Highlights of the Motorsports Business Forum - Day 2

  Highlighted by Lesa France Kennedy
The second and final day of the inaugural Motor Sport Business Forum North America (MSBF-NA) featured a Wednesday Keynote luncheon address by Lesa France Kennedy, Chief Executive Officer of International Speedway Corporation (ISC), that proved to be one of the highlights of a packed schedule at the Orlando Hilton for the first ever MSBF-NA.  France Kennedy joined Conference Chairman Zak Brown, Just Marketing International (JMI) Founder and CEO, on stage for an hour-long “coffee talk” exchange that was informal in setting but highly impactful in its delivery.

Highlights of the Motorsports Business Forum at PRI

  by Scott Morris
The motorsports industry leaders all converged this morning to speak about the state of the industry at the inaugural Motorsports Business Forum presented by IM2 Events and hosted by Just Marketing International, with some interesting statements made about various arms of motorsports.  Terry Angstadt from the IRL. Terry appeared at this conference in the wake of their recent announcement of Izod as the new IndyCar title sponsor. However, he mentioned their partnership with Apex Brazil as having more than meets the eye.

Grand-Am honors Fogarty and Gurney

  2009 Champions
Top competitors in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 and Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge were honored Monday evening at the Rolex Champions Banquet presented by SunTrust at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla.  Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Leh Keen, Dirk Werner, Ken Wilden and Christian Miller were recognized as the 2009 driving champions.

Scenes from Homestead - Saturday

  by Scott Morris

Scenes from Homestead - Friday

  by Scott Morris

Homestead: Fogarty’s sixth 2009 pole

  Grand-AM
Jon Fogarty put GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing in the best possible position to clinch the team’s second Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series Championships Friday when he won his fifth-straight pole of the 2009 season and sixth of the year in qualifying for Saturday’s season-ending Grand Prix of Miami.  The 2.5-hour sprint on the 2.3-mile, 11-turn Homestead-Miami Speedway road course is scheduled to start at 1:08 p.m. ET tomorrow with live coverage on SPEED beginning at 1 p.m. ET. 

Scenes from VIR Grand-AM Koni Challenge race

  by Rhonda McCole

Gurney, Fogarty Dominate Utah 250

  Grand-Am Rolex Series
Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty took a solid victory over their rivals in the battle for the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 championship Saturday, winning Saturday's Utah 250 at Miller Motorsports Park. The pair led 43 of the 56 laps to win the two-hour, 45-minute race on the 4.486-mile circuit before near-zero fans.

Fogarty wins 4th consecutive pole

  Grand-Am
While Jon Fogarty won his fourth consecutive pole position and series-tying 13th career overall pole Friday in Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Friday, the Daytona Prototype point leader viewed the session as a test for Saturday's Utah 250.

Grand Am cars test at the Speedway

  Grand-AM
Grand-Am Road Racing competitors and officials were pleased and optimistic following Thursday's first sanctioned test at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Nine Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 teams participated in the test, which included a pair of two-hour sessions. While the bulk of the time was spent on the 2.534-mile, 13-turn Formula One road course, teams also spent a short time on the modified 2.621-mile, 16-turn MotoGP layout.

Fogarty wins pole for Montreal 200

  Grand-Am
Jon Fogarty edged Scott Pruett by 0.012 seconds to win his season-leading fourth pole of the 2009 season Friday at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, and will lead the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Daytona Prototype field to the green flag for Saturday's Montreal 200 at the 2.709-mile track.  Fogarty set his fastest time of 1:32.235 (105.734 mph) on his fifth lap in the No. 99 GAINSCO Pontiac Riley, earning his second pole at the track.

Krohn Racing wins in Crown Royal 200

  Grand-Am
First in the rain, then in the dry - now Ricardo Zonta has a Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 victory in both.  The Brazilian put together a dominating performance in the second half of Friday's Crown Royal 200, holding off a surging Scott Pruett to give himself and co-driver Nic Jönsson a victory in the two-hour sprint race at Watkins Glen International.

Fogarty Shatters Track Record

  For Friday’s Crown Royal 200 at Watkins Glen
After struggling with brake problems throughout practice, Jon Fogarty went out and shattered the Watkins Glen International short course qualifying record Thursday, capturing the pole position for the Crown Royal 200. After breaking the record five minutes into the session, Fogarty backed it up with a lap of 1:05.069 (135.548 mph) to solidify his third pole position of the season.

