2010 Grand-Am Rolex Series

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The Ganassi Racing BMW Riley of Justin Wilson was leading Mike Rockenfeller's Action Express Racing Porsche Riley with three hours to remaining in the 48th Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway. Those two cars were the only ones on the lead lap.

A.J. Allmendinger lay third in the No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley, two laps behind the leaders, followed by Richard Westbrook's NPN Racing BMW Riley, which was two laps behind Valiante.

The Krohn Racing Ford Lola of Colin Braun rounded out the top-five, 14 laps down to Westbrook and four laps ahead of Jimmy Vasser's Gainsco Bob Stallings Racing Chevrolet Riley.

The second Michael Shank Racing entry ran in sixth. The only other Daytona Prototype in the top-10 overall was the SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara, which was 44 laps behind the leader due to electrical gremlins, a collision with the pit wall, three broken gearboxes, and a broken half shaft.

In the GT class, SpeedSource's No. 70 Mazda RX-8 had a two-lap lead over the No. 71 TRG Porsche and a five-lap lead over the No. 67 TRG Porsche.

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......Action Express drivers Mike Rockenfeller, Ryan Dalziel, Joao Barbosa and Terry Borcheller celebrate their overall victory in the 2010 Rolex 24 at Daytona


~~Much of the pre-race hype for the 48th Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway focused on the star-studded driver lineups of Chip Ganassi Racing and GAINSCO Bob Stallings Racing, which featured the likes of four-time Nascar champion Jimmie Johnson, Dario Franchitti, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Scott Dixon. But when the checkered flag fell on Sunday afternoon, the first car across the finish line was an unsponsored Porsche Riley driven by Joao Barbosa, Terry Borcheller, Ryan Dalziel, and Mike Rockenfeller and fielded by a brand new team owned by a Florida businessman who had never entered a car in a major automobile race.

Formed just prior to the start of the Rolex Sports Car Series season, the team operates under the name Action Express Racing. It is loosely affiliated with Brumos Racing and employs a number of former Brumos personnel. However, the team decided to use a Porsche V8 in its car rather than the six-cylinder Porsche motor found in the Brumos Riley. Opting for an unproven motor in a 24-hour race posed serious risks for a new team.

"I did not expect that we would be there at the end, especially not in the first spot," explained Rockenfeller. "In practice we were struggling a little bit with the handling. But the team did a really, really good job to fix the car and have a really good setup. We were pretty much changing everything before the race on the setup. We didn't know what to expect. But the guys on the team said it would be okay and it was.

"From the second stint on, the car was perfect to drive and I think we could all try to get 100 percent out of it and I think that's why we ended up leading the race."

Dalziel was also unsure what to expect from such a new team. "All four of us went into this race with a major unknown. We were pretty lost in practice. I think the one thing I knew the team was going to perform with was reliability. I felt if we could be reliable we would be there in the end. We never went off track. We never had any mechanicals or flaws in the pits. This is a huge achievement for a new team."

Indeed, it was quite an achievement as the wining quartet covered a total of 754 laps - a record distance for the Daytona Prototype class - despite a broken clutch and sticking throttle, which the mechanics had to spray with lubricant during the last few pit stops

The winners finished 50.494 seconds ahead of Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, Max Papis, and Justin Wilson, who shared the No. 01 Ganassi BMW Riley. Ganassi switched from Lexus to BMW engines in the off season and that change seemed to suit the team well, as both of its cars were competitive throughout the race. "I know Mike Hull and Chip (Ganassi) wavered over that decision," said Pruett. "And once the decision was made the guys went to work. For changing engines to a new organization, it's gone flawlessly. The engine itself runs superb."

But the engine switch did not work out as well for the Ganassi car entered for Franchitti, Dixon, Montoya, and Jamie McMurray. Early in the race, that car was the class of the field, leading 139 of the first 249 laps. But around midnight it suffered engine problems and had to be retired from the race. That car's demise allowed a number of other teams to take turns at the top of the leader board. But by early Sunday morning there were only three cars on the lead lap: the Action Express squad, the No. 01 Ganassi car, and the No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley.

