SunTrust Grand American Racing Team

MEXICO CITY (February 27, 2007) -- As the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Riley of Wayne Taylor Racing heads south of the border for Saturday’s Round 2 of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series season at the famed Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in downtown Mexico City, it’s either been an eternity or seemingly just yesterday, depending on your vantage point, since we last saw the sleek, blue SunTrust Racing prototype rally from five laps down to a third-place finish in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona.

For drivers Max Angelelli and Jan Magnussen, who teamed with Wayne Taylor and four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon for that podium finish at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway last month, it’s been a long wait. But for Taylor, the veteran sports car racer and two-time champion who started this brand new team just last fall, the last several weeks have been a blur as the preparations for Saturday’s 400-kilometer event around Mexico City’s historic Formula 1 circuit commenced as soon as the SunTrust Racing transporter returned from Daytona to team headquarters in Indianapolis.

Actually, the last 30 days pale in comparison to the months leading up to the Daytona season opener, during which the Wayne Taylor Racing organization emerged from a “clean sheet of paper” last September to a formidable contender for the overall race win as late as 40 minutes from the finish of the annual 24-hour marathon. Brake problems set in as the final minutes ticked off the clock at Daytona with Magnussen in second place and closing in on the leader, wiping away what could have been a storybook finish for the new team now charged with carrying on the SunTrust Racing legacy on the Grand-Am circuit.

Still, having a podium finish to show for the team’s maiden race effort has certainly put a spring in the step of everyone at Wayne Taylor Racing in the days and weeks since. And with that result, they have every reason to believe they can keep SunTrust Racing in championship-contending form, as it has been each of the last three seasons since joining the Rolex Series in 2004. After finishing second in the championship chase in 2004, Angelelli and Taylor co-drove to the series title in 2005 with five wins and a remarkable 10 podium finishes in 14 races. And last year, despite their season-opening setback at Daytona that left the team 29th in the points, the SunTrust team battled back to championship contention all the way to the season finale before finishing third in the points standings.

This weekend’s event in Mexico City marks the team’s third visit to the 2.5-mile, 14-turn road circuit, during which the Rolex Series competitors will once again share the playbill with the NASCAR Busch Series, which will have its featured event on Sunday.

Angelelli and Taylor co-drove the SunTrust Racing prototype in its previous two visits here, qualifying sixth and finishing second just 1.4 seconds behind the Finlay Motorsports BMW Riley when this race was the season finale in 2005, clinching the series championship for the No. 10 SunTrust team.

Last season, when this race was moved to the second stop on the 14-race tour, the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac had to be completely rebuilt after its early race crash at the Daytona opener. But it was back to its usual, competitive self here in Mexico. It started 12th on the grid but worked its way up to fourth in a rather heroic effort by Taylor, who started the race behind the wheel despite suffering the ill effects of a virus. He turned the car over to Angelelli in seventh place midway through the race, and the Italian continued the team’s charge to the front, running in fourth before being assessed a costly stop-and-go penalty for what series official deemed “avoidable contact” with the same No. 19 car that won here the year before. Angelelli battled back to salvage a ninth-place finish by race’s end.

This weekend, Angelelli will share the driving duties with Magnussen, with whom he collaborated on the SunTrust team’s lone victory during the 2006 season at Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey, Calif. Magnussen, who drove the No. 10 car a total of six times last season, added the team’s only pole position at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., in 2006. The Danish sports car veteran and three-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, who also spent considerable time in Formula 1 and Champ Cars during his illustrious career, drove to the GT-class victory in his only other Mexico City appearance in 2005. He shared the TRG Racing Pontiac GTO.R with California driver Paul Edwards in taking the class win by more than a lap over the runner-up Sigalsport BMW M3.

Race time Saturday is 4 p.m. EST with live coverage on SPEED-TV. Practice begins Thursday at 2 p.m. with qualifying set for Friday at 12:40 p.m. The complete weekend schedule, as well as live timing and scoring during all on-track sessions, can be found at www.grand-am.com.

Quotes from Max Angelelli, co-driver for the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Riley:

After starting the season with a podium finish at Daytona (Jan. 27-28), has it been a long wait to get back to racing in Mexico?

