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Stuntman finishes 2nd in the Grand Am Koni Challenge race at New Jersey

stuntman

stuntman

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EDIT: Airing this FRIDAY (Sept 12th) at 12:00 Mid-Night (3:00am Saturday EST) is the SPEED Channel's coverage of the Grand Am Koni Challenge race from New Jersey.

This is the first Professional race held at New Jersey's brand new Thunderbolt Raceway.

This race was insane, tons of crashes, dust clouds and debris everywhere, and an awesome 10-lap battle between the #18 BMW Z4 M-Coupe of Billy Johnson and the #83 Porsche of Craig Stanton. The lead went back and fourth 4 times before lap traffic and debris caused Johnson to slide sideways and Craig to sneak by. This was a very eventful and exciting race that should make for great TV and is definitely one to Tivo.

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More information/race reports:

http://motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=306209&FS=GRANDAM-GRANDCUP
Johnson and Dumoulin finish 2nd in New Jersey.

MILLVILLE, New Jersey (Sept. 1, 2008) Billy Johnson and Louis-Philippe Dumoulin finish 2nd in the inaugural Grand Am Koni Challenge race at New Jersey Motorsports Park in the No. 18 Motorsports Technology, Morris Animal Foundation BMW Z4 M-Coupe. The last 6 laps showcased an intense battle between the No. 18 BMW of Johnson and the No. 83 Porsche of Craig Stanton.

"The last laps of the race were crazy" said Johnson, "lapped traffic, dust clouds, and debris kicked up on the track caused the lead to go back and forth a few times before Craig was able to sneak by after I ran through debris and slid sideways on the last lap. We started the race a little deeper in the field but L.P. did a great job avoiding many wrecks and moved through the field while conserving the car. The guys at MTG had a great pit strategy and a quick pit stop that put us right up front. They have done a fantastic job and gave me a car that was capable of winning."

This marks the second straight podium for Johnson after a 3rd place finish in the streets of Trois-Rivieres driving the No. 52 Rehagen Racing Ford Mustang with Ray Mason. This is the second podium of the year for Motorsports Technology Group after a 3rd at Mosport in the BMW M-Coupe with Johnson who was partnered with Tom Milner Jr. The team will take a brief hiatus for Miller Motorsports Park and will be back for the 6-hour season closer at VIR where they look to sitting atop the podium.
 
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http://www.grand-am.com/koni/news/index.cfm?cid=19022
MILLVILLE, N.J. (Aug. 31, 2008) - Craig Stanton passed Billy Johnson on the final of 72 laps of the Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series Grand Sport (GS) race Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park - just a lap after drifting off the track to give Johnson the lead - giving himself and Jon Miller the KONI New Jersey 250 victory and putting both drivers in strong contention for the championship with two races remaining. It was BGB Motorsports' third victory of 2008 and first career for Miller.

Like their GS counterparts, the Street Tuner (ST) race came down to the wire, with track instructor and Grand-Am regular Matt Plumb holding off Jamie Holtom by 0.381 seconds to give Plumb and co-driver Bob Beede their first KONI Challenge victory of 2008 and the first for Bill Fenton Motorsports since October 2006 at Virginia International Raceway.

Stanton, in the No. 83 BGB Motorsports Performance Drink/Weeden Consultants, and Johnson battled nose-to-tail for the final 15 minutes of action, with Johnson frequently trying to look inside and out on the veteran and former Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 GT champion Stanton. Johnson slid wide twice while chasing Stanton, but caught him twice more before traffic intervened and put Johnson more than a second behind.

But Johnson wouldn't give up. He weaved through traffic to pressure Stanton once more, and on the penultimate lap - Lap 71 - took advantage of a miscue when Stanton slid wide in Turn 1 and into the dirt. However, Johnson suffered the same fate on the final lap in Turn 1 while trying to pass lapped traffic. That reopened the door for Stanton, who went on to win by 0.722 seconds.

Stanton, the Fresh From Florida 200 co-winner, also moved within reach of taking the point lead in the next race. He is seventh, but only five points behind the top four drivers, all tied for the lead. Defending series champions and incoming point co-leaders Jep Thornton and Jeff Segal did not score any points after Thornton retired the No. 09 Automatic Racing Imported Car Store/Land Air BMW M3 just 13 laps into the race. Thornton spun without assistance and, moments later, was hit by former championship contender Mike Canney. Neither Segal nor Canney's co-driver Hugh Plumb drove in the race, and the No. 09 finished 25th.

