Press Release: August 7, 2010

CATES FINISHES THIRD IN HIS SCCA WORLD CHALLENGE SERIES DEBUT

 

Cates finished third in his series debut, driving the No. 68 Cates Engineering Ford Mustang FR500S. Cates topped a fleet of cars from the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge. Kevin Helms, of Charlotte, N.C., advanced from 10th on the GTS grid to finish fourth in his No. 04 DBA/Carbotech/AST/Exedy Acura RSX. Ben Crosland finished fifth in his No. 25 RPMotorsports Ford Mustang FR500S.
 

Press Release: July 18, 2010

CATES SCORES POLE FOR 2ND NJMP RACE ON SERIES DEBUT

CATES SCORES POLE FOR 2ND NJMP RACE ON SERIES DEBUT AS GIMPLE COMPLETES ALL-ROOKIE FRONT ROW

MILLVILLE, NJ, 18 July – It won’t be the usual suspects for the second Ford Racing Mustang Challenge race of the weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park.  On his debut race weekend, Deven Cates laid down a scorching lap to match the scorching temperatures, securing his first pole in Mustang Challenge competition.  On his first flying lap, he put in a lap of 1:32.530 seconds, easily the fastest lap of the entire weekend.  Lining up alongside is rookie Kyle Gimple who fell a tenth of a second shy of claiming the pole for himself as both drivers vie for not just Sunday Group Mangement “Rookie of the Race” honors to benefit the Austin Hatcher Foundation, but also the overall win to close out an exciting double-header race weekend.

Newly minted championship leader, and the first of the usual suspects, Tony Buffomante will start from third on the grid.  Race 1 polesitter Dan Aweida completes row two in fourth position.

“I’m getting a more used to the car,” said Cates who has experience in other production-based series and now drives the No. 68 Mustang for Capaldi Racing, “and I managed to pull out a good first lap.  Now, if I can focus on pulling ahead a bit in the opening laps, maybe I can convert this to a win.  This may be our last race of the season, but a good finish could change that.”

A Capaldi Racing Mustang FR500S on the pole is no surprise, except for when it’s not driven by Buffomante.  Cates was indeed recruited to the team by Buffomante and the two drivers shared data and car set-up throughout the weekend, to good effect.

“I’m really proud of and happy for Devin.  I’ve raced with his dad and been following Devin’s performances in other series and suggested they come over here and give the Mustang Challenge a try when one of his other drives ended,” said Buffomante, driver of the No.34 Capaldi Racing Mustang.

Though temperatures were still on the very warm side for the morning qualifying, they were slightly down on the highs seen earlier in the weekend, contributing to the faster speeds.  That fact also meant a return to a more normal qualifying pattern calling for a quick out lap, put in a flyer, and let the tires cool for another run for a fast lap.  At that point, it’s call it a day, for qualifying at least, and hope that your best lap is good enough.

“I thought we’d be okay with our first lap,” said Buffomante of his own qualifying effort.  “But, it wasn’t good enough.  Still, I’m pleased for Devin, and I’ve picked up a few more points on Jason (van Kluge).  He’s a good racer, and any advantage I can get on him in the championship is a big plus.”

von Kluge lines up in fifth place for this afternoon’s race. Alongside will be Pratt Cole and yesterday’s race winner Ben Crosland starts from the seventh position. The differential among the top seven is just over eight-tenths of a second.

 

Press Release: November 9, 2009

 

 Atterbury & Cates Team Up to Race

Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge GS in 2010

 

       
IMG_5532z2.jpg IMG_5532z2.jpg

  Joey Atterbury

Age: 23

joeyatterbury.com

Devin Cates

Age: 19

devin.catesracing.com

 

