Kansas City, Missouri, - November 6, 2008 - Weld Racing, LLC, led by Weld management and Granite Creek Partners, LLC (www.granitecreek.com), is pleased to announce the acquisition of the assets of Weld Racing from American Racing Equipment, LLC.Weld Racing is a US-based manufacturer of aluminum wheels for performance automotive enthusiasts and the auto racing industry. The company was founded in 1967 and has a single manufacturing and distribution facility in Kansas City, Missouri.  For over four decades, the Weld Racing brand has been known throughout the automotive aftermarket as the premier aluminum race wheel manufacturer in all forms of motorsports.  Structured as a management buyout, the acquisition places ownership and leadership of the company in the hands of racers, and allows the Weld Racing brand to do what it does best: engineer and manufacture the best aluminum racing and street/strip wheels available. 

The investor group includes management team members Kyle Fickler, formerly of Aeromotive, Inc. and Scott Rider, Engineering and Motorsports Group Manager of American Racing/Weld Motorsports.  Granite Creek Partners, a Chicago-based investment firm co-founded by 6-time IHRA Top Fuel Champion car owner Peter Lehman, provided the capital for the transaction.   In addition to Weld P.R.O. Race, Weld Sportforged, and the new Weld RT Series, Weld Racing, LLC will continue to manufacture and sell the American Racing Pro Series line of drag racing wheels.  Weld Racing’s business plan includes a renewed emphasis on its celebrated history as a company focused on the engineering and manufacturing of high performance, race-tested wheels for competition.  The many champions using Weld Racing wheels have included: Tony Stewart, John Force, Warren Johnson, Jeg Coughlin, Jr., Donnie Schatz, Tim McCreadie and hundreds of others.  This strong foundation in racing brings to the street performance market new and innovative products built on the same technology that carries champions to the winner’s circle.

 

Weld Racing will debut the new Weld RT Series at the PRI show December 11-13th, in Orlando, FL.  Featuring six new designs available with either polished or black anodized centers, the RT Series also solves fitment issues common to many late-model performance applications, and is the first street/strip wheel introduced by Weld in recent years. 

 

“The Winningest Wheels in Racing” are 100% designed and manufactured in Kansas City, U.S.A.! Weld Racing wheels are available at most high performance and racing retailers.  You can visit us online at www.weldracing.com, or call us at 1.800.788.9353.