Sunday Group Management

Julie Conlin Joins Sunday Group Management 



INDIANAPOLIS – Sunday Group Management is pleased to announce the addition of Julie Conlin to a full time position with the motorsports public relations firm. Conlin comes to Sunday Group Management with a varied motorsports background that has seen Conlin gain experience in everything from karting to the Indianapolis 500.

A 2008 graduate of Ashland University, Conlin grew up around various forms of motorsports, including her family’s go-karting team, and has always had a passion for the world of auto racing. That passion has driven Conlin’s ambitions as she pursued opportunity in a variety of different aspects of the sport, including her most recent position in Charlotte with Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc.

Before moving to a full-time role with Sunday Group Management, Conlin first worked for the Indianapolis based firm on a variety of programs for the organization, which was formed in 2003.

“I’m pleased to have someone with Julie’s passion and background join Sunday Group Management and I’m very excited about the results that she will help us continue to deliver,” said Sunday Group Management founder Matt Cleary. “She has very quickly proven herself to be an asset to our team and I’m looking forward to her continued contributions to our efforts moving forward. And of course it’s always great to have a fellow Formula 1 enthusiast as part of the team!”

Conlin will spearhead a variety of initiatives for Sunday Group, ranging from development of new social media efforts to codification and coordination of ongoing media efforts for the firm. Sunday Group Management’s clients in a wide  range of racing categories will benefit from her expertise.
“I’m excited to have this new opportunity with Sunday Group Management and I am looking forward to being a part of the team,” offered Conlin.

“Sunday Group Management has a great client roster, representing some very talented and accomplished people. There are a lot of great stories still to be told, and I’m happy to have the chance to be a part of that process.”

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

Burrows Takes Ultimate Test Drive with Kia

Kia factory ace got the chance to shake down the exciting new Kia Optima turbo on the track. Burrows will be back in action this weekend for the Kia 200 at Homestead Miami Speedway for round 2 of the 2011 GRAND AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship. Burrows will share the driving duties with fellow former Champion Trevor Hopwood in the No. 12 Kia Forte Koup.

Rum Bum Racing Ready to Settle a Score at Homestead

Rum Bum Racing Ready to Settle a Score at Homestead

After making a dream debut in GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition with a win at Daytona International Speedway last year, Rum Bum Racing couldn’t have been more excited to return to Gatorade Victory Lane at Rum Bum Racing’s home track as the series staged round two of the 2010 championship at Homestead Miami Speedway. But a promising day turned into a shocking one as a series of unexpected events conspired to knock the team from contention. However, that tough finish has the team even more motivated to succeed this time around.

Homestead, with it’s tricky mixed oval and road course configuration, is a fine place to call home for Rum Bum Racing. The team commutes to all the races from Florida, with longtime Floridian racing legend Joe Varde calling the shots from the pit box. The team was founded by longtime Miami-area resident Luis Bacardi, giving the team a comprehensive connection to the area that makes winning at home a top priority.

Alas, it was not to be last year. Gian Bacardi opened the race with confidence before turning the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing BMW M3 to co-driver Matt Plumb, who was powering to the lead with some rough and tumble racing that is typical GRAND-AM competition. Unfortunately, that close contact caused the hood pins on the BMW to break, sending the hood flying into Plumbs windshield as he navigated at top speed in pursuit of another checkered flag.

“I just couldn’t believe it–it was certainly a frightening moment for me inside the car,” said Plumb, who had to try to make it back to the pits without the benefit of sight. “But I had Nick (Longhi, team spotter and now co-driver) on the radio, talking me back in to the pit lane. Unfortunately, we made it all the way back to the pits only to make contact with the wall and that put us out for the day. We were just sick to miss the chance to win at home for Luis.”

Fortunately, the team would still get back to victory lane in 2010. After Gian Bacardi decided to return to school full-time, a mid-season change to the driver line up saw Longhi move from spotter to co-driver for Rum Bum Racing. And to excellent effect, as the duo combined for a strong close to the 2010 season with two wins and a runner-up result. That strong finish to the year, and with Longhi, Plumb, and Varde all set to return in 2011, the shot at a home win is very much a possibility for the team.