Gurney Holds Off Pruett at Barber Motorsports Park

  Grand-Am
Alex Gurney held off Scott Pruett in a 20-minute sprint to win Sunday's Porsche 250 presented by Legacy Credit Union, tying the Daytona Prototype point standings with only four races remaining in the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 season.  Gurney won the team's series-leading third race of the season.

Fogarty Edges Rojas for Porsche 250 Pole

  Grand-Am
Jon Fogarty turned a lap of 1:21.057 (102.150 mph) in Saturday's qualifying to capture the pole position for Sunday's Porsche 250 presented by Legacy Credit Union at Barber Motorsports Park, Round 8 of the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16.  The top three contenders for the Daytona Prototype championship swept the top three positions.

SunTrust team wins Brumos Porsche 250

  Grand Am Rolex Series at Daytona
For the second straight year, Alex Gurney lost a heartbreaker in the Brumos Porsche 250 at Daytona International Speedway. Max Angelelli held off a last-lap charge Saturday to win Round 7 of the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, winning by .270 seconds - the fifth-closest finish in the history of the series.

Scenes from Mid-Ohio - Saturday

  by Mark Scheuern

Pruett, Rojas Win Second Straight Race at Mid-Ohio

  Grand-Am
Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas needed five races into the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 to win their first race of the season. They didn't have to wait long to post victory number two, driving to victory in Saturday's EMCO Gears Classic presented by KeyBank at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Scenes from Mid-Ohio - Friday

  by Mark Scheuern

Mid-Ohio: Fogarty edge Rojas for pole

  Grand-Am
Qualifying for Saturday's EMCO Gears Classic presented by Key Bank, Round 6 of the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, nearly came down to a dead heat before Jon Fogarty put down a tie-breaking lap of 1:18.059 (104.136 mph) Friday at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Interview with Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty

  Ahead of Mid-Ohio Grand-Am race
This week's Grand-Am interview featured two past Rolex Series champions who are looking to make history this weekend at Mid-Ohio:  Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty.  They're the leading Daytona Prototype's winners this year co driving the 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley. This weekend, they're looking for their third consecutive victory in the EMCO Gears Classic at Mid Ohio, which would make them the first Rolex Series team to win the same event in the same class in three consecutive years.  Alex and Jon have 10 victories in the red 99.

Pruett and Rojas drive Lexus to win at Watkins Glen

  Grand-Am Rolex Series
Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas drove the Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley to victory in the Sahlen’s Six Hour Grand-Am race at Watkins Glen.  The race finished under caution so Max Angelelli was only 0.154 seconds behind at the finish but Pruett had over a 3 second lead before that.  Timo Bernhard brought the Penske Porsche Riley home third.

Pruett wins Grand-Am pole at The Glen

  Rolex Series
Scott Pruett bettered the Watkins Glen International track record by two seconds Saturday, winning his 12th career pole position for Saturday's Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen. The event, Round 5 of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, takes the green flag at 2:15 p.m. Saturday. The race will be televised live on SPEED from 2-4 p.m. and resuming from 6-8:30 p.m.

Scenes from Laguna Seca - Sunday Race

  by Bob Heathcote

Scenes from Laguna Seca - Sunday Morning

  by Bob Heathcote

Fogarty, Gurney Team to Win Second Race of Season

  Grand-Am
Jon Fogarty passed Scott Pruett at the entrance to the Corkscrew with 22 laps remaining and held on to give the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings racing its second Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 victory of the season in the Verizon Festival of Speed Sunday at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Rojas puts Lexus on pole in Laguna Seca

  Grand-Am
As the temperatures warmed up dramatically from opening practice, so did Memo Rojas. The driver of the No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Lexus Riley ran a lap of 1:19.874 (100.869 mph) Saturday afternoon to capture the pole position for Sunday's Verizon Wireless Festival of Speed presented by SPEEDCOM at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Scenes from Laguna Seca - Friday

  by Bob Heathcote

Valiante, Ham Lead Opening Rolex Series Practice

  Grand-Am in Laguna Seca
Michael Valiante ran the fastest lap in Friday's practice at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, with Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 competitors beginning preparations for Sunday's Verizon Wireless 250 presented by SPEEDCOM. Valiante led the Daytona Prototypes with a lap of 1:20.079 (100.611 mph) in the No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley, while Robin Liddell led the Acxiom GT competitors with a lap of 1:27.547 in the Stevenson Racing No. 57 Bryan Mark Financial Pontiac GXP.R.

