NEWMAN/HAAS/LANIGAN RACING BIDS FAREWELL TO THE CHAMP CAR WORLD SERIES AT THIS WEEKEND’S TOYOTA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH; HOPES TO EARN FOURTH STRAIGHT WIN HERE

LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 17, 2008) --- Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing will take to the streets of Long Beach for this weekend’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach for the 25th consecutive time in their 26th season of open wheel competition and the event will not only mark the end of an era but will also serve as the beginning of another. In addition to wanting to earn their fourth consecutive win on the streets of Long Beach, the team would also like to win the final race in the much-loved turbo-charged race cars and bid farewell to the Champ Car World Series in what is sure to be a nostalgic weekend.

Although the event is the series finale for Champ Car, which was formed in 2004 after operating as Championship Auto Racing Teams since 1979, IndyCar Series points will be awarded from the Long Beach results to the teams competing full season in that series and will apply to their season-ending IndyCar Series championship total. The event will be the final one in which two different North American based open wheel series operate simultaneously. While the Champ Cars are running in Long Beach the IndyCar Series will be competing in the Indy Japan 300 which will take place on April 19 at Twin Ring Motegi.

Since the series began competing in Long Beach in 1984, NHLR has earned six wins, 10 poles and 14 podium finishes with Mario and Michael Andretti, Nigel Mansell, Bruno Junqueira and Sebastien Bourdais, who won the past three races here in 2005-2007. McDonald’s driver Justin Wilson and Hole in the Wall Camps driver Graham Rahal are hoping to add to that number this weekend.

Rahal made his first appearance on “Late Night with David Letterman” last night to celebrate becoming the youngest winner in major open-wheel racing in North America after winning in his IndyCar Series debut in the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on April 6 at 19 years, 93 days old is hoping his success will continue this weekend. He started fifth in Long Beach last year but the pit strategy of others and slow fuel flow on one stop limited his finish to eighth place. With experience on this track and in the Champ Car racing equipment, he is hoping to maximize the opportunity to score some valuable points and attempt to make history again.

“I’m looking forward to going to Long Beach,” said Rahal, who is ranked fourth in the IndyCar Series point standings despite missing the first event on the Homestead-Miami oval due to a lack of time and car parts after he crashed in testing. “It is a place where we feel we need to capitalize on our strengths, and of course it's a great circuit with a lot of history and I’m looking forward to being part of it. Champ Car is a great series with a great car. It will be sad to kiss it all goodbye but it looks to be a good field and a good race. Obviously since it’s the last Champ Car race in history it would be great to not only win it but also be the youngest winner in Champ Car competition. Winning in St. Petersburg kind of covered that but it would be nice to do it in Champ Car specifically as well. I think it's good that we are finishing it there, because that has been one of the most successful races in all of auto racing. Obviously dad never won it so it would be great to win there from that perspective. But also just to say I've won a Champ Car race. Of course, with points in mind here, that's the maximum points, so it would be great for us.”

Although it is tempting to make winning this event the complete focus due to the historic element, McDonald’s driver Justin Wilson is also focused on the big picture of finishing as high as possible in the season ending standings. Wilson started and finished 15th in his IndyCar Series oval debut at Homestead-Miami speedway and led the St. Pete race before alternate pit strategy due to rain continually shuffled the running order and he finished ninth for an overall series rank of 15th. He knows that the team should be competitive in Long Beach after Bourdais won the last three here and he is excited about getting back behind the wheel of the Champ Car for the first time since the series held an open test for 2.5 days at Sebring International Raceway, February 2-4.

“I am looking forward to getting back in the Panoz DP01 for one more Champ Car race and my first in the McDonald’s Champ Car,” said Wilson who has competed here four times with a best start and finish of second place in 2006. “It’s quite fitting for me that the last race for the Champ Car will be at Long Beach because that was where I ran my first ever race in the series back in 2004. It brings back a lot of good memories. It is a great circuit with a great atmosphere and I think it ought to be another good event. It would be great to go out with a win but at the same time we need to think about the points and the championship. I’m hoping to make the most out of this opportunity to get as many points as possible at a track and in equipment we are familiar with.”

The Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach will get underway with the first round of qualifying on Friday at 2:00 p.m. PDT. The final grid will be set with Saturday qualifying at 2:00 p.m. local time with the race scheduled to take the green flag at 1:00 p.m. local time on Sunday afternoon. Fans can watch all the racing action on ESPN2 beginning at 5:30 p.m. EDT. It will also be broadcast live on IMS Radio Network at 4 p.m. EDT and XM Radio 145.



AT LONG BEACH: Will be his fifth race here and first in the McDonald’s Champ Car for NHLR. He made his Champ Car debut at this track in 2004 and started 11th and finished sixth. He started fifth in 2005 and finished fourth. He earned his highest start and finish in 2006 of second place. In 2007 he started seventh and finished fourth. He tested the car for 2.5 days at Sebring in Feb. ‘08.

SO FAR IN 2008 INDYCAR SERIES: Qualified 17th but started 15th in the season-opener in Homestead due to two cars having their qualifying speeds disallowed. Dropped one lap down when he was hit by Will Power on a restart after approx. 22 laps and had to pit to replace a deflated tire but rallied to finish 15th…Started third in his street course ICS debut in St. Pete but alternate fuel and tire strategies dictated by intermittent rain led to a ninth place finish after he led a total of 18 of 83 laps…He is ranked 15th in the point standings with 37 points.

2006 & 2007 RUNNER UP TO THE CHAMPION: Finished runner up in the Champ Car championship to the driver he recently replaced, four-time champion Sebastien Bourdais, in 2006 and 2007. Was a championship contender until the conclusion of the penultimate race of each season. He also finished third to NHR drivers Bourdais and Oriol Servia in 2005.

FIFTH SEASON IN A U.S. BASED OPEN WHEEL SERIES: After competing in Formula One for Minardi and Jaguar in 2003, Wilson came to the Champ Car World Series as a rookie in 2004. In his four seasons of CCWS competition he won four races and six poles. He finished on the podium 15 times in 54 starts and led 409 laps.

FOUR WINS, SIX POLES AND 15 PODIUMS IN CHAMP CAR: During his four seasons in the Champ Car World Series, Wilson earned FOUR wins (2005 – Toronto, Mexico City; 2006 – Edmonton; 2007 - Assen), SIX poles (2005 – Portland, Mexico City; 2006 – Toronto, Mexico City; 2007 – Portland, San Jose) and earned 15 podium finishes in 54 starts. After an impressive rookie season with Mi-Jack Conquest Racing in 2004 where he finished 11th in the season-ending standings, he moved to RuSPORT for 2005-2007. He finished third to NHR drivers Bourdais and Servia in 2005 and runner-up to Bourdais in 2006 and 2007.

PERSONAL: Justin Boyd Wilson was born on July 31, 1978 (29) in Sheffield, England…He married the former Julia Coggins in England on 12-29-2006 and reside in a suburb of Denver with their newborn daughter Jane Louise (born 4-12-08)…His father Keith was an amateur Formula Ford racer in England but retired before Justin was born due to a crash that broke his back and legs. Instead of taking interest in mother Lynne’s love of horses, Justin followed his father’s passion and began racing karts when he was eight…In order to help finance his 2003 season in Formula One, Justin created a company -- Justin Wilson PLC – and approx. 900 investors “bought shares of Justin” which raised $2 million. A portion of his earnings go toward repaying the debt…He has conquered the challenges of dyslexia and, if he wasn’t a race car driver, would be a designer of cars or etc. because he is curious about how things work or how to improve them…Hobbies include cycling, miniature golf, video games, karting and trying to fly one of his two RC Helicopters…He spends his free time plotting and completing home improvement projects as well as trying to find time to mow the yard between races…His typical day begins at 7 a.m. and he calls the U.K. and checks his email before spending an hour at his local gym with Julia. After lunch he rides his bike for 1.5 hours and devotes the remainder of the day to home projects, reading 50+ pages of NHLR engineering reports and hanging out with friends…At 6’ 3-1/2” he is the tallest IndyCar Series driver…Listens to Coldplay, Stereophonics, The White Stripes and dance music.

