Sunday Group Management

Ford Racing reveals Focus ST-R at Frankfurt Auto Show;

Global Ford Motorsport Development Strategy extends

FRANKFURT, Germany, September 12, 2011 – As the all-new Focus ST road car makes its
global production debut, Ford is giving a European welcome at the Frankfurt Motor Show to a
special motorsport counterpart – the race-tweaked, production-based Focus ST-R.

Despite its close resemblance to the Focus ST road car, the Focus ST-R is purpose-built for the
track by Ford Racing in North America as a fully-prepared competition car. It features a powerful
2.0-litre EcoBoost engine, FIA regulation roll cage, uprated brakes and track-tuned suspension.
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Rum Bum Racing Targets Top Step at Mid-Ohio

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Rum Bum Racing Targets Top Step at Mid-Ohio

You can follow Rum Bum Racing on Facebook:

Read about the recent high-speed run here:

Lexington, Ohio (12 September 2011) – Fresh from a record-setting run on the wide-open spaces at Kennedy Space Center, Luis Bacardi’s Rum Bum Racing will travel to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend for the final round of the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship and looks to return to its winning ways as the team hopes to close out the season in the same way it opened it at Daytona – with a trip to victory lane.

Drivers Matt Plumb and Nick Longhi have driven an impressive 2011 season to score six top-five results in nine races – including two wins (Daytona & Lime Rock Park) and four podium results. Additionally, Longhi has placed the No. 13 BMW M3 on the pole three times so far this year beginning with the first two races of the season at Daytona and Homestead and then again at Road America.

“The Rum Bum guys have worked hard to give us a strong, quick car each and every race weekend and those efforts have certainly shown on the track,” said Longhi. “We’ve had a strong year with solid results and even though we had targeted a little more in the championship, I’m really looking forward to heading to Mid-Ohio with the BMW. It’s a fun and challenging track and I think we have another good shot for a finish at the front.”

Last year Plumb and Longhi followed up a victory at Three Rivers with a second straight win in the season-finale at Miller Motorsports Park after starting the event from the second position. As the 2011 season comes to a close, the driving pair looks to finish it out in the same triumphant fashion as last year’s finale when they led 17 laps en route to the win.

Both drivers have years of experience at the Mid-Ohio circuit with Plumb having scored a podium finish at the track in his rookie Rolex Series season when he ran at the front of the field for 31 laps in the RumBum.com BMW Daytona Prototype on his way to finishing third. Plumb also scored his first-career SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge Touring Car victory at the track in 2004.

Longhi has had two GRAND-AM starts at Mid-Ohio with a best finish of 10th in 2005 while driving the Falcon Racing Ferrari 360 GT.

Currently third in the Team Championship Standings, Rum Bum Racing sits just 24 points out of the championship lead and will look to make up ground in the championship hunt with another strong result at Mid-Ohio.

“This team has really shown what it can do this year and even after we got hit and took all that damage at VIR, they gave us a car to win at Lime Rock,” said Plumb. “Mid-Ohio should be interesting–the Camaros have really come on strong with some wins and the Mustang is right there as well, so it should be a really close fight. It’s been a strong season for us and while I think we need some major luck in order to win the championship, we’ll do everything we can to have the best result possible and finish as high in the championship standings as we can.”

The EMCO Gears Classic weekend begins with a promoter test day on Thursday, September 15 followed by official practice and qualifying on Friday. The green flag is set to wave for the 2.5-hour race on Saturday, September 17 at 11:00 AM (ET).

The race can be followed with live timing and scoring at www.grand-am.com. SPEED will carry coverage of the event on Saturday, September 25 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

RBR-Mid_ohiopreview-pdf.pdf

Mission Accomplished as Continetnal Tire tests at the Speedway

A look at the Continental Tire Technology Center

Anglo-American Team Aims For “High Five” Finish To Close Partial GRAND-AM Season In Style

Anglo-American Team Aims For “High Five” Finish To Close Partial GRAND-AM Season In Style

· United Autosports with Michael Shank Racing #23 Ford-Riley lines-up for fourth GA race of the year

Mark Blundell (GB) and Zak Brown (USA) contest the final round of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 race aiming for a top-five finish.

Brown and Blundell pilot the United Autosports with Michael Shank Racing #23 Ford-Riley in the EMCO Gears Classic series finale staged at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Saturday (September 17).

The United Autosports entry has previously recorded a fourth (Rolex 24 at Daytona), sixth (Grand Prix of Miami) and ninth (Canadian Tire 200 At The Glen) in what is the Anglo-American team’s maiden foray in GRAND-AM.

United Autosports is placed 12th in the Teams’ standings with Blundell and Brown 16th & 18th in the Drivers’ championship respectively despite contesting less than 25% or the calendar.

The 2.258-mile, 13-turn Mid-Ohio road course holds a special place for Michael Shank Racing as the track is the site of the team’s original formation. In last year’s corresponding race, MSR finished second and fourth having led 14 laps.

