Marisa Marisa is a 16 year old girl who caught her "Need For Speed" at a young age, as most aspiring young racing drivers do. She started attending races at Road Atlanta at age seven, and it was after meeting Lyn St.James that she expressed an interest in motorsports and began considering Road Atlanta home. Marisa showed instinctive talent for motorsport competition upon her first time behind the wheel driving concession karts at Andretti Speedlab, and her passion for driving eventually led her to learn how to drive a manual shift at age 1 0. From there Marisa began karting with Georgia Sprint Karting Association, where she ran in the Yamaha Jr. class. Yamaha Jr. is a relatively advanced class of karting using 2 stroke Yamaha engines. In her first race she was one second off of the fastest pace and took third place in the feature race. Based on her performance that day, Marisa was featured in a PBA documentary about karting filmed at the track. Marisa has always been a big fan of Flying Lizard Motorsports and has attended Le Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, annually for eight years. It was there she met Seth Neiman and developed a kinship type bond with him and Flying Lizard Motorsports. Due to this relationship and the support that Mr. Neiman and his team provided, she set her goal to race cars professionally. That atmosphere fueled her passion to the point of make it or bust. Marisa is a an articulate social butterfly who seems to possess an old soul. She has the ability to converse on a level beyond her years. She is a selfmotivated, homeschooled, over achiever who sets her sights high and works until the job is done. Marisa hopes to accomplish her goal of being a successful Black American Female racing driver. With proper support, her talent and hardwork should see her through. 1
Support Group As a young racer having a support group network is key. We are very lucky to have a small team of individuals in the motorsports industry who are very interested in exposing this young talent and helping achieve success. Mr. Seth Neiman, as previously mentioned, is a very busy man but recognizes Marisa as an up and coming race talent. He has extended to Marisa his contact information should she have questions that he might be able to assist in answering. Tommy Kendall, recent Hall of Fame inductee and TV motorsports commentator, has also expressed an interest in watching her road to success and has also given an open line of contact. Tommy Kendall was the host for the TV show GT Academy. A reality show that turns virtual reality racers, players of the Playstation game Gran Turismo, into real racing drivers with a two to four month driver development program. Ms. Catherine Crawford of Crawford Composites is an aerodynamicist and designer of the current FIA regulated formula cars for the US formula 4 and Formula Lites series. She is also a close personal acquaintance of Marisa. Catherine has offered her support to Marisa by way of track time, testing and driving the shakedown miles needed to break in the new cars produced by Crawford Composites Thomas Blam and Melvin Hodges of Flying Lizard Motorsports have been extremely instrumental in helping Marisa grow, in regards to hands on exposure to motor racing. Thomas Blam, Chief Strategist for Flying Lizard Motorsports and manager of Franz Blam Racing has offered Marisa a job working with Flying Lizard Motorsports in the WeatherTech endurance series and K Pax Racing in the Pirelli World Challenge Series. Melvin Hodges has expressed interest and willingness to help support Marisa by using his talents as a writer. to help secure continued sponsorship support and report all progress and news made by Marisa via social media. Providing that Marisa obtain funding to complete the 3day and 2day Race School Program. Then completes the Skip Barber Race Series with Jonathan Scarallo as her private coach, Group A Racing, Joey Scarallo Sr. and Jonathan Scarallo have stated that they would like Marisa as a Driver with Group A Racing for the following season driving Formula 4 or Formula Lites in their driver development program. Jonathan has opened his line of contact to help as much as he can to push Marisa toward success in motor racing. Also, documentary Film Producer Jack Walsh has kept alive the idea and possibility of documenting the progression of Marisa s racing career. The PBA documentary, This is Atlanta, featuring Marisa can be found on Youtube with the title: Georgia Sprint Karting Association. 2
Marisa s Career Trajectory Where will she go after Racing School? Marisa s preferred class of racing is in Formula/Open Wheel cars but she refuses to limit herself to one particular Class or Series. The ultimate goal of most drivers is Formula 1, her ultimate goal is no different. However, Marisa wants to compete and realizes the opportunities that exist in other classes of racing, Touring Cars, SportsCars and Prototypes to name a few. The F4 Championship Series In 2013, the The Fédération Internationale de l'automobile (FIA) saw the need for an entry into open wheel racing for graduates of disciplines such as Karting, but at a lower expense than Formula 3. This new category, Formula 4, was created to meet that need. Since that announcement, officially sanctioned F4 Championships have appeared throughout the world, and now, we are pleased to announce the creation of the F4 United States Championship certified by FIA. SCCA Pro Racing contracted with the FIA to sanction the F4 Championship in the United States, and earlier this year, the SCCA solicited proposals for engine, tire, and chassis partners. The SCCA s goal was to create a competitive, exciting, and affordable series for participants. After a thorough review, the chosen partners are: Honda (engines), Pirelli (tires), and Crawford Composites (chassis). The United States F4 Championship will commence in 2016. Each partner has committed to the F4 concept, the production and supply of homologated equipment, field support, competitive pricing, and marketing and media support. Formula Lites Series The Formula Lites series was created to provide an economical, technologically advanced race vehicle with an emphasis on safety, to give drivers the opportunity to develop their skills to progress into higher levels of open wheel racing. karting to open wheel racing. The series, sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing is currently in the midst of its inaugural 2015 Championship Season schedule. The Formula Lites program aims at developing drivers interested in entering professional motorsports, including those who seek to make the leap from 3
