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There is an old adage that says “keep your friends close, and your
competitors even closer.” Although that is not quite how the saying
goes, that statement could never have been truer then with the
partnership that was formed last month between Rip Michels Racing,
Inc., and West Coast car owner, Bob Bruncati, owner of Sunrise Ford.
For two years (2002 -2003), while Rip competed at the famed
half-mile track of Irwindale Speedway in the Super Late Model
Division, his biggest competition came from Bob Bruncati and his
Sunrise Ford Racing Team with their drivers James and Tony Bruncati.
The competition was fierce on and off the track, with heated races,
and even more heated conversations after the race.
Rip won back-to-back championships in 2002 and 2003 and he has
credited his team’s success to the two-year battle and intense
competition that was waged week in and week out with Bob and his team.
“We had to step up our program every weekend, it really helped us to
prepare for our move up to the Southwest Tour,” said Rip Michels.
“Even though we were huge competitors, Bob was the first guy to buy my
tires in my first start in the Southwest Tour back in 2003. So we have
had a great deal of respect for each other.”
In 2004 Rip left Irwindale to compete in the now defunct NASCAR
AutoZone Elite Southwest Tour Division, where he would capture the
2004 Rookie of the Year award, and captured the series final
championship in 2006, while Bob continued to race at Irwindale
capturing his first NASCAR championship in 2005 with his driver Andrew
Phipps.
In 2006 Bob moved his team up to run a limited schedule of races in
the NASCAR Grand National Division in hopes of competing fulltime in
the series in 2007. He was also looking to put together another team
to compete in the Super Late Model Division at Irwindale Speedway for
2007, and was looking to partner up with a sponsor for that endeavor.
That sponsor was none other than Mr. Lee Ladd, and his new business
venture Turbo Torq, Inc, a business in which Bob and Lee are partners.
With the sponsor in place, Bob and Lee discussed potential drivers for
the ride, and they both wanted Rip as their driver, and the deal was
complete. Lee Ladd has been Rip’s car owner since 1997. Although he
stepped back as car owner in 2005, he has remained a true friend to
the team and is the reason Rip has won 7 championships since 1997. The
deal also included Rip’s good friend and championship winning engine
builder Brad Peters from FreightTrain Peters Racing Engines. The
Sunrise Ford Racing team will be located out of Bob Bruncati’s shops
in Fontana, California.
“I’m looking forward to going back to Irwindale Speedway to compete
in the highly competitive SLM division with Bob,” said Rip. “Bob is a
great owner, and it’s going to be a lot of fun for the crew and me to
drive for him. It is cool to see an owner in the shop a couple hours
of the day helping out the race team. Plus, he is so hands on that I
can take a breath and just really concentrate on driving and set up.
Which is something I have not been able to do in a long time.”
“I am really happy to be associated with Rip Michels,’ said Bob
Bruncati. “He has been such a thorn in my side that you just have got
to respect what he has accomplished. When Lee told me that he might be
available, there was really no other choice. Rip and his entire team
have been working their tails off building a new Victory Circle SLM
chassis, it’s going to be a bullet.”
“This really is a good fit all the way around,” said Lee Ladd. “Rip
and his team have been the pinnacle for all the West Coast Racing
teams. He has had such success in everything he has been in, and the
team has been nothing but professionals and have represented their
sponsors well.”
Along with Sunrise Ford and Turbo Torq, the Sunrise Ford racing
team would like to give thanks to the follows sponsors for their
product support:
Ron’s Rear Ends, DJ Safety, Wilwood Disc Brakes, Aurora Rod Ends,
Red Line Oil, Quarter Master, Schroeder Torsion Bars, Ringers Gloves,
Circle Racing Wheels, Hy-Lube Systems, Total Power Batteries, Oreme
Brothers, BC Sportsimage, and Work of Art Johnson.
For more information on Rip Michels Racing, please visit
www.ripmichels.com
For more Information on Turbo Torq, please visit
www.turbotorq.com
For more information on Sunrise Ford, please visit
www.sunriseford.com
Source By: LRM Sports Marketing, Inc. |