The Shank car fell off the lead lap around the 19-hour mark due to a flat tire caused by contact with a GT car. This set up a race to the finish between the No. 01 Ganassi car and the eventual winners. The two cars ran close for a while and swapped the lead several times before Wilson felt what he described as "a small explosion" in the car. "The car shook around and there was a bit of a rattle after that," explained Wilson. "And I was wondering whether it was a wheel bearing or I had blown a front tire. I could not work it out. But I only had about five seconds to decide, 'Do I do another lap or do I dive into the pits?'. If I do another lap and it is a blown tire, I'm losing the bodywork. So I dove in the pits."

After examining the car, the Ganassi team could not find anything wrong with it and sent Wilson back on to the track. However, that stop cost him a lap and meant that he would need some cautions to catch up to the Action Express car. Those cautions never materialized and Wilson and company had to settle for second.

The NPN Racing BMW Riley shared by Scott Tucker, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Lucas Luhr, and Richard Westbrook ended up third, four laps behind the winners. A seat belt problem in the 11th hour dropped the car off the lead lap and out of contention for the win.

Fourth place went to Ricardo Zonta, Nic Jonsson, Colin Braun, and Tracy Krohn in the Krohn Racing Ford Lola, which suffered a broken right-front upright during the 11th hour after contact with another car and then needed a new gear cluster during the 21st hour to fix a problem with second gear.

The No. 60 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley finished fifth, followed by the SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara and the No. 6 Michael Shank entry. After starting from the pole, a myriad of issues, including electrical gremlins, a collision with the pit wall, three broken gearboxes, and a broken half shaft, prevented the SunTrust team from challenging for the overall win.

Only seven Daytona Prototypes finished in the top-20. Last year's race- winning Brumos Porsche Riley called it quits during the 20th hour due to engine problems. And the GAINSCO Bob Stallings Chevrolet Riley retired around noon on Sunday with oil pressure issues.

The race was the 37th and final Rolex 24 for Brumos stalwart Hurley Haywood, who holds the record for most overall wins in the event with five. "I think the team was more emotional than I was," Haywood said after his final stint in the car. "But I am sure that in a week or a month it will sink in that I won't get back in a car in a professional race again."

In the GT class, the SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 of Nick Ham, Sylvan Tremblay, Jonathan Bomarito, and David Haskell finished four laps ahead of the No. 67 TRG/Flying Lizard Motorsports
Porsche shared by Jorg Bergmeister, Patrick Long, Seth Neiman, and Johannes van Overbeek. The No. 66 TRG Porsche rounded out the top-three, 12 laps behind its sister car.

Thirteen different cars led the race and there were 53 lead changes, among 59 drivers. The race was slowed by 16 cautions for a total of 74 laps.

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Grand-Am Rolex Standings

~~~~DAYTONA PROTOTYPE STANDINGS

-----Top-10(+) Drivers Standings
t-1st}[1]Joao Barbosa, 35 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[2]Ryan Dalziel, 35 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[3]Terry Borcheller, 35 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[4]Mike Rockenfeller, 35 pts(1 win)
t-5th}[5]Scott Pruett, 32 pts
t-5th}[6]Justin Wilson, 32 pts
t-5th}[7]Memo Rojas, 32 pts
t-5th}[8]Max Papis, 32 pts
t-9th}[9]Lucas Luhr, 30 pts
t-9th}[10]Richard Westbrook, 30 pts
t-9th}[11]Ryan Hunter-Reay, 30 pts

-----DP Engine Standings*
1st} Porsche, 35 pts(1 win)
2nd} BMW, 32 pts
3rd} Ford, 28 pts
4th} Chevrolet, 23 pts
*Porsche currently runs 2 different types of engines in Grand-Am DP competition, a "flat-6" and a V8 Cayenne"

-----DP Chassis Standings
1st} Riley Tech., 35 pts(1 win)
2nd} Lola, 28 pts
3rd} Dallara, 25 pts
4th} Coyote, 18 pts
5th} Crawford, 17 pts



~~~~GRAND TOURING STANDINGS

-----Top-10(+) Drivers Standings
t-1st}[1]David Haskell, 35 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[2]Jonathan Bomarito, 35 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[3]Nick Ham, 35 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[4]Sylvain Tremblay, 35 pts(1 win)
t-5th}[5]Johannes van Overbeek, 32 pts
t-5th}[6]Patrick Long, 32 pts
t-5th}[7]Jorg Bergmeister, 32 pts
t-5th}[8]Seth Neiman, 32 pts
t-9th}[9]Andy Lally, 30 pts
t-9th}[10]Kelly Collins, 30 pts
t-9th}[11]Patrick Flanigan, 30 pts
t-9th}[12]Ted Ballou, 30 pts
t-9th}[13]Wolf Henzler, 30 pts

-----GT Manufacturers Standings
1st} Mazda, 35 pts(1 win)
2nd} Porsche, 32 pts
3rd} Chevrolet, 30 pts*
4th} BMW, 23 pts
5th} Pontiac, 7 pts
6th} Ferrari, 5 pts
*--Chevrolet runs 2 different makes in Grand-Am GT competition, the Chevrolet Corvette C6-R and the Camaro GT-R

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Homestead Practice Session 1...............


