The Subaru PUMA RallyCross team is ready to roll the dice in Las Vegas this weekend

RSL Staff

– September 28, 2012Posted in: News, RallyCross

Emboldened by performance gains during recent testing, the Subaru PUMA RallyCross Team travels to Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which will play host to the fifth round of the 2012 Global RallyCross Championship (GRC). The team’s trio of 2012 Subaru WRX STI Rallycross cars producing 600hp will be piloted by two of X Games’ most decorated athletes, Dave Mirra and Bucky Lasek, who are joined by three-time European Rallycross Champion Sverre Isachsen of Norway. This weekend’s GRC event is paired with the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350.

GRC` action is scheduled to begin at approximately 11:30 p.m. (EST) Saturday, Sept., 29, and will air live on ESPN3 with a tape delay broadcast at 6 p.m. (EST) Sunday, Sept., 30, on ESPN2.

“It’s been a while since our last race in New Hampshire, but the entire team had a very good test a couple weeks ago, and we have a proper level of confidence coming to Las Vegas. I’m looking forward to this race and shooting for the podium,” explains Subaru PUMA RallyCross Team driver Sverre Isachsen, whose competitive focus and determination has earned him the moniker ‘The Viking Warrior.’

The temporary GRC track at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway will utilize the pit road along with portions of the front straightaway and infield track. The course will include a dirt section as well as the GRC’s trademark 60ft gap jump. The GRC combines the energy of motorsport with the attitude of action sport, and features production-based, compact cars highly modified for competition to produce more than 600 horsepower. Featuring all-wheel drive, GRC cars can turn on a dime and accelerate from zero to 60 mph in under two seconds. The race tracks, typically about one mile long, are made up of asphalt and dirt and include a crowd-thrilling, crossover 60-foot gap jump along with tight turns and snap directional changes. Races progress in multi-car heats towards an eight-car main event, which determines the podium finishers.

Said James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc., “As the GRC series finds its footing and broadens its audience after each passing round, I expect that this weekend’s event, at Las Vegas [Motor Speedway], will represent another solid progression as we near the close of this season.” “In turn, our team has been hard at work developing our WRX STI rallycross cars to better suit the demands and nuances of what is a relatively new sport for Subaru, that also includes the added challenge of a gap jump among other unique course elements.”