Moving ahead of Thornton and Segal in the championship race are James Gue and Bret Seafuse, who finished 15th in the GS class. Seafuse started the car 11th but moved to third in the opening three laps, but the team fell out of contention during one of the race's caution periods. Gue and Seafuse now have 196 points, while Thornton and Segal are deadlocked at 190, good enough for sixth. Stanton is fifth at 191 points.

Two-time race winners Joe Foster and Scott Maxwell, seventh in the No. 55 Hyper Sport Ford Mustang GT, closed to within two points (196-194) of Gue and Seafuse after Foster started the car fourth.

It was the best career finish for Johnson and co-driver Louis-Philippe Dumoulin in the No. 18 Motorsport Technology Group BMW Z4. It was also the second straight podium finish for Johnson, who drove for Rehagen Racing two weeks ago at Le Circuit de Trois-Rivieres.

Bill Auberlen and Matthew Alhadeff finished third in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M3, 2.488 seconds in arrears. It marked the duo's third podium finish this season and second this month.

Finishing fourth were Jack Roush Jr. and Dean Martin in the No. 59 Rehagen Racing Roush Performance Products/Valvoline Ford Mustang GT, while Mark Ackley and Todd Snyder earned fifth in the No. 17 CMA Motorsports Ford Mustang GT.

In ST, Matt Plumb battled Holtom for the final 15 minutes in putting the No. 29 Bill Fenton Motorsports Honda Certified Used Cars/Southern Auto Auction Honda Civic Si in victory lane. Matt Plumb, who has lapped the track more than almost any other KONI Challenge competitor, took the lead from Glenn Bocchino on Lap 45 and never looked back, despite constant pressure by Holtom. Overall, Matt Plumb led a race-high 28 laps in ST. It was the fourth podium finish of the season for Beede, who did not score any points at Daytona.

Holtom's co-driver Lawson Aschenbach started second but led the opening 10 laps and 12 overall. Holtom was looking for his season-leading fourth victory this season, but settled for second and stretched his lead slightly in the process over Kristian Skavnes. Skavnes finished behind in third in the No. 111 ICY/Phoenix Racing Subaru Legacy shared by Andrew Aquilante, and trails Holtom by four points (217-213). Skavnes' regular co-driver, Chuck Hemmingson, sat the race out after his wife Bernie gave birth earlier in the week.

Al Lamb and Leo Maia were fourth in the No. 85 Classic Plano-BMW Z4, with Owen Trinkler and BJ Zacharias credited with fifth in the No. 196 RSR Motorsports Mini Cooper S. Polesitter Andrew Carbonell led 20 laps, but his car was penalized when it ran over a hose during a stop. Carbonell and Tom Long were credited with 26th in the No. 146 Freedom Autosport Mazda MX-5.

The top 30 cars overall finished on the lead lap. Stanton averaged 64.131 mph in the race which featured five cautions for 36 laps. The longest caution of the day, which lasted for 16 laps, began on a restart, when Shane Lewis hit the guardrail on the front straightaway in the No. 92 HART Honda Accord. The guardrail required repairs, forcing a 40-minute caution period. In addition, Lewis was transported to the infield medical center, where he was treated and released. However, Lewis was kept out of Sunday afternoon's Supercar Life 250 for the Grand-Am Rolex Series.

Round 10 of 11 for the KONI Challenge Series is Sept. 21 at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah.

POST-RACE DRIVER QUOTES (TOP THREE IN EACH CLASS)

Craig Stanton (No. 83 BGB Motorsports Porsche 997): "Our team had such great strategy and we had a great car. I'm very grateful. I just drove my heart out. We slugged it out at the end for sure. This is a great place to race. It's great to see so many fans here. I think there is going to be some great races to come."

Jon Miller (No. 83 BGB Motorsports Porsche 997): "I have to thank the BGB (Motorsports) guys for prepping an awesome car, calling a brilliant, strategic race and pulling off a perfect pit stop. They put us in position to win the race, and Craig (Stanton) made it happen. The last few laps we were all glue to the TV screens, cheering Craig on, when Billy (Johnson) got by him on the penultimate lap. We all held our breath as Craig gave chase for the final lap. When Craig came back around in the lead, we couldn't believe it. Thanks to Scott Weeden and Weeden Consultants for sponsoring myself and the BGB crew for a perfect day."