Provisional Timetable:

Friday September 16 – 1115-1145 Practice; 1430-1500 Practice; 1645-1700 Qualifying

Saturday September 17 – 0840-0910 Practice; 1500-1745 Race

* All times are “local”

#23 – Riley-Ford

Mark Blundell (GB). Age: 45. Born: Barnet, England. Lives: Royston, England:

“I’ve raced Champcar at Mid-Ohio on five previous occasions. It’s a complex track and very physical. Zak and I had a productive test there last month and were happy with our performance but know there is more to find. Qualifying will be vital in terms of getting a good race result. Watkins Glen was a tough weekend but gave us a better understanding of both the car and tires for this race. I would love for Zak and I to record a top-five finish to round off our GRAND-AM season.”

Zak Brown (USA). Age: 39. Born: Los Angeles, California, USA. Lives: Carmel, Indiana, USA:

“I’ve only previously raced at Mid-Ohio on one occasion, back in 1998 in Toyota Atlantics. It’s a challenging track with few overtaking opportunities. I’ve tested the #23 Riley-Ford twice at the circuit in the last month which makes me think we’ll have a better race at Mid-Ohio compared to Watkins Glen. My aim is to finish off the season with a top-five.”

Mike Shank (USA), Team Owner of Michael Shank Racing:

“We are very excited to get back to Mid-Ohio and to have two cars including the #23 Riley-Ford in United colors for the finale. We almost won it there last year and finished really well with both cars. We’ve tested at Mid-Ohio and I think we are in good shape with both cars so I’m very optimistic about the weekend.”

(ends)

Riley DP

Roush-Yates prepared V8 Ford 5 liter modular engine, 4 cam, 4 valve, producing over 500hp. Rear-wheel-drive. Continental Tires. Weight: 2275lbs; 5 gears, paddle-shift gearbox. The Riley Technologies MK XXII is the most successful Daytona Prototype of all time.

United Autosports

Co-owned by Zak Brown and Richard Dean, the US-owned, UK-based team was formed in late 2009 and contested the 2010 FIA GT3 European Championship with a brace of Audi R8 LMS sports cars. Also competed in 24 Hours of Spa (finishing third & fourth in GT3 class on team’s 24 race début), Intercontinental Le Mans Cup at Zhuhai, China (third in GTC) and Macau (third GT Cup). Competes in the 2011 FIA GT3 European and Avon Tyres British GT Championships plus 24 Hours of Spa and Macau.

Michael Shank Racing

Since moving full-time to the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series, Pataskala, Ohio-based Michael Shank Racing has taken three overall wins and 19 podium results, including second overall in the 2006 Rolex 24 At Daytona as well as monopolizing the front row for the 2008 Rolex 24.

** Comprehensive Brown & Blundell biographies plus team profiles on United Autosports and Michael Shank Racing are available to download from the United Autosports website

Brothers Back Together as Burt and Brian Frisselle Set to Team in Office Depot Dallara at Mid-Ohio

Brothers Back Together as Burt and Brian Frisselle Set to Team in Office Depot Dallara at Mid-Ohio

www.friselleracing.com

Columbus, OH (9 September 2011) – After several seasons of competing against one another in GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series competition, Burt and Brian Frisselle will once again get the chance to race together as co-drivers next weekend in the EMCO Gears Classic presented by Key Bank at Mid-Ohio.

Having already accomplished one of his core goals of the season in securing the MESCO Rookie of the Year Award, Henri Richard has elected to make the seat available to Burt for the season finale. Richard has been Brian Frisselle’s season-long co-driver for Doran Racing in 2011.

Burt and Brian Frisselle, sons of Sebring 12-Hour winner Brad Frisselle, raced in Daytona Prototype competition as co-drivers in 2005 and 2006. Since then, the duo have followed different, but often intertwined paths, sharing a seat at AIM Autosport in 2007 and going on to race for Doran Racing, WT Racing, AIM Autosport, and Michael Shank Racing. The duo also raced against one another in their NASCAR foray for Stacy Compton.

The return to the Doran Racing organization will see Burt rejoined by a host of familiar faces, having campaigned the No. 47 Dallara with Ricky Taylor for the team in 2008. Burt was also recently on board the No. 77 Office Depot machine as a relief driver in the excruciating high heat earlier this year in the New Jersey round.

“I want to thank Henri (Richard) for stepping aside and helping to make this possible for me and Brian,” said Burt. “They have had a lot of bad racing luck this year, but hopefully we can finish the year off with a result that shows what this group is really capable of. I’m very excited to be racing with my brother again–we have a lot of experience together and this is going to be a great way to close the year out.”

The season has been a busy one for Burt, who has four top-five finishes on the year despite racing for three different teams with several different engine and chassis combinations. While he’s adjusted quickly with every team, he anticipates that this weekend will be the easiest of the year.