Joey Atterbury and Devin Cates have teamed up to race in the Grand-Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series for 2010, racing the all new Riley Technologies Camaro for TC Motorsports. Atterbury and Cates competed in the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup in 2009 and were both race winners, effectively leaving their mark on the series. Atterbury won the opening race at VIR, where he qualified on pole as well as garnering ‘Rookie of the Year’ honors by finishing in the top five in 6 out of the 10 races. He finished 4th in the final point standings. Cates was awarded ‘Most Improved Driver,’ captured the “iRacing” award and won the 9th race of the series at NJ Motorsports Park. He also qualified on pole at Mid Ohio and finished in the top 10 in the final points standings. Both rookie drivers earned their SCCA Pro Racing Licenses through the VW Jetta TDI Cup Series and are ready to showcase their training and abilities in the professional ranks of auto racing.  (If you ask them, both Atterbury and Cates will quickly proclaim that the VW Jetta TDI Cup Series is a great way to start a career as a race driver.)

 

TC Motorsports 2010 Riley Chevrolet Camaro

 

Despite living on opposite coasts of the country, Joey and Devin are good friends both on and off the track and race each other daily on iRacing as they prepare for next season (in Koni Grand Sport). They each developed their skills and proved their talent behind the wheel by winning numerous club races in the hotly contested Spec Miata series in both the SCCA and NASA. Learn more about these exciting up-and-coming drivers and follow them through the 2010 Koni Challenge Grand Sport Series by visiting their websites along with these listed below:

 

 

 

http://www.tcmotorsports.net/

 

http://www.rileytech.com/

 

http://www.grand-am.com/

 

 

Press Release: September 13, 2009

2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Round 9

Cates Becomes the Sixth Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup

Winner of 2009 in New Jersey

 

MILLVILLE, N.J., Sept. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than 24 hours after one of the most exciting races of the season, the SCCA Pro Racing Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup drivers returned to New Jersey Motorsports Park for the series' second race of the weekend. Once again, the drivers didn't disappoint the fans and put on a near repeat of yesterday's performance on the 14-turn, 2.225-mile road course.

 

 

 

The race started with Mark Pombo on the pole position in the #20 Volkswagen Parts & Accessories car, and was able to pull away from the rest of the field in the early stages. However, an accident between the #22 car of Andrew Novich and the #3 of Taylor Broekemeier caused a full-course caution on the second lap. Pombo led for a few more laps after racing resumed, but things started to heat up on lap 8 when Jake Thompson claimed the top spot going into turn 1. Pombo was able to battle back and resume the lead two laps later. Then, on lap 11, Devin Cates capitalized on a battle that saw several of the frontrunners venture off track. The Broad Run, Virginia native drove it to the front and never looked back before taking the checkered flag. The win marks Cates' first series win, and he's the sixth different driver to win this season.

 

"I've shown that I can be fast in this series this year, but I've not been able to back up my speed with solid finishes until now," Cates said. "So, to be able to get a win before the end of the season is awesome. There were some great battles out there today. Once I was able to get around Mark (Pombo), I was determined not to give him the spot back. Thankfully, he raced me clean, and we both wound up on the podium. I know it's too late for me to think about winning the Championship at this point, but I want to close out the season strong, and this is a great way to start."

 

Pombo and Timmy Megenbier rounded out the podium with second and third place finishes. In nine races, Megenbier has been on the podium eight times, which is a series record. As a result of his consistency, Megenbier now has 346 points will carry a 39-point Championship lead into the final race of the season at Road Atlanta. He will take the title regardless of any other driver results if he can finish 15(th) or better. Andy Lee (307), Joey Atterbury (273), Thompson (271) and Pombo (262) are also among the top five drivers in the Championship. Perhaps the best battle heading into the final race will be for "Rookie of the Year" honors. Atterbury and Thompson are the two drivers in the hunt, and they're only separated by two points.

