Drivers

2009 MINI Team Update

The MINI racing team consists of a father and son driver team, Rick Hendrick Imports Executive General Manager, Brad Davis, and his son Robbie. Brad has been racing sports cars since the early 80’s and has a DC Region Championship and a Southeast Division Championship to us credit. In 2009 Brad is building another race car, a 2002 MINI Cooper that will run in the modified H Production Class, a large change form his 24 years experience in the almost unmodified Showroom Stock classes where he won his championships and had 3 top 10 finishes in the Sports Car Club of America’s National Championship Runoffs.

At just 24, Robbie has already been a South Atlantic Racing Series Champion and was the 2008 SSB Southeast Division Champion. Robbie will be driving the MINI of Charleston 2005 MINI Cooper S in the SSB Class for 2009, defending us Championship and hoping his work schedule will allow him to participate in this year’s SCCA Runoffs at Road America in Elkhart, Wisconsin. In 3 years of racing Robbie has won 15 regional races and 11 Nationals. Robbie added an excellent drive in the Piper Motorsports BMW 325 to his resume in last year’s 12 Hours at the Point endurance race. Look for Robbie to branch out into other Motorsports opportunities this year in driving and marketing, after graduating from Clemson University with a degree in Sports Management and Marketing.

Brad Davis

When the time arrived for MINI USA to make the move into road racing, Brad Davis and the MINI of Charleston team was top on the list.  MINI sent the team a “well used” press fleet demonstrator and the team started racing the car at the end of 2002.   For the 2004 season, MINI offered the team a MINI Cooper S for competition in Showroom Stock B.  In the 2004 season, the team has had 3 top five finishes, including a 2^nd and 3^rd at the Spring and Summer Nationals at Road Atlanta.

  Driver Brad Davis has been SCCA Road Racing since the early 80s.  After being one of two college friends and students trying to fund a car for the IMSA series in the 70s (rules changes requiring full roll cages and fuel cells broke their budget), Brad fought the racing bug by autocrossing and rallying but started racing seriously in the 1985.  “I’ve driven nothing but strange street cars my entire career”, said Brad.  Starting out in a Dodge Omni GLH in SSB and then moving to a Honda Civic SI in SSC.  That car later became an ITA car and a “rolled” donor to Brad’s current ITA car.   The move to the MINI was a prefect transition to another unusual performance street car.  Brad won the DC Region Championship in 1988 and finished 2^nd in the MARRS Series three times.   Brad has had several class victories at Summit Point, Watkins Glen and Road Atlanta.  Working for the Hendrick Automotive Group, parent to Hendrick Motorsports, Brad has had the opportunity to get seat time in some NASCAR hardware, including laps at Lowes Motor Speedway warming up the GM/Delphi Chevrolet Monte Carlo, with an average lap speed of over 164 mph.     

     The volunteer racing team is headed by crew chief Robbie Davis.  Rob is the son of driver Brad Davis.  A Sophomore at Clemson University, Rob is an up and coming driver in his own right with autocross and track day experience and a recent graduate of the Skip Barber Race School.  In the ’05 season, father and son plan to team up for races in the Southeastern Region ECR series.  Returning for his second season, James Overby keeps the car and team on time and track ready.  Additional help this season has been provided by BMW solo driver Adolph Kosobucki of Jacksonville and when stateside, autocrosser and Air Force Loadmaster Tim Stawski. BMW/MINI master technicians Chad Matthews and Sam Wallace have expertly performed our “back at the shop” support.     

Robbie Davis

Robbie started his racing career as a 10 year old crew chief taking times and working the radio for his father, Brad Davis’ SCCA Racing team.

 Robbie attended the Bandelero race school at Charlotte Motor Speedway at age 14 and started autocrossing his Honda CRX and Dad’s MINI Cooper race car at age 16. After several track day events, Rob attended the Skip Barber Racing School at Virginia International Raceway. Driving the Skip Barber open wheeled race cars taught Rob the car control skills to advance to an SCCA Driver’s School at Summit Point Raceway in Summit Point , West Virginia .

 Robbie started racing the MINI of Charleston 2002 factory MINI Cooper in the South Atlantic Road Racing Championship Series (SARRC). In his first year of competition Robbie won a straight 7 SARRC races, a Carolina Cup Series race and the SARRC Invitational Challenge race, earning the Showroom Stock C SARRC Championship for 2005. The father and son team also won their class in an ECR Enduro at Road Atlanta and were leading another Enduro with 5 minutes to go when they ran out of gas on the high banks of Daytona International Speedway, but still finished enough laps to finish 2^nd in that event.

 In 2006 Robbie split his racing time between the SARRC series and the SCCA South East Division National Series. Rob won another 6 SARRC races and finished 2^nd in the Championship. While racing the National Series, Robbie finished 2^nd in the SEDiv Championship, winning his first two national races at Roebling Road and earning several podium finishes.

 In 2007 Robbie stepped up to the lead role on the MINI of Charleston Racing Team, taking the wheel of the factory 2005 MINI Cooper S. Robbie won Nationals at Road Atlanta, finished 2^nd at CMP and Daytona. The final Championship points had Robbie only 7 points out of the SEDiv SSB Class Championship. Robbie earned an invitation to the televised SCCA National Championship Runoffs in Topeka , Kansas . He qualified 18^th and got hit and spun of the first lap, dropping to 25^th. Rob worked his way back to the three car battle for 11^th before a flat tire on the last lap dropped him back to 18^th.

 In the 2008 season, Robbie continues as the lead driver on the MINIUSA.com and MINI of Charleston 2005 MINI Cooper S.

 After a summer internship with Hendrick Motorsports in Charlotte , Rob Graduated from Clemson University in December 2007 and hopes to integrate and advance his racing passion with his degree in Sport Management.