Street Car Showdown this weekend at BIR

Muscle Car Series drag racers set for annual showdown this weekend
BRAINERD, Minn. - If the competition among drivers in this year¹s Outlaw
Class is anything like last year, fans better strap themselves in for a good
ol¹ fashioned battle royal.

The Outlaw Class in Brainerd International Raceway¹s three-race Muscle Car
Series couldn¹t get any closer for the top three drivers last year. Greg
Schmidt finished as the series champion but was only one point ahead of
defending champion Warren Peterson and Bubba Romanyshyn, who tied for second
place.

Schmidt will be behind the wheel this weekend to defend his title and, with
any luck, repeat as champion. But based on last year¹s finish, it won¹t be
easy.

The Outlaw Class is one of the seven Heads-Up classes that will be featured
this weekend during the 9th Annual Street Car Showdown, which kicks off the
Muscle Car Series. More than 300 drag racers are expected to compete in the
three-day event, which includes the Sports Car Club of America¹s (SCCA)
Harvey West Memorial Day Classic on BIR¹s 2.5-mile Competition Road Course.

The Street Car Showdown, which runs Friday through Sunday, is also BIR¹s
first major race of the 2017 season. The other two races are PleasureLand RV
Show & Go on the Fourth of July weekend and the GSTA Muscle Car Shootout on
Labor Day weekend.

Ray Fuchs will be another Muscle Car Series drag racer who will begin
defending his Pro Outlaw title this weekend. Fuchs and his mean-looking 1953
Studebaker swept the Pro Outlaw Class last year, knocking off two-time
defending champ Rick Schmidt. Pro Outlaw is typically the fastest class in
the Muscle Car Series, and Fuchs proved that last year by posting sizzling
times (6.380 seconds) and ridiculous speeds (220 mph).

In addition to Pro Outlaw and Outlaw, the Muscle Car Series¹ Heads-Up
Classes include King Street, Real Street, True Street and the new 660 Outlaw
Street. The race also has 10 Index Classes, the winners of who have a
separate run-off to crown the Index Class Champion. Three Strip Eliminator
classes, Truck Eliminator, and Manual Transmission class round out the race
schedule. It¹s a full weekend of racing, with qualifying that runs Friday
and Saturday, and eliminations on Sunday.

On the road course, the SCCA will feature a variety of race cars piloted by
some of the top amateur road racers in the Midwest. The road racing program
is Saturday and Sunday and includes practice, qualifying and racing each
day.

Prior to the Harvey West Memorial Day Classic, BIR will host the SCCA
Competition Racing License School, which is how racers can get licensed to
compete in SCCA races. The school runs Wednesday through Thursday at BIR and
includes both classroom instruction and on-track sessions.

Gates open at 10 a.m. on Thursday and then daily after that at 7 a.m. Racing
starts each day at 9 a.m. Daily admission is $25 and kids 12 and under are
free. One ticket gets fans in to see both events. Parking is free and
camping is free with a multi-day ticket.