Blackforest Motorsports Looking to Close Out 2006 with Strong Showing in Virginia

DELAND, Fla. (October 6, 2006) --
The 2006 Grand-Am Cup Series season will race to its conclusion this weekend with a six-hour enduro at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia.

Blackforest Motorsports, which recently announced plans for a 2007 Rolex Sports Car Series GT campaign with a Prep2 Ford Mustang Cobra, will bring a three-car assault to the event with nine drivers sharing the driving duties in the Ford Mustang FR500C. The VIR round marks the final race of Valerie Limoges' rookie Grand-Am Cup season and the Canadian, who sits 15th out of over one hundred Grand Am Cup drivers in the points standings, is looking to close out her rookie year on a high note.

The team nearly added to the Ford Mustang win tally earlier this season, as the USG Sheetrock entry of David Empringham and Limoges crossed the finish line in first position at VIR in April, but was subsequently penalized after the race and relegated to a tenth position in the final results. Limoges will once again team with fellow Quebecois Alex Tagliani as well as Travis Walker of Ontario.

"It's been an up and down year for us for sure, but I've learned a lot and after nearly winning here earlier this season, it would be great to come back and be able to get that victory," said Limoges. "I know that our team is going to be strong here again so long as we can save the car for the finish. I'm glad to be driving with Alex and Travis this weekend and I think the Blackforest cars should be fast."

Team Australia racer Tagliani has proven to be a quick study in the Mustangs in his two previous outings with the team, as he has led races and run competitively, although his results have been damped by some procedural penalties.

"I am looking forward to racing the Mustang again with Blackforest," said Tagliani. "Brian Nott does a fantastic job, and we've run up front every time. If we can just avoid getting any penalties this time, I think we should be strong. I've never been to VIR, but it looks like a great track, so hopefully we can get a win for Blackforest and Ford to finish their season."

The sister Blackforest entries will boast Ian James, Tom Nastasi, and David Empringham in the No. 6 USG Sheetrock/ Ramset Tools/ OMP/ Palm Coast Ford/ Ford Credit machine, with Forest Barber, Terry Borcheller, and Scott Turner sharing the No. 2 Mustang.

A promoter test day on Thursday will open the weekend, with Friday providing three practice sessions before Saturday's 10:00 AM qualifying session to set the grid for the 3:00 PM race start.

Additional information available:

www.valerielimoges.com

www.blackforestms.com

www.grandamerican.com

Blackforest Motorsports Announces Mustang GT Class Campaign

DELAND, Fla. (September 14, 2006) --
Blackforest Motorsports, which delivered the Ford Mustang FR500C's first win in Grand-Am Cup Series competition in its debut at Daytona International Speedway in 2005, will be looking to accomplish a similar feat in 2007 as the Florida-based squad has announced plans to contest the 2007 Rolex Sports Car Series season in GT Class competition with a Prep2 Mustang Cobra.

Ford Racing will build the race engines utilizing infrastructure which is already in place to support the FR500C Grand-Am Cup program, and the Mustang Cobra will ride on a Crawford Racing-designed and built chassis. The Blackforest Mustang Cobra will race in the GT Class against competition that includes the Pontiac GTO.R, Ferrari F430, and Porsche 997 GT3.

The Blackforest GT test program will commence in October after the conclusion of the 2006 Grand-Am Cup Series season at Virginia International Raceway, where the team will field three Ford Mustang FR500C entries. The Mustang Cobra GT class program has been in the planning stages for nearly a year, and the team is working hard for the Mustang Cobra's debut at Daytona in four months' time.

"We are really excited about growing our relationship with Ford and moving up to the GT class," said car owner Tom Nastasi. "We want to make sure the car is competitive right out of the box. We have a pretty good idea where we need to be, and will be testing frequently to make sure we get there in time for the 24."

Blackforest will continue to compete with a four-car entry in the Grand-Am Cup Series in the GS class with the Mustang FR500C, and will also grow to include two ST class entries with the Mazda RX-8.

The GT program will be headed by Brian Nott, who founded Blackforest in 2000, and has wins in every category he has competed in, including serving as crew chief for Buddy Lazier's 1996 Indianapolis 500 victory.

The team will make announcements concerning sponsorship details and driver line-up in advance of the opening round of the 2007 Rolex Sports Car Series season.

Additional information available:


www.valerielimoges.com

Www.blackforestmotorsports.com

Alex Tagliani Rejoins Blackforest for Utah Round of Grand-Am Cup Series Competition

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (September 1, 2006) --
It's been nearly a month since Valerie Limoges strapped into the No. 4 Blackforest Motorsports Group USG Sheetrock/Ramset Tools Mustang FR500C to race, so the Canadian charger is raring to go in Friday's Discount Tire Sunchaser Grand-Am Cup Series at Miller Motorsports Park.