DP-1} #99 Gainsco Chevrolet/Riley, 1:11.844 sec
DP-2} #01 Telmex BMW/Riley, 1:12.315 sec
DP-3} #59 Brumos Porsche/Riley, 1:12.389 sec
DP-4} #95 U.S. Bank BMW/Riley, 1:12.471 sec
DP-5} #10 SunTrust Racing Ford/Dallara, 1:12.502 sec

GT-1} #67 The Racer's Group Porsche 911 GT3, 1:18.303 sec
GT-2} #07 Mobil 1 Chevrolet Corvette C-6R, 1:18.389 sec
GT-3} #70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8, 1:18.568 sec
GT-4} #30 Racers' Edge Mazda RX-8, 1:18.774 sec
GT-5} #68 Entergy/NWR Mazda RX-8, 1:18.778 sec

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Homestead Practice Session 2...............


DP-1} #59 Brumos Porsche/Riley, 1:12.665 sec
DP-2} #60 Crown Royal XR Ford/Riley, 1:12.693 sec
DP-3} #99 Gainsco Chevrolet/Riley, 1:12.863 sec
DP-4} #55 Crown Royal Cask No. 16 BMW/Riley, 1:12.997 sec
DP-5} #8 Corsa Car Care BMW/Riley, 1:13.049 sec

GT-1} #07 Mobil 1 Chevrolet Corvette C-6R, 1:18.413 sec
GT-2} #69 FXDD Mazda RX-8, 1:18.446 sec
GT-3} #57 BryanMark Financial Chevrolet Camaro GT-R, 1:18.971 sec
GT-4} #70 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8, 1:19.130 sec
GT-5} #67 The Racer's Group Porsche 911 GT3, 1:19.146 sec

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Homestead Practice Session 3...............


DP-1} #77 McDonald's Ford/Dallara, 1:13.197 sec
DP-2} #60 Crown Royal XR Ford/Riley, 1:13.936 sec
DP-3} #8 Corsa Car Care BMW/Riley, 1:13.952 sec
DP-4} #55 Crown Royal Cask No. 16 BMW/Riley, 1:14.255 sec
DP-5} #75 Krohn Racing Ford/Lola, 1:15.866 sec

GT-1} #69 FXDD Mazda RX-8, 1:18.699 sec
GT-2} #43 Sahlen's Mazda RX-8, 1:18.997 sec
GT-3} #30 Racers' Edge Mazda RX-8, 1:19.591 sec
GT-4} #66 The Racer's Group Porsche 911 GT3, 1:19.949 sec
GT-5} #44 Magnus Racing Porsche 911 GT3, 1:20.044 sec

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......Brumos Porsche's Darren Law snatches top-spot for Saturday's Grand Prix of Miami by 3-thousandths' from the #99 Gainsco team


-----HOMESTEAD, Fla. - Hurley Haywood may no longer be driving the iconic No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley, but the American legend still knows the key to getting around Homestead-Miami Speedway. Darren Law, who now shares that car with David Donohue, took Haywood's advice Friday and won the pole for Saturday's Grand Prix of Miami.

Haywood won last October's Grand Prix as a late substitute in the No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley, co-driving with Joao Barbosa. One of America's most successful endurance racers, Haywood retired from active competition following the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona - a race he won a record five times. He remains active in the sport as an official with Brumos Racing.

"Prior to going out, Hurley told me to get in the car and visualize the track," said Law, who won his only prior pole position at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2005. "I kind of blew it off, but I did get in the car early and tried to visualize it. Then we went out and won the pole, and Hurley's taking all the credit for it."

Law led a nine-driver assault on Jon Fogarty's five-month old Homestead-Miami Speedway Daytona Prototype track record in preparation for the two-hour, 45-minute race that takes the green flag at 5 p.m. ET (SPEED, live).

