RACERS EDGE ANNOUNCES NEW DRIVER PAIRING AND NEW SPONSOR
DeLand, Florida, February 25, 2010-GRAND-AM competitors, Racers Edge Motorsports, announced today that the upcoming Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series race at Homestead Miami Speedway on March 6th will mark the debut of the team's new driver pairing and new team sponsor. Jade Buford and Manuel Gutierrez will drive together in the team's 2010 Ford Mustang Boss 302R dressed in the yellow and blue colors of new sponsor Gume Transport.
Jade Buford, who is just 22 years old, has been one of Racers Edge Motorsport's team drivers since last July. Team owner Jon Mirachi was impressed by Jade on his first test with the team and immediately signed him for the 2010 season. "He is a brilliant young talent with a long career ahead of him", Mirachi commented. "Although he's only 22, he drives with a skill and maturity that belies his age. I'm excited to provide him with the opportunity to showcase his talent and trust him to help us challenge for the GS class championship in our new Mustang."
Manuel Gutierrez is only 19 and just joined the team in January of this year. He impressed Mirachi with his speed and his ability to very quickly adapt to the Mustang, which he had never driven before his first outing at Daytona International Speedway last month. Mirachi remarked; "Manuel has a calm, easy going approach which will fit well with both Jade and the team. But underneath the calm exterior I found a highly motivated competitor, who I'm confident, will do a great job for us. I'm really looking forward to working with him."
Gume Transport is an American based division of the Gume Group, a large, extremely diverse and successful international trucking, logistics and storage company, whose home base is in Tampico, TAMPS, Mexico. More information can be learned about the Gume Group at the company website: http://www.Grupogume.com.
Racers Edge Motorsports has a 20 year history preparing race cars that win races and championships. In addition to the Continental Tire Sports Car Championship effort with the Mustang, the team also fields a Mazda RX-8 in The GRAND-AM Rolex Series, driven by Jordan Taylor and Todd Lamb. You can learn more about the entire team at http://www.RacersEdgeMotorsports.com.
Jan. 19, 2010-Two-time Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge GS driving champion David Empringham returns to the series next week as the co-driver to Racers Edge Motorsports' Jade Buford. Empringham has several victories at Daytona International Speedway, where next week's season opener will be held. He won the first-ever GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Daytona Prototype race in the 2003 Rolex 24 At Daytona, and earned a Fresh From Florida 200 victory in 2007. Racers Edge is campaigning one of the new Ford Mustang 302 Boss in its first season on the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge trail. December Test Days - Day 1Dec. 8, 2009DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - All 24 cars that were entered for the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 December Test Days, a two-day Pirelli Tire Test at Daytona International Speedway, participated Tuesday in preparation for next month's Rolex 24 At Daytona, held on Jan. 30-31, 2010.
Some teams - including Action Express Racing (Daytona Prototype) and ZMG, Magnus Racing and Turner Motorsport (GT) - were on track with cars for the first time. While Rolex Series veterans and former Daytona race winners like Scott Pruett, Max Angelelli, Buddy Rice, Sylvain Tremblay and Bill Auberlen returned, drivers like Jade Buford, Bob Doyle, Paul Dalla Lana and Derek Johnston made their first on-track appearances in Rolex Series cars.
