Samantha Tan To Compete In Pirelli World Challenge In 2015
Gormley, Ontario – Stepping forward with her racing career, Samantha Tan is proud to be launching her 2015 racing season. Starting this coming weekend at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, USA, she will be driving the No. 38 GPI/Kinetic Kia Forte Koup.
Only 17 years old, this very talented young race car driver found herself starting her racing career in Spring 2014 driving a 1991 Honda Civic with the National Auto Sport Association (NASA) in the United States achieving three podium finishes then driving the No. 45 MINI Cooper S JCW/Team Octane as part of the Canadian Touring Car Championship presented by Continental Tire. She finished fifth in her class, out of 22; thus named Rookie of the Year. This year, well supported by a team of professionals she aspires to a top three finish.
Contending for the first time in the Pirelli World Challenge, Tan will be racing a full season composed of six tripleheader weekends, totaling 18 races in the Touring Car A (TCA) class. She will be competing with her new team, Kinetic Motorsports. After capturing the Driver’s and Team Championships for Kia in 2011, Kinetic simultaneously ran two Koups in Grand-Am and two new Optimas in the Pirelli World Challenge in 2012, gaining Kia their first wins and podiums in their first year. In 2014, the team chalked-up a Manufacturer’s championship for the Optimas and a Driver’s Team and Manufacturer’s title in the new 2014 Koup in the TCA class. This season, their driver development program will include 3 Kia Forte Koups in the TCA class – returning Driver champion Jason Wolfe will be joined by second year Canadian racer Samantha Tan and Kris Wright who have come aboard to sharpen their skills and begin to realize their goals of becoming competitive race car drivers.
Her team of professionals also includes motorsports veteran Pierre Savoy as her personal coach. Savoy has been working with Tan since 2010, before she even dreamt of becoming a Formula 1 World Champion. Savoy, and every member of her team, will combine their expertise to help her achieve her aspirations and make Samantha Tan a top race car driver.
The PWC season kicks off at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on March 6-8. Round 1 takes place Saturday, March 7, at 10:30 a.m. CT. Round 2 is Saturday at 4:15 p.m. CT. Round 3 is Sunday, March 8 at 3:10 p.m. CT. Broadcast details are still to be announced. Live streaming is available online at www.world-challengetv.com
2015 PWC (TCA) Schedule
CIRCUIT OF THE AMERICAS
DATE: Friday, March 06 - Sunday, March 08
LOCATION: Austin, TX
ROUND: Rounds 1, 2 & 3·
CANADIAN TIRE MOTORSPORT PARK
DATE: Friday, May 15 - Sunday, May 17
LOCATION: Bowmanville, ON
ROUND: Rounds 4, 5, & 6·
ROAD AMERICA
DATE: Friday, June 26 - Sunday, June 28
LOCATION: Elkhart Lake, WI
ROUND: Rounds 7, 8, & 9·
MID-OHIO SPORTS CAR COURSE
DATE: Friday, August 14 - Sunday, August 16
LOCATION: Lexington, OH
ROUND: Rounds 10, 11 & 12
MILLER MOTORSPORTS PARK
DATE: Friday, August 21 - Sunday, August 23
LOCATION: Tooele, UT
ROUND: Rounds 13, 14 and 15
MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA
DATE: Friday, Sept. 11 - Sunday, Sept. 13
LOCATION: Monterey, CA
ROUND: Rounds 16, 17, and 18
Samantha's race fans can follow her via her Facebook page and on Twitter: @STR_Samantha
To learn more about Samantha Tan, visit www.samanthatanracing.com