The visit to the 4.5-mile circuit is the first for Grand American, giving Limoges the rare chance to learn a new track at the same time as her competitors, as the rookie has nearly a full season of learning new tracks under her belt this year. Limoges will team this weekend with Fernando Scattolin, who led a race-high forty-six laps in the Trois Rivieres round co-driving with Tom Nastasi.

Limoges will start the race from eighteenth on the grid after taking a 3:12.558-second lap in the fifteen-minute qualifying session, a result that left her less than pleased.

"I'm mad because the car was really good, but I just got held up behind one Porsche and we only had three laps to run, so it just messed our session up completely," said Limoges. "But obviously the team has a good car this weekend and I know it's going to be a long race, so we'll just be trying to move up as quickly as possible."

The qualifying session provided some reason for optimism for the Blackforest Racing squad, as Darren Law scored the pole position, with Ian James taking fourth on the grid and Alex Tagliani taking fifth.

Tagliani, who made a big impression in his Grand-Am Cup debut at Trois Rivieres, has rejoined the Blackforest Motorsports squad once again as the Champ Car star continues his long streak of only racing Fords.

"I am proud of the team and the effort everyone is putting in, and I'm happy to be working with Brian (Nott, team manager) again," said Tagliani. "Like Valerie said, we only had a few laps to get a good time in, and I just don't know enough about my competitors here so there were a few that cost me some time out there."

While they both carry the famed Blue Oval, the transition from the Champ Car to the Mustang is indeed a large one, a challenge that Tagliani is relishing.

"I just have to be less intense in this car, and just drive what the car can do because pushing it hard usually costs you time," said Tagliani. "In my Champ Car, it will take everything you give it, but here, I just have to keep reminding myself to do everything very early, and then the lap times improve."

The race weekend is the first for Tagliani on the Utah circuit, and the long straights and high-speed corners has the Canadian daydreaming a bit.

"I just keep thinking about how much fun it would be to run this track in my Champ Car!"

Friday's race will take the green flag at 2:45 PM local time on Friday, with a two-hour and forty-five minute race distance scheduled.

Additional information available:

www.valerielimoges.com

Blackforest Motorsports announces 2007 Campaign

Blackforest Motorsports announces Mustang GT Class campaign

Florida-based squad grows stable of racing Mustangs

DeLand, FL (14 September 2006)-Blackforest Motorsports, which delivered
the Ford Mustang FR500C's first win in Grand-Am Cup Series
competition in its debut at Daytona International Speedway in 2005, will
be looking to accomplish a similar feat in 2007 as the Florida-based
squad has announced plans to contest the 2007 Rolex Sports Car Series
season in GT Class competition with a Prep2 Mustang Cobra.

Ford Racing will build the race engines utilizing infrastructure which is
already in place to support the FR500C Grand-Am Cup program, and the
Mustang Cobra will ride on a Crawford Racing-designed and built chassis.
The Blackforest Mustang Cobra will race in the GT Class against
competition that includes the Pontiac GTO.R, Ferrari F430, and Porsche
997 GT3.

The Blackforest GT test program will commence in October after the
conclusion of the 2006 Grand-Am Cup Series season at Virginia
International Raceway, where the team will field three Ford Mustang
FR500C entries. The Mustang Cobra GT class program has been in the
planning stages for nearly a year, and the team is working hard for the
Mustang Cobra's debut at Daytona in four months' time.

"We are really excited about growing our relationship with Ford and
moving up to the GT class," said car owner Tom Nastasi. "We
want to make sure the car is competitive right out of the box. We have a
pretty good idea where we need to be, and will be testing frequently to
make sure we get there in time for the 24."

Blackforest will continue to compete with a four-car entry in the
Grand-Am Cup Series in the GS class with the Mustang FR500C, and will
also grow to include two ST class entries with the Mazda RX-8.

The GT program will be headed by Brian Nott, who founded Blackforest in
2000, and has wins in every category he has competed in, including
serving as crew chief for Buddy Lazier's 1996 Indianapolis 500
victory.

The team will make announcements concerning sponsorship details and
driver line-up in advance of the opening round of the 2007 Rolex Sports
Car Series season.

-credit: http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=232765&FS=GRANDAM-GRANDCUP

Girl Racer Limoges Signs Three-Year Deal to Drive Grand-Am Cup Mustang “Boy Racer” Starting in 2006

Daytona Beach, Fla. (October 18, 2005) -- Coming off a victory in the VIR 200 at Virginia International Raceway earlier this month, car owner and driver Tom Nastasi announced that he has signed 22-year-old Valerie Limoges to a three-year contract to drive the No. 4 Mustang GT for Blackforest Motorsports in Grand-Am Cup Series competition starting in 2006.

