Stevenson Motorsports Homestead Test Days Release
Attached is a PDF version of the Stevenson Motorsports Homestead Test Days release. The text also appears below. A photo of the #57 Stevenson Pontiac GXP-R is also attached. Media Contact: Andrew S. Hartwell ashartwell@att.net www.ashautomobilia.com March 1, 2008 For Immediate Release: Stevenson Team Pontiac GXP-R Homestead Test Days Report Florida has proven to be a reliable place for the Stevenson Motorsports Team as two days of successful testing for the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 at the Homestead Miami Speedway came to a close this week. The team followed up a solid finish at the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona, at the end of January, with quality time spent getting more familiar with their 2008 #57 Pontiac GXP-R, sponsored by the BryanMark Financial Group. Team Manager Mike Johnson: "The test was good for the team to start learning how changes affect the car since at Daytona we only worked on reliability. " And that work paid off at Daytona as the brand new Pontiac made it all the way around the clock - despite being hit by an overzealous Daytona Prototype driver and being forced to pit for repairs in the waning hours of the race. At the Homestead test days, Johnson feels the team further demonstrated their commitment to progress when they were able to set very competitive lap times. "We ended up running a 1:20.050 in the last session on new tires which is probably good for top 5 overall, but the Rolex Winning Mazda was not there, and the Porsches didn't seem to show their true potential. I think we have a lot still to learn about the car, but once again it ran flawlessly for both days." Andrew Davis will co-drive the #57 Pontiac GXP-R with Robin Liddell for the full season. Davis came away with an enhanced appreciation for what the car can do, and what the team has done. "It was great to have two days of testing at Homestead to prepare for the upcoming Miami Grand Prix. We were able to make a lot of progress over the course of the test, working to maximize the performance of our Pontiac GXP-R. Since the completion of Daytona, the Stevenson Motorsports crew has been working hard on the continued development of the car. It's really a continuous evolution with the new car, and we were able to successfully complete our test plan." Johnson was also pleased with the performance of the Pirelli tires, something he considers to be a key factor in achieving success at the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 - GAINSCO Grand Prix of Miami. "Tires will definitely be a key factor for the race at the end of the month as new tires seem to count for quite a bit of track time. I think the team that puts the power down best will have the best advantage." And Davis expects he and Liddell will put down the power of the Pontiac come race day. "I was very happy with the performance of the Pontiac GXP.R at Homestead Miami Speedway. The weather conditions were fairly warm, so we were able to work on finding grip on a less than optimal track service. I would suspect that the weather conditions will be similar upon our return. And although this circuit does not play into all the strong points of the car, we will be much more competitive in terms of lap times as compared to Daytona." The GAINSCO Grand Prix of Miami will take place on March 29th at the Homestead Miami Speedway. The GT class of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 includes cars carrying such vaunted automotive names as Porsche, Ferrari, Mazda and the Ford Mustang Cobra. Stevenson Motorsports operates out of a new facility located in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Fans of the Stevenson Team are invited to visit the team's website at www.stevensonmotorsports.com