Richard Golinello event notes

Golinello Wraps Up Mustang Challenge at Miller with 8th in Points

TOOELE, Utah--Richard Golinello wrapped up his rookie season in the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge Series during last weekend's double-header round at Miller Motorsports Park. After finishing tenth and fourteenth in the races, Golinello took home eighth in the championship.

Golinello qualified fifteenth for race one on Saturday, driving the No. 50 R&C Motorsports Ford Mustang FR500S. He steadily worked his way up and finished tenth following a race-long battle with Brad Adams.

"A lot of guys who were veterans in the series came back for the finale, so there was a lot of good competition," says Golinello. "Saturday was one of the best races I'd ever had. Brad and I were racing like madmen, passing back and forth the whole time. It's probably the most fun I've had in the series all year."

Setup proved to be a hindrance during the second race on Sunday. The setup had been perfect on Saturday, and Golinello chose not to make any changes. Unfortunately, track conditions had changed dramatically.

Nevertheless, Golinello had a fierce battle with Pratt Cole before crossing the finish line in fourteenth, wrapping up his first full season in professional racing.

Golinello finished the season eighth in the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge championship. For him, though, the season was about more than amassing points. "Mustang Challenge has helped me become such a better racer. I'm more aggressive. I race clean, but I've learned not to back down," he says. "Going wheel to wheel like that is such an amazing experience. It's a thrill."

The weekend's racing marked the final event for the series, and Golinello is proud to have been a part of it. He says, "It was the experience of a lifetime. I learned how to race a lot better, and I learned every time I was on the track. This series is made up of such a great group of people; I made friends for life here."

The Ford Racing Mustang Challenge season may be over, but Golinello isn't done racing yet. He returns to Miller Motorsports Park the weekend of October 1-3 for the SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge season finale.

During his first World Challenge outing at Mid-Ohio in August, Golinello finished sixth and seventh in the GTS class. The double-header round whet his appetite for more, and he hopes to be on the GTS podium following the race in October.

-source: rc PR/bd