Road America GRAND-AM Offers Unique Challenge for Bryan Sellers

Works Racecar Driver’s Hopes to Overcome Obstacles with CTSCC Momentum

ELKHART LAKE, Wisc., June 18, 2012 – After a downturn in GRAND-AM-sanctioned Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (CTSCC) results, Bryan Sellers and the No. 46 BCKSTGR/Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3 Coupe got things back in order at the most recent race held Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Now, entering the Saturday, June 22nd Road America 200, Sellers is hoping to continue the upturn. The Braselton, Ga.-resident must use his substantial experience and the momentum from leading the Mid-Ohio race to put the Fall-Line car into victory lane at Road America. However, momentum from leading 10 laps in Ohio will not be enough. The Elkhart Lake, Wisc.-facility highlights the current weaknesses of the GS class-entry demanding the full skill of the Falken Tire “works” driver and his teammate, Mark Boden of Winnetka, Ill.

Road America is considered a classic American racetrack with an “old world” feel that isn’t even found in Europe anymore. The 4.048-mile, 14-turn facility is tree-lined and fast with long straights and sweeping corners. Most drivers consider the track a favorite but the layout is not an ideal fit for the M3 Coupe. The long straight-aways could prove to be the greatest challenge to the No. 46. Despite a formidable road presence, current regulations have the BMW down on top-end speed in the CTSCC. With multiple long, full-throttle segments making-up large portions of the track, Sellers will need to use all his racecraft to compete. The BMW’s natural balance will allow Sellers to race with the more powerful cars through turns such as “The Carousel” – turns 9-10 – and “The Kink” – turn 11. However, the back straight to “Canada Corner” – turn 12 – exposes the blue and white machine, as does the uphill charge to the start-finish line that makes the longest straight on the circuit. Sellers will be under constant guard to maintain the car’s momentum and to minimize openings for the faster cars to pass when horsepower makes the car vulnerable.

Sellers opened the 2012 season at Daytona International Speedway (DIS) scoring a third-place result. That remains the best finish for the team that ran into crash damage, mechanical issues and a conflict in Sellers’ schedule in the subsequent races. On June 9, the former open-wheel racing champion returned to the team to lead 10 laps and ultimately finish sixth at Mid-Ohio. It is the momentum of that race’s success that Sellers and the Chicago-based team hope to use to score the team’s first CTSCC victory of 2012.

SPEED will broadcast the Road America 200 on Sunday, July 8 at noon (ET). Live timing and scoring of the event can be found at www.Grand-Am.com. Practice opens on Thursday, June 21 with additional practice and qualifying are scheduled for Friday, June 22. The race will go green at 6:15 p.m. (ET), June 22.

Quotes

Bryan Sellers:

On using momentum at Road America: “Momentum is very important in motorsports. It is much easier to ride a high than it is a low. In Mid-Ohio, we had a great car and an even better performance from the Fall-Line Motorsports/@BCKSTGR guys. Even though the result was not fantastic we operated well and that means a lot as we get deeper into the season. If we could get a little help from GRAND-AM on the performance balancing, we would be a difficult team to beat just because the team is so good.”

On the challenges of the Road America 200: “We are in a very difficult position with the way the performance balancing is right now. I am not sure there is much we can do from a performance perspective to improve our chances at Road America. The only thing we can do is execute better than all the other teams, make sure we have good stops, good strategy, and go mistake free.”

On Road America: “I love Road America! It is a great racetrack. There is something very special about it. Every time I drive into the track I get excited to race on it. It really is one of the best racetracks in the country. Beyond being a great track to drive, it races very well also.”

On the challenges of the back-to-back scheduling: “I love the back-to-back races! There is nothing better than being in the car. When you do these races back-to-back I find that I am better and better every weekend. This is the point in the season where you should be getting to your peak and all the races being scheduled so closely together, really helps you to stay on the top of your game.”

For more on Bryan Sellers, please visit him on the web at "> www.BryanSellersRacing.com . Follow Bryan on Twitter ("> www.Twitter.com/BryanSellers ) and LIKE him on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/BryanSellersRacing .

Learn more about Fall-Line Racing, visit www.Fall-LineMotorsports.com .

For more on the Grand-Am Sports Car Challenge go to www.Grand-Am.com .

Visit www.FalkenTire.com for more on Team Falken Tire.

Go R/C racing with Bryan at www.HPIRACING.com.

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