PK Carsport to enter two cars in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series

Belgian team PK Carsport will participate with two cars in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in 2014. The drivers that will enter the Elite championship are the team stalwarts, Anthony Kumpen and Bert Longin. Both have been very successful in GT racing. With six wins Kumpen holds the record in the Zolder 24 hours, and he also conquered ten Belgian GT-titles, was FIA GT vice-champion and won the Spa 24 hours. Longin had a successful career in motocross, before switching to car racing. He won the Zolder 24 hours five times, took seven Belgian titles and seven wins in FIA GT. Negotiations for the driver line-up the Open championship are still ongoing.

PK Carsport is one of the oldest teams in Belgium. From the middle of the 80s to the middle of the 90s the team won several national and international championships in rallycross. When the team switched to circuit racing, PK Carsport was at least as successful. At the end of the 90s, the main focus went into GT racing. The squad won nine Belgian titles, seven Zolder 24 hours, as well as the Spa 24 hours. In 2009 the team became runner-up in the FIA GT Championship. PK Carsport is the current Belgian GT champion, backed by the Belgian Audi Club. For 2014 the team is proud to announce that they take on new challenge by entering the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.

Anthony Kumpen (driver): “I am really happy to be able to participate in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. I met Jerome Galpin a few months ago, and I believe very much in the concept he created together with NASCAR. I believe that on a European level this can become a very strong championship. It has all the ingredients necessary to do so: huge crowds, close racing and lots of entertainment to create a real family event. From a driving point of view I very much look forward to again get behind the wheel of a racing car without traction control or ABS. Although we consider this as a long term commitment into the championship, we want to fight for victory from the start. That’s why we are looking for the perfect package in the Open championship as well. Both young drivers as drivers with NASCAR experience are taken into consideration for our line-up."

Bert Longin (driver): “This is a real step into the unknown for us. I might not be the youngest driver on the starting grid, but I will take on this challenge as if I were a young rookie. I am very much looking forward to these events, especially since the racing and the atmosphere created by the crowd make this a unique experience. I am already looking for a Stetson hat and have enrolled in some square-dance lessons. All kidding aside, although it is important to have fun during the races, our main is one thing: the top step of the podium."

Frank Steukers (technical manager PK Carsport): "This challenge is a completely new for us. Especially from a technical point of view the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series will present us with a steep learning curve. But so far, we have been successful in every series we have entered. Therefore, our team partners always have very high expectations. Our aim is to compete for the championship; we are not coming just to fill up the grid."

Jerome Galpin (General Manager NASCAR Whelen Euro Series): “It’s a great honour for our organization to welcome this championship calibre team with such a great history of success in GT series and such a talented driver line-up. There is no doubt that, even though they have to discover NASCAR racing, they will be contenders for victories and championships. Day after day, the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series emerge as one of most attractive series in Europe for teams and drivers … and this is exactly what we want it to be. Belgium becomes a power house in the series and we strongly have to consider bringing Belgian fans a NASCAR event in the coming years."