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MITCHELL
PONDERS POCONO RETURN
WAYNESBURG, PA (July 20)........ When Richard Mitchell returns
to Pocono
Raceway on Sat. July 27 for the 200 mile ARCA RE/MAX series
race, it will be
a bittersweet experience for the West Virginia driver.
While the unique 2.5 mile three-cornered superspeedway is
clearly Mitchell's
favorite track on the RE/MAX tour, the upcoming Pocono contest
will mark the
last appearance there for the two-time NASCAR Northeast region
Weekly Racing
Series champion. At least for a while.
"Our plan is to move over to the NASCAR BUSCH Series on a full
time basis in
2003, and Pocono doesn't host any races for that series,"
Mitchell lamented.
While many competitors loathe Pocono's mile-long front straight
- which
requires drivers to down shift as if they were running a road
course - along
with the track's three totally different flat turns, Mitchell
can barely
contain his excitement about returning to the storied
Pennsylvania oval.
"I learned to race at Jennerstown and Motordrome (two NASCAR
sanctioned
western PA short-tracks), and to me Pocono is nothing more than
a big short
track," Mitchell said, "the first time I drove down into turn
one and had to
wrestle the car around, I said to myself..... 'Hey, this is just
like racing
at home!' I think the driver can make a real difference at
Pocono. At some
of the other tracks we run, the car is the key factor."
Mitchell had two competitive runs at Pocono last year before
succumbing to
mechanical gremlins.
This time around the West Virginia University mechanical
engineering graduate
feels he has a strong chance to drive his Coach USA /
Mountaineer Gaming /
West Virginia Tourism Pontiac Grand Prix into victory lane.
Mitchell is
coming off a career-best third place ARCA finish at the Michigan
Int.
Speedway. In two other 2002 RE/MAX series starts, Mitchell has
finished
fifth at the Lowe's Motor Speedway, and seventh in the ARCA 200
at Daytona.
"I really feel we have a shot for a win at Pocono," Mitchell
concluded, "Dan
Begle will have a great motor for us, and my Mac Hill
Motorsports
over-the-wall crew have been giving me great pit stops. With a
little luck,
I think we'll be there at the end."
More information on Mitchell and Mac Hill Motorsports is
available at:
www.mitchellracing.com.
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