For Immediate Release
Contact Laz Denes
True Speed Communication
(256) 717-8014 or Laz.Denes@TrueSpeedCommunication.com
www.TrueSpeedCommunication.com
Online Media Kit Available at: www.TrueSpeedMedia.com

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 26, 2009) – The SunTrust Racing team returns to its winningest track on the fifth anniversary of its milestone victory in America’s premier endurance race as the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series kicks off its second decade of existence with the 48th Rolex 24 At Daytona on Saturday and Sunday at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

The last a race-day crowd at Daytona saw of Max Angelelli and his No. 10 SunTrust Ford Dallara teamof Wayne Taylor Racing, the Italian driving ace was finishing off a dramatic, Fourth of July afternoon victory last summer in the annual Brumos Porsche 250. It was the third win on the classic 3.56-mile, 14-turn superspeedway road circuit for SunTrust – most of any Rolex Series circuit – and helped propel the sponsor to its fifth top-three finish in the championship standings in its six Rolex Series seasons since debuting in 2004.

SunTrust’s previous win at Daytona came in the 2005 renewal of the Rolex 24 as Angelelli, Wayne Taylor and Emmanuel Collard thoroughly dominated by leading a race-high 282 of 710 laps en route to victory lane. Angelelli and Taylor rode the momentum from that milestone win all the way to that season’s Rolex Series title with four more wins and a remarkable 10 podium finishes in 14 events.

A new year and a new decade mean it’s a fresh start for the SunTrust team and its Rolex Series competitors this weekend. And, for the SunTrust team, there may be another new lineup in the driver’s seat, but it’s made up of familiar faces and looks to recreate the magic of its memorable Rolex 24 win in 2005.

Angelelli welcomes a new full-time co-driver this weekend in Ricky Taylor, son of team owner, two-time Rolex 24 winner and three-time sports car racing champion Wayne Taylor, who is pursuing his record-tying third Rolex 24 victory in his third different decade. Meanwhile, Angelelli, Taylor and Taylor also will share driving duties with former Formula 1 competitor and current Peugeot factory driver Pedro Lamy of Portugal, who’s back for his second consecutive Rolex 24 with the SunTrust team. Angelelli, Lamy and Wayne Taylor co-drove with Brian Frisselle to a fourth-place finish in last year’s event, while Ricky Taylor made his Rolex Series debut in the 2008 Rolex 24, co-droving the SunTrust team to a fifth-place finish – and even leading the race in the early going – as an 18-year-old.

Since his maiden Rolex Series voyage in 2008, the now-20-year-old Ricky Taylor went on to earn his SunTrust racing stripes driving another 19 races the past two seasons for Cincinnati-based Doran Racing and Texas-based Beyer Racing, making a habit of showing flashes of his father’s road course brilliance in accumulating three top-five finishes, 12 top-10s and 33 laps led. He joined the SunTrust team just prior to the annual Roar Before the 24 three-day test earlier this month, strapped into the No. 10 racing machine and joined Angelelli, Lamy and his dad in consistently turning some of the fastest laps of the weekend.

Angelelli claimed the honor of turning the fastest lap of the Rolex 24 test in track-record time (1 minute, 40.466 seconds at 127.566 mph). It came in the opening session of the weekend in unseasonably cold but clear and sunny conditions, before the weather truly deteriorated the rest of the weekend into record cold temperatures and even snow flurries and freezing rain on the second day.

Thus, as the SunTrust team returns to its favorite track – favorite for good reason – the weather outlook is considerably better, as is the outlook for the team’s best Rolex 24 finish since its victory five short years ago. After all, what a better way to celebrate an anniversary than with a little champagne – in victory lane, of course, come Sunday afternoon.

Practice for this weekend’s twice-around-the-clock marathon begins Thursday morning with qualifying at 3:45 p.m. EST. Race time Saturday is 3:30 p.m. SPEED-TV’s 16 hours of live coverage is set for 3-10 p.m. Saturday, and from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The detailed event schedule, as well as live timing and scoring during all on-track sessions, can be found at www.grand-am.com.

Max Angelelli, co-driver of the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara:

You left Daytona on a good note after clocking the fastest lap in track-record time during the three-day test earlier this month. How do you believe it will translate to a top effort for this weekend’s race and in your chase for the championship in 2010?

“The test was good. We had a good test and we are very happy. All the drivers did a great job. We’re all fast. The car is good. You know, we were the only Dallara there at the test, so it was nice to be the fastest. All I can say is I’m sure it’s going to be a great race. Remember last year – four cars finished on the lead lap within tenths of a second of each other. I’m sure it will be the same this year. The Rolex is like a championship within a race. At the same time, it counts for the final standings. We definitely want to win the race, so we would take a risk to do that because winning the Rolex is really special. Then, after the Rolex, everything changes, like a new chapter in the book, and the rest of the season feels like a completely different season in itself.”

How do you typically prepare yourself for this 24-hour race in the time between the January test and race weekend?

“When I’m back home, I do not think about the race, I do not do anything related to the race. Otherwise, I will come to the race completely worn out. This is a race that you really have to think about only about two days before the event because, it’s so intense the way I approach the race, I will be completely worn out. This is my philosophy. This is what I do. This is how it fits me.”

You posted some excellent finishes in your first full year with the Dallara Ford package in 2009. How much has the package evolved since it debuted at last year’s Rolex 24?

“We have momentum from last year. We made a lot of changes on the car during the year and now is the time to get the profit out of it. I feel the car is really ready to go. We don’t need to develop new stuff, new things. The car is pretty much developed and it is really fast, so I am really looking forward to the season. The Roush Yates Engines package is a big plus. When SunTrust Racing decided to switch last year, I thought it was a good call. We have a good package with Roush Yates Engines. It’s powerful. That’s a very big word, but it is quite powerful and very reliable. It’s a good engine for 24 hours, and also for all the sprint races. We have all the combinations possible to fight with any other engine unit on level ground.”

You have a new full-time teammate for 2010 in Ricky Taylor, with whom you co-drove at the Rolex 24 in 2008, and Wayne, of course, and you also have veteran Pedro Lamy back from last year. H