After a record-setting sophomore season in the GRAND-AM KONI Sports Car Challenge Street Tuner (ST) class, APR Motorsport announced today it will compete both ST and the Grand Sport class in 2010.

The team will campaign the sixth generation Volkswagen GTI again in ST, while debuting in the GS class with the new Audi S4. The team launched its contenders during a barbecue held Saturday at APR’s Performance Campus in front of a crowd consisting of international press, sponsors and enthusiasts.

Power from the 3.0L supercharged V6 Audi S4 will come via Audi’s patented Quattro technology, of which the APR engineering staff is refining for competition. It will compete against GS staples such as the Ford Mustang GT, BMW M3, Porsche 997, Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger.

‘This is a landmark for our company and Audi enthusiasts alike,’ said Stephen Hooks, APR llc President and Founder. ‘The GS class is the next logical step for the team and our relationship with Audi made the progression a simple choice. Even in factory trim, the balance, handling and power of the new S4 are miles ahead of the previous generations of this car.’

Added Jeff Mishtawy, Director of Motorsport for APR: ‘We tested the new S4 at Barber Motorsports Park a couple of weeks ago, and the drivers were quite positive, especially for this early in the development cycle. The team is working with Grand-Am technical staff to finalize the set of rules for the car and the initial specifications are anticipated to be finished shortly. Several of the team’s technical partners from BBS, Status, IAV, and Motul were on hand to develop equipment for the all-new platform.’

The VW GTI produced four victories in ST, as well as five pole positions and three front row sweeps. The cars also combined to lead 38 percent of the laps this season in ST. The biggest update to the GTI will be a new engine in which VW has improved reliability while maintaining power output.

APR Motorsport expects to hit the track in January at Daytona International Speedway, picking up where it left off in 2009. Although drastically different in appearance, the team has been able to directly apply the chassis and brake tuning learned the past two years of competition to the new entry. APR’s engineers have been working on tuning of the powertrain for the past four months and have made some significant progress.

‘The transition to the new chassis should be seamless,’ said APR Motorsport driver Ian Baas. ‘The team has been busy tweaking the car for a while now and with the data we have been able to gather from 2009 we will be able to be competitive very quickly.’

Drivers interested should contact Mishtawy at 800-680-7921 or jeff@aprmotorsport.com.

Matching the exterior of each car, team members said they vow the technological growth will be impressive as well. The entire staff of APR and APR Motorsport is already designing the equipment and components necessary to take the team to victory lane again in 2010.

- Grand Am

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Dion von Moltke passed teammate Josh Hurley with two laps remaining in the Street Tuner (ST) portion of the race to earn his and co-driver Mike Sweeney’s third victory of the 2009 season. Von Moltke and Sweeney drove the No. 181 APR/BBS Volkswagen GTI for APR Motorsport.

The battle for the lead was between the APR cars for much of the event, before Randy Pobst in the No. 74 Skunk2/034 Motorsport Honda Civic Si and Tom Long in the No. 145 Mazda/Freedom Autosport Mazda MX-5 joined during the final half hour. The four drivers went four-wide at one point and Pobst and Long staged a war for the third position, reminiscent of their battle for the lead in March at Homestead.

However, no team other than APR led a lap in ST. Polesitter Ian Baas led the opening 20 laps in the No. 171 APR/Gunther VW Volkswagen GTI before pitting and giving Sweeney the lead for two laps. Hurley picked up the lead on Lap 23 and held on until von Moltke made the winning pass, which came in near pitch-black conditions.

‘I’m not too sure what happened, actually,’ von Moltke said. ‘Tom Long got a little crazy on the last few laps and he and Josh had a big contact. For a long time, Josh kept in front of me. I knew that I was a little quicker the whole race but I could never get it done because it’s so hard to overtake. He slowed up just enough to let me by. It was a clean move and it ended up being great. The night is my favorite time to race. I absolutely love it. It’s kind of my deal. I guess it’s kind of bittersweet but I’m really glad to get on P1 with Mike Sweeney. He drove an excellent first stint.’