“Brian and I have always had a similar feel in terms of how we like to have the car set up, but he was a left foot braker and I was a right foot braker so that created some compromise. But now, I’ve switched and we are both going to look for even more of the same thing out of the car,” said Burt, who also recently ran at Mid-Ohio as part of the Continental Tire 2-Seater program. “So as much as we were able to have a similar car in the past, it should be even better now and I just can’t wait for next weekend!”

Last year at Mid-Ohio saw both Frisselle brothers bring home a strong result at Mid-Ohio as Burt took a podium finish at Mid-Ohio with a run to third in the AIM Autosport machine, with Brian coming home close behind in fourth.

Having had an up and down season that has seen but two top-six finishes, Brian is anxious to get the Mid-Ohio weekend underway.

“I’m very happy to have Burt with us at Doran Racing for the final weekend of the year and I want to say thanks to Henri for helping to make this happen,” said Brian. “He made so much progress this season and won the Rookie Award so even though we didn’t have the podium finish together that we had been hoping for, it was still a productive year. With Burt on board maybe we can make that happen for Office Depot and all the Doran Racing guys. They’ve put in a ton of effort. They are an Ohio team and it’d be great to bring them a strong finish to the year with a good run next weekend.”

The EMCO Gears Classic will kick off with practice and qualifying on Friday, September 16, with the race set for a 3:00 PM ET green flag on Saturday, September 17.
www.frisselleracing.com

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BrianBurtMid-Ohiotogether-PD.pdf

AJ Allmenginer Talks Chase pre-Richmond…

YOU HAVE TO WIN THIS RACE TOMORROW NIGHT TO HAVE A SHOT AT THE CHASE. “Yeah, it is pretty simple. We have to win and get a little bit of help. We don’t have to worry about everyone else and where they are at points wise until you cross the finish line and unless we win it doesn’t matter. I feel like over the last six weeks we have been getting stronger and kind of flying under the radar. Our last four finishes have been eighth, tenth, 11th and 12th. We have been right there. As a race team I feel like we are getting better. I feel like we had about three or four more races before the Chase started because I feel like we are starting to get there and be a contending race team. It is pretty simple. We go out there and try to win the race and let the cards fall where they may fall.”

DO YOU CONSIDER WHERE YOUR RACE TEAM IS AT RIGHT NOW TO BE THE NATURAL PROGRESSION OF WHERE YOU EXPECTED TO BE, AND WHAT IS YOUR SATISFACTION LEVEL WITH THAT? “I felt like at the beginning of the year we weren’t too bad and then we kind of hit a lull in the middle of the season. When we were off, we were really off. We had a couple of races where we finished like 25th and 27th or something like that. I felt like our consistency wasn’t where it needed to be and we struggled with that. I feel like the addition of Greg Erwin over the last six weeks we have been stronger and as the weekend goes on progress really well and we run a lot of laps in practice. I feel like during the race we run well. We are progressing better than we had been and I feel that as we keep getting stronger we are a 7th-8th to 13th place race team right now. Hopefully as we keep getting stronger, whether we make the Chase or not, we can take the last 10 races and contend inside the top-10 on a consistent basis. There are races coming up like Loudon and Dover that we have been really good at and maybe get a win. We are getting there but I wish we had a few more races before the Chase starts. The Chase doesn’t define our season. If we don’t make it, we can take those last 10 races and have a chance to run up front every weekend. If we get to Homestead and are a lot better than where we were last season, I will be happy with that.”
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GRAND-AM Concludes Successful Indianapolis Continental Tire Test

‘Rain Date’ Provides Dry Running For Three Rolex Series Teams

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Sept. 9, 2011) – Friday’s “rain date” proved dry enough for three GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series teams to conclude a successful Continental Tire test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

After scattered showers limited track time during Wednesday and Thursday’s scheduled testing, competitors took to the 2.605-mile circuit at 8:30 a.m. Friday, running enough laps to conclude preparations for next year’s Super Weekend at the Brickyard (July 26-29, 2012).

Max Angelelli in the No. 10 SunTrust Chevrolet/Dallara, Alex Gurney in the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Chevrolet/Riley and Ronnie Bremer in the No. 57 Stevenson Auto Group Chevrolet Camaro GT.R ran more than 200 combined laps throughout the morning, stopping only to change tires and refuel.

“This was the best day of testing of the three, and we are very happy with the results,” said Bruce Foss, product manager for Continental Tire’s GRAND-AM program. “We made a lot of progress. We were able to gain information and knowledge, including identifying the wear characteristics of this track. That will help us when we race here next July.”

Missing the final day due to schedule conflicts were John Potter and Craig Stanton in the No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche GT3, and SunTrust Racing driver Ricky Taylor.

“We didn’t touch the setup today,” Gurney said. “We ran through 10 sets of tires and they hung in there great. We made a big jump forward today, running through the tires and trying to provide good feedback.”

The Rolex Series and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge will compete at Indy for the first time in 2012, participating in a pair of races on Friday, July 27. GRAND-AM will be joined by the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series in the expanded Super Weekend at the Brickyard.

Lapping the Speedway on Continental Tires

Another Ride with Burt Frisselle at Mid-Ohio