Fogarty had a personal streak of winning the pole in his last five qualifying attempts, while he ended 2009 by winning the pole in six of the last seven races. He briefly took the top position from Law, but the Porsche driver ran another quick lap to regain the pole. Fogarty held on for second in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Chevrolet, 1:11.839 (114.311 mph) co-driven by Alex Gurney.

"We would like to be on the pole, but it's a good starting position," said Fogarty, who shared the 2007 and 2009 Daytona Prototype championships with Gurney. "I'm a little disappointed that we didn't maximize qualifying, but we were also trying to conserve our tires and not put a lot of laps on them. We only ran one quick lap. The Brumos guys are right there and super fast. "

Taking third Brian Frisselle in the No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley, 1:12.079 (114.874 mph) co-driven by Michael Valiante; Memo Rojas in the No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates BMW Riley he shares with Scott Pruett, 1:12.166 (114.735 mph); and Ricky Taylor in the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara co-driven by Max Angelelli, 1:12.282 (114.551 mph).

Also eclipsing the former track record were Ryan Hunter-Reay in the No. 95 Level 5 Motorsports BMW Riley co-driven by Scott Tucker; Mark Wilkins in the No. 61 AIM Autosport Pacific Mobile Ford Riley co-driven by Burt Frisselle; Buddy Rice in the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Porsche Coyote shared by Antonio Garcia; and Rolex 24 At Daytona winner Terry Borcheller in the No. 9 Action Express Racing Porsche Riley.

Borcheller and co-driver Joao Barbosa won the season-opening Rolex 24 for Action Express. Ryan Dalziel also drove in that winning effort. He will drive the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport BMW Riley for the remainder of the season, with Mike Forest qualifying 10th Friday in that car's debut.

Final practice for the Grand Prix of Miami will be held Saturday 9:10 a.m. ET. The day's activities also include the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge.

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.......Ganassi Racing's Scott Pruett held off several late-race challenges by Brumos Porsche's Darren Law to win DP honors

-----Scott Pruett held off a late charge by David Donohue to win Saturday's Grand Prix of Miami, Round 2 of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. The 2008 Rolex Series DP champs held on to win after the facing intense pressure from the polesitting Brumos Porsche. Pruett and Memo Rojas scored their second victory in three years at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates BMW Riley, holding off the No. 59 Brumos Porsche Riley of Donohue and pole winner Darren Law by .255 seconds.

In GT, Jeff Segal passed SpeedSource teammate Sylvain Tremblay on the race's lone restart with 13 minutes remaining and went on to win in the No. 69 FXDD Mazda RX-8. It was the third triumph in the last six races for Segal and Emil Assentato.

"I sure didn't want to see that last caution, but I was happy for the fans," Pruett said after scoring his 23rd Rolex Series overall victory. "This is tough competition. You never know what's going to happen until the checkered flag falls. It was pretty exciting in my seat, that's for sure."

Donohue was able to pull up to the back of Pruett several times in the closing laps, but was unable to get by. Pruett managed to weave through GT traffic in the infield on the final lap, and maintained the lead through the superspeedway banking.

Alex Gurney finished third in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Chevrolet Riley started by Jon Fogarty. Burt Frisselle finished fourth in AIM Autosport's No. 61 Pacific Mobile Ford Riley, followed by Ryan Dalziel in the debut of the No. 8 Starworks BMW Riley started by Mike Forest, the leading Daytona Prototype Pro-Am driver in the event.

A turning point came on Lap 81 of the two-hour, 45-minute race. The cockpit of the No. 30 Racers Edge Motorsports Mazda RX-8 exploded into flames, and Jordan Taylor came to a stop in the middle of pit road. The blaze was quickly extinguished and the race remained under green, but Taylor's car was stopped at the center of the pit lane when Law pitted in the race-leading No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley.

"There was a car on fire, there were people on pit lane, and I almost came to a stop," Law explained. "I didn't want to hit anybody. It's unfortunate, because I lost all of the gap I had gained. Up until then, I was feeling really, really good."

Taylor was uninjured in the incident, but the Mazda started by Todd Lamb was eliminated after having a strong run. It wasn't as big a fire as it looked," Taylor said. "It ended up being some of the insulation in the exhaust catching fire."

