SPEED and FOX Sports to Offer 15 Hours of Live Coverage from Rolex 24 At Daytona

Daytona Beach , Fla. (January 12, 2007) –

With a 70-car entry list featuring superstar drivers from throughout the world of motorsports, SPEED and FOX Sports will combine to offer 15 hours of television coverage from the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Special Reserve 45th Rolex 24 At Daytona on January 27-28.

At 1:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 27, the Rolex 24 will hit the national FOX Sports airwaves for 90 minutes of coverage that will include extensive pre-race programming and the first hour of race action from the “World Center of Racing.” It will be the first-ever network television appearance for the Rolex Series.

“The Rolex 24 At Daytona is one of the coolest events in all of motorsports,” said SPEED Executive Vice President and General Manager Hunter Nickell. “Over the last few years, it has really grown in stature, with more and more drivers from various global disciplines lining up to participate. To be able to team with our partners at FOX Sports and Grand-Am for the first 90 minutes in 2007 will give even more fans a chance to tune in to a true endurance classic and give casual viewers an opportunity to get a taste of American sports car racing.”

SPEED’s coverage of the Rolex 24 will encompass three parts totaling 13.5 hours of coverage. Part 1 airs from 2:30 p.m. ET to 6:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 27 with Part 2 slated to air from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. ET that same evening. Rolex 24 programming will return to SPEED on the morning of Sunday, January 28 beginning at 6:00 a.m. ET and continuing through the checkered flag and post-race interviews.

“We are obviously elated with the unprecedented television coverage this year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona will receive between SPEED and FOX Sports,” said Grand-Am President Roger Edmondson. “SPEED continues to be a terrific broadcast partner for the Rolex Series, and we are also delighted to welcome FOX Sports to the Rolex 24 for the first time. We’ve believed for quite some time that the Rolex Series provides the most exciting road racing anywhere in the world. We are extremely confident that the Rolex 24 coverage provided by SPEED and FOX Sports will bring that excitement to more race fans than ever before.”

The Rolex 24 At Daytona will feature Rolex Series champions such as Scott Pruett, Max Papis, Wayne Taylor, Max Angelelli and Jörg Bergmeister racing wheel-to-wheel with worldwide racing superstar Juan Pablo Montoya, NASCAR champions Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte, and open-wheel racing superstars like Sam Hornish Jr., Helio Castroneves, Paul Tracy and defending Rolex 24 At Daytona overall winners Dan Wheldon and Scott Dixon.

Veteran motorsports broadcaster Bob Varsha will host the coverage, with former racers David Hobbs and Dorsey Schroeder providing analysis and Leigh Diffey handling the play-by-play. Patrolling pit road will be veteran broadcasters Brian Till, Calvin Fish, Chris Neville and Mike Johnson. In addition to live television coverage of the Rolex 24, SPEED will offer in-depth previews and on-going analysis, reports and highlights throughout the event on SPEEDTV.com.

SPEED is the nation's first and foremost cable television network dedicated to motor sports and the passion for everything automotive. From racing to restoration, motorcycles to movies, SPEED delivers quality programming from the track to the garage. Now available in more than 74 million homes in North America, SPEED is among the fastest-growing sports cable networks in the country, the home to NASCAR on SPEED and an industry leader in interactive TV, video on demand, mobile initiatives and broadband services. For more information, please visit www.SPEEDtv.com .