2006 Rolex Sports Car Series

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mlittle
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2006 Rolex Sports Car Series

Post by mlittle » Tue Nov 22, 2005 3:00 pm

Just as in open-wheel racing, there is a "schism" of sorts in sports-car racing. There are two separate series, the American LeMans Series and the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series, but there, thankfully, isn't the animosity and anger btwn. fans of the two series as there are btwn. those of Champ Car and the IRL. The main differences btwn. the ALMS and the Rolex Series are these:

1}The rules packages are different; the ALMS uses "Americanized" rules that are in accordance with the ACO rules for the 24 Hrs. of LeMans while the Rolex series uses rules that "equalize" the Daytona Prototype/Grand Touring divisions but allow for close-qtr. racing btwn and amongst the classes involved.

2}All the ALMS races(except Houston) are on road courses; the Rolex series uses both permanent road courses and "stadium-style" road courses set w/in permanent oval courses(Daytona, Homestead, Phoenix) and, for the first time in the series' history, a street race(DPs' only, Long Beach).

There is one big advantage these series have over their open-wheel brethren; you see a lot more "crossover" btwn. the two series; in addition, a lot of the IRL/CC drivers have raced in the Rolex Series. For instance, the following AOWR drivers participated at the 2005 Rolex 24 Hrs. of Daytona:(IRL)--Scott Dixon, Darren Manning, Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice, Dario Franchitti, Dan Wheldon, Scott Sharp, Jeff Bucknum, and Ryan Briscoe. (Champ Car)--Jon Fogarty[Atlantics], Michael McDowell, Michael Valiante, Paul Tracy, Sebastien Bourdais, Cristiano Da Matta and Roberto Moreno. There were even three V8 Supercar drivers, Paul Morris, Marcus Ambrose and Craig Baird, who came over to this side of the pond to race there, as well.

Here is the 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series schedule.....
(For more information, visit... www.grandamerican.com )

Rd. 1}Jan. 26-29: Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona(DP/GT), Daytona Intl. Speedway, Daytona Beach, Fla.
Rd. 2}March 2-4:Mexico City, Mexico(DP/GT), Autodromo Hermanos Rodriquez, Mexico City, Mx.
Rd. 3}April 7-8:Long Beach, Cal.(DP only), Oceanside Street Circuit, Long Beach, Ca.#
Rd. 4}April 21-23:Virginia International Raceway, Alton, Va.(DP/GT)
Rd. 5}May 5-7:Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Ca.(DP/GT)
Rd. 6}May 12-13:Phoenix International Raceway, Mesa, Az.(DP/GT)
Rd. 7}May 27-29:Lime Rock Park, Lakeville, Ct.(GT only)
Rd. 8}June 2-3:Sahlen's 6 Hours at the Glen(DP/GT), Watkins Glen Intl. Raceway, Chemung, NY##
Rd. 9}June 23-24:Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Columbus, Ohio(DP/GT)
Rd. 10}Brumos Porsche 250(DP/GT), Daytona Intl. Speedway, Daytona Beach, Fla.
Rd. 11}July 28-30:Barber Mtrspts. Course, Birmingham, Ala.(DP/GT)
Rd. 12}Aug. 10-11:Watkins Glen Intl. Raceway, Chemung, NY(DP only)
Rd. 13}Aug. 24-26:Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, Ca.(DP/GT)##
Rd. 14}Aug. 31-Sept. 2, 9 Hours of Utah(DP/GT), Miller Mtrspts. Park, Tooele, Utah

NOTES:1-DP, Daytona Prototype; 2-GT, Grand Touring; #-paired with the Champ Car World Series; ##-paired with the Indy Racing League
Last edited by mlittle on Tue May 09, 2006 12:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
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New Faces, Familiar Faces at Hoosier Tire Test

Post by mlittle » Sat Dec 03, 2005 12:53 pm

While round 1 of the Rolex Sports Car Series(RSCS) won't take place until the Rolex 24 @ Daytona in late Jan., most of the entries for that race will be at Homestead-Miami Speedway 5-6 Dec. for a 2-day open test. Here are some of the entries for the 24 Hrs./RSCS and their race cars....
(NOTE)--the entries aren't complete lists; more drivers are added around January prior to the cut-off date...