The Beginning Racing School and Racing Series The most popular class of single seater racing in the world, Formula 3 represents a vital stepping stone for many IndyCar and Formula One racers. Having graduated drivers of the caliber of JR Hildebrand and Scott Speed, Simraceway can claim to have played an important role in the process. Offering the most advanced fleet of school racing cars in the world, the lowest instructor to student ratio in the industry, a state of the art facility and a road course that forms part of the current IndyCar, Nascar and World Touring Car Challenge calendars, Simraceway Formula 3 Racing School is a proven destination for current and aspiring open wheel racers. The provisional racing license program consists of 3 stages of two days each and a final one day of Driver Development Course. Stage 1 offers two days of progressive instruction (ground school) culminating in open lapping of Sonoma Raceway. Stage 2 takes a look back at driver techniques learned then dives deeper into the art of driving fully fledged aerodynamic single seaters with emphasis on cornering, balancing aero downforce, passing and race craft. Open lapping sessions allow drivers to translate what they ve learned into faster times on the track with high tech data analysis techniques highlighting errors and improving performances. This stage ensures that the student is sufficiently qualified to apply for an SCCA License. Stage 3 is Mainly track time and high level driving drills. This stage digs deep into pushing hard to extract the very best. Driver Development Course offers a unique opportunity to explore Sonoma Raceway at full racing speeds and downforce levels and allows drivers to perfect the fine details that can make all the difference on race day. 4
About the Racing School Race Series The Formula Lites Race Series 7 8 Race Weekends (2 races per race weekend) x2 seasons. 2 3 practices sessions each weekend. Qualifying sessions prior to racing. Jonathan Scarallo is a privately hired coach. Hired to coach Marisa, Jonathan has been particularly successful with young racing drivers who are new rookie drivers or those who have seemed to peak in their talents. Jonathan has wonderfully inspiring testimonies from some of his clients that have benefitted greatly from his coaching. Jonathan Scarallo will privately coach Marisa during her entire run in her racing series, post racing school. With Jonathan as her private coach, Marisa will also receive one on one attention. Her entire track videos, lap times, performance telemetry, and racecraft will be watched over by Jonathan, which will provide her with a substantial advantage for growth over her competitors. 5
Off Track Practice Practicing as often as she can, between home school lessons and her chores, when track time is not convenient Marisa has an iracing account. Virtual/Sim racing or as it s been put, an Online Racing Career. It s not rubber to the road but it has it s merit. Most all professional racing drivers use racing simulators to learn tracks and racecraft. SimRacing SimRacing has proven to correlate to the real racing world. GT Academy has made successful real world racing careers out of 18 SimRacers who learned from only having raced using Sony Playstation s Gran Turismo. Iracing is arguably more advanced. Marisa has shown an astounding aptitude and quick progress using iracing. From Virtual to Reality In 7 seasons of the reality show GT Academy professional drivers have taken 18 players of Playstation s Gran Turismo and proven that VIrtual racing translate into real world racing. Tommy Kendall, Fan and supporter of Marisa, World Class Racing Driver and recent inductee in the Racing Hall of Fame, was a host on the first season of GT Academy. Tommy admits being surprised at the progress made by these candidates, most of whom had barely driven a road car. Trevor Carlin Team principal of Carlin Racing, in an interview from; How a Gamer Became a Pro Racer Jann Mardenbourough s Story, Mr Carlin is quoted saying, Until Jann was driving in the British GT Championship I had no idea that he was a gamer. I was gobsmacked to be honest. We took Jann down to Pembrey and did a test in a Formula 3 car. We were blown away. It didn't seem possible for someone with no experience in a real car to drive so quick. With Marisa s karting experience, SimRacing practice and future coaching by Jonathan Scarallo, Marisa should make amazing strides in her racing just as Jonathan s most recent drivers, Jose Armida, Jackie Ding and Cameron Das. 6
Marketing Opportunites Marisa s appeal hits just about every demographic, from casual female fans, to children, to the hardcore gearheads and and the black community. Women make or influence 85% of purchasing decisions and are starting businesses at twice the rate of men. Marisa has the potential to become a marketing phenom who will certainly add positive and fresh exposure to any entity she is affiliated with through motorsports. Sponsor livery will also, as customarily done, be placed on car sidepods. Examples of areas for logo placement 7
Estimated Expenses Driver Safety Gear $2,750 Simraceway Racing School: $22,500 Formula Lites Race Season (Full) : $180,000 7 Race Weekends 14 races Private Driver Coach : $12,000 Food/Travel/Lodging/Transportation: $23,000 Miscellaneous Expenses $10,000 Total including possible crash damage in excess of $3000 season limit: $250,000 ***After training, approximately $17,000 per race*** Group A Racing s; Jose Armida and Jackie Ding with Marisa 8
Summary Sponsorship for Marisa will provide the best training that exists today with the most premier entry level racing series. A series that has been made based on FIA regulations to match all the european development driver series. As a sponsor for Marisa you gain the ability to use motorsports to promote your brands, logos and products for a fraction of the cost of conventional advertising. Opportunities exist to use the significant marketing power of motorsports in television, radio, internet, mail and on track promotions to further enhance your sponsorship investment in a way targeted to your customer. In addition, we will work with you to ensure additional exposure including autograph and speaking appearances by Marisa, event tickets, and on track meetings with your clients and employees. Got something special in mind? Just ask and we ll do our best to help make it happen. We are open to looking at any additional marketing strategies you may have. As a key component to your marketing plan we will work to position your brand/product as being synonymous with the racing experience. If we can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to call. We look forward to welcoming you into our family. Melvin Hodges II Call: 404 931 3372 email: melvin@hodgesandsons.com Thomas Blam Call: 404 434 2446 email: thomas@lizardms.com Anthony W Kearney Call: 678 637 1554 email: akearney47@gmail.com Social Media Accounts: www.ragingpandamotorsports.com Youtube Channel: ragingpandamotorsports ragingpandamotorsports@gmail.com https://twitter.com/markimotorsport Marki_Le_Racer@instagram 9