“It’d be huge for us to win at Homestead,” said Plumb. “We want to do as well as we can everywhere we go, of course, but that track would be a very special place to win, especially for Mr. Bacardi. As a team owner he has been instrumental in guiding our success, he has been the motivating force behind putting together a truly professional organization. They are such a part of the community and everyone loves a winner so it’d be a perfect result for us.”

And while a Homestead victory ranks high on the to-do list back at the shop, it’s part of a bigger goal for the organization–a championship.

“We definitely want to win–that’s the best way possible to gain an advantage over the course of the season,” said Plumb. “We want to build on what we started last year, and we’ve got some amazing support from Luis Bacardi and we have plans for years to come. A win at Homestead could be the perfect thing to kick start our championship.”

That championship effort got off to an ideal start for Rum Bum Racing in the opening round as the team returned to the Daytona International Speedway victory lane to open up the season just as it had the year before.

Saturday’s race will be broadcast on SPEED March 19th at 2:00 PM ET.

http://rumbumracing.com/

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Grand Am: Rum Bum Racing has a score to settle…

MIAMI – After making a dream debut in GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge competition with a win at Daytona International Speedway last year, Rum Bum Racing couldn’t have been more excited to return to Gatorade Victory Lane at Rum Bum Racing’s home track as the series staged round two of the 2010 championship at Homestead Miami Speedway.

But a promising day turned into a shocking one as a series of unexpected events conspired to knock the team from contention. However, that tough finish has the team even more motivated to succeed this time around.

Homestead, with its tricky mixed oval and road course configuration, is a fine place to call home for Rum Bum Racing. The team commutes to all the races from Florida, with longtime Floridian racing legend Joe Varde calling the shots from the pit box. The team was founded by longtime Miami-area resident Luis Bacardi, giving the team a comprehensive connection to the area that makes winning at home a top priority.

More here…http://www.grand-am.com/news/index.cfm?series=k&cid=41462

Trevor Hopwood-Daytona Rear View Mirror

Driver’s Blog: Trevor Hopwood –
By Trevor Hopwood

GRAND-AM 101 Welcome to the first installment of my Kia.com blog – it should be a great racing season for Kia and we got off to a fantastic start at Daytona. It was a great weekend for the team that was full of promise, speed, reliability, and results.

But first—you might be wondering, “wait, isn’t it just NASCAR that races at Daytona?” and “what exactly is GRAND-AM racing all about?”

The GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge is a series that features two classes of cars: GS (Grand Sports) featuring BMW M3, Chevrolet Camaro, Porsche 911 and Ford Mustang; and the ST (Street Tuner) class showcasing the likes of Volkswagen GTI, Honda Civic, Mazda 3 and our Infinity Audio Kia Forte Koups. The races are 2.5 hours long and each car must have at least two drivers.

A driver change will take place along with normal pit stop items such as tire changes and a refueling of Sunoco race fuel. We have 10 races at tracks across the U.S. from the season opener in Daytona Beach to Laguna Seca in Northern California in July and then we end the season at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in September. The cars are modified slightly to increase speed, reliability and safety. Any unnecessary items from the interior are stripped out to lighten the chassis. No passenger seats, linings or sound proofing is left. All the required safety gear is put into place: roll cage bars, racing seat, 6-point harness seat belts, and fire extinguishers. Some minor motor modifications are allowed and some suspension bits are put into place, the Continental race tires are fitted … and voila, there’s our race car folks! Cars are kept at a competitive level through weight and horsepower, and the consistently close finishes of the races are a great demonstration of that. Less powerful cars are lighter and more powerful cars are heavier, and GRAND-AM has the right to make competition adjustments throughout the year so as not to have a dominant make.

Weight is of course the biggest thing because it affects everything the car does–acceleration, braking, and steering. Over the winter we were allowed to take 50 lbs. out of the car. The boys at Kinetic Motorsports did an excellent job stripping the cars down and putting them on a serious diet and then rebuilding them before the first race of the season. A big part of racing is all about the people you bring together to try and attain the goals of race wins and a championship, and Kinetic Motorsports has assembled an all-star crew of engineers and mechanics for the Kia program and it is an honor to work with these men.

