Orlando, Fla. (19 May 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing is geared up for Round 4 of the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and is eager to return to a track that holds fond memories for the team and drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi. Rum Bum Racing won outright at Lime Rock in 2011 & 2012 and finished third last year when the organization clinched both the 2013 Team and Driver IMSA championships.

Lime Rock Park is considered both Longhi and Plumb’s home track. Longhi resides in Nyack, New York which is 80 miles south of the circuit while Plumb lives just a three-hour drive away in Newport, Rhode Island. Having worked the furiously fast road racing bullring as instructors, and with countless laps around the 1.53-mile Connecticut road course to their credit, the duo can claim the home ground on the seven-turn track.

The track length plays a big role in strategy at Lime Rock as decisions are made quickly with each lap lasting just under a minute. Rum Bum Racing relies extensively on the canny strategy of crew chief Joe Varde which has seen the team pull off multiple victories through the years. It will be no different this year as Rum Bum looks to pick up its first win of the season in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche.

“We’ve been on the right path with our results, but we definitely are not where we want to be just yet,” said Plumb. “This is a place that has been pretty good to us through the years and it’d be awesome to kind of turn the corner for the rest of the season at Lime Rock. I know this whole team is eager to do that!”

Rum Bum Racing, who has 14 wins in just four years of IMSA competition, has not had the start to the 2014 season the team had hoped for, but as the organization returns to a track where they’ve seen so much success, Rum Bum aims to turn the page forward with a fourth consecutive trip to the podium on Saturday.

“It won’t be easy, as we’ve seen how strong the competition is this year,” said Plumb. “But like we showed at Laguna, if you don’t have the fastest car, that doesn’t mean that you can’t run up front. This place is big for strategy and maybe that’s what makes the difference on Saturday.”

The Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge usually features a 60+ car combined-class grid but as the series takes to Lime Rock Park, the GS and ST classes will be separated with the ST class running in the morning and Rum Bum Racing’s GS category taking the green flag for the 2.5-hour Northeast Grand Prix at 2:15 PM Saturday afternoon.

“It’s Lime Rock, so that means we not only know the track, but we also know the people that work here, the best back roads to get here quickly, and it’s so familiar to you that it’s really comfortable to come race here,” said Longhi. “The other great thing is that this is a traditional weekend, and Matt and I both are lucky to have a lot of family here for the race and that always adds something to the weekend. Hopefully it brings us a little bit of good luck!”

The two classes will run separately all weekend through two practice sessions and qualifying on Friday and both races will take place on Saturday.

Live timing and scoring is available at www.imsa.com. Follow @RumBumRacing on Twitter for updates throughout the weekend.

The post Rum Bum Racing Ready for Round 4 at Lime Rock Park appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Orlando, Fla. (19 May 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing is geared up for Round 4 of the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and is eager to return to a track that holds fond memories for the team and drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi. Rum Bum Racing won outright at Lime Rock in 2011 & 2012 and finished third last year when the organization clinched both the 2013 Team and Driver IMSA championships.

Monterey, Calif. (3 May 2014) – As Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing entered the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix event at Mazda Raceway’s Laguna Seca which features the famous 10-story climb to the Corkscrew corner, the team faced an uphill battle with the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche.

Heading into the weekend, Rum Bum Racing anticipated that the competitive fortunes would not be in their favor as the nimble but modestly-motored Porsche went to do battle against a fleet of big-displacement V8 machines.

But despite carrying more series-mandated weight than it has all year, some canny strategy from Crew Chief Joe Varde and perseverance from the entire Rum Bum Racing team saw the group rally to an eighth place finish after starting deep in the GS field.

Nick Longhi opened the 2.5-hour race from 13th on the grid and worked to keep the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche out of trouble as the 60-car combined class field took to the twists and turns of the challenging circuit. Varde opted for an alternate strategy early on in the race which saw Longhi hand the car over to Plumb during the second full course caution period just 16 minutes into the race.

Plumb returned to the field 21st in the order but ran clean and consistent laps to move his way into the top-10. He took over the race lead just prior to the half-way point in the race with the FOX Sports broadcast team remarking on how “Joe Varde just does everything right” in reference to the alternate strategy that saw the No. 13 take the race lead after starting the segment from 21st position. Relishing the clear air on offer while running up front, Plumb grew his lead to a 2.5-second advantage as the pack of cars behind battled for position.

Unfortunately, the alternate strategy did not come to fruition when Plumb felt something amiss in the car. With about one hour remaining, Plumb pitted under a full course caution and a problem on the right rear of the car was discovered.