Other drivers, such as Ryan Dalziel, Jean-Francois Dumoulin, Josh Hurley, Johnny Mowlem and Dominic Cicero were roaming the garage area and pit lane talking to teams about the potential of running the 48th annual Rolex 24. No major incidents occurred during the seven-hour session, which was split up into a three-hour morning practice and four-hour afternoon session. Times were not released, and drivers and teams return Wednesday to the track for a similar schedule. http://www.grand-am.com/ Buford, Racers Edge Head to Daytona for December TestDecember 6, 2009 DELAND, Fla. - Twenty-one-year-old Jade Buford, co-driver Jordan Taylor and Racers Edge Motorsports will head to Daytona International Speedway on Tuesday and Wednesday for the two-day GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 test. Buford will drive the No. 30 Mazda RX-8, sponsored by IDEMITSU Racing Oil and Cobalt Friction, with Taylor, a two-time Rolex 24 At Daytona participant. Buford will realize his dream when he steps foot on the grounds of Daytona, which is located only a half hour away from Racers Edge's team headquarters in Deland, Fla. It will mark the first time Buford has ever participated in any type of sanctioned event at Daytona, as he prepares to drive in his first Rolex 24 At Daytona in January. Racers Edge team owner Jon Mirachi, who has worked with several talented, young up-and-coming drivers throughout his career, brought Buford into the team's fold following the 2009 Rolex Series race at Barber Motorsports Park in July. Mirachi coached Buford, who turned times and speeds that would have made him competitive in the previous day's race. Buford made his Rolex Series debut in September at Miller Motorsports Park, driving with Dane Cameron. A season after running 10 of 11 races on the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge circuit in the Street Tuner (ST) division, Buford is scheduled to drive for Racers Edge in 2010 as they unveil the new Ford Mustang GT for the season-opening Continental Tire Challenge race in the Grand Sport (GS) class at Daytona. Buford's GS co-driver will be Glenn Bocchino, who won the 2008 Continental Tire ST race at Daytona. Mirachi believes Buford will make a great addition to his team in both cars he drives, and said he looks forward to seeing his efforts this week. "We've seen a lot of progress from Jade since he made his initial appearance at the Barber test with us in July," Mirachi said. "We feel that, though he is in the early stages of his professional racing career, this is the perfect opportunity for him to show his talent. We led laps and ran up front this season with the RX-8, and Jade should keep us there as he continues to progress." Taylor, the son of Rolex Series team owner Wayne Taylor, has competed on and off for Racers Edge, and finished in 10th-place in last year's Rolex 24 in a Daytona Prototype. http://www.grand-am.com/ Racers Edge Tackles Miller With All-Rookie Lineup September 11, 2009
DELAND, Fla. (Sept. 11, 2009) - Racers Edge Motorsports announced today it will compete with three young, upcoming drivers for the next Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 event Sept. 19 at Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City, Utah. Team regular driver Dane Cameron will be joined by fellow rookies Jade Buford and Jordan Taylor, whose combined average age is only 20 years old. They will drive the No. 30 3Dimensional.com/ Team owner Jon Mirachi stated the reasons behind the unusual approach to the event. "As a team, our heritage has been all about working with young drivers to help advance their careers," Mirachi said. "We try to provide the right atmosphere, input and advice so they can thrive and succeed. We chose these three young men because we believe they all have great talent, desire and the right mental approach to the task. "I truly believe all three of them are future superstars in our sport," Mirachi said. "As for using three drivers instead of the more customary two, the two-hour, 45-minute format allows adequate time for us to give all three talented young drivers the opportunity to display their abilities." Cameron has been racing since a young age and has already won numerous races and championships. He has caught the eye and support of Mazda and is a part of their Mazdaspeed Driver Development Ladder to help develop young American driving talent. His first season in the Rolex Series has seen him qualify on the front row and lead several races. He is poised to get his first win at any time. Taylor has been competing in select Rolex Series Daytona Prototype races this season, but made his debut in the Rolex Series GT class in 2008. Taylor has previously raced and tested with Racers Edge so he knows the team's Mazda RX-8 and the personnel well. Buford has been racing successfully this season in the Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge. He tested with Racers Edge in July and immediately impressed the team with not only his talent but his thoughtful and professional approach to his first drive in a top level GT car. "After that test, I knew I had to make the right opportunity happen to get Jade in our car for a race," Mirachi said. "Not only was I impressed with his abundant talent, but he was a complete pleasure to work with. I've been looking forward to his debut race in the series and I'm glad we can provide him with this opportunity." http://www.grand-am.com/ Jade Buford Impressive in His First Rolex GT Test
DeLand, Florida - July 21, 2009. Young, talented race car driver Jade Buford, had his first taste of of a Grand Am Rolex GT car when he tested the Racers Edge Motorsports Mazda RX-8 at Barber Motorsports Park earlier this week. Jade finished fourth in his KONI Sports Car Challenge Series race on Saturday at Barber, then stayed around to participate in the official Rolex Series test on Monday. His first experience consisted of over 50 laps around the challenging Barber track sharing the track with other Rolex Series machines from both the GT and DP (Daytona Prototype) classes.
