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July 13, 2019

 

Team Manager announces the end of spell at helm of Avid Chronic Racing


Mike Pitman, founder of Vod:Bul Motorsports (VBM) and team manager of reigning Superleague champions ACR Zakspeed, has announced that he is ending his partnership with multi-league sim-racing team Avid Chronic Racing (ACR)

Pitman founded VBM in 2004 and went on to win multiple drivers? and teams? Superleague championships, as well as establishing a large network of partner teams and driver development programs, as well as successfully expanding into several other series.

In 2017, Pitman merged his organisation with ACR, forming ACR Zakspeed. More success followed with the team claiming championships and multiple race wins at the highest levels in GPVWC, VEC and FSR, as well as prominent displays at LAN events in RaceRoom, ESL and F1 eSports, making the team the most successful rFactor 2 racing teams regularly competing today. Pitman also excelled with his reputation for having an eye for talent as well as attracting sponsors, bringing iSimRS and Abruzzi into the fold.

Despite this, Pitman has decided that the time is right to move on from ACR, saying:
?I have taken ACR as far as I can, but I don?t think the current sim-racing (eSports) marketplace is built for teams to be successful anymore without major backers to cover their financial losses. I am, however, very proud of what we and our drivers have achieved over the years. We have had some great times, but now is the right moment for me to focus on a new challenge. For me that is currently running the WCS League and the possibilities that provides: something different in the marketplace where the fun and entertainment is the focus.

?This isn?t to say that if the right project came up and caught my interest then I wouldn?t get involved in team management again, so never say never. In the meantime, I?d like to wish ACR well going forwards and I'd like to thank all the drivers, team members and sponsors that had to endure working with me. I'm so proud of what they have achieved together.?

Pitman will remain to manage his team in the WTF1 GPVWC Superleague for the rest of the season, as he has done since 2005. However, although the team is obligated to carry the name ACR for the remaining rounds of the championship, the team is no longer affiliated with Avid Chronic Racing in any way. The team?s cars will now carry a retro VBM-inspired livery, to be unveiled in the coming week.