“I don’t know what God we made angry, but when they’re angry, they’re angry,” said Plumb of the misfortune. “We had a good car and everything was going fairly well. We knew we didn’t have the pace some of the leaders had, but we knew we had a good consistent pace over long runs and about ¾ through my stint I started feeling something strange with the car. We started picking up a bit of understeer and in a straight line the car started darting around quite a bit. We knew we had a bit of a problem, so I came in for tires, and there was some sort of problem with the right rear. It was a great job by the team to figure it out quickly and keep us on the lead lap. ”

The Rum Bum Racing crew maintained its poise and quickly analyzed the problem, sent the No. 13 back out under yellow in order to remain on the lead lap and were able to make the quick fix during a second stop under the caution.

The race went back to green with 50 minutes remaining and Plumb started among the ST cars and picked off each one as he worked his way back up to the rear of the GS field. A lucky full course caution was displayed with just over a half an hour to go which bunched the field and Plumb restarted 19th in line. The team made the call to have Plumb return to pit lane with 20 minutes remaining and gave the No. 13 fresh rubber and Plumb made up six positions on a longer green flag run.

A final full course yellow brought a final dash to the checkered flag with just six minutes to go and Plumb made up even more time and improved four more positions to take eighth at the finish.

“I went out and just made up some time,” added Plumb. “The car was great. It’s handling better than it’s ever handled. We got lucky on some restarts and some yellows to bunch back up. It’s just a shame that this kind of stuff keeps happening. It’s just bad luck. The yellows saved us with our issue. Every time we went green, I’d make up some spots and then we’d bunch back up (with another yellow) and then I’d make up some spots when we went green. Without the yellows I would have been dead in the water.”

The preparation of the team kept the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche on the lead lap which then allowed Plumb to deliver the top-10 result for the team.

“Any time we have an issue, there is no panic and it just comes from the team having perspective on all of this,” offered Longhi. “They know bad luck is going to happen. There are too many moving parts in these cars and too many variables involved. Things are going to happen. They are prepared for anything and everything and they just go about fixing the problem and try to seal the sinking ship as much as possible.”

Rum Bum Racing will return to race action May 23-24 at Lime Rock Park where the team clinched both the 2012 & 2013 team championship titles.

The post Suffering Setback After Leading the Race, Rum Bum Racing Fights Back to Eighth in Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Monterey, Calif. (3 May 2014) – As Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing entered the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix event at Mazda Raceway’s Laguna Seca which features the famous 10-story climb to the Corkscrew corner, the team faced an uphill battle with the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche.

Heading into the weekend, Rum Bum Racing anticipated that the competitive fortunes would not be in their favor as the nimble but modestly-motored Porsche went to do battle against a fleet of big-displacement V8 machines.

Monterey, Calif. (2 May 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing will take the green flag for Saturday’s Continental Tire Grand Prix of Monterey from 13th on the grid after Nick Longhi set a fast lap time of 1:37.029-seconds in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche on Friday.

The two hour, thirty minute race marks round three of the 2014 IMSA Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Championship as the two-time defending champion team looks to build momentum in their title defense.  

The 15-minute session saw Longhi able to set the time early, and come within tenths of  an identical lap time, lap after lap. 

“That car can do that lap time for an hour, no problem,” said Longhi. “While it is great that the car is that consistent, it’s just frustrating that the speed just isn’t enough.”

The field has seen a range of new high-horsepower machines join the championship, and the new entries have stolen the march early in the year with two races in the books. 

“The car really is as good as we’ve ever had it here. It’s balanced under braking and we are getting a great launch out of the slow-speed corners,” continued Longhi. “But we are carrying the BOP (IMSA’s “Balance of Performance”) weight and that really has a much bigger affect on us with one of the smallest motors in the field.”

Longhi and Plumb, who scored a podium finish at the track in 2011, have a deep reservoir of experience, and with Joe Varde calling the shots from the pit box, could still be a factor in the race on Saturday.

“It’s the team that has won the races and championships,  not the car,” said Longhi. “So, it’s frustrating that the rules right now have our car with all this weight. That’s really frustrating for me as a driver. But on the other hand, this is a team sport and this is simply an incredible team so we just have to focus on doing our jobs as well as we can tomorrow and seeing where that puts us.” 

Saturday’s two-hour, 30-minute race begins at 3:45 p.m. ET (12:45 p.m. PT), and will be streamed live on IMSA.com.

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Monterey, Calif. (2 May 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing will take the green flag for Saturday’s Continental Tire Grand Prix of Monterey from 13th on the grid after Nick Longhi set a fast lap time of 1:37.029-seconds in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche on Friday.

The two hour, thirty minute race marks round three of the 2014 IMSA Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Championship as the two-time defending champion team looks to build momentum in their title defense.  

