SCCA Pro Racing Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Becomes Presenting Sponsor For North America's Largest Karting Expo

Las Vegas, NV, October 4, 2009 – Organizers for the SCCA Pro Racing Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup series have determined that one of the best places to find qualified candidates for their program will be at the largest exposition dedicated to all things karting, PKE2010.

A significant number of VW’s top series drivers come from the North American performance karting community, so as the event’s presenting sponsor, VW Jetta TDI Cup will combine their final Driver’s Selection Event with the PKE2010 in Las Vegas immediately following the exposition. Potential series competitors will converge at the South Point Hotel on Las Vegas Boulevard to compete for the coveted series invitation.

Volkswagen will integrate their brand throughout the event with 2010 vehicles in virtually every corner of the show. Managing Director of the event, Ray Verhelst, said, “Their presence will be felt everywhere, from the VW Competitor’s Cafe on the main exhibit floor to the Trophy Kart exhibition jump where off-road karts will be flying over a new Volkswagen Touareg!”

The Jetta TDI Cup sponsorship of PKE2010 will solidify its relationship with the North American karting community. Jetta TDI Cup Technical Director, Dennis McCormack stated “While we are clearly a step up on the driver ladder system, we want our competitors to remain in karting as a means to keep their driving skills sharp. By using performance karting as the basis for the initial selection process, each year competitors will need to return to their racing roots to earn another chance at qualifying for the series.”

McCormack went on to say, “In choosing to create a partnership with the PKE organization, we are firm believers that this show’s format, location and focus will not only serve the Jetta TDI Cup needs, but it will become an educational benchmark for thousands of karting enthusiasts to learn about all the various performance karting outlets and to actually get hands-on product knowledge. VW is proud to be a part of this exciting marketing opportunity.”

An outdoor track has been created specifically for the PKE2010 show, and the opportunity to utilize it is an important reason for the partnership with VW.

The Final Drivers Selection Committee will be breaking up the group of candidates into segments to be tested behind the wheel of CRG/Rotax karts on the sprint course and in new Volkswagen GTI’s on a specially-designed Autocross area. Both courses will be housed at the South Point Hotel. Training on and off the track will be held in the hotel’s massive events center, and the final drivers challenge will be off site on a local road course.

Each task is designed to be incrementally more challenging, allowing the judges to whittle down candidates until they end up with the final 25. According to McCormack, “This will be like a driver’s boot camp with challenges that will force the drivers to reach down deep to bring their best skills to the table.”

The Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup.

During the Jetta TDI Cup season, drivers will compete in events on road courses around North America in identical factory-prepared and maintained Jetta TDI's powered by clean diesel. In addition to more than $50,000 in prize money at stake during the season, the series champion will receive Volkswagen factory career advancement support with a value up to $100,000. Each driver who competes in the series will also earn a Pro Racing license from SCCA at the conclusion of the season.

The Jetta TDI Cup car is powered by a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder TDI clean diesel engine with six-speed, double-clutch, automatic DSG transmission. The car is only slightly modified from stock with race suspension and brakes. More information and an online prospective driver application is available at www.volkswagenjettacup.com.

Volkswagen of America, Inc.

Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen is one of the world's largest producers of passenger cars and Europe's largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Eos, Golf, New Beetle, New Beetle Convertible, GTI, Jetta, Jetta SportWagen, Passat, Passat wagon, Tiguan, Touareg 2 and Routan through approximately 600 independent U.S. dealers. All 2009 Volkswagens come standard-equipped with the Electronic Stabilization Program. This is important because the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has called ESC the most effective new vehicle safety technology since the safety belt. Visit Volkswagen of America online at vw.com or media.vw.com to learn more.

PKE2010 is the largest performance karting exposition in North America. Scheduled for February 5-7, 2010 at the South Point Hotel and Casino on the south end of Las Vegas Boulevard, this will be the only pure karting event with a full exhibit floor, indoor and outdoor live racing and the largest karting buy and sell swap ever held. The website is www.pke2010.com and is now accepting indoor team registrations, exhibitor reservations and hotel accommodations.

International Motorsports Marketing, LLC is a leading event management and marketing organization behind motorsports marketing and branding with a specific emphasis on performance karting in North America. The company is involved with publishing, digital media marketing, event management and competitive race series programs. The organization’s management team has more than 40 years in successful motorsports sales and marketing, matched with the production of hundreds of successful events and major exhibitions around the world.