Team owner and veteran driver coach Jon Mirachi was absolutely impressed by Jade’s day at the wheel of his team’s red #30 machine. “He showed a tremendous level of maturity for such a young driver”, Mirachi commented. “We gave him some homework to do to prepare for the test, he studied it thoroughly and was definitely prepared when he showed up. He took a very methodical approach to his first day in the new car but none the less settled into a comfortable rhythm very quickly. By the fifth lap he was already shifting quickly and smoothly, even though he had never driven a sequential shift race car before. We challenged him with learning left foot braking at the same time, which he hadn’t done before either, and by the end of the test he was out braking even highly experienced, professional Mazda GT drivers!”
“Aside from his abundant talent behind the wheel, Jade was a joy to work with”, continued Mirachi. “At various points during the day we spent time reviewing his driving data from the car’s on board data collection system. He was able to understand my comments and advice for improvement and put it to use on the track. He’s a fine young man with all the right attributes for an aspiring professional driver. I look forward to working with him again in the future.” Jade, for his part, had a few comments about the experience as well. “That car is amazing! Not only is it really fast, but it was surprisingly easy to drive. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly the shifting and left foot braking techniques came to me. I was actually comfortable with everything in just a few laps. It was a great learning experience and I look forward to future opportunities to work with Jon and his team.” Next up for Jade and Racers Edge are plans to do another test with an eye toward racing sometime in the future. In the meantime, Jade will also continue to race his Mini in the KONI Sports Car Challenge Series. Keep an eye on this young man! For further information about Jade Buford, please visit his website at: www.jadebuford.com and for more information about the Racers Edge Motorsports team, you can check out their website at: www.racersedgemotorsports.com .
July 13, 2009 Jade Buford Tests With Racer's Edge Motorsports PDF
Janurary 15, 2009 For Immediate Release:
Young Porsche Club Racer Makes Move to Grand Am KONI Challenge Series Jade Buford, of Brentwood, Tennessee, is joining the RSR Motorsports Team for the full 2009 season. He will co-drive the #196 Mini Cooper S with team veteran Owen Trinkler. Since receiving his Porsche Club Rookie Racing License in February of 2008, the 20 year-old Buford hasn’t looked back. While still a fulltime student at Auburn University, he ran four Porsche Club National Races. He qualified well and ran strong in each race in 2008 with his best finish being his last – a First Place Overall – in the August Porsche Club National Event at Virginia International Raceway. “VIR was good for him,” said Porsche Sport Driving School Instructor and RSR Motorsports hot shoe Owen Trinkler. “That was a good race for him to understand, it’s different being a leader rather than chasing somebody. It was a good way for him to finish the year,” Trinkler added. Buford got his first taste of the RSR Motorsports Mini Cooper S recently at the January Daytona test days. “He ran all three days and did a good job,” said Trinkler. After running a ‘safe’ set-up the first two days, “we tried some stuff on the third day, and he liked it, and dropped about two seconds,” said Trinkler. Joining the RSR Motorsports Team is a great opportunity for this young driver. “I’m really fortunate to be with such a good team and such a good team of drivers,” says Buford. “And the Mini is a great car. It’s going to be real fast,” he added. The Grand Am KONI Challenge series begins at Daytona International Speedway with the “Fresh From Florida 200” on January 23. * * *
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