We came into Daytona, the same place we scored KIA’s first-ever race finish last year, cautiously optimistic. Straight-line speed was not our strong suit last season, but we knew we had made some gains in the motor department and that losing the weight would certainly help. So the high banks and long straight-aways suddenly didn’t look as intimidating as it was last year during our debut race. Based on 2010 we know we are strong in the corners and in the brake zones and Daytona has one of the longest braking zones of the season going into turn 1 at 150 mph and slowing the car all the way down to 60, so that was making us feel good going into the weekend. The first practice session went off without a hitch. Systems checks and getting reacquainted with the #12 car were on order. This is the first year that Adam and I have returned to the same team from the year before.

So we knew the car, knew the team and could get right down to business instead of just trying to learn everyone’s name and where our helmets are kept in the trailer! Even though we weren’t initially as stable handling-wise as we wanted to be, the car was still in the top 10 so that was a very promising start in the field of 45 cars. That first drive of the season is probably the most enjoyable of the year. Waking your senses up from the winter hibernation (or in my case just a break from Snowmaggedon…) is the best feeling in the world. Sights, sounds and smells as my dad calls it. Practice 2 was the defining moment of the weekend. Adam put the car strongly in the top 10 again. I hopped in again briefly for the end of the session to brush up before qualifying. On my 3rd lap out of the pits I was turning in to the International Horseshoe when a car lost its brakes and clobbered me in the right rear. I nursed my injured steed back to the pits and parked it in the garage.

There was smoke pouring out the back, and I was pretty sick with disappointment. There was extensive cosmetic damage and my guys Lee Webb, Joey Kim and Chris Thurman busted their butts to get the rear end back together before qualifying. They had about one hour to do the repair work and then prep the car for qualifications. They never stopped working until I rolled out of the garage two minutes before qualifying. Halfway through my out lap I’m climbing through the gears on the back straightaway and then the motor shut off. No electronics whatsoever– no dash, and no radio. I tried cycling the master key and nothing, everything was still dead. When I finally made it back to the garage after a flat tow from turn three on the oval, we found the culprit. When I was hit, the battery was jarred loose and one of the nodes was resting on the metal bracket for the battery which then fried it completely. As a result, I got to do one of my favorite things, start last. Yes, it puts you at a disadvantage because you are so far behind, but remember these races are 2.5 hours long and you have plenty of time to make up ground. It’s always fun carving through traffic as well. My strategy from the 43rd position was simple, get as far up the order as I could with a clean car for Adam so he could finish the job.

For the first lap of the race I wanted to get to the outside of every corner. And that I did. A friend of mine told me I passed nine cars on the infield section alone. I was enduring a trouble free run all the way to 8th place with a clean car in the first hour when another gremlin from that hit we took in the 2nd practice bit us again. Turning in to the second hairpin the right side of my seat snapped. We suspect it was a sheared bolt that was damaged during the hit. My seat leaned up in the air to the left about 4 inches every time I turned right. I knew then the charge to the front was done. I hustled back to the pits but the seat needed to be fixed before it stressed the left side bolts enough to break, which would then turn me into a PBR bull rider trying to hang on! Even though the guys worked quickly, we lost five laps in the repair as Adam climbed in the car.

We thought we would just be circulating for points, but instead we were a part of Kia history. After a yellow flag with about 45 minutes left Adam was positioned behind the sister #10 car which was in 6th place. The next 45 minutes proved to everyone that motor racing is a team sport and Kinetic is a team that is going to make some noise this year. At Daytona the draft is very important. Continental drivers talk about having a drafting buddy at Daytona as much as the NASCAR drivers do. Adam hooked up with Nic Jönsson in the #10 Forte Koup and shoved him to the front where Nic made the move for 2nd place on the final lap and give Kia its first-ever professional racing podium. It was a great moment to be a part of. Everyone on the team has worked so hard to get this initial podium placing. Even though we weren’t on the podium, it felt like we were because both cars ran together for the last 45 minutes corner by corner working together to attain goals. It was a great way to start the season and I’m sure there will be more podiums and hopefully a win or two to report back on. Meanwhile, stay tuned for my race report following the next race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, March 3-5.