Daytona Beach, Fla. (29 April 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche will return to competition this weekend as the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Series travels over 2,000 miles from the team’s Florida-based shop to Monterey, California for the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix powered by Mazda which marks Round 3 of the 2014 Championship.

Veteran Rum Bum Racing pilots Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi, who have won 13 IMSA races together, join forces in the No. 13 Porsche machine as Rum Bum Racing pursues its third consecutive IMSA championship title.

The team has shown strength at the 2.238-mile circuit which showcases 17 turns and extreme elevation changes through the natural northern California terrain including the famous ‘Corkscrew’ corner.

When the team debuted at the track in 2011, Plumb and Longhi finished on the podium with a run to third place. In 2012, the team nearly won the race, running second as the field headed to a final green flag. But a tough call from the officials on the final restart instead saw the team dispatched to pit lane before taking the checkered flag deep in the pack. Fortunately, the call wasn’t enough to derail the team on the way to the 2012 Championship.

Last year, the No. 13 car experienced a rare mechanical setback after a rock kicked up into the motor, tearing up the serpentine belt and slowing the effort. But some smart driving by Longhi (to recognize the issue and then coast the car back to the pits from the top of the corkscrew) and some outstanding effort from the Rum Bum Racing crew saw the team make repairs and return to the track.

While the setback meant a disappointing 16th place finish, the huge effort still brought precious points to the team on the way to an encore IMSA Championship.

“We’ve had some good days and some not so good days at Laguna,” reflected Plumb. “We don’t have all  the muscle that some of the guys have for that long run up the hill to the Corkscrew. But, hopefully we can make that back a little bit on the back side of the track with some good handling. We’ve not yet got into a real rhythm with this championship and we just need to lock in a few solid finishes and build from there. The competition is incredible, but we are just focused on the fundamentals and fighting to get what we can out of each of these next few rounds.”

Rum Bum Racing hopes to achieve a second Laguna Seca podium result on Saturday in the 2.5-hour Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix powered by Mazda which begins at 12:45 PM (PST) on Saturday. Live timing and scoring can be followed at www.scoring.imsa.com.

FOX Sports 1 will televise the race on Sunday, May 11 at 10:00 AM ET

The post Rum Bum Racing Ready for Redemption at Monterey appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Daytona Beach, Fla. (29 April 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche will return to competition this weekend as the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Series travels over 2,000 miles from the team’s Florida-based shop to Monterey, California for the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix powered by Mazda which marks Round 3 of the 2014 Championship.

Veteran Rum Bum Racing pilots Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi, who have won 13 IMSA races together, join forces in the No. 13 Porsche machine as Rum Bum Racing pursues its third consecutive IMSA championship title.

Sebring, Fla. (17 March 2014) –Racing in front of a record crowd on one of the toughest tracks in the country, Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing impressed in its first ever outing in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida on Saturday.

The Florida-based team l`ed the race early, but saw the team’s chances at a podium thwarted first after an issue with the fuel pump set the team back in the pack, and then subsequently when IMSA penalized the team, costing the effort two laps.

The championship squad, which was once again steered by Joe Varde with technical support from the accomplished Wright Racing organization, fought to earn the laps back and finish the race in ninth place with drivers Madison Snow, Hugh Plumb, Jan Heylen, and Matt Plumb combining to score a top-10 finish for Rum Bum Racing in its first-ever IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship race.

“I think it just came down to a mechanical issue that we just didn’t have a whole lot of control over,” said Matt Plumb, who also took a top-10 finish in Friday’s Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge event. “The guys just kept fighting to get everything back. We were close; the whole first half of the day seemed to be going our way. All it takes is something little (to go wrong). It always amazes me that more stuff doesn’t go wrong with all of these moving pieces. Big thanks to Luis and Jennifer Bacardi for being here to witness the whole thing. I hope we can do it again some time.”

Sebring has long been known for beating up drivers and cars alike in its 61 previous runnings, but the 2014 edition proved to be unusually tough with a record number of cautions. The team’s efforts were also further thwarted by a procedural penalty that saw the No. 13 lose two laps while held on pit lane.  While race officials then apparently subsequently rescinded the penalty, but the time, and nearly seven miles to the leader, was already lost. Using speed and strategy, the team worked hard to make up the lost ground, but ran out of time to move further up the field as the group once again impressed in tough circumstances, operating smoothly at the highest level.

“It was a harder race than Daytona,” said Snow, who with Heylen had opened the season with a run to third in the Rolex opener. “We had a couple more issues here but we kind of knew that going in. It’s a bumpy track and it takes its toll on cars and drivers. We know we have the speed, and we’ve proved that. But we still pulled off a pretty good position, which is a pretty good place to be after 12 hours.”

