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Michael Shank Racing declines to appeal Rolex 24 penalty

Shank believes that an appeal would not change the outcome of the penalty on the No. 60 Michael Shank Racing Ford-Riley. The infraction was based on how the motor was set up for the testing process. He hopes this process will be improved.

Pit stop for #60 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley: Marcos Ambrose, John Pew, A.J. Allmendinger, Justin Wilson, Oswaldo Negri

Pit stop for #60 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley: Marcos Ambrose, John Pew, A.J. Allmendinger, Justin Wilson, Oswaldo Negri

Eric Gilbert

Pataskala, Ohio - Michael Shank Racing came back from a seven lap deficit to the leaders to finish third in the 2013 Rolex 24 at Daytona last Sunday.

Following a post-race inspection of the No. 60 Michael Shank Racing Ford-Riley, GRAND-AM determined that the team was in violation of Section 4-1.1 (“GRAND-AM will specify components and performance levels in the Specific Car Regulations that must be adhered to”) of the GRAND-AM Rule Book, the team was notified on Thursday that it would be penalized the driver, team, and manufacturer points earned from the result.

Michael Shank
Michael Shank

Photo by: Covy Moore

The infraction was based on how the motor was set up for the testing process. The team has decided not to appeal the decision and will focus on the upcoming event at the Circuit of the Americas March 1-2.

“As much as we are frustrated with the penalty, we believe that pursuing an appeal would not change the outcome, and that we should just move forward from here,” said team owner Mike Shank. “Fighting this will only take time and resources away from improving this process in the future.”

Shank also took to Twitter (www.twitter.com/michaelshankrac) following the penalty to express both his disappointment with the penalty, and also his support of the Rolex Sports Car Series.

GRAND-AM enjoys the participation of three different engine manufacturers in the DP category, and continually makes adjustments to each of them in the pursuit of competitive parity.

Shank is hoping that this process can become more open and clear in the future.

“I want to be able to show up at Daytona International Speedway each spring and be able to run flat out from practice to the race without fearing that we will get engine penalties,” said Shank. “Winning the Rolex 24 should come down to the engineering, driving talent, and strategy--not who can win the race on the dyno in Concord (NASCAR’S R&D facility). Obviously this entire process has been very frustrating, but just like we did in the 24, we will have to put it behind us, embrace all of our partners, and get to work on clawing our points back starting at COTA.”

Michael Shank Racing

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