Young Race Car Driver to Compete in Belgium Race on May 5

American endurance racers Gunnar Jeannette and Frankie Montecalvo are set to compete with the world’s best racers as co-drivers for Luxury Racing in the highly-competitive World Endurance Championship series.  The duo’s first race of the 2012 season is the Six Hours of Spa-Francochamps in Belgium on Saturday, May 5.
 
Jeannette and Montecalvo are piloting the No. 58 Luxury Racing Ferrari 458 Italia GT in the GTE-Am class alongside a third co-driver, German racer Pierre Ehret. 

Montecalvo's parents are the owners of in Keasbey.
 
Both drivers have had much success in sports car and endurance racing.  In 2011, Jeannette and Montecalvo drove full-time for CORE autosport in the American Le Mans Prototype Challenge (PC) class.  Thanks to their efforts, CORE won the team championship and Jeannette earned the 2011 PC driver championship, while Montecalvo finished second in driver rankings.  In the 2009 season, Jeannette and Montecalvo scored two top-10 finishes as co-drivers in the GRAND-AM Continental Tires Series, including a best finish of seventh at Mid-Ohio. 
 
The young American racers have more than a dozen years of experience between them and are eager to compete on some of the world’s premier racing facilities.  Despite missing the season-opening race at Sebring International Raceway in Florida, both drivers are eager to compete and challenge for the championship in the series’ remaining seven events.  The World Endurance Championship schedule includes six-hour endurance races in Belgium, England, Brazil, Bahrain, Japan and China and the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans in France. 
 
Jeannette was the youngest-ever starter at the French La Sarthe endurance classic at the age of 18 and has eight Le Mans starts to his credit. Montecalvo will make his Le Mans debut this June.