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Adam Saal

Bill Klingbeil

Dodge - Global Championship Race Advance and Pastrana-Menzies Quotes Package - Round 1

April 15, 2013, AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - GLOBAL RALLYCROSS NEWS · Dodge and SRT are teaming up with action sports legend for a second year of Global Rallycross Championship (GRC) competition. · Pastrana Racing will field two Dodge Darts for Global Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil. Two-time Rally gold medalist Travis Pastrana will pilot the No. 199 Discount Tire Dodge Dart while off-road truck specialists and 2012: - SCORE - Baja 500 champion Bryce Menzies will race the No. 99 Discount Tire Dodge Dart entry. · The 2013 Global Rallycross Series Dodge Dart is a custom built Dodge Dart specific for GRC competition. The engine: purpose-built, 2.0-liter, 4-cylinder, 16-valve, turbo-charged, 600-horsepower.

DID YOU KNOW? · Pastrana Racing has developed a technical partnership with Dirtfish Rally School in Snoqualmie, Wash.

FROM THE INSIDE "Travis is a dynamic action sports personality. It takes a tremendous amount of determination and work to achieve the level of success he’s attainted. He has the same devotion for Pastrana Racing and the GRC effort. He created a lot of excitement in the series last year. Adding the second car and Bryce confirms our commitment to the series and makes the Dodge Dart a serious challenger for the victory at each event.” --Gary Johnson – SRT Motorsports Racing Manager

TRAVIS PASTRANA No. 199 /Discount Tire Dodge Dart Birthdate: 11/26/1986 Hometown: Annapolis, Md. Crew Chief: Derik Nelson

Career Rally Highlights · Four-time Champion (2006-2009) · Two-time Rally gold medalist at Summer X Games (2006 & 2008) · First-place Rally America, Olympus (2010) · First-place Rally America, Snow Drift (2010) · Rally America Overall Champion (2009)

Career Racing Highlights · Five-time U.S. Amateur Champion · 17-time gold medalist in Summer X Games

BRYCE MENZIES No. 99 Red Bull/Discount Tire Dodge Dart Birthdate: 08/21/1987 Hometown: Mesa, Ariz. Crew Chief: Ian Davies

Career Racing Highlights · 2012 TORC Short Course Pro2 Class champion. · 2012 Baja 500 champion. · 2011 TORC Short Course Pro2 Class champion. · 2011 SCORE Off- Series champion and Rookie of the Year. · 2010 LOORRS Super Team of the year award. · 2010 Finished 3rd in Lucas Off Road Racing Series · 2007 CORR Single Championship and the CORR Rookie of the Year.

DODGE QUOTE OF THE WEEK “To get a win in our first last year was awesome. Getting ready for this season has been really great. We’re working with DirtFish and had a lot of time to go testing, really spend a lot of time in the Dodge Darts. Last year, we were limited on testing. We had a brand new car. The platform was awesome; I felt like we had so much to work with. This year Bryce Menzies, a multi-time national champion in off-road , has spent a lot of time to get our Darts ready and to really, really experiment.” Travis Pastrana, No. 199 Red Bull/Discount Tire Dodge Dart

MENZIES SAYS “I’m really excited and looking forward to this year. I got to drive the Dodge Dart two times last year, at X Games and then at the SEMA event. It’s something totally different from what I do right now. I race a two-wheel drive truck. I’m just glad that I’ve got some seat time this year. We’re really looking forward to heading over to Brazil and looking at the course. It will have a lot of dirt, so it’s kind of what I’m used to. I think the Dodge Dart is really going to shine on this type of course. Our game plan is just to be consistent throughout the season and see where we are at the end of the year with the championship.” -- Bryce Menzies, No. 99 Red Bull/Discount Tire Dodge Dart

FULL QUOTES PACKAGE FROM TODAY'S (4/16/2013) Dodge Global RallyCross Championship Teleconference with Travis Pastrana and Bryce Menzies

Travis Pastrana (No. 199 Red Bull/Discount Tire Dodge Dart) THIS IS YOUR SECOND SEASON BEHIND THE WHEEL OF THE DODGE DART. YOU WON LAST YEAR IN ROUND FOUR AT NEW HAMPSHIRE MOTOR SPEEDWAY. WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE 2013 GLOBAL RALLYCROSS SEASON? “To get a win in our first season last year was awesome. Getting ready for this season has been really great. We’re working with DirtFish and had a lot of time to go testing, really spend a lot of time in the Darts. Last year, we were limited on testing. We had a brand new car. The platform was awesome; I felt like we had so much to work with. This year Bryce Menzies, a multi-time national champion in off-road truck racing, has spent a lot of time to get the car ready and to really, really experiment.”

