A Pontiac wins the Rolex 24 hours ????

[Dogsharks]

What's the deal??????? Since when did Pontiac give Porsche a drubbing in any 24-hour race???

Dogsharks




ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA WINNERS -

Overall -
No. 54 Pontiac,
No. 44 Porsche GT,
No. 74 Porsche GT,
No. 27 Lexus,
No. 2 Chevrolet;

DP -
No. 54 Pontiac,
No. 27 Lexus,
No. 2 Chevrolet;

GT -
No. 44 Porsche,
No. 74 Porsche,
No. 73 Ferrari;

SGS -
No. 91 Porsche,
No. 38 Porsche,
No. 71 Porsche

>>> Edited by Dogsharks on Monday 2nd February 22:30

[Dogsharks]

Here's the news spot. Since when does a Porsche finish 5-laps down to a Pontiac in a 24-hour endurance race????????? I guess it's a Porsche that is entered by an independent, hope so. Is this what the Cayenne is doing for Porsche, sucking away the funds for a competitive factory racing effort?

Dogsharks



Pontiac wins Rolex 24 At Daytona

by: Reilly Brennan

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- In one of the most dramatic finishes in recent American sports car racing history, the General Motors Pontiac-powered #54 Doran Daytona Prototype claimed an overall victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Drivers Terry Borcheller, Andy Pilgrim, Forest Barber and Christian Fittipaldi won for Pontiac in the final minutes, taking control of the race from the #2 Chevrolet Crawford of Andy Wallace, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

This is an historic day for Pontiac and GM Racing said Gary Claudio, marketing manager for GM Racing. We had three of the top cars battling for the lead throughout the 24-hour event and were looking forward to Pontiac doing great things in the Rolex Series.

GM-powered Daytona Prototypes were the class of the field, with the Chevrolet and Pontiac-powered cars leading the majority of the race. After #10 Pontiac Riley driver Max Angelelli grabbed the pole position with a record time of 1:46:095, Terry Borcheller quickly took the lead at the very first corner in his #54 Pontiac Doran. Although the lead changed hands dozens of times during the 24 hours, Pontiac and Chevy-powered Daytona Prototypes managed to stay in front.

The rain-soaked race ran at reduced speeds under a double-yellow caution flag and was eventually red-flagged to a stop during the morning hours. Racing resumed at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday and the #2 Chevrolet Crawford held on to a three lap lead until roughly 20 minutes left in the race. Tony Stewart's rear suspension failed and the team wedged blocks of wood in the suspension in order to keep the car from bottoming out; Stewart showed a deft hand by keeping his prototype in the lead almost until the very end, albeit on three wheels under braking.

A spring was breaking on the right rear corner and kept getting worse, said Stewart. Eventually I got out of the gas on the back stretch and the wheel came off and I spun the car without the rocker on that right rear, it was basically a flat bottom and none of the rear tires were on the ground. In the end I have to say that this was a neat package this weekend with General Motors and the Crawford family and having Dale Junior and Andy Wallace as teammates.

While many expected the #2 Chevrolet Crawford to capture victory after holding on to a considerable lead, the #54 Bell Motorsports Pontiac Doran kept close on the Chevys heels and was poised to take over when opportunity knocked just minutes before the end of the 24-hour race. Driver Andy Pilgrim passed Stewart and brought the victory home for Pontiac.

Winning at Daytona means a lot to me and especially for Pontiac, said Pilgrim. We had our share of problems but the Bell Motorsports crew kept this thing going throughout and it is a 24-hour race, after all. Between the four drivers and the crew working overtime, we were very happy to win this race.

The historic first victory for Pontiac also proves to be GMs third overall win at the 24 Hours of Daytona. Mark Donohue and Chuck Parsons won the 1969 event in a Chevrolet-powered Lola T70 prototype; Ron Fellows, Johnny O'Connell, Chris Kneifel and Franck Freon won the race in 2001 behind the wheel of the factory Corvette C5-R.

Provisional Results (Top Ten)

Pos. Car Drivers Laps

1. #54 Pontiac Doran Borcheller / Barber / Pilgrim / Fittipaldi 528

2. #44 Porsche GT3 RS Fitzgerald / Policastro / Liddell / Mowlem 523

3. #74 Porsche GT3 RS van Overbeek / Neiman / Pechnick / Cunn. 523

4. #27 Lexus Doran Theys / Leinhard / Lammers / Goossens 521

5. #2 Chevrolet Crawford Wallace / Stewart / Earnhardt, Jr. 519

6. #73 Ferrari 360 Englehorn / Quester / Peter / Montermini 511

7. #6 Lexus Doran Collins / Wagner / Newton / Erdos / Martini 509

8. #10 Pontiac Riley Angelelli / Taylor / Collard 508

9. #91 Porsche 911 GT3 Julien / Dumoulin / Pootmans / Lieb 504

10. #01 Lexus Riley Pruett / Papis / Morales / Dixon 502

28. #4 Chevrolet Crawford Leitzinger / Brule / E.F.R. / Johnson 456

[mikial]

Chill out Ds, your too tense .

[Guy Humpage]

The Pontiac is racing in a totally different class. You should be proud that an off-the-shelf Porsche can beat all but one of the purpose built racecars in the Daytona Prototype class.

[Dogsharks]

Hey, I'm chilled out, however, I know what it takes to win, and there really is no substitute for it. Show me a second place finisher and I'll show you a loser.

I am proud, however, that independents did so well. What I'm kind of disgusted about, is the fact that Porsche, with their Cayenne-sucking-budget, is not keeping marques like LEXUS (and Pontiac) down there in the dirt where they belong.

So now Porsche doesn't have a racing program, and guess what? We have the likes of Pontiac and Lexus coming out of the woodwork because they know it's safe to do so, and soon you'll see TV ads claiming the supremacy of LEXUS over Porsche. Wait and see.

Meanwhile, back at the Porsche board of directors, they're all sitting around with their feet on the table, counting their money. Nice, real nice, on the short term. Some of those people on the board need to hear the dreaded two words.............."YOU'RE FIRED"

Winning is no accident. Porsche is resting on their laurels right now, leaving their reputation in the hands of loyal independents, while the Lexus, in particular, is lurking in the tall grass with ideas of world domination.

I expect corporate Porsche to fight for their name, not sit on their ass.

Is that asking too much?

Dogsharks