Donohue replaced Law on the ensuing pit stop. Pruett took the lead in the exchange and led the rest of the way. Pruett and Rojas averaged 107.196 mph, completing 129 laps on the 2.3-mile circuit, and took the points lead by six (67-61) over Ryan Dalziel. The race remained caution-free until Lap 115, for debris in Turns 4 and 8. Law led a race-high 71 laps, followed by Pruett with 48. Other race leaders included Fogarty, who led the opening six laps, and Ryan Hunter-Reay, who led two laps in the No. 95 Level 5 Motorsports BMW Riley.

Rolex 24 At Daytona winners Terry Borcheller and Dalziel each led one lap in different cars. Borcheller was running in contention in the Daytona-winning No. 9 Action Express Racing Porsche Riley. Joao Barbosa, the 2009 Homestead winner seeking his third consecutive Rolex Series victory, went behind the wall early in his shift to replace the heat exchanger.

Tremblay and new regular SpeedSource co-driver Jonathan Bomarito led a GT class leading 44 laps in the Rolex 24 winning No. 70 Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8. Tremblay, who led 27 laps, fell back to fourth in the closing laps, but he and Bomarito maintained the points lead by three (63-60) over Robin Liddell and Andrew Davis, who finished second in the No. 57 Stevenson Automotive Group/Vin Solutions Camaro. Finishing third were Leh Keen and James Gue in the No. 41 Dempsey Racing Mazda RX-8.

Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand finished a solid fifth in the No. 94 Turner Motorsport BMW M6. The car ran only three laps in practice prior to the race and did not qualify due to problems with the power steering. Team owner Will Turner installed a power steering unit from a Daytona Prototype prior to the race, and Auberlen and Hand ran in contention throughout the event, with Hand leading four laps.

Paul Edwards started from the GT pole in the Banner Racing No. 07 Mobil 1 Corvette and led the opening 31 laps before turning the car over to motorcycle legend Scott Russell. Edwards returned to the car for the closing shift, finishing sixth - one position ahead of Patrick Dempsey and Joe Foster in the No. 40 Dempsey Racing Mazda RX-8. Ted Ballou and Andy Lally had the highest-finishing Porsche, placing eighth in the No. 66 AXA Porsche GT3.

The next race for the GRAND-AM Rolex Series will be the April 10 Porsche 250 at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala.

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Grand-Am Rolex Standings


~~~Daytona Prototype Class
-----Top-10+ Driver Standings............
t-1st}[1]Scott Pruett, 67 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[2]Memo Rojas, 67 pts(1 win)
3rd} Ryan Dalziel, 61 pts(1 win)
t-4th}[4]Burt Frisselle, 54 pts
t-4th}[5]Mark Wilkins, 54 pts
t-6th}[6]Alex Gurney, 53 pts
t-6th}[7]Jon Fogarty, 53 pts
t-8th}[8]Darren Law, 52 pts
t-8th}[9]David Donohue, 52 pts
t-10th}[10]Joao Barbosa, 51 pts
t-10th}[11]Terry Borcheller, 51 pts

-----Engine Standings*
t-1st}[1]BMW, 67 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[2]Porsche, 67 pts(1 win)
3rd} Ford, 56 pts
4th} Chevrolet, 53 pts
*--*Porsche currently runs 2 different types of engines in Grand-Am DP competition, a "flat-6" and a "V8 Cayenne"

-----Chassis Standings
1st} Riley Tech., 70 pts(2 wins)
2nd} Dallara, 50 pts
3rd} Lola, 46 pts
4th} Coyote, 42 pts
5th} Crawford, 17 pts


~~~Grand Touring Class
-----Top-10+ Driver Standings.............
t-1st}[1]Jonathan Bomarito, 63 pts(1 win)
t-1st}[2]Sylvain Tremblay, 63 pts(1 win)
t-3rd}[3]Andrew Davis, 60 pts
t-3rd}[4]Robin Liddell, 60 pts
t-5th}[5]Andy Lally, 53 pts
t-5th}[6]Ted Ballou, 53 pts
t-7th}[7]Emil Assentato, 51 pts(1 win)
t-7th}[8]Jeff Segal, 51 pts(1 win)
t-9th}[9]Patrick Dempsey, 49 pts
t-9th}[10]Bill Auberlen, 49 pts
t-9th}[11]Joey Hand, 49 pts
t-9th}[12]Joe Foster, 49 pts
t-9th}[13}Paul Dalla Lana, 49 pts