Double Duty at Daytona for Matt Bell

Double Duty at Daytona for Matt Bell

Rolex 24 and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge 2011 Season-openers

Daytona Beach, FL (25 January 2011) –Set to drive both the No. 77 Doran Racing Daytona Prototype and the No. 9 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GS.R this weekend, Matt Bell will be one busy guy but the young Californian racer couldn’t be more ready to go as he looks forward to racing in two big GRAND-AM races at Daytona International Speedway. Bell will run in both the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge season-opening events as the year kicks off at the “World Center of Racing.”

The Rolex 24 At Daytona start will mark the second of his young career in the huge event, and his third time racing a Daytona Prototype in GRAND-AM competition. The opening two chapters of his DP career have been page-turners, as he netted the Jim Trueman Award in both previous starts (New Jersey Motorsports Park, Miller Motorsports Park) and will look to make a similarly successful campaign in the 24 this weekend.

While he already had previous long-distance endurance racing experience in club-level events, Bell first got a taste of what racing in the Rolex 24 At Daytona demands from a driver last year when Stevenson Motorsports invited him to race in the GT class as he impressed with his quick adaptation. Bell will look to grow his experience as he puts the No.77 Ford Dallara through the ultimate test along with teammates Brian Frisselle, Henri Richard, and Ross Kaiser.

“This is a huge event, and I’ll be racing against a lot of drivers that I read about and followed as I was growing up, so it’s very exciting for me,” offered Bell. “Having the experience from last year is certainly something I want to build on and it gives me a lot more confidence, just knowing a little bit better what to expect as the race progresses. The adjustment to running the DP with so much less downforce than I’ve experienced before is something that I’m still making, but it was good to get some laps in a the test days and experience the car in this configuration. We just want to make sure we’ve got a solid car underneath us that will be good to go for the full distance and see what where we are on Sunday afternoon.”

But before Bell takes to the 24, there will be another to-do on his list as he opens the 2011 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge season with his co-driver John Edwards. Bell scored third on the grid on his way to taking his breakthrough race victory in the 2009 edition of the race, and after setting a series of new benchmarks for the Chevrolet Camaro for Stevenson Motorsports with the first-ever pole position, podium finish, and first lead laps last season, will target a new ranges of goals for the year starting this weekend. With a season of development behind him and a capable new co-driver alongside, Bell is hoping to start the weekend off quickly with a strong result.

“We’ve seen glimpses of the potential that this Camaro has, and the Stevenson guys just have not stopped working to keep unlocking more speed with the car,” said Bell, who finished second in the 2009 championship standings. “I’m optimistic about the weekend and hopefully starting the year with some very solid points for the championship. Having John (Edwards) as my co-driver is something else that I’m very excited about and we both want to representing Chevrolet and the Camaro as well as we possibly can starting right out of the gates here at Daytona.”

Television Schedule:

Preview, Rolex 24 FX Jan 28 10:00 PM ET

GRAND-AM Rolex 24 At Daytona SPEED Jan 29 3:00 PM ET (7 hours)
Jan 30 9:00 AM ET (7 hours)
GRAND-AM 200 (CTSCC) SPEED Feb 5, 3:00 PM E

Fast Times for Michael Marsal with a busy month of racing

Fast Times for Michael Marsal with a busy month of racing

Rolex 24 debut, Continental Tire season-opener, and some PCA racing

Contact: Matt Cleary, Sunday Group Management
Media
317-908-275

11 February 2011–With a debut run at the famed Rolex 24 At Daytona, a promising outing in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge season-opener, and some fun in PCA competition, Michael Marsal has already got 2011 off to a fast start.

After nearly scoring the 2010 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship in his rookie season with Turner Motorsport, Marsal continued to expand his racing resume as he was tabbed by Racers Edge Motorsports to share the No. 30 3dimensional.com Mazda RX-8 in the 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona.

In addition to to dealing with the challenges that naturally arise during 24 hours of hard fought racing, the list of new things to learn was significant for Marsal, from sharing the car with three other drivers to sharing the track with a field of nearly fifty cars including the top Daytona Prototype class machines. Despite an off track excursion early in his run, Marsal returned to the track to post some strong double-stint efforts before a mechanical problem cut the run short shy of the finish line.

