FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 18, 2009

UNSEASONABLE HEAT NO MATCH FOR PIRELLI P ZERO RACING SLICKS IN HIGHLY-COMPETITIVE GRAND-AM ROLEX SPORTS CAR SERIES RACE AT MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA SUNDAY

MONTEREY, California – For the second time in the last three races, Pirelli and the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 handled the dual pressures of extreme heat and highly competitive racing. This past weekend’s Verizon Festival of Speed presented by SPEEDCOM Communications at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (May 15 – 17) had unseasonably warm temperatures, similar to the conditions endured in last month’s Bosch Engineering 250 at Virginia International Raceway.

Combining Sunday’s extreme heat with the high-action racing in the Grand-Am Rolex Series was a challenge Pirelli and its 2009 Spec Grand-Am P Zero Racing Slicks met head on with impressive results.

Jon Fogarty drove dual opening and closing stints in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley and joined teammate Alex Gurney in taking a hard fought win over rival Scott Pruett and the No. 01 TELMEX/Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley. In a daring move with his left-side Pirellis in the gravel and just his right side tires on the race track, Fogarty pulled alongside Pruett in the up-hill run to Laguna Seca’s famous Corkscrew turn and made the winning pass with just over 30 minutes to go in the 2 ¾ hour timed race.

“The Pirellis withstood the test today,” said Fogarty, who started third in the race despite going off course at the Corkscrew during Saturday’s qualifying. “It was hot and we had good grip throughout our entire stints. I started the race on my qualifying set of tires, which I felt like I really abused in qualifying, but they were good. They definitely were up to the task today.”

Fogarty also set the race’s fastest lap in the late stages on a set of P Zeros that had been on his race car for nearly an hour. Fogarty and Gurney became the first repeat Daytona Prototype race winners of the 2009 season and also took the points leads in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series Team and Driver Championships, with the first quarter of the season now in the record books.

The action was even more intense in GT, where as many as five different teams battled nose to tail for the lead at various stages throughout the race. In the end, No. 70 Castrol/SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 teammates Nick Ham and Sylvain Tremblay avenged a narrow loss in last year’s Laguna Seca race to score the victory. Both drivers reported the Pirelli P Zeros gave the Mazda teammates their best performance of the year.

“We have made big progress,” Ham said. “The car handled so well today and I had such confidence at the start of the race going into it knowing that I had the adjustability to work with the tires throughout my stint as the fuel burned off. So big credit to the Pirelli Tires today – very good.”

Tremblay drove the winning Mazda to the finish and gained valuable track position by depending on the durability of the P Zeros and changing only right side tires during one pit stop.

“The team just made great calls on set up,” Tremblay said. “We were surprised because we just changed the right side tires and the left side Pirellis lasted a stint and a half. So we really had no issues with the Pirellis today, they gave us great grip, and I think it is a real testament to how the crew was able to adapt our particular car to this tire at this race track. We are just very pleased with the product.”

Next up for Pirelli and the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series is the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen, June 4 – 6. The race can be seen live on SPEED beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 6.

Pirelli Tire North America designs, develops, manufactures and markets tires for passenger vehicles in both the original equipment and replacement markets as well as markets and distributes tires for motorcycles and motorsports. Located in Rome, Georgia, Pirelli’s Modular Integrated Robotized System (MIRS) employs state-of-the-art technology to manufacture tires for both export and domestic markets. For more information please visit www.us.pirelli.com.
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Media Contacts:
Rafael Navarro, Director Communications & Motorsports
951-533-0305 rafael.navarro@pirelli.com

Joe Severns, Public Relations Manager
706-506-2195 joe.severns@pirelli.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 14, 2009
PIRELLI P ZEROS RETURN TO MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA FOR MORE GRAND-AM ROLEX SERIES ACTION THIS WEEKEND
Chip Foose Grand Marshal of this Weekend’s Verizon Festival of Speed

MONTEREY, California – Pirelli’s high-grip P Zero Racing Slicks take to the smooth tarmac of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca this weekend in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Cask No. 16 Verizon Wireless Festival of Speed presented by SPEEDCOM Communications. Award-winning automotive designer Chip Foose will be the Grand Marshal. Round 4 of the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series 12-event schedule will be broadcast live on SPEED at 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT) Sunday, May 17.

