Sunday Group Management

AJ Allmendinger and Walldinger Racing Create Karting Scholarship

AJ Allmendinger and Walldinger Racing Create Karting Scholarship

Karter giving back by creating new scholarship

February 15, 2012–(Daytona Beach, FL)–As the child of two parents who went to work everyday (and sometimes nights, as mom is a nurse…) AJ Allmendinger didn’t come from the kind of background that provided him an unlimited budget to go racing. Fortunately, significant parental sacrifices, Allmendinger’s natural talent and desire, and some well-timed help from racing scholarships helped him race his way to the pinnacle of the sport.

Having seen first hand the impact that some outside help can have on a racer’s career, Allmendinger is very pleased to announce a new program that will see a deserving young karter receive a scholarship to race in the 2012 World Karting Association championship starting March 23-25 at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, South Carolina. The scholarship winner will also be set to compete in the Rotax Grand Nationals in August and SKUSA SuperNationals in November.

While Allmendinger was lucky enough to have a winning personality to go with his tremendous on-track skill set, he knows that being the full package is key to getting attention and earning the sponsorship and support needed to move up. To that end, the scholarship prize winner will also receive media and management training from Walldinger Racing, Allmendinger’s management firm.

Allmendinger’s scholarships included prizes from the Skip Barber Racing School (where he finished second in the 2001 National Championship and won the 2002 Barber Dodge Pro Series Championship) as well as being selected to compete by the TEAM USA Scholarship, run by long time broadcaster and motorsports benefactor Jeremy Shaw.

“I was very lucky, so many different times through my career, to get the support that I needed to keep racing and keep moving up,” said Allmendinger, who opened the 2012 season with a win in the 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona for Michael Shank Racing. “So I feel very fortunate to be in a position to try to help someone else who is trying to do the same thing. I’ve had really great partners through my career and I think you can expect some exciting announcements as we go forward with this program. I am really looking forward to this being the start of something good for some young racer out there.”

Beginning today, Serious applicants ages 13-16 are asked to send their CV, racing credentials, photo, and short summary of their racing goals to:

Karting

Deadline for entry is March 10, 2012.

About Walldinger Racing, Inc.: Walldinger Racing was formed in 2006 to support AJ Allmendinger’s motorsports career by developing commercial opportunities and partnership programs.

AJ-KartingScholarship.pdf

AJ ALLMENDINGER READY FOR NEXT CHAPTER OF CAREER TO BEGIN

AJ ALLMENDINGER READY FOR NEXT CHAPTER OF CAREER TO BEGIN

-Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Driver Making Second Career Shootout Start In Saturday Night’s Battle-

Contact: Tom Roberts – (256) 508-259
trpr

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 15, 2012) – AJ Allmendinger is eager to get the next chapter of his career under way this weekend at Daytona International Speedway. His debut driving Penske Racing’s No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge comes in Saturday’s non-points Budweiser Shootout on the famous 2.5-mile tri-oval track.

“It’ll be a huge moment in my career when I take the green flag there on Saturday night as a driver for Roger Penske,” said Allmendinger, the 30-year-old Los Gatos, Calif., native. “We’ve been looking forward to this occasion for several months now and it’ll be great to finally get the 2012 season under way.

“We were out at Shell and Pennzoil’s headquarters in Houston last week and our sponsors were quick to let me know that their car has won the Shootout three out of the last five years. So there’s absolutely no pressure at all going into Saturday’s race,” chuckled “Dinger,” as he’s come to affectionately be known by the media and fans alike. “Seriously, they all know what racing on the restrictor-plate tracks involves, so there’s not really any additional pressure on us.

“Sure, we’d love to be able to kick the season off with a win in the Shootout there on Saturday night and we’ll be trying our best to do that,” Dinger said, “But, our Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Team already has the big picture in mind even before Daytona Speed Weeks begin. We definitely hope to start the schedule off with a lot of success, but everyone knows how much luck comes into play at Daytona and Talladega.

“I’ve had so many media guys ask me if I thought this would be the best shot I ever had of winning at Daytona. Like I’ve told them, I don’t necessarily feel like this will definitely be my best opportunity at Daytona, but I know it will be my absolute best shot at winning races at all the tracks.”

Allmendinger will be racing in only his second career Shootout on Saturday night. He started 18th and drove to a fifth-place finish in the 2009 edition of the special event.

