JOILET, Ill. -- One of the most decorated Baja motorcycle racers of the past decade, California's Kendall Norman, will contest the Traxxas TORC Series, presented by AMSOIL, PRO Light division at Chicagoland Speedway's Route 66 Raceway, this Thurs. & Fri., July 19-20.

Rounds 7 & 8 of the 2012 TORC Series will be Norman's proving ground as he ventures into short course off-road racing - born from the Baja-style racing on the west coast. Norman, who has stood atop the podium in the SCORE-International Series' Baja 500 and 1,000 races an impressive ELEVEN times in the past decade, will run a TORC PRO Light truck backed by Red Bull/Case Construction/BlueDEF™ Exhaust Fluid.

"The Traxxas TORC Series is pumped to have Kendall Norman on board for the Chicago rounds this week," said Kevin Miller, President of TORC/USAC. "It will be interesting to see how he applies his winning off-road motorcycle racing skills from Baja to TORC-style short course truck racing. My guess is he'll be competitive right out of the gate."

Two nights of racing action under the lights at Route 66 Raceway's dirt oval feature four PRO classes (three truck, one buggy) in the fastest, most punishing short course truck racing series on the planet. TORC features legendary off-road heavyweights in defending TORC PRO 4x4 class champion and five-time AMA Motocross champion Ricky Johnson battling former class champion Johnny Greaves from nearby Green Bay, Wisc. A series of bodywork-tearing, truck-flipping battles throughout the three-hour race program, TORC racing at Route 66 Raceway's dirt oval will again have the massive crowd on their feet hollering at the non-stop action!

What: Traxxas TORC Series, presented by AMSOIL - short course off-road truck racing - the world's premier Baja-style off-road racing in a stadium setting!
Who: Off-road racers from Baja to the Wisconsin northwoods, the TORC Series showcases champion drivers like Ricky Johnson, Johnny Greaves, Rob MacCachren, Mike & Mark Jenkins, Scott Douglas, Bryce Menzies, CJ Greaves, Andrew Caddell, Travis Pastrana and Illinois' own Scott Taylor (Belvidere).
Where: Chicagoland Speedway's Route 66 Raceway's dirt oval
When: Thursday and Friday, July 19 & 20
Time: Gates open at 2 p.m., qualifying begins at 4 p.m., main event opening ceremonies begin at 7 p.m.
Tickets: $20 for adults, $10 for kids 12 and under.
Media contacts: Patrick Kenny, Chicagoland Speedway/Route 66 Raceway, Senior Manager, Communications, pkenny@chicagolandspeedway.com and Patrick Schutte, TORC Series PR Director, pat@highprofilepr.com

Bridging the gap between action sport and motorsports, TORC Series short course off-road truck racing delivers an edge that'll certainly win over the Demolition Derby, NASCAR and NHRA fans at Chicagoland Speedway/Route 66 Raceway. With radical jumps, stutter bumps and berms built into Chicagoland Speedway/Route 66 Raceway's dirt oval, existing sprint car and late model fans need to get out and see what the heck's happening on their hallowed grounds here in Joliet, Ill.!

For more information, please visit: www.torcseries.com