J&M Racing Set for Double Duty

After a successful 2007 season in the Auto Club Late Models, J&M Racing team owner Loyd McGhee has decided to step up to the premier AC Delco Super Late Model Division at Irwindale Speedway.

J&M Racing began racing at Irwindale in 2003 in the West Coast Pro Trucks division with driver Don Helgeson. In the final three years of their four year run in the division, they posted 18 top five and 27 top ten finishes in 29 races, finishing second, second and third in the season standings.

In addition to campaigning the West Coast Pro Truck for 2006, the team purchased the 2005 Auto Club Late Model division championship winning car and stepped up to the ultra competitive division with former West Coast Pro Truck champion Aaron Staudinger. For a first year team in the division, they posted very strong results with 6 top five and 12 top ten finishes during the sixteen race schedule. Staudinger was the highest finishing rookie of the season and sixth overall in the final standings.

 With Jackson Race Cars in their corner, Staudinger returned for the start of the 2007 season and posted three top ten finishes to start the year. After that third race they switched to Watkins Engine Development to provide their power and the results quickly showed. They posted a win, followed by two third place finishes and another win. Staudinger led the point standings following the seventh race of the season. The season took a turn for the worse in the eighth race as an accident caused severe damage to the car. After it was repaired however, they struggled to find the right setup. After four races of below par finishes, tensions apparently began to mount and Staudinger was suspended by Irwindale officials for off track actions following the eleventh race of the season.

 McGhee had sponsor commitments and wanted the car on the track for the final four races. He called Dave Jackson, owner of Jackson Race Cars, for advice on a replacement driver. Jackson recommended Nick Joanides, veteran driver of the Grand National West Series and the now extinct Elite Division. The Jackson’s were hired to maintain the car and provide track support and Joanides was hired as the driver. The team then went on a tear over the final six races of the season, winning four of them. Included in their four wins were the 100 lap Irwindale Invitational and the 100 lap Open Invitational in Las Vegas. Their worst in that span was a fourth place finish. The team, combined with both drivers, earned more wins than any other in 2007 and led the final owner point standings.

 Joanides spent 2007 bouncing between cars. He drove five different cars, in portions of three different divisions, posting 19 top five and 20 top ten finishes to go along with 5 wins in 21 races.

 Jackson Race Cars has been building championship winning race cars for more than 30 years. In 2006, with J&M Racing as a sponsor, they won the championship as a team in the Super Late Model Division at Irwindale.

 During the 2007 season, McGhee made the decision to move up to the premier division in 2008. Following the success of 2007, McGhee kept Joanides and the Jackson’s for the upcoming season. Jackson Race Cars just completed a brand new car, which will be housed at their shop for the year. Co-Crew Chiefs, Dave and Tony Jackson will run the competition side of the team. The team did make it out for the open test session this past Saturday, however were only able to get out on the track once due to rain shortening on track activity. They were pleased with what they saw after just six laps of shaking the car down..

 McGhee had originally planned to sell the Late Model car. However, after the 20 race Super Late Model schedule was released, he was disappointed that it covered only 14 weekends. The Super Late Model division will host six “Twin-50” events, where dual races will be run to make up the 20 race schedule. The decision was then made to keep the Late Model car and campaign in both divisions with Joanides as the driver. The team is now scheduled to compete in no less than 38 races over the next 29 weeks. “Our sponsors made a big commitment to this team and fourteen race dates just weren’t enough, so we made the decision to do both” said McGhee.

 “I’m excited, the Jackson’s are the best in the business and we’ve got a great team put together,” said Joanides. “I’m really looking forward to working with just one team this year and I know this will be the best opportunity of my career to win a championship”

 The team would like to give a special thanks to all of their sponsors for their huge support in making this season possible: J&M Construction, Mr. Crane, Santa Rosa Developers, Western Concrete Pumping, White Cap Construction Supply, NMC Group, Ahern Equipment Rentals, Kramer & Lawson Structural Engineers, Malins Pools and Performance Motorsports.

 The team looks to get off to a great start this weekend, March 22^nd at the new Toyota Speedway of Irwindale. Both divisions are on the Opening Night schedule, the first of three weekends throughout the year that the team will run both cars on the same night.

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