The second-place run for Baas and Hurley – who is on the verge of winning Rookie of the Year honors in KONI Challenge competition – vaulted the duo into second in the championship standings, now 27 points (286-259) behind leader Christian Miller, who co-drove with Pobst.

‘We don’t like to see races end this way but either way, both of the cars came home and that’s what matters,’ said Miller, who only needs a 26th-place finish at VIR to wrap up an ST championship. ‘Both drivers are safe. It does do us good for points. I want my drivers safe and happy.’

Added Baas: ‘We finished in front of the people we’re fighting for the championship right now and I’m really excited for having a one-two for APR.’

Subaru Road Racing Team co-drivers Kristian Skavnes and Andrew Aquilante dropped to third in points with a seventh-place finish in the No. 111 Subaru of America Subaru Legacy. The two are 31 points behind Miller after entering the race 25 points behind.

Fourth were Long and Derek Whitis, while Ford Racing Mustang Challenge regulars Rick Edwards and Ted Anthony Jr. finished fifth in the No. 76 Skunk2/Hondata Honda Civic Si.

The final race of the 2009 season is the Bosch Engineering Octoberfest, a four-hour combined race Sunday, Oct. 4, at the 3.27-mile Virginia International Raceway.

Catch it on TV Oct 3, 1:30 PM ET on SPEED!

- AR Motorsports

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1. Koni ST: Ian Baas and Josh Hurley dominate Barber Street Tuner Race

You're reading Koni: APR Motorsport Takes First and Second at Miller originally posted on oneighturbo.com. If you've enjoyed this article, be sure and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and YouTube.

If you’re watching the Koni coverage from Barber Motorsport Park right now on SPEED, you will notice a new entry to the class. Irish Mike’s out of Orlando, Fl is a AAA approved automotive repair service shop. They also have a full service race shop for both amateur and professional racers.

Irish Mike’s Racing has produced cars that have won SCCA championships in ITS, ITA, ITB, and ITC classes and has provided service for Vintage race cars including Ferrari and Saab.

Check out more pics in their gallery here.

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1. Koni ST: Ian Baas and Josh Hurley dominate Barber Street Tuner Race

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Huge congrats to our friends Ian Bass and Josh Hurley! Both these guys get their first career win along with APR scoring a home track win. Set your DVR for Saturday, July 25, noon ET and turn in for the win! Unfortunately, we were out of town and not able to head down to Barber for the race.

Ian Baas and Josh Hurley turned in a dominating performance Saturday at Barber Motorsports Park, leading 76 of the 83 laps to win the Legacy Credit Union 200, Round 8 of the 2009 Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge.

While it was the first career victory for both drivers of the No. 171 APR Motorsport Volkswagen GTI, it followed back-to-back triumphs by Dion von Moltke and Mike Sweeney in the No. 181. It was also a home-course victory for APR Motorsport, based in nearby Auburn, Ala.

Baas led the opening 36 circuits before being passed by the No. 111 Subaru of America Subaru Legacy of Andrew Aquilante on the front straightaway. Baas quickly regained the lead in Turn 1 on the next lap, and paced another lap before pitting.

‘I can’t say enough for Mr. Aquilante,’ Baas said. ‘He was really putting the pressure on me. The Subaru was really set up good. I really had to work out hard out there. It will make for good TV (SPEED, Saturday, July 25, noon ET).’

Ken Wilden, driving the No. 129 JE Racing/Hawk Brakes BMW 330i, and Christian Miller, in the No. 74 034 Motorsport/Skunk2 Honda Civic Si, each led a lap before their stops, when the lead cycled back to Hurley.

Hurley’s only challenge in the closing half of the race came when the third and final full-course caution waved with 38 minutes remaining, erasing a 12.8 second lead. On the restart, Hurley motored away from Kristian Skavnes, who took over for Aquilante.

Andrew Carbonell, who took over for 15th-place starter Rhett O’Doski in the No. 146 Freedom Autosport/Mazda Mazda MX-5, passed Skavnes following the restart and finished second, 4.118 seconds behind Hurley.

