Jake Drew, Boris Said Jr. Look To Pick Up Where They Left Off Before Summer Break
HIGH POINT, N.C. (Aug. 20, 2024) – The Silver Hare Racing duo of Jake Drew and Boris Said Jr. head to iconic Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International to kick off the home stretch of the 2024 Cube 3 Architecture TA2 Series season Friday at this weekend’s Mission Foods Watkins Glen SpeedTour.
The 30-lap, 75-minute race around the 3.4-mile, 11-turn Watkins Glen circuit will be the first of back-to-back weekend events for Trans Am competitors, who eight days later will return to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, for the first time since 2014. Drew and Said look to pick up where they and the Silver Hare team left off when the series last raced, also on back-to-back weekends June 22 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington and June 29 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.
Drew, the 24-year-old driver of the No. 7 Silver Hare Racing/Franklin Road Apparel Chevrolet Camaro who’s competing in his first career TA2 season, scored back-to-back podium finishes of third at Mid-Ohio and Road America, the latter round featuring his first pole of the year. The podium finishes elevated his total to three for the season and moved him to fifth in the driver standings. He scored his first podium with a second-place finish in just his second TA2 start April 14 at NOLA Motorsports Park in Avondale, Louisiana. A native of Fullerton, California, Drew also moved to the top of the TA2 Rookie of the Year standings despite running one fewer race than his nearest competitors, and into third in the Young Gun standings for drivers 25 and under.
The veteran of a half-dozen NASCAR Truck Series events in 2023 and a 23-race slate of ARCA Menards Series outings from 2021 to 2023 that featured three road-course victories in 2022, narrowly missed a podium finish in his TA2 debut in the season’s second round March 24 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. As is the case most every weekend on his rookie TA2 tour, Drew will be taking to the Watkins Glen circuit for the first time. But he’s certainly proven to be a quick study.
Said, the 20-year-old first-year driver of the No. 75 HendrickCars.com/Silver Hare Racing Chevrolet Camaro, finished seventh at Mid-Ohio and eighth at Road America to give him four consecutive top-eight finishes, a streak that included his best career TA2 finish of sixth May 25 at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut. The Escondido, California native is looking for a breakthrough run this weekend on the track he’s watched his dad, Boris Said, enjoy numerous successes in NASCAR and sportscar competition over the years.
In last year’s TA2 round at Watkins Glen, the Silver Hare Racing Camaro of Connor Zilisch was the first to take the checkered flag after starting on the pole. But what would have been the team’s fourth victory of the season was disallowed after a ride-height violation was declared in postrace technical inspection. Zilisch and Silver Hare went on to win the very next two rounds at World Wide Technology Raceway outside St. Louis and Virginia International Raceway in Alton, the High Point, North Carolina-based team’s home track, both victories coming from the pole after leading every race lap. Silver Hare finished 2023 with a TA2 series-high five victories.
This weekend’s Mission Foods Watkins Glen SpeedTour kicks off Thursday with a 35-minute TA2 test session at 2 p.m. EDT, followed by a 30-minute official TA2 practice session at 4:45 p.m. Qualifying is at noon Friday, with the TA2 race, round nine of 12 on the 2024 schedule, set for 4 p.m. with live television provided by series partner MAVTV, augmented by live-streaming video on the Trans Am and SpeedTour channels on YouTube. MAVTV will air a 60-minute race show at 8 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Sept. 5.
Silver Hare Racing leverages its Trans Am effort to promote its arrive-and-drive program, where aspiring racers and even tenured professionals hone their road-racing skills on some of the most revered tracks in North America. NASCAR Cup Series drivers Daniel Suárez, Christopher Bell, William Byron and Harrison Burton have all wheeled Silver Hare Racing-prepared cars to burnish their road-racing abilities in top-flight equipment.
The team offers six, professionally built and maintained TA2 chassis from Howe Racing for both competition and private testing. Silver Hare Racing has a dedicated, fulltime crew and operates out of a state-of-the-art facility in High Point, North Carolina. At the track, two 53-foot Featherlite transporters serve as the team’s base, each outfitted with a lounge and smart TVs for data and video review, as well as for hospitality.
To further Silver Hare Racing’s driver development capabilities, the team’s race shop in High Point is now equipped with a SHOCKWAVE Simulator, a tool specifically developed for drivers to accelerate racetrack familiarity, improve car control and confidence, and build stamina. SHOCKWAVE has been involved in racing since 1965 and is currently actively participating in NASCAR, ARCA, Trans Am, Late Models, and Sprint cars. Its Trans Am package replicates a Howe Racing TA2 chassis, complete with cockpit controls and sounds.
“With NASCAR having so many more road-course races, it’s our goal for Silver Hare Racing to be the preferred team for drivers to get that road-course experience,” said Laura Hull, Silver Hare Racing co-owner and team manager. “We want to be that important step in the ladder for the young, up-and-coming drivers. We want people to know we have an arrive-and-drive program, where for people who want to run this track or another, we provide the opportunity to do that and be successful.”
