Indy 500 Racer Sage Karam Attacks ARX2 Rallycross With Dreyer & Reinbold Racing At Mid-Ohio & Gateway
Tuesday, 23 April 2019
WIX Filters, ISMI Springs Partner in Karam’s ARX2 Debut for Four Events
CARMEL, Ind. (April 18, 2019) – Dreyer & Reinbold Racing today announced that Indy 500 driver Sage Karam will join the DRR ARX2 Rallycross effort this year when the former Indy Lights champion makes his American Rallycross Championship (ARX) debut in four ARX2 Series races with partnership from WIX Filters and IMSI Springs in the No. 24 DRR race car.
Karam, 24, began his racing career at age nine in karting and made the rapid rise to an open-wheel star with championship runs in 2010 with the USF2000 title and in 2013 with the Indy Lights crown in 2013.
The Nazareth, Pa., racer began his IndyCar Series career in the 2014 Indianapolis 500 when he drove from the 31st position to ninth at the checkered flag and was honored as “Hard Charger of the Race” as a rookie. Karam will attempt to qualify for his sixth Indy 500 next month in the No. 24 WIX Filters DRR Chevrolet.
Karam’s racing career has also included sports cars but the ARX2 class action will be Sage’s initial venture into rallycross with action at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on June 8-9 in the No. 24 WIX Filters car and Gateway Motorsports Park on July 13-14 in the No. 24 ISMI Springs machine (see attached).
Karam will make his ARX Rallycross debut on the DRR team by joining teenage racing star Cole Keatts, who was announced last week for an ARX2 full season in the No. 53 DRR machine.
“I am very excited to jump into the ARX2 class at Mid-Ohio and Gateway in June and July with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing,” said Karam. “I have tested the ARX2 car for DRR last year, but the dirt component is completely new to me. I have only raced on pavement throughout my career, so getting onto the dirt side will be a learning process. Cole’s background is through the dirt in off-road racing and he can help me a bit.
“But overall the ARX Rallycross series looks to be a blast and I can’t wait to test the DRR race car soon. And then drive the WIX Filters/ISMI Springs machine at the races.”
Dennis Reinbold, DRR team owner whose squad won the 2016 rallycross series championship, has entered Karam in five Indy 500 races including the impressive rookie performance in 2014 and is anxious to see Sage behind the wheel of one of his ARX2 racing vehicles this year.
“We have always seen the potential and development of Sage as a racing driver through our Indy 500 program,” said Reinbold, who has entered and qualified 37 cars in the Indy 500 since 1999. “But we are excited to see him at the wheel of one of our ARX2 cars this year. We were impressed with Sage’s performance in a test last year and we wanted to give him this opportunity now after the Indy 500. We are also exploring more possibilities for Sage to compete in the remainder of the 2019 ARX2 season.”
The 2019 ARX2 Rallycross campaign starts with Round 1 on June 8-9 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in a ten-turn, .7-mile course in the “Keyhole” section of the famed road circuit. The doubleheader at Gateway Motorsports Park on July 13-14 will be inside the fast 1.25-mile oval track.
Television and digital streaming coverage for the 2019 ARX Championship will be announced soon. For more information about ARX and ARX2, go to ARXRallycross.com and follow @ARXRallycross on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
About Sage Karam:
Karam, 24, is one of the top young open-wheel drivers in the world after an impressive teenage career with championships in Firestone Indy Lights (2013) and US Formula 2000 (2010). The Nazareth, Pa., former high school wrestling star made his Verizon IndyCar Series debut in the 2014 Indy 500 for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing with a sensational drive from 31st to ninth. Karam won the “Hard Charger” award for his stellar performance as well as he and his crew placing second in the Indy 500 Pit Crew Championship. In 2015, Karam competed in twelve events in 2015 for Chip Ganassi Racing. Sage scored his first IndyCar Series podium with a third at Iowa Speedway and also notched a fifth at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. Karam has also competed in the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring sports car events as well as the IMSA tour in 2017. Karam has competed at the Indianapolis 500 in five times including four of his five appearance for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. In 2018, Karam run as high as sixth when a cut tire forced him out of the race on lap 154. He’ll attempt to qualify for his sixth Indy 500 in May.
About Dreyer & Reinbold Racing:
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing was founded in 1999 by Indianapolis car dealer Dennis Reinbold. The legacy of the Dreyer and Reinbold family dates back to the 1920s with Reinbold’s grandfather, the legendary Floyd “Pop” Dreyer, a former factory motorcycle racer. Dreyer served as a crewman and mechanic on the famed Duesenberg driven by Benny Shoaff and Babe Stapp in the 1927 Indy 500. Dreyer went on to build Indy 500 cars in the 1930s which many started on the front row. In addition, Dreyer constructed championship-winning sprint cars and midgets as well as quarter midgets called Dreyerettes. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing captured its first win in 2000 with driver Robbie Buhl at Walt Disney World Speedway in Orlando, Fla., and has fielded a variety of drivers including Buhl, Buddy Lazier, Sarah Fisher, Buddy Rice, Ryan Briscoe, Al Unser Jr., Townsend Bell, Sage Karam and J.R. Hildebrand. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing has successfully qualified all 37 drivers for the Indy 500 in its history. DRR also captured a rallycross championship in 2016. The DRR rallycross team recorded five main event victories, 23 heat race wins and eight fast qualifying honors in 2016.
About Americas Rallycross:
ARX is a North American-based rallycross championship fielding action sports stars, world-class manufacturers and competing in premier locations around the continent. ARX is the next evolution of the high speed, action-packed world of rallycross. Rallycross is the fastest growing form of racing in the world. Short races, viewer friendly asphalt and dirt circuits with 600 brake horsepower production-based racecars make for exciting racing and is suited to the way we enjoy sports today. IMG, the global sports and entertainment agency is the promoter and commercial rights holder of the series.
About IMG:
IMG is a global leader in sports, fashion, events and media, operating in more than 30 countries. The company manages some of the world’s greatest sports figures and fashion icons; stages hundreds of live events and branded entertainment experiences annually; and is a leading independent producer and distributor of sports and entertainment media. IMG also specializes in sports training and league development, as well as marketing, media and licensing for brands, sports organizations and collegiate institutions. IMG is part of the Endeavor network.
About WIX Filters
Since 1939, WIX® Filters has been an innovator in filtration products. WIX designs, manufactures and distributes products for automotive, diesel, agricultural, industrial and specialty filter markets. Part of the MANN+HUMMEL family of brands, WIX's product line includes oil, air, cabin interior, fuel, coolant, transmission and hydraulic filters for automobiles, trucks, off-road equipment and manufacturing applications. For more information, visit www.wixfilters.com, or any of our social channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.
Contact: Tom Blattler, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, tomblattler@earthlink.net,
317.525.5692