Drive for Diversity Combine will be evaluated by a select committee on multiple fronts including on-track performance, marketing and media aptitude, physical fitness and personality.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.

Contested from Oct. 18-20, the eighth consecutive Drive for Diversity Combine will be held at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Va., where drivers will vie for spots in one of NASCAR’s most successful initiatives.

Aspiring drivers of diverse backgrounds ranging from ages 16 to 24, and representing 10 U.S. states, Mexico and Puerto Rico, are prepared to showcase their skills in the hopes of securing a ride with Revolution Racing in 2012. Revolution Racing will enter its third year fielding teams for NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity initiative, in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

Grandstands at Langley will be open to the public from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. ET, Oct. 19-20 during on-track testing. 

The past two seasons of the D4D initiative have enjoyed unparalleled success. In 2010, Darrell Wallace Jr. became the youngest winner and first African-American winner in series history en route to winning the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Sunoco Rookie of the Year. This year’s Revolution Racing team eclipsed that success by placing three drivers in NASCAR K&N Pro Series East top 10 (Wallace had three victories and finished second in points; Sergio Pena also won three races and finished fifth; and Ryan Gifford finished 10th).  Overall in 2011, Revolution Racing had six wins, 12 top fives and 22 top 10s in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.

The drivers attending the Drive for Diversity Combine will be evaluated by a select committee on multiple fronts including on-track performance, marketing and media aptitude, physical fitness and personality.

2012 DRIVER FOR DIVERSITY COMBINE: INVITE LIST

Darrell Wallace Jr., 17, scored his third win of the season and fifth of his career with a victory on the high-banked, one-mile concrete oval. This one, though, carried extra personal significance.

“It was an emotional win,” said Wallace, “losing my uncle this past saturday, so it was tough.

“I put his name over my name on the door and he was riding shotgun with us and put us in Victory Lane. I love him, miss him already.”

It marked Wallace’s first win at the Monster Mile and coupled with a 21st-place finish for the other title contender Brett Moffitt, moved him into second in the final standings. Wallace won the race’s pole award in Thursday’s qualifying. Veteran Dale Quarterley finished second.

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As the director of competition for Mooresville, N.C. based Revolution Racing, Hodges oversees six NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model teams featuring minorities and females.

Hodges and his ambitious gang of racers and mechanics were a regular part of the popular Late Model show at Kingsport Speedway this season. While the Revolution contingent failed to produce a headline-grabbing triumph, Hodges said the opportunity to compete on the unique concrete-surfaced track was invaluable.

“We race all over the East Coast with our teams, and Kingsport is by far my favorite track. It’s an amazing deal here,” Hodges said.

Learning curve

On a typical Friday night this season at Kingsport, the Late Model field included four Revolution Racing drivers and around 12 crew members.

It’s never easy to find a comfort zone on a new track, but Hodges saw signs of progress. For example, Byran Ortiz (Bayamon, Puerto Rico) put together several strong runs.

“Bryan was around the top five at some point about every race,” Hodges said. “Our drivers run totally different cars on different tracks. They’ve got a lot on their shoulders – a lot more than people realize.”

According to Hodges, the deep Late Model field, consistent rule package and prestige of Kingsport Speedway promoter Robert Pressley offered the perfect proving ground.

“Kingsport is one of the only Friday night NASCAR sanctioned speedways left,” Hodges said. “It’s over a four-hour drive for us, but we decided to try it.”

The experience of competing against some of the elite Late Model teams in the Southeast proved worthy of the long hours.

“After our first trip, our drivers and crew members talked about how much they loved racing at Kingsport all the way home,” Hodges said. “It’s hard to race against talented drivers like (track champion) Nate Monteith and Lee Tissot, but our folks did a good job.”

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Peña qualified second and took the lead from pole winner Corey LaJoie on Lap 58. He finished 4.633 seconds ahead of runner-up Brett Moffitt, who picked up the win in the season opener at Greenville. Rookie Chase Elliott was third.

Alex Bowman, the Sunoco Rookie of the Year leader, and overall points leader Max Gresham rounded out the top five.

Peña’s Revolution Racing teammate Darrell Wallace Jr. was sixth, followed by Dylan Presnell, Brandon Gdovic, Eddie MacDonald and Matt DiBenedetto. LaJoie led the first 58 laps before finishing 13th.

Gresham leads Moffitt by 65 points and Wallace by 105.

The two previous wins for the 18-year-old Winchester, Va., driver came at his home state tracks of South Boston Speedway and Langley Speedway in Hampton. Peña’s blistering pace Saturday in a race slowed by just three cautions resulted in just 10 cars finishing on the lead lap.

The Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 140 will air on SPEED on Thursday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. ET.

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will run its second-to-last event of the season Friday, Sept. 23 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (July 24, 2011) – Darrell Wallace Jr. got back to his winnings ways in the Jegs 150 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race at Columbus (Ohio) Motor Speedway.

En route to winning his fourth race in 19 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East races over two seasons, and his second of 2011, Wallace and his U.S. Army Toyota Camry ran a nearly flawless race. He qualified second behind series point leader Max Gresham, but made a pass for the lead on lap 36 and never was seriously challenged again.

Wallace’s first win of the season came at Richmond (Va.) International Speedway in April.
The win marked Revolution Racing’s fourth win in nine starts in 2011, with teammate Sergio Pena, driving the Freightliner Toyota Camry, to two NASCAR K&N Pro Series wins this season.

With the win, Wallace again became a serious contender in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race, now trailing Gresham by 100 points with three races remaining and Brett Moffitt by 20 points.

After solid races by all four Revolution Racing teams, Michael Cherry in the Fueling Dreams Tour Toyota Camry finished 11th, Ryan Gifford in the TRD Toyota Camry finished 14th and Pena finished 15th, one lap down.

Late in the running, with Gifford and Pena running nose to tail in fifth and sixth, Pena tagged the TRD Camry and sent Gifford spinning, which cost him valuable track position. Later in the running, Pena was running in the top five when the he was turned by the 16 car of Daniel Suarez causing Pena to spin into the infield and lose one lap.

All four Revolution Racing Camry’s finished in the top 15 and brought their cars home without heavy damage despite the rough short-track nature of Columbus.

On the same night, the Revolution Racing Whelen All-American Series late model program was competing with three NASCAR Drive for Diversity participants at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
Mackena Bell had the best night of the three drivers in the 60-lap race, despite finishing 14th of 18 cars. Running well within the top 10, her Toyota Camry was forced to stop on the track when a late race spin in front of her blocked the track. She lost valuable track position, and despite running a very clean and consistent race she finished well back in the order. However, her performance showed that she has improved greatly in the Whelen All-American Series.

Tayla Orleans and Trey Gibson finished ninth and 10th in their Toyota Camry’s respectively at Hickory, and both ran good races.

The Revolution Racing Whelen All-American Series late model program will compete in more than 140 races with six drivers as part of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity Program. Four NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, six NASCAR Whelen All-American Series and multiple youth racing teams are supported by NASCAR, the U.S. Army, Toyota Motor Sales, Toyota Racing Development (TRD), Goodyear, Freightliner Trucks, Wix Filters, Castle Products, Logitech, Play Seat, iRacing and others.

The Jegs 150 can be seen Thursday night at 6 p.m. (ET) on SPEED.