A last-minute decision by IMSA officials about the continually evolving driver rankings saw Hugh Plumb drafted into the effort on short notice. But the experienced GT pilot slotted in seamlessly as he picked up on where he left off after first joining the team in Daytona.

“It was amazing,” said Hugh Plumb. “My hat goes off to the Rum Bum guys, who did a great job. We came into the pits in the lead twice in my two stints. Had it not been for this fuel pump issue, we would have been right there for the podium. It’s unfortunate, but it’s good. This was a brutal race and to come in and finish after that setback and compete in this GTD class with the speed that this team showed just underscored how strong Rum Bum Racing is. A huge thanks to Luis Bacardi for inviting me to be a part of it this weekend.”

“We came into the weekend a little bit behind from the test, but this team did an amazing job and it was great to work with everyone,” said Heylen. “We really had a perfect race as far as the job the drivers did and the effort from the team. We just had that one problem, and that was it. So it cost us a better finish but that is racing. Our car was very strong at the end and the performance was there, so I was really pleased. Now on to the next one!”

Rum Bum Racing will be back in IMSA action at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on May 3-4.

The post Rum Bum Racing Fights to Ninth at Sebring in IMSA TUDOR Debut appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Sebring, Fla. (17 March 2014) –Racing in front of a record crowd on one of the toughest tracks in the country, Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing impressed in its first ever outing in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida on Saturday.

The Florida-based team l`ed the race early, but saw the team’s chances at a podium thwarted first after an issue with the fuel pump set the team back in the pack, and then subsequently when IMSA penalized the team, costing the effort two laps.

Sebring, Fla. (14 March 2014) – Rum Bum Racing will make its debut in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida Saturday at Sebring International Raceway with the No. 13 Porsche GT America and will start from the inside of the fourth row after Jan Heylen posted a fast lap of 2:04.561-seconds during Friday’s 15-minute qualifying session.

In what has proven to be a stout GTD field in the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Heylen’s qualifying time was just three tenths off of the pole position time. He will share the No. 13 Porsche machine with co-drivers Madison Snow, Hugh Plumb, and Matt Plumb as the group looks for a strong finish at the 3.74-mile road course.

“I’m a little bit frustrated with myself because we were so close to the pole and I know the car had it in it,” said Heylen. “I know the qualifying doesn’t mean much for the race but, hey, that’s what we’re here for right?! We’ve had very little track time compared to the other teams so we’re just playing catch up. But man the Rum Bum guys have just done an amazing job in qualifying compared to where we were yesterday and this morning. Today the car was so much better and I feel good about the race tomorrow. It’s too bad we just missed the pole but we’ll do better tomorrow.”

The qualifying effort marked the end of a busy day for Rum Bum Racing as the team also competed in Round 2 of the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge. The team looked poised for another podium finish after another great strategy call from Joe Varde, but a trivial officiating call from IMSA saw the team fall a lap down before fighting back to take a disappointing 10^th place result at the finish.

“As far as the Continental race, as a team we functioned as well as we could possibly function,” said Team Manager and driver Matt Plumb. “We suffered the effects of a strange pit lane call by IMSA. But the good news is that our crew is up to form for the race tomorrow and the car is good, it is where we need it to be and we’re ready to go.”

The Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring will go green tomorrow at 10:15 AM ET. The first three hours of the race will be televised live on FOX Sports 1 with the entire race streamed live at www.imsa.com.

The Continental Tire race will air on FOX Sports 1 on Wednesday March 19th at 1:00 PM (ET) and again on FOX Sports 2 on Sunday March 23rd at 7:30 PM (ET).

The post Rum Bum Racing Set to Start Seventh in 12 Hours of Sebring appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Sebring, Fla. (14 March 2014) – Rum Bum Racing will make its debut in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida Saturday at Sebring International Raceway with the No. 13 Porsche GT America and will start from the inside of the fourth row after Jan Heylen posted a fast lap of 2:04.561-seconds during Friday’s 15-minute qualifying session.

In what has proven to be a stout GTD field in the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Heylen’s qualifying time was just three tenths off of the pole position time. He will share the No. 13 Porsche machine with co-drivers Madison Snow, Hugh Plumb, and Matt Plumb as the group looks for a strong finish at the 3.74-mile road course.

Sebring,  Fla. (13 March 2014) –  Nick Longhi will start Friday’s Sebring 200 from the seventh row after posting a fast lap time of 2:17.212-seconds at Sebring International Raceway in Thursday’s qualifying session. The race, which marks the second round of the 2014 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar (CTSC) Championship, will be aired live at www.imsa.com starting at 1:00 PM ET live on Friday.

