Polestar announces 2-car Atlantic lineup
Entering its fifth year as team in Atlantic competition, the Polestar squad will rely on its experience and savvy this season against the tough international series field.
Helping to navigate the waters will be former Atlantic and Champ Car standout driver Ronnie Bremer, who returns to the Polestar stable. Bremer joined the team during the 2004 Atlantic season and led the Chardon, Ohio-based squad to its first win that season in Denver. The 28-year-old native of Copenhagen, Denmark finished fifth in the Atlantic Championship and second in the Rookie of the Year standings with Polestar in ’04 before graduating to Champ Car. Bremer competed for both Dale Coyne Racing and the HVM team in the 2005 Champ Car World Series, scoring seven top-10 finishes in 12 races. After making one Atlantic start last season for Polestar, finishing 14th at Montreal, Bremer is back with the team this season looking to fight for race wins and poles, the coveted series title and the $2 million champion’s Champ Car bonus.
“Atlantic will be such a strong series this year and I’m happy to be back racing in America again," said Bremer. “My goal is to get back into Champ Car and this is a good opportunity with Polestar to see what we can do this season and go from there."
Bremer will pilot the #12 entry for the squad this season with sponsorship from The RoomStore of Phoenix, Sealy and the Polestar team.
Joining Bremer behind the wheel of the Mazda-Cosworth/Swift/Cooper Atlantic cars for Polestar is veteran Bret MacDonald. The Dublin, California racer will be an Atlantic rookie in 2007 but he certainly has proven himself on the race track. MacDonald developed his skills in Skip Barber competition and has competed in the Formula TR 2000 Pro Series over the past several seasons. He has earned top-four finishes in the championship in each of the last three years, including 2006 when he claimed third overall with eight podiums going up against such drivers as current Atlantic rookie Carl Skerlong, who captured the Formula TR 2000 title. Driving the #21 Polestar machine this season for sponsors Brelia Enterprises, BCP Concrete, BAM Properties and the Rock House Sports Pub and Grill, MacDonald is anxious to make his Atlantic debut.
“I’m really excited about this year," said MacDonald. “I’m fortunate to be in with a great, professional team like Polestar and working with a driver that’s as talented and experienced in these cars as Ronnie Bremer will just be a tremendous help to me. I know I’m going to learn a ton this season and hopefully be competitive along the way."
Both MacDonald and Bremer will be in action this weekend as the 2007 Champ Car Atlantic Championship gets underway with Round 1 of 12 this season at the Vegas Grand Prix on the streets of downtown Las Vegas, April 6-8.
“We’re excited to have both Ronnie and Bret with us this season," said Jim Griffith, co-owner of Polestar Racing Group. “For Ronnie it’s a great opportunity to once again prove himself against some of the great talent we have in Atlantics this season and he’ll be a big help to the team and to Bret as a series rookie. Bret understands the challenges he’ll face in such a tough series this year, but he’s not at all intimidated. He’s always fared well in whatever he’s done and Bret’s certainly looking forward to being competitive."
Owned by Jim and Pam Griffith and Bruce Potter, Polestar Racing Group is one of the most experienced teams in the Atlantic series. The Griffiths and Potter all share in the management and operation of the team. Jim Griffith is a respected engineer, who was responsible for engineering Atlantic championship-winning efforts for Patrick Carpentier (1996), Alex Barron (1997), and Buddy Rice (2000). Pam Griffith brings over 20 years of experience in motorsports and was also part of Rice’s championship-winning entry in 2000. Potter is also a gifted engineer who brings several years of successful Atlantic racing knowledge and experience to the team. In addition to Bremer’s win at Denver in ’04, the team also scored three wins with current Champ Car driver Katherine Legge in 2005 and two victories and a pole with Antoine Bessette that same season as Legge and Bessette finished third and fourth respectively in the championship standings.
For more information please visit the team’s official web site, www.polestarracinggroup.com.