“In all the seasons before, it was a race where the past year’s pole winners were in the field,” said Dinger. “We had won the pole for the spring race at Phoenix in 2008, but that didn’t have any bearing at all. Instead, it was a situation where the top six teams from each manufacturer were invited.

“I had moved over to drive the No. 44 car for Petty and they were with Dodge,” Dinger explained. “Ganassi had switched from Dodge to Chevrolet when they merged with DEI (Dale Earnhardt Inc.), so there was quite a bit of jockeying around to see who made the field and who didn’t that year. We were able to get into the race as the final Dodge – their wild card for the race – and had to go last in the draw for our starting spot. We drew 18th.

“In the race, the car had been really fast and right before the break, we were battling for the lead with Jimmie (Johnson),” Dinger recalled. “I felt pretty confident, but at the end there were a lot of accidents. I remember coming through (Turns) 3 and 4, there was a big wreck and I made it through, but got shuffled back to finish fifth.”

Once again, Saturday night’s Shootout’s distance will again be 75 laps (187.5 miles), which will consist of two segments, 25 and 50 laps. Both green-flag laps and yellow-flag laps will count. In between segments, there will be a 10-minute pit stop allowing drivers to pit to change tires, add fuel and make normal chassis adjustments. Crews will be permitted to work on cars and be allowed to perform functions they would do on a normal pit stop in a regular NASCAR Sprint Cup event. All work must be performed on pit road or in the garage with the changing of springs, shock absorbers or rear-ends not permitted.

“The format doesn’t really bother me,” Dinger offered. “I think maybe the second segment should be shorter to make it more exciting. I think everybody is just going to try and play it cool until the last 10 or so laps and then just go all out.”

Allmendinger and his Todd Gordon-led No. 22 Penske Racing Team will be utilizing their “PRS-641” Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger in this weekend’s action at the World Center of Racing. It will mark the first race for this chassis.

Daytona Speed Weeks 2012 action gets under way this Friday with Budweiser Shootout practice scheduled from 5:00 p.m. till 5:45 p.m. The final “happy hour” practice for the Shootout is set from 6:30 p.m. till 7:30 p.m. SPEED-TV will cover the practice sessions live as well as the “draw” for starting positions (delayed broadcast starting at 8:30 p.m.) Saturday’s action includes Daytona 500 practices from 11:00 a.m. till 1:00 p.m. and from 2:00 p.m. till 3:45 p.m. Saturday’s Budweiser Shootout, a 75-lap battle consisting of a 25-lap segment and a 50-lap segment with a 10-minute break in between, features live coverage by FOX-TV, MRN Radio and Sirius-XM NASCAR Channel 90 and is set to begin at 8:10 p.m. ET.

Qualifying for the front row (Coors Light Pole Award and outside pole) for the 54th annual Daytona 500 is set for Sunday at 1:05 p.m. FOX-TV will provide live coverage.

The first of Thursday’s (Feb. 23) “Gatorade Duels” 150-mile qualifying races gets the green flag at 2:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage of all the action will be provided by SPEED-TV and MRN Radio. The Sunday, Feb. 26 Daytona 500 has a scheduled 1:00 p.m. ET starting time here at Daytona International Speedway. FOX-TV, MRN Radio and Sirius-XM NASCAR Channel 90 will provide live coverage of all the action.

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About Walldinger Racing, Inc.: Walldinger Racing was formed in 2006 to support AJ Allmendinger’s motorsports career by developing commercial opportunities and partnership programs.

AJ-PenskeRacingPreview.pdf

Programming Reminder-Michael Marsal and Boris Said Start the 2012 GRAND-AM Season at Daytona

TUNE IN ALERT: SPEED, SATURDAY 12:00 PM ET
GRAND AM CONTINENTAL TIRE SPORTS CAR CHALLENGE

Programming Reminder: Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge on SPEED – 12:00 PM ET Saturday, February 4

Be sure to tune into the BMW Performance 200 on Saturday at 12:00 PM ET on SPEED. Michael Marsal looked for a strong start to the 2012 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship at Daytona International Speedway in the highly-competitive Grand Sport class as he teamed with Boris Said in the No. 97 Turner Motorsport BMW. The race is the first of the 10-round championship, set to conclude in September at Lime Rock Park.

