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Roush Takes IMSA GT3 Pole At Road America
20 PORSCHE 911 GT3 CUP RACE CARS WILL RACE SUNDAY
ELKHART LAKE, Wisc. - August 20 -- In the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge presented by
Michelin, round #4 at Road America scheduled for Sunday afternoon, newcomer
Kevin Roush, from Upland, California, is on the pole in the Wheel Enhancement
Racing/AASCO Porsche 911 GT3 Cup racer. Roush, a 41 year-old Porsche street
car tuner and Porsche club racer who also prepares race cars himself, hopes
this pole position does not lead to the same results as the Portland pole
three weeks ago.
"We were running in the top three when the green flag dropped in Portland
when the car in front of us missed a shift, and I ran into him, causing our
demise," said Roush, who ran a club race here in 1996 - his last trip to
Wisconsin.
Second on the grid is Jay Policastro, from Latrobe, Penn, who currently leads
the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge points with a win at Portland, a third and a
fourth-place finish in his Orbit Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, while Shawn
Price, from Hillsborough, Calif. - and a co-driver in the winning GT Porsche
at the 2005 Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona, is third. Nathan Swartzbaugh,
from La Habra Heights, CA, who was in contention in the championship points,
crashed his VICI Racing Porsche during practice on Friday, and will not run
this weekend.
The car which Road America fans will see in this series is a purpose-built
racecar manufactured by the Porsche factory on the same assembly line as
Porsches complete line of sports cars for the consumer. The IMSA GT3 Cup
Challenge car is based on the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup street car (996), while the
Porsche Michelin Supercup series - which runs with Formula One around the
world - has moved to the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car based on the newly-introduced
997 model. The 997 version of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup racer will be eligible
for the 2006 IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge series, for which the schedule will be
announced shortly.
The competitors will have sealed engines and transmissions, providing for
close racing where the drivers talents are exemplified. Porsche Motorsport
provides technical support for the series with personnel, parts and expertise
both away from and at the track, and Michelin provides the spec tires for all
competitors.
The IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge will race on Sunday, August 20, at 5:15 PM CDT.
Live scoring of the race is available on www.imsaracing.net,
and a one-minute television summary of the race will run during the Mosport
American Le Mans Series broadcast on The Speed Channel on Sunday, September 4.
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