ANNETT LAUNCHES 2007 TOUR AT NEW SMYRNA’S ‘WORLD SERIES’
by: Michelle Petroff

DES MOINES, IA (February 2, 2007) – It was only two years ago that twenty year-old Michael Annett would spend most of his cold February days on the ice as an accomplished minor league hockey star. But the Hawkeye native retired from the United States Hockey League in 2005 to pursue a long-standing family tradition in professional motorsports and is now looking forward to a week of high-speed action under the Florida sun.

The Annett family and TMC Transportation have long been integral components with some of the nation’s most successful short-track open-wheel and stock car racing teams but Michael’s freshman season came in 2006 with a diverse schedule in the ASA Late Model Series Northern Division and NASCAR Dodge Weekly Racing Series. The young driver clearly had strong natural instincts behind the wheel and the razor-sharp reflexes that he honed for years on the ice transferred seamlessly to pavement racing as he notched three podium finishes and a top-10 showing in the ASALMS Northern championship points standings in his inaugural season.

Michael Annett will launch his 2007 tour next week at New Smyrna Speedway’s “41st Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing”. For his sophomore return to the high-banked Florida oval, Annett’s #12 TMC Racing Team will join forces with Peter MacLellan and LCM Motorsports. In his 2006 track debut, Annett outpaced several pavement veterans to qualify for all attempted events in the 9-day event including the “World Series” finale.

The sixty-plus super late model teams that are pre-entered for the short-track extravaganza will encounter a different track for next week’s “World Series”. Fresh pavement at New Smyrna Speedway will require different setups and teams to continually hunt optimal handling conditions on the ultra-fast oval but Annett and his TMC Racing Team are enthusiastic about accelerating their performance from last year.

“We have been busy testing for the upcoming season but I’m really looking forward to New Smyrna and getting back behind the wheel of a super late model because they have amazing horsepower,” commented Annett from a trackside test session. “All of us at TMC Racing are proud to partner with Peter MacLellan for this event and the new pavement could be a benefit for our team since this is only our second visit to the track and everyone is searching for new setups.”

Following Florida Speedweeks, Michael Annett and the TMC Racing Team are looking forward to a busy 2007 season with the ASA Challenge Series, ASALMS Northern Division and selected ARCA RE/MAX Series’ events.

Annett added, “We are focusing on Florida Speedweeks right now but will soon turn our attention to ASA Challenge Series and building on the momentum we gained last year as I get more seat time. I just have to thank the entire crew of the TMC Racing Team for their hard work and all of our great returning sponsors – TMC Transportation, Benson International, Allstate Peterbilt, Northland Oil and Pilot Travel Centers. I’m looking forward to representing all of them well in victory lane during 2007.”

Tickets are still available for the “41st Annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing”. Complete event schedules, directions and ticket information is available online at http://www.newsmyrnaspeedway.org  .