(DP)-#20 SunTrust Pontiac/Riley.....Wayne Taylor, Max Angelelli
(DP)-#01 CompUSA/Target Ganassi Lexus/Riley....Lusi Diaz, Scott Pruett
(DP)-#19 Air Force Reserve Ford/Crawford......Michael McDowell, Memo Gidley
(DP)-#58 Brumos Racing Porsche/Fabcar....David Donahue, Darren Law
(DP)-#7 Tuttle/SAMAX Pontiac/Riley.....Brian Tuttle
(DP)-#8 Rx.com/Synergy Porsche/Doran....Burt Friselle, Brian Friselle
(DP)-#09 Spirit of Daytona Pontiac/Riley....Marc-Antoine Camirand, Raphael Matos
(DP)-#15 CB Mtrspts. Pontiac/Riley....Chris Bingham, Randy Ruhlman
(DP)-#60 Flight Options Lexus/Riley....Mark Patterson, Oswaldo Negri
(DP)-#39 Cheever Racing Lexus/Crawford....Eddie Cheever, Christian Fittipaldi
(DP)-#23 Alex Job Racing Porsche/Crawford....Mike Rockenfeller, Patrick Long
(DP)-#27 Commercial Defeaseance Ford/Riley..Rob Finlay, Michael Valiante
(DP)-#12 Group 4/CCP Racing Ford/Multimatic....Jay Howard, Nick Boulie, Enzo Pottolichio
(DP)-#02 CompUSA/Target Ganassi Lexus/Riley....drivers TBA
(DP)-#09 Hyper Sports Infiniti/Doran....drivers TBA
(DP)-#77 Doran Racing Ford/Doran.....drivers TBA
(DP)-#91 RVO Mtrspts. Pontiac/Fabcar.....drivers TBA
(GT)-#65 TRG Racing Pontiac GTO-R....Andy Lally, Marc Bunting
(GT)-#64 TRG Racing Pontiac GTO-R....Paul Edwards, Jan Magnussen
(GT)-#08 Goldin Bros. Racing Mazda RX-8....Scott Finlay, Steve Goldin, Keith Goldin
(GT)-#70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8.....David Haskell, Sylvain Trembley
(GT)-#73 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3....Jim Tafel, Eric Lux, Robin Liddell, Graham Rahal
(GT)-#34 Canadian/All-Amer. Pontiac Grand-Am....Zave Aberman
(GT)-#36 TPC Racing Porsche GT3.......drivers TBA
(GT)-#68 TRG Racing Pontiac GTO-R...drivers TBA
(GT)-#69 TRG Racing Pontiac GTO-R....drivers TBA


If the race is like last year's, I expect about a half-dozen IRL/Champ Car drivers to enter besides' Cheever. The surprise, though, is seeing the son of 3-time ChampCar series champion/1986 Indy 500 champion Bobby Rahal on the list. It could mean he's possibly interested indoing the 24 Hrs. at Daytona; a win would go rather nicely with the 1987 Sebring title he already has. Oh, and he wouldn't be the only IRL owner in the Daytona paddock; Chip Ganassi's had at least one team in the Rolex Series since its' inception, so chances are both Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon will be in the 24, possibly in the #02 for TGR.
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Blackhawk Racing to field "All-American" team at R

