Michael Shank Racing Packs Mid-Ohio Momentum for Return to Daytona
(Columbus, OH) 30 June 2010 – Fresh from the team's best-ever race result at the home track with a run to second (No. 60 Crown Royal XR Ford-Riley) and fourth (No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford-Dallara) at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Michael Shank Racing is looking forward to round seven of the 2010 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series championship and the Brumos 250 at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday.
The team carries the Mid-Ohio momentum into the sprint race weekend as well as a history of speed at Daytona International Speedway.
"Mid-Ohio was huge for us, but we didn't spend long celebrating because the focus immediately switched to Daytona," said team owner Mike Shank. "I'm happy to have Rocky Fork join us as a sponsor and hopefully we can bring them some good results starting this weekend. We have a great opportunity right now and we want to kick the second half of the season off with a good finish for both cars on Saturday. We've had fast cars at Daytona with the Riley through the years, but it will be a new learning curve for us with the Dallara so we will just try to make the most of every lap we get to learn and improve with the car."
John Pew and Ozz Negri will look for a third visit to the podium in the 2010 Rolex Sports Car Series season with the No. 60 Crown Royal XR Ford-Riley as the duo enter the race weekend third in the team championship standings, just ten points back from second and twenty-two behind the lead No. 01 entry.
The Crown Royal XR machine will be a car to watch as Pew has traditionally shown well at the track and has been riding a streak of strong qualifying performances, with co-driver Negri knowing his way around the track as the previous track record holder.
"Taking a podium at Mike Shank's home track was a great experience to be a part of and I think it was even better given how much effort the team put into being there and ready to go with both cars," said Pew. "The Crown Royal car was very fast when we were in Daytona for the 24, and this team has always been strong there. We had a great comeback drive in the July race last year so we know we can move through the field--hopefully we can qualify well and I can turn the car over to Ozz and we can fight to the finish."
The sister No. 6 Ford-Dallara of Michael Valiante and Brian Frisselle target a strong follow up to their run to fourth at Mid-Ohio. Beyond just having a strong team behind them, the young duo pack the right credentials for the July Daytona event as Brian Frisselle is the defending race winner after his 2009 Daytona July event saw him post a run to third in qualifying with a Dallara-Ford on his way to the victory.
Frisselle's co-driver Valiante also packs a lot of speed when preparing for the 3.56-mile circuit. Last year he posted a storming drive that earned the team another SunTrust "Improve Your Position" Award as he finished fourth after the car started from the back of the pack.
"I'm looking forward to getting back to Daytona and picking up where we left off at Mid-Ohio," said Frisselle. "We struggled so much that weekend and then everything came together in the race, and now the guys have had a little bit of time with the car so hopefully we can get started on the right foot on Friday. I have a lot of confidence in this team and coming back to a track where you have won before is also a great boost so I am very excited about getting down there and getting to work."
While the schedule is not the same one-day format as has traditionally been the case, it is still an intense schedule with Friday morning hosting two practice sessions ahead of the 11:15 AM ET qualifying session. The team will have the opportunity to confirm final set-up analysis with a 9:45 AM final practice session ahead of the 11:00 AM race start.
SPEED will bring coverage of the event starting at 1:00 PM ET.
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Press Notes:
About AIM Autosport
Established in 1995, AIM Autosport operates multi-car teams competing in the Formula BMWUSA Championship and the Star Mazda Series. The company has a mandate to identify, train and manage emerging motorsport talent. AIM has provided many young drivers with a solid foundation on which to build a career in professional racing. The success of the AIM driver development programs has been achieved through the dedication of our employees and the ongoing support of our commercial and technical partners.
Away from the track, AIM Autosport serves the needs of the racing community with a purpose-built preparation shop situated in the Toronto suburb of Woodbridge, Ontario.
Chassis brings resume of success to AIM Autosport:
AIM Autosport's Riley chassis was purchased from Chip Ganassi Racing and comes to the team with an impressive legacy of success, having won the Rolex Sports Car Series Championship in 2004.
AIM Autosport Alumni:
AIM has a long history of bringing drivers up through the ranks, and the alumni list reads like a who's who in the sport: www.aimautosport.com/drivers/Alumni/Alumni.htm
Performance-Oriented:
Performance Drink, the "Official Performance Drink" of Grand Am has signed on as an associate partner for the 2007 season, and will be utilizing the relationship to develop and demonstrate the high-performance capabilities of the drink. The drivers in the Rolex 24 At Daytona will be participating in a unique program that will closely monitor their bodies' performances throughout the enduro. More details to follow.
For additional information
www.aimautosport.com
www.michaelshankracing.com
