Hart and Huntington Off Road Supports The Vision Of Lucas Oil Off Road

May 20th, 2010

As the first leg of the 2010 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Season returns to Las Vegas for Rounds 5 & 6, Lucas Oil Production Studios gets up close with the Hart and Huntington Premiere Motorsports Group. This behind the scenes perspective provides a unique insight on the initiative that keeps this enterprise rolling on the rails of the Premiere Short Course Racing Series.

PMG Team Leader Ryan Busnardo remarks how the Lucas Oil Off Road Series has built a broad base for the sports current and future success to grow upon. Leadership, foresight, organization, and well thought out strategies are the necessary elements for a long term vision that builds the sport at a steady pace. Without proper lubrication, you are going to seize your power plant. With the appropriate formula in place, teams like Hart and Huntington and many of the sports core participants recognize the potential, make sacrifices, and step up their programs to cultivate and mature with the Lucas Oil Off Road Series.

Lucas Oil Video Spotlight on Hart and Huntington Racing

Come on out to Las Vegas May 22nd -23rd and be a part of the action as it happens. Meet the stars of Off Road Racing in the pits or get their autographs at the Official LOORRS Pre Party at PT’s Pub (6235 S Decatur Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89118) on Friday Night after a full day of qualifying and practice.

If you cannot make it to the most furious high flying destructive off road short course track ever built this side of the Mississippi, than make certain to tune into the SPEED Broadcast of LOORRS Rounds 5 & 6 as it airs 4 hours of complete coverage in both June and July. Check your cable provide for times and local listings.

Chris Brandt Shines In Las Vegas At Opening Rounds Of Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series

March 12th, 2010

Hart and Huntington/PMG teams Up With MAV-TV

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Corona, CA (March 9th, 2010)

The Las Vegas landscape is littered with famous land marks that are recognized worldwide. Las Vegas Motorspeedway is now home to a new off road landmark that is sure to be a staple addition to any short course racing series. Lucas Oil Off Road Racing pulled off an incredible feat, constructing the new track venue in less than 3 weeks and hosting a very successful first and seconds rounds of the 2010 season.

An early and cold spring storm arrived covering the desert with intermittent showers, dark skies, and spectacular lightning & thunder shows. The stars of off road racing however, were shining bright and provided an awesome show for several thousand motorsport enthusiast who braved the questionable weather. A stacked field of hungry light truck specialist converged for LOORRS Round 1. The new 1.1 mile track features steep bank turns, high speed technical obstacles and enormous jumps that provide hundreds of feet of air time. Chris Brandt qualified 3rd but dominated the 12 lap main event, taking the hole shot and securing the lead over Marty Hart, Brian Deegan and Casey Currie who all challenged for a race win. In the end, Brandt led the entire race, start to finish, and scored another win for Lucas Oil piloting the Mav TV Hart and Huntington #82 Pro Light Toyota to the checkered flag victory.

For Sunday, the Round 2 event was not so easy. A mishap during the initial green flag start left Brandt buried under a three truck pile up. The #82 Toyota was suffering from a seriously inadequate gear shifter and had completely sheared off. Brandt finally free of the wreck, jammed to the hot pits and the Hart and Huntington Crew installed a Powerbuilt ½” drive extension and 13mm socket to replace the broken shifting lever and engage the gears.

Now starting from the very rear of the field, Chris struggled to find gears with the makeshift setup. Despite the mechanical issues, Brandt consistently moved up through the field. By the time the LOORRS called for the mandatory yellow flag, the #82 Mav TV Toyota was in position to capitalize. On the Green flag, Brandt slammed the Powerbuilt shifter into gear and transferred the FAT Toyota power into BFGoodrich’s Traction. Jetting up through the competitors, Chris maneuvered into 5th and than into 3rd by Lap 9. Holding that position till the end, Premiere Motorsports Group was awarded their third and final podium finish of the weekend.

After a post race technical inspection, Pro Lite race winner, Rodrigo Ampudia was disqualified moving Brandt up as the 2nd place official finisher.

Chris Brandt Mav TV Hart and Huntington
Chris Brandt Mav TV Hart and Huntington
Chris Brandt Mav TV Hart and Huntington

Follow us on Twitter at @hartoffroadteam for all the teams latest news and events.