Post by mlittle » Thu Dec 15, 2005 5:47 pm

Add one more team to the Rolex 24 at Daytona, as Blackhawk Racing announced earlier this week that they will be fielding, in the words of driver/co-owner Bob Stallings, an "All-American team" as they seek victory at the Rolex 24. Joining Stallings in the #99 Gainsco Auto Pontiac/Riley will be sportscar racer Alex Gurney, 1996 Champ Car series champion Jimmy Vasser and Atlantic Championship racer Rocky Moran, Jr. For Vasser, it marks a return to the prestigous endurance race, where he won class honors in a 1992 IMSA Lights car, and he finished third as a co-driver on a Ferrari 333SP for Washington-Ferrari Racing. For Moran, it's a return to a place his father, Rocky Moran, Sr., has won at. Back in 1993, he helped legendary racer Dan Gurney(Alex's father) win the 1993 overall title at Daytona for Gurney's All-American Racing team. As for Alex Gurney, it will be his second visit to the legendary Daytona road-circuit, which incorporates both a difficult, tight road course section with the track's high-banked(29-degree) oval course.
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IRL Vets to Pilot Pair of Daytona Prototypes

Post by mlittle » Wed Jan 04, 2006 5:09 pm

For IndyCar Series drivers Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice and Alex Barron, it's back to business for them as they will be assisting Finlay Mtrspts. during the upcoming Rolex 24 Hrs. @ Daytona, the team announced yesterday. They'll drive alongside Finlay regulars Memo Gidley and Michael Valiante in a pair of Ford/Crawford DPs' as follows.....

#28 Air Force Reserve Ford/Crawford......Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice, Rob Finlay and Michael Valiante
#No. TBA Sponsor(s) TBA Ford/Crawford.........Alex Barron, Memo Gidley and Michael McDowell

Here are some quotes from everyone involved....

Bryan Herta, Andretti-Green Racing:
I'm really excited to be joining Finlay Motorsports for the Rolex 24 at Daytona. I enjoyed my experience at the race last year and looking forward to getting back behind the wheel. I'm really comfortable with the driver lineup and feel that we'll be able to challenge for the victory.
Buddy Rice, Rahal-Letterman Racing:
Finlay Motorsports just seemed like a easy fit for me. I've worked with several of the guys on the team and even raced with a few of the drivers. I was looking for a team to race with that I felt had a good shot at winning the 24 and I think that this might just be the team.
Alex Barron, Team Cheever:
I'm really looking forward to my first Daytona 24-hour race. I'm excited to be reunited with my former teammate, Memo--we raced together in the Atlantic series together in 1997. I'm also looking forward to working with Steve (Cameron) again; I drove for him when I raced for Lynx Racing. This team won the last race of the season last year and I feel that they're definitely capable of winning the Rolex 24.
Steve Cameron, President, Finlay Motorsports:
I think that we've managed to put together a competitive lineup. Both cars have a realistic opportunity to challenge for the win. I'm excited to be working with drivers that have achieved so much in racing and its' nice to have worked with them all in some stage or another.
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Rolex 24 Testing---Entry List

Post by mlittle » Thu Jan 05, 2006 10:39 am

Beginning today and going through Jan. 7, testing commences for the 44th Rolex 24 Hrs. at Daytona as the official entry list was released today ( www.grandamerican.com/Events/EntryList.asp?EventID=132 ) and there is listed a total of 75 entries, 33 Daytona Prototypes' and 42 Grand Touring entries. There are a lot of familiar names in NA motorsports on the list, including.....

IRL:Scott Dixon, Dan Wheldon, Dario Franchitti, Adrian Fernandez, Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice, Eddie Cheever, Jr., Patrick Carpentier
Champ Car:Paul Tracy, Ryan Briscoe, Michael McDowell, Michael Valiante, Jim Michaelian, A.J. Allmendinger, Justin Wilson, Graham Rahal, Ryan Dalziel, Jimmy Vasser, Rocky Moran, Jr.

Good luck to all competitors! :up: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:


Add at least one more name to those listed above......according to autoracing1.com, Howard-Boss Mtrspts. has added 2005 IRL IndyCar Series rookie-of-the-year Danica Patrick to the #2 Citgo-Boss Pontiac/Crawford lineup, joining road racing veteran Boris Said, former F1 driver and current ALMS driver Allan MicNish and former NASCAR Nextel Cup legend Rusty Wallace.