Billy Johnson (No. 18 Motorsport Technology Group BMW Z4 M): "It was great racing for the first time at NJMP with so many fans there to watch. Louis-Philippe Dumoulin drove a clean first stint, and gave me a good car to be able to bring the No. 18 BMW Z4 to the podium. Everyone at Motorsport Technology Group did a great job, and now that we've stood on the podium twice this year, we look to finish atop the podium soon."

Louis-Philippe Dumoulin (No. 18 Motorsport Technology Group BMW Z4 M): "Just two weeks ago, I was running for BGB at Trois-Rivieres, and this weekend, we ran against them to the checkered flag. What an exciting race! Billy (Johnson) did a great job, and we just came up short on the victory. But we'll get them next time. My stint was good, and I was glad to give Billy a good car in which he starred."

Bill Auberlen (No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M3): "Another great result for Turner Motorsport. We've run very well this season; just not enough for the victory today. Matthew (Alhadeff) drove a great race today, and at the end, we weren't racing with the top two. We'll see what we can come up with in the next race."

Matthew Alhadeff (No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M3): "We had a really good pace, and the car was awesome. Turner Motorsports prepared a great car again. I had a great run at the front. We got a penalty that was tough to agree with, because I was trying to avoid a car in the battle for third when I went off the track. That put us back pretty far. We wanted to win the race, but it's good enough to finish on the podium, I guess."
 
Congrats Billy!

I set my DVR for your race.
 
Holy @#$%, I didn't realize the talent level of your competitors until I read the drivers list. Nice job Billy!!!
ryan
 
Nice work! I always keep an eye out for your races. You seem to be climbing steadily up the podium!

I had this race DVR'd, but flippin' Speed changes things around and I ended up with dirt track instead. :mad: Maybe they'll rebroadcast this week...
 
nsx2tall said:
I had this race DVR'd, but flippin' Speed changes things around and I ended up with dirt track instead. :mad: Maybe they'll rebroadcast this week...
Click to expand...

It's scheduled for broadcast this Saturday now. Set my DVR again.
 
congratulations billy! i planned on being there for the race weekend but something came up. i will definitely be catching this if speed shows it again. can you comment any more on the track? i was thinking of getting out there sometime.
 
As you are all aware, NASCAR/Speedchannel modified their schedule to cover a NASCAR race that was postponed due to Hurricane Hanna. Due to the changed schedule, World of Outlaws was aired during the time the Koni Challenge race from New Jersey was suppose to air. My DVR also recorded the dirt-track racing.

The race re-airs this Friday (Sept 12) at 3:00am EST (which would technically be Saturday morning), so that means 12:00am mid-night Pacific time on Friday.

Thanks again for the support and staying tuned!
 
NSXDreamer2 said:
is the Z4 M that competitive against the almighty 997? or it's just Billy and his co driver's skill and effort??
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Haha, thanks. So-far this year I have driven a Porsche 997, Ford Mustang FR500C, and BMW Z4 M-Coupe. That makes up the entire field except for the addition of the E46 M3 (btw, we are the only M-Coupe). The Z4 M-Coupe has come a long way this season. All of our competitors have years of development from multiple teams who often have multiple cars. The M-Coupe has done little to no testing and has done all of its development on race weekends. Even with that, the car has finished twice on the podium.

During NJ, although loose, we had a better handling car than the 997 of Stanton. Unfortunately our suspension bottomed out on the curbing leading onto the front straight killing the momentum for the best place on the track to pass. It was truly anyone's race, as mentioned before all of the debris, dirt, dust clouds, and lapped traffic put both Craig and me at a disadvantage allowing the other to capitalize. It should make for an exciting race if the cameras are focusing on our battle for the overall lead.

broinkrist said:
congratulations billy! i planned on being there for the race weekend but something came up. i will definitely be catching this if speed shows it again. can you comment any more on the track? i was thinking of getting out there sometime.
Click to expand...
Here's a reply in regards to the track that I did for another forum:

The track has its ups and downs. It wasn't quite finished when we raced there with dust and dirt surrounding the track that makes Buttonwillow look like an oasis. The dust clouds were diabolical and caused a ton of wrecks. Also the track wasn't quite complete and had many revisions made every night, for example the pit wall was extended after a Daytona Prototype was cut in half from spinning in the last corner onto the front straight and broad-siding the pit-in wall, ending the day.