For up to date information on Premiere Motorsports Group and the Hart and Huntington Offroad Team go to:
www.hartandhuntingtonracing.com

Mav TV LogoAbout MavTV
MavTV, one of the fastest growing new HD channels in the US, carries a variety of programming themes targeting men 18-54, including sports, sports analysis, gaming, comedy, women and relationships, health and fitness, finance, gadgets, and movies. Launched on October 1, 2004, MavTV is available across the U.S, in Canada, the UK, and Australia. With a variety of original programming that includes series like: “AMA Motorcycle Racing”, “American Tailgater”, “Rad Girls”, “Ultimate Combat Experience”, “The Single Life with Sam Phillips”, and “Lucas Oil Motorsports Events”.

Brandt U-LAbout the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series:
The Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series is the evolution of the long standing support of short course racing by Forrest Lucas and Lucas Oil Products. Steeped in the Midwest tradition of short course off road racing infused with a West Coast influence, Lucas Oil Off Road Racing brings intense four wheel door to door action to challenging, fan friendly tracks. Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series: This is Short Course. For more information please visitLucasOilOffRoadRacing.com

Smack Down At The Challenge Cup

January 6th, 2010

The inaugural season of the Lucas Oil Off Road Series has concluded with a spectacular challenge of the sport’s top drivers dueling for large cash purses. With so much prestige on the line, many individuals and programs strategized and geared up with any available advantage to better their efforts. For some, this meant entering extra classes and vehicles for a chance at additional winnings. For others, it came down to cut throat and over-the-edge aggressive driving. One thing is for certain, the 2009 short course season will go down in the records books as a memorable turning point when the sport could rest on the stability of organization, excitement, growth, and competition.
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Premiere Motorsports Group made the big gamble in 2009 and invested considerable resources when there was nothing but uncertainty in the future of short course racing. Not even a full year down the road, the operation has completely transformed into the “not your average” race team. Wise alliances, choice planning, and a whole lot of dedication has positioned Premiere Motorsports Group to help solidify the future of racing with a healthy dose of mainstream exposure and name brand talent. In Ryan Busnardo’s words, “We strive to deliver an accomplished track record and high performance entertainment value.”

The Challenge Cup can easily be considered the most entertaining race weekend of 2009. Not only was the racing charged with intense competition for the sports largest awards, but the division rivalries and class verses class smack talk made for crazy action on the track. It was truly amazing to watch and the Mav TV Hart and Huntington Race Team was up in the mix of it all.

Chris Brandt, the 2009 LOORRS Driver Of The Year displayed his expertise by qualifying 1st and then later led 26 Unlimited Buggies and U-L competitors for a good portion of the 15 lap event. Robert Naughton and Brian Deegan both raced hard and it looked like Brandt could fight off the buggies and take the win. Deegan thought otherwise and forced his way in ultimately taking himself out and shredding Brandt’s left rear tire along with any shot at a podium. Team mate and champion buggy driver, John Fitzgerald finished his first Unlimited Lite truck race as the 2nd truck to cross the line while Brandt hung on with the flat tire and crossed right behind. Later in the day, Chris stepped into the K&N Unlimited-4. Maintained by Carl Renezeder’s crew, the #82 U-4 was plagued by rear end issues all weekend and had to drop out early of the U-2 vs. U-4 event.

Earlier in the day Fitzgerald had one shot to gain off season bragging rights, John had nearly captured the 2009 Limited Buggy Championship and was the dominant driver in the division. Expecting the usual walk in the park race where Fitz makes his way to the top of the field and then peels off a big lead before taking the checkered flag, John was right on track up until Bruce Fraley tried to bogart Turn #2 and rode up inside and locked wheels with the #314 Mav TV Buggy. Both cars attempted several more laps and succumbed to mechanical failure resulting from the contact.
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Chad Leising, the 2009 SuperLite Runner-Up is a serious personality rising through the ranks of short course racing. He was thought to be one of the contenders to take a fair share of the $35,000 up for grabs during the Super-Lite season finale. Even big name drivers like Robert Naughton and Todd Leduc were throwing their hat in, however in this division, they were on Chad Leising’s turf. Right from the start, an intense battle ensued with Ricky James and Chad George going 3 wide and sandwiching newcomer Jeremy “Twitch” Stenberg. Leising drove the #17 Hart and Huntington SuperLite with reserve to avoid damage but soon tasted opportunity and followed Naughton up through the field. Leising charging to the front found himself door to door on the back stretch. Flying high off the main jump, the #88 made contact with Chad as he was landing. Forced off the line and off the elevated obstacle the #17 went barrel rolling into a cart wheel. With the front steering arms sheered off, Chad safely crawled out of the wreckage and accepted a devastating DNF.

