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BALDWIN, ROBINSON TO TRY NEW COMBINATION
FOR HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY GRAND-AM
MIAMI (April 4, 2000) – Jack Baldwin
and George Robinson are hoping that the reliability of the Riley
and Scott chassis, paired with the power of the V-10 Judd engine,
will be the keys to victory in the May 5-7 Grand American Road
Racing Association 250-mile feature at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
"Based on the teams that are coming,
it’s going to be a pretty darn competitive race," said
Baldwin, a former IMSA GTU and SCCA Trans-Am champion, and GTU
class winner in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. "The Riley and Scott
Mark III is an excellent race car. We’re putting our best
engine, the V-10 Judd derived from Formula One racing, into the
Mark III, and we think it’s going to be a good package."
Baldwin joins owner-driver Robinson in
the Informix Software/74 Ranch Resort-sponsored car, which will be
competing in the 250-mile race, 109 laps on the 2.3-mile modified
road circuit.
The inaugural Grand-Am also includes a
150-mile race for the GT classes, and a three-hour Motorola Cup
race on Saturday. Fan-friendly prices start at $5, with children
12 and under admitted free with a paying adult.
Baldwin explained that the team fielded a
Chevrolet-powered Riley and Scott for the season-opening Rolex 24
at Daytona, and raced a Judd-powered Reynard in the 12 Hours of
Sebring.
"Our Reynard is not quite
competitive yet, but by putting the new Judd V-10 in our proven
Mark III we’re hoping to be competitive with the Dyson Fords and
the Ferraris," Baldwin said.
"We had problems with the
half-shafts at Daytona, but our highpoint was we finished the
race," added Baldwin. "The Mark III is getting totally
upgraded for this race, with Formula One-quality parts for the
car. We don’t foresee having any problems like that in the
future."
Baldwin and Robinson have one
Homestead-Miami Speedway race under their belts, racing an Olds
Aurora to a third place GT-1 finish in the 1998 United States Road
Racing Championship event. Baldwin was also a frequent competitor
in the former IMSA Grands Prix through the streets of Bayside
Miami, winning the 1985 GTU race in a Mazda RX-7 and the 1986 IMSA
GTO race in a Camaro.
Tickets for the debut of the Grand
American Road Racing Association begin at $5 for an unreserved
Friday grandstand seat and $10 for Saturday. Sunday grandstand
seats cost $15, with weekend paddock passes $20. Weekend
grandstand/paddock tickets cost $40 if purchased by April 28.
Children 12 and under are free in both the grandstand and paddock
when accompanied by a paid adult.
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