TWO GREAT BRANDS MAKE RACING DEBUT AT DAYTONA 24 HR THIS WEEKEND

Two of America’s greatest brands will take their place on the grid at the start of one of the classic endurance races in the world - the Rolex 24 at Daytona - on Saturday, 5 February.

For Cadillac, it is the team’s race debut after a 50 year absence, with British driver Andy Wallace leading one of the teams. For Chevrolet, Daytona will be about confirming its form after a promising season last year.

Cadillac’s historic return
After two years of planning, designing and testing, the Cadillac Northstar LMP will race in competition for the first time.

"The Rolex 24 at Daytona maybe one of the smaller events, but we shouldn’t be over estimating our chances," says LMP Programme manager Jeff Kettman. "It will be the first big test for everybody and is the initial step on the road to Le Mans."

The Cadillac Northstar LMP team and drivers had their first taste of the competition in last month’s open test. "Although we weren’t as quick as we might have liked, we were pleased with our performance. We arrived in Florida with two brand-new chassis and managed to do what we had planned: put miles on the drivetrain and sort out one or two small transmission problems," Kettman said.

After the Daytona test, the team went to Savannah, Georgia, for more testing, and was met by torrential rain. "But the weather is as much a factor in a race as your rival teams, so that was a useful experience," says Kettman.

Two Cadillac LMP Northstars will campaign in 2000, with a team of three drivers for each car. British driver and twice winner of the Daytona 24, Andy Wallace, will lead a team and is joined by Butch Leitzinger from the US and Frenchman Franck Lagorce.

The driver team for the second Cadillac will be led by South African Wayne Taylor, with Belgian Eric van de Poele and Italian Max Angelelli as the second and third drivers.

Andy Wallace had the final shake-down tests in Savannah earlier this week. The next stop for Team Cadillac is the Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, where Cadillac will once again step into the limelight of sportscar racing.

Chevrolet to race with weight penalty
Following a successful test in Daytona, the GrandAm organisation has imposed a 50-kilogram weight penalty on the yellow and white Chevrolet cars.

The extra weight will inevitably have its repercussions on the car’s components. But the team has prepared its 2000 debut well. "We spent the whole winter testing and practiced pit stops and transmission changes until we had to pack up the cars to go to Daytona," says Doug Fehan of Corvette Racing, "so we should be prepared."

The distinctive new Millennium Yellow colour scheme may be the most obvious change externally, but under the skin the engineers have been busy as well.

"We have made significant improvements in aerodynamics, handling, braking and engine. The engine which has had its displacement increased from 6 to 7 litres now delivers more mid-range and top-range power."

The ambitions of the team are clear: win the GTO class on Sunday afternoon. "We will be disappointed if we don’t win," Fehan continues. "The Daytona 24 Hours is a tough race, but we feel we have done our homework and prepared ourselves as well as we can, and we have a better car than last year."