Longhi will open the 2.5-hour race from behind the wheel before turning the controls on the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche over to Matt Plumb to take to the finish.

The qualifying result was far from satisfying for the team, but the focus is on the race finish as the group looks to bounce back after a disappointing day at Daytona to start the season. Rum Bum Racing won the 2012 and 2013 IMSA Championships and is targeting a return to the top of the charts as the season prepares to pick up momentum.

“We fought through a few issues this week, and are just not where we need to be yet,” said Longhi. “It is a bit frustrating not to have the speed that this team is capable of. But we’ve used strategy to win races before and hopefully we can do that again. Tomorrow’s race will surely be a bit chaotic, as Sebring is a very tough track and no one knows what to expect. But what I expect, what what we’ve seen before, is that this team will just keep focused and work our way forward tomorrow.”

Live timing and scoring can be followed at www.scoring.imsa.com.

Rum Bum Racing Information:
2010: 3 Wins (Daytona, Trois Riviers, Miller Motorsports Park)
BMW Manufacturer Championship
2011: 3 Wins (Daytona, Lime Rock Park, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course)
BMW Manufacturer Championship
2012: 5 Wins (Barber Motorsports Park, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Road America, Watkins Glen, Lime Rock Park)
IMSA Team Champions, Porsche wins Manufacturer Championship
2013:    3 Wins (Barber Motorsports Park, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Road America)
IMSA Team and Driver Champions, Porsche wins Manufacturer Championship

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Sebring,  Fla. (13 March 2014) –  Nick Longhi will start Friday’s Sebring 200 from the seventh row after posting a fast lap time of 2:17.212-seconds at Sebring International Raceway in Thursday’s qualifying session. The race, which marks the second round of the 2014 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar (CTSC) Championship, will be aired live at www.imsa.com starting at 1:00 PM ET live on Friday.

Longhi will open the 2.5-hour race from behind the wheel before turning the controls on the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche over to Matt Plumb to take to the finish.

The post First Look: Rum Bum Racing Porsche GT America appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

*Rum Bum Racing once again shows that it doesn’t follow anyone *Sebring, Fla. (12 March 2014) - Rum Bum Racing will debut the distinctively-liveried No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche GT America machine this weekend in the 62nd running of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida with drivers Matt Plumb, Madison Snow, Hugh Plumb and Jan Heylen. The team will take to the track on Thursday morning for the first IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship practice of the weekend, with the race slated to go green at 10:15 AM on Saturday (FOX SPORTS 1).Follow the team at www.facebook.com/rumbumracing and www.twitter.com/rumbumracing

Sebring, Fla. (11 March 2014) – The next chapter in Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing history will be written this Saturday as the team takes on the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida. The outing marks the team’s first-ever IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship effort as the Florida-based team takes on a new challenge with a step up to the bigs in the 62nd running of the 12 Hour.

Drivers Jan Heylen, Madison Snow, and Matt Plumb tested the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche GT America machine at Sebring last month and are eager to get back to the track this week for Saturday’s huge event. After a late change to driver rankings last week by IMSA, Rum Bum Racing has added Hugh Plumb to the driving line up for the Sebring race.

“It appears that nepotism is alive and well at Rum Bum Racing,” joked Matt Plumb. “Adding Hugh to the lineup wasn’t about that, he will be a great addition to the team. We got word about my driver rating situation very late in the game, but we were lucky that someone able, and close to the team could be called up. I am glad to have Hugh be a part of this effort because he’s got a ton of experience in these cars and in long races and we know he can get the job done.”

Hugh Plumb raced with the squad in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge season-opener, bringing home a fourth place finish with Kaz Grala.

“After competing against this team for so many years, it was great to get the chance to drive for Rum Bum Racing at Daytona and now I’m really grateful for this opportunity at Sebring,” said Hugh Plumb. “I was so impressed with the depth of talent on this team and I think that’s going to be key this weekend. Even though this is Rum Bum Racing’s first-ever Sebring 12 Hour, I can’t think of any other group that I’d want behind me.”

The Sebring outing sees the Heylen/Snow duo looking to build on their season-opening run to the GTD podium at Daytona as the two Porsche aces join Rum Bum Racing with technical support from Wright Motorsports.

“Well we were at Daytona to win and finished third and now we’re here for the same reason—to win,” said Heylen. “I think we have the tools, team, and drivers to do that with but we’re a little dependent on the series and the BOP (Balance of Performance) and we’ll see what the other cars are doing. As far as I’m concerned we have a good team, good drivers and if everything is fair and well then that’s what we’ll need to win the race.

