June 3, 2010 (Salt Lake City, Utah) – The upcoming Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen, the sixth stop on the 2010 GRAND-AM Rolex Sportscar Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No.16 schedule, is the race that the Magnus Racing team has been waiting for.
It’s no small secret that with the current rules package and tire specifications the Porsche 911 GT3’s have struggled to match the pace of the other GT-class cars in GRAND-AM in 2010, especially in the shorter races. However, the Sahlen’s Six Hour of the Glen will play to the strengths of the Porsche platform – namely, its reliability and consistency over the course of an endurance race. At last year’s Sahlen’s Six Hour of the Glen, Magnus Racing drivers John Potter and Craig Stanton teamed up to have one of their strongest runs of the season, finishing fifth.
Adding to the firepower of the No.44 Magnus Racing Porsche 911 GT3 will be the Netherlands’ Jeroen Bleekemolen, who will rejoin the team for this weekend’s race. Bleekemolen also drove with the team at the Rolex 24 in Daytona, where his speed was noticed by not just by the team but throughout the GRAND-AM paddock. Bleekemolen recently co-drove the similar winning Porsche in the GT-C class at the American Le Mans six hour race in Monterey, California, and is a former class winner at the 24 Hours of LeMans as well as the 2009 Porsche Supercup champion.
Bleekemolen has a family connection to Watkins Glen, as his father Michael Bleekemolen contested the 1978 United States Grand Prix East at the track. Potter also has a connection to the facility, as his father was once told to never return to the track by a New York state officer after partying too much during the 1964 United States Grand Prix.
“I’m really glad to have Jeroen back with us for this weekend,” said Potter. “We have been able to make progress in the last couple of races, and we think the long race will suit the strengths of the Porsche. And having Jeroen back means we have a very quick driver who understands endurance racing and knows how to make the Porsche go fast. He gelled with the team right away at Daytona and we’re all happy to have him back.”
Stanton and Potter are currently eleventh in the Rolex Sportscar Series’ GT championship standings, while Potter is fourth in the Bob Akin Award standings for sportsman drivers in the GT class. Magnus Racing is also fifth in the GT Team Championship standings, just a few points outside of fourth place.
The GT race will air live in two segments on SPEED Channel, with the first segment beginning at 2:00 PM ET and ending at 4:00 PM ET, and the second beginning at 6:00 PM ET and ending at 8:30 PM ET. Qualifying for the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen will stream live online at http://stream.speedtv.com, beginning at 3:35 PM ET and will run for both the Daytona Prototype and GT sessions.
Throughout the six hour race, fans of Magnus Racing will be able to log on to the team’s website at magnusracing.com, and chat live with the team and drivers as they contest the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen. Fans of Magnus Racing also stay updated with the team at facebook.com/magnusracing, and on twitter at twitter.com/magnusracing (@magnusracing).
More information about Magnus Racing can be found at www.magnusracing.com. Any organization interested in learning more about how to be involved with one of the most unique and visible teams in the Grand-American Rolex Sportscar Series can e-mail info@magnusracing.com. All press inquiries can be directed to press@magnusracing.com.