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The '''Grand American Road Racing Association''' or '''Grand-Am''' is an [[auto racing]] sanctioning body that was established in 1999 to organize endurance [[road racing]] competitions in [[North America]]. 

[[Image:GrandAm_LagunaSeca.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Racing action in the 2005 Grand-Am Road & Track 250 at Laguna Seca]]

==Overview==
The Grand American Road Racing Association was established in 1999 and is located in [[Daytona Beach, Florida]], on the same corporate campus that is also home to [[NASCAR]], [[International Speedway Corporation|ISC]] (International Speedway Corporation) and [[Daytona International Speedway]], but operates as its own stand-alone corporation with a group of independent investors and its own board of advisors. Among the corporation’s investors are several of the key people behind NASCAR’s success, but Grand American offers an entirely different product that features world-class sports car racing on historic road racing circuits and in major market speedways throughout North America. 

Grand American currently sanctions three separate series. The premier Rolex Sports Car Series featuring Daytona Prototype and GT endurance events, the Grand-Am Cup featuring street-stock production cars, and the Ferrari Challenge featuring race versions of the [[Ferrari 360]], the new Ferrari 430, and historic [[Ferrari]] race cars.

==Rolex Sports Car Series==
In the Rolex Sports Car Series, two classes compete for victories - Daytona Prototypes and [[Grand Touring]].  
The crown jewel of the Rolex Sports Car Series season is the Rolex [[24 Hours at Daytona]], which is the first race of the year. 

===Daytona Prototype===
The Daytona Prototypes are purpose- built chassis powered by stock-block production engines from [[Lexus]], [[Pontiac]], [[Porsche]], [[BMW]], [[Infiniti]] and [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]], in the interest of keeping operating costs low and attempting to ensure equality through the field. Approved chassis are built by [[Riley & Scott|Riley Technologies]], Fabcar, Crawford, Doran, Picchio, Multimatic and Chase. The class has less powerful motors and less aerodynamic designs than [[Le Mans Prototypes]] built to [[Automobile Club de l'Ouest|ACO]] rules. The rule limitations are a result of the desire to maintain safe speeds at the series' fastest track, [[Daytona International Speedway]], and maintain close competition. Daytona International Speedway hosts two premier events in the series, the [[24 Hours of Daytona|Rolex 24 At Daytona]] and a 250-mile sprint on the same weekend as NASCAR's [[Pepsi 400]].

Another important benefit of the Daytona Prototype class is that the chassis feature cost efficient construction using steel tube chassis instead of a carbon fiber tub. Not only does this reduce initial acquisition costs - bare rolling chassis cost in the neighborhood of $375,000 with ready-to-race examples costing around $600,000 - but operational costs are also much lower than those for ACO-spec Le Mans Prototypes. This relative affordability has sparked tremendous growth in field size, and as of 2006 upwards of 25 Daytona Prototypes regularly campaign in the series.

===Grand Touring===
For 2005, the Grand Touring (GT) and Super Grand Sport (SGS) classes were consolidated into a single GT class, which features high-tech sports car models approved by Grand-Am like the [[Chevrolet Corvette]], [[Porsche 911]] GT3 Cup, Ferrari 360 Modena, and [[BMW M3]]. However, new rules introduced in 2005, commonly referred to as Prep2, allow for the introduction of tube-frame, purpose-built cars into the class. The first examples of these are [[Pontiac GTO]]s campaigned by Horizon Motorsports and [[The Racer's Group]].

==Grand-Am Cup==
The Grand-Am Cup is a production-based racing series, separated into two classes. Grand Sport (GS) includes sports cars, and Street Tuner (ST) consists of four-door sedans and sport coupes. Grand-Am Cup events are usually support events for Rolex Sports Car events.

