Lime Rock Park witnessed the much awaited appearance of the Grand-Am Rolex Daytona Prototype on Tuesday ahead of the Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, which is slated to take place here on the 31st of May. The line-up of 19 cars included 11 of the Daytona Prototypes which proved their worth by dealing with the changing weather throughout the session that spanned over a period of six hours. The Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series will feature the Daytona Prototypes together with the production based GT cars. The contenders who will be participating in the Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series expressed favorable remarks about the layout spread across 1.5 miles.

The Daytona Prototype teams will include two automobiles from Starworks Motorsports and Michael Shank Racing. The event will also mark participation from GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, TELMEX Chip Ganassi with Felix Sabates, SunTrust Racing, Action Express Racing, Krohn Racing and AIM Autosport who will be making their presence felt with one car each.

The GT Team’s test drive included three of the Mazdas from SpeedSource as well as prototypes from Racers Edge Mazda, Dempsey Racing/Team Seattle Mazda, Turner BMW, Whelen Corvette and Magnus Porsche. The test run ended on a dry track with the drivers of the Daytona Prototypes turning laps in the range of 49 seconds. The drivers of the GT Class, who had also participated during the 2008 Lime Rock event, registered a turn of lap in 53 seconds.

Speaking about the test championship, Rojas who was driving in the Telemex BMW Riley together with Joey Hand, said that the laps are quick on the Lime Rock track. He went on to add that it is of utmost importance to not waste any time while on track.

Another champion racer, David Donohue looked elated about the fact that the Daytona Prototypes were becoming a part of the Memorial Day Weekend habit. David Donohue, who is quite familiar with the Lime Rock tracks, expressed his views by adding that he looked forward to marking his presence at the Memorial Day and carrying forward the tradition. He also said that the tracks had witnessed his father Mark Donohue’s racing skills in many of the important championships. David Donohue will be co-driving with champion racer Darren Law in the No. 59 Brumos Porsche Riley.

Nick Longhi who was driving the No. 69 FXDD Mazda RX-8 met with a minor accident when his car smashed across one of the guardian rails. Fortunately the racer remained uninjured. Nick Longhi’s team is currently leading the GT Team Championship by 3 points. The planned event of the Memorial Day weekend is also scheduled to feature a Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race which will be taking place on Saturday, May 29th 2010 at the Lime Rock tracks. All the Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series Events are slated to take place in a single day with the practice session beginning at 9 a.m., while the qualifying session will take place at 11:55 a.m.

The first day of dressage at the Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event witnessed the top three positions being bagged by the highly talented American riders- Karen O’Connor, Becky Holder and Phillip Dutton. Karen O’Connor from Middleburg, together with her gelding Mandiba managed to reserve the top spot with a score of 43.7, while Becky Holder who rode his horse Courageous Comet scored 45.2 and settled for the second position. The third spot was bagged by Philip Dutton from West Grove who rode The Foreman and scored 47.2 on the first day of the dressage competition. With all three riders belonging to America, the huge base of American fans was in for a lot of excitement and fun during the first day of dressage at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event.

Karen O’Connor has also been victorious at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event in the year 1999, while the 2008 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event was won by Philip Dutton. All three champions also happen to be Olympic veterans and have managed to reserve their places as the top contenders in the United States team that will be seen competing at the 2010 Altech FEI World Equestrian Games. The games are slated to take place at the Kentucky Horse Park in the month of September.

Karen O’Connor spoke about her horse Mandiba and said that she was confident about the horse and his performance. She went on to add that she was very happy about the fact that she was able to finish at first place with the elegant and confident horse. Mandiba is a 10 year old Irish gelding who has given consistent performances throughout the year.

Phillip Dutton who competed in the event with his 14 year old horse, The Foreman, said that it was more like putting the horse through a test in the event. Phillip Dutton added that the horse had not competed in a Three Day Event in almost three years following a surgery in 2007, wherein a splint bone had to be removed from the foreleg which kept him away from the action. He praised the gelding and said that The Foreman has proved to be one of the most confident and best he has ever rode. Philip Dutton also remarked that The Foreman always shines through in all the big events. Philip is slated to ride two of his other top geldings- Waterfront and Woodburn during the remaining event.

Becky Holder, who remained second on day one of the dressage event at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, managed to win the Rolex Watch at the reception held on the evening of the 21st of April. She is reported to have shifted to Chattahoochee from Minnesota last winter along with her geldings. She has also had the opportunity of being in the top three spots at the dressage event previously; however, she has never been able to make it to the top position at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, which she is eyeing this season together with another Rolex Watch reserved for the winner of the event.

One of the most reliable and prestigious tire manufacturing brands, Bridgestone has taken over the coveted hat of presenting sponsor of the 2010 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event. This has arguably made the famous brand the Official tire of the United States Equestrian Federation.

The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day event which is being held at the Horse Park provides a one of its kind chance to some of the most talented equestrians from across the world. The reputed event is also the only four star equestrian event held in America and is one of the five held around the world. The event also plays host to the Rolex/USEF National CCI**** Eventing Championship. The first leg of the Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing, Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event is looked up to by the athletes. The winner of the grand event is awarded with the prize money of $190,000 together with a priceless Rolex watch marvel.

Speaking about the priced sponsorship earned by the tire company Bridgestone, the Vice President of US & Canada Consumer Marketing for Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, Phil Pacsi said that the company shares its passion for excellence with the talented breed of equestrians who will be becoming a part of the 2010 Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event. Bridgestone is a remarkably renowned company whose passion for manufacturing excellent tires becomes pretty evident from the fact that the company has been relentlessly working in the field since 1030s. Backed by years of commitment and high technology, Bridgestone has just added a new dimension to its form.

