Volkswagen Motorsport is proud to announce Arie Ouimet of Plymouth, MA as its 2010 Karting Qualifier award winner. Ouimet competed against 30 karters for the prize of a $45000 scholarship towards the 2010 Jetta TDI Cup season. "The skill level of the karters in the selection process was extremely competitive, and Arie should be proud that his performance led to him earning the top prize," stated Dennis McCormack, Program Director of the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup.
Ouimet competed in the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Karting Qualifiers where he became one of 30 karting finalists to move on to the final driver selection event for the 2010 season. This was held in Las Vegas, where more than 40 drivers competed for the coveted 25 positions in the 2010 VW Jetta TDI Cup field.
Drivers were instructed in multiple sessions including mentoring from professional instructors, media training, sponsorship development, fitness assessment, VW brand familiarization, autocross and karting, as well as track time in a Jetta TDI Cup car.
After three days of the selection process, Ouimet was chosen as the top finalist from the karting program and was awarded the $45000 scholarship.
"Arie was the most consistently improved driver through our selection process," said Ryan Arciero, VW Factory Driver and VW Jetta TDI Cup Driving Instructor "Arie ended the three days at the top of our scoring sheets and deserved the scholarship. He was up against seasoned drivers from various racing disciplines, yet managed to earn the top karting position after rigorous testing throughout the final driver selection event." The 25 drivers in the 2010 VW Jetta TDI Cup will be heading to Virginia International Raceway in April for races 1 and 2 of the season. Drivers will compete in ten road course races throughout North America in identical, factory-prepared and maintained clean-diesel Jetta TDIs. In addition to more than $50,000 in prize money at stake, the series champion receives Volkswagen factory career advancement support with a value up to $100,000. Each driver competing in the series also earns a Pro Racing license from the SCCA at the conclusion of the season.