NOTE:According to ar1.com on Thursday, they confirmed that she will be racing in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Patrick ran about 20 laps in the Pontiac/Crawford DP, running consistent lap times during the session. The team also worked on pit stop procedures and on getting in/out of the DP vehicles.
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Day 1 Testing Results, Rolex 24 @ Daytona

Post by mlittle » Sat Jan 07, 2006 1:37 pm

Top times for each practice session(DP class)......

Session 1}#99 Gainsco/Blackhawk Pon/R(Stallings, Vasser, Gurney, Moran, Jr.)..........1:45.265 secs./121.750 mph
Session 2}#4 The Boss Snowplow Pon/C(A. Wallace, Leitzinger, Stewart).........1:45.352 secs./121.649 mph
Session 3}#6 Fusion/Graydon Elliott L/R(Wilden, Borkowski, P. Mears, Tracy)..........1:45.818 secs./121.114 mph
Session 4}#10 SunTrust Racing Pon/R(Taylor, Angelelli, Collard, Briscoe).......1:45.963 secs./120.948 secs.



Top 5 after Session #4(DP class)..........
1}#99 Gainsco/Blackhawk Pon/R...............1:45.265(1)
2}#4 The Boss/Snowplow Pon/C................1:45.282(1)
3}#10 SunTrust Racing Pon/R....................1:45.305 (1)
4}#58 Red Bull/Brumos Pors/F...................1:45.524(2)
5}#01 Target/CompUSA Lex/R..................1:45.580(1)

Top session times for GT class..........

Session 1}#65 The Racers' Group Pontiac GTO-R(Lally, Bunting, Valentine, O'Connell).........1:55.712 secs./110.758 mph
Session 2}#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3(Lux, Espenlaub, Davis, G. Rahal)........1:55.524 secs./110.938 mph
Session 3}#82 Farnbacher Racing Porsche GT3(Werner, Peter, Quester, Wolf)..........1:55.477 secs./110.983 mph
Session 4}#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3(Lux, Espenlaub, Davis, G. Rahal).........1:54.136 secs./112.847 mph.



Top 5 times after Session #4(GT class)............
1}#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3..............1:54.136 secs(4)
2}#82 Farnbacher Racing Porsche GT3.....1:55.477 secs(3)
3}#22 Fioriano Racing Porsche GT3..........1:55.526 secs(4)
4}#65 The Racers Group Pontiac GTO-R....1:55.565 secs(1)
5}#73 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3...............1:55.739 secs(2)

NOTE:Each team can post only their fastest time, regardless of session.
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Rolex 24, Day 2 Testing Results

Post by mlittle » Sat Jan 07, 2006 5:47 pm

With one day of testing remaining, here are the top times from the two Friday sessions.

Top session times in both the DP and Gt classes.....

Session 5}DP-#10 SunTrust Racing Pon/R(Taylor, Angelelli, Collard, Briscoe).............1:43.698 secs./123.580 mph
Session 5}GT-#82 Farnbacher Racing Porsche GT3(Werner, Peter, Quester, Wolf).........1:53.342 sec.s/113.074 mph
Session 6}DP-#58 Red Bull/Brumos Pors/F(Donohue, Law, Maassen, Christopher)..........1:43.958 secs./123.286 mph
Session 6}GT-#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3(Lux, Espoenlaub, Davis, G. Rahal)..............1.53.028 secs./113.388 mph


Top 5 on the combined charts........
DP class}1--#10 SunTrust Racing Pon/R..........1:43.698 secs.(5)
2--#58 Red Bull/Brumos Pors/F.........1:43.958 secs.(6)
3--#19 Air Force Reserve Ford/C.......1:44.047 secs.(6)
4--#02 Target/CompUSA Lex/R.........1:44.065 secs.(5)
5--#23 Alex Job/Emory Pors/C..........1:44.133 secs.(6)
GT class}1--#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3.......1:53.028 secs.(6)
2--#82 Farnbacher Racing Porsche GT3....1:53.342 secs.(5)
3--#73 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3.............1:53.819 secs.(5)
4--#65 The Racers Group Pontiac GTO-R..1:54.216 secs.(6)
5--#36 TPC Racing Porsche GT3..............1:54.326 secs.(6)
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Daytona tests conclude on positive note