“Working with Rum Bum Racing has been great and I hope we just do well,” said Snow, who won the 2013 Porsche GT3 USA by Yokohama championship. “We’ll get the car figured out and then get back down here for the race and just look for a strong finish.”

Rum Bum Racing will take to the track on Thursday, March 13 for the first official practice session, with the group slated to reveal a dynamic new livery on Wednesday.

Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida
Round 2
2014 IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship

Thursday, March 14
9:55 AM-10:55 AM      Practice
4:05 PM-5:05 PM        Practice
8:00 PM-9:30 PM        Practice

Friday, March 15
9:55 AM-10:55 AM        Practice
4:10 PM                        Qualifying

Saturday, March 16
8:00 AM-8:25 AM        Warm Up
10:15 AM-10:15 PM    Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida

The post Rum Bum Racing Takes to Sebring For TUDOR Debut appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Sebring, Fla. (11 March 2014) – The next chapter in Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing history will be written this Saturday as the team takes on the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida. The outing marks the team’s first-ever IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship effort as the Florida-based team takes on a new challenge with a step up to the bigs in the 62nd running of the 12 Hour.

Sebring, Fla. (21 February 2014) – Rum Bum Racing quickly got up to speed in IMSA testing at Sebring International Raceway on Thursday and Friday as the team not only tested its No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche in Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge competition but also made its on track debut in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

Rum Bum Racing Team Manager and driver Matt Plumb teamed with Madison Snow and Jan Heylen in the No. 13 Porsche GT America as the trio are set to contest the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring in the GT Daytona (GTD) class.

Working through a variety of different set-ups on the Porsche, Rum Bum Racing logged plenty of laps during Thursday morning’s test session and was prepared take what the team had learned and apply it during the afternoon session. Traffic is sure to be a major factor on the challenging 3.74-mile circuit at race time, and the team got an unfortunate preview of that on Thursday. Heading into the hairpin, that traffic came into play as an LMPC machine brought too much speed and ambition into the corner, braking hard to make up for it but only succeeding in spinning directly into Plumb’s path as he had no where to go and took a hard hit from the Prototype machine.

Damage to the right front of the car forced the team to sit out the remainder of the session. Undeterred, the Rum Bum group made the necessary repairs and was ready to return right back to the testing plan Friday morning.

“We’re just getting used to the track and the car so it was interesting to see what the car could do here at Sebring,” said Snow. “It went well yesterday until we had the incident but the good thing is that it was at the end of the day so it didn’t ruin the entire day. But the guys got the car fixed and got everything going again and we’re just working on the car to make it better for the 12 Hours of Sebring. It’s been awesome working with Rum Bum – everyone works well together and it’s been really good.”

“We had a little bit of a setback yesterday – it’s too bad that these things happen in practice,” added Heylen. “But the team made a good recovery this morning and we had a good session and tried a few things that all worked so I’m excited. Overall, it was a good test. I’m very excited to be here with Madison (Snow) and I think we have a good line-up for the race. The team is just blending together well and Matt (Plumb) has really done a good job in the car – it’s not an easy car to drive so he’s been doing great.”

After running among the top-10 in the first and third test sessions, Rum Bum Racing had hoped to carry that positive momentum through the fourth and final TUDOR session of the test but unfortunately an engine issue just seven laps in saw the team’s day end early.

Rum Bum Racing will return to its Orlando, Florida-based shop to continue to make improvements to the Porsche GT America machine in preparation for the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring.

The squad also made solid progress in Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge testing with both Plumb and co-driver Nick Longhi taking laps in the No. 13 Porsche.

“It was a good few days for us here at Sebring,” said Plumb. “Everyone has meshed well together and we learned a lot in a short amount of time. It was great to start to get a feel for this new Porsche 911 GT America. Jan and Madison were great to work with and even though we were frustrated to get hit yesterday, it was a great test overall and now we know what we need to focus on in the next few weeks to be ready to go when we come back. It is another race in Mr. Bacardi’s home state, and we’re really motivated to do well in both races. ”

Rum Bum Racing will be back in race action in three weeks when the group returns to Sebring International Raceway for its TUDOR debut and for the second round of the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge championship as Rum Bum pursues its third consecutive championship title.

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Sebring, Fla. (21 February 2014) – Rum Bum Racing quickly got up to speed in IMSA testing at Sebring International Raceway on Thursday and Friday as the team not only tested its No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche in Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge competition but also made its on track debut in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

Rum Bum Racing Team Manager and driver Matt Plumb teamed with Madison Snow and Jan Heylen in the No. 13 Porsche GT America as the trio are set to contest the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring in the GT Daytona (GTD) class.

