Officials from Pirelli’s NAFTA Region and Napleton Porsche of Westmont announced today that the legendary Italian tire manufacturer has entered a partnership with Napleton Porsche that will see the leading Porsche dealership’s Cayman Interseries officially become the Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship for the 2012 season and beyond.
The new partnership calls for the Pirelli P Zero racing slick to become the official and series-standard tire in all Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship events. Pirelli will also work closely with series organizers in enhancing both competitor incentive programs and series-related marketing and advertising initiatives in the new relationship.
The announcement of the new title sponsorship comes a little over one week after the unveiling of the 2012 Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship race event schedule, which begins with the Palm Beach Grand Prix, at Palm Beach International Raceway, February 16 – 19. This year marks the third full season of competition for the Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship, and its first with a title sponsor the caliber of Pirelli.
“Our international motorsports programs have expanded extensively the last couple of years, but all of that time we have also been keeping a close eye on this great Cayman racing series,” said Tom Gravalos, Pirelli Tire North America Vice President of Marketing, Motorsport and Original Equipment. “As a company that takes pride in our more than 100 years of motorsports history, we love the fact that the Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship is also a rolling celebration of Porsche’s rich racing heritage. At the same time, the outstanding competitors and superbly prepared Cayman S race cars that are at the very foundation of the series provide the perfect complement to our latest Pirelli P Zero racing tires. We have the technology to make our own race tires and are proud to put our name on the sidewall of each tire. This is a great new partnership in every respect and we look forward to a long and successful relationship.”
The Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship is open only to 2009 to 2012 Porsche Cayman S models that are raced in near-stock configuration by a competitive group of emerging and established drivers that typically own the cars they drive. A connection to Porsche’s rich racing heritage is made through each Cayman’s livery that has a direct and visible link to a legendary Porsche race car from the past. Each Cayman’s throw-back color scheme is also matched with a corresponding Cayman chassis number, which means the history of some of the most memorable Porsche race cars will symbolically continue with an all-new chapter in the Cayman Interseries. Napleton Porsche of Westmont is the exclusive supplier and preparation shop for the Porsche Cayman S race cars used in the series, although the series is open to any team or driver that wants to purchase a car from Napleton and get in on the action.
“Without question, Pirelli’s partnership to form the Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship is the biggest development we have had in the series since we announced the concept in 2009,” said Ron Barnaba, Napleton Porsche General Manager and Cayman Interseries Founder. “We have worked closely with Pirelli in creating a new format and sponsorship package that works not only for them, but also for our valued series competitors and the increasing number of fans the series is attracting around the world. We can’t wait to start the 2012 season in just under a month’s time in Palm Beach.”
Living up to its new billing, the 2012 schedule of events for the Pirelli Cayman Interseries Endurance Cup Championship places an emphasis on longer-distance races suitable for a team of co-drivers. While each of the year’s eight points-championship weekend events will continue to have at least a pair of sprint races, the featured events will be enduros that, in most cases, will range in length from 90 minutes to two hours, and possibly longer. Season champions will be crowned for the third-consecutive year in the both the sprint and enduro divisions.
The 2012 Pirelli Cayman Interseries schedule combines legendary U.S. road courses with North America’s top country club circuits, including such iconic tracks as Sebring International Raceway, Road Atlanta, Daytona International Speedway (DIS) and Road America. In addition to Palm Beach, new additions to the 2012 schedule include Virginia International Raceway (VIR) and the Monticello Motor Club, in Monticello, New York, not far from Pirelli Tire North America headquarters in New York City.
After running an introductory schedule of proving races in 2009, the first official Cayman Interseries racing seasons were run the last two years. After also taking the Enduro title in 2010, Lee Davis won both the Sprint and Enduro Championships in 2011 in his No. 33 Cayman S that carries the black and red colors of Luna-C Clothing and the Brun Motorsport Porsche 956s and 962s that carried the same paint scheme. This past season also saw Sprint and Enduro Championships for sportsman drivers and Bill Riddell captured both titles in his No. 80 green and white-striped Cayman S themed after a David Piper Racing Porsche 917K.
Source: Cayman Interseries
