BUZZ SODEMAN The Buzzman SPECIAL TO THE PVT Mike Petersen, above, and the team that puts a Ferrari F430 on the track is now based in Pahrump. Another group, Team Deva, has also relocated to the valley. Advertisement

Two race teams have opted to move their racing operations to the Pahrump Valley, Petersen Motorsports/White Lightning Racing and Team Deva. Never heard of them? In a valley where the likes of NASCAR are proudly displayed both on one's body and on one's vehicle of choice, where a Saturday night at the local dirt oval is a social gathering, I have yet to see anyone sporting an American Le Mans Series bumper sticker or team jacket.

Petersen Motorsports/White Lightning Racing is a two-time GT2 class-winning 24 Hours of Le Mans racing team that captured those championships.

They were earned under the Porsche banner, but the 2007 season will find the team competing under the legendary banner of the Ferrari prancing horse.

Michael Petersen is excited about the move to the Ferrari F430 GT, a mid-engine, 2,425-pound car.

"After winning the [GT2] Driver and IMSA Cup titles last year and all three championships in 2005, we were presented a lot of interesting options," said Peterson. "We were approached by several manufacturers about entering their cars in GT2, in classes outside of GT2 and even outside the series.

"But, we want to race in the most competitive series and in the most competitive class. That's GT2. To win, you need to have a strong team and a close working partnership with a manufacturer. Ferrari has a strong appreciation of our program, what we have accomplished and what we hope to accomplish. Obviously, we share the same feelings about Ferrari. We are looking forward to working closely with Ferrari as a partner, not as a customer."

The relationship will "see the highest level of factory support the Nevada-based organization has enjoyed in its impressive sports car racing career," said Peterson.

Owner-driver Petersen, said, "To be able to represent Ferrari in the American Le Mans Series is quite an honor for us. We are looking forward to an awesome partnership as it should be one hell of a ride."

The F430 GT will carry the familiar neon yellow, red and white livery that has been identified with the team since debuting in the American Le Mans Series in 1999.

Michelin racing tires will provide the power to the pavement, something that they have been doing since 2003 for the White Lightning team.

Petersen Motorsports just completed the grueling Euromilhoes Dakar race, their first venture into this 15-stage, 6,906-km/4,291- mile rally-raid.

The team finished in eighth place in the last stage, elevating the Petersen/White Lightning team to 23rd place overall in the rally.

Michael Petersen and co-driver Matthew Stevenson pushed their Chevrolet T1.3 class buggy and became the third highest-finishing American in the car class for the overall rally. Petersen took honors as the second-highest ranked American driver of the final stage.

The race began in Lisbon, Portugal, with 177 cars taking the green flag; 109 saw the checker fall in Dakar, Senegal.

Attention now turns to the 2007 American Le Mans series and the team's delivery of the F430 GT Ferrari in Italy at the Ferrari Corse Clienti in mid-February. Delivery will be followed by a private shakedown run at Ferrari's famous Fiorano test track in Maranello. March 17 will mark the debut of the Ferrari at the 12 Hours of Sebring with drivers Tim Bergmeister (Langenfeld, Germany) and Tomas Enge (Monaco).

The duo of Petersen and White comes to the valley with an incredible list of racing championships. They have combined for over 50 off-road truck victories including three overall wins at the Baja 1000 and Baja 500. The team successfully captured four SCORE, SNORE, and SODA championships.

Taking to the pavement, Petersen began racing sports cars in 1997, scoring early success at Las Vegas and Laguna Seca (sixth place) in the GT1 class.

He has competed in the 12 Hours of Sebring (seventh place) in what was once GT3 (now GT2). In 1999, Petersen drove his first American Le Mans Series event, taking sixth at Laguna Seca. He has also competed in two 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Concentrating as an owner, Petersen points to one of the many highlights, a GT class pole position and race victory at Le Mans in 2004. The Petersen/White Lightning Porsche took five of 10 race victories, nine IMSA Cups, nine podium finishes and two pole positions.

Dale White, the entrant/team manager, perhaps summed it up best: "Winning is always the main focus but now it feels like we are part of a bigger picture; a bloodline of success."

Team Deva was launched in 2006, combining decades of motorsports experience and talent with countless victories in both rally and sports cars.

Dennis Chizma, who had been running his own rally program for years, and Vanessa Weikart, a logistics specialist, have teamed together to put a championship-winning product on the rally circuit.

Chizma is the defending Subaru Rim of the World Rally Production GT class champion, while Weikart is a motorsports logistics specialist who has had a long and successful career in motorsports ranging from Formula 1 to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500.

Weikart, a native of Germany, calls Coldwater, Mich., home. The creation of Team Deva will focus its years of motorsports experience into a multi-car rally program for competition throughout North America.

The fully operational team will be prepared to enter Porsche-based race cars in any North American rally. With Weikart's experience handling key logistical and hospitality decisions for teams in CART, IRL, ALMS, Grand American and more, she will be called upon to handle the travel, lodging, catering and specialty needs of thousands of race participants and special guests throughout the year, world-wide.

Chizma enters the 2007 rally season with very high hopes, which were echoed by Weikart: "Due to my European connections and long-standing relationship with teams, drivers and vendors this rally adventure with Dennis seems like a good match and hopefully destined to be a success. I am confident that we have the pieces in place to offer a very competitive and well run team."