CITGO RACING BY SAMAX ANNOUNCES NEW EQUIPMENT,
ADDITION OF FACTORY DRIVERS & TOP FORMER CHAMP CAR ENGINEER
Duno and team head to Laguna Seca
May 2, 2006, Los Angeles, CA.The Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series has
become ultra competitive in 2006. Top equipment is a necessity to compete at
the front and CITGO Racing by SAMAX is proud to announce that the #11 CITGO
Pontiac Riley has undergone a complete transformation. The car is now the
newest race car on the Rolex Series grid. The #11 boasts a brand new Riley
chassis, new Bosch electronics, a Pontiac engine from Hasselgren Engineering
and an all new paint scheme.
In addition, the team welcomes Corvette Racing driver Olivier Beretta to
race with CITGO Racing regular Milka Duno in up to 6 of the remaining 9
races and Riley Technologies Factory driver Marc Goossens to compete in 3
races - beginning with the race at Laguna Seca. CITGO Racing is also
pleased to announce that Champ Car veteran engineer Steve Challis will join
the program starting with the upcoming race at Laguna Seca.
Olivier Beretta, a Corvette Racing driver, is one of the most successful
drivers in international endurance racing. He is a three time American Le
Mans Series (ALMS) champion and a four time class winner of the prestigious
24 Hours of Le Mans. Since 2000, Beretta has also worked as a Formula One
test driver with Michelin developing tires and since 2002 with the Williams
F1 Team. 'I'm very happy to have this new challenge in front of me and to
drive for CITGO Racing and SAMAX. I've been watching the Daytona Prototypes
because of the Pontiac involvement and to see my friends in action. The
competition is extremely fierce and I am extremely anxious to help my new
team beginning at Phoenix!'
Marc Goossens, a Riley Technologies factory driver, has raced top level
prototype sports cars for over 10 years. Highlights include 3rd place
finishes in the 2004 Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 2002 12 Hours of Sebring.
'It's encouraging to see the team moving forward on an aggressive path',
said Bill Riley, President of Riley Motorsport. 'Having Marc in the car we
should be able to work more closely with them on engineering and set up
issues and help advance the development of the car. With the upcoming
testing and our support we expect to see the car at the front.'
Steve Challis has been a Champ Car engineer for the past 10 years and has
helped some of the top names in open wheel racing reach the podium and
victory lane, including Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser, Dario Franchitti and Greg
Moore.
Duno said 'We have been working really hard to make our team and car as
strong as possible and I would like to thank Marino Franchitti for his
valuable contribution this season. The addition of factory drivers and a
top engineer proves that we are on the right track. The series has become
so competitive that it is critical to get as much help as possible to get to
the front, which we will be making every effort to do.'
Milka Duno, Marc Goossens and the CITGO Racing by SAMAX team will now head
west for the 6th round of the 2006 Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series
Championship - the U.S. Sportscar Invitational at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
in Monterey, CA May 5-7, 2006. The Sunday race will be televised live on the
SPEED Channel beginning at 3:00pm EDT.
CITGO, based in Houston, Texas, is a refiner, transporter and marketer of
transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals, refined waxes, asphalt and
other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an
indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., the
national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. For more
information on CITGO visit www.citgo.com .
Milka is currently featured in Pontiac's largest ever Spanish language
advertising campaign. Pontiac is a division of General Motors Corporation
(NYSE: GM) and markets the Bonneville, GTO, Grand Prix, Grand Am, G6, Vibe
and Sunfire. In 2003, Pontiac sold more than 475,000 vehicles, ranking third
among GM divisions in total sales. 2004/2005 will see Pontiac launch an
exciting new range of vehicles including the Montana SV6, G6 coupe, G6
convertible and the Solstice roadster. More information on Pontiac and its
products can be found at www.pontiac.com . Information in Spanish can be
found at www.pontiac.com/sp .
Milka is also the Latin American spokesperson for Sony's Xplod car audio
brand. Sony Corporation of America is a leading manufacturer of audio,
video, communications, and information technology products for the consumer
and professional markets. Its music, motion picture, television, computer
entertainment, and online businesses make Sony one of the most comprehensive
entertainment companies in the world. Sony recorded consolidated annual
sales of approximately $67 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31,
2005. You may visit the Sony Corporation website at http://www.sony.net/ .
Sony Latin America has a regional office in Miami, Florida, and subsidiaries
in numerous countries, including Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia,
Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico and Venezuela. You may visit the
Sony Latin America website at http://www.sony-latin.com/index_.crp
For additional information on Milka please visit www.milkaduno.com . For
more information on the Rolex Sports Car Series log on to
www.grandamerican.com .
Drivers Goossens Engineering Institute
LEO GOOSSEN is considered by most racing historians to be the nation's outstanding designer of racing engines from the early 1920s through the mid-1970s. The mild-mannered Goossen, who evidently was perfectly happy working behind a desk and reportedly never went to any race tracks to see the results of his work, had a hand in just about every major American racing engine for five decades. One of his first major projects for Harry Miller was the design and construction of six complete race cars with 122-cubic-inch, eight-cylinder engines for the 1923 season. He remained with the company as chief engineer when it was acquired by Fred Offenhauser in 1933. Goossen designed the 220-cubic-inch and 255-cubic-inch four-cylinder Offenhausers, and continued his engine design work after World War II when Offenhauser sold the engine business to Louis Meyer and Dale Drake. He worked with Bud Winfield on the V8 supercharged Novi, and with Art Sparks on the supercharged Sparks 'six,' which broke several qualifying records and won the 1946 Indianapolis 500 race. He designed the Meyer-Drake-Scarab power plant used for Lance Reventlow's short-lived 1960 Formula One effort. In the mid-1970s, he also was involved with the successful 'Drake-Goossen-Sparks' modification of the Drake Engineering 'Offy' with Patrick Racing Team drivers Gordon Johncock and Wally Dallenbach.
Drivers Goossens Engineering Services
Besides the speed, the tenacity of the drivers, and the engineering magic involved, of my favorite things about the 24 Hours of Le Mans is its rich history. Save for an interlude during World War. SRD Sports Racing Development, Grobbendonk. Your one stop racingplace.