Last weekend Brian Vickers finished sixth in the GTE-Am class in the 80th annual 24 Hours of Le Mans. This weekend he ‘ll drive Michael Waltrip Racing’s #55 RK Motors Toyota on the Sonoma road course in the Toyota/Save Mart 350. Sunday marks the third of eight races Vickers plans to run in the #55 in 2012 with Mark Martin and Michael Waltrip driving in the remaining races. Vickers finished fifth at Bristol and 18th at Martinsville in his only two 2012 appearances. He ‘ll also drive in both New Hampshire races as well as Watkins Glen, Bristol and Martinsville in 2012. ‘I ‘m really looking to getting back into the #55 Toyota at Sonoma especially after being away for so long, but it has been great to continue to build a relationship and run with (owner) Rob Kauffman. The #55 team has been running very well with Mark and I hope I can continue that momentum. They were SO close at Pocono. Rodney and the guys gave me a great car at the VIR test. We ran very competitive laps times against some guys that are considered the road race experts. So I am pretty pumped about that. I ‘ve had some success at Sonoma too. The last being the pole in 2009 and leading a bunch of laps before getting caught up in an incident. The road racing laps and experience I have gained at Le Mans will hopefully help me in the Cup Series next week. All of that with the fact that it is indeed Sonoma, a great place to relax after a long day at the track and it hopefully will be a successful weekend.’ RK Motors Charlotte is the country’s leading classic car dealership, selling hundreds of classic and high performance collector cars each year. With more than 80,000 square-feet dedicated to ‘all things cars,’ the Charlotte campus holds a state-of-the-art showroom complete with a digital media studio, as well as a full restoration and customization shop. Created in 2010 by Kauffman and Joe Carroll of Best of Show Automotive, RK Motors Charlotte has established itself as the nation’s premier restorer, re-seller and provider of classic, muscle and high-performance cars.(MWR)(6-19-2012)
