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Sarah Burgess (racing driver)

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Sarah Burgess
NationalityAustralia Australian
Born (1980-10-04) 4 October 1980 (age 44)
Brisbane, Australia
Related toBridget Burgess (daughter)
ARCA Menards Series West career
Debut season2022
Current teamSpurgeon Motorsports
Car number04
EngineToyota
Crew chiefMike David
Previous series
2015–2019
2014
2011–2013		LOORRS Pro Lite
Global Rallycross
Xtreme Dirt Circuit
Last updated on: 30 March 2022.

Sarah Burgess (born 4 October 1980)[1] is an Australian professional racing driver and crew chief. She has experience in multiple disciplines such as drifting, rallycross, short course off-road racing, and stock car racing.

Racing career

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Early career and drifting

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Burgess' interest in motorsports stemmed from watching Formula One races with her English-born father.[2] She and husband Adam ran an automotive and machining business and fielded drag racing cars in Australia before moving to the United States in 2008;[3] her interest in the auto industry started eight years prior when she visited the country for business and attended the NHRA Winternationals.[4][5]

The Burgess family started BMI Racing to manufacture parts for clients in addition to competing in drifting. In 2011, Burgess ran two rounds of the Xtreme Drift Circuit in BMI's Mazda RX-8. After Mazda discontinued the car, the team purchased a Ford Mustang in an auction for the 2012 season.[3] By that year, Burgess was the only female driver competing nationally in drifting.[5]

Off-road racing

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Burgess' 2019 Pro Lite truck at Crandon

In 2014, Burgess entered Global Rallycross in a Chevrolet Sonic for BMI. Royal Purple followed her to rallycross after previously sponsoring her drifting team, while she had factory support from Chevrolet but continued to run BMI as a privateer.[6] The team elected to skip the season opener in Barbados to continue developing the car and scheduled Burgess' debut for X Games Austin.[7] However, a mechanical problem in testing forced her to abandon the attempt. Had the start happened, Burgess would have been the second female driver in GRC history after Emma Gilmour, who debuted earlier that year.[8] She tried again at Daytona International Speedway, where she formed Chevrolet's first multi-car effort alongside Pat Moro, but did not run any of the weekend's races following qualifying.[9]

Dissatisfied with disciplines that she felt were not enticing enough for fans, she moved to the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series in 2015. She initially planned to race in the Pro 4 class before settling on Pro Lite as it allowed her to "get in the truck at a reasonable expense and just learn the processes and understand the way things are done." In an October interview with LOORRS, she explained there was little overlap in driving styles between drifting and short course off-road, with "the only relation" being in "initial entry (into a turn). It doesn't carry over into anything else, so (it's been a matter of) learning how a track changes every lap and how different setups on a truck can change it and, of course, making sure the truck just stays running to start with."[1] Burgess ran seven races in her first season.[10]

Burgess acquired sponsorship from Axalta ahead of the 2019 season.[11]

ARCA Menards Series West

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Burgess serves as crew chief and owner for her daughter Bridget in the ARCA Menards Series West.[12] With a lack of funding compared to the top teams in the series, Burgess has often been Bridget's only pit crew member; she once changed all four tires on Bridget's car by herself during a pit stop.[12]

Burgess has also expressed interest in joining Bridget in a West Series race as a driver. In March 2022, Burgess obtained her ARCA license after completing some test laps in Bridget's car when the series visited Irwindale Speedway.[13] She nearly made her debut in the following day's NAPA Auto Parts 150 as a replacement driver for Eric Nascimento.[13] Burgess qualified 15th of 16 cars;[14] however, just prior to the green flag, the team withdrew from the event.[13] In April, Burgess revealed she was still searching for sponsorship to allow her to compete in a race when the series returned to Irwindale later in the summer.[13] Burgess eventually picked up sponsorship from eBay Motors for the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring race on 14 October,[15] finishing in 17th place with Bridget five spots ahead in 12th.[16]

Personal life

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During her youth, Burgess played sports like BMX racing, kayaking, and speed skating on both ice and inline.[2] In ice speed skating, she represented Australia three times in the World Junior Speed Skating Championships.[1] She met her husband Adam, who ran a bread delivery company in Brisbane, at a business banquet in 1999.[3]

Outside of driving, she has worked for SEMA in the marketing department.[3] Her daughter Bridget drives in the ARCA Menards Series West for BMI Racing.[12]

