Team Cadillac Announces 2006 SPEED GT Driver Lineup

For Immediate Release
Release Courtesy of GM Racing

Team Cadillac to Field Four Champions in 2006 
Pilgrim to Defend SCCA SPEED World Challenge GT Championship; Angelelli,
Fellows and O'Connell Will Share Second Cadillac CTS-V  

DETROIT (Feb. 14, 2006) - Team Cadillac will have an all-star driver
lineup in 2006 with four championship-winning racers aiming for
victories in the SCCA SPEED World Challenge Championship in Cadillac
CTS-V race cars. Andy Pilgrim, the reigning SPEED GT champion, will
contest the entire 10-race series in the No. 1 Cadillac CTS-V. Max
Angelelli, Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell will share the No. 16
Cadillac CTS-V. All four of Team Cadillac's drivers have previously
raced the black CTS-Vs.

"The Cadillac CTS-V is a world-class performance luxury sedan, and we
are delighted to have four world-class race car drivers with Team
Cadillac in 2006," said Jim Taylor, Cadillac general manager. "This
formidable lineup of champions, combined with the capabilities of the
production Cadillac CTS-V, will certainly put Team Cadillac in a strong
position to win a second consecutive SPEED GT manufacturers
championship. With drivers from the U.S., Canada and Europe, Team
Cadillac's international roster of driving talent reflects Cadillac's
stature as a truly global brand."

Since Team Cadillac's debut in March 2004, the black CTS-Vs have scored
seven victories, six poles, and 21 podium finishes - highlighted by a
1-2-3 podium sweep at Road Atlanta in April 2005 and a sweep of the 2005
drivers and manufacturers championships.

Pilgrim, born in England and now a naturalized American citizen, has
driven a Cadillac CTS-V race car since Cadillac finished first in the
team's debut at Sebring in March 2004. Pilgrim's racing resume includes
the 1996 IMSA Grand Sport Endurance Championship, the 1997-98 PSCR GT1
championships, five ALMS wins, and two Rolex 24 At Daytona victories,
including an overall win in 2003.

"I've raced with Max, Ron and Johnny as teammates before, and I'm
looking forward to having them as teammates again in 2006 at Team
Cadillac," said Pilgrim. "Our focus will be on retaining the
manufacturers championship, and I'll give it a 100 percent effort. 2006
will be an exciting year in the SPEED World Challenge with new venues
such as Long Beach and Salt Lake City added to the schedule."

Fellows, a three-time American Le Mans Series GT1 champion (2002-04), 24
Hours of Le Mans class winner and overall winner in the Rolex 24 at
Daytona with Corvette Racing, scored back-to-back SPEED GT victories for
Team Cadillac at Mosport in 2004-05. The versatile racer from
Mississauga, Ont., has won races in series that range from the NASCAR
Craftsman Truck (two career victories) and NASCAR Busch Series (three
wins) to the SCCA Trans-Am (19 victories).

"I've had a great time racing for Team Cadillac in the last two years,
and I'm looking forward to doing more races with the CTS-V this season,"
said Fellows. "The World Challenge GT reminds me of the Golden Age of
the Trans-Am series, with intense competition among race cars that are
really based on what you drive on the street. It's racing that rewards
smoothness and finesse, and it's great fun."

O'Connell, a resident of Flowery Branch, Ga., shared the ALMS GT1 title
with Fellows in 2003-04. The pair teamed up to win their class in the 24
Hours of Le Mans and score an overall victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona
in 2001. He's won championships in the Formula Atlantic West, driven
open-wheeled Indy cars, and tallied a record six class victories in the
Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring endurance race. O'Connell's only
previous appearance with Team Cadillac was at Road Atlanta in Sept.
2004.

"Racing with Team Cadillac and having Andy as a teammate is going to be
a great experience," O'Connell said. "Based on the performance of the
cars over the past two years, I'm confident we'll have good equipment.
I've watched the close competition in the World Challenge as a
television commentator, and I'm looking forward to being in the middle
of the action as a driver. My job is to win races - that's the objective
of everyone at Team Cadillac."

Angelelli, a resident of Monte Carlo, won the 1992 Italian F3
championship and was co-champion of the 2005 Grand American Rolex Sports
Car Series in the Daytona Prototype class with teammate Wayne Taylor. He
scored Team Cadillac's first win in Sebring, and subsequently posted
victories in Road Atlanta (Sept. 2004) and Lime Rock Park (July 2005).

"Team Cadillac has an exceptional driver lineup in 2006, and they're
backed by a group of very talented engineers and technicians," noted
Dave Spitzer, Team Cadillac program manager. "The competition will
certainly be intense, but Team Cadillac has the personnel, the equipment
and the experience to achieve success again in 2006." 

For additional information please visit the GM racing media site by
clicking here. 

General Motors Corp. , the world's largest automaker, has been
the global industry sales leader for 75 years. Founded in 1908, GM today
employs about 327,000 people around the world. With global headquarters
in Detroit, GM manufactures its cars and trucks in 33 countries. In
2005, 9.17 million GM cars and trucks were sold globally under the
following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden,
HUMMER, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn and Vauxhall. GM operates one of the
world's leading finance companies, GMAC Financial Services, which offers
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information services. More information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.


### 

 

Contact:
Rick Voegelin
(831) 761-2201
rickvoegelin@compuserve.com  

Kevin Smith
(404) 644-9395
kevin.2.smith@gm.com  

 

Attached: Image of Andy Pilgrim, who will carry the #1 on his door in
2006, from Road Atlanta in 2005. Image (c) 2005 Greg Aleck/Fastlines.

_______________________
Eric Prill
Director of Marketing Communications
Sports Car Club of America
SCCA Pro Racing/SPEED World Challenge
785-357-7222, 785-232-7228 fax
800-770-2055 toll free
785-250-7920 mobile
eprill@scca.com
www.scca.com <http://www.scca.com> , www.world-challenge.com
<http://www.world-challenge.com/>