The SRT Viper Cup Returns for 2012

April 14^th 2012 will bring us the start of the
third installment of the racing series now known as the SRT Viper Cup – a 10
race season strictly featuring the 2010 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR-X.  The 2012 SRT Viper Cup will have five stops
around the country starting in April and finishing up in October with a pair of
races in each location.

The format for the 2012 SRT Viper Cup is pretty much the
same as it has been in the past two years, with a field comprised strictly of
2010 Dodge Viper ACR-X battling for the end of season championship. 

Points, prize money and Mopar vouchers going to every car in the SRT Viper Cup field regardless of where they place. The top three finishers of every race will also be the lucky recipients of Michilen bucks. Winners of the series will take home a check for a cool $10,000.

There are even new rules in place for this years cup that should help make the races more interesting for fans. They’ve opted to cut out qualifying rounds for sunday races. Instead, they’ll invert the finishing results from Saturday to create the starting grid for Sunday. Quite literally, the last will be first, and the first will be last.

One of the main “problems” for the Viper Cup in the past two seasons is that a small group of drivers would qualify at the front of both races and run away from the field as soon as the green flag dropped. Under the new rules, the quickest cars from the first race will have to work their way through the field if they want to win the Sunday race as well. This move should promote more passing and door-to-door racing, hopefully, making the race more exciting.

Each race will feature a pair of celebrity drivers who have been specially trained by the SRT folks to race the Viper ACR-X. For 2012, the Viper Cup will pay $2,000 in the name of the highest finishing celebrity and $1,000 to the second highest finishing celebrity in each event to the National Breast Cancer Coalition. Since the Viper Cup started in 2010, the series has donated almost $80,000 to various charities. Breast cancer research of course is a great cause for because, honestly, we all love boobies.

The 2012 SRT Viper Cup will be televised on the NBC Sports Network (formerly Versus). Here are the race dates for your calendar. The 2012 season will take place at five locations, with only the Virigina International Raceway returning to the series from last year’s Cup.

April 14-15 – Road Atlanta – Braselton, Georgia
May 12-13 – Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
July 7-8 – Virginia International Raceway – Alton, Virginia
August 25-26 – Monticello Motor Club – Monticello, New York
October 20-21 – Watkins Glen – Watkins Glen, New York

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

Facebook   Twitter