Grand Am test days at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Dec. 4, 2009) - At least two dozen GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 teams are expected to get a head start on the 2010 season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona when they participate in a two-day test, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, Dec. 8-9, at Daytona International Speedway. The test will be the first for competitors on the 2010 Pirelli tires.

Already entered in the test are 24 teams, including 10 Daytona Prototypes and 14 GT cars. TRG has three cars entered in the test, with Team Sahlen, Michael Shank Racing and Spirit of Daytona Racing each set with two cars.

The test will mark the debut of the Action Express Racing entry, with Terry Borcheller and Joao Barbosa set to drive the No. 9 Porsche Riley. The team has a technical partnership with Brumos Racing, the defending winners of the Rolex 24, with David Donohue and Darren Law moving to the No. 59 Porsche Riley, where they will be joined by five-time Rolex 24 winner Hurley Haywood.

Buddy Rice and Antonio Garcia were also part of the winning lineup for the 2009 Rolex 24, but will co-drive the No. 90 Boy Scouts of America Porsche Coyote. Spirit of Daytona will have a second Porsche Coyote at the test, the No. 09 for Rolex 24 Driver Challenge presented by Sunoco winner Derek Johnston and Guy Cosmo. Johnston, the champion of the British Radical series, won a seat in a Daytona Prototype for the Rolex 24, and the team he will join for the race will be determined after the test.

Three-time Rolex 24 winner Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates will have two-time Daytona Prototype champion Scott Pruett in the No. 01 TELMEX Riley, which is expected to have BMW power at the test.

Other Daytona Prototypes entered include a two-car Ford Riley entry for Michael Shank Racing, the No. 6 for Mark Patterson, Ricky Taylor and Michael Valiante, and the No. 60 for Ozz Negri and John Pew; the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara for Brian Frisselle and 2005 Rolex 24 winners Wayne Taylor and Max Angelelli; the No. 75 Krohn Racing Ford Lola of Nic Jonsson and Tracy Krohn; and the No. 77 Doran Racing Ford Dallara of Memo Gidley, Brad Jaeger and Michel Jourdain.

The test will mark the first appearance of perennial GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge powerhouse Turner Motorsport in the Rolex Series. Bill Auberlen is set to test the team's No. 94 BMW M6. Also testing a BMW M6 is Miracle Sealants Team PR1, with Max Hyatt and Thomas Merrill in the No. 32 entry.

GT championship contender Stevenson Motorsports will debut its No. 97 Camaro GT, with returning drivers Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell.

Four teams will test five Mazda RX-8s, including the No. 40 Dempsey Racing entry of Patrick Dempsey and Joe Foster. Emil Assentato, Nick Longhi, Jeff Segal and Sylvain Tremblay will test the No. 69 SpeedSource FXDD entry, and Jordan Taylor and Jade Buford are in the No. 30 Racers Edge Motorsports IDEMITSU Racing Oil Mazda. Team Sahlen will roll out its new Mazdas, the No. 42 for Will Nonnamaker and Joe Sahlen, and the No. 43 for Joe and Wayne Nonnamaker.

TRG leads a solid contingent of six Porsche GT3s with a three-car entry. Defending Rolex 24 GT winner Andy Lally is joined by Tim George Jr. and Spencer Pumpelly in the No. 67 Porsche GT3; Seth Neiman, Thomas Sadler, Mark Thomas and Johannes van Overbeek are in the No. 66; and Peter Bassett and David Fry in the No. 68.

Other teams fielding Porsches are Magnus Racing, with John Potter and Craig Stanton in the No. 44; ZMG, with Shane Lewis and Richard Zahn in the No. 17; and Guardian Angel Motorsports, with Bob Doyle, Tim Evans, Bruce Ledoux and David Quinlan in the No. 18.

