Racing News

Mini racers Mat Pombo and Derek Jones drove the #73 Mini JCW to thirteenth place in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge season-opener at Daytona after a difficult race. Their finish was the best among the Mini and BMW teams running in the Street Tuner Class.

James Clay in the #84 BimmerWorld F30 328i ran in the top three throughout his stint, leading at one point, but the engine in the car expired after Clay handed off to Tyler Cooke. The car ran competitive times, and will clearly be a contender over the course of the season.

Brent Mosing, Tim Probert, and Justin Piscitell finished fifteenth in class in the Murillo Racing 328i, just ahead of James Vance and Ramin Abdolvahabi in the #52 Mini. Jerry Kaufman, who has moved up to the BimmerWorld team from the Tire Rack BMW CCA Club Racing series, moved up early in the race, but his 328i was hit by another car. He and co-driver Kyle Tilley soldiered on; they were nineteenth in class at the end of the race.

The Street Tuner class win went to Eric Foss and Jeff Mosing in a Murillo Racing Porsche Cayman. The overall and Grand Sport wins went to Billy Johnson and Scott Maxwell in a Ford Shelby GT350R-C. There is no BMW presence in the Grand Sport class this season.—Brian S. Morgan