Post by mlittle » Sun Jan 08, 2006 4:23 pm

With the sun down, the Daytona Test Days running up to the 44th annual Rolex 24 @ Daytona concluded today w/drivers having run a total of 10,181 laps(36,244.36 miles) on the 3.56-mile "roval" which combines a tight, twisting road course section with all but a 3/5ths'-mile section of the famed Daytona Intl. Speedway oval. Here are the top session times for both the Daytona Prototype(DP) and the Grand Touring(GT) classes, along with the final top-5 fastest times.......



Session 7}DP class---#23 Alex Job/Emory Pors/C(Rockenfeller, Long, Luhr)...........1:43.828 secs.(123.425 mph)
Session 7}GT class---#82 Farnbacher Racing Porsche GT3(Werner, Peter, Quester, Wolf)..............1:53.670 secs.(112.747 mph)
Session 8}DP class---#23 Alex Job/Emory Pors/C(Rockenfeller, Long, Luhr)...........1:43.431 secs.(123.903 mph)
Session 8}GT class---#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3(Lux, Espenlaub, Davis, G. Rahal)..........1:52.704 secs.(113.704 mph)

Top 5 DP class times.........
1}#23 Alex Job/Emory Pors/C...........1:43.431 secs.[8]
2}#10 SunTrust Racing Pont/R...........1:43.698 secs.[5]
3}#58 Red Bull/Brumos Pors/F...........1:43.953 secs.[5]
4}#19 Air Force Reserve Ford/C.........1:44.047 secs.[5]
5}#02 Target/CompUSA Lex/R...........1:44.065 secs.[5]

Top 5 GT class times...........
1}#74 Tafel Racing Porsche GT3.............1:52.704 secs.[8]
2}#82 Farnbacher Racing Porsche GT3....1:53.342 secs.[5]
3}#17 SAMAX Porsche GT3....................1:53.668 secs.[8]
4}#64 The Racers Group Pontiac GTO-R..1:53.722 secs.[7]
5}#65 The Racers Group Pontiac GTO-R..1:53.764 secs.[7]
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Star-Filled Lineup for Rolex 24

Post by mlittle » Fri Jan 20, 2006 1:17 pm

Rolex Sports Car Series officials released the official entry list for the 44th annual Rolex 24 at Daytona. There will be a record 73 total entries for the Jan. 28-29 race, 31 Daytona Prototypes and 42 Grand Touring racecars will take the green flag around noon on the 28th, with the checkers after noon on the 29th. 17 former race winners will be on the grid for the race, including:1]Hurley Haywood(5-time winner, '73, '75', '77, '79 and '91), 2]3-time winners Butch Leitzinger('94, ''97 and '99) and Andy Wallace('90, '97', and '99), and 2}2-time winner Wayne Taylor('96 and 05'); 13 others have won once.

Both major AOWR series(IRL, ChampCar) will be represented in force at the Rolex 24. On the IndyCar side of the ledger are(w/car no. and class designation) Danica Patrick(#2 DP), Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon(#02 DP), Dario Franchitti(#7 DP), Ryan Briscoe(#10 DP), Adrian Fernandez and Scott Sharp(#12 DP), Alex Barron(#19 DP), Bryan Herta & Buddy Rice(#28 DP), and Eddie Cheever, Jr. and Patrick Carpentier(#39 DP). ChampCar's list of drivers includes Paul Tracy(#6 DP), Memo Gidley and Michael McDowell(#19 DP), Michael Valiante(#28 DP), Stefan Johansson(#51 DP), A.J. Allmendinger and Justin Wilson(#60 DP), Graham Rahal(#72 GT), Michel Jourdain, Jr.(#77 DP), Ryan Dalziel and Jon Fogarty(#89 DP), and Jimmy Vasser and Rocky Moran, Jr.(#99 DP).