Limoges, of Montreal, is a four-time karting champion in F100 and F125 competition. She has also competed in Formula Ford 1600 as well as in the Canadian rounds of the North American Fran-Am Series. After securing sponsorship for 2005, Limoges competed in the Hankook Touring Car Series, compiling four top-five finishes and six top-10 results, including a run from the 27th starting spot to a ninth-place result in the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres. She finished the season fourth in the championship standings.

"This is truly a dream come true," said Limoges, who will be testing the car nicknamed "Boy Racer" for the remainder of the year in preparation for her Grand-Am Cup debut. "I'm just fortunate that Tom helped me get such a wonderful ride with a winning team."

Limoges was one of numerous female drivers--along with three-time Rolex Series race winner Milka Duno and IRL IndyCar Series star Danica Patrick--highlighted in the four-part documentary Girl Racers, which aired on the Biography Channel starting in September and ending earlier this month.

The DeLand, Fla.-based Blackforest Motorsports team had a pair of Grand-Am Cup victories in 2005 -- in the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway in February and at the season finale at Virginia International Speedway -- its first year of Grand-Am Cup competition. The No. 5 Ford Credit/ DeWALT Tools/ Ramset Tools Ford Mustang that Nastasi co-drove with Ian James finished fourth in the team championship standings and Nastasi and James finished in a tie for fifth in the driver championship, despite missing a race.

"Coming off a four-podium season with two victories against strong fields and tight racing in the Grand-Am Cup Series, we're already looking forward to 2006," said Nastasi. "Signing Valerie only strengthens the Blackforest team and I'm confident that she'll contribute right away."

A co-driver for the No. 4 machine has yet to be named.

The 2006 Grand-Am Cup Series schedule kicks off on the weekend of January 26-27 with a 200-mile race at Daytona International Speedway. The event coincides with the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series Rolex 24 At Daytona, North America's premier endurance race.

Mustang FR500C G-A cup assault continues

SANTO DOMINGO HOSTS INAUGURAL RACE FOR THIS CLASS ON ISLAND
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic — Multimatic Motorsports is looking to build upon the stunning Daytona race debut of the Ford Racing Mustang FR500C when the 2005 Grand-Am Cup Championship travels to the Dominican Republic for the first time this weekend.

TIMETABLE
Friday 10.00am-11am: Practice

1.30pm-2.30pm: Practice

Saturday 10.00am-11.00am: Practice
1.00pm-1.20pm: Qualifying

Sunday 11.00am-11.20am: Final practice
1.30pm: Grid opens

2.00pm: Start - Miller Grand-Am Cup 200 (206 miles/135 laps/3 hour time limit)

Thirty-Six Grand Sport class entries will do battle at the Las Américas Autódromo for the Miller Grand-Am Cup 200—the first ever race for the class on the Caribbean island.

Explored and claimed by Columbus on his first voyage in 1492, the Dominican Republic accounts for the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti.

Scott Maxwell and David Empringham finished second in the debut at Daytona for the Ford factory-backed Multimatic Motorsports squad while the customer entry of Ian James and Tom Nastasi taking the race win for the Mustang FR500C.

The Canadian duo will again be joined this week by team-mates Gunnar Jeannette and James Gue who finished 9th in the opening round after being delayed by a long pit stop. "Our target this weekend is to grab a solid points finish. Of all the tracks we are going to run at this year, Santo Domingo is probably the one which will be the biggest challenge for us because it is very tight," Multimatic Vice President and team Technincal Director, Larry Holt said.

"The car was great at Daytona and I am sure the Mustang FR500C will excel at places like Mosport, Watkins Glen and Laguna Seca. With continued development over the course of the year we are certainly aiming to challenge very strongly for the championship."

Ford Racing Technology embarked on this program to return the Mustang to the race track, and unveiled the new Mustang FR500C racer at the Specialty Equipment Manufacturer's Association Show in Las Vegas in November last year. Ford Racing worked closely with Multimatic on the design, development, and build of the race car to Grand-Am specification.

Ford Racing Performance Parts will offer the Mustang FR500C in Grand-Am Cup specification, as well as all the racing components necessary for race team support and for those enthusiasts interested in enhancing their own Mustangs.

GUNNAR JEANNETTE"From what I have been told, Santo Domingo is a great place for a vacation but we are here to race. … Looking at the track design I think we are going be pretty busy out there. There are no long straights like we have at Daytona to have a bit of a rest. … Saving tires will be crucial as always. You want the car set-up nice and firm and responsive, but if you make it too stiff you can really hurt the tires. …You have to make sure your car is strong right through to the finish. We don't want to be struggling for grip at the end of the race."

SCOTT MAXWELL
"The track does look a little short and tight so it probably won't suit our car as well as Daytona did. … Power and straight line speed are our key features so this place may work against us a little but you never know how things are going to turn out. … I can see there is going to be a bit of bump and grind over the weekend and we could end up with a few battle scars. … But whatever happens, David and I will be out to do our best and hopefully further improve our position in the championship after a strong start at Daytona."

