Daytona Test: Sigalsport report

SIGALSPORT BMW TEAM DRIVERS SHOW A LOT OF SPEED AT THE ROLEX 24 TEST DAYS!

Los Angeles, California, January 9, 2006: The Alhadeff Motorsports/Motul/enVista Sigalsport BMW M3 co-driven by Bill Auberlen, Matt Alhadeff, Gene Sigal and Peter McLeod showed a lot of speed at Daytona International Speedway during the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Daytona Test Days.

Bill Auberlen turned a lap in 1' 53" 845, the fastest lap ever for a BMW M3 GT class around the Daytona International Speedway road course since the launch of the Rolex Sports Car Series! Bill's performance was the sixth fastest time of the GT class recorded during the Daytona Test Days, a very encouraging result for the first race of the 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series, scheduled in 3 weeks.

Auberlen, Alhadeff, Sigal and MacLeod practiced a total of 193 problem-free laps throughout the three days of testing to prepare for the 2006 Rolex 24 at Daytona. This was the first official 2006 Rolex Series test for the Sigalsport BMW team season drivers with all of the 2006 championship GT contenders.

"I am impressed by Bill's time. He is a great driver with amazing experience and talent and I am sure that he and his co-season driver, Matt Alhadeff, are headed for a great season with lots of successes", declared Sigalsport BMW team owner Gene Sigal after the test. "Our BMW M3 worked fine and we had no problem throughout the three days of testing. Peter MacLeod and I worked well together and the team did an excellent job considering their limited experience with the BMW M3. I am looking forward to coming back in three weeks for the race and battling with the best in the GT class" added Sigal.

In addition to past Rolex Series champion, Bill Auberlen, Matt Alhadeff, Gene Sigal and Peter MacLeod, Sigalsport BMW team will add four drivers to its Rolex 24 lineup including two former PTG BMW Rolex Series GT class multi-race winners. Justin Marks, who won seven Rolex Series races with the PTG BMW M3 and Tom Milner Jr., who will celebrate his 20th birthday on race day, and who won three GT races in 2005. Two other drivers will be selected later.

Thanks to PTG BMW team owner, Tom Milner, who extended his hospitality to Sigalsport, the team is now working from the PTG shop located in Winchester, Virginia until the race. The crew will prepare the two cars for the Rolex 24 scheduled for January 28 and 29 and Sigalsport's goal is to deliver the best performance ever at the Rolex 24 for the Munich brand.

Before the first race of the season at Daytona, Gene Sigal and Matt Alhadeff will make history this week and will compete in the inaugural 24 Hours of Dubai, the first ever 24-hour race organized in the Middle East. The Sigalsport driver duo will co-drive a Porsche GT3 Cup with Miro Konopka, and will be one of the contenders for the overall win on Thursday and Friday in Dubai.

-sigalsport