Bucknum, Stout and Mitchum Motorsports Overcome Hurdles to Finish at NJMP

July 28, 2011 - PRLog -- P1 Groupe drivers Jeff Bucknum and Robert Stout drove the #6 Mitchum Motorsports Camaro GS.R in the B+ Foundation Heroes 200 last weekend at New Jersey Motorsport Park in Millville, NJ. The race marked the ninth race on the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series schedule. Stout was asked to qualify the car and he once again proved that he will be a threat in the starter role for years to come by qualifying in the eighth position.

As the race started Stout was able to keep the Camaro in the top half of the pack and continually ran fast lap times. Just before the midway point of the race the one hundred degree heat took a toll on the #6 Camaro causing a mechanical problem and causing the car to be towed to pit lane before the driver change that would have put Bucknum in the car. Once figuring out the problem, the team put Bucknum into the car in order to gain Driver Championship Points for him, but the #6 was already being shown several laps down. In the end the Mitchum Motorsports Team finished the race in sixteenth position, and the team stuck together to get the car back on track, but the disappointment was evident with both drivers.

“This weekend was a real disappointment for us” Stout explained. “The car was fast and we had good position in the opening laps of the race. About 30 minutes in we found ourselves with a throttle body issue. As I would push down the throttle the car wasn't recognizing it, this issue would hold for about three to five seconds before it would run perfect again. This made it extremely difficult and dangerous to stay up to speed with everyone not knowing when the car would randomly fall to an idle. The worst part about it, and what we think may be one of the reason for the part failure, was the extreme heat this weekend! This team worked so hard for so long in this heat without the slightest bit of complaint! This team has amazed me before but this weekend really showed everyone’s true colors and commitment, neither of which disappointing anybody! I wanted nothing more than to put this car on the podium purely for the crew and it’s a shame we fell out like we did. We have one more race coming up at Mid-Ohio, a track I know very well. I think it will show great results for us!”

Bucknum’s comments were similar to those of his teammates. “Unfortunately we had another tough race at New Jersey Motorsports Park in the #6 Mitchum Motorsports Camaro.  My teammate Robert was running solidly in 4th place and catching the cars in front of him when we had some sort of fuel problem caused by the extreme day time temperatures that reached over 100 degrees outside with very high humidity.   I was so proud of our Mitchum Motorsports team because of how they never give up.  Even though the heat was so incredibly taxing our crew jumped on the #6 car and got it fixed quickly so I could get in the car and finish the race.  The good news is we still salvage a few points by getting back in the race and moved up few positions before the race ended.  It was difficult to be out there racing because our #6 Camaro was faster than the lead cars of the race as I was passing most of them, but unfortunately it was not for position because of how many laps down we were.  I am super confident we have everything we need to win one of these races and I am sure it will come very soon!”

Following the stop in Millville Bucknum is currently in 18th in Driver Championship Points Standings, while Stout, who is vying for the MESCO Rookie of the Year Points Championship, sits 2nd in GS Class. Mitchum Motorsports is currently 11th in Team Championship Points Standings for the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series.

The next scheduled race for Jeff and Robert will be the EMCO Gears Classic September 17th on the 2.258-mile, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, OH.  This race can be on SPEED Channel on September 25th at 12pm. All Times Eastern.

Additional information may be obtained at www.mitchummotorsports.com, www.jeffbucknum.com, www.robertstoutracing.com or www.p1groupe.com.

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