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Riley Technologies DPG3 Dominates Daytona With Eighth Consecutive Win

Riley Technologies DPG3 Dominates Daytona With Eighth Consecutive Win

Moves past Porsche record with consecutive chassis wins

Photo courtesy GRAND AM

Daytona Beach, FL (1 February 2012)— You only get one chance to make a first impression, and the all-new Riley Technologies MK XXVI DPG3 nailed it this weekend by dominating the 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona.

Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian led a Riley sweep of the podium as John Pew, Ozz Negri, AJ Allmendinger, and Justin Wilson took Riley to its eighth consecutive Rolex 24 victory.

A name that is already synonymous with victory, the win further solidified the Riley reputation as Riley Technologies broke Porsche’s record for consecutive chassis victories.

Fighting the team all the way to the finish was the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport entry of Ryan Dalziel, Lucas Luhr, Allan McNish, Enzo Potolicchio, and Alex Popow. A spirited battle for the lead between McNish and Allmendinger with over two hours remaining in the race saw the duo making side to side contact at full speed on the oval, with both Riley entries continuing to the finish unscathed.

Completing the Riley Tech podium sweep was the No. 6 Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian Ford-powered entry. The second-generation DP design, driven by the youngest line of of racers in the event with Michael McDowell, Felipe Nasr, Gustavo Yacaman, and Jorge Goncalvez, finished less than one minute behind the winning entry of the sister Mike Shank machine. The No. 6 had been the highest qualifier of the previous generation designs.

The weekend opened with the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport Riley scoring the pole in qualifying and the Riley machines were once again the class of the field, leading 711 of a new DP-era record 761 laps with a total of 22 different drivers leading the race. The victory also marked the 11th Rolex 24 At Daytona overall race victory for a Riley-designed machine in the last 17 years, with Riley-penned machines also having numerous class victories to the firm’s credit.

In addition to sweeping the top six positions overall, Riley Technologies also showed well in the 44-car GT class field scoring two top-10 results with the No.70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 of James Hinchcliffe, Sylvain Tremblay, Jonathan Bomarito and Marino Franchitti finishing the race in sixth and the No. 40 Dempsey Racing Mazda RX-8 of Joe Foster, Patrick Dempsey, Tom Long, Charles Espenlaub and Charles Putman finishing 10th.

Adding to the impressive weekend outing was the fact that the final Riley DPG3 design was not approved by GRAND-AM until late in the off-season, creating a narrow timetable to have everything completed. By making the most of the vendor partners and team relationships that Riley Technologies enjoys, a tremendous group effort brought the ultimate reward with the big race finish.

“This 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 was a huge event, so to introduce a new design and have it finish 1-2 in its very first race is outstanding,” said Riley Technologies Vice President Bill Riley. "We had a late start on this project and our shop and our composite vendors have worked non-stop for the last two months preparing for this race. The teams did not have all of their parts in hand until they were at the track in Daytona. Having a team run a second-generation DP right to the podium was also very cool. Congrats to Mike Shank and his entire group for just an incredible performance, all weekend long– a great accomplishment after a lot of hard work. Everyone had such high expectations for this race, and I think that the quality of the racing was some of the best we’ve seen. We are very excited about the 2012 GRAND-AM season, and this was the best way possible to kick it off.”

2011 marked Riley’s eighth consecutive Manufacturer Championship, and Riley’s DP designs have 85 wins to their credit, including eight consecutive Rolex 24 At Daytona victories.

The firm will look for continued success in Daytona Prototype, Rolex GT and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition as GRAND-AM next heads to Barber Motorsports Park March 30-31.
Notes:

For more information or questions, please contact: Bill Riley, (704) 663-6319 *302

For additional information: www.rileytech.com
Media Contact: Matt Cleary, Sunday Group Management
media
317-908-2975

About Riley Technologies:
Riley Technologies has an extended legacy of success, developing competitive on-track products for the Rolex Sports Car Series, the American LeMans Series, the USAC Gold Crown Series, and the Japanese GT Championship Series.

About Siemens:
Riley Tech has long relied on Siemens PLM Software to help design and develop their race-winning machines. NX software, Siemens PLM Software’s digital product development solution which includes computer-aided design, -manufacturing and -engineering (CAD/CAM/CAE) applications, is the preferred development software. NX Software was cited as a driving force behind Riley taking a sixth straight Daytona Prototype Manufacturers championship in 2009 before kicking the 2010 season off with a win at Daytona International.

