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Sebring Robinson Racing results

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PR ROBINSON RACING AURORAS: FINAL UPDATE SUPERFLO 12 HOURS OF SEBRING PRESENTED BY CHRYSLER MARCH 15TH. HOT WHEELS AURORA WINS GTS-1 CLASS; 74 HUNTING RANCH AURORA TAKES THIRD PLACE IN GTS-1 The Robinson Racing team ...

Edited: May 8, 2001, 12:19 PM

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PR ROBINSON RACING AURORAS: FINAL UPDATE

SUPERFLO 12 HOURS OF SEBRING PRESENTED BY CHRYSLER MARCH 15TH.

HOT WHEELS AURORA WINS GTS-1 CLASS; 74 HUNTING RANCH AURORA TAKES THIRD PLACE IN GTS-1

The Robinson Racing team celebrated two podium finishes in today’s SportsCar’s SUPERFLO 12 Hours of Sebring presented by Chrysler, highlighted by the #11 Hot Wheels Aurora’s GTS-1 win and sixth overall finish. The #75 74 Hunting Ranch Aurora finished third in GTS-1 class and 19th overall.

Although the Hot Wheels Aurora lost its hood when it tapped the 74 Hunting Ranch Aurora early in the race, the Aurora was still able to run strongly throughout the remaining hours, making only routine pit stops -- many under cautions -- to hold off the charging 01 Porsche. The Hot Wheels Aurora completed 261 laps, 20 laps behind the winning Ferrari and only 1:20.769 seconds ahead of the second place (GST-1) Porsche.

"Sebring is one of the all time great venues," said team owner and co-driver of the Hot Wheels Aurora, George Robinson. "There are three legendary sportscar races in the world and this is one of them. The 12 Hours of Sebring is the second oldest of the three, second only to Le Mans, so for an American to win this event it’s very special."

Robinson was joined in the Hot Wheels Aurora by Irv Hoerr of Sebring, Florida and Jack Baldwin of Georgia. Today’s win marks the second time Hoerr and Robinson teamed up to win Sebring. They had previously won GTS-1 together in 1992. Robinson first earned a victory at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1989 when he won the GTU class. Baldwin previously won in GTU class in 1984.

"It’s the hardest race in the world to win," said Hoerr. "This is a real race track for sportscars with every element -- lefts, rights, straightaways, bumps. It’s difficult to set up a car for this race and hard to drive it full out for the entire 12 hours."

Baldwin agreed with his teammates on the magnitude of the victory: "Sebring is a 12 hour sprint race where you race hard for the whole event. At the 24 Hours of Daytona, you run a pace but here you have to run hard and everything -- the drivers, crew and machinery -- needs to be in place to be there at the end."

The victory was appreciated by the car’s new sponsor, Hot Wheels, who signed with Robinson Racing just weeks prior to the event for Sebring and SportsCar’s Watkins Glen race in June. "This is a great win for us," said Marty Schneider, Mattel’s Sales Manager for the southeast region. "We’ve never really been involved with an endurance race before and to be involved with -- and win -- one this legendary is really a treat."

Mattel will be producing a limited edition #11 Hot Wheels Aurora collectors car later this fall. The car will be available through the collectors network.

Robinson Racing’s 74 Hungting Ranch Aurora also ran well throughout the race with its only set-back being a faulty gear box on the car’s 57th lap. Following a 25-minute transmission change, the #75 Aurora returned to the track, stronger than before and proceeded to move up in its class and on the field. At the end of the race, the 74 Hunting Ranch Aurora, with drivers Victor Sifton of Toronto, Ontario, Jon Gooding of Florida and Joe Pezza of New York, completed 248 laps, well ahead of its nearest class competitor.

"We had a hic-cup and the other guys didn’t," explained Gooding. "That’s really what it came down to today, otherwise we would have been running right with Irv, George and Jack."

"Except for the one blurp that I did," said Pezza, "everybody ran a flawless race. Sebring is a 12 hour sprint race, make one mistake and you’re in trouble. Andy Evans said at the drivers meeting that if you finish this race, it’s an accomplishment, so we’re happy with the results."

"It’s my first top three finish in a 12-hour race," added Sifton, "so I’m happy as can be. I’m also thrilled for George, Irv and Jack, not to mention the crew who worked so hard during the race."

Robinson Racing’s future plans for competing in the 1997 Exxon Supreme GT Series presented by Virgin Interactive are not yet confirmed but will include the Watkins Glen event in June.

###

For more information on Robinson Racing’s effort at Sebring, visit the Canaska website at www.canaska.com or contact Carol Starr at (416) 923-1501 or carol@adrenalinagency.com.

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