Phil Pacsi went on to express his excitement on becoming the presenting partner of the 2010 Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event and said that Bridgestone is proud to play the new role assigned to it. Besides the company is also elated at the fact that it will get an opportunity to serve the USEF together with all of its members who cover miles and miles of distance attending several events every year. He noted that the entire team which travels by trucks, SUVs and cars completely jam-packed with several equipments and stuff, know better than anyone the importance of the right type of tire.

For many years now, Bridgestone has been standing by its motto of “service society with superior quality” and has been earning faith from drivers around the world. Speaking about the magnitude of trust that the company has attained over the years, John Long who is a USEF Chief Executive Officer said that Bridgestone is the most preferred brand when it comes to tires all across United States. He praised the USEF MembersPerks program started up by Bridgestone and said that their members have already started using the great line-up of products and services which the company has provided. He said that this was yet another best ways opted by Bridgestone to give a display of its commitment for service. Bridgestone’s new role in the 2010 Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event will mark its foray into the equestrian sport of the highest repute.

The Monte Carlo Rolex Masters is one event to look forward to with an impressive line-up of tennis seeds all set to give a display of their talents on court. The spring clay season which starts only after the commencement of the Casablanca and Charleston, brings its triple Master Series starting with the Monte Carlo Rolex Masters. The event spans over a week and is followed by the Rome Masters and Madrid Masters. The trio Masters are a prelude to the real face-off at the French Open which is slated to take place in May.

The Monte Carlo Rolex Masters, a tennis tournament which sees participation of professional male tennis players takes place on an annual basis. Like every year the tournament will happen in Clay Courts, France. Monte Carlo is seen as the widely famous ward of the location.  The Monte Carlo Rolex Masters plays a part of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Masters Series.   This year’s tournament will not witness the participation of the world No. 1 champion Roger Federer. However, the series still has a number of big names to boast of. The starry line-up includes Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and not to forget Andy Murray who will be gracing the event with their presence and their impressive shots.

Rafael Nadal, who leads the cast when it comes to ATP Monaco tournament market, is undoubtedly the favorite of many tennis followers. The player has been a five-time defending champion starting from 2005 and will be seen competing for the top honors for the sixth time in a row. The champion has earned the title of “Clay Court King” for his consistent performance on the court year after year.  Rafael Nadal stayed the No. 2 World Champion for several weeks behind Roger Federer before he bagged the top honors in 2008. At present, the champion of Spanish origin is ranked at No.3 position in the world Tennis rankings.

However, the fact that Rafael Nadal has not won any title in the season has put many under a doubt. But the industry insiders believe that the champion will return with his true colors this season as well. A similar situation was there to be witnessed before the 2008 Monte Carlo Rolex Masters when he did not have any titles from the season to his name.  However, the champion once again floored the audience with his impressive victory following which he became the world No. 1. He remained at the top rank from August 18, 2008 to July 5, 2009. Many people look forward to the Monte Carlo Rolex Masters to catch Rafael Nadal’s relentless attempts at performing his best.

Another big name participating in the Monte Carlo Rolex Masters is World No. 2 Novak Djokovic who is all geared up to prove his worth yet again. With Roger Federer being absent from the championship, Novak Djokovic would be leading the Monaco event.  The champion remained one of the best players last year and also earned the accolades for being the best clay court player following Rafael Nadal.  Andy Murray will also be seen competing in the event.

GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Daytona Prototype championship’s Porsche 250 held on Saturday at Barber Motorsports Park saw the team of Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas register an impressive victory over their rivals. The event had taken place before a crowd of about 25,000 people. The No. 01 TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates BMW Riley got its second victory in a row when Scott Pruett charged at the checkered flag about 6.870 seconds earlier than Ozz Negri.

Trevor Montgomery who was the regular tire changer of the team Ganassi had to sit out following a twisted knee just before the beginning of the race. This gave way to Blair Julian who generally changes tires for Ganassi’s IndyCar series team. Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas finished a total of 108 laps covering about 2.3 miles which incorporated 17 turn circuit in the time period of about 2 hours and 45 minutes. For the Ganassi team the race remained a smooth affair with no major incidents apart from the fact that the race saw a slow phase thrice during the first 12 laps of the race due to caution. Speaking about the race Scott Pruett considered the team mighty lucky for having gotten the opportunity of racing in the same weekend when the IndyCar Series was hitting the course. He gave the credit of bagging the chance to IRL team which helped them jump up in the event.He also remarked about the fun quotient involved in the race for the fans who come from far and wide to witness the event.

While Negri registered a second position victory driving in the No. 60 Michael Shank Racing Crown Royal XR Ford Riley, Ryan Dalziel who was a part of the winning group in the Rolex 24 At Daytona had to settle for a third position together with Mike Forest driving in the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport BMW Riley. The first six laps of the race were dominated by Mike Forest; however, he could not maintain his pace throughout the race.

Dion von Moltke and Memo Gidley registered a fourth position win in the race driving in the No. 77 Doran Racing McDonald’s Ford Dallara. The team was followed up by Darren Law and David Donohue who were racing in the No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley.With this, SpeedSource completed its third victory in a row in the Rolex Series GT Class.

The actor turned racer Patrick Dempsey also maintained his presence at the racing event and justified his passion for racing with his stint in the No. 40 Dempsey Racing Mazda RX-8, leaving behind Joe Foster. Speaking about the event Patrick Dempsey recalled how his team got caught up with the arrival of the yellow Mazda which put the team behind by one lap. However, the fact that he was able to keep up with the time and other leaders in the race made him feel happy about the performance. Patrick Dempsey went on to make a remark about the huge crowd that Grand Am had been able to pull at the weekend.  The round four- the Bosch Engineering 250 of the Rolex Series will be held at the Virginia International Raceway, Danville on April 24.