Skavnes held on for third, followed by Owen Trinkler and Jade Buford in the No. 196 Cruise America/Four Winds Mini Cooper S, Bryan Ortiz and Wilden, and Sarah Cattaneo and Mark White in the No. 147 Freedom Autosport/Mazda Mazda MX-5.

Randy Pobst placed seventh in relief of Miller, whose lead was cut to 18 points by Skavnes and Aquilante (231-213). Pobst remains third in the standings with 205 points, with Baas and Hurley another 10 points back with 195 points.

Baas and Hurley averaged 75.473 mph. The race was slowed three times for six laps, all for cars stopped off course that were able to continue following extrications.

• 1 – 171 – Baas / Hurley – APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI
• 2 – 146 – ST – 2 – Carbonell / O’Doski – Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5
• 3 – 111 – ST – 3 – Aquilante / Skavnes – Subaru Road Racing Team / Subaru Legacy
• 4 – 196 – ST – 4 – Buford / Trinkler – RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S
• 5 – 129 – ST – 5 – Ortiz / Wilden – Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330
• 6 – 147 – ST – 6 – Cattaneo / White – Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5
• 7 – 74 – ST – 7 – Miller / Pobst – Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI
• 8 – 198 – ST – 8 – Burrows / Hopwood – RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S
• 9 – 138 – ST – 9 – Danyliw / Schmidt – GS Motorsports / Chevrolet Cobalt SS
• 10 – 75 – ST – 10 – Bell / Spaude – Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI

View the full race results

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Dion von Moltke took advantage of APR Motorsport teammate Ian Baas’ misfortune Sunday at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, taking the lead with seven minutes remaining and holding on for his second consecutive Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge Street Tuner victory.

Baas and pole-winning co-driver Josh Hurley led 66 of the opening 78 circuits on the 2.258-mile circuit, when Baas suddenly began to slow with an electrical problem in the No. 171 Gunther VW Volkswagen GTI. Von Moltke quickly took command and led the final six laps, giving the team’s No. 181 APR Tuning/BBS Volkswagen GTI shared by Mike Sweeney its second consecutive victory.

Baas soldiered on to finish 11th behind his winning teammates.

‘It definitely was not easy,’ von Moltke said. ‘I was pushing every lap. I looked over about twice a lap and saw Randy coming. I was pushing very hard. What really helped us was we came here focused on two corners – the Carrousel and the Key Hole. They are very similar corners, and we were able to get a good grip on the car there. If you can get a good run out of both of those corners, it’s very hard to be overtaken.’

After a slow start to the season, APR Motorsport learned a trick or two about setting up their Volkswagens three races ago at Lime Rock Park, and the team has been coming on strong ever since. The team put on a clinic throughout much of Sunday’s race, before Baas’ late-race misfortune.

Hurley captured his second pole of the season in Friday’s qualifying, and led the opening 40 circuits before his pit stop. Sweeney then led two circuits before pitting. While Guy Cosmo, Chad Gilsinger and Charles Putman had turns out front before their stops, the lead recycled back to Baas – who led the 26 laps.

‘We found something in the back end of the suspension that the car really, really likes midway through the event at Lime Rock,’ Sweeney said. ‘Last year we had a lot of power but couldn’t seem to do anything with it. This year it seems people have caught up with the power, but we’ve finally got the Volkswagen handling really well. We made a few changes, and the car just woke up. We had our plan today, which was to run as close as we could but to save brakes a little.’

The victory was also a homecoming event for APR Motorsport crew chief Jeff Mishtawy, who is from nearby Columbus, Ohio.

Sweeney and von Moltke averaged 83.039 mph. The race was slowed by three cautions for 12 laps. The only accident came early in the race, when Sam Schultz escaped injury after hitting the wall in Turn 1 in the No. 23 V-Pack Motorsport BMW Z4.

The KONI Challenge Grand Sport competitors raced on Saturday, with Ken Wilden and Dean Martin winning in the No. 59 RehagenRacingProducts.com Ford Mustang GT. Wilden extended his lead in the championship to 21 points over Bret Seafuse and James Gue (204-183), who finished second.

The next action for the Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge will be July 18-19 at Barber Motorsports Park, with split races for the Grand Sport and Street Tuner classes.

