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General Motors Media Press ReleaseFOR RELEASE: February 28, 2001 Team Corvette Adds AER To Sponsor GroupWorld's Largest Remanufacturer Is Newest AssociateDETROIT, Mich. - GM Racing announced the addition of AER Manufacturing of Carrollton, Texas, as the newest associate sponsor of Team Corvette. Quality sponsor line-up "We are pleased that AER has agreed to join GM Goodwrench Service Plus, GMAC, Goodyear Tire and Rubber, Mobil 1 and UAW/GM as sponsors of the twin Team Corvette C5-Rs," said GM Racing Marketing Manager Gary Claudio. 145,000 units per year AER is said to be the world's largest supplier of remanufactured and original equipment engines, with annual output of more than 145,000 units per year.
"I became associated with driver Ron Fellows in the early Nineties as a sponsor," said AER President Bob McGraw, "and we've been on his winning cars in SCCA Trans-Am, NASCAR Busch and Craftsman competition. It's only natural and good marketing to become associated with Team Corvette." Texas produces first win "In 2000, we were planning to skip the American Le Mans Series race at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS)," said Claudio, "but AER is headquartered in nearby Carrollton and Bob wanted to use the race in his home area. So, with AER signed on, we came to TMS with one car. Ron Fellows, co-driving with Andy Pilgrim, produced our first GTS class win." Daytona win Fellows, along with co-drivers Chris Kneifel, Franck Freon and Johnny O'Connell, is coming off the overall win and first in GTS finish at the Rolex 24 at Daytona on Feb. 4. The second Corvette C5-R finished fourth overall and second in GTS, with Pilgrim, Kelly Collins and NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. competing in their first endurance race. Team Corvette will enter two cars in the two-hour and 45- minute American Le Mans Series race at TMS. Fellows and Chris Kneifel will be in the #3 entry, while Pilgrim and Kelly Collins will co-drive the #4 Corvette. Production based program The Chevrolet Corvette C5-R race program continues Chevrolet's tradition of racing production- based vehicles to "improve the breed." The engineers working on the Corvette race car work closely with their production counterparts to ensure that race car "learnings" impact present and future Corvettes. |