RileyWins2012Rolex24.pdf

Frisselle Racing Scores Seventh in 50th Rolex 24

Frisselle Racing Scores Seventh in 50th Rolex 24

www.frisselleracing.com
www.twitter.com/Frisselleracing

Daytona Beach, FL (29 January 2012) – The Rolex 24 At Daytona has long been recognized as one big sprint race.

Unfortunately in every sprint race, every step matters, and all it took was one quick misstep for the Frisselle brothers’ run in the 2012 Rolex 24 At Daytona to be compromised.

The pair joined Jim Lowe and Paul Tracy in the No. 77 Combos/Circle K Ford-Dallara for the historic 50th running of the event and battled back after an early-race motor issue to finish seventh.

Brian qualified the car 10th and as he opened the 24-hour endurance classic, he immediately noticed that the No. 77 was down on power. Following his hour-long opening stint, the team sent the No. 77 Ford to the garage where the Roush-Yates engineers quickly identified the problem, replacing a coil and spark plugs to have the car back on track, fighting from several laps down.

Burt returned to the order deep in the field, but the persevering team continued on with all four drivers cycling through and running clean and trouble-free laps. The team did everything they could to make up time. But in a race that saw few cautions and ran a blistering fast pace that set a new DP-era record of 761 laps completed at Daytona International Speedway, the group just did not catch the lucky breaks they needed.

“It wasn’t what we wanted,” said Brian. “I was really disappointed to start off with that coil issue right at the beginning, but other than that the car ran very smoothly the rest of the race. Burt and Paul did a great job and I’m just happy to finish this long race. We’ve seen cars come back from being several laps down, so we didn’t want to give up. But this race just was not ours. I think it shows how perfectly it has to go to win this race–one small problem and that was it. Thanks to the team for the effort, all day and all night and all day. On to the next one.”

“It was a bummer that we fell down so many laps right at the beginning because I feel like if we hadn’t of had that one issue I think we would have been in contention for a top-five,” added Burt. “We knew that we didn’t have the outright pace, but once we got the car sorted it was just fuel and tires the rest of the way and that would have probably paid off with a stronger finish. At least we made it to the finish and got a start on the Endurance Championship here. Hopefully we’ll be back in action soon, and can build on this start to the year.”

The next stop on the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series circuit is Barber Motorsports Park March 29 – April 1.

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Marsal Starts 2012 With Busy Weekend at Daytona

Marsal Starts 2012 With Busy Weekend at Daytona

Daytona Beach, FL (29 January 2012) – After running two races and driving countless laps at Daytona International Speedway, Michael Marsal will sleep well tonight.

Opening the 2012 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge season with a run to sixth in Friday’s BMW Performance 200, it was then back to Daytona International Speedway on Saturday for Marsal as the Rolex Sports Car Series staged the historic 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona.

In addition to Marsal’s full-time campaign in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge with Turner Motorsport teammate Boris Said, he was also tabbed to run the 24-hour endurance classic in the highly-competitive GT category for the team, joining Bill Auberlen, Paul Dalla Lana, Dirk Muller and Dirk Werner in the No. 93 BMW M3.

After a mammoth drivers meeting, morning autograph session, and a huge grid procedural build up to the race, Marsal first took control of the No. 93 machine during the evening hours. Opening with a nearly hour long stint, Marsal kept to the Turner Motorsport program and kept the laps clicking off as he worked through the huge GT class field, with the faster DP machines a constant presence as well.

Keeping the car clean and trouble-free among the 44-car GT class, he took to the track in the 25th position and moved up to 23rd before handing the BMW machine over to co-driver Dirk Werner.

“It went well – for me it’s all about maintenance and making sure the car stays out of trouble and I made sure I did that,” said Marsal following his first stint. “The tire wear was fine. Will said it was going to get slippery at the end of the stint and that’s exactly what it did. The track is actually in fairly good condition. It’s not that time yet where there is parts and debris everywhere and nothing is really oiled up yet.”

The flat out pace produced a record-setting run for the winning DP car, with the big GT class field not producing the expected run of yellow flag periods.

“It’s actually really amazing at the few cautions we’ve had with the amount of racing and the amount of cars out there. Everybody seems to be doing what they’re supposed to be doing!” said Marsal.