 

Press Release: June 22, 2009

2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup

Mid-Ohio Sport Car Course - Round 4

 

Read the SCCA Pro Press Release:

Devin Wins TDI Cup Pole at Mid-Ohio

Saturday morning’s weather was no surprise at the always unpredictable Mid Ohio, dark clouds and intermittent rain produced a wet track for the morning practice session.  The drivers tip toed around for the first couple of laps and Devin was mainly focused on bedding in his new brakes, sure to not have the same problem that occurred at Miller.  As the track dried out at the end of the session Mark Pombo was flying around the track and ended up fastest during the session.  Devin continued to take it easy, confident that he did not need to use up his brand new Pirelli tires on a track that he had raced on many times.  When the session was over, Pombo was on top of the time sheets with Joey Atterbury 0.2 behind him.  Devin was all the way down in 18th and 5 seconds off of Pombo’s time.  Unlike his father, Devin was not worried at all about his practice times and was completely convinced he could turn it on during qualifying.

 

When qualifying came it was bright and sunny and most importantly, the track was completely dry.  Devin started out pretty soundly in qualifying, laying down 4 flying laps, one which was good enough for 5th place.  He then followed Mark Pombo and Timmy Megenbier into pit lane to cool down his tires.  After waiting for a few minutes Devin promptly followed Mark out on track, unfortunately being signaled out into a group of cars.  The first three of four laps were then plagued by traffic and one lap Devin almost rolled his car by getting up on two wheels at the top of Madness, a scary sight indeed.  However, with two laps to go in the session the track finally cleared up for Devin and he was able to take full advantage of it.  Being all by himself the first clean lap was a 1.40.5 which was good enough for third, but the next lap would be the one that counted.  Devin pieced together an almost flawless lap and dropped .4 of the previous lap to achieve a 1.40.167 which was good enough for pole position!  The title of pole position was Atterbury’s for almost the whole session until Devin squeezed him out by a mere .02 of a second, an extremely close margin.  

 

However Sunday was not such a good day for Devin, a crucial mistake which happened in a fraction of a second turned his whole season upside down and his race was done after the first lap.  After spinning the tires on the start Atterbury jumped in front of him and Devin was 2nd going into the 2nd turn.  Devin got a little too wide with cold tires, turned in and the car got sideways, quickly counter steering the car then immediately snapped back the other way across the racetrack and through the gravel.  Devin was able to get back on the track in 8th but everyone was soon zooming by him on the straight.  He came into the pits after saying something was caught in the right rear wheel which just ended up being gravel and pouring out once he stopped, a tough mistake and tough luck for Devin again.  After going off and into the pits, Devin was able to get back up to 16th position, good enough for 10 points, but certainly not the finish he was looking for.  Look for Devin to be running up front at the next round at the Autobahn Country Club, July 24-26.

Press Release: May 20, 2009

2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup

Miller Motorsports Park - Round 3

Devin Cates from Broad Run, Virginia, finishes 12th at Miller Motorsports Park in the 3rd  race of the 2009 SCCA Pro VW Jetta TDI CUP driving the #29 Hyperfuels / Cutaway Creations / Cates Engineering and Finish Line Productions sponsored VW Jetta. 

The start of the weekend at the beautiful Miller Motorsports Park did not go as planned for Devin.  Being reassured that he did not have new brakes on his car, he went out like any other racer and tried to set fast lap, but soon to find out that his brake pedal was going to the floor.  At the first instance of the brake failure Devin almost collided into fellow drivers Mark Pombo and Theresa Condict but luckily got the car slowed in time.  After practice Devin relayed to the techs that his brakes undoubtedly faded, the techs inspected the brakes and indeed they were brand new.  Fearing that the brakes would plague Devin the rest of the weekend he tried to stay optimistic about it.  However qualifying wasn't much better, having to pump the brakes before every hard braking zone and not being able to use the brakes to their full potential Devin only managed to qualify 12th.  Although having dropped back to 12th at VIR and being able to catch up to the front pack in 6th Devin still felt like he could make a top 5 finish.  The start of the race went really well for Devin, following 1st round winner Joey Atterbury to the outside of turn 1 he got up to 9th before the 2nd turn.   After 2 laps Devin was up in 8th and right on the rear bumper of Mark Pombo, unfortunately he could not hold the pace.  After overdriving turn 10 2 laps in a row Devin had to start defending Derek Jones.  Fending off Jones for a couple laps was no easy task and Devin’s tires started to go away.  After a couple more laps and mental errors Devin found himself in 13th position, and ended up finishing 12th completely disappointed in his performance.  With time to reflect and a successful Spec Miata race weekend, Devin is confident that Mid Ohio promises a better performance.

