Kendall Returns to Motorock Trans-Am Series with Rocketsports Racing

CONTACT: Justin Anderson,
Ph: 704-348-9400, Cell: 517-927-3614

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
KENDALL RETURNS TO MOTOROCK TRANS-AM SERIES WITH ROCKETSPORTS RACING;
FOUR-TIME CHAMPION TO GO AFTER MARK DONOHUE¹S WIN RECORD IN 2004
 
LONG BEACH, Calif. (March 9, 2004) ‹ Four-time Motorock Trans-Am Series
Drivers¹ Champion Tommy Kendall will drive the full 2004 Trans-Am schedule
for Rocketsports Racing. Kendall will compete in a Jaguar XKR powered by
Jaguar¹s stock-block, four-valve, fuel-injected engine debuted by
Rocketsports last year. The announcement was made at a Trans-Am press
luncheon, during the Champ Car Season Premiere in Long Beach, Calif.

Kendall, the Series¹ only four-time titleholder, will attempt to surpass the
win record held by late Trans-Am legend Mark Donohue. Kendall, who has 26
career victories in Trans-Am competition, needs just four more wins to
eclipse Donohue¹s mark.

³I¹m very excited to return to Trans-Am with Rocketsports Racing,² said
Kendall, who last competed in Trans-Am in 1997 and most recently worked as a
television commentator on Champ Car World Series broadcasts. ²This came out
of the blue. I¹d been missing racing for several years. After the end of the
TV season last year, I decided that it was time to dedicate myself to
driving in 2005. My plan was to get in shape, get sharp and get ready for
¹05. Then, low and behold, the phone rang and Paul (Gentilozzi) offered me
the job. I had to jump at this tremendous opportunity.

³The car and team have always been the most important part of the equation
for me,² added Kendall, who drove for Roush Racing from 1993-1997 and C&C
Racing from 1989-90. He made his Trans-Am debut in 1987 as an owner/driver.
³I understood the importance of a good team since early in my career, and
that is part of the reason I¹ve had so much success. I was never willing do
it unless I had the equipment I needed to win. I¹m very excited about being
with a team of the caliber of Rocketsports Racing. I raced against them a
lot. We were bitter rivals, making for more than a little bit of irony in
this deal.²

Rocketsports Racing team owner Paul Gentilozzi echoed Kendall¹s comments.

³We've been battling it out in Trans-Am for years, so for us to come
together on the Rocketsports/Jaguar team seems ironic,² said Gentilozzi, a
three-time Drivers¹ Champion himself. ³We were actually teammates once, in
the 1993 Lime Rock IMSA race, but we've been rivals for so long, we're a bit
of an odd couple.

³This will be an excellent season on the track,² added Gentilozzi, ³and I do
plan to give Tommy some competition whenever I can.²

The list of Kendall¹s Trans-Am accomplishments is long and significant.
Kendall is also the only driver to win three-straight Trans-Am titles, from
1995-1997. He also won the championship in 1990. His 11-race win streak in
1997 remains the longest in Series history. The streak also gave Kendall the
most victories in one season, one more than Donohue.

Kendall also holds the Trans-Am pole record with 39 fast-qualifying efforts.
In all, Kendall has 26 victories, 53 podiums, 63 top fives, 72 top tens and
23 fast race laps. Kendall has also competed in IROC competition six times
and has made 11 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup starts

In 1998, Kendall became the only SCCA driver since George Follmer, in 1972,
to win the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association¹s
(AARWBA) Driver of the Year Award.

³We are delighted to welcome Tommy Kendall back to Trans-Am Series
competition,² said Motorock Trans-Am Series Executive Director John Clagett.
³No other driver can boast the success and excitement Tommy has generated
during his Trans-Am career.

³This year, Tommy will have his sights set on the win record held by Mark
Donohue; a mark many believed would never be broken,² added Clagett. ³He is
truly a living Trans-Am legend.²

Kendall said he is looking forward to competing this year. However, he knows
he has a bit of a learning curve coming off his six-year retirement.

³Obviously, I¹m here to win races,² said Kendall. ³I have a great team
behind me, and I know we¹ll be in contention. But a lot has changed since I
left. The tires are different, the aero package is different, the
differentials are different, the overall weight of the cars is different,
and the horsepower is up. There are also a lot of new competitors as well.
I¹m certainly not a rookie, but I have a lot of work to do. I¹ll be a little
hard on myself until I am back to where I was when I left.²

Through all of his accomplishments, Kendall still has one jewel missing from
his crown: at Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach victory. Kendall came close to
winning Long Beach Trans-Am race in 1996, earning the pole and leading the
most laps before falling out with ignition problems.

³Long Beach is the biggest race in my world,² said Kendall, who grew up and
resides in Santa Monica, Calif. ³I grew up going to the Grand Prix of Long
Beach. I¹ve been going since 1980. I¹ve won the Pro Celebrity race there,
but the Trans-Am race is what I¹m all about.²

The Motorock Trans-Am Series kicks off its 2004 season April 16-18 at the
Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. The Trans-Am Series race will run just
following the Champ Car World Series event on Sunday, April 18.

 The Motorock Trans-Am Series features closed-fendered, production-based,
V-8-powered sports cars, competing on permanent road courses, and temporary
street and airport circuits throughout North America. The Trans-Am Series is
America¹s oldest continuously running road racing series and celebrates its
39th anniversary in 2004.

Motorock is the creation of a popular culture brand that blends the
enthusiast markets of cars, stars and guitars. It is a yearly series of
destination live events that showcases the excitement of motorsports, music
and lifestyle while delivering a unique new form of broadcast entertainment
programming.

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