DAVID EMPRINGHAM
"Our vision is certainly to win the championship so we will be out to grab as many points as we can this weekend. … I doubt we will be as strong here, but we will certainly be out to win it. … It is certainly not a horsepower track and I think the BMW will be very tough here, but Scott and I will give it our best shot. …I am excited to be in the championship hunt and our plan will be to ensure we can build on our season before we head to the West coast for Fontana and Laguna Seca."

JAMES GUE
"This will be the first time for me in Santo Domingo—I have been to Jamaica once, hopefully the weather here will be just as good. … From what I have seen online, the track looks pretty good but it is difficult to work out how tight it is until we actually get there. … Gunnar and I are keen to come away with a really strong performance this week. … Our car was fast at Daytona, but we just had a bit of bad luck. ...The competition is going to be very close and I am actually really looking forward to the race.”

Contributed by Multimatic Motorspots News Bureau

Ford Racing Mustang GT on Pace in DIS Debut

Daytona Beach, Fla. — Ford Racing Technology's new Mustang GT enjoyed an outstanding debut in Thursday's Grand-Am Cup 200 qualifying at Daytona.

Three of the new Mustangs qualified in the top ten with the factory backed Multimatic Motorsports entries scoring the sixth and eighth fastest times and the privateer Blackforest Motorsports car actually taking third spot on the grid.

Grand-Am 200 - Qualifying Position, car number, class (GS=Grand Sport), drivers, car, time

1. 96 GS Marks/Auberlen, BMW M3, 2:04.019


2. 09 GS Thorton/Russell, BMW M3, 2:04.791


3. 5 GS James/Natasi, Ford Mustang GT, 2:05.026


4. 9 GS Sandridge/Sandridge/Varde, BMW M3 2:05.386


5. 91 GS Dumoulin/Wilkins, Porche 996, 2:05.395


6. 55 GS Empringham/Maxwell, Ford Mustang GT, 2:05.664


7. 7 GS Keravich/Trinkler/Linder/Himes, BMW M3, 2:05.832


8. 05 GS Gue/Jeannette, Ford Mustang GT, 2:05.889


9. 58 GS Turner/Rehagen/Martin, Mustang Cobra SVT, 2:05.963


10. 77 GS Yeakle/Collyer, Pontiac Firebird, 2:06.008

David Empringham led the charge for Multimatic, stopping the clocks at 2 minutes, 5.664 seconds in the No. 55 car. James Gue was only marginally slower in the No. 05 machine, recording a time of 2:05.889.

Scott Maxwell will team up with Empringham today for the race debut of the new car while Gunnar Jeannette will partner Gue.

"The car was very strong and we are delighted with the progress so far," Multimatic Vice President and Technical Director, Larry Holt said.

"Ford's plan for this car is for privateers to be able to run competitively against the factory team with exactly the same car, built to the same high quality specifications.

"We are thrilled that one of the customers qualified so well, even if they did qualify ahead of us. That gives us added motivation to try even harder in the race."

The 57-lap, 200 mile, 3 hour Daytona 200 will greet the green flag at 2.15 p.m., today.

SCOTT MAXWELL
"I think this is a fantastic start for the new Mustang. Not only did we get both our cars in the top ten, one of the first customer cars actually qualified third fastest.

"That is great news for the entire program and great motivation for us. Not only do we have to beat the opposition—we have to do battle with customers who are running exactly the same car.

"Today is going to be another great challenge to see how the car runs in its first race, but from what I have seen so far, I think we are in very good shape."

GUNNAR JEANNETTE

"We have a great starting spot thanks to James and that will be a big help at the start because the field is so large.

"Traffic is going to be a key issue with more than 60 cars out there.

"We will have to play it safe and play it smart to ensure we get to the finish.

"It is important for us to get a good result [Friday] to kick off this program for Ford in the best possible way.

"Multimatic has done a fantastic job with this car and I am very confident we have a great chance to finish on the podium today."

DAVID EMPRINGHAM
"My first lap was little bit conservative and I was on a better lap when the yellow flag came out.

"The leaders went really fast in qualifying but I don't think we are too far off and I believe we will give them a good run today.

"The secret today is to look after the rear tires and we have worked hard on that all week.

"We need to be smart in traffic, but it is a case of not overdriving the car. Traffic can help you one lap, hinder you the next, but it can be a lot of fun."

JAMES GUE

"Qualifying went really well for us despite the fact we got caught out by the yellow flag at the finish of the session—there was probably a little more time in the car.

"I think we have a really good racecar right now and having a top ten starting position will be very beneficial because of the size of the grid.

"We made good progress with the changes on the car during the day, especially in the area of making the tires last which is critical for race conditions."

Contributed by Multimatic Motorsports News Bureau [2/4/2005]