Ocala Gran Prix – Florida Winter Tour Pbir Preview

“16 Drivers under Ocala Gran Prix tent look for success in South Florida”

Ocala, Florida – February 20, 2011 – As the second round of the 2011 Formula Kart Productions Florida Winter Tour (FWT) fast approaches, teams and drivers begin their testing and preparation in the hunt for race wins and podiums. The Ocala Gran Prix (OGP) squad is no different as they have assembled yet another large contingent of drivers to compete at Palm Beach International Raceway (PBIR) in Jupiter, Florida.

“While some of our drivers are veterans of the Florida Winter Tour, others are fresh out of the box rookies who are looking to gain experience needed to compete at the front of the field in 2011,” expressed Jorge Arellano, Team Principal for Ocala Gran Prix. “We had some mixed results in Orlando as weather played a definite role in the final results. We look to overcome that minor speed bump and return back to the form of winning races and earning multiple podiums at PBIR.”

Leading the way in the Rotax Senior class will be senior rookie Nick Neri and INDYCAR champion Dan Wheldon. Both drivers could be seen at the front of the pack in Orlando scoring top five results and currently sit fourth and fifth in the point standings respectively. Joining the duo in the talent-laden senior class will be Floridian pilot Andrew Evans.

Two time defending United States Rotax DD2 national champion Cody Hodgson will make the cross country trek once again to compete at the FWT. Showing speed at the opening round, Hodgson would succumb to racing luck scoring results that were not equivalent to his on track action. When Hodgson is not behind the wheel of his Tony Kart, he can usually be seen piloting the #55 in the NASCAR Late Model Western Series.

Scoring the OGP squad’s best results in Orlando were that of Rotax Masters competitors Jason Bell and Rob Maier. While Bell went on to score a pole position and a pair of solid results, Maier overcame his tough run on Saturday to finish in the fourth position on Sunday. Currently Jason Bell sits second in the title chase while Maier is in the mix in seventh.

Ocala Gran Prix’s largest contingent of drivers comes from the junior division. Leading the way into the second round of the program will be Oliver Askew and Pietro Fittipaldi. Askew will enter the Palm Beach race with redemption on his mind after a pair of twenty something results in Orlando. Showing the speed to run with the lead trio, Askew was involved in opening lap incidents taking him out of contention for the win. On the other hand, Fittipaldi showed that he has what it takes to make a run at the title scoring a pair of top fifteen results with lap times to run at the front of the field. Joining Askew and Fittipaldi in the Rotax Junior class will be Alex Hornborg, Angus Hunt, Alex Keyes and Karl Weber.

Pietro’s younger brother Enzo Fittipaldi along with Sebastian Sierra and Justin Gordon will do battle in the Rotax Mini Max division. While Sierra scored a solid third place result on Saturday, he failed to make the main event on Sunday due to an on track incident. Sierra will look to rebound in Palm Beach to get himself back in the hunt for the championship. Both Fittipaldi and Gordon continued to show improvement throughout the race weekend at the challenging Orlando circuit and will look to score top ten results at the second round in the program.

Mathias Ramirez will be OGP’s lone driver in the Micro Max class as he looks to battle for race wins. After scoring a top five result in Sunday’s action at the opening round, Ramirez tallied enough points to currently sit eighth in the race for the championship. Looking forward to the Palm Beach International Raceway round, Ramirez will look to take try and sweep the weekend’s action

With 16 drivers under the Ocala Gran Prix program, the past and future success and experience of these drivers is invaluable. From Florida Winter Tour champions to national champions, Ocala Gran Prix looks to add strong results this round and make a run at several series championships.

With a strong team of drivers, a tuning crew second to none has been assembled. With mechanics from all over the world, the OGP squad employs more than 275 years of experience and knowledge to ensure success to their drivers.

For more information on Ocala Grand Prix, OGP race team opportunities and info on how to get into karting, please visit Ocala Gran Prix online at www.OcalaGranPrix.com or contact Kyle Kraus at352.291.0600 (Kyle@OcalaGranPrix.com) or Mike Maurini at 317.270.8723 (Mike@RaceTechDevelopment.com).

Press release prepared by: Race Tech Development
Photo courtesy of: Autosports Media

Mike Maurini
Race Tech Development
Mike@RaceTechDevelopment.com
P: 317.270.8723

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