==2006 Daytona Prototype teams and drivers==

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%" border=1 cellpadding=3
|- tr BGCOLOR="darkred"
!No
!Entrant
!Engine
!Chassis
!Drivers
!Third driver(s)
!Sponsors
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''3'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Southard Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[BMW]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Shane Lewis]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Randy LaJoie]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Southard Motorsports]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Craig Stanton]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''4'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Howard-Boss Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Butch Leitzinger]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Tony Stewart]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[The Boss Snowplow]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUK}}   [[Andy Wallace (racer)|Andy Wallace]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''5'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Finlay Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Ford]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconCanada}}   [[Michael Valiante]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}} [[Bryan Herta]]
  {{flagiconUS}} [[Buddy Rice]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Make-a-Wish]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Rob Finlay]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''6'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Michael Shank Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Lexus]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Mike Borkowski]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconCanada}}   [[Paul Tracy]]<br />
  {{flagiconUS}}   [[Paul Mears, Jr.]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Playboy]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Tommy Constantine]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''8'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Synergy Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Doran]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconNetherlands}}   [[Patrick Huisman]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Al Unser, Jr.]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Gamewell Mechanical]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Boris Said]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''10'''
! rowspan=2 | [[SunTrust Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconItaly}}   [[Max Angelelli]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconDenmark}}   [[Jan Magnussen]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[SunTrust Banks]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Wayne Taylor]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''11'''
! rowspan=2 | [[CITGO Racing by SAMAX]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconSweden}}   [[Stefan Johansson]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUK}}   [[Marino Franchitti]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[CITGO]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconVenezuela}}   [[Milka Duno]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''12'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Lowe's Fernandez Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconMexico}}   [[Adrian Fernandez]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Scott Sharp]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Lowe's]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconBrazil}}   [[Mario Haberfeld]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''16'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Howard-Boss Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUK}}   [[Guy Smith]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Rob Dyson]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Thetford]], [[Norcold]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Chris Dyson]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''19'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Playboy/Uniden Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Ford]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Memo Gidley]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Alex Barron (driver)|Alex Barron]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Playboy]], [[Uniden]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Michael McDowell (driver)|Michael McDowell]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''23'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Alex Job Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconGermany}}   [[Mike Rockenfeller]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconGermany}}   [[Lucas Luhr]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Ruby Tuesday (restaurant)|Ruby Tuesday]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Patrick Long]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''30'''
! rowspan=2 | [[SigalSport]]
| rowspan=2 | [[BMW]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Bill Auberlen]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | None
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Alhadeff Companies]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Matthew Alhadeff]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''39'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Cheever Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconBrazil}}   [[Christian Fittipaldi]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconBrazil}}   [[Hoover Orsi]]
  {{flagiconCanada}}   [[Patrick Carpentier]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Crown Royal]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Eddie Cheever]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''40'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Derhaag Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Randy Ruhlman]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconCanada}}   [[Ron Fellows]]
  {{flagiconUK}}   [[Justin Bell]] <br>
  {{flagiconUS}}   [[Paul Dallenbach]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Preformed Line Products]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Chris Bingham]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''47'''
! rowspan=2 | [[TruSpeed Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Rob Morgan (driver)|Rob Morgan]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | None
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Querencia Golf Club]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Charles Morgan (driver)|Charles Morgan]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''50'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Rocketsports Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Ford]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Tomy Drissi]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconEstonia}}   [[Tonis Kasemets]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | None
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Paul Gentilozzi]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''58'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Brumos Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Darren Law]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconGermany}}   [[Sascha Maassen]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Red Bull]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[David Donohue]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''59'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Brumos Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Porsche]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Hurley Haywood]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconPortugal}}   [[Joao Barbosa]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Brumos Porsche]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[J.C. France]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''60'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Michael Shank Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Lexus]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconBrazil}}   [[Oswaldo Negri, Jr.]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUK}}   [[Justin Wilson]]
  {{flagiconUS}}   [[A.J. Allmendinger]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Flight Options]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconSouth Africa}}   [[Mark Patterson (driver)|Mark Patterson]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''75'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Krohn Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Ford]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconSweden}}   [[Niclas Jönsson]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | None
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Krohn Racing]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Tracy Krohn]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''76'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Krohn Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Ford]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconGermany}}   [[Jorg Bergmeister]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | None
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Krohn Racing]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Colin Braun]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''77'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Doran Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Ford]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Doran]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Terry Borcheller]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | None
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Kodak]], [[Amp'd Mobile]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Harrison Brix]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''89'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Pacific Coast Motorsports]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUK}}   [[Ryan Dalziel]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | None
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Playboy]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Alex Figge]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''99'''
! rowspan=2 | [[GAINSCO/Blackhawk Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Alex Gurney]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Jimmy Vasser]]
  {{flagiconUS}}   [[Rocky Moran, Jr.]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[Gainsco Auto Insurance]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Jon Fogarty]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''01'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Chip Ganassi Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Lexus]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Riley Technologies|Riley]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Scott Pruett]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconItaly}}   [[Max Papis]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[CompUSA]], [[Telmex]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconMexico}}   [[Luis Diaz]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''07'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Spirit of Daytona Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Guy Cosmo]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" | none
| rowspan=2 align="center" | [[DirecTV]]
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Bobby Labonte]]
|-
| rowspan=2 | '''09'''
! rowspan=2 | [[Spirit of Daytona Racing]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Pontiac]]
| rowspan=2 | [[Crawford]]
| align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Doug Goad]]
| rowspan=2 align="right" |   {{flagiconUS}}   [[Larry Oberto]]
| rowspan=2 align="center" | None
|-
| align="right" |   {{flagiconCanada}}   [[Marc-Antoine Camirand]]
|-
|}


