MAX ANGELELLI & RICKY TAYLOR
SunTrust Team Focused on Elusive First Victory in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (June 1, 2011) – Italian lesson for today: “Così vicino, eppure così lontano!” Translation: “So close, yet so far!”
When it comes to the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen, those words would sum up the road racing life of veteran Italian Max Angelelli, as well as that of SunTrust Racing team owner and three-time sports car racing champion Wayne Taylor. For, while they have been literal fixtures on the podium at America’s traditional midsummer endurance race during their illustrious careers, they still have yet to taste victory during the month of June at the legendary Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International road circuit.
Angelelli and Taylor know all about winning major endurance events. Together, they dominated the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2005 en route to winning that year’s Rolex Series championship for SunTrust. Taylor has also been victorious at the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans in France, the 12 Hours of Sebring (Fla.), the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, and also has multiple IMSA World Sports Car championships.
The lone void on Taylor’s resume, and a race Angelelli would like to win more than any other at this point in his career, would be the Sahlen’s Six-Hour – the latest edition of which takes place Saturday at Watkins Glen. It’s not that they haven’t come close to winning it, especially since they and sponsor SunTrust first joined the Rolex Series in 2004. In the previous seven Sahlen’s Six-Hour events, the SunTrust team has finished on the podium six times, including each of the past five. SunTrust’s average finishing position the past seven Junes at Watkins Glen has been an incredible 3.0.
Angelelli and his 21-year-old co-driver Ricky Taylor brought SunTrust its second consecutive Sahlen’s Six-Hour runner-up finish last June. This weekend, buoyed by a resounding victory just five days prior in the Memorial Day Classic at Lime Rock Park for the second consecutive year, Angelelli and the younger Taylor look to finally go one better at The Glen behind the wheel of the No. 10 SunTrust Chevrolet Dallara of Wayne Taylor Racing. If it happens, watch for one, proud team owner and father seated atop the pit box.
Practice for Saturday’s Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen begins Friday morning with qualifying set for 4:40 p.m. Race time for the six-hour event is 1 p.m. Saturday with delayed television coverage provided by SPEED beginning at 4:30 p.m. Live radio coverage can be found on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius Channel 94 in a pair of two-hour segments, the first beginning at 12:45 p.m. and the race’s conclusion beginning at 5 p.m. Live timing and scoring during all on-track sessions can be found at www.grand-am.com, and now on mobile devices at m.grand-am.com.