- Grand-Am

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After the strong showing at the KONI Sports Car Challenge Round 1 at Daytona International Speedway, the APR Motorsport team is looking for an even stronger finish at the upcoming Homestead race. The drivers are getting familiar with the 2009-spec cars and the team has been hard at work to improve their chances. The team has gathered and applied important data from the season opener and is focusing on a solid result for Homestead.

The drivers of the No. 171 APR Motorsport VW GTI are glad to be competing again. For Josh Hurley, the reigning Jetta TDI Cup Champion, this race will be his first professional event at his home track. Josh remarked, ‘After such a promising run in Daytona, I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel of the Gunther VW, APR GTI. I am especially excited because it’s a home race for Gunther and me. I also have a lot of friends and family coming to Homestead who have never seen me race.’ Josh’s partner and 2006 Daytona Rolex 24hr winner Ian Baas is anxious to build on his stellar drive in the season opener. Ian said, ‘The APR Motorsport crew has done some serious development with the balance of the car. I think we will have a good race car to contend with.’ This event will also be the home race for the sponsor of the No. 171 GTI, Gunther VW. Gunther is the largest VW dealer in the US and APR Motorsport has extended an invitation to attend the race to all of their customers.

The No. 181 APR Motorsport VW GTI will be driven by Mike Sweeney and Aaron Povoledo. Aaron is no stranger to the APR VW’s. He turned in a stellar performance last season at the Watkins Glen round where he qualified the No. 171 APR GTI on pole and led the most race laps before a collision with a lapped car ended the race prematurely. Mike reacted to the announcement of his codriver by saying, ‘I can’t put into words how exited I am to drive with Aaron. He is as quick as they get and understands how to make these cars move so well that it borders on legitimate science. With a partner like him and the best crew in the business, we are looking forward to a great weekend in Miami.’ Aaron was also looking forward to the upcoming race and said, ‘This team has made such progress in a short time. At Daytona the team came into its own, and I am certain we will see another strong showing.’

This will be the first event that APR Motorsport will compete in using the newly mandated Grand-Am engine restrictor. The technical officials at Grand-Am have worked very closely with the engineers of APR and Crew Chief Jeff Mishtawy to develop this device. About the restrictor, Jeff said ‘This is a new part of the equation for us, and we are looking forward to learning more about competing with it.’

Keep up with the team at www.goapr.com. For more information about Gunther VW go to www.gunthervw.net.

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Look for Josh’s post race report, from last weekends Fresh from Florida 200 at Daytona, sometime soon.

Josh Hurley, winner of the first ever Jetta TDI Cup, was signed by APR Motorsport and is competing in the 2009 Koni Sports Car Challenge Championship. Racing an APR tuned GTI, Josh Hurley and co-driver Ian Baas will compete in the Street Tuner Class. The Fresh from Florida 200 marked the first race of the season and was held at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.

After starting the race from the third position on the grid, Hurley was able to quickly move to the front of the pack and led several laps before his first pit stop for fuel and driver change. Bringing the GTI into pitlane, the Grand Am officials issued Hurley a drive-through penalty for speeding. Driver Ian Baas was tasked with regaining the positions lost during the penalty. Charging back to the front from the eighteenth position, Ian was able to secure a sixth place finish before a late-race caution halted his charge and forced the race to end behind the safety car.

When Volkswagen of America announced their intention to have a professional spec racing series in 2007 one of the main goals of the program was to find young and talented up-and-coming racers that aspire for a professional career in motorsports. Liam Kenny, runner up in the first ever Jetta TDI Cup, was also signed by a professional racing series. Kenny was signed with Ma-Con Motorsport and will compete in the 2009 ADAC Formula Masters Championship in Europe.

‘I’m extremely proud of Josh and Liam for moving their motorsport careers to the next level; they both showed tremendous talent, determination, and skill during the inaugural Jetta TDI Cup series,’ said Clark Campbell, Volkswagen of America Motorsport Manager. ‘Having highly talented aspiring drivers advance their motorsport careers is a major component of the Jetta TDI Cup Series. All of the drivers receive coaching in the numerous aspects of being part of a professional racing series including physical training, nutrition workshops, media training and mentoring from seasoned motorsport professionals. The Jetta TDI Cup Series is truly a valuable way to advance young motorsport professionals, as Josh and Liam have demonstrated.’ added Campbell.

