Gormley, Ontario – Fifteen races have passed since the launch of the Pirelli World Challenge racing season in March 2015, when Samantha Tan started as a rookie in her No. 38 GPI/ Kinetic Kia Forte Koup. The event at Miller Motorsports Park presented a number of challenges for Tan but her efforts and determination brought her recognition from the series officials after a powerful escalation from the last to the fourth place and was rewarded with the Hard Charger Award in Round 13.

Since the beginning of the season, Samantha’s strength and determination have been challenged many times. From dealing with over-aggressive competitors, to mechanical problems and learning new tracks, she has counted on her motivation and focus to give her strength. At Miller Motorsports Park, Samantha was presented with a new challenge when series officials chose to add 75 pounds to her and her teammates’ Kia Forte Koups as a means of equalization for being too fast in the morning practice session. With this decision forced onto the team only 20 minutes prior to the qualifying session, it impacted not only the team strategies, but it considerably abridged the laps needed to bed-in new brake pads and ensure that the car didn’t exceed the minimum weight allowance.

“The weekend started with disappointment”, admitted Samantha. “The officials gave our entire team 75 pounds per car because we were 'too fast' during practice. This occurred right before qualifying, and it forced us to keep the gas tanks completely full and for our three cars to only run 3 laps. I was quite distraught by this, but kept positive until the first race started”.

Even though she was disturbed by this sudden change, Samantha was able to turn it around and focus on the race at hand. “When the first race started, I felt like events were occurring at a slower pace - like I was in a bubble and could see everything with absolute clarity. I slowly picked off car by car as the race went on, and on to the last lap. I had even caught up to my teammate Kris, who was in third, and we passed the finish line 3/10ths of a second apart. I was ecstatic at the end!” Series officials rewarded her with the Hard Charger Award for her fantastic run through the pack.

The two following races didn’t go as well. After getting through the start of Round 14,

Samantha had gearing problems and got bogged-down in traffic in corner one. She ended up behind Ron Yarab and Paul Whithing, striving to catch-up to them for the first half of the race. Once she passed both competitors, her pace became faster and more fluent. She was gaining a second per lap on the car in front of her, but unfortunately there wasn’t enough time to pass Emilee Tominovich and she finished in sixth place, just two seconds behind.

In the final round, Samantha encountered a problem with the brakes. “When I braked hard coming into turn six, my car violently rotated to the right. I was shocked you could say, but I had to continue”, explains Tan. “I thought that my ABS system might have not been working well in one of the wheels and for the rest of the race, I had to brake earlier and in a lighter manner”.

Managing her braking problem very well, Samantha was still able to pass Ron Yarab and Emilee Tominovich. She then battled with Paul Whiting for the majority of the race. Fighting her way through the TCB class traffic, Samantha passed her teammate Kris Wright, but he passed her back on the last lap and they finished fifth and sixth respectively.

Rounds 16, 17 and 18, and final races of the season, will take place on September 11-13 at Mazda Speedway Laguna Seca in Monterey, CA. Samantha’s race fans can follow her on Facebook (STRSamantha) and on Twitter (@STR_Samantha).

To learn more about Samantha Tan, visit www.samanthatanracing.com.