Rum Bum Racing Once Again Shows Winning Style in 2011

© Wes Duenkel

When Rum Bum Racing entered its sophomore season of GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition, the team’s goal was clear: to win races and fight for the championship.

It didn’t take long for the Rum Bum squad to show that it was the team to beat when drivers Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb drove the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing BMW M3 to victory lane in the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway as the team went 2-for-2 in Daytona victories after having won the event in the team’s debut last year.

© Wes DuenkelThinking of the championship from day one, Nick Longhi started from the Daytona pole and led the initial laps of the GRAND-AM 200. Six caution periods throughout the event played into the strengths of the BMW’s speed, good fuel economy and tire management and allowed Rum Bum Racing to run a few laps longer than the competition during the final round of pit stops with crew chief Joe Varde’s strategy working to perfection. The win marked the team’s fourth win in the GRAND-AM series and third in a row after having closed out the 2010 season with two consecutive victories.

© Wes DuenkelFollowing the win at Daytona, Rum Bum Racing did not have to go far for Round 2 as GRAND-AM traveled to the Florida-based team’s home track of Homestead-Miami Speedway. With many family and friends in attendance, Nick Longhi scored the third consecutive pole for the team and despite an occasional overheating issue during the race, Longhi and Plumb drove to a fifth place finish and gathered solid points as the team kept an eye toward the championship.

Rum Bum Racing looked to carry that championship building momentum over to Barber Motorsports Park where Longhi opened the event and ran in podium position throughout most of his stint. As the run wore on, the car became a bit loose which cost some track position as Longhi remained mindful of the risks and rewards of overzealous defending. Plumb managed to pick up as many points as possible as he drove to a seventh place result at the finish.

Round 4 would see the team head to Matt Plumb’s home state of Virginia for the Bosch Engineering 200 at VIR. Rum Bum Racing arrived sitting third in the championship standings and had high hopes for another podium finish. Longhi and Plumb ran a stellar race among the top-five but a run to the podium was halted when Plumb was hit from behind and sent helplessly into the outside wall. Although Plumb emerged unscathed, the BMW had sustained significant damage and the team was very disappointed that such a strong run was needlessly ruined.
© Wes Duenkel
With just two weeks to fix the badly damaged BMW before the Lime Rock Park event, the Rum Bum crew had their work cut out for them, but the team persevered with their “never give up” attitude and showed its resilience when in less than 72 hours the BMW was back in prime condition and ready to be prepped for the Memorial Day Classic.

The team burst back into its winning ways at Lime Rock when Longhi started from third before handing off to Plumb who grew a huge lead over the field and never looked back. The team returned to victory lane and Rum Bum Racing launched back into second in the team championship standings.

Once again back in line for a run at the championship, Rum Bum Racing looked forward to the Watkins Glen event and started off strongly when Longhi qualified fifth to mark the team’s fourth top-five starting position of the year. The No. 13 BMW remained among the top-five throughout the beginning stages of the race, but that effort was thwarted when contact with another car forced the BMW behind the wall for repairs. The Rum Bum Racing group worked diligently to return the car to the track in order to scrape together as many points as possible, but several laps down, the team finished 20th.

While the team took a hit in the championship at The Glen and entered Road America fifth in the standings, the Rum Bum group was ready to rebound at the historic Wisconsin circuit as GRAND-AM returned to the track for the first time since 2001. Longhi got that effort off to a great start when he took the Road America pole to claim the top starting spot for the third time of the season. Both Longhi and Plumb ran a strong race and were in position to vie for the win when a competitor’s massive late-race incident saw the event finish under caution with Plumb sitting third in the order. With the goal of winning the championship in mind, the team was happy with third place points and moved up to fourth in the standings.

Round 8 saw the team travel across the country to California as GRAND-AM visited Laguna Seca. Longhi once again scored a great starting position by placing the No. 13 third on the grid. Rum Bum Racing played a unique pit strategy which saw Plumb return to the field 27th in the order following the team’s final pit stop. However, Plumb’s driving ability combined with the BMW’s superior braking, tire management, and cornering speed moved the BMW back into the top-10 in just 14 laps. Rum Bum Racing scored its fourth podium of the year with a third place finish and slotted back into second in the championship.

Next up was the New Jersey Motorsports Park event which had the teams battling intense heat and humidity all weekend. Despite the adverse weather conditions, Rum Bum Racing drove yet another solid race with Longhi starting from the fifth position and Plumb finishing the event fifth in the order. The race was extra special for Plumb as he crossed the finish line with his mother waving the checkered flag as part of the Be Positive event.

© Wes DuenkelWinning Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.Heading into the final round at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, the team sat third in the championship standings and would need all the right things to fall into place in order to come away with the championship title. Longhi once again gave a strong qualifying effort which saw the team start fourth among the 71-car combined class grid. With so many cars taking to the 2.258-mile track, traffic would be a big issue but Longhi and Plumb managed to stay clear of any trouble and closed out the season in the same way they opened it – with a trip to victory lane.

The team finished third in the championship a mere 14 points shy of the title winners. Still, the team had much to be proud of as Rum Bum Racing was credited with three wins, three poles, five podiums, and seven top-fives in addition to leading laps in six events of the 10-race season. The team remained within the top-five of the championship standings throughout the entire season and also helped BMW to clinch the Manufacturer’s championship for the second consecutive year by scoring more points than any other BMW team to earn 135 of the 328 points earned for BMW.

Rum Bum Racing now sets its sights on a new season as the team begins preparations for 2012. While the focus will be on keeping the streak alive with another win at Daytona, the Big Picture is also key as the organization looks to have a championship run all the way to the top in 2012.

© Wes DuenkelMatt Plumb, Luis "Rum Bum" Bacardi, Nick Longhi