HERNDON, Va. (Feb. 10, 2009) – Volkswagen of America, Inc. today announced the names of the 30 drivers who will compete in its 2009 Jetta TDI Cup season. The Volkswagen-operated spec series, which is entering its second season, will take the green flag on its SCCA Pro Racing-sanctioned events on April 24 at Virginia International Raceway.
Drivers selected to compete in the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup include:
Michael DeNino – Gaithersburg, MD
Joey Atterbury – Renton, WA
Andy Lee – Maricopa, AZ
Nicky Boulle – Dallas, TX
Timmy Megenbier – Melrose Park, IL
Taylor Broekemeier – Fort Collins, CO
JD Mobley – Castle Rock, CO
Nelson Canache – Norcross, GA
Eric Morse – Pittsburgh, PA
Christopher Castagna – Boston, MA
AJ Nealey – Pasadena, MD
Devin Cates – Broad Run, VA
Evan Pflock – Redondo Beach, CA
Theresa Condict – Lexington, MA
Mark Pombo – Duluth, GA
Andrew Cordeiro – Woodbridge, ON
Perry Richardson – Los Gatos, CA
David Richert – Winnipeg, MB
Ryan Ellis – Ashburn, VA
Juan Pablo Sierra Lendle – Puebla, Mexico
David Heinz – Bethel Park, PA
Kerstin Smutny – Bothell, WA
Chris Holman – Burlington, ON
Jake Thompson – Vancouver, BC
Derek Jones – Philadelphia, PA
Rhett Tucker – Cumming, GA
Caleb Kenney – Berkeley, CA
Donny Warren – Winchester, VA
Adam Kretschmer – Brampton, ON
Kyle Wharff – Miramar, FL
Last week, Volkswagen welcomed driver candidates to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA for four days of extensive evaluation. Drivers were tested on and off the track to determine skill level, potential and overall ability. After various driving, media readiness and physical fitness assessments were conducted, the series’ 30 participants were selected.
“We’re definitely looking forward to our second season with the Jetta TDI Cup,” said Clark Campbell, Motorsport Manager, Volkswagen of America, Inc.. “The response from the racing community to our program has been fantastic, and I think that is evident by the pool of high-quality drivers that we had to choose from. We’re proud to be welcoming back 15 competitors who competed in the series last year, and we’re looking forward to aiding in the development of 15 new drivers.” added Campbell.
During the Jetta TDI Cup season, drivers will compete in ten events on eight road courses around North America in identical factory-prepared and maintained Jetta TDI’s powered by clean diesel. The series Champion will win $100,000. In addition, each driver who competes in the series will earn a Pro Racing license from SCCA at the conclusion of the season.
The Jetta TDI Cup car is powered by a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder TDI clean diesel engine with six-speed, double-clutch, automatic DSG transmission. The car is only slightly modified from stock with race suspension and brakes.
2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Schedule
| Round 1 & 2 | April 24 – 26 | VIRginia International Raceway | Grand-Am |
| Alton, Va. | |||
| Round 3 | May 15 – 17 | Miller Motorsports Park | ALMS |
| Salt Lake City, Utah | |||
| Round 4 | June 19 – 21 | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course | Grand-Am |
| Lexington, Ohio | |||
| Round 5 | July 24 – 26 | Autobahn Country Club | Atlantics |
| Chicago, Ill. | |||
| Round 6 | Aug. 14 – 16 | Road America | ALMS |
| Elkhart Lake, Wis. | |||
| Round 7 | Aug. 28 – 30 | Mosport International Raceway | ALMS |
| Mosport, Ontario (Canada) | |||
| Round 8 & 9 | Sept. 11 – 13 | New Jersey Motorsports Park | ARCA |
| Millville, NJ | |||
| Round 10 | Sept. 25 – 27 | Road Atlanta | ALMS |
| Braselton, Ga. |
Just watched the 2008 Speed Channel show and am looking forward to seeing them at Mid-Ohio in June. It seems that the drivers come from many different background which is great, but the younger ones sometimes come off as spoiled or not appreciative of given the opportunity like this. This series is a great idea and I hope they do well in the future.
Thanks Kevin, I am glad you had the chance to watch the documentary. There certainly isn’t any other series like this in North America, or in the world for that matter besides the series Volkswagen runs in other counties such as the Polo Cup and GTI Cup. It is without doubt a major privilege to be involved in the program. I hope to see you at Mid-Ohio, thanks for leaving a comment.
Michael