Trans-Am: Huffaker/Qvale Team with Neville againt to search for Road Atlanta Winner's Circle
26 July 1999
BRASELTON, Georgia (July 25, 1999) — The Huffaker/Qvale Motorsports team is bringing the #84 Ford Cobra Mustang, with driver Chris Neville, to the 2.5-mile, 12-turn Road Atlanta racetrack looking to crack into the winners circle at the Southern Dash Weekend Automationdirect.com 100 BFGoodrich Tires Trans-Am race, July 23-25. Riding a string of three straight podium finishes, Neville is looking to break into the win column for the first time in the Huffaker Engineering designed and built Trans-Am chassis. It would be a first for Neville and the team in a season that has already produced several firsts. Neville, the 1998 Trans-Am Rookie of the Year, started the 1999 campaign with the pole position at Long Beach, CA, the first for him and the team. After disappointing races there and at Mosport, he bounced back, leading at Lime Rock - another first - before finishing second. He then secured solid podium finishes at Mid-Ohio and Road America to pull himself back into title contention. Coming into Road Atlanta, the sixth of thirteen rounds in the 1999 season, Neville is tied with Brian Simo for third in season points, behind Mike Lewis and Paul Gentilozzi. "We're very happy with the job Chris has been doing for us this year," notes Huffaker/Qvale Motorsports principal, Bruce Qvale, who chased Neville for most of last year for rookie of the year honors." The chassis he is driving is the newest one from Huffaker Engineering, rapidly becoming THE place for Trans-Am teams to go to for top-shelf updates and new chassis. Based at Huffaker’s shops in Sonoma, California, just adjacent to the famed Sears Point Raceway, Huffaker Engineering has an impressive list of clients who have already had updates done there, including two-time Brian Simo and Randy Ruhlman. "We're trying to bring our chassis up to the point where competitors who want to run at the front feel they have no choice but to come to us,' says Joe Huffaker, co-principal in Huffaker/Qvale Motorsports. "With Chris developing as a really good test driver, we're making great progress in that direction." The Automationdirect.com Trans-Am 100 will be broadcast live on TNN, with coverage beginning at 1:30 pm EDT on Sunday, July 25, 1999. Rebroadcast will be on Speedvision, at 2:00 pm Saturday, July 31. # # # # #
Editors Note: For hundreds of hot racing photos and racing art, be sure to visit The Racing ImageGalleries and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.