Falken Prepares For 2010 ALMS Season With New Porsche And New Drivers

The 2010 race season is rapidly approaching and now is the time when we start to find out what some of our favorite teams are doing this year.  I just got word from Falken Tire that they’ve bought a brand new 2010 Porsche GT3 RSR as their new track weapon as well as two Porsche Works drivers (Wolf Henzler and Patrick Pilet) to wield it.  The two new guys will join returning driver Bryan Sellers to take on the GT field at the ALMS races this year.  I can’t wait to see how the team does at Sebring this year!  Stay tuned for more updates.

Press Release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TEAM FALKEN TIRE PREPARES FOR DEBUT ASSAULT WITH NEW PORSCHE AND TEAM DRIVER FOR SEBRING IN GT2 CLASS

FONTANA, CA (Mar. 3, 2010) – Porsche Works Driver‘s Wolf Henzler, Patrick Pilet and returning driver Bryan Sellers will lead the Team Falken Tire’s expanded race program, debuting the tire company’s brand new 2010 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR in the American Le Mans Series GT2 class at Sebring.

This will be the third year for Team Falken in ALMS, and its most aggressive program to date.  “We’re using the ALMS to compete against our competitors as well as utilize the highly organized race program as a formal testing ground for continued tire development,” said Mark Richter, Falken Senior Manager of Dealer Marketing.  “As we compete throughout the season, we will build upon race and test data learned from our efforts with last year’s Porsche.”

“As we plan for Sebring, it’s great to have Wolf on our team, as well as have Bryan return, along with Rod Everett, our veteran team manager, who has overseen the development of Falken’s new race car, the only Porsche 911 GT3 RSR earmarked for racing delivered to North America this season,” said Falken’s Director of Marketing Andrew Hoit.  “We remain convinced that ALMS is the perfect venue to profile Falken’s brand and demonstrate the company’s capabilities to our customers, retailers and media, and that’s why we have made the significant commitment to motorsports.”

The new GT3 RSR was hand-built in Porsche’s Weissach, Germany, Motorsports facility, and then air- freighted on a 747 cargo plane to LAX, close to Falken’s Corporate offices in Fontana.  The car is the latest generation water-cooled 4.0-Liter Porsche Flat six boxer engine.

Henzler, a veteran of many ALMS races, and one of only eight Porsche factory drivers, along with Sellers, who drove Falken’s entry in 2009, have tested the new car prior to its debut next week at Sebring. 

“We showed steady improvement throughout last year, and anticipate even stronger results in 2010,” Richter added.  “I’m confident Falken, our drivers and our car are ready for the challenge.”                                                            – 30 –

Falken Tire Corporation, based in Fontana, California, was introduced to the North American market in 1985.  Falken focus on UHP (Ultra High Performance) products and utilizes pro drifting and American LeMans race programs to further develop, improve and market passenger vehicle products for worldwide distribution.  For more information, visit Falken Tire’s new website at www.falkentire.com.