Grand-Am

SCC: VIR II: Michael McDowell joins Automatic Racing

NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Michael McDowell Joins Automatic Racing at VIR ALTON, Va. -- Rob Finlay and Steve Cameron will have a new co-driver this weekend at Virginia International Raceway, where NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Michael McDowell is joining ...

Edited: Dec 21, 2009, 5:26 AM

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Michael McDowell Joins Automatic Racing at VIR

ALTON, Va. -- Rob Finlay and Steve Cameron will have a new co-driver this weekend at Virginia International Raceway, where NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Michael McDowell is joining the pair in the No. 99 Automatic Racing Mobile-Shop.com BMW M3.

Sunday's KONI Challenge finale is six hours long, so most teams are adding a third driver to the roster, and McDowell is the perfect choice to round out the lineup in the No. 99 M3. After honing his skills in sports car racing, McDowell moved up to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and now drives the No. 00 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing. McDowell's rise through the ranks has been fostered by the Finlay Motorsports Driver Development Program, which Finlay initiated to help young talents like McDowell take advantage of the opportunities available in motorsports.

McDowell wasted no time getting used to the No. 99 Automatic Racing Mobile-Shop.com M3 during Friday's practice session. He posted the fifth-quickest time in the third practice of the day, with a quick lap of 2:05.500. It was also the fastest time for Automatic Racing in that session.

The No. 09 Automatic Racing BMW M3 of Jep Thornton, Jeff Segal and Terry Borcheller, who is joining the championship contenders for the endurance race, claimed the fastest time for the team with a 2:04.693 in the second practice session. Thornton and Segal hope to clinch their second KONI Challenge Grand Sport championship this weekend.

The other Automatic Racing entries include the No. 91 M3 of Charlie Putman and Charles Espenlaub, and the No. 90 M3 of Derek Whitis and Tom Long.

-credit: ar

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