==2006 Race Schedule==
*Rolex Cup
**Test Days at Daytona, Jan. 4-7, [[Daytona International Speedway]], [[Daytona Beach, Florida]]
**[[24 Hours of Daytona|Rolex 24 At Daytona]], Jan. 26-29, [[Daytona International Speedway]], [[Daytona Beach, Florida]]
**Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, March 2-4, [[Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez]], [[Mexico City, Mexico]]
**Linder Industrial Komatsu Grand Prix of Miami, March 23-25, [[Homestead-Miami Speedway]], [[Homestead, Florida]]
**Crown Royal Grand American Challenge of Long Beach, April 7-8, [[Long Beach Grand Prix|Streets of Long Beach]], [[Long Beach, California]]
**Virginia International Raceway 400, April  21-23, [[Virginia International Raceway]], [[Alton, Virginia]]
**U.S. Sports Car Invitational, May 5-7, [[Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca]], [[Monterey, California]]
**The GAINSCO Grand Prix, May 11-13, [[Phoenix International Raceway]], [[Phoenix, Arizona]]
**Lime Rock Park, May 26-29, [[Lime Rock Park]], [[Lakeville, Connecticut]]
**Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen, June 2-3, [[Watkins Glen International]], [[Watkins Glen, New York]]
**EMCO Gears Classic, June 23-25, [[Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course]], [[Lexington, Ohio]]
**Brumos Porsche 250, June 29, Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida
**Barber Motorsports Park, July 28-30, [[Barber Motorsports Park]], [[Birmingham, Alabama]]
**Crown Royal 200 at the Glen, August 10-11, Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York 
**Infineon Raceway, August 24-26, [[Infineon Raceway]], [[Sonoma, California]]
**Discount Tire Sunchaser, August 31 - Sept 2, [[Miller Motorsports Park]], [[Tooele, Utah]]

*Grand-Am Cup
**Test Days at Daytona, Jan. 4-7, [[Daytona International Speedway]], [[Daytona Beach, Florida]]
**[[24 Hours of Daytona|Rolex 24 At Daytona]], Jan. 26-29, [[Daytona International Speedway]], [[Daytona Beach, Florida]]
**Virginia International Raceway 400, April  21-23, [[Virginia International Raceway]], [[Alton, Virginia]]
**U.S. Sports Car Invitational, May 5-7, [[Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca]], [[Monterey, California]]
**Avondale Mazda Twin 200s, May 11-13, [[Phoenix International Raceway]], [[Phoenix, Arizona]]
**Lime Rock Park, May 26-29, [[Lime Rock Park]], [[Lakeville, Connecticut]]
**Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, June 23-25, [[Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course]], [[Lexington, Ohio]]
**Barber Motorsports Park, July 28-30, [[Barber Motorsports Park]], [[Birmingham, Alabama]]
**Grand Prix of Trois Rivieres, August 4-6, [[Trois-Rivieres, Quebec]], [[Trois-Rivieres, Quebec]]
**Miller Motorsports Park, August 31-Sept 2, [[Miller Motorsports Park]], [[Tooele, Utah]]
**Virginia International Raceway, October 6-8, [[Virginia International Raceway]], [[Alton, Virginia]]

== External links ==
*[http://www.grand-am.com Official website] 

[[Category:Sports car racing]]
[[Category:Auto racing series]]
[[Category:Auto racing organizations]]