Motorsports career results

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Career summary

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Off-road

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Season Series Races Wins Podiums Points Position Ref
2015 LOORRS Pro Lite 7 0 0 148 22nd [10]
LOORRS Regional Pro Lite (SoCal) 4 0 1 147 7th [17]
2016 LOORRS Pro Lite 13 0 0 284 16th [18]
LOORRS Regional Pro Lite (SoCal) 1 0 0 44 14th [19]
2017 LOORRS Pro Lite 13 0 0 408 10th [20]
LOORRS Regional Pro Lite (SoCal) 5 0 0 191 7th [21]
2018 LOORRS Pro Lite 11 0 0 267 12th [22]
2019 LOORRS Pro Lite 9 0 0 276 10th [23]

Complete Global RallyCross Championship results

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Supercar

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Global RallyCross Championship results
Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 GRC Points
2014 BMI Racing Chevrolet Sonic BAR AUS WDC NYC CHA DAY
DNS 		LOS LOS SEA VEG N/A 0

ARCA Menards Series

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(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Menards Series West

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ARCA Menards Series West results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 AMSWC Pts Ref
2022 Spurgeon Motorsports 04 Toyota PHO IRW
DNS 		KCR PIR SON IRW EVG PIR AAS 47th 55 [24]
BMI Racing 97 Chevy LVS
17 		PHO

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Burgess putting Olympian effort into off-road career". Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series. 21 October 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  2. ^ a b Burgess, Sarah (30 April 2019). "Meet Axalta Racing's newest driver and ambassador, Sarah Burgess". Axalta Racing (Interview). Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d Burgess, Sarah (1 October 2012). "Wife, Mother, Drifter: An Interview With Lady Racer Sarah Burgess" (Interview). Interviewed by Chris DeMorro. Ford Muscle. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  4. ^ "Hercules Tire to Sponsor Sarah Burgess in 2016 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series". Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series. 11 March 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Sarah Burgess". XS Power Batteries. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  6. ^ "Sarah Burgess lands Royal Purple backing for Global Rallycross". Racer. 5 June 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  7. ^ Horsey, Jen (18 May 2014). "Meet the first women of RallyCross". X Games. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  8. ^ Bane, Colin (3 June 2014). "Sarah Burgess out of X Games Austin". X Games. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  9. ^ "Red Bull Global RallyCross Race Recap: Daytona International Speedway". Boxscore World Sportswire. 24 August 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Pro Lite | Season: 2015". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  11. ^ "Sarah Burgess teams up with Axalta for the 2019 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series". Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series. 11 February 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  12. ^ a b c Haislop, Tadd (16 December 2020). "Sarah And Bridget Burgess: The Mother-Daughter Duo Stepping On The Gas Pedal In ARCA". ARCA Menards Series. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  13. ^ a b c d Haislop, Tadd (20 April 2022). "Sarah and Bridget Burgess, an Australian mother-daughter driver duo, are trying to make NASCAR and ARCA history". ARCA Menards Series. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  14. ^ "Qualifying results: Tanner Reif wins General Tire Pole Award for NAPA Auto Parts 150". ARCARacing.com. 26 March 2022. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  15. ^ "eBay Motors to sponsor Sarah and Bridget Burgess in historic mother-daughter ARCA race". ARCA Menards Series (Press release). eBay Motors. 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  16. ^ Haislop, Tadd (17 October 2022). "Sarah and Bridget Burgess make history, share moment of a lifetime at Las Vegas Bullring". ARCA Menards Series. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  17. ^ "Fuel Off-Road Wheels Pro Lite - 2015 Lucas Regional SoCal - Kartek | Season: 2015". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  18. ^ "Pro Lite - 2016 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series | Season: 2016". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  19. ^ "Fabtech Pro Lite - 2016 Lucas Regional SoCal - Kartek | Season: 2016". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  20. ^ "Pro Lite - 2017 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series | Season: 2017". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  21. ^ "Fabtech Pro Lite - 2017 Lucas Regional So Cal - Kartek | Season: 2017". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  22. ^ "Pro Lite - 2018 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing | Season: 2018". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  23. ^ "08 - PRO LITE - 2019 Lucas Oil Off Road Nationals | Season: 2019". MyLaps Speedhive. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  24. ^ "Sarah Burgess – 2022 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
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