Zonta dominates in NJ rain for Krohn Racing

  Grand-Am
Brazilian Ricardo Zonta took the rest of the Grand-Am drivers to school in the heavy rain that fell in Millville, New Jersey Sunday to win the Verizon Wireless 250 going away in his Krohn Racing Lola Ford.  Dead last on the lap 44 restart by the end of the 87-lap contest not only had he passed the entire field he won by over 44-seconds.

Dumas puts Verizon car on pole for Verizon race

  What a coincidence!
Romain Dumas turned a lap of 1m14.057s to win pole position for Sunday's Grand-Am race at the New Jersey Motorsports Park.  Scott Pruett will start 2nd in the Chip Ganassi Lexus ahead of Jon Fogarty in the Gainsco Pontiac.  Nic Jonsson (Lola Ford) and Brian Frisselle (Dallara Ford), rounded out the top-5.  It was the first ever pole for the famed Penske team in Rolex Series competition.

Valiante turns fastest practice lap in New Jersey

  Defending race winners off to fast start in South Jersey
Michael Valiante turned a lap of 1m14.905s in his Michael Shank Ford Riley to lead opening day practice for Sunday's Grand-Am race at the New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, NJ.  The Penske Porsche of Bernhard and Dumas turned the 2nd fastest lap.  Both fast laps were turned in the morning practice session and were the only times under the 1m15s mark.  The track was slowed at times from light sprinkles on a very overcast New Jersey day.

Gurney Holds Off Valiante at VIR

  Grand-Am
Alex Gurney took the lead on a four-wide pass on Lap 65 of 81 laps in the two-hour, 45-minute Bosch Engineering 250, and then held off Michael Valiante in a sprint to the finish to capture the race at Virginia International Raceway, Round 2 of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16.

Rojas puts Lexus on pole at VIR

  Grand-Am
Memo Rojas prevailed in a back-and-forth battle with Timo Bernhard to capture the Daytona Prototype pole position for the Bosch Engineering 250 at Virginia International Raceway. Nick Ham turned in the fastest lap in GT qualifying, with both pole winners shattering the existing track records.

Scenes from Rolex 24 at Daytona

  by Dave Wood and Grand-Am

Brumos Porsche smokes Ganassi Lexus to win Rolex24

  Donohue beats NASCAR star Montoya for Rolex 24 win
David Donohue with Porsche power smoked Juan Pablo Montoya's Lexus with 39 minutes remaining and held on to win the 47th Rolex 24 At Daytona - on the 40th anniversary of his father, Mark Donohue's, victory in the 1969 event. Donohue joined Darren Law, Buddy Rice and Antonio Garcia to give Brumos Racing its first Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series sine '03 and denied the Ganassi team a 4th-straight win.

Can Ganassi's Preparation Lead to 4th Rolex 24 win

  Grand-Am
The months of preparation are over, and now a wide-open battle is expected when the green flag waves at 3:30 p.m. Saturday for the 47th running of America's premier sports car race, the Rolex 24 At Daytona. “It's going to be close,” said Chip Ganassi, who is seeking his fourth consecutive Rolex 24 victory with a star-studded two-car entry.

Donohue Captures Rolex 24 At Daytona Pole

  40 Years After Father's Victory
David Donohue edged Timo Bernhard by a scant .001 seconds Thursday to capture the pole position for the 47th Rolex 24 At Daytona, breaking the Daytona Prototype track record in the process.  Donohue turned in a lap of 1:40.540 (127.472 mph) in the No. 58 Brumos Porsche Riley he will share with Darren Law, Buddy Rice and Antonio Garcia.

Wide-Open Battle Expected for 47th Rolex 24

  Grand-Am's premier event
A wide-open race is expected for Saturday's 47th Rolex 24 At Daytona, when Grand-Am Road Racing's top competitors join stars of NASCAR, the IndyCar Series and international sports car racing battling for top overall honors in America's premier sports car event.

NASCAR well represented in Rolex 24

  NASCAR, Grand-Am
The Daytona 500 and the start of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season is less than three weeks away but a number of drivers and owners will make an early visit to Daytona International Speedway for Saturday’s Rolex 24 at Daytona. Since 1962, NASCAR stars have been a part of the historic, twice-around-the-clock sports car race.

Law, Farnbacher Run Fastest Laps Monday

  Final Day of "Roar Before the Rolex 24" Testing
Darren Law and Dominik Farnbacher waited until the final day to set the fastest laps of the "Roar Before the Rolex 24" Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 at Daytona International Speedway. Law, driving the No. 58 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley, led the Daytona Prototypes in the Monday's conclusion of the three-day session with a lap of 1:31.733 (125.977 mph).