The course was fun, a bit narrow for the speeds with not too many great places to pass, but it was still a lot of fun.

Craig and I have had great battles all year long, he is great to race with, a clean driver, and I enjoy going wheel to wheel with him. He's very well respected and accomplished, tough to pass, but won't take you out like many other drivers in the series. The last race in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec I held Craig off for 45 minutes for 3rd place, but this time driving a Ford Mustang instead of the Z4 M-Coupe. Bill (Auberlen) is also a great guy and driver who is also extremely accomplished and well regarded. The front of the GS pack usually has drivers of the caliber of Auberlen, Stanton, Lally with an occasional person who will take you out. But for the most part, theirs always great tough racing going on in the lead pack.
 
Congrats on your 2nd place finish. Must be exciting to be able to drive such a wide variety of cars and make the top 3.
 
Congratulations, I've set my DVR to record the series and will look forward to following you.
 
just saw the race.
congrats! you almost had the win.
did you slide in the same corner as craig did his overshot the previous lap?
that was a crazy race.
70 cars on a 2.3 mile track.
good thing they did not run out tow truck and flat beds.
when's the next televised event?
great drive billy !!
win the next one so that we can see you being interviewed on speed.
 
Hey great job!!

My best friend growing up is competing in the Koni Challenge series. I plan on going to Miller next weekend to support him. His name is James Rowen and will be racing for the Compasss 360 Acura RSX team. Maybe we'll see you there.
 
JohnJW said:
Hey great job!!

My best friend growing up is competing in the Koni Challenge series. I plan on going to Miller next weekend to support him. His name is James Rowen and will be racing for the Compasss 360 Acura RSX team. Maybe we'll see you there.
Click to expand...
Awesome, come say hi!

Compass360 was my old team from last year. We finished 2nd in the Championship.
 
stuntman said:
Thank you! Yes I would consider doing One Lap next year. I know a lot of people who compete in it but never have found an opportunity to hook up with a team/car to do it.
Click to expand...

Billy it could be really good event for you because the same seriously highly modified 996TT has won it for the 5th year in a row, 2nd place was to John Hennessy who hired Chris Winkler (SCCA champion) to run his ACR Viper and a 3rd place was Superlight (Catherham looking thing) with a Supercharged S2000 engine running E85 and 365hp/1400lbs

It would be awesome to see the Factor-X NSX dethrone that 911TT next year. I thought about that many times during those 9 days. Dreaming of a killer NSX stomping that 966TT.

I was really impressed with the event. Its was more than a race, it was a whole 10 track season of racing in a week. I am definitely doing it again next year, and preferably in my car this time and supercharged, if I find a sponsor for myself that is. Since the overall cost is pretty high plus 9000 miles & 10 track days in 9 days is no joke either. Harder to find someone to put up with and drives consistent than it is to find a good driver.

I really want to use a more competitive car next year since we finished 5th in our class in a 100% stock E46 M3 Vert, It was very slow in comparison to the competition and really just for advertising Game-X-Change more than anything. I still drove the hell out of it though. Although reclining leather seats & climate control was a serious luxury during the 9hr-11hr trips every day. We still managed 55th overall against 80 all very modified cars which I believe is really good for a stock E46 vert. Especially considering we were limited to "parade laps" (90mph limit) due to not having a roll cage by a couple tracks.

I think my NSX right now would be good for a top 30 but if supercharged maybe for a top 20. I just want to run It period, even competing for 30th overall is just too much fun, the people and the competition, are amazing, the 20+ retired (60+ yrs) Lamans people that enter the one lap are probably some of the most compassionate motor heads Ive ever met. some on their 20th & 15th year of Onelap and still pushing hard. its amazing to be a part of.

I had such an awesome time and I became friends with Brock Yates and Lady Pamela so I volunteered to help set it up next year, if your interested let me know, I can help with entrees and setting it up and so on.

For anyone reading that is not familiar with One lap of of America is not a street race! and does NOT include any part whatsoever of street racing. It is not like Gumball nor the original Cannonball movie. All racing is on real race tracks, Road America, VIR, Watkins Glenn, and so on.. but difference is the car & driver must endure actually driving between tracks it can not be trailered. and must use same tires for street and track.
 
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