-----Manufacturers Standings
1st} Mazda, 70 pts(2 wins)
2nd} Chevrolet, 60 pts*
3rd} Porsche, 55 pts
4th} BMW, 49 pts
t-5th}[5]Ferrari, 16 pts
t-5th}[6]Ford, 16 pts
**--Chevrolet runs 2 different makes in Grand-Am GT competition, the Chevrolet Corvette C6-R and the Camaro GT-R

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GT class winners at Homestead[pictured above], VIR and Miller Mtrspts. Park will each receive custom Paul Reed Smith guitars

~~~DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - In an exciting extension of two recently announced partnerships for the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, a Paul Reed Smith guitar will be awarded at three 2010 races to the GT team that made the "GT Podium Move of the Race" as determined by MRN Radio announcers.

A Paul Reed Smith Starla X guitar, handcrafted in the company's Maryland manufacturing facility and autographed by Paul Reed Smith himself, was presented to GT race winners Jeff Segal and Emil Assentato following Saturday's Grand Prix of Miami at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Similar guitars will also be presented following the Bosch Engineering 250 at Virginia International Raceway on April 24 and the 2010 Rolex Series season finale at Miller Motorsports Park on Sept. 11 to the GT team that MRN announcers determine made a particular move that made the difference or had a significant impact on that team reaching the podium.

GRAND-AM announced Feb. 23 that MRN Radio would call the action at every 2010 Rolex Series event with veteran broadcaster Eli Gold leading the team. One week earlier, on Feb. 16, GRAND-AM and Paul Reed Smith Guitars announced that PRS and GRAND-AM were teaming up for a variety of promotional opportunities in 2010.

"This is a great way to bring more attention to a couple of new partnerships that we're really excited about in Paul Reed Smith Guitars and MRN Radio," said Kevin Hindson, GRAND-AM Vice President, Marketing and Communications. "These PRS guitars are absolutely beautiful and will be cherished by everybody who wins them. There's just something that fits when you combine PRS guitars and GRAND-AM Rolex Series racing, and we are thrilled to offer this new award in 2010."

The PRS Starla X retails for $1999. The guitar's retro-inspired design and appointments appeal to players in search of instruments with 24.5-inch scale length, PRS craftsmanship and build quality, but with unique aesthetics and tone. Features include Singlecut, flat obeche body with arm carve, 22-fret sipo wide fat neck, rosewood fretboard, pearloid dot inlays, traditional two-piece stoptail bridge, vintage style tuners, volume and tone control and a three-way blade switch. Mira X Treble and Bass pickups are standard with optional soapbar pickups.

Next up for the GRAND-AM Rolex Series is Round 3 of the 12-race 2010 schedule, the Porsche 250 at Barber Motorsports Park on Saturday, April 10. Tickets are available now at www.barbermotorsports.com. The race will be televised live on SPEED beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET and MRN Radio will call the action live beginning at 1:15 p.m. ET on select MRN affiliates and on SIRIUS XM NASCAR Radio - Channel 128. GRAND-AM.com will also have a live stream of the radio broadcast.

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Gainsco drivers Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney won at Barber in July 2009 en-route to their second Grand-Am Daytona Prototype class championship


~~~DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - While a victory in the April 10 Porsche 250 at Barber Motorsports Park will not guarantee the Daytona Prototype championship, the winners of the next event on the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 certainly have history on their side.

The last five winners at the Birmingham, Ala., road circuit have gone on to capture the Daytona Prototype title. Six of the seven winners at Barber have also taken the title in GRAND-AM's top division.

The Porsche 250, Round 3 on the 2010 schedule, takes the green flag at 1:50 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 10 (SPEED, live).

Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty won last July at Barber, their third of four victories en route to winning the championship. The drivers of the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Chevrolet Riley also won both the Porsche 250 and the title in 2007, their fifth of a record seven victories.

Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas "doubled up" in 2008. The drivers of the No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates BMW Riley won their sixth and final race of the campaign in the Porsche 250.

Jorg Bergmeister won the Porsche 250 and the title in 2006, although then 17-year-old co-driver Colin Braun - who currently races in the NASCAR Nationwide Series - was forced to sit out three races due to age restrictions. Nic Jonsson and car owner Tracy Krohn currently race the No. 75 Krohn Racing Ford Lola.

Max Angelelli and car owner Wayne Taylor won the 2005 Porsche 250, their third of five victories in a year that saw them complete every lap of competition. Taylor's seat in the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara has been taken over by his son, Ricky Taylor.