note 1:order of drivers from each series goes by the car number that they will drive; DP-Daytona Prototype, GT-Grand Touring
note 2:one additional CCWS driver will be at Daytona; 2-time CC titleist Sebastien Bourdais will race in the Rolex Series' Grand-Am 200, a support race for the Rolex 24.
note 3:in addition to the Rolex 24, Michael McDowell and Memo Gidley will also race that weekend in the GA 200 race in a Ford Mustang GT in the Grand-Am Cup Series' Grand Sport(GS) class
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Rolex 24 at Daytona---Update, 8:11 PM U.S. EDT

Post by mlittle » Sun Jan 29, 2006 11:34 am

With 8+ hours in the books, here are some of the storylines floating about the Daytona Intl. Speedway after 8 hours of the 44th Rolex 24 at Daytona........

1}Repeat of Indy? It was shades of the 89th Indy 500 at the 4 hr., 15 min. mark as the #02 Target/CompUSA Lexus/Riley, driven by 2005 IRL IndyCar Series winner Dan Wheldon, led the 2005 IRL IndyCar Series rookie winner, Danica Patrick, driving the #2 Calloway Golf Pontiac/Crawford, for about 15-20 mins. While Patrick was unable to make up any ground on Wheldon, neither could Wheldon pull away from her. The two stayed w/in 20 secs. of each other until Patrick had to make a pitstop for fuel, tires and a driver change, handing the car over to vet. sports-car racer Boris Said.

2}No repeat for the SunTrust boys....after only running 124 laps, it was an early curtain call for the #10 SunTrust team of Wayne Taylor, Max Angelelli, Emmanuel Collard and Ryan Briscoe, as Taylor was involved in a wreck with a GT car; the GT car also retired, but the defending Rolex 24 champion DP will not revisit victory lane in 2006.

3}Quiet day for the GT's. While there have been almost 2 dozen lead changes in the Daytona Prototype class, the Grand Touring class has had a...more sedate, yet equally challenging race of their own.

Current top-5 in each class(after 248 laps)...

DP-1}#39 Patrick Carpentier(IRL)
DP-2}#60 A.J. Allmendinger(CCWS)
DP-3}#2 Rusty Wallace(Nextel Cup)
DP-4}#02 Scott Dixon(IRL)
DP-5}#01 Scott Pruett(Rolex Series)

GT-1}#82 Dirk Werner(Rolex Series)
GT-2}#36 Randy Pobst(SCCA SpeedWorld Challenge)
GT-3}#65 Andy Lally(ALMS)
GT-4}#70 David Haskell(Rolex Series)
GT-5}#64 Kelly Collins(Rolex Series)
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Ganassi drivers take overall win at Rolex 24

Post by mlittle » Mon Jan 30, 2006 9:03 am

As the dust settles on the 44th running of the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, here are some of the highlights of the race......

1}The ringers did it! In a race which features stars from the stock-car, open-wheel and sports-car world, it was a trio of Ganassi "ringers", IRL regulars Dan Wheldon and Scott Dixon, and NASCAR Nextel Cup driver Casey Mears, who walked away with the overall win, bringing the #02 Target/CompUSA Lexus/Riley to victory in the Daytona Prototype class. It wasn't easy, though, as they fought off two very determined challengers overnight and into the morning sun. Both the #23 Alex Job/Shred-It Porsche Crawford w/Lucas Luhr, Patrick Long and Mike Rockenfeller, along with the #60 Flight Options Lexus/Riley of Mark Patterson, Oswaldo Negri, and Champ Car drivers A.J. Allmendinger and Justin Wilson.

