MINI MOTORSPORTS HERITAGE SHOWS UNDERDOG SPIRIT AND DOMINANCE OVER BUSY RACE WEEKEND
 

Woodcliff Lake, NJ,  October 6, 2021. . MINI USA is celebrating several amazing motorsports accomplishments after more than two dozen MINI racers took to the track this weekend. In true underdog spirit, rookie racer, 18-year-old Cristian Perocarpi, son of MINI John Cooper Works Team owner Luis Perocarpi, landed two podiums this weekend, taking third in both races of the Touring Car A (TCA) class of the 2021 SRO TC America series at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Fla. This weekend was Perocarpi’s professional racing debut.
 
The MINI John Cooper Works Team, operated by Indianapolis-based LAP Motorsports, also ran the #60 MINI JCW PRO in the Touring Car (TC) class piloted by team veteran driver Derek Jones. Jones placed 5^th in Race 1 and led most of Race 2 before falling back with minor mechanical issues. The MINI JCW Team had their usual fulltime race crew supported by three service technicians from three different Florida MINI dealerships in the Southern Region, including Braman MINI in Miami, Vista MINI in Coconut Beach,  and Ferman MINI in Tampa Bay. These are the same technicians that repair customer MINIs and have proven time and again that their knowledge transfers to the racing world.
 
“We are so proud of Cristian and Luis and the entire MINI JCW Team on their accomplishments this weekend at Sebring,” said Mike Peyton, Chief Motorer and Vice President, MINI of the Americas. “Bringing home two podiums in a professional racing debut at such a young age demonstrates true MINI underdog spirit.”
 
MINI racers sweep top four spots in B-Spec class at SCCA Championships
Meanwhile, in Indianapolis, the B-Spec class of the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) National Championship Runoffs was dominated by MINI racers at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Ind. Teams racing with model year 2009 and 2010 MINI Cooper Hardtops took the top four positions at the final championship race of the season. The top four winners were:
 

1. David Daughtery of Rock Hill, S.C.
2. John Phillips of Sealy, Texas
3. Steve Introne of Windham, N.H.
4. Frank Schwartz or Ann Arbor, Mich.

 
Among the hundreds of competitors this weekend, there were more than two dozen MINI Hardtops and Coups ranging from model year 2005 – 2013 competing in the B-Spec and H Production classes, and a 1970 BL Mini racing in the GT Lites class.  
 
“We love to see so many MINI owners out on the track racing hard and keeping our motorsports heritage alive,” added Peyton. “Congratulations to all the MINI racers that took to the track this week, especially those who brought home the hardware.”
 




About the MINI JCW PRO
Visually inspired by the third generation MINI John Cooper Works GP launched in 2020, the #60 MINI JCW PRO is a MINI John Cooper Works Hardtop that has been engineered and modified using both original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and components from across the MINI line up and aftermarket performance parts in order to meet the technical rules and regulations required to compete in the TC class. The GP-inspired visual cues presented on the #60 MINI JCW PRO, including the paint scheme and front grill and fender, also help to meet requirements of the series to differentiate the TC versus TCA race cars while on the track.

The MINI John Cooper Works team continues to build on the momentum from the start of the season after taking three podiums at Sonoma Raceway in pursuit of the team’s third Manufacturer’s Championship in a row in the series. The MINI JCW Team also won Manufacturer’s Championship in 2018 in the final season of the Street Tuner class of the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Series, where the team finished ahead of BMW, Porsche and Mazda.

The MINI JCW Team will compete in the final race weekend of the season on October 15 – 17 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
 
About the MINI JCW Team
The MINI JCW Team, operated by LAP Motorsports, drives MINI’s most powerful Hardtop ever in the two-door MINI John Cooper Works Hardtop. The team competes in the fiercely competitive SRO TC America Series. For additional information please visit minijcwteam.com or email luis@minijcwteam.com.


About MINI in the US
MINI is an independent brand of the BMW Group. In the United States, MINI USA operates as a business unit of BMW of North America, LLC, located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey and includes the marketing and sales organizations for the MINI brand. The MINI USA sales organization is represented in the U.S. through a network of 112 MINI passenger car dealers. MINI USA began selling vehicles in the U.S. in 2002 with the introduction of the MINI Cooper and MINI Cooper S Hardtops. Since then, the MINI Brand in the U.S. has grown to encompass a model range of five unique vehicles.


Journalist notes: Media information about MINI and its products is available to journalists on-line at MINIUSANEWS.com.