LONG BEACH, Calif.
(April 13, 2002)
Officials from MG Rover and Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. (NYSE:
MPH) announced today a new engine supplier relationship for the CART
FedEx Championship Series for 2003 and beyond. The announcement will
bring the famous MG brand and its winning motor racing heritage to
American open-wheel Champ Car racing for the first time in the marques
rich history.
The new engines will be branded with the MG Sport & Racing banner MG
XPower and the race cars will carry the famous MG logo. The MG Rover
effort is collaboration between the manufacturer and Engine Developments
Ltd, the builder of JUDD racing engines. The XV power plant targeted
for CART Champ Car competition is being jointly developed by both groups
and uses basic architecture from the existing JUDD V8 and V10 engine
family, the V10 version of which powered the winning car in this years
Rolex 24 at Daytona in the
hands of a winning team of drivers that included CART r! egular Max
Papis. The extensive re-design currently being undertaken on the V8 will
effectively produce a brand new engine designed specifically to suit
CARTs new engine regulations that call for 12,000 rpm limits
and other enhancements unique to the FedEx Championship Series. The XV
is targeted to produce well over 700 hp.
I am delighted to be involved with the USAs premier motor racing
series, and our association with the highly successful Engine
Developments Ltd will enable the MG brand to once again be brought in
front of the thousands of fans following the CART series, said
Rob Oldaker, Managing Director of MG Sport & Racing. This complements
our European Motorsport activities and will allow MG XPOWER to become
truly global.
MG Rover is the first manufacturer to officially confirm participation
in CART under the organizations new rules that call for 3.5-liter V8
racing engines commencing next season. Additional manufacturers are
expected to con! firm participation in the coming months.
The incredible commi tment that MG Rover has made to CART is one of the
single most positive developments I have seen since I joined the
organization fewer than four months ago, said CART President and CEO
Christopher R. Pook. It is no secret that we have been
openly courting several automobile manufacturers around the globe, but
to have a storied marque such as MG be the first to officially join our
series is great news. As a native Englishman, I am honored to have one
of Great Britains premier brands join CART. As CARTs
President, I am grateful that MG Rover has seen fit to bolster its
marketing initiatives through our series, and I am confident we will not
let them down.
In addition to MG Rovers race car supplier business, the company is
strongly considering participation in the CART Fast Lap pace car program
with high-performance street versions of MG Rover automobiles in the
fast lap fleet.
Engine Developments Ltd of Rugby has over 30 years experience in race
engine de! sign, development and maintenance and, in more recent years,
has forged relationships with customers from the Formula 1 arena. JUDD
engines have also been raced successfully in
CART Champ Car competition in the past, and Bobby Rahal won the 1988
Pocono 500 in a Judd-powered Lola.
As a British engine manufacturer, we are delighted and very proud to be
associated with MG Rover, one of Britains best known and admired car
companies, said John Judd, Managing Director of Engine Developments
Ltd. MG has a long and successful tradition that
is second to none, in fact my first car was an MG TA. It therefore seems
very natural to renew my association with the company, and we look
forward to a long and successful partnership with MG in the CART series.
I am sure both our companies will benefit from our
participation in the series and that we can maintain and extend the
traditions of the famous MG name.
Established in 1921, MG (Morris Garages) Cars are Britains on! ly
independent sports car brand. Today, MG Rover Holdings is an
independent, medium-sized British company, with a focus on the
development of a fully integrated automotive business. Its aim is to
create great cars, from great brands. The company was formed following
the purchase of the Rover Group from BMW in May 2000. MG Rover Group
designs, develops and manufactures cars at its Longbridge, Birmingham
site in the UK. In total, MG products are sold worldwide in 70 markets,
with approximately 50 percent of sales to export territories. Worldwide
distribution of automobiles spans the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands,
Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain, South America,
South Africa, Eastern Europe,
Asia/Pacific, the Middle East and North Africa.
After a recent rebirth with new designs and technology, MG is making a
serious effort to promote its performance cars. To establish the marque
as a performance leader, MG has renewed itself on the motorsports scene.
The manufacturer recently stepped up its efforts in three categori! es
(British Touring Cars (ZS), World Rally (ZR) and FIA Sportscars (Lola
EX257/MG) to prove its legitimacy as a leader in automobile performance
and technology. They are coining their new performance sub-brand as
XPower, which they feel will bind together and symbolize all of MG Sport
and Racings activities. Todays CART announcement is the latest
development in MGs high performance initiatives. Media website, with
copyright free images: http://www.media.mg-rover.com.
Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc. (NYSE: MPH) owns, operates and
markets the CART FedEx Championship Series. Former series champions
Michael Andretti and Jimmy Vasser are among the stars who will battle
for the 2002 FedEx Championship Series title on ovals, temporary street
circuits and permanent road courses. CART Champ Cars are thoroughbred
racing machines that travel at speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour,
showcasing the technical expertise of manufacturers such as American
Honda, Ford Motor Company, Toyota, Lola Cars, Reynard Motorsport and
Bridgestone/Firestone Nor th American Tire, LLC. The 20-race 2002 CART
FedEx Championship Series will be broadcast by new television partners,
CBS, FOX and SPEED Channel. CART also owns and operates its top
development series, the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship. Learn more
about CARTs open-wheel racing series at
http://www.CART.com.
--
Eric
'68MGB MkII
Adelaide, South Australia
/// or try http://www.team.net/cgi-bin/majorcool
/// Archives at http://www.team.net/archive
|