Fans can view all the testing action with access to the Sprint FANZONE and garage with a track-tour only ticket from Daytona 500 Experience for $10. Fans who have already purchased a 2010 Rolex 24 ticket will receive free Sprint FANZONE/garage admission for the test. The Oldfield Grandstand will also be open free to race fans with access through the lobby of the Daytona 500 Experience.Source URL: https://ashesgarrett.blogspot.com/search/label/Rolex%20Series
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Jimmie Johnson joins Gainsco team for Rolex 24

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Dec. 2, 2009) - A switch to Chevrolet power for the 2010 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Daytona Prototype season, and the third-year return of the all-American champion driver lineup of Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Jimmie Johnson and Jimmy Vasser for the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona, Jan. 30-31, were announced today by GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing team owner Bob Stallings.

GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing will change to Chevrolet engines after the team won 12 races and two Grand-Am Rolex Series Championships with Pontiac power the last three seasons. The 5-liter engine now in the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance "Red Dragon" Daytona Prototype is Chevy's race-prepared version of GM's iconic small-block V8 that is an American legend in its own right.

Red, White and Blue is also the binding theme of the driver lineup with two-time reigning Grand-Am Rolex Series Champions Gurney and Fogarty shooting for a record third Grand-Am Rolex Series driver title in 2010. The top Daytona Prototype duo will be joined by fellow champions Johnson and Vasser for the third consecutive year at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The teammates finished second in their first Rolex 24 together with GAINSCO in 2008 and backed it up with a seventh-place finish this past January in this year's edition of America's premier endurance race.

"All of us at GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing want to win our third Grand-Am Rolex Series Championships just as bad as we want to score a victory in the Rolex 24 At Daytona," said Stallings, who was joined by the team's drivers today in making the announcements in a NASCAR/Grand-Am media teleconference. "We are honored to carry the great racing history of the Chevrolet bowtie in the Grand-Am Rolex Series and we feel very, very fortunate to have put together for the third year an unmatched lineup of American champion drivers in Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Jimmie Johnson and Jimmy Vasser."

Johnson, who recently clinched a record fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship, has raced in five of the last six Rolex 24 races, including the last two with GAINSCO. In addition to the second-place finish with GAINSCO in 2008, Johnson was also part of 2005's second-place Howard/Boss Motorsports Pontiac Crawford team. He made his first Rolex 24 start with the same team a year earlier and then returned in 2007 for not only the Rolex 24 but also that summer's Brumos Porsche 250 At Daytona with Riley Motorsports. Johnson turned to GAINSCO prior to the 2008 event when he was looking for a team capable of winning a race as tough as the Rolex 24.

"I've really enjoyed running with Bob and the GAINSCO team the past couple of years," Johnson said. "Anyone who knows Bob knows that he's very passionate about racing, and it shows in his team and his ability to bring out the best in everyone. Jon (Fogarty) and Alex (Gurney) are two of the best and I really enjoyed being teammates with them and Jimmy Vasser in the last two Rolex 24 hour events. Bob does a great job of keeping the team at the top, especially when you consider the competition from teams like Ganassi and some others. They are a threat each week and that says a lot about the team that Bob has put together."

Johnson, Gurney and Fogarty all led the 2008 Rolex 24 and joined Vasser in keeping the No. 99 in contention for the overall win throughout the race. Although Johnson brings a great deal of publicity and media attention to the GAINSCO team, the biggest benefit of having him back each year is his proven ability to win races and championships.

"We view Jimmie as a member of our team and we look forward to winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona together," Stallings said. "Jimmie is a terrific race car driver and has been a quick study driving the Red Dragon. He is very focused and highly competitive in every way imaginable. He is a champion and shares our strong desire to win the 24."

Lead team drivers Gurney and Fogarty, who won their first Rolex Series championship in 2007, are happy to have Johnson back again for the 2010 Rolex 24. Along with Vasser, who is back for a fifth season as GAINSCO's main endurance race specialist, the GAINSCO team will likely once again be one of the few, if not the only, all-American and all-Champion Daytona Prototype teams entered in the Rolex 24. Vasser is the 1996 CART Champ Car World Series champion.

GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing was the first team to file official entries for both the Jan. 8-10 Roar Before the Rolex 24 Test Days At Daytona and the 48th Rolex 24 At Daytona.

Live coverage of the 2010 Rolex 24 At Daytona begins on SPEED on Saturday, Jan. 30, at 3 p.m. ET, prior to the 3:25 p.m. ET green flag, and lasts until 10 p.m. ET. Coverage resumes at 7 a.m. ET on Sunday and will run to the finish at 4 p.m. ET.Source URL: https://ashesgarrett.blogspot.com/search/label/Rolex%20Series
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Grand Am 2010 TV Schedule - All races on Speed

GRAND-AM, SPEED Look to Continue Momentum from Successful 2009 Season

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Nov., 2009) - All 12 races on the 2010 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 schedule will be televised live on SPEED, GRAND-AM officials announced today.

America's premier road racing sanctioning body looks to continue momentum from the 2009 season, when SPEED viewership increased 42 percent and the number of households watching the races increased 39 percent over the 2008 season.

In addition, eight of the 10 GRAND-AM KONI Sports Car Challenge races will be televised on SPEED next season.

The 2010 Rolex Series campaign opens with the 48th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Saturday, Jan. 30. SPEED coverage begins at 3 p.m. ET, prior to the 3:25 p.m. ET green flag, and lasts until 11 p.m. ET. Coverage resumes at 7 a.m. ET and will run to the finish at 4 p.m. ET.

GRAND-AM will continue to expand its fan-friendly activities during the events. In 2009, the pre-race fan walk and driver autograph session received overwhelming positive response from the fans, teams and drivers.

"I was amazed at the fan response this past season," said Mike Johnson, team manager for Stevenson Motorsports. "This year has been the largest single improvement I've seen in 10 years of GRAND-AM, in what they're doing to get people to the race track. This year, with everything GRAND-AM has done with the pit walk and the schedule of the weekends, has been great. Everywhere we go we feel like we're part of a major event; everyone's having a great time."

In addition to the fan-friendly initiatives at each event, GRAND-AM continues its focus on keeping fans in touch with the series through grand-am.com, developing a new feature to download the Rolex Series TV schedule to various electronic calendars. This function enables fans to stay in tune with the series by setting the broadcast dates and times with reminders on their calendars.

The next event for the Rolex Series will be testing at Daytona International Speedway on Dec. 8-9. The 2010 season kicks off with the "Roar Before the Rolex 24," a Jan. 8-10 test at Daytona for both the Rolex Series and KONI Challenge.Source URL: https://ashesgarrett.blogspot.com/search/label/Rolex%20Series
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Edwards/Ambrose Grand Am debut soon!

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 17, 2009) - NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regulars Carl Edwards and Marcos Ambrose will make their Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Daytona Prototype testing debut Tuesday, driving the Doran Racing No. 77 McDonald's Ford Dallara on the North Course at Virginia International Raceway.

Edwards is fourth in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings, in solid contention to make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. He is also running second in the Nationwide Series with two victories. The 2007 Nationwide Series champion, Edwards finished second in the standings of both of NASCAR's top two divisions last year.

Ambrose had a standout weekend earlier this month at Watkins Glen International, where he finished second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race after winning Aug. 9 in his lone NASCAR Nationwide Series start of the season. He is currently 17th in the Sprint Cup standings with three top-five and six top-10 finishes.

Kevin Doran's Daytona Prototype has competed in all nine rounds of the 2009 campaign, with a best finish of fifth at Virginia International Raceway in April, with Memo Gidley and Brad Jaeger at the wheel.

The next action for the Grand-Am Rolex Series will be the Aug. 29 Montreal 200 in Canada (SPEED Live, 2 p.m. ET), sharing Circuit Gilles Villeneuve with the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.Source URL: https://ashesgarrett.blogspot.com/search/label/Rolex%20Series
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