Jake Drew, driver, No. 7 Silver Hare Racing/Franklin Road Apparel Chevrolet Camaro:
It’s been eight weeks since you scored your second of back-to-back podium finishes and your first TA2 pole in the most recent round at Road America. Safe to say you’ve been looking ahead to this weekend at Watkins Glen?
“As a driver, we definitely don’t like taking eight weeks off, but I think it was good for the series and our team and all teams involved to regroup and get back on track. We had a lot of races in a short stretch and I’m sure everybody could use that break. I’m super excited to get back into my Silver Hare/Franklin Road Chevrolet and excited to take on another new track like Watkins Glen. Potentially, I feel like it has a lot of similarities to Road America, where we got our first pole and shared a lot of success. Toward the end of that last stretch of races, we were building some good momentum and I’m looking forward to picking up where we left off.”
Another new track for you in Watkins Glen this weekend, but there is a wealth of resources out there to draw from in learning the track. What have you been doing to prepare, and what are your impressions of the track?
“I’ve been doing a lot of iRacing and have been watching race videos back so I can be as prepared as possible and deal with whatever comes to me. As we all know, it’s definitely a high-speed track and has a lot of high commitment to it, so you’ll have to have a lot of trust in your car and your equipment. You’ll need momentum on your side in some places dealing with elevation changes and what not. I’m looking forward to getting there and utilizing our practice time and working hard together as a team and do the best we can.”
You’re entering the home stretch of your first TA2 season. How has the experience matched your expectations so far?
“It’s definitely more competitive than I thought it was going to be, and I don’t mean that in a way that I was underestimating it in any way, just out of respect to all the other teams and competitors who’ve been doing it for a long time. I think it’s a really great series that more people should get involved in. I’ve really enjoyed learning a new car and a new team. Silver Hare is a family, and that makes it super enjoyable. With these last four races coming in, I’m definitely adding some pressure on myself – I really want to bring home a win, if not multiple wins. We just got our first pole at the last race and we have a few podiums, but winning is always the best, so I’m looking to do whatever it takes to make that happen.”
Boris Said Jr., driver, No. 75 HendrickCars.com/Silver Hare Racing Chevrolet Camaro:
You’re back on track for a points-paying TA2 race for the first time since Road America the last weekend in June. How have you enjoyed your time away from Trans Am, and what are your thoughts about Watkins Glen?
“Seems like it’s been forever since we raced at Road America, so I’m excited to get back to it this weekend. It was good to not be off for the entire eight weeks since I got to run the All-Star Race at Lime Rock with Dad, and then I got to meet up with some friends in Cyprus and Spain. I got to do some jet skiing and windsurfing and it was very relaxing. So, like I said, I’m really excited to get back to it with our Silver Hare team. I’ve been running on the simulator a lot to get ready for these next two races. I like Watkins Glen a lot because it’s a fast track and it’s fun. And I’m really excited for Mosport (Canadian Tire Motorsport Park) because I’ve never raced there before but I really enjoy running it on the simulator.”
Your dad has had quite the history at Watkins Glen, having been a regular contender in NASCAR over the years, and the winner of several sportscar races. Does that make the track extra special for you as you kick off the home stretch of the season?
“It’s a very cool track. I went there as a kid a lot and it’s cool to be able to race there. I really like the track and the ambience. It’s a great way to kick off this last four-race stretch of the season. I think consistency is the biggest thing we’ve been able to achieve this year as a driver and a team working together to this point. I can’t put my finger on exactly how that has come about, just a lot of little things. I’m looking forward to building on that starting this weekend and finishing the season strong.”
About Hendrick Automotive Group:
Representing 131 franchises and 25 manufacturer nameplates from the Carolinas to California, Hendrick Automotive Group is the largest privately held automotive retail organization in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company employs more than 10,000 people in its 94 dealership locations, 21 collision centers and four accessories distributor installers in 13 states. For more information, please visit HendrickCars.com.
About HendrickCars.com:
HendrickCars.com is the online home for everything Hendrick Automotive Group. Visitors can shop thousands of new or pre-owned vehicles, locate centers for service and collision repair, receive a value to sell or trade their car, chat online with customer service, discover career opportunities, learn more about vehicle protection programs, and explore how the company gives back to the community.
About Silver Hare Racing:
Silver Hare Racing is a fulltime competitor in the TA2 division of the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli. The multicar team has won the TA2 masters class championship three times (2018, 2019 and 2020) with driver and team co-owner Maurice Hull. Under the leadership of Hull’s wife, co-owner and team manager Laura Hull, Silver Hare Racing provides a variety of services that includes private testing and arrive-and-drive programs. The team offers six, professionally built and maintained TA2 chassis from Howe Racing and operates from a state-of-the-art facility in High Point, North Carolina. For more information, please call 336-870-5151 or visit SilverHareRacing.com.