JUSTIN WILSON, No. 02 McDonald’s Cosworth/DP01/Bridgestone: “I am looking forward to getting back in the Panoz DP01 for one more Champ Car race and my first in the McDonald’s Champ Car. It’s quite fitting for me that the last race for the Champ Car will be at Long Beach because that was where I ran my first ever race in the series back in 2004. It brings back a lot of good memories. It is a great circuit with a great atmosphere and I think it ought to be another good event. It would be great to go out with a win but at the same time we need to think about the points and the championship. I’m hoping to make the most out of this opportunity to get as many points as possible at a track and in equipment we are familiar with.”



AT LONG BEACH: Will be his second Champ Car race here and first event since becoming the youngest winner in major open-wheel racing in North America after winning in St. Pete on 4-6-08 at 19 years, 93 days old. Started fifth here last year but the pit strategy of others and slow fuel flow on one stop limited his finish to eighth place. He made one start in the Champ Car Atlantic Series here where he started seventh and finished fifth. He tested the Champ Car for 2.5 days at Sebring in February ‘08.

YOUNGEST WINNER IN SERIES HISTORY: Became the youngest winner in IndyCar Series history when he drove to victory in his IndyCar Series debut in St. Pete at the age of 19 years and 93 days old. The previous mark was held by Marco Andretti who won at Infineon Raceway at 19 years, 167 days old. Rahal had only run 10 laps at testing speed in an ICS car on a road course (Sebring) due to a pre-race three hour test (4-1) being cancelled due to rain. Nelson Philippe holds the Champ Car record for his ’06 win in Australia at 20 years, two months and 29 days old. With his second place finish in Houston in 2007, he became the youngest Champ Car driver (1979-2007) to finish on the podium at 18 years, three months and 18 days.

SO FAR IN 2008: Missed the series opener in Homestead due to a lack of time and parts to repair his lone race car after a testing crash the Tuesday prior to race day…Progressed to Group 2 in qualifying for his debut on the street course in St. Pete but was unable to get a clear lap and qualified ninth. The race began under caution while standing water was cleared and once the green flag flew he progressed up to third place before his first pit stop a race that saw multiple pit strategies. He was hit on Lap 37 by Will Power which caused a spin and he dropped to 23rd but the team elected to gamble and keep him on track while others pit on Lap 60 under caution and he moved into second before the restart on Lap 65 and took the lead and held it through two more restarts including one with three laps to go while holding off two-time St. Pete winner Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan. He won by a 3.5 second margin to become the youngest winner in series history at 19 years, 93 days old after he led a total of 19 of the 83 laps...Is fourth in the standings with 53 points and leads the Rookie of the Year standings despite only competing in one event.

ALSO IN 2008: Rahal competed in the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona for the third time where he co-drove a Ford Riley for Michael Shank Racing with Justin Wilson, Oswaldo Negri and Mark Patterson. Started from pole and overcame several minor problems while running in the lead pack until Wilson hit curbing that led to extensive repairs but the team came back to finish sixth.

FORMULA ONE TEST: Drove a Formula One car for the first time when BMW contracted him to drive their BMW Sauber race car at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show for four days in January ’08 on a purpose-made Pit Lane Park track.

FIFTH PLACE RANK IN ’07 ROOKIE CHAMP CAR SEASON: Earned four podium finishes -- including becoming the youngest podium finisher in series history with second place in Houston -- to finish fifth in season-ending standings…Finished second in the Rookie of the Year standings to former Formula One test and race driver Robert Doornbos…Led three races (Cleveland, Mont Tremblant, Belgium) for a total of 18 laps led during the season and set the Fastest Race Lap in Australia for a season-ending total of 243 points…Nominated for Rookie of the Year by esteemed racing magazine Autosport along with fellow drivers Robert Doornbos and ultimate winner and Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton.