2}Welcome to the club, Dan! In winning the Rolex 24, 2005 IRL IndyCar Series winner Dan Wheldon became the first driver to win the Rolex 24, the Indy 500 and the IndyCar Series title w/in a 12-month period. He also joined legends A.J. Foyt, Jr., Mario Andretti, Bobby Rahal, the late Mark Donohue, Arie Luyendyk, (Big) Al Unser, Sr., and (Little) Al Unser, Jr. as the only drivers to win all three titles in their respective careers. Congulations, Dan! :up: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

3}Disappointing day for the ladies. :( For the two women entered in the Rolex 24, it was not a very good day. For Rolex Sports Car Series regular Milka Duno, her day ended when the #7 SAMAX Pontiac/Crawford, driven by teammate Marino Franchitti, suffered a broken CV joint at the halfway point. For IRL IndyCar Series driver Danica Patrick, part of a four-person team driving the #2 Calloway Golf Pontiac/Crawford, a day that started out well went out the window very fast. At about the 9-hour mark, they had just performed a driver change(Patrick in, R. Wallace out) when she reported that the engine was "mis-firing". When the team took the car behind the wall to the paddock, the team's engineers had bad news.....the engine, which had been running well up to that point, had blown a cylinder and their day was done.

4}A record number of laps run. With 734 laps run, the race set a modern-day record for the total number of laps(11 more than in 2005). However, the longest-ever record goes to the 1992 Rolex 24, which lasted 764 laps.

Next Race:March 2-4, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Mexico City, Mx.
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PT to drive at Hermanos Rodriguez

Post by mlittle » Sat Feb 25, 2006 5:23 pm

Apparently 2003 Champ Car series champion Paul Tracy made a good impression on the Graydon Elliott squad, as they have invited him to race for the team at the upcoming Rolex Series race in Mexico City next week. Ironically, it will be a doubleheader or sorts for Tracy, as he is also slated to race in the NASCAR Bushc Series race there that weekend as well.
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Pruett takes P1 at Hermanos Rodriguez

Post by mlittle » Sat Mar 04, 2006 3:21 pm

For Target/Ganassi Racing's duo of Scott Pruett and Luis Diaz, it's just another day at the office; the pair will start on the pole for tomorrow's Mexico City 250, round 2 of the 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series. Pruett set the fast flyer midway through qualifying, and held on to put the #01 Telmex Lexus/Riley DP on point for the race w/a time of 1:22.732 secs. For Pruett, it's the seventh Rolex Series pole, his first, though since the 6 Hrs. of Mt. Tremblant last year. On the outside of row 1 are the brothers Frisselle, as Brian Frisselle put the #8 Glycomax Porsche/Doran in P2. A pair of ChampCar pilots sit in third; Michael McDowell, who won last year's race at H. Rodriguez, piloted the #19 Playboy/Uniden/Palms Casino Ford/Crawford into the inside of row 2; sharing the ride w/McDowell is former CC driver Memo Gidley.

Over in the GT(Grand Touring) division, rebounding from a not-so-great performance at Daytona in the Rolex 2, it will be a Pontiac GTO-R in P1 for that class; Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards will share the racing duties for The Racers Group in the #64 TRG Pontiac GTO-R. On the outside, however, will be one of the more successful Porsche 911 GT3's from the Rolex 24, the #72 NEC/Rembrandt Porsche driven by Robin Liddell and Wolf Henzler.

As for the race.....it's scheduled for around 4:00 PM Mexico City time(about 5 PM U.S. EST), and will be broadcast on same-day tape via Speed Channel at 8:30 PM Saturday evening.
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Diaz wins in Mexico City!

Post by mlittle » Sun Mar 05, 2006 2:41 pm

For Mexico City native Luis Diaz, it was a special victory for him, as he and co-driver Scott Pruett won a wire-to-wire victory in Mexico City today in the second round of the 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series', the Mexico City 250. For the duo, it was clear sailing from the drop of the green; no one had anything for them. For the rest of the top 5, it was anything but smooth sailing. For the two other podium pairings, Colin Braun/Jorg Bergmeister and Mike Borkowski/Paul Tracy, it was a hard-fought battle, especially for PT, who pulled off a high-side in the Peraltada(turn 8] late in the race, passing veteran sports car ace Andy Wallace for third. Rounding out the top 5 were the duos of Butch Leitzinger/Andy Wallace and Harrison Brix/Terry Borcheller.

