VOLKSWAGEN ANDRETTI RALLYCROSS BEGINS NEW RED BULL GLOBAL RALLYCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP HUNT IN MEMPHIS
Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross returns to competition this weekend in Memphis, defending consecutive team and driver’s championships won in 2015 and 2016. With two fresh Beetle GRCs at their disposal, Scott Speed and Tanner Foust expect to mount strong campaigns in 2017, adding to their already considerable successes in the exciting and competitive racing championship.
Scott Speed earned a second consecutive driver’s championship with Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross in 2016, backing up his first series title from 2015. Entering his fourth season of Red Bull Global Rallycross competition, the 11-time race winner is optimistic about his team’s chances of achieving more strong results in 2017.
“I’m more confident than I was at this point last year, so I’m excited to get back on track and show what we can do,” said Speed. “I think the package that we’ve developed in the offseason is really strong and I’m eager to get used to some of the new race formats the series has implemented for the season.”
Tanner Foust rode a record number of Heat wins to a close second-place finish in the driver’s championship last season. In 2017, the two-time series champion hopes to improve upon that result, adding to his already impressive racing résumé.
“We’ve done a lot of good work during the offseason through testing, so I think we’re in good shape for the start of the season,” said Foust. “It’s always amazing to see the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes, and I’m hoping to make sure that effort pays off for everyone with good results on track.”
The pair will race in a couple of newly-built Beetle GRCs, manufactured by Volkswagen Motorsport in Europe. The cars include updates meant to improve handling characteristics, but will race with the same 2.0-liter 560-horsepower engines that propelled the team to success in 2016.
The first round of the 2017 Red Bull GRC season will air on NBC—Sunday, April 30 at 1:00PM (ET).
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