BIG WEEKEND FOR NISSAN IN PIRELLI WORLD CHALLENGE AT MILLER MOTORSPORTS PARK IN UTAH

August 24, 2015 by Nissan

◾Eight podiums in three classes for Nissan – Davison second twice, Heitkotter third

◾Kozarov goes five for five and wins three in Touring Car, two podiums in GTS in 370Z

TOOLE, Utah – Nissans shined at the Pirelli World Challenge this weekend at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah, with eight podiums in three classes from Nissan Altima 3.5, 370Z and GT-R.

Two times, James Davison finished a strong second to winner Johnny O'Connell in the Cadillac that just received Balance of Performance concessions prior to the MMP rounds. Davison's teammate, 2011 GT Academy winner Bryan Heitkotter, continued to impress in his rookie season, finishing third in race one Saturday and seventh in Sunday's race.

'The Always Evolving Team and AIM Autosport have been nothing short of amazing this season,' said Rick Kulach, manager of Nissan North America Motorsports. 'The way they have taken a brand new team with brand new cars to the front of a super competitive series has been something to watch. Pirelli World Challenge features fast cars and premier drivers from all over the world. I'm proud of the whole team and what they've accomplished in this series so far.'

The driving star of the weekend for Nissan, however, was Vesko Kozarov, who dominated and won the three Touring Car rounds in the Salt Lake City-based CA Sport-Skullcandy Nissan Altima 3.5 at the team's hometown track. The three victories mark five straight wins and seven wins overall in TC for the season for Kozarov in the Altima.

'I feel pretty good after all of the races today,' said Kozarov. 'I'm ready to drink some champagne tomorrow. It was a great weekend in the TC class. I was hoping for a little better result in the GTS class, but you always do when you don't win. The TC program was pretty straightforward, and the Nissan car ran great.'

As if three races in the Utah heat weren't enough, Kozarov ran CA Sport's 370Z in two GTS rounds, putting on an absolute racing clinic while grabbing second- and third-place finishes with a car that had not been campaigned all season. Though he didn't get his wish for a win, he had the fastest race lap and gave notice to the rest of the GTS field that he is truly talented. Five podiums in five races is an accomplishment that takes tremendous stamina and competitive fire in addition to natural driving talent.

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'I'm very proud of this team, but especially thankful Vesko had a chance to show his style,' said CA Sport team principle Lara Tallman. 'Working with him, I've seen the broad spectrum of his ability, his relentless drive and his amazing work ethic. Thanks to Nissan for their belief in CA Sport and their partnership in developing the 370Z Touring car and GTS platforms that performed so well this weekend. They will be cars to watch in 2016.'

The Miller Motorsports Park Rounds of Pirelli World Challenge will air on CBS Sports Network on Sunday, August 30 at 2 p.m. ET (GT/GTA, GT Cup); on Tuesday, September 1 (GTS); and on Wednesday, September 2 at 8 p.m. ET (TC, TCA, TCB).

Pirelli World Challenge moves to Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California next weekend, August 28-30. Streaming video available at http://www.world-challengetv.com.