Snow, Heylen, and Plumb set for IMSA GTD effort

Orlando, Fla. (19 February 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing will return to the top level of IMSA Racing when the team makes its IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship debut with the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche GT America in the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring on March 15. It marks the second start for the Florida-based team in the IMSA GT ranks after the team had a scene-stealing run in the 2013 Rolex 24 At Daytona.

The Rum Bum Racing driver line up for Sebring boasts youth, experience, and a lot of speed as team manager and driver Matt Plumb will team with young rising talent Madison Snow and experienced pilot Jan Heylen in the GTD category for the 12-hour endurance classic.

At just 18 years old, Snow has already achieved remarkable success through his young racing career. He is the youngest driver ever to win a Porsche Cup race and he took home the Platinum Cup driver Championship in 2013. Snow recently completed his third IMSA GT3 Cup season and clinched the overall 2013 championship title some two races before the season ended.

In 2013, Snow teamed with his mother Melanie Snow as the duo made history as the first ever mother-son teammates in the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Snow scored a podium finish in the 2014 event in just his second start, taking third place with co-drivers Heylen and Marco Seefried.

Affable and quick, Heylen brings experience from his exploits in IndyCar, Indy Lights, and IMSA to the effort. The Belgian finished fourth in the 2013 12 Hours of Sebring event as well as third in 2012. He won the prestigious Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch in 2002 and was the 2005 Renault Eurocup Champion. He spent a season racing in IndyCar competition with Dale Coyne Racing and gave the team its best finish at the time of fifth at the Cleveland Grand Prix. Heylen has also campaigned in the European Sports Car Championship in a Porsche as well as in both the American IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

Plumb, who will have a busy weekend as he and his fellow IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge champion Nick Longhi will also be in action in defense of their 2012 and 2013 IMSA titles, also brings experience at the top levels to the effort.  Plumb led in his very first race as a Daytona Prototype driver, and had established himself as a force in GT competition before being called up for the Audi Sport customer racing effort in 2013.

Rum Bum Racing nearly won in the Rolex 24 At Daytona last year in the group’s first attempt, running just one lap shy of fuel before being forced to pit on the final lap and ultimately finished seventh.

Calling the shots for the effort will be the cagey and experienced Joe Varde, who himself knows what it is like to take on the 12 Hour race having driven a Porsche 911 RSR in the 1999 running of the event.  Well-respected for his leadership atop the pit box, Rum Bum Racing will look for the same leadership from Varde that has led the team to two consecutive Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge championships. Adding to the strength of the effort will be John Wright of Wright Motorsports, who will provide technical support for the 12 Hour classic.

Rum Bum Racing will continue its pursuit of a third Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge championship when Plumb and co-driver Nick Longhi once again combine together for the first CTSCC race at Sebring International Raceway which will be held on March 14, the day before the 12 Hours of Sebring.

The team will get both cars up to speed this week at the IMSA test held at Sebring International Raceway on Thursday and Friday.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Rum Bum Racing and I couldn’t be happier about how everything came together for this Sebring campaign,” said Plumb. “Getting the chance to move up to the GTD Class, which we’ve already seen is incredibly competitive, is a very positive step for the organization. The 12 Hour is a very big race and this year it should be the best yet. All the ingredients are here for this effort so everyone is just chomping at the bit to get going in testing this week!”

Rum Bum Racing Information:
2010: 3 Wins (Daytona, Trois-Rivières, Miller Motorsports Park)
BMW Manufacturer Championship
2011: 3 Wins (Daytona, Lime Rock Park, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course)
BMW Manufacturer Championship
2012: 5 Wins (Barber Motorsports Park, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Road America, Watkins Glen, Lime Rock Park)
IMSA Team Champions, Porsche wins Manufacturer Championship
2013: 3 Wins (Barber Motorsports Park, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Road America)
IMSA Team and Driver Champions, Porsche wins Manufacturer Championship

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Snow, Heylen, and Plumb set for IMSA GTD effort

Orlando, Fla. (19 February 2014) – Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing will return to the top level of IMSA Racing when the team makes its IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship debut with the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche GT America in the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring on March 15. It marks the second start for the Florida-based team in the IMSA GT ranks after the team had a scene-stealing run in the 2013 Rolex 24 At Daytona.

Daytona Beach,  Fla. (24 January 2014) –  Since the very first day the team debuted at the track with a victory, Rum Bum Racing has been setting records at Daytona International Speedway.

Friday was no different as the team once again made history when the No. 03 Rum Bum Racing BMW M3 of Hugh Plumb and Kaz Grala finished fourth in the BMW Performance 200 as young Grala set a record as the youngest-ever racer in IMSA history at just over 15 years old.