Terry Borcheller and Forest Barber scored their first Daytona Prototype victory in the 2003 inaugural event at Barber Motorsports Park. They went on to win six races, while Borcheller won the championship. Borcheller currently shares the No. 9 Action Express Racing Porsche Riley, which they co-drove to victory in the 2010 season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona.

The only team to win at Barber and not win the championship was Howard Boss Motorsports with drivers Butch Leitzinger and Elliott Forbes-Robinson, winners of the 2004 event.

Practice for the Porsche 250 begins at 2:55 p.m. on Thursday, April 8. Qualifying begins at 11:40 a.m. Saturday (SPEEDtv.com, live).

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~~~SEBRING, Fla. - Racing legend Hurley Haywood was inducted into the Sebring Sports Car Racing Hall of Fame during a Friday luncheon on the eve of the 12 Hours of Sebring.

Haywood ended his storied racing career following an 11th-place finish in the Daytona Prototype class in the 2010 Rolex 24 At Daytona. After winning his class in his professional debut at the 1969 Six Hours of Watkins Glen, Haywood closed out 2009 by joining Joao Barbosa in winning the Grand Prix of Miami. Both victories were recorded at the wheel of a No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche.

The lone five-time winner of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Haywood also won twice in the 12 Hours of Sebring and three times in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He has 28 career starts at Sebring, a record at the central Florida circuit.

Joining Haywood at the induction were former drivers Derek Daly and John Morton. Also inducted in the class of 2010 were racing pioneer Phil Walters, longtime Sebring race official Reggie Smith, and tire manufacturer Michelin. The Hall of Fame was formed in 2002, with inductions held every two years.

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~~~ - Teams fielding Camaro, Corvette, Porsche and BMW race cars are looking to snap Mazda's two-race winning streak in the Porsche 250 on April 10 at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala., Round 3 of the 2010 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. The race will take the green flag at 1:36 p.m. ET, with live SPEED coverage beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell won the 2009 Porsche 250 in a Pontiac GXP.R. Stevenson Motorsports is fielding a pair of Camaros for 2010, the No. 57 for Davis and Liddell and the No. 97 for Jan Magnussen and Gunter Schaldach.

Three teams will field Corvettes. Banner Racing has the No. 07 Mobil 1 Corvette for 2008 GT co-champion Paul Edwards and motorcycle legend Scott Russell. Lou Gigliotti's LG Motorsports debuted the No. 28 Corvette for 2008 co-champion Kelly Collins and Eric Lux in the recent race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, while Marsh Racing makes its GRAND-AM debut at Barber with the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Corvette for Eric Curran and Sonny Whelen. Collins and Edwards teamed to win GT honors in the 2007 Porsche 250 in the No. 07 Banner Racing Pontiac GXP.R.

Three Porsches are entered in the event. John Potter and Craig Stanton share the No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche GT3, Shane Lewis and Richard Zahn co-drive the No. 46 Autohaus Motorsports entry while Luke Hines and Bryce Miller compete in the No. 48 Miller Barrett Racing GT3.

Bill Auberlen and Paul Dalla Lana are entered in the lone BMW, the No. 94 Turner Motorsport M6 that made its debut in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona. The team had a strong showing in the Grand Prix of Miami, leading four laps and finishing fifth.

The four marques will be taking on Mazda, which has four teams fielding eight cars and won the GT class in both races this season. SpeedSource owner Sylvain Tremblay and new regular co-driver Jonathan Bomarito, joined by Nick Ham and David Haskell, won the season opening Rolex 24 in the No. 70 Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8, while Emil Assentato and Jeff Segal captured GT honors in the team's No. 69 FXDD Mazda at Homestead. SpeedSource also fields the No. 68 of rising stars John Edwards and Adam Christodoulou.

Dempsey Racing has expanded to two Mazdas this season. Racer/actor Patrick Dempsey and Joe Foster return in the No. 40, joined by defending GT champion Leh Keen and James Gue in the No. 41 - who scored Dempsey Racing's first podium finish by placing third at Homestead. Team Sahlen has a pair of Mazdas, with Joe Sahlen joining Joe Nonnamaker and his two sons, Will and Wayne Nonnamaker. Returning with one car is Racers Edge Motorsports, fielding the No. 30 for Todd Lamb and Jordan Taylor.