Premiere Motorsports Group will be back in force for the 2010 season just a few short months away. In the mean time, make sure to catch the killer December issue of DirtSports Magazine for a very insightful article on the inner workings of the Hart and Huntington Off Road Team. You can catch all the Challenge Cup action on a special edition of NBC Sports airing on January 2nd 2010.

So much effort and dedication went into the development and maintenance of this adolescent race series and every employee deserves recognition. PMG would like to recognize the Lucas Oil Off Road Series staff for all the extraordinary hard work and for the tremendous opportunity to participate in such an exciting motorsport.

Fitzgerald Rises To The Challenge

January 6th, 2010

The Lucas Oil Off Road Super Team Of The Year has positioned one of their best weapons to step up and challenge the Unlimited Lite Truck Class. John Fitzgerald, as a Limited Buggy Driver has proven to be a dominating force in the 2009 short course scene. Taking control of not only the Lucas Oil Off Road Series, John also competed in the Traxxas Off Road Championship simultaneously leading two separate race circuits.
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Fitzgerald finished off the 2009 season with a monumental twenty podium finishes, fourteen 1st place victories, one TORC Championship, and a 2nd overall Limited Buggy Title in the Lucas Oil Off Road Series. This impressive single season track record has afforded John the opportunity to step up into the Unlimited Lite Class with Hart and Huntington team mate, Chris Brandt, and challenge his peers for $35,000 cash. This Challenge Cup event features Unlimited Lite Trucks verses open wheel Unlimited Buggies. This will be a great test for John to brandish his quick shoot to the front driving style. With Brandt being such a seasoned and consistent driver and Fitzgeralds domination of the buggy field, the Premiere Motorsports Group should do well with two trucks working together.

John will also be sporting the #314 Limited Buggy where he is expecting to clench the victory and redeem a last 16th round upset. The Hart and Huntington race cars will be displaying Mav TV as the title sponsor for PMG during the Challenge Cup. Competing in 4 divisions with 5 race cars, the MAV TV Hart and Huntington drivers will be giving the rest of the field a run for the money. It is going to be an epic weekend powered by Chronic Tacos, Flawless Vodka, and Weekend Warrior Water. Premiere Motorsports Group is looking forward to closing out 2009 on top of the podium. We could not get it done without the additional support provided by Lucas Oil, General Tire, , K&N Filters, and some of our newest sponsors Blue C and AllTrade Tools.”

Chris Brandt To Challenge The Unlimited-4 Competition And Hunts For Redemption in Light Trucks

January 6th, 2010

The Lucas Oil Off Road Series has served motorsports fans a nice fix of intense short course racing all year long. Fueling the scene and pumping life into the industry, the debut 2009 series was well rounded and completely successful for all participants. To cap it all off, a unique “Challenge Cup” has been developed to contest counterparts of equal performance for big money.
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For Chris Brandt, there are no championships on the line. This single weekend of competition is all about challenge and redemption. The greatest adversity will be racing in the Unlimited-4 verses Unlimited-2 event. With only 1 race down in the U-4 division earlier in the season, it will be extremely difficult to go door to door with the seasoned class veterans. Brandt will be piloting a championship winning Carl Renezeder built truck, the very same truck that Alan Pflueger earned several podiums and Rookie Of The Year honors with.

The #82 Unlimited-4 will feature American Flier and K&N as the title sponsor for the weekend. Focused and on the hunt, Brandt will also be looking for redemption from a technical loss of the Unlimited Lite class championship. The Driver of the Year has the skills and equipment to take the win, however, Premiere Motorsports Group approaches this event with double the presence and power on the track. Each of the Lite Trucks in PMG’s Stable present Mav TV as the title sponsor. Chris described the opportunity to race in the Challenge Cup, “This is an awesome deal Ryan Busnardo from Premiere Motorsports Group has put together with Mav TV. I am really excited to get out there and go race at the top level.”

Taking place in Lake Elsinore at the Lucas Oil Motorsports Complex on December 18th and 19th, there will be two full days of practice, qualifying, and racing. Challenge Cup racing will be taking place on Saturday.

Premiere Motorsports Group will be on hand and in force. MAV TV has joined Lucas Oil Off Road’s “2009 Super Team Of The Year” as the title sponsor for PMG during the Challenge Cup. Competing in 4 divisions with 5 race cars, the MAV TV Hart and Huntington drivers will be giving the rest of the field a run for the money. It is going to be an epic weekend powered by Chronic Tacos, Flawless Vodka, and Weekend Warrior Water, Premiere Motorsports Group is looking forward to closing out 2009 on top of the podium. We could not get it done without the additional support provided by General Tires, K&N Filters, and our newest sponsors Blue C Communications and AllTrade Tools.”