YOU ARE GOING TO FIELD A TWO-CAR OPERATION THIS YEAR. WHAT DO YOU SEE IN BRYCE MENZIES AND WHY IS HE A GOOD FIT BEHIND THE WHEEL THIS YEAR? “The biggest thing about Bryce is that he is a proven champion; the kid has a lot of heart. He’s willing to learn. When we were looking for someone to sub at X Games, Red Bull said ‘hey, look, this kid has a lot of heart, a lot of talent, is a really great off-road driver and we’re trying to get him to Rally’. I was like we’ll check him out, we’ll see. Everybody on the team instantly liked this kid. He showed so much talent but listened to everything. If you really want to be the best, you have to figure out a way to get there. Bryce is our guy, a proven champion and will be a proven champion here in Rally in the future.”

ROUND ONE STARTS THIS WEEKEND IN BRAZIL. WHY DO YOU THINK THE FOUR GLOBAL X GAMES ARE SO IMPORTANT TO THE GLOBAL RALLYCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP? “When Global Rallycross paired up with NASCAR last year, we had a huge fan base see our races at the venues. New Hampshire was one of the biggest. That was awesome for us for sure. But the X Games is an event that my Grandma watches. Everyone hears about the X Games. It’s something that everyone wants to be a part of, even the guys from the WRC (). Everybody that’s anybody is coming over to see if they can be the best in Global Rallycross. I think that’s pretty cool for us.”

CAN YOU COMMENT ON SOME OF THE R&D STUFF THAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING PRIOR TO THE SEASON? “We know, I mean, general race specs and general things are pretty constant across the board. The Dodge Dart, it’s a little bit wider. We’re trying to make it as good as or better than the other cars. Last year, it was a little like racing go-karts with the really, really tight pavement turns. We messed around with different dampers (shocks) and suspension just to figure out how to get the car to rotate but keep its advantage when it came to flying through the air.” YOUR SCHEDULE MUST BE A HEADACHE. HOW DO YOU KEEP IT ALL IN PLACE? “I think it’s awesome to be in the car as much as possible. It’s the most fun and the part of my job that I like the most – driving. I shouldn’t say it’s the easiest part but it’s the part that I’m most comfortable with. If I could be in a car every day of the week racing, I feel like I’d be a better racer. I’m excited for the challenge this year.”

IS IT GOING TO BE A PROBLEM JUMPING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN RALLYCROSS AND NASCAR? “I think it really helps your reflexes, driving skill and learning the differences of the cars. It’s just difficult when everyone else gets out of one car and they have some time to think about it, then they get back in to qualify. When you get out of one car, get into another car and then get back into the other car, it does present some challenges. I’m pretty excited that I have the opportunity to really see how well we can do in both of these sports and to have an opportunity to go for the win here in Rally.”

WILL YOU MENTOR NELSON PIQUET JR. AND HELP GET HIM UP TO SPEED WITH WHAT’S GOING ON STARTING IN BRAZIL? “That’s funny. I’ve been talking a lot to as well as Nelson and these are guys I’ve always looked up to as race car drivers. They’re asking random questions on a lot of the differences. They’re getting up to . Obviously great, great talents. I’ve driven the all-wheel drive stuff before but this will be the first major race and it’s on such a sweet stage. Everyone in this sport has been a great help to me through go-karting and NASCAR. I’m definitely happy to repay the favor and see if we can’t have some NASCAR guys battling in the GRC and some GRC guys battling in NASCAR.”

COMMENT ON THE TRACK IN BRAZIL. “Last year, the most disappointing part for me was that there really weren’t any true dirt sections on the courses. There was in the last round (Las Vegas” but unfortunately I had shoulder surgery. That’s where the Dart is going to shine. It’s so stable through the jumps, through the bumps. It’s difficult to be super-competitive on just the strictly tight, 180-degree pavement corners. I think with the Dodge Dart, we’ve got the best car for the course so I’m definitely excited.”

YOUR CAR WAS BUILT BY THE SAME GUY WHO BUILDS THE FIESTAS. DO YOU THINK THAT MAYBE GIVES YOU AN ADVANTAGE? “We’ve been able to really step our program up. This year, we’ve made a lot of changes. A lot of the crew is different as well. I think we have some tricks up our sleeves and hopefully, we’ll be able to put this thing on top of those guys.”

Bryce Menzies (No. 99 Red Bull/Discount Tire Dodge Dart) THIS IS YOUR SECOND YEAR DRIVING FOR TRAVIS AND YOU’LL BE THE FULL-TIME DRIVER IN THE 99. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS HEADING INTO THE SEASON? “I’m really excited and looking forward to this year. I got to drive the Dodge Dart two times last year, at X Games and then at the SEMA event. It’s something totally different from what I do right now. I race a two-wheel drive truck in the desert and in short course. I’m just glad that I’ve got some seat time this year. We’re really looking forward to heading over to Brazil and looking at the course. It will have a lot of dirt, so it’s kind of what I’m used to. I think the Dodge Dart is really going to shine on this type of course with how long the car is, wheelbase and all that. My hat’s off to Pastrana and everybody for supporting me and letting me come out there. Our game plan is just to be consistent throughout the season and try to see where we are at the end with the championship.”

