Over 100 guests representing teams and drivers from all walks of motorsport converged on the Corby Hilton hotel yesterday for an in depth presentation on the forthcoming ASCAR series, which is poised to rock UK motorsports to its roots.

Drivers in attendance included rally ace Pentti Airikkala, touring cars driver John Bintcliff, Historic F1 racers Bob Berridge and Steve Hitchins, plus Barry Lee, Graham Hathaway and long list of other well known and experienced racers. Also expressing strong interest in the oval track series were top outfits Mallock Racing, Mardi Gras Motorsport and Bowman Motorsport.

The presentation was designed to give the 22 teams already signed up for the series and potential newcomers vital information and updates after the initial euphoria of the launch in January. Managing Director Mike Schmidt accompanied by Chairman and Director Peter Davies, gave clear messages to teams and drivers;

"We believe we are at the dawn of a new era in British motorsport entertainment. With the construction of Rockingham Motor Speedway we have the incredible, once in a lifetime opportunity to start with a blank piece of paper and rewrite the script for how motorsport is presented as an entertainment medium."

 

Conference Quotes

Bob Berridge - "We've been looking at ASCAR for sometime now and the presentation was timely. It was very positive and the calendar announcement takes the series into a totally different league. This is no club series."

Dick Richards, Mardi Gras Motorsport - "We are very interested in the American style of racing and have been a fan of oval racing for years. The cars are well put together and the association with Rockingham is ideal. This will be the first proper oval championship in the UK. We hope to be in a position to place a deposit on a car in the next few days."

Mark Newman - "Personally I am very interested in the series and would like to drive in the championship next year. The budget is a fraction of the cost of touring cars and it looks as if it will be a terrific spectacle."

 

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