After 3 rounds, Devin sits in 9th position in points, just 45 points out of first place.  With the remaining races counting twice the points of the first two races, Devin is still close in the hunt for the 2009 VW Jetta TDI CUP Championship.  The 4th round will be held at Mid Ohio on June 21.  This season promises to be even more competitive than last year with some very talented young drivers trying to win the $100,000 year end prize money and Champion bragging rights.  

 

Press Release: April 28, 2009

2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Rounds 1 & 2

Devin Cates from Broad Run, Virginia, takes 7th place at Virginia International Raceway in the first race of the 2009 SCCA Pro VW Jetta TDI CUP driving the #29 Hyperfuels / Cutaway Creations / Cates Engineering and Finish Line Productions sponsored VW Jetta.  Devin moved up from 11th on the starting grid Saturday and started picking off cars one by one as he headed towards the front of the pack.  Once by a few competitors and 8 laps into the race, Devin set his sights on the leaders and laid down 3 very consistent laps of 2:14.0. all within a hundredth of a second of each other. With 2 laps to go in the 30 minute race he had fought his way up to 6th place and was right on the bumper of Ryan Ellis, setting up the pass on VIR's long back straight when Ryan's car suddenly blew a front tire.  Devin had to take evasive action to avoid Ellis which allowed driver Andy Lee to close the gap on the last lap.  With a damaged front bumper from Ellis's tire debris, Devin lost enough straightaway speed to allow Andy Lee to just sneak by for 6th place by just .026 seconds for the closest finish of the day.  Devin set the fastest lap 3 times out of the 13 laps run and had the 4th quickest time overall with a 2:14.010, only one hundredth of a second off Mark Pombo's best time and just slightly faster than the best lap of race winner Joey Atterbury. Pombo finished 3rd in the 2008 TDI Cup Championship and set fastest race lap 5 out of the 8 races run last season.  

Round 2 on Sunday found Devin Cates starting in the 8th position, right behind Saturday's race winner Joey Atterbury and in front of Derek Jones, a returning veteran from last season.  At the start of the race Jones got a great start and Devin lost some ground in the first turn shuffle and ended up back in 11th place and out of the draft of the front group.  Once by a few cars, he was all alone, and with no drafting partner it took a while to catch up to the fierce battle between Jones and Andy Lee.  With Devin right on Jones bumper in the closing laps, Jones lost control rounding the Oak Tree turn and Devin again had to take evasive action to avoid hitting Jones in the door and risking serious damage to both cars.  Jones declared after the race; "I owe you one Devin, thanks for not taking me out".  Once the dust settled, Devin ended up 7th again, just ahead of Joey Atterbury as well as posting the 5th fastest lap time of the race, this time just 2 hundredths of a second behind Atterbury's best lap. 

After 2 rounds, Devin sits in 7th position in points, just 15 points out of first place.  With the remaining races counting twice the points of the first two races, Devin is still close in the hunt for the 2009 VW Jetta TDI CUP Championship.  The 3rd round will be held at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah May 16th and 17th.  This season promises to be even more competitive than last year with some very talented young drivers trying to win the $100,000 year end prize money and Champion bragging rights.  

Volkswagen of America has partnered with to power these Clean Diesel powered cars in this truly one of a kind Green racing series.  See www.hyperfuels.com for more info on SynDiesel B5 racing fuel and www.sccapro.com for info on the series.    

 Please see www.cutawaycreations.com for the some of the most breathtaking cutaways used for training and trade show displays in the auto industry.

 

Visit www.cateseng.com for structural consulting services for your next building project.

 

For additional pictures of Devin's quest for the 2009 TDI Cup, please visit www.finishlineprod.net.