ChadLeising.com, Determined, Fearless, Unstoppable

January 6th, 2010

We are proud to announce that ChadLeising.com has gone live. Most cannot confidently say that they are familiar with Chad ’s career. The new website is the key to changing that. Easy to navigate, ChadLeising.com is heavily geared towards activating fans and a youth following.

“Take a few minutes to read through my bio. It is not the story you’d expect and it was difficult to compile how I got into the short course scene. My goal with the website was to present that story while keeping enthusiasts interested and entertained. To fill in all the blanks, and that’s exactly what we did. I was not always a driver, and for the longest time I could only be a fan of the sport of which I am a big part of today. I remember being so excited after the races that I’d run home to check out my favorite driver’s websites. I looked up to these guys, they were my hero’s. I always wanted to learn more, but unfortunately many were outdated and just did not translate the action from the track. To this day, I am still a fan of this sport. Without the loyal fans we have, our sport wouldn’t exist. The fans are everything to me and when I say everything, I really mean it. I built this website for them.”

Produced by Built By Media, the dynamic web formula is marketed towards attracting enthusiasts and converting them into fans. This cutting edge website integrates direct feeds of media and social networking such as Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, and RSS. Each function and component drives ChadLeising.com with constant activity.chadleising.com

The website users can access a full media gallery, participate with an interactive blog, meet each individual team member and find out what is going on at the Hart and Huntington Race Shop. For more of the day to day antics you can follow Leising’s Twitter at www.twitter.com/chadleising or view the latest twitter messages right on the sight.

“Take a few minutes and check out my new site, I’d truly appreciate it” Chad Leising
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www.ChadLeising.com

Hart and Huntington/PMG teams Up With MAV-TV For the Challenge Cup!

December 5th, 2009

PMG MAV TV
The Challenge Cup is certain to be an action packed event full of all out racing. For this single weekend of competition taking place in Lake Elsinore at the Lucas Oil Motorsports Complex on December 11th and 12th, there are no championships on the line. Just large cash prizes and a title that crowns the best of performing drivers. The Challenge Cup is poised to be a truly unique event and will pair up several divisions against a comparable counterpart.

Unlimited-4 versus Unlimited-2, I do not really have to say much about this sure to be spectacular event. A stacked field of the very best off road racers maneuvering 2wd and 4wd 800+ Horse Power Trucks going all out for the label of top elite driver in short course. Big money, big power, and big egos, can you say carnage?

Unlimited Lite versus Unlimited Buggy. It is finally time for all the buggy dorks to back up the years of smack talk. Open wheels buggies putting it all on the line to beat out the 4 cylinder Lite Trucks. The only thing I have to say about this is, “Keep it rubber side down and the speed up.

Two full days of practice, qualifying, and racing starts on Friday. Challenge Cup racing is on Saturday. By no means a filler, the Limited Buggies and SuperLites will also be on hand to dual it out for significant cash purses.

Premiere Motorsports Group will be on hand and in force. MAV TV has joined Lucas Oil Off Road’s “2009 Super Team Of The Year” as the title sponsor for PMG during the Challenge Cup. Competing in 4 divisions with 5 race cars, the MAV TV Hart and Huntington drivers will be giving the rest of the field a run for the money.

“We are really excited to welcome MAV TV as a new Premiere Motorsports Group Partner,” shared PMG Team Leader, Ryan Busnardo. “We have some aces up our sleeve and one of them is a championship winning 4wd, not to mention a little doubling teaming with a pair of Toyota Unlimited Lite Trucks. It is going to be an epic weekend powered by Chronic Tacos, Flawless Vodka, and Weekend Warrior Water, Premiere Motorsports Group is looking forward to closing out 2009 on top of the podium. We could not get it done without the additional support provided by General Tires, K&N Filters, and our newest sponsors Blue C Communications and AllTrade Tools.”

About MavTV

MavTV, one of the fastest growing new HD channels in the US, carries a variety of programming themes targeting men 18-54, including sports, sports analysis, gaming, comedy, women and relationships, health and fitness, finance, gadgets, and movies. Launched on October 1, 2004, MavTV is available across the U.S, in Canada, the UK, and Australia. With a variety of original programming that includes series like: “AMA Motorcycle Racing”, “American Tailgater”, “Rad Girls”, “Ultimate Combat Experience”, “The Single Life with Sam Phillips”, and “Lucas Oil Motorsports Events”.

