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©1999 SpeedCenter Publishing INDIANAPOLIS (July 2, 1999) - Walker Racing, winner of the June 20 CART race in Portland, Ore., and one of the most successful teams in the CART FedEx Championship, announced today that it is seeking a business partner to replace sponsor Valvoline for 2000 and beyond. "We've had a winning partnership with Valvoline since 1992," said team owner Derrick Walker. "It's been one of the longest-running, most productive sponsorships in motorsports. Unfortunately, Valvoline's business plans don't include primary team sponsorship in CART in 2000." Steve Kirchner, Valvoline Vice President of Marketing, Worldwide, said the Valvoline-Walker Racing relationship had produced more than victories on the track and had led to business opportunities for the company. "Decisions such as this are never easy," said Kirchner. "We believe this creates an excellent opportunity for other companies to come aboard a winning team that has a proven record of success with its sponsors and on the race track," said Walker. Walker Racing and Valvoline driver Gil de Ferran are currently second in the FedEx Championship points chase. After 9 of 20 races this year, de Ferran is one of only six drivers to win a race and a pole position. The team also fields a FedEx Championship car sponsored by Alpine Electronics and driven by Memo Gidley and Naoki Hattori. Walker Racing's competition package combines the leading engine (Honda), most successful chassis (Reynard) and Goodyear, the largest tire seller in America. CART is the premier organizer of open-wheel racing in the U.S., with races in California, Florida, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wisconsin, Oregon, Ohio, Michigan and Texas. The FedEx Championship Series also races in Canada, Japan, Australia and Brazil. More than 60 million television viewers worldwide watch every CART race.
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