Daytona Beach,  Fla. (24 January 2014) –  Since the very first day the team debuted at the track with a victory, Rum Bum Racing has been setting records at Daytona International Speedway.

Friday was no different as the team once again made history when the No. 03 Rum Bum Racing BMW M3 of Hugh Plumb and Kaz Grala finished fourth in the BMW Performance 200 as young Grala set a record as the youngest-ever racer in IMSA history at just over 15 years old.

The race, which marked the opening round of the 2014 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge season, also saw the sister No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche of Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb finish 14th. The result came as a disappointment after the car was leading the race with less than 10 minutes to go. An unfortunate momentary mechanical issue slowed Plumb from the lead with just a few laps to go in the race before he was able to recover and take the checkered flag.

Longhi opened the race from the front row, with the pole-winning BMW surging to the lead. But it was not even one lap before Longhi moved to the point. 22 laps later, Longhi pitted to turn the car over to Plumb and take on fuel and a new set of Continental Tires.  A textbook Rum Bum Racing pit stop helped to grow the advantage, and when the full field cycled through the pit stops, Plumb was in a familiar position—leading.

While the BMW machines—which ended up taking the top-six finishing positions, seemed to have the upper hand with outright pace, Plumb fought hard to keep the lead and was successful as the race wound down to the final 10 minutes. A dream day at Daytona came to an agonizing halt as the Porsche stalled for moment, slowing to a crawl as the other cars sped by. Plumb stayed calm and cycled through the fuel reserve to get the car back going. But the lost ground—and a final yellow flag to keep him from fighting to gain the track position back—was costly as he finished the race 14th.

“Under green, all of a sudden, it just died coming out of turn two,” offered Plumb, who has scored 14 IMSA wins with Rum Bum Racing. “It just cut out entirely. I immediately went to the reserve (fuel pump) but it was so starved out that it took a bit to get it going. I don’t know what happened. The car up to that point was perfect. We’d conserved fuel in the first half of my stint to keep the stop shorter. We had to be quick in the pits because we didn’t have the pace of the BMW guys. I couldn’t shake them today. So it is a shame not to be able to take home the win but we’ve got a lot of racing ahead of us and the best team in the business behind us.”

“The team strategy, was, again, perfect,” said Longhi. “The car was great, exactly what it needed to be. I was fighting with the BMW’s, and we knew they’d be strong here. Joe (Varde) made the strategy calls and we were able to stay out front. These things happen and it shows how incredibly competitive this series is to be leading with 10 minutes to go and have a two second stutter and end up 15th.  This is a long championship—longer than ever. We had the team to win and the car to win and we were going to win, but that just didn’t happen today. It’s a long season and we’ll just pick it up in Sebring.”

The day was a little more straightforward for Grala and Hugh Plumb, with Grala moving up from 13th on the grid to run in second place just some 20 laps into the race. The young NASCAR racer set the fastest lap of the race at that point for good measure before turning he car over to Hugh Plumb to take to the finish. Returning to the track in 19th, the elder Plumb moved steadily forward, but his progress was halted after moving up to fifth as a balky gear exchange was keeping him from being able to carry crucial momentum through the bus stop chicane.

“Kaz did a great job and brought it in, right where he should,” said Plumb. “We caught some bad breaks with where we came out after the pit stop. We were hoping we’d be able to have helped the 13 guys more but we had an issue with third gear so we were getting hammered through the bus stop and couldn’t make up more ground. But the Rum Bum guys did a great job and the car handled great. It was a great experience to run for this team and Kaz just did a great job.”

“It was a blast, I had a lot of fun driving the car,” said an enthused Grala. “The yellow came at a great time for us to do the pit stop, and Hugh went out and just wheeled it. The most difficult thing for me was maneuvering in the traffic-with the GS cars and the ST cars. I wasn’t used to it at first, but I kept learning as the race went on. It was a great weekend and I learned a lot. A really big, big thanks to Rum Bum Racing for this opportunity.  I’m really thankful to get to do this and they are clearly a great team.”

The next chapter in the 12-race championship story will unfold at Sebring International Speedway on March 14.

The post Leading Late, Rum Bum Racing Suffers Late Stumble at Daytona appeared first on Rum Bum Racing.

Daytona Beach,  Fla. (23 January 2014) – They say that being lucky can be better than being good, but as Rum Bum Racing showed on Thursday at Daytona International Speedway, being well-prepared can sometimes trump both.

Having the car prepared well in advance of the session, the championship team was first in the qualifying line and ready to go as the 2014 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar (CTSC) Championship launched with the first grid-setting session of the season.