“I learned so much in one weekend, and it’s definitely something that you can only come to understand after actually doing it and getting that experience,” said Marsal. “I made a mistake early in the race-I got frustrated with some slower traffic and I went around the outside of the guy and he just didn’t see me there or expect me to be along side him. So we had some damage from that, but the team did a great job to get back on track and we were able to run through the night.”

While the early incident was frustrating, the opportunity to run some extended stints, learn the traffic flow, and get the experience of what taking on a race like the Rolex 24 At Daytona really requires is something that Marsal is looking forward to building on.

“You think you know what to expect, but just can’t know really until you do it,” offered Marsal. “It’s a very much a mental challenge, pacing yourself and the car and working the traffic. The mindset is so key to being successful. And then, trying to go from running at 180 mph for three hours and then trying to get some sleep for the next stint–thats nearly impossible! But getting the experience that I did, I already feel like I’m going to be so much more prepared for the 24 next year.”

The epic 24 event was the second race of the weekend for Marsal, who had a full-speed warm up in the No. 97 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 that he will once again share with Joey Hand. A loss of fuel pressure in qualifying meant that Marsal was starting deep in the nearly 80 car field. But it was a challenge that he relished, moving up to 16th before turing the reigns over to Hand. The 2.5 hour race saw the Turner machine move up into podium position under Hand’s control, but a small mechanical issue and a late-race caution conspired to keep the No. 97 machine from scoring a top-ten finish to open up the year.

“That wasn’t what we were hoping for, but finishing 11th is two spots better than we started last year,” said Marsal. “And even though we didn’t get all the points we wanted from the weekend, I was still very happy with the race. I wanted to pass as many cars as I could and make up ground and still give Joey a good car for the finish, and I was able to do exactly that. And now, looking ahead to Homestead, I have so much more confidence because we know the car, I know the team and the tracks, and we are ready to go hard and strong for Homestead. Having a year under my belt is really big. ”

With Marsal’s machine not running in the closing stages of 24, it gave him the chance to watch his co-driver make history as Hand scored his first overall Rolex 24 race win after he staged a race-winning drive to put the Ganassi machine in position to win.

“I’m so excited for Joey-we’ve talked constantly leading up to Daytona, looking at the race and at the season ahead and him having this great opportunity with Ganassi,” said Marsal. “We all knew what he was capable of and now the rest of the world does too! Hopefully it leads to some more opportunity for him down the road.”

The month of speed wasn’t just over yet for Marsal though as he strapped back into a Porsche Cup machine at Sebring last weekend for some PCA racing. Gaining yet more seat time and race experience was all part of the plan for Marsal, who left the weekend with another successful outing for his racing resume.

“The PCA events are a lot of fun and there are a lot of guys racing or coaching there who you see at the GRAND-AM events. I started racing in PCA and it’s something I always enjoy coming back to so it was another great weekend to follow up from Daytona.”

Marsal will be back in action in three weeks as he prepares for round two of the 2011 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship on March 5th at Homestead Miami Speedway.

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

Sunday Group Management is a leading motorsports management and communications consulting firm. Based in Indianapolis, 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, sundaygroupmanagement.blogspot.com, www.facebook.com/sundaygroup, or twitter.com/Sundaygroup

On-track action drives Turner Motorsport BMW Tuning to new levels

On-track action drives Turner Motorsport BMW Tuning to new levels

Contact: Matt Cleary, Sunday Group Management
media@sundaymanagement.com
317.908.2975

www.turnermotorsport.com

Amesbury, MA, 8 February – While the checkered flag didn’t see the No. 94 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 making one final turn into Victory Lane in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Turner Motorsport still experienced the racing maxim of “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday” as the 2011 season kicked off at Daytona International Speedway.

Beyond a tremendous response from race fans via Facebook, emails, and calls, the BMW tuning firm also experienced a significant sales surge in the days following the organization’s impressive effort in the season opening weekend, which featured races in both the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series and the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series.

With strong race outings from all three Turner Motorsport machines, the event provided a big boost for Will Turner’s group, which was originally formed in support of the BMW tuning side of the business based outside of Boston.