“Looking back, we got off to a very good start with our finish in the 24-hour race. We knew we could be a very good team because everybody in the organization has a history of winning. But we needed to go out and race that first race to prove it to ourselves that we could do good things together. Yes, being a race driver, I have been very anxious to get back into the car and go racing again. The first part of the season is a little bit frustrating from that point of view because there seems to be a lot of time in-between races. But we will make up for that later in the season when the races are a lot closer together. The team has been spending a lot of time since Daytona taking apart the car, checking out all of the pieces, and making sure everything is in the right place for this weekend in Mexico and for the rest of the championship. The time has been going by very fast for the team at the race shop.”

You have enjoyed good results at the Mexico circuit. Can we assume that you like the circuit?

“I have driven both (the 2.786-mile in 2005 and 2.5-mile in 2006) layouts and I am pretty comfortable with both. We are on the shorter layout again this year and I am looking forward to a better finish than we had there last year. We had a very good race car last year, but we were penalized near the end of the race and that took away our chances of winning. Of course, we clinched our championship for SunTrust Racing there in 2005 (with a second-place finish) and that was a very happy time for all of us. We hope we can have another good finish this weekend and keep ourselves in position for the championship.”

How would you describe the atmosphere at the Mexico City circuit?

“I have always liked the Mexico City track and I am happy to go back again this year. It is a very historic track. We see a lot of fans and they really seem to enjoy the Grand-Am races. The weather is very warm, and the people are very warm, too. It is very much the same atmosphere that the people have in Italy. The lifestyle is very easygoing. It is always Sunday. I am going to Mexico a day early and will stay an extra day after the race so I can have some time to enjoy the trip.”

Quotes from Jan Magnussen, co-driver of the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Riley at the Rolex 24:

This is only your second time on the Mexico City track and your first in a Daytona Prototype. How are you approaching the weekend?

“I won there two years ago in the (Pontiac) GTO, so that was a very good experience for me. I really like the track. It’s a fun place to race, and I’m very much looking forward to going back and racing in the prototype. I was able to get into rhythm there quite easily two years ago, and I expect we can do the same this weekend. I felt good in the GT car all weekend there two years ago. It’s always a great weekend when you win. I’m hoping we can duplicate the experience this weekend in the prototype. I always enjoy driving with Max. We had good success together last year.”

Daytona was a good weekend for a lot of reasons, including the fact it was the first race for the new Wayne Taylor Racing organization. Was it special for you?

“Looking back, Daytona was a great result for us as a new team, and we came away with a lot of really good things to build on from there. Finishing on the podium in a 24-hour race like that is a great thing for even the teams who have been together for a long, long time. I don’t think anybody could have expected that kind of a result for the new team’s first race, but after it was over, I don’t think anybody was surprised because it’s a very solid organization from top to bottom. As it turned out, we were fighting for the lead in the final hour, so third place felt a little disappointing at the time. But it was really quite an accomplishment, and I was very proud to be a part of it.”

Quotes from Wayne Taylor, owner of the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Riley:

How has the last month been for you and the team since your strong out at the Rolex 24 At Daytona?

“We left Daytona feeling proud of what we’ve been able to do in such a short time together. Everything has been going quite smoothly as we get ready for the rest of the season. Daytona is such a huge undertaking because it’s really a season in and of itself. Now, we get on with the regular part of the season beginning with Mexico and we are in a good position (third) in the championship.”

Does the Mexico race weekend pose any particularly unique challenges?

“It’s a challenge in that it’s only the second race or us as a new team. Otherwise, most of us have experience racing down there, and it’s a very well-run event in all respects. The fans really create a great atmosphere all around us. I can say we have all the ingredients we need to win down there, and I think we have covered everything we need to go down there and win in the time we’ve had since the Daytona 24-hour. We have a great crew, a great team, and two really exceptional drivers. So we’re really looking forward to the weekend in Mexico City.”

SunTrust Banks, Inc., with total assets of $182.2 billion on December 31, 2006, is one of the nation's largest and strongest financial holding companies. Through its banking subsidiaries, the company provides deposit, credit, trust, and investment services to a broad range of retail, business, and institutional clients. Other subsidiaries provide credit cards, mortgage banking, credit-related insurance, brokerage, equipment leasing and capital markets services. Atlanta-based SunTrust enjoys leading market positions in some of the highest growth markets in the United States and also serves clients in selected markets nationally. The company operates 1,701 retail branches and 2,569 ATMs in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. In addition, SunTrust provides customers with a full range of technology-based banking channels, including Internet, PC, and Automated Telephone Banking.