Over in the GT category, it was a different story, as several teams led throughout the race. However, in the end, it was the TRG Pontiac GTO-R of Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards who came out on top, followed by Leh Keen and David Murry in a Porsche 911 GT3, followed in third by the second TRG Pontiac GTO-R of Andy Lally and Marc Bunting.


Daytona Prototype Top-5......
1}Scott Pruett/Luis Diaz................#01 Telmex/Ganassi Lexus/Riley
2}Colin Braun/Jorg Bergmeister.....#76 Krohn Racing Ford/Riley
3}Mike Borkowski/Paul Tracy.........#6 Graydon Elliott Lexus/Riley
4}Butch Leitzinger/Andy Wallace.....#4 The Boss Snowplow Pontiac/Crawford
5}Harrison Brix/Terry Borcheller.....#77 Feeds the Need Ford/Doran


Grand Touring Top-5.......
1}Kelly Collins/Paul Edwards...........#64 TRG Pontiac GTO-R
2}Leh Keen/David Murry.................#74 Synergy Racing Porsche 911 GT3
3}Andy Lally/Marc Bunting...............#65 TRG Pontiac GTO-R
4}Robin Liddell/Wolf Henzler............#72 Tafel Racing Porsche 911 GT3
5}Jim Tafel/Andrew Davis................#73 NEC/Rembrandt Porsche 911 GT3

The series moves on to the Homestead-Miami Speedway for round three, the Linder Industrial/Komatsu Grand Prix of Miami on March 25.
The Sci-Fi Station Come by and visit when you get the chance. :)
The Wayward Tarheel I'm even in the blogosphere.... :shock:

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Porsche scores victory at Homestead

Post by mlittle » Mon Mar 27, 2006 6:00 am

The last time a Porsche won in a Rolex Sports Car Series event was at the 6-Hrs. of Mt. Tremblant back in 2003; that winless streak ended last night as the Alex Job Racing duo of Mike Rockenfeller and Patrick Long led for most of the event, winning the Linder Industrial/Komatsu Grand Prix of Miami at Homestead-Miami Speedway, beating back challenges from both the Lexus/Riley of Ganassi Racing's Scott Pruett/Luis Diaz and the Cheever Racing Porsche/Crawford of Christian Fittipaldi and Porsche works driver Lucas Luhr. In the GT category, the Pontiac duo of Paul Edwards and Kelly Collins captured their second win of the season, holding off challenges from Tafel Racing and from MazdaSpeed Racing to win in the GT category.


Top-5 Daytona Prototype results.....
1}Mike Rockenfeller/Patrick Long..............#23 Alex Job/Emory Porsche/Crawford
2}Christian Fittipaldi/Lucas Luhr................#39 Crown Royal Porsche/Crawford
3}Scott Pruett/Luis Diaz...........................#01 CompUSA Ganassi Lexus/Riley
4}Michael McDowell/Memo Gidley..............#19 Playboy/Uniden Ford/Crawford
5}Rob Finlay/Michael Valiante....................#5 Air Force Reserve Ford/Crawford

Top-5 Grand Touring results.......
1}Kelly Collins/Paul Edwards.....................#64 The Racer's Group Pontiac GTO-R
2}David Haskell/Sylvain Tremblay..............#70 MazdaSpeed Mazda RX-8
3}Wolf Henzler/Robin Liddell......................#72 NEC/Rembrandt Porsche 911 GT3
4}Matt Alhadeff/Bill Auberlen......................#05 enVista/Motul BMW M3
5}Emil Assentato/Nick Longhi......................#22 FXDO/Denon Porsche 911 GT3

For the GT field, they get the next couple of weeks off....but for the DP field, its' just a one-week break before they head to the streets of Long Beach for a 90-minute sprint race Sat., April 8th.
The Sci-Fi Station Come by and visit when you get the chance. :)
The Wayward Tarheel I'm even in the blogosphere.... :shock:

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