This week alone, several people inquired about the AMG Challenge event dates for 2009. The answer, there are none – AMG Challenge has been discontinued! But hold on now. The world-renowned driver-training program from Mercedes-AMG arrives in the USA this September (2009); the AMG Driving Academy.

The “AMG Driving Academy” has replaced the AMG Challenge events for 2009. The new driving program is a major departure from the AMG Challenge in that there will be additional emphasis on driver training versus the experience of a test drive at speed. You can read a press release for the overall AMG Driving Academy here.

The following dates and venues have been released by Mercedes-AMG (stay tuned for pricing and registration info):

Lime Rock Park (Lime Rock, CT)

Stage I Program: September 9, 10, 11, 12
Stage II Program: September 14 – 15

With fifty years of legacy, Lime Rock Park is unlike any other track. There is a reason the word  is in the name, as over three hundred acres of natural Northwest Connecticut beauty surround the 1.53-mile track.

Palm Beach International Raceway (Jupiter, FL)

Stage I Program: September 22, 23, 24, 25
Stage II Program: September 26 – 27

Get your heart racing and fulfill the need for speed by experiencing the exhilaration of road course racing. Boasting an 11-turn, 2.034-mile design, PBIR’s road course features some of the fastest and most challenging corners, elevation changes and straightaways offered by any track in North America. Currently IRL-Sanctioned and pending FIA-certification, PBIR’s track host some of the worlds fastest cars and racing series such as the IndyCar Series, Indy Lights and Grand Am. Technologically superior, the road course showcases a seamless table-top smooth finish, full lighting, S.A.V.E. soft barriers, run-off areas, as well as, host various acclaimed driving schools.

Laguna Seca Raceway (Monterrey Peninsula, CA)

Stage I SLS Program: November 17, 18, 19, 20
Stage II Program: November 7-8

At this track, you can experience the famous Turn 8 and 8A combination, popularly referred to as the Corkscrew, which is considered one of the motorsport world’s most challenging turns due to the drop in elevation as well as its blind crest and apex on the uphill approach.

Turn 2, with its difficult and technical double-apex, has been renamed the ‘Andretti Hairpin’, in honor of former Formula 1 World Champion Mario Andretti, while Turn 9 has been renamed ‘Rainey Curve’ in honor of 500cc Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion Wayne Rainey, a resident of nearby Salinas, California. Also the straight that runs between Turn 6 and Turn 7 has been renamed the ‘Rahal Straight’ after four-time consecutive Champ Car race winner Bobby Rahal.

Subscribe here for updates as they are published (pricing and registration info will be available shortly – stay tuned!).