COVINGTON, Kentucky (December 4, 2010) – – Officials from Empire Racing LLC., announced today at the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards Championship Awards banquet press conference at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center (NKCC) that the team plans to step-up their commitment to the ARCA Racing Series by attempting to run a full schedule in 2011 with Sean Corr behind the wheel of the No. 82 Empire Racing LLC. Ford Fusion.
Corr, a familiar name and legend at dirt tracks throughout the Northeast region in the DIRTcar Series will also have the opportunity to run for the coveted Rookie of the Year title in his family-owned entry. Corr made his ARCA debut in 2009 at Kentucky Speedway before tacking the tracks of both Pocono (Pa.) Raceway events and concluding his season at Chicagoland Speedway. Corr immediately raised eyebrows with three consecutive top-14 finishes including season bests of 13th at Pocono and Chicagoland respectively.
Stepping up their game in 2010, Corr embraced the presence of Danica Patrick and “Danicamania” at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway and powered his Empire Racing machine to a respectable 14th place finish, after qualifying 26th. Corr would try his hand at five more ARCA events throughout the season at it would be at the first Pocono (Pa.) Raceway event where Corr, a native of Goshen, New York would collect his career best finish of 12th. Additional top-20 performances at Michigan International Speedway and again at Pocono respectively allowed the rising star to quickly be noticed on the track. A masterful qualifying run of eighth in the Weis Markets 125 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway in August is his best qualifications effort to date.
The 11th race of the 20 race schedule would be the final stock-car event for Corr this season. After dominating on the dirt during the summer months, the Empire Racing team would turn its attention back towards the ARCA Racing Series where they would begin collecting equipment and collaborating a game plan in preparation for their full-schedule assault which begins with the 2011 season opener at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on Saturday, February 12th, 2011.
“We’re excited to make this announcement,” said Corr. “We’ve been slowly building our program to make it strong enough to make this decision to give the full season a shot. We’re anticipating a great season of racing and I cannot wait to get back in the car in January.”
John Bellesfield, owner of Excel Motorsports Services will continue to hoist the role as team manager for the Mooresville, North Carolina-based organization. Bellesfield has been instrumental in building the right path for the Corr family.
Richard Johns, a former ARCA Racing Series and NASCAR driver and shock wizard will take the reins as crew chief of the No. 82 Empire Racing Ford Fusion. Johns worked with Bellesfield and the Empire Racing team this season as the team engineer. 2011 will mark the first time Johns, an avid late model competitor will clasp the position of crew chief.
The team also announced Saturday that they have added long-time Motorsports public relations guru Chris Knight to its operation for the 2011 season. Knight, 27 who captured the 2010 ARCA Racing Series championship in the same role with Patrick Sheltra will oversee the team’s communications department.
“We’re super proud of the lineup we’ve established for next year,” stated Bellesfield. “The Corr family is pouring their heart and soul into making Sean an icon not only in ARCA but in the stock car industry as a whole for a long time to come. We felt to give him every possible opportunity and advantage we needed to add a few key ingredients. With the addition of Richard and Chris, I think we’ve done that.”
In preparation for the 2011 ARCA season, the team plans to tackle the high banks of Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, which is in the process of completing a 2.5-mile re-pavement at the “World Center of Speed.” for the open ARCA test which is expected sometime in January.
“I cannot wait to get to Daytona,” added Corr, who anticipates running a limited dirt schedule in 2011. We learned a lot at Daytona last year which put us up front at Talladega. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to stay there as we were wiped out in the “Big One”, but we aren’t focusing on that. We’re focused on Daytona and leaving there with a solid foundation towards the rest of the season.”
Empire Racing will continue to sport the blue oval colors of Ford as its manufacturer and will utilize engines powered by Roush Yates. The team will continue to add additional personnel as the new season approaches and will make further announcements in the near future. The team enters the 58th year of ARCA competition without the foundation of a primary marketing partner. However, Corr isn’t fazed by the lack of decals on his hot rod as he believes the team is close to making some announcements.
“We have a lot of people all over doing what they can to help us and I’m confident will pick something up for Daytona and hopefully the rest of the year,” he sounded. “In the mean time, we’re honored to have The TransGroup back for 2011 and look forward to doing them and anyone else who comes aboard a good job next year.”
About Empire Racing:
Established in 2009, Empire Racing LLC. (empireracingllc.com) is a two-tier professional Motorsports organization consisting of dirt and asphalt competition. Sean Corr, a 26-year old hailing from Goshen, New York pilots the team’s automobiles in the DIRTcar Series and Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). In 2011, the team will attempt to run for a championship in the ARCA Racing Series with aspirations of moving into the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The team is headquartered in Goshen, New York with an additional operation in Mooresville, North Carolina.