“I was really overwhelmed with the response we had,” offered Turner. “I’m not sure if it’s because we are racing the M3 in both series now, or just that the interest in the Rolex Series has grown that significantly, or if our fans just really liked the fact that we didn’t just give up–we fixed the car and went back out there, or what is driving it all. But it’s been incredible, kind of overwhelming, how much feedback we’ve had from all of our Turner Motorsport fans and it also really drove the business side of what we do here at the shop.”

Friday’s Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge event saw Paul Dalla Lana make his Daytona podium debut with co-driver Bill Auberlen as the duo brought the BMW M3 home in third, with the sister BMW M3 of Michael Marsal and Joey Hand also a podium factor in the race until the final laps.

The Turner Motorsport Rolex 24 effort with drivers Dalla Lana, Auberlen, Matt Plumb, and Boris Said also had a strong race outing with the No. 94 BMW M3 moving into the lead early in the race and staying at the sharp end of the field until a gearbox problem forced the team off the track and into the garage. The Turner crew made quick work of the mammoth transmission change and returned to the track, completing 534 laps to finish 17th in class. The race completion marked the second in as many tries for the team, which had been hoping to add to the win tally in Rolex competition in the debut event for the BMW M3.

The team had already experienced a boost ahead of the race weekend as new partnerships with Escort Radar Detectors and Spy Sunglasses were added to the commercial side of the racing program.

The GT Class effort, shown live on SPEED for 14 hours of Rolex 24 coverage, was the most prominent display of Turner go-fast know-how, and very nearly saw the team score a coup in the debut race for the Rolex Series GT BMW M3. While the transmission issue sidelined any shot at a run to victory, the outing still brought significant optimism about the season ahead as Turner engineers compiled all the data in the post-race debrief.

“The times that the car was doing, we’ve gone through lap by lap, and there is no question that if we had stayed out of trouble, that we’d have been right there to be fighting for a win at the end,” said Turner. “So that’s kind of frustrating and encouraging all in one. I’m proud of the effort from the team and all our drivers and now we are just hoping to go out and show what the M3 can do in the sprint races.”

After such a strong showing from the M3, Turner expects that his Rolex effort could grow to feature a two car BMW M3 line up, just as his Continental Tire squad does.

“We have the infrastructure in place to grow to a second entry on the Rolex side pretty easily and of course having the car go to the lead like it did at Daytona has really spurred some additional interest,” said Turner. “But right now the core focus is on Homestead and trying to get into a good rhythm in the next few races. We’ve got I think a great opportunity to be strong in both the Rolex Series and Continental Tire championships and we’ve got to make the most of these spring races to make sure we are where we want to be at Mid-Ohio.”

Turner Motorsport now looks ahead to round two of the GRAND-AM season in both Rolex GT and Continental Tire series action at Homestead-Miami Speedway, March 4-5.

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www.turnermotorsport.com
www.Twitter.com/sundaygroup
www.sundaymanagement.com

Turner Motorsport will not only benefit from long-running relationships with top talents like Said and Auberlen, but TMS will also once again enjoy partnership support from a long-held group of sponsors, including H&R Springs, StopTech Brakes, Motul Lubricants, Borla Performance Industries, Escort, and Piloti Shoes.

About Turner Motorsport

Turner Motorsport is the leading BMW tuner in North America, bringing technology and expertise from the racetrack to the street. Turner Motorsport is not about clever marketing tricks or gimmicks. Racetrack results speak themselves. The Turner Motorsport team has won five professional racing championships in two different series since 2003. This storied success is passed into every component that Turner Motorsport designs and sells through their website catalog. Our race team, R&D engineers and Sales team work together, allowing practical knowledge and state-of-the-art engineering to flow in both directions. Few companies in North America can claim such a close relationship to what they sell and what they race.

TUNE-IN ALERT: Rum Bum Racing Returns to Daytona, Saturday/3:00 PM ET-SPEED

TUNE-IN ALERT: Rum Bum Racing Returns to Daytona, Saturday/3:00 PM ET

Contact: Matt Cleary
Media
317.908.2975

Daytona Beach, FL (4 February 2011)- It’s not just the big game on TV this weekend. Don’t forget that the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing BMW M3 will be on SPEED Channel this Saturday starting at 3:00 PM ET as SPEED’s Leigh, Calvin, Dorsey, Brian, and Chris play host to the opening round of the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge championship.

