Report authored by Francisco La Torre from www.WorldRallySport.com. Courtesy of RallyCar.
Team Broken Racing is fielding a four-car squad for the final Rounds of RallyCar’s 2010 U.S. Rallycross Championship being held this weekend at the New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, NJ. Team Broken will launch an all-Subaru effort on its Rallycross debut, with three of their four cars modified to run in the Two-Wheel Drive class. Team Broken Racing has a history of fielding multiple cars at stage rallies and their respective crews have become more competitive over the past two seasons. Broken’s rapid success has net them class wins, overall podiums, and a recent National championship title.
The team’s founder and principal, William Petrow, is a New Jersey native who runs the Broken Motorsports shop in Union City, NJ. Petrow’s passion for rallying was instilled from a young age when he was introduced to the sport through his father’s work for Peugeot of America. His active involvement in rally as a serviceman led him to establish Broken Motorsports as a Subaru performance specialist and eventually as a rally car preparation/support shop. Petrow now hopes to expand his business into the realm of U.S. Rallycross by offering arrive-and-drive programs for drivers interested in competing in the new East Coast events.
Joining Petrow this weekend are drivers Erika Detota, Matt Gottlieb, and Andrew Hadjiminas. Here’s a look at Team Broken’s roster and what they’re lining up on the grid at NJMP.
WILLIAM PETROW (Hamburg, NJ) – 1993 Subaru Impreza – RWD in 2WD class. Petrow is in his second year of rally racing and placed 3rd Overall at Rally New York USA last April. Petrow converted his AWD rally car to RWD specifically for Rallycross; he welded up the center diff, made some minor tuning adjustments, and kept the 34mm restrictor in the turbo.
ERIKA DETOTA (Passaic, NJ) – 1995 Subaru Impreza – FWD in 2WD class. Detota has had a remarkable first year of racing, recently claiming the 2010 USRC 2WD Championship title after finishing 2nd in class/6th Overall on the Prescott Rally. She also took the 2WD class win on International Rally New York 2010, finishing with an impressive 4th Overall. Erika has no previous wheel-to-wheel racing experience and has not made any significant changes to her rally car for the event.
MATT GOTTLIEB (Rock Hill, NY) – 2002 Subaru Impreza WRX in AWD class. Gottlieb is in his second year of rally racing and has secured a 2010 Rally America Regional PGT Championship Title as well as the 2010 Rally New York Production AWD Championship. Broken’s only AWD entry for this event attempted to run previous Rounds of the U.S. Rallycross Championship, but mechanical issues prevented him from starting both times. Gottlieb has made several changes to his rally car, including and acid dip, custom-built cage, extreme strip of the body to lighten the car’s weight, built a 2.7 liter STi motor with a big Garrett turbo, and installed a Group N homologated Dogbox transmission and differentials.
ANDREW HADJIMINAS (Brooklyn, NY) – 2000 Subaru Impreza – RWD in 2WD class. Hadjiminas makes his return to rally competition after taking a hiatus in 2006 to get married and start up his Italian motorcycle and scooter dealership in New York. He grew up in the sport, raised by a father who has competed in U.S. and European rally for over 30 years. Before taking his break, Hadjiminas had competed in National stage rally events since 2001, but has no previous wheel-to-wheel competition experience going into the weekend. He has also converted his AWD rally car to RWD specifically for Rallycross.
Petrow is well aware of the challenges that await his team and is taking a cautious approach to his their foray into Rallycross. When asked about his expectations for the event, he said, “If the cars are reliable for the event we should see some great competition from all of our drivers in their classes. Tire choices will be key now that the course has been changed to include 50% dirt. Gravel tires could be the winning choice just as much as tarmac tires were on the first two events. We will just have to wait and see what the weather brings and how the surface feels during practice and qualifying.”
To follow Team Broken Racing’s attack on Rounds 3 and 4 of the 2010 U.S. Rallycross Championship at NJMP, connect with them on facebook at www.facebook.com/brokenmotorsports and on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/williampetrow
You can learn more about Broken Motorsports at www.brokenmotorsports.com.
– Credit: RallyCar.