Ferrari Challenge - Tucker's World Tour Heads to Laguna Seca

Laguna Seca, May 20, 2011: While most of his contemporaries in the American Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup consider this an off weekend, Scott Tucker has different ideas. The Level 5 Motorsports driver is racing this weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the Ferrari Challenge Series.

The three-time national champion makes a return visit to the Monterey, California, track with the Boardwalk Ferrari Level 5 Motorsports team. The historic track is the site of some success for Tucker, who won there in the ALMS last year en route to the season championship. Tucker will make his first start at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the new Ferrari 458 in hopes of adding to his victory total.

The most successful driver in Ferrari Challenge Series history scored the first win for an American Driver in the new Ferrari 458 Challenge Car while setting a track record in the season opener at Infineon Raceway three weeks ago in the competition debut of the 458.

"Laguna Seca is a great circuit,” said Tucker, who sits in a tie with Cooper MacNeil for second place in the FCS standings behind Enzo Potolicchio. “The course has a couple of real challenging spots. But, we’ve learned to navigate those pretty well. I’m looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the 458. It’s a great race car to drive. We have a lot of fun racing in this series.”

Tucker is one of the busiest men in motorsports. In the past few weeks, his schedule has taken him from Long Beach, California to France — to test for the 24 Hours of Le Mans — and back to California for the race at Infineon Raceway. He then returned to Europe for the 1000 km of Spa in Belgium, and is now headed back again to California.

“It’s a tireless effort for Scott. But, that shows his dedication to this race team and his desire to win,” said Level 5 Motorsports Team Manager David Stone. “Whether it’s testing, racing in the ALMS, the ILMC or the Ferrari Challenge Series, Scott has proven that he’s up to the task. And, it is not just about showing up. The team is always prepared to perform at a high-level.”

A 35-minute qualifying session for Race 1 for the Ferrari F430s and 458s is set for 10:20 a.m. PT Saturday. The green flag will wave on the combined race at 2 p.m. PT. Qualifying for Race 2 is scheduled for 9 a.m. PT Sunday. The green flag will wave at 2 p.m. PT.

Following the Ferrari Challenge Series races at Infineon, the Level 5 team will continue preparing for one of the biggest events of the season, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, slated for June 11-12 at Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France. The race is the third round of the prestigious ILMC. Level 5 Motorsports is the only American team competing in the prototype class in the seven-race ILMC slate — and it is the first to do so since 1984. Along with the Honda-powered Lola Prototype Tucker will drive in the 24 hour event, he will also race a new Ferrari 458 Challenge car at Le Mans in a support race.