Rum Bum Racing made history as the team scored the first win on the all new surface at Daytona International Speedway as the team returned to victory lane to establish a perfect win record at the “World Center of Racing” with drivers Nick Longhi and Matt Plumb. Rum Bum Racing will look to pick up the championship momentum once again at Homestead Miami Speedway March 5th.

2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Schedule:

January 28 Daytona International Speedway 2/5, 3:00 PM ET, SPEED (WIN)
March 5 Homestead Miami Speedway 3/12, 1:00 PM ET, SPEED
April 9 Barber Motorsports Park 4/16, 1:00 PM ET, SPEED
May 14 Virginia International Raceway 5/22, 1:00 PM ET, SPEED
May 28 Lime Rock Park (TBA)
June 4 Watkins Glen International 6/12, 5:00 PM ET, SPEED
June 24 Road America 7/3, 1:00 PM ET, SPEED
July 9 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca 7/17, 1:00 PM ET, SPEED
July 23 New Jersey Motorsports Park 7/30, 1:00 PM ET, SPEED
September 18 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 9/18 1:00 PM ET, SPEED

www.rumbumracing.com
www.sundaymanagement.com

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Bell Returns to Daytona for Rolex 24 and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Action

Bell Returns to Daytona for Rolex 24 and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Action

Contact: Matt Cleary
Media
317-908-2975

http://mbellracing.com/

Daytona Beach, FL (1 February 2011) –While the 2011 Daytona race weekend didn’t bring the results that Matt Bell had been hoping for, the event provided some encouraging developments and good experience to build on for the young racer as he kicked off the 2011 GRAND-AM racing season.

Bell was tabbed by two different teams to run two completely different machines in the two races on the weekend–the No. 9 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GS. R for the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge season opener on Friday and then the No. 77 Office Depot Daytona Prototype of Doran Racing in the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Saturday.

Selected to qualify the No. 9 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro on Thursday, Bell once again was up to the task as he led the Camaro contingent with his fast lap time of 1:57.546 seconds netting him 4th on the grid. The race brought even more promise after Bell moved up to podium position just ten laps into the 2.5-hour endurance event. But that early pace was compromised when a mechanical issue slowed the effort, and eventually forced Bell and co-driver Jon Edwards to accept a 28th place finish.

A good night sleep ensued as Bell prepared for the biggest start of his career to date, running in the famed Rolex 24 At Daytona in the top Daytona Prototype class at the home track for the category. Sharing the car with three other drivers, Bell slotted into the line up with the car running in top five position early in the race.

“I did two stints, and in the opening stint I made a small mistake and we ended up locking up the tires and that moved us back,” said Bell. “The second stint as a little bit tougher as I think the car at that point had had contact a few times so it wasn’t in the same condition as the first stint. But this was a race that took its toll and we ended up not finishing the race. So I wan’t really happy with how things played out, but I’ll come back at the Glen and try again. We have a new direction that I’d like to go with the cars, tuning that we didn’t really follow this time.”

The next event will see Bell back in familiar competition as he returns to focus on the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge effort starting at Homestead Miami Speedway, the site of a recent pre-season test for the teams.

“Homestead won’t fully play to the strengths of the Camaro, but we made a lot of headway at the test,” said Bell. “ We’ll do what we always do – it’s a good track for traffic so we’ll try to just work and have a similar strategy as we did here at Daytona-qualify well and try to make the most of running in others draft. Track position will be key because we might not have the outright pace to move up, but we should be strong enough to defend and hopefully we can pick some points up for the championship next month.”

The opening round of the 2011 season will be broadcast on SPEED this Saturday at 3:00 PM ET.

TV:
GRAND-AM 200 (CTSCC) SPEED Feb 5, 3:00 PM ET
-ends

bell-post-daytona2011.pdf

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

Sunday Group Management is a leading motorsports management and communications consulting firm. Based in Indianapolis, 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, sundaygroupmanagement.blogspot.com, www.facebook.com/sundaygroup, or twitter.com/Sundaygroup