Follow us on Twitter at @hartoffroadteam for all the teams latest news and events.

For more information on Premiere Motorsports Group and the Hart and Huntington Offroad Team go to

www.hartandhuntingtonracing.com

This professional motorsports organization is the product of numerous individuals and support of strong companies brought together to create an offroad racing powerhouse. The brands like Hart & Huntington, Lucas Oil, Geico Powersports, General Tire , Liquid Graphics, Alltrade, Chronic Tacos, Flawless Vodka, Weekend Warrior Water, K&N Air Filters, and Simpson Race Products will ensure a number of achievements & results throughout the 2009 season. Additional support from King Shocks, VP Racing Fuels, KMC Wheels, Gator Wraps, JSTAR Motors, National Concrete Cutting, Century Collusion Center , NRGX, Screen Works, Corona Millworks Racing, Blurred Motion, and constantly through the season compounds the sustainability of racing.

Going For Gold, Turns To Blowing Cold

November 23rd, 2009

Corona CA
The championship closing rounds of Lucas Oil Off road Racing served up bitter cold temperatures and gusty winds at the Primm Valley Motorsports Complex. What most off road fans consider freezing, did not hinder thousands of enthusiasts from enjoying a fantastic finale to the inaugural 2009 season of Lucas Oil Off Road Racing.

For the Rockstar Hart and Huntington Premiere Motorsports Group, at best it was a fair showing of performance and results. However, Brandon Vermillion earned his best finish in Modified Trophy Kart scoring a 5th place finish. It is awesome to see both Anthony Busnardo and Brandon having a great time out on the track and developing their skills in Off Road Motorsports. Officially the Premiere Motorsports Group earned 3 podiums on the weekend. Chris Brandt finished 2nd on Saturday and placed 3rd on Sunday. This was enough for Brandt to take the 2009 Unlimited Lite Championship, but a last minute technical discrepancy has put the title and Sunday’s finish in jeopardy. Premiere Motorsports group has submitted an appeal on Lucas Oil’s decision and we are expecting the matter to be resolved soon.

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42 Podiums and Counting

November 2nd, 2009

Corona CA
Premiere Motorsports Group aligned with Rockstar Energy, Hart and Huntington, along with a host of supporting partners, began the season with a goal and initiative to develop a top notch professional motorsport organization and race competitively in all divisions of short course off road racing. Since day one of the 2009 season, this professional motorsports team has claimed their programs as contenders for victories and championships. Backing up the pitch with consistent top 3 finishes, Rockstar Hart and Huntington Racing has achieved 42 podiums so far in 2009. With two more rounds of Lucas Oil Off Road Racing to go and the championships to be decided, plus the Rockstar Challenge Cup, you can be certain that this off road powerhouse will have even more to celebrate at the close of the season.

Premiere Motorsports Group posses two powerful weapons and has aimed them both to take down the competition in the Lucas Oil Off Road Series and Traxxas Off Road Championship Racing. Chris Brandt is a tried and true Pro Light truck driver with one of the most consistent race resumes in the record books. John Fitzgerald is an impressive young gun and is showing great potential by dominating the Limited Buggy division in the world of short course racing.
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SuperLite Champion, Chad Leising Aims For #1 To Defend The 2009 Title

October 29th, 2009

Corona CA
Saturday’s Round 9 did not going according to plan at all. The #17 SuperLite broke a drive axle right after Turn 1 on the very first lap. Leising did all he could to push his truck around the track for the remainder of the race and was able to pick up a finish earning him 34 points. Back in the Rockstar Hart and Huntington Pits, Chad met with his PMG Crew Members to assess the situation, prepare for the next round, and put their best foot forward. Chad commented, “The pressure is on and it is up to me to make up for the lousy finish on Saturday. I have to do well in this next race or we can kiss the championship goodbye.”

On the restart, Chad launched off the line perfectly, catching Ricky James in Turn 1, however another restart was called due to some shenanigans and a black flag waved on another competitor. Once again, Chad blasts off on the green and conservatively takes 2nd. By the last lap, it was time for Leising to make his move. Ricky dived down for the inside line in Turn 2 while Chad took his momentum and speed wide outside on the slower line. The aggressive maneuver paid off and Rockstar Hart and Huntington was awarded their third 1st Place victory of the day and fourth of the weekend.
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