Daytona Prototype and GT racing teams will have their hands full meeting the challenges of the legendary 2.238-mile, 11-turn Laguna Seca circuit and its smooth-as-glass racing surface. Pirelli’s debut effort at last year’s Festival of Speed at Laguna Seca saw the tires perform well in a hot and action-packed race – and teams expect an even better performance by the 2009 spec P Zero Racing Slick this weekend.

In addition to giving the “Start your engines” command and presenting the trophies to both DP and GT classes following the race, Foose will judge Saturday’s Race ‘n Rod National Show, take part in the Grand-Am autograph session and conduct a fan forum at the Mother’s Waxes and Car Polishes display.

Local Northern California favorite and Novato native Memo Gidley will be driving the No. 77 McDonald’s/Doran Racing Ford Dallara at this weekend’s race. He knows the ins and outs of Laguna Seca better than most and learned last year that he can rely on his P Zeros on the series’ toughest tracks – like Laguna Seca.

“I’ve been really happy with the Pirelli tires,” said Gidley who is in his second season co-driving the No. 77 Ford Doran with fellow American Brad Jaeger. “For one, it’s great to have a tire with good grip that allows us to attack the corners like the Pirellis do. This especially helps with a track like Laguna where the line is pretty narrow, and where to pass you need confidence that the tire has the grip to move off-line.”

Hoping to continue their upward momentum, Gidley and Jaeger co-drove to a solid fifth-place finish in Round 2 at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) in the Bosch Engineering 250 last month, relying on several long stints between pit stops to ensure the strong result.

“The consistent grip of the (P Zero) tire during long runs has been awesome,” said Gidley who joined Jaeger in matching their top 2008 finish at VIR. “This has made the car more fun to drive for those long runs between stops.”

Rolex Series GT competitors also learned of the P Zero’s awesome grip and durability at last year’s Laguna Seca race. Paul Edwards drove his No. 07 Banner Racing Pontiac
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GXP.R past the No. 70 Castrol/SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 of Sylvain Tremblay in the closing laps of the 2008 Festival of Speed race and took the win with co-driver Kelly Collins.

“We are looking forward to defending our win this weekend,” said Collins, who went on to win the 2008 Grand-Am Rolex Series GT Championship with Edwards. “I have been a lead instructor (at Laguna Seca) for Skip Barber for over 20 years and it is my home track; but it is hard to get a real rhythm and set up a car there. It is kind of like a billiard table – a low grip, smooth and flat surface – but we had more longevity and performance from the Pirellis last year than some other tires I have run at Laguna Seca. The Pirellis lasted and we have no reason to think that won’t be the case again this year.”

Edwards joins his Banner teammate in looking for a repeat win at Laguna Seca this weekend and another championship this year. He noticed that the 2009 specification Pirellis keep the power down but also give a bit of an advantage when it comes to stopping the heavy GT race cars under braking.

“We altered our set up and tested quite a bit and it works with the Pirellis,” Edwards said. “The tires are awesome, and you can really hit that sweet spot with the Pirellis with the right pressures and when you get the temperatures up. They are great, and this year at the first tracks we have run we seem to have improved our braking. The Pirellis are even allowing us to brake later.”

The Verizon Wireless Festival of Speed presented by SPEEDCOM Communications will feature the Daytona Prototype and GT divisions racing together in a timed 2 ¾ hour race, which can be seen live on SPEED at 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT) this Sunday, May 17.

Pirelli Tire North America designs, develops, manufactures and markets tires for passenger vehicles in both the original equipment and replacement markets as well as markets and distributes tires for motorcycles and motorsports. Located in Rome, Georgia, Pirelli’s Modular Integrated Robotized System (MIRS) employs state-of-the-art technology to manufacture tires for both export and domestic markets. For more information please visit www.us.pirelli.com.
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Media Contacts:
Rafael Navarro, Director Communications & Motorsports
951-533-0305 rafael.navarro@pirelli.com

Joe Severns, Public Relations Manager
706-506-2195 joe.severns@pirelli.com