HOOSIER WET & DRY TIRES
DO WELL AT WATKINS GLEN

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (June 12, 2005) -- Nic Jönsson picked a fine time to lead his first laps of the 2005 Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series season, as he motored his No. 67 Krohn Racing/TRG Pontiac Riley past teammate Christian Fittipaldi and into the lead with slightly more than four laps remaining to take the victory in the Sahlen's Six Hours at The Glen.

In a race that saw weather conditions change from hot and humid to heavy rain, Jönsson and co-driver Tracy Krohn charged from 17th on the starting grid to a top-five spot in the race's final hour. As the other front-runners encountered difficulties, Jönsson continued moving forward as the laps wound down. When Michael McDowell spun out of second place with fewer than 10 laps remaining, the stage was set for a 1-2 showing for the Krohn Racing/TRG team with Fittipaldi holding the lead and Jönsson in second.

However, Jönsson would not be satisfied by finishing second to his teammate. On lap 146 of the 150-lap event, the Swede made his move by sweeping to the inside of Fittipaldi in Turn 8 of the famous Watkins Glen International "boot" section and taking over the lead. Once past Fittipaldi, Jönsson would not be challenged as he opened up a 15.758-second advantage over the Brazilian on his way to victory.

After combining to lead a race-high 46 laps, No. 01 CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley co-drivers Scott Pruett and Luis Diaz were fortunate to escape with a third-place result. When the skies opened up for the first time, Diaz slid off course in the "boot" and was hit by the No. 58 Red Bull-Brumos Racing Porsche Fabcar when it spun off at the same time.

Diaz managed to keep the car running and hustled back to the pits. The team changed tires and got Pruett back behind the wheel without losing a lap, although he was in ninth place with roughly one hour remaining. In the waning laps, Pruett was able to work his way forward and survived a last-lap charge by McDowell to secure the third-place result.

A quote from Hoosier Racing Tire Product Manager Tim Gilvin. "The hot humid weather, practice, qualifying and race day, then changing to heavy rain during the race kept the Hoosier crew busy and on our toes". 
 

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (June 12, 2005) -- In a pulse-pounding GT battle, Wolf Henzler in the No. 14 Autometrics Motorsports Porsche GT3 Cup passed Andy Lally in the No. 65 Auto Gallery/TRG Porsche GT3 Cup with only three laps remaining to take the lead and the class victory in the Sahlen's Six Hours at The Glen.

Auberlen & Marks Take Second Win of 2005 Season in Chemung Canal Trust 200

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (June 11, 2005) -- After taking his fourth Grand-Am Cup Series pole in five races earlier in the afternoon, Justin Marks led the first 28 laps of the Chemung Canal Trust 200 before handing it over to teammate Bill Auberlen, who charged to the lead with only three laps to go to claim the second overall victory for the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 team at Watkins Glen International

Scott Maxwell and David Empringham, who were victorious in last month's Grand-Am Cup 200 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, finished second in the No. 55 Multimatic Motorsports Mustang GT. Empringham led 10 laps, but was unable to hold off a determined Auberlen in the end. Nevertheless, the performance enabled them to take over the lead in the Grand Sport (GS) driver standings. With 142 points, Empringham and Maxwell lead Mike McCalmont and Darren Law by four points.

LALLY AND HOLTOM WIN SPORT TOURING CLASS IN STRONG OUTING FOR CHEVROLET COBALT
In a close ST battle, Andy Lally and Jim Holtom claimed their first class victories of the season in the No. 00 Georgian Bay Motorsports Chevrolet Cobalt. It was a good day for the Cobalt, as three of the top five spots were claimed by that make. The performance also allowed Holtom to move into third place in the ST driver standings, trailing new points leaders Will Turner and Don Salama--who co-drive the No. 95 Turner Motorsport BMW 330i--by just one point, 104-103.

The Grand-Am Cup Series Chemung Canal Trust 200 will be televised on SPEED Channel June 19 at 5:00 p.m. (ET).

For more information about the Grand American racing circuit check out the official Grand-Am web site at www.grandamerican.com.

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