GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty  Set to Keep a Season of Podium and Race-Winning Momentum Going in Motown

No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Corvette Daytona Prototype Team Rides a Three-Race Podium Streak to Saturdays Chevrolet GRAND-AM Detroit 200 at Belle IsleGAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, and drivers Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty, will bring an early-season run of podium and race-winning momentum to Motown this weekend for Saturdays Chevrolet GRAND-AM Detroit 200 at Belle Isle where the No. 99 Red Dragon team will be looking for its second 2013 race win and fourth-straight podium finish.

Round five of this years GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series, the Chevrolet GRAND-AM Detroit 200 at Belle Isle is scheduled to green at 12:25 p.m. EDT local time this Saturday, June 1. The timed two-hour sprint race can be seen in same-day coverage on SPEED later on Saturday at 5 p.m. EDT/2 p.m. PDT.GAINSCO won the second race of the season in March at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) in Austin.  The storybook victory from the pole in the teams home-state of Texas was backed up with a runner-up placing one race later at Barber Motorsports Park and third in the last round at Road Atlanta.The strong start has moved GAINSCO into contention for its third set of GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Championships. The BobStallingsCars.com No. 99 GAINSCO Red Dragon, and the duo of Gurney and Fogarty, rank second, just seven points out of first, in the respective team and driver championships, 128121.We're a quarter of the way through the season and we've really only had one major hiccup that resulted in a seventh-place finish in the opening race at Daytona, Gurney said.  The team has done a very good job all around and we've had a reliable competitive car at every race since then. The guys have done a solid job with pit stops and strategy as well so I feel we are doing the things that we need to do to be contenders for this championship. 

GAINSCO and its drivers captured the GRAND-AM Rolex Series Championships in 2007 and 2009.  This years strong opening rally is GAINSCOs best start to a season since 2009 when they won two of the years first four races to take the points lead.We certainly are in a good position relative to years past, but that is not a very good measure, Fogarty said. We have always had a good car this year, excellent on occasion, and the crew has done an A job on pit stops and strategy. No faults there and I am really proud of our guys. No big mistakes behind the wheel, the car has been more or less clean come checkered flag. I dont think we have had any on track penalties so far, and that is huge as they are very harsh under the new race controller.An in-race miscue by race control officials in last years debut Belle Isle race kept GAINSCO from having a chance to convert Fogartys pole-winning effort into a victory.We had a very good race car last year at Detroit, certainly a winning car, but we felt we were misled by race control when we came in to pit while leading, Gurney said. It was a very strange set of circumstances. We've tried to put that behind us but I think it gives us a little extra motivation this time as we felt we really left one on the table last year.Detroit is the only temporary circuit street race on the 2013 calendar and Gurney and Fogarty are pleased with the choice. In addition to last years debut GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series race, both drivers have early-career experience on the 13-turn, 2.36-mile Belle Isle track.It is always great to get to a street course, and of those, Belle Isle is one of my favorites, Fogarty said. Coming up through the open wheel ladder system I was able to compete at most North American street courses and I have always liked going to Detroit. We had good speed last year and I am confident we can build on that.  Some changes have been made but I think the character of the track is still intact. The circuit has a good mix of turns, and some that are quite fast for a street course. That, together with walls and bumps, makes for a challenge, but we are up for it.Repaved in parts and with a new extended straight after the opening set of curves, the improved Belle Isle course has GAINSCOs drivers even more excited about the Motown return.The track has a slightly different configuration with the longer straight this time but I think the Red Dragon will be fast as usual, Gurney said.  I'm a big fan of the Belle Isle street circuit, its not just 90-degree corners all the time, it has some real character to it, especially the very fast Turn 1-2 section that even has some nice elevation change.  I've seen some in-car video of some of the recent pace car rides on the new track configuration and can see where they've done some repaving as well. With the extra straight, we should have one more very good passing spot.A two-day event, Friday features morning and afternoon practice sessions before Daytona Prototype qualifying at 4:55 p.m. EDT. Race-day Saturday begins with a 30-minute final practice warm-up session before that afternoons featured Chevrolet GRAND-AM Detroit 200 at 12:25 p.m. EDT.Noteworthy

- Former IndyCar Champion Jimmy Vasser, a frequent endurance race co-driver with GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing in the teams history, won last Sundays Indianapolis 500 as an owner of KV Racing.  Vassers driver Tony Kanaan was at the wheel of the Chevrolet-powered Dallara for the popular victory. I was super happy to see Jimmy and Chevrolet in victory lane at Indy, Fogarty said. It is huge for them and great to see the order shaken up this year, not just at Indy but across the board. I expect the energy among all the Chevrolet teams to be high and we all want to keep that momentum going in Detroit. Gurney was equally stoked for Vasser. I was extremely happy for our old teammate and all-around cool dude Jimmy Vasser that he was able to get an Indy 500 win as an owner. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy!  We were also excited for the win for our partner Chevrolet and we want very much to continue the tradition with a Rolex win in the Motor City.

- Belle Isle and the next round at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in two weeks will bring the 2013 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series schedule to the years halfway point. The pair of races could also give GAINSCO its next victories and a possible springboard to a championship season. I believe the next two rounds are two of our best chances of the year to get back into the win column, Gurney said.