He returned to take the reigns of the BMW at 4:30 AM to run a 45-minute stint and again displayed his consistency and patience as he ran 15th in the order. After handing the car over to Werner, Marsal had ample time to rest up before returning to his duties behind the wheel around noon on Sunday. With the main goal of keeping the car out of trouble and running clean laps, he again maintained a focused and calm demeanor inside the cockpit as the drivers motored for a solid finish.

“I didn’t put a tire wrong this year, which is what Turner wanted me to do,” said Marsal of his second-ever Rolex 24 race start. “My job was to make sure the car stayed in one piece, so that goal was achieved. Unfortunately a bolt got sucked into the intake which blew into our motor and kept us down on power through most of the race. So, we didn’t have the car to win it – we just didn’t have the speed. But I just couldn’t believe how fast this race was – I’ve never seen this race run so quickly with so few cautions. This was a 24-hour sprint race.”

Marsal now has a two-month break from GRAND-AM race action as he next heads to Barber Motorsports Park for Round 2 of the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship March 30-31 with co-driver Boris Said. The duo will look to carry the momentum of a solid sixth place result in the BMW Performance 200 at Daytona and capture some more championship points with another strong finish at Barber.

“I’m really looking forward to the next Continental race. Boris and I worked really well together this weekend – we seem to like the same set-ups and we’re just really meshing well, so I’m super pumped to get going at Barber in a couple months. I’m still getting used to the GT car, but I’ve done the GS car for three years now and I know it like the back of my hand. We had a good finish there last year and I’m really looking forward to it.”

The BMW Performance 200 will be televised February 4 at 12:00 PM (ET).

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Matt Cleary
Sunday Group Management
media
http://www.sundaymanagement.com
317.908.2975 (m)


Based in Indianapolis, Sunday Group Management is a leading motorsports management and communications consulting firm.

Sunday Group Management works with clients in a variety of motorsports categories, including NASCAR Sprint Cup driver AJ Allmendinger, Riley Technologies, GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series organization Michael Shank Racing, Continental Tire, and several teams and drivers in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition.

For additional information: www.sundaymanagement.com, http://sundaygroupblog.com, www.facebook.com/sundaygroup, or twitter.com/Sundaygroup

Marsal Scores Sixth in BMW Performance 200 at Daytona

Marsal Scores Sixth in BMW Performance 200 at Daytona

Daytona Beach, FL (27 January 2012) – Michael Marsal and Turner Motorsport co-driver Boris Said kicked off the 2012 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship with a strong sixth place result in the BMW Performance 200 at Daytona International Speedway on Friday.

Marsal opened the 2.5-hour event at the wheel of the No. 97 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 and wasted no time moving up the order as he made a charge forward through rainy conditions and improved 11 positions on just the first lap to run 15th. Marsal maintained his quick pace as he clicked off laps and steadily moved forward to 11th when the race saw its first caution period.

Turner Motorsport called Marsal to pit lane for a routine stop of fuel and tires and he returned to the track as the cars continued to circle under yellow. The minutes clicked past the starting driver 30 minute requirement during the extended caution period and the Turner team altered their strategy and called Marsal back to pit lane to top off on fuel and make a driver change.

Marsal handed the BMW over to Said who re-entered the field in 27th place. He quickly matched Marsal’s previous fast pace and began maneuvering his way forward to the front of the field. With a drying track, the lap times kept tumbling down as Said wheeled the No. 97 BMW into the top-10 throughout the middle stages of the race, sitting in sixth when a late-race caution halted his forward movement.

The caution set up a shootout to the finish with just minutes remaining at the drop of the final green flag. It was a BMW brigade in the top ten as Said came home sixth, one spot ahead of the sister Turner Motorsport No. 96.

The result marks Marsal’s best finish in the Daytona event as he looks to make a strong run for the GRAND-AM championship.

“Overall, it was pretty good,” said Marsal. “We had a good start in the rain. I have to thank Joey (Hand) – he gave me some advice on what rain line to use and it worked. We used a new ABS system and it really gave us some great stopping power. The car was really great to drive and I had a lot of fun out there.”

While Marsal has much to celebrate with the strong start to the 2012 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge season, the weekend is not yet over as he returns to race action tomorrow for the 50th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona in the No. 93 Turner Motorsport BMW GT machine.