Year two of the highly successful Jetta TDI Cup Series will begin with the driver selection process February 1-4, 2009. This year’s driver selection will take place at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. The first race of the season is scheduled for the weekend of April 24-26 at Virginia International Raceway. Once again the Jetta TDI Cup Series hopes to find aspiring young drivers and help prepare them for a career in professional motorsports, as well as to help change the perception of today’s clean diesel technologies.

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Josh is sharing duties with Ian Bass this weekend in the #171 APR Motorsport Volkswagen GTI. They qualified 3rd for today’s race, which actually gets underway in 20mins.

© 2008 Corey Beaman | oneighturbo.com

2008 was a career launching year for Josh Hurley of Cooper City, Fla. In his pro racing debut, Josh qualified on the pole for the first race of the 2008 VW TDI Cup season. The season would only get better from there with several strong showings throughout the year including a win at Portland International Raceway and several top-five finishes. Josh finally clinched the championship at Road Atlanta during the Petit Le Mans weekend. Due to his success in the 2008 season Josh was invited to race in the VW Polo Cup finale at Hockenhiem in Germany, finishing a strong 10th place and setting the 3rd fastest race lap – despite having never driven the car or the track previously. Previous to his foray into automobiles Josh was a very successful kart racer, earning factory rides with KartMini and CRG. Starting his passion early and learning quickly have been key to his success.

After the promising results from 2008, Josh and VW decided to continue their relationship into 2009. In looking at potential teams it became clear that Josh and APR were a natural fit. Finally in December Josh and APR were able to test together and the chemistry was instantaneous, ‘APR Motorsport is absolutely one of the best teams I have had the pleasure of working with. Everything they do is incredibly well thought out and engineered. I really feel like together we can contend for a championship in 2009′. APR Motorsport Team Principal Stephen Hooks was enthusiastic about the opportunity to work with Josh and confident of his abilities, ‘Testing with Josh went very well. I think he has the ability and patience to win a championship with us, this could be a very good season.’

While contending for a championship in a rookie season is difficult, Josh feels that he is up to the challenge. Part of this is due to his past KONI Sports Car Challenge experience, not as a driver but as an engineer, ‘My experience last year working as a Race Engineer in the KONI Sports Car Challenge paddock will really help me this year. I’ve been around the series so I have a grasp of the strategy and pacing of the race, as well as a bit of knowledge of the tracks. Combine this with APR’s really strong cars and I know we will have a great shot this year’. In addition to working with VW again this season, Josh will be continuing his relationship with Gunther Volkswagen of Coconut Creek, the largest dealer by volume in the US. ‘I’m really proud to be a representative of Gunther. It is an honor to be representing them again this year. It takes the best of everything to run up front, and not only am I working with one of the best manufacturers, but with the best team and sponsors in the world. I just can’t wait for 2009 to begin.

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1. Daytona Test 1/3/09: Koni Challenge Day one

You're reading TDI Cup Champion Hurley Makes Leap to KONI Sports Car Challenge originally posted on oneighturbo.com. If you've enjoyed this article, be sure and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and YouTube.

Mustangs topped the charts in todays Koni Challenge Practice occupying the top six spots in practice this afternoon.  The highest ranked Porsche was the TRG #40 car, posting the ninth fastest time.

Criag Stanton in the BGB Motorsports Porsche 997

What stood out most about today’s test was car count.  In 2008 there were 96 cars registered for this test, in 2009 there are only 36 cars registered.  However several of the teams which are not in attendance will be competing in the Koni Challenge race at Daytona later in the month.

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We are just about to head down to Daytona for this weekends The Roar before the Rolex 24 testing days. If you will be in the area, let us know, we’d love to meet up.

Look for some great reports, interviews/podcast and photo’s in the next few days.

Keep the rubber-side down!

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