Eric Latino, KB Titan Racing, and Camrie Caruso: What’s New
Eric Latino’s journey into the world of drag racing began in his early teens, when his elder brother would take him to the local drag strip. From that moment on, Latino’s passion for the sport was ignited. When he was 16 years old, he drove himself to the racetrack in his first car: a 1969 Pontiac Acadian SS.
Latino had just turned 20 when he opened his first business in 1985. After founding Redline Automotive Inc, a four-bay performance shop, he demonstrated a deep commitment by working seven days a week. Within two years, the business had grown, and in 1993, Latino had the opportunity to take over a Bridgestone/Firestone tire and auto-shop franchise. Latino stopped racing for 15 years, as he focused on growing his business, building cars for customers, and developing his own company, Global Emissions Systems Inc (GESI), in Whitby, Ontario. He was inducted into the Canadian Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 2017 thanks to his world record for ET at the 2017 NHRA Gatornationals in his supercharged Pro Mod Camaro with 5.72 at 2.56mph.
In 2002, Ken Black created KB Racing; the team has has since collected 176 victories and 9 world championships in the Pro-Stock Category. To focus on family, Black and his wife, Judy, decided to retire at the end of 2022 – which created an opportunity that Titan Racing Engines partners, Eric Latino and Jim Whitely, couldn’t overlook. KB Racing and Titan Racing announced the formation of their new team: KB Titan Racing.
“To partner with one of the most respected and successful teams in the history of Pro Stock is incredible. We built a really good, respected, and proven brand with Titan Racing Engines – not just for Pro Stock but also for Pro Mod, sprint cars, and dirt track racing – and with the resources that we now have together, the capabilities are truly awesome. There are more announcements to come for KB Titan Racing, but we’re already beyond thrilled with this partnership.”
– Eric Latino
The newly formed team includes 5-time world champion, Greg Anderson, Kyle Koretsky, Dallas Glenn, and the up-and-coming Camrie Caruso.
In 2021, Latino started to sponsor Camrie Caruso, a third generation drag racer from Fairport, New York. Daughter of Marc Caruso, who competed in Super Gas, Top Sportsman, and Pro Mod, Caruso has shown that she has the passion and determination needed to dominate the sport. In 2019, Caruso took her first win in her second start in Top Alcohol Dragster at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio. Come 2022, Camrie’s talent and commitment earned her the title of Rookie of the Year. Caruso recently made history at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix, Arizona in her Powerbuilt Tools / Tequila Comisario / Gesi Camaro, taking on Bo Butner in the Pro Stock final. Using a starting line advantage, with a (.044) light to Butner’s (.054) Caruso outran him by one-thousandths of a second, with a 6.592 at 210 to Butner’s 6.593 at 209. Caruso captured her first career win in Pro Stock, as well as the first Pro Stock driver in history to win in Phoenix! At only 24 years old, Camrie Caruso has become the second female Pro Stock winner in NHRA history.
Big things are expected of KB Titan Racing, and we are excited to see what the 2023 season will bring!
photographs courtesy of dragline.com