Pastrana: THERE WERE SOME CHANGES WITHIN YOUR TEAM DURING THE OFFSEASON. CAN YOU COMMENT ON WHO WILL BE TURNING ON WHICH CAR THIS WEEKEND? “This year Skippy (Ian Davies) is going to be my number one tech, mostly working on the full-time car. That will be Bryce’s car, the 99. We really wanted to explore some other options. We have an awesome relationship right now with DirtFish. Those guys have all stepped up and been such a huge help with support, the crew and everything we need as well as provide us the facility we needed to do the testing. Last year, I felt like we were guessing a lot, like, well okay, this should work. It had worked on other cars so it should work here. We really didn’t get true testing that I think was really going to separate the top teams from the teams that are trying to be the top teams. This year, we have a lot of confidence going in with the crew that we have. We’re definitely looking forward to having more consistent finishes. Last year, we only finished one race but we won that race. So this year, we’re hoping to finish all of them and hopefully get a few more wins (laughs).”

Menzies: WHAT KIND OF TRANSITION IS IT GOING TO THE ALL-WHEEL DRIVE DODGE DART IN THE GLOBAL RALLYCROSS SERIES? “Coming from two-wheel drive to all-wheel drive, it’s a totally different driving style. You’ve got to be a lot more aggressive, you know, quicker on the wheel. I’m really looking forward to it. I’m glad that we got some testing in the offseason up at DirtFish. I feel really confident. We made some changes to the cars that I think are better. Seat time right now for me is huge. I didn’t really get that much last year. This year, we’ve spent a lot of time testing, changing some stuff on the cars. We brought in Ian Davies who is going to be a huge asset to our team. He has so much knowledge with the cars and development. I’m look forward to getting to Brazil and seeing what this course is like.”

CAN YOU HAVE THE KIND OF AGGRESSION IN RALLYCROSS THAT YOU HAVE IN OFF-ROAD RACING? “I believe so. In Rallycross, I’m still trying to learn how the car is going to react. It’s taking me a little bit of time to get used to it. It has challenged me mentally and physically and my driving ability to get used to these cars. I’m really looking forward to it. In off-road, I’m used to it. I’ve been there, I’ve done it for years. This whole Rally thing is something new to me. I really want to do well at this. I feel that we have the right team, the car and all the sponsors behind us to make winning possible and to compete for the championship.”

YOU’RE GOING TO BE IN A CROWD OF CARS IN THIS TYPE OF RACING. “I also race short-course trucks which is wheel-to-wheel. I’m kind of used to that. In Rally, we have to know what the car can handle, where we can pass, what’s okay to hit or not hit and stuff like that. I’m still getting used to it. I did two rounds last year. I’m really glad I got the opportunity to come back, do a full season, prove myself and get some more time in the car. Hopefully, I can be a top contender for this year.”

WHAT KIND OF HELP HAS TRAVIS GIVEN YOU TO GET YOU UP TO SPEED? “Travis has been a huge part. He has so much knowledge and car control, car ability. He comes in and it’s insane – he can drive anything and make it look really fast. With the Dodge Dart, we’re really looking forward to making the car better, which I believe we have. Having Travis a part of it is huge. He has so much knowledge about changing the car to make it faster. We’re really looking forward to the year and having him as a teammate is a huge asset to us.”

HOW WAS IT LAST YEAR IN RALLYCROSS WHEN YOU WERE RACING AGAINST GUYS THAT YOU LOOK UP TO? “I grew up always watching racing. Being in the pits with my teammate Travis Pastrana, guys like , Dave Mirra and all those guys is huge. It’s really cool to be around them and racing against them. Knowing that we’re at this level now is really cool. We’re looking forward to these X Games. The platform is such a high level and I’ve watched it since I was a little kid growing up. It adds a little bit of pressure but I think we’re going to be capable of pulling off a win or getting on the podium. I’m just looking forward to it.”

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO BRAZIL? “I have never been to Brazil. I’ve heard some great things about it. My brother in-law went on a mission there, so he’s been telling me all about it. I’ve seen pictures that people are sending me who are already over there. It looks amazing, beautiful. I’m really excited to get over there and get this thing started.”

WILL YOU HAVE TIME FOR TOURIST ACTIVITIES OR WILL IT ALL BE FOCUSED ON RACING? “Right now, once we get there, it’s all focused on racing. We want to go over there and do our job. We want to get over there, see the track and get started as soon as possible making these cars ready for the track. Once the race is over I’ve got to get back. I’ve got a short-course race in . So I come straight home. I think I’ve got two days off and then head to Ohio for an off-road race.”

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