SCC: Villaconn 'West Coast Swing' preview

The West Coast Swing

Huntingdon Valley, PA February 25, 2002: The Grand Am Cup Street Stock Series continues to grow in popularity and scope for 2002. One need look no further than the expanding schedule for proof. In the 2001 (the first season of Grand Am Cup), the teams left Daytona and headed for even warmer temperatures in South Florida for the race held at Homestead's Miami Speedway. This year, the semis will log even more mileage when they bypass Homestead for a West Coast swing.

The next stop on the schedule for Villaconn Motorsports and the rest of the Grand Am Cup teams is California Speedway in Fontana, California. The teams will be making history as the first sportscars to compete on the facilities all-new infield road course. Until now California Speedway was used only as a high speed oval for Indy-type racers and stock cars. The Grand American Road Racing Association says they are committed to the growth of the venue. The series plans to create a "Daytona of the West" ambiance for the event. The 250-mile competition takes place March 21-23, 2002.

Following the California race Villaconn Motorsports will return to the beautiful Phoenix International Raceway on April 18-20th. At last year's Phoenix event, a Villaconn BMW had the lead of the race firmly in hand before hitting mechanical trouble. New car chiefs Bert Plaza, Joe Stover and Adam White will be working hard to promise a stronger result for the twin 250s.

The driving squad for the west coast swing will include Bransen Patch, Don Salama, Beau Buisson, Neal Heffron, Ken Dobson and Matt Connolly. Patch and Salama were the team's highest finishers at the first round in Daytona. They hope to capitalize on the strong start to the season and lay the foundation for their run for the 2002 ST1 Driver's Championship. Bolstered by a strong finish from Buisson and Dobson, Villaconn Motorsports has the best start to a season ever in their short three year history.

You can follow the adventures of the entire Villaconn Motorsports crew at www.Villaconn.com. Better yet, log on to www.grand-am.com for tickets and come out to the races and cheer on the entire Grand Am Cup Street Stock Series. It will be some of the closest racing action on the west coast!

-vm-