GOODYEAR TAKE THE LEAD IN ASCAR RACE SERIES
GOODYEAR IS SOLE TYRE SUPPLIER AND FIRST RACE TO BE THE "GOODYEAR 100"

Billed as more thrilling than Formula 1, ASCAR racing - based on America's most popular racing championship the NASCAR Winston Cup, now has a firm foothold in the UK racing calendar thanks to tyre giant Goodyear. In addition to clinching the deal, as with last year's successful inaugural series, to become the sole tyre supplier for the 2002 championship series, the first race of this year's series at Rockingham on 5 May, will be named the "Goodyear 100".

"Goodyear is delighted to be associated with ASCAR racing for the second year running and we look forward to the challenge. Being the sole tyre supplier to such a prestigious series is a massive vote of confidence in the company and in the technical performance of the tyres," said Goodyear's communications manager Ron Pike.

The cars competing in the series are high-performance American saloon cars with General Motors 5.7 litre V8 engines, giving the cars a top speed of over 170 mph. Goodyear's experience gained from its long association with NASCAR aids the development of the massive left-side / right-side slick tyres that are specially developed for the stresses of racing at continuous high speeds on the newly constructed banked oval tracks in the UK and Germany. 'Stagger' plays an integral part in oval racing, consequently the need for both a 26.5/10.0-15 and 27.0/10.0-15 tyre size.

The races will take place at the new, banked oval circuit at Rockingham, Northamptonshire (1.5 miles) and the Eurospeedway Lausitz track near Dresden, in Germany (2 miles).

The format for the Rockingham events will be - practice on the Saturday, with two races on the Sunday. Each race will normally be over 60 laps. In September, races in both England and Germany will be the main support to the European rounds of America's premier motor
racing championship - the CART FedEx ChampCar series - adding to ASCAR's prestige and with an audience of over 100,000.

"Banked circuits encourage overtaking and continuous high-speed driving, with average lap speeds of more than 140 mph," added Ron who believes that while ASCAR racing is a true test of drivers and cars, tyre performance plays a critical role.

"When driving at 170 mph in a competitive race and only a hair's breadth away from a solid concrete wall, you have to have confidence in your own ability, your car and, of course, your tyres," said Ron.

This year's series has attracted wide interest. The races will be seen on Channel 4, in programmes to be shown on Saturday morning as part of the channel's coverage of British motorsport. There will also be coverage on satellite TV.

Reigning champion John Mickel, who clinched the title in dramatic fashion in the final round of the series, is hoping to expand his Torquespeed team to three or even four cars. Experienced drivers from other forms of motorsport are expected to be attracted by this exciting form of racing.

Ron went on to say: "ASCAR has already established itself as a key British motorsport series and looks set to become one of the most popular championships with racing enthusiasts and casual spectators alike."

2002 ASCAR Race Schedule

April 15/16, 22/23 Testing and 'Rookie Training' Rockingham
May 4/5 Rounds 1 & 2 Rockingham
May 24/25/26 Rounds 3, 4 & 5 Eurospeedway
June 8/9 Rounds 6 & 7 Rockingham
July 20/21 Rounds 8, 9 & 10 Eurospeedway
August 3/4 Rounds 11 & 12 Rockingham
August 24/25 Rounds 13 & 14 Rockingham
September 13/14 Round 15 (CART FedEx support) Rockingham
September 20/21 Round 16 (CART FedEx support) Eurospeedway
October 5/6 Rounds 17 & 18 Rockingham