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<body> <Table Width="550" border="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" cellpadding="0"><TR><TD Width="35"><IMG SRC="//www.totalmotorsport.com/images/spacer.gif" WIDTH="35" HEIGHT="1"></td><td> <CENTER><Table border="0" width="100%"> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="5">GRAND AMERICAN ROAD RACING ASSOCIATION</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="left"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="2">03/11/2001</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="4">New prototype regulations</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="3">Regs under review for 2003</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="1">  </FONT></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="left"><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="2">The Grand American Road Racing Association has announced that they are developing new rules for the prototype division of the Sports Car series, which they hope to introduce in time for the 2003 season. Roger Edmondson, President of the Grand-Am Association, has had talks with engine and chassis builders to help create the right package in time for a public announcement due at the Daytona 24 hour test days in January.<BR> <BR> "All of the world's major sports car sanctioning bodies are currently reviewing their rules trying to overcome the negative impact that excessive speed and radical car designs have had on safety," he noted. "Since Grand-Am's first season in 2000, we have been emphatic that for cost containment reasons, something had to be done about the technology wars to keep the sport accessible for more than a few manufacturer teams."<BR> <BR> "We agree with the goals of other organizations that cars are going too fast, that aerodynamic packages need to be restudied and that the design of safety components has to be addressed," Edmondson added. "But, we are going to go one step further. In keeping with the vision of this sport we have supported since day one, we're going to look into affordability and availability as key issues."<BR> <BR> He said his staff and advisors, being led by Director of Competition Dave Watson and Race Director Mark Raffauf, are still looking at various options. "Whatever we do, it will be evolutionary, not revolutionary," Watson commented. "We will have rules that will not obsolete our current cars. There will be a couple of years of transition as the new cars become more and more popular."<BR> <BR> Watson added that some of the key goals being looked at for the new car design include use of engines and chassis designs from U.S. and European manufacturers, reducing the role of air intake restrictors, and, ultimately, a high level of competition with safe, fast cars that more teams can afford to run.<BR> </FONT></TD></TR> </TABLE><BR> </CENTER> <BR><CENTER><font size="1" color="#808080" face="Tahoma">Copyright ©2000-©2023 TotalMotorSport</font></CENTER> </td> </tr> </table> </body>