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----- Mark Wilkins has both momentum and history on his side when he returns to Barber Motorsports Park in the AIM Autosport No. 61 Pacific Mobile Ford Riley for the Porsche 250 on April 10, Round 3 of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. The race will take the green flag at 1:36 p.m. ET, with live SPEED coverage beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Wilkins is riding a streak of three top-five finishes with three different teams in 2010. He finished fifth in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona, when he and AIM Autosport co-driver Burt Frisselle joined Ozz Negri and John Pew with Michael Shank Racing. AIM Autosport debuted its bright blue Pacific Mobile colors for the Grand Prix of Miami, with Wilkins and Frisselle finishing fourth.

Last weekend, Wilkins joined Level 5 Motorsports for the 12 Hours of Sebring, winning the LMPC class with Scott Tucker and Christophe Bouchut by 46 laps.

"It's been a strong start to the season, and we've got to keep the momentum going," said the 26-year-old Canadian. "It was great at Sebring to show that the guys in GRAND-AM are at the top of the field and we can go out there into other series and get great results. It also keeps the other guys on the AIM team motivated - they want to show we can win Daytona Prototype races like we did in 2008."

While the results show only a 15th-place finish in the 2008 Porsche 250 at Barber, that race was a turning point for the team. Former co-driver Brian Frisselle passed both Scott Pruett and Alex Gurney to take the lead, and paced 15 circuits before he suddenly lost power with only 13 laps remaining. In the following event, Wilkins went from fourth to first on the last lap to win the Montreal 200 in the closest finish in Rolex Series history. The following weekend, Wilkins and Brian Frisselle combined to lead 79 of the 82 laps in winning the Crown Royal 200 at Watkins Glen International.

"Once we got that momentum in 2008, we kept plugging away," Wilkins said. "We had a great, cohesive team that year. We struggled a little bit with our setup last year and got a little bit discouraged. Over the winter, we regrouped and worked to get back that magic we had in 2008. With Pacific Mobile on board and the new livery that Ian Willis and the team did so much work to make the car look good, it gave everybody that little extra push. If we keep working hard, the results will come. I think it's going to be a really strong season."

Wilkins is excited about returning to Birmingham, Ala., for the Porsche 250. "Barber Motorsports Park is one of the nicest facilities for racing in North America. It's nice and smooth, and we enjoy that," Wilkins said. "Burt is really excited to get back to Barber. We're strong there. We've got a good car and we know that we can do well there, and the team is motivated to get some awesome results."

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Situated in the heart of Dixie, Alabama has two crowning jewels, the 2.67-mile Talledega Superspeedway and(pictured above) the picturesque 2.3-mile Barber Motorsports Park


~~~- The eyes of the motorsports world are used to being on the state of Alabama during the month of April. This year, however, they're not focused solely on Talladega Superspeedway. The NASCAR race there is April 25. International race fans will be looking at another Alabama racing facility on April 10.

Just as Talladega is "old-school," with NASCAR names like Donnie, Bobby, Dale Jr., "Red" and Awesome Bill ringing true, race fans also are becoming familiar with Alabama's "new-school" drivers, like Memo (Rojas), Joao (Barbosa), Max (Angelelli) and Antonio (Garcia), who race at beautiful Barber Motorsports Park. Those drivers, who compete in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype class, will be on hand at Barber, the newest road course in the series.

Located 20 miles from downtown Birmingham in the small-town backdrop of Leeds, the 2.3-mile, 17-turn track is situated among arguably the most scenic setting road course racing in the U.S. has to offer. Like the throng of fans who gather in the grandstands in the infield at Talladega, thousands of fans have camped and packed the hillsides on the grounds at Barber since it opened in 2003. GRAND-AM was the first series to have a public event take place there.

GRAND-AM at Barber and NASCAR Sprint Cup at Talladega present an interesting dichotomy of racing. Talladega is a 500-mile, bump-drafting, breath-holding, four-hour merry-go-round. The GRAND-AM event will have nose-to-tail racing through flowing turns and 80 feet of elevation with a time limit of two hours and 45 minutes.

As Chevy, Ford, Toyota and Dodge are staples in NASCAR, so too are Ford and Chevy in GRAND-AM. Additionally, fans at Barber will see Porsche and BMW models race. The Rolex Series - with its Daytona Prototype and GT class - will also be accompanied by its Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, a street stock division for high-performance and turbo and supercharged cars from both the U.S. and around the world.