“Today’s race was a great way to start off the weekend and I can’t wait to get going tomorrow and see what we can do in the Rolex 24,” said Marsal. “Tonight I’ll do a light work out, eat a big dinner, get to bed early and wake up tomorrow ready to drive a racecar. I’m excited – it’s a huge race and hopefully we’ll be fighting for the win at the finish.”

The BMW Performance 200 will be televised on SPEED February 4 at 12:00 PM (ET).

SPEED will carry live coverage of the Rolex 24 At Daytona with SPEED channel broadcasting the opening and closing seven hours of the event as well as streaming the overnight hours on www.speedtv.com.

Live timing and scoring of the event can be followed at www.grand-am.com.

Additionally Turner Motorsport will be live and on line here: Live Stream (live video from our pits) http://www.turnermotorsport.com/live Twitter (trackside updates) http://twitter.com/Turnermotrsport Live timing and scoring for both events can be found at www.grand-am.com.

Marsal12ContiRaceDaytona.pdf

Quick Start to 2012 for Burrows and Hopwood

Quick Start to 2012 for Burrows and Hopwood

Contact: Matt Cleary,
Sunday Group Management
media
(317) 908-2975-Mobile

Daytona Beach, FL (26 January 2012)– Adam Burrows and Trevor Hopwood got the 2012 GRAND AM season off to a quick start on Thursday at Daytona International Speedway as the former series champs relished their return to Compass 360 Racing (C360R).

After more than 50 race starts as co-drivers, the race weekend marks a new chapter for the duo. Adam Burrows will team with Andrew Novich in the No. 74 Dr. Kimberly Henry / Speed Secrets Honda Civic Si entry, with Hopwood brought on board to drive the No. 77 Joe Marina Honda/Luna-C Racing Honda entry with Bo Roach, who is celebrating his 50th birthday this weekend. The return to C360R had both Burrows and Hopwood buzzing as some familiar faces were on hand, delivering well-prepared Honda Civics with plenty of potential as expected from the championship-winning organization.

After making the most of the afternoon by taking time to do some interviews with their new co-drivers for GRAND-AM.com, it was time for BurHop to settle in on the war wagon and watch qualifying as Novich and Roach took to the track. The 15 minute session saw Novich score 10th on the grid, with Roach notching a spot on the ninth row in the 2011 spec Civic Si.

Friday’s race will go green at 1:30 PM ET, with SPEED broadcasting the race February 4th at 12:00 PM ET, with Saratoga Ave. Boys Club’s very own Dorsey Schroeder as part of the broadcast team.

PR inquiries about Adam Burrows and Trevor Hopwood should be directed to Matt Cleary at Sunday Group Management; 317.908.2975 (mobile) or media@ sundaymanagement.comFor additional information:www.trevorhopwood.comwww.sundaymanagement.com
www.adamburrowsmotorsport.com

@trevorhopwood
@a_burrows
@sundaygroup

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Preview of “12qualdaytona”.pdf

Matt Cleary
Sunday Group Management
media
www.sundaymanagement.com
317.908.2975 (m)


Based in Indianapolis, Sunday Group Management is a leading motorsports management and communications consulting firm.

Sunday Group Management works with clients in a variety of motorsports categories, including NASCAR Sprint Cup driver AJ Allmendinger, Riley Technologies, GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series organization Michael Shank Racing, Continental Tire, and several teams and drivers in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition.

For additional information: www.sundaymanagement.com, http://sundaygroupblog.com, www.facebook.com/sundaygroup, or twitter.com/Sundaygroup

Marsal Looking To Move Up in BMW Performance 200

Marsal Looking To Move Up in BMW Performance 200

Daytona Beach, FL (26 January 2012) – Michael Marsal will start the BMW Performance 200 from the 13th row at Daytona International Speedway following a shortened qualifying session that saw two lengthy caution periods. The abbreviated session left Marsal time for only one flying lap in the No. 97 Turner Motorsport BMW M3.

Marsal immediately set a quick pace behind the wheel of the BMW, but the effort was thwarted when a competitor forced Marsal offline and ruined the chance of a solid starting position. Marsal and co-driver Boris Said will look to make a charge forward among the 81-car combined class field as the duo kick off the 2012 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship at the famous World Center of Racing.

“We had a really, really good car,”said Marsal. “We had a front row car and it’s just really unfortunate that we don’t have the result to show for it. The yellows caught us out and unfortunately another car misjudged the bus stop on my only hot lap and ruined my lap as well his, so it’s just very frustrating.

