Ford Performance - 3 PHOENIX PERFORMANCE MUSTANGS WIN 3-OF-3 IN SCCA RUNOFFS TOURING CLASSES

About Phoenix Performance
Phoenix Performance, Inc., owned by Joe Aquilante, is based in a 32,000 sq. ft. race shop in Phoenixville, PA, 40 miles west of downtown Philadelphia. Phoenix Performance-prepared cars have won 18 SCCA National Club Racing Championships since 1999, two professional series Driver and Manufacturer Championships, and the GM Motorsports Winner’s Circle Award.

For more information, call 610-482-0141 or visit www.phoenixperformanceinc.com and www.phoenixperformance.net.

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3 PHOENIX PERFORMANCE MUSTANGS WIN 3-OF-3 IN SCCA RUNOFFS TOURING CLASSES

December 8, 2021

Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, IN

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Phoenix Performance, a SCCA Road Racing Touring Car prep shop out of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, routinely enters multiple cars in the SCCA National Runoffs, and this year at Indianapolis Motor Speedway it was no different. The team had 10 entries spread through Touring classes 1, 2, 3 and 4 and in American Sedan and GT2. What was different this year though was its race-prepped Mustangs winning all of the Touring classes they were entered in a clean sweep: T1, T2, and T3. It is usually difficult to win one class, but a sweep is downright dominant.

The SCCA’s crown jewel event is the annual "Runoffs" and serves as the gathering for the top Sports Car Club of America racers in the country to go head-to-head and prove who is best. For 2021, the SCCA National Championship Runoffs was held at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the second time (the first was 2017). Qualifying and championship racing for the 58th running of the most prestigious amateur road racing event ran from September 28 through October 3.

For Phoenix Performance and their Mustangs, three drivers got the job done: Andrew Aquilante in T1, in a 2014 Boss 302 Mustang; Kurt Rezzetano in a 2013 Mustang GT; and Marshall Mast in a 2019 Mustang Turbo. All three drivers qualified on Pole and all three led from start to finish. Touring classes, which are based on street-production cars, are usually hard-fought, close races, and these were no different.

In the Touring 1 class, Aquilante qualified on the pole and was fiercely challenged by Mark Boden in a Falline BMW E92 M3 for 16 of the 18 laps. Although the BMW was faster in the straights, the Mustang proved to be faster through and off the turns, building small margins that protected the lead. The challenge from Mark finally ended when he had contact with the Turn 14 wall trying to mount a move down the front straight. It was Andrew’s 11th National Championship (3rd on the all-time list) and his 6th Championship in Touring 1.

In Touring 2, Kurt Rezzetano qualified on Pole and worked his way to a 13-second lead over a 2020 BMW M235ir driven by Charlie Peter. Rezzetano put on a near-perfect clinic of precise driving and sprinted out to a commanding lead that held up through all 19 laps. This was Kurt’s 3rd T2 National Championship, all being in Mustangs. This race car was built just two months prior to the race and performed flawlessly.

For Touring 3, defending champion Mast qualified on Pole by a slim margin over two BMW’s; a Z4 and a E46. After a couple of close early laps, Mast put his head down and began steadily pulling away in spite of being the heaviest and most restricted car in the field. The margin of victory was 6 seconds. The turbo Ford EcoBoost engine ran strong all week and throughout the race. Coupled with the HD brakes and Ford Racing suspension, Mast’s turbo Mustang proved to be unbeatable. This was Marshall’s 3rd National Championship in five tries, with all ending on Podiums!

The story in Touring 4 was different. John Heinricy in the Spoto Racing Toyota 86 prepped by Phoenix Performance qualified 5th, but in a daring first turn move went around the outside of Turn one and avoided all of the turn 1 carnage that several of the leaders got caught in. After that Heinricy kept his Toyota up front and guided it home to 6 second margin of victory. Heinricy is no newcomer to these battles, this being his 16th National Championship.

In two other classes – American Sedan and GT2 – Phoenix’s non-Ford cars finished second, and other Phoenix cars scored a 1st in T4, a 4th in T2 and a 14th in T3 (Nicole Jacque in a Mustang GT). All told, it was an exhilarating performance by the Phoenix team, crew and drivers, and one that will be hard to top in the future.

Phoenix is a small, family owned shop led Joe Aquilante that specializes in race- and track-day prep of Mustangs and other street-based sports/touring cars. Phoenix has partner relationships with Ford Performance, as well as with Mobil 1, Brembo brakes, Hoosier Tires, Hawk Brakes, Penske shocks, DBA rotors and Ron Davis Racing Radiators. For more info, check out Phoenix Performance's site!