The 1978 Nitro Circus Ford Fairmont station wagon was a clear underdog at the start of the event. “This car is so Nitro Circus,” said Johnson. “It looks a little sketchy and pretty funny, but it’s got some talent hidden under the skin. I had a blast driving it – even in the wet when it was a handful.”

This was Johnson’s first Rallycross event, “It took me a little time to get the rules down. I backed off in one heat race to let other cars catch up so we could play some, then I remembered I was supposed to be going fast for lap times – not dicing with other drivers!” Much of the team’s time between heats was working to set the Fairmont up for Rallycross. This included raising the car two inches and using softer springs, but the car was still too stiff for the dirt. Additionally, Johnson dreaded the rain due to the car’s powerful front brakes, “It tends to lock up the fronts a little more than you’d like – especially when you are pointed at tire barriers very close to the race line.”

As a repeat production class rally national champion and also a competitor at ESPN’s X Games Rally competition in 2008 and 2009, Johnson is a critical component of American rally racing. His entry, however, had people wondering whether his deep competition and driving experience would prove advantageous in the Rallycross format. “I always like to stir up the pot,” said Johnson. “I had a lot of encouragement coming into the event – people wanting to see what I could do. Thanks to them, my Nitro Circus team, and my sponsors, I was able to deliver a win – it feels good to go home after this kind of weekend,” he reflected.

Johnson plans to return to the 3rd and final round of the championship in New Jersey on November 6th & 7th. “I plan to come back, but we have to make sure Fairmont can take it. The transitions between dirt and pavement sections were pretty rough, so we’ll inspect the car and make changes to improve it, or we’ll pick a different Nitro Circus car to use.”

Johnson’s Nitro wagon is borrowed from Dave Blum, a friend he met at his first autocross in 1995. Ford Racing’s press echoed Johnson’s humor, ending their press release with Johnson’s quote: “Dave has quite a sense of humor. He built a track car to run with Porsche’s out of a 1978 Ford Fairmont station wagon,” and adding, “Who’s laughing now?”

Matthew Johnson Motorsport is supported by: Nitro Circus (www.nitrocircus.com), Checkpoint Racing (www.cp-racing.com), Stickerdude Designs (www.stickerdudedesigns.com), Joe Gibbs Driven Racing Oil (www.joegibbsdriven.com), and Giant Bikes (http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/)

Matthew Johnson’s Facebook is http://www.facebook.com/pages/Matthew-Johnson/236209644668.

All Photos: Matthew Johnson steals the hearts of rally fans, again, in the Nitro Circus Ford Fairmont. By Bill Lockwood – WeKickAssets

About Rallycross
Americans have seldom seen the speed, power, intensity and overall competition of a Rallycross event. New to America in 2010, the sport sits at the intersection of rally, drifting, and road racing disciplines and features stars from each respective autosport. Five drivers line up to start at once, piloting high-horsepower compact cars through race traffic over a challenging short course that features jumps, unbanked turns, hills and transitions between pavement and gravel. Each car must also take a “Joker” lap at some point during their heat. A Joker Lap is a small detour – normally over a jump – that adds a level of unpredictability to the heat’s outcome by changing a driver’s strategy in an instant. The sport is debuting this year in the US with a three-event series at the New Jersey Motorsports Park. For 2011, the calendar will feature a full, US championship series with events held nationwide.

About RallyCar, Inc.
Based in Golden Valley, Minn., RallyCar sanctions the premier performance rally series in the United States, the Rally America National Championship Series. In 2010, RallyCar is conducting six National Championship events at venues across the country, from Olympia, Washington to Newry, Maine. RallyCar competitors reach speeds of well over 100 mph in modified street cars on natural-terrain courses consisting of gravel, dirt or snow. Additionally, through a partnership with ESPN, qualifying RallyCar drivers are invited to compete in ESPN’s Summer X Games 16, the annual leading action-sports event that’s broadcast live on ESPN.

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Former Subaru driver Chris Atkinson has been lined up as Block’s team-mate in the all-new Monster Energy Drink World Rally Team.

The three-year deal, which is likely to be agreed in the next month, would offer the World Rally Championship the chance to break into the all important North American market – a move seen as pivotal to the sport’s development.

The deal, which is being brokered by Block’s management team Wasserman Media Group, is reckoned to be one of the most significant in the sport’s history.

to the rest of the article:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/79442Autosport

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Malcolm Wilson, with over 20 years’ experience of rallying at world rally championship level,
has won two British national titles. As recently as November, 2008, Wilson, as a driver, claimed
an emphatic victory in the 2008 RAC Rally in North Yorkshire, Cumbria and the Scottish Borders.

Kyle Sarasin, at 19 years-old, has rewritten the records in U.S. rally, becoming the youngest
driver in Rally America history to: win Rookie of the Year (in a Ford Focus, earning a 4th place
overall at the Ojibwe Rally, the only 2WD in the top ten and the highest finish for a 2WD in Rally
America history), earn a podium finish (in his first career open class race!), win a special stage,
set a new stage record (actually, two, at the oldest performance rally in North America), finish
on the overall championship podium, and his highlight make it to the quarterfinals of the 2008
ESPN X Games, succumbing only to the ultimate gold medalist.

Under Malcolm Wilson’s direction, Sarasin will provisionally compete in five World Rally
Championship events including Italy, Poland, Finland, Spain and Great Britain. Wilson, and M-
Sport, will coordinate logistics and Sarasin will continue to secure sponsorship to compete in the
Ford Fiesta SportTrophy International series.

Sarasin will continue his quest to become the “Two-Continent Kid,” competing in both the U.S.
rally series as well as the World Rally Championship. Sarasin’s ultimate goal is to reach the
podium in the World Rally Championship on his way to a World Rally championship.
Sarasin’s dream, to be a part of Ford’s World Rally Championship with Malcolm Wilson’s M-
Sport, looks to be soon within reach. Support remains the key to Kyle’s success. With the
proper sponsorship and backing, Sarasin looks to continue to the top of the ultimate rally series,
the World Rally Championship.

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Rally Race driver Bill Holmes and his co-driver Sean Gallagher pulled off another overall win in the California Rally Series. The High Desert Trails Rally was held at the Area 51.5 Motorsport Facility in Ridgecrest, California on February 20-21 2009.

The two wheel drive Bilstein/BFGoodrich sponsored 2008 Ford F-150 Rally Racing truck was the first vehicle on the road with a good turn out of all wheel drive cars starting behind. Vehicles started at one minute intervals. From the start to finish the team of Holmes/Gallagher won all eight stages of the event.

The overall victory was won despite having some fuel issues with the truck. On long right hand turns the truck was running out of fuel. During the short time in a service break, the team quickly replaced the fuel pump and fuel filter hoping to resolve the problem. Unfortunately, it did not, and the truck was still running out of fuel. Holmes determined that the fuel pick up hose in the fuel tank came apart, causing the massive 358ci V-8 motor to be starved of fuel. After this realization, they filled the tank to overflow at the next service and were able to finish the event with no more problems.

The team is leading both the California Rally Series and the Southwest Rally Series in the points championships. The next event for the team will be the Southwest Rally Series’ Desert Storm Rally to be held in Quartzite, Arizona on March 21-22, 2009.

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