[IMMEDIATE RELEASE] ROAD ATLANTA YIELDS RUNNER-UP FINISH FOR HUBINETTE

NEWS RELEASE
May 15, 2006


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TEAM MOPAR CONTACT:
Darren Jacobs
J.R. Thompson Company
(248) 553-4566
djacobs@jrthompson.com
        
                                                                  
ROAD ATLANTA YIELDS RUNNER-UP FINISH FOR HUBINETTE 

Center Line, Mich. — Mopar’s Samuel Hubinette came up just short in his bid for a second straight Formula D Drift win on Saturday, as the “Crazy Swede” scored a second-place finish in the Round 2 event at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga. Hubinette’s second podium finish of the season helped increase his Formula D points lead.

Hubinette qualified his NuFormz Racing Mopar Dodge Viper SRT10 in fifth (sporting a new fire-red Mopar camo paint scheme), setting up a first round match against Ross Petty. The pair was evenly matched after the first two tandem runs, prompting the crowd to chant “one more time.” And that’s just what they got, with Hubinette pulling out the win. Hubinette then knocked off Vaughn Gittin Jr., taking the win and heading to the semis after the judges decided Gittin Jr., had made a correction during his run.

In the Final Four, Hubinette displayed his sportsmanship, allowing a restart after Daijiro Yoshihara’s hood flipped up during the initial run. In a close battle that saw another “one more time,” Hubinette emerged victorious, advancing to his second final round appearance in only two events, this time against Tanner Foust. Foust, following yet another “one more time,” took the win, spoiling Hubinette’s bid for his third straight win at the Road Atlanta facility.

“We had two great events here in the last two years, and we had good momentum coming out of Long Beach, so we definitely came out strong,” said Hubinette. “I had a couple of great battles in the early rounds, and then Tanner in the final was just on it. He got the victory, and that’s great for him. He’s a good friend. Now we’re just going to prepare for Chicago and move on to the next event. We’re leaving here with a good points lead, and that’s a great thing.”

Next up is Round 3 of the Formula D Drift Series, scheduled for June 9–10 at Chicago’s Soldier Field. For more info on Mopar, Hubinette or the Formula D Drift Series, log on to www.moparspeed.com, www.mopar.com, www.samuelhubinette.com or www.formulad.com.

Mopar is based in Center Line, Mich., and is the exclusive original equipment supplier of parts and accessories for Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep® vehicles. 

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