“But the Turner guys have worked really hard to give us a great car so I’m confident we can move the BMW forward and make up ground tomorrow. I’m really looking forward to the race. It’s such a huge weekend – we have so many fans out at the track to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Rolex 24 and I just can’t wait to get going. This wasn’t how I wanted to start the weekend but we have a lot of racing yet to do tomorrow.”

In addition to the BMW Performance 200, Marsal will drive in the historic 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona endurance classic. Co-driver Bill Auberlen qualified the No. 93 Turner Motorsport BMW 20th on the 44 car GT grid.

The 2.5-hour BMW Performance 200 is set to start at 1:30 PM (ET) on Friday and can be followed with live timing and scoring at www.grand-am.com. The Rolex 24 At Daytona starts at 3:30 PM (ET) on Saturday and will broadcast live on SPEED for the opening and closing seven hours with www.speedtv.com streaming live coverage during the overnight hours.

SPEED will televise the BMW Performance 200 on February 4 at 12:00 PM (ET).

Additionally Turner Motorsport will be live and on line here: Live Stream (live video from our pits) Twitter (trackside updates) Live timing and scoring for both events can be found at www.grand-am.com.

Marsal12dayqualifying.pdf

Frisselle Racing Takes Tenth on Rolex 24 Grid

Frisselle Racing Takes Tenth on Rolex 24 Grid

Daytona Beach, FL (26 January 2012) – Brian Frisselle placed the No. 77 Combos/Circle K Ford-Dallara on the fifth row of the grid for the 50th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona with a time of 1:42.773 seconds around the 3.56-mile, 12-turn speedway road course.

Brian, along with co-drivers Burt Frisselle, Jim Lowe, and Paul Tracy, hopes to move forward from 10th position as the squad sets their sights on a clean and consistent race throughout the grueling 24-hour event. The Frisselle brothers certainly know their way around the famous Daytona International Speedway – each with seven Rolex 24 starts to their credit – and will look to use that to their advantage in the highly anticipated 50th anniversary of the event.

With 14 Daytona Prototypes and 46 GT entries expected, the brothers are sure to remain busy behind the wheel of their No. 77 Ford, and know that patience and clean laps will be key in surviving the rigorous race.

“We knew we weren’t going to be challenging for the pole, but now we just have to focus on the race and try to get the most consistent car we can get,” said Brian of the qualifying run. “The car is still not giving the grip we want, but we’ll try to get that fixed before the race. We just need to be smart and consistent out there and drive a clean race because that’s the way we have to try to win this thing. The race is not going to be won on speed. So that’s what we have to do. The Doran Racing guys did a great job of getting the car ready – we’ve been going through a lot of changes so hats off to the team and we’ll try to get it better for the race.”

“We’re just working really hard to find some extra speed and I think since we don’t really have the speed that we hoped for, we just have to play this very smart,” echoed Burt. “Brian did a great job qualifying the car and now we just have to look for consistency and balance to make it easy to drive so we can attack this race as an endurance event and not necessarily as a sprint race.

The Frisselles spent Thursday morning preparing the car throughout two practice sessions and Burt put in some additional laps around the circuit as he took members of the media including SPEED’s Bob Varsha and Jamie Howe, as well as a host of Continental Tire VIPs for a thrilling ride around the high-banks of Daytona in the Continental Tire 2-seater Daytona Prototype on Wednesday and Thursday.

“The Continental Tire two-seater car is just a blast to drive because of the riders’ experiences,” said Burt. “It’s so fun for them and every time you come to a stop, all you hear is ‘that was amazing!’ It’s just awesome to be able to give people who have never been in a racecar, the perspective of what it’s like for us. Even though we’re missing the 44 GT cars that really makes this event nuts, they get a thrill that you can’t even get at Disneyland.”

Each Frisselle has a pair of top-five finishes in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, but both still have yet to capture the Rolex 24 crown and it would be all the more special for the brothers to win the 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 together.

The historic 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona will begin Saturday at 3:30 PM with SPEED carrying flag-to-flag coverage of the event. The opening and closing seven hours will broadcast live on SPEED channel with the overnight hours streamed on www.speedtv.com.

The race can also be followed with live timing and scoring at www.grand-am.com.