RUNNER-UP TO 2006 ATLANTIC CHAMPION: Rahal finished second in the 2006 Champ Car Atlantic championship after a title hunt that concluded in the season finale. Led 129 laps to champion Pagenaud’s 31. He earned a series-high five wins (42 percent), four poles (33 percent) and six podium finishes (50 percent) in the 12 events and at 17 years old was the youngest race winner in series history (Monterrey, Mexico on 5-21-06)…He led the most laps (129, 32 percent) and set a series-high five fastest race laps …He was awarded the BBS of America Rising Star Award.

PERSONAL: Graham Robert Rahal, 19, was born in Columbus, Ohio on 1-4-1989 and resides in New Albany, Ohio…The 6’2” driver is one of four children of Bobby Rahal, three-time open wheel champion, Indy 500 winner and Hall of Fame race car driver…Has two sisters (Michaela and Samantha) and one brother (Jarrad)…Became the youngest IndyCar Series winner with his victory in his series debut in St. Pete on 4-6-08 and appeared on "Late Night with David Letterman" on 4-16-08 to discuss the feat...Graduated from New Albany High School with a 3.8 GPA on 6-3-07 despite missing over 80 days of school that year due to racing. ESPN The Magazine covered his graduation… When not racing he likes to work on cars, hang out with friends and family or play other sports for fun…Is a self-proclaimed “Car Guy” and still has the first car he received when he was 16 – a Subaru WRX sti – and is in the process of turning it into a race car with a Cosworth race engine. He purchased an ’07 Atomic Orange Corvette Z06 with his prize money but later sold it and now has an ’07 Ron Fellows limited edition Corvette Z06 as well as an ’08 Chevy Trailblazer SS. In addition he has a 1964 Mini Cooper that he restored for his high school senior project. He also temporarily owned a Porsche GT3 and an Audi he earned by graduating high school with a GPA of 3.5 or above…To prepare for the physicality of racing he spends many hours doing cardiovascular training and weightlifting, skiing, running or bicycling…His favorite type of clothing is anything made by Puma… His favorite food is sushi and his weaknesses are ice cream and white chocolate mocha drinks at Starbucks…His favorite books are those written by Lance Armstrong (and anything he read other than for school)…His favorite thing to watch on TV is any Ohio State Buckeye game, his favorite actor/actress are Owen Wilson and Eva Longoria and favorite movie is “Wedding Crashers.”

GRAHAM RAHAL, #06 Hole in the Wall Camps Cosworth/DP01/Bridgestone: “I’m looking forward to going to Long Beach. It is a place where we feel we need to capitalize on our strengths, and of course it's a great circuit with a lot of history and I’m looking forward to being part of it. Champ Car is a great series with a great car. It will be sad to kiss it all goodbye but it looks to be a good field and a good race.

“Obviously since it’s the last Champ Car race in history it would be great to not only win it but also be the youngest winner in Champ Car competition. Winning in St. Petersburg kind of covered that but it would be nice to do it in Champ Car specifically as well. I think it's good that we are finishing it there, because that has been one of the most successful races in all of auto racing. Of course you've got a huge fan support there and to win there would be so nice. Obviously dad never won it so it would be great to win there from that perspective. But also just to say I've won a Champ Car race. Of course, with points in mind here, that's the maximum points, so of course it would be great for us. It's important to get a good finish, and there are a lot of other people that are going to be out there and they are going for glory and that's about all. Not running at Homestead put us in a more challenging position and it would be good to make up some points on a track we have experience on. We are going for the points and we need to make sure we finish.

“Being that the team has had so much success there in the past, we ought to be the ones to beat again. The team is running on a bit of a high after the win in St. Petersburg and we don’t want to be overconfident but we feel we like we have a good chance this weekend. We should put on a great show.

“I think going back to Long Beach, the car ought to be even better than it was last year, and I ought to be a lot better than I was last year. That was my first Champ Car race after going out of the race in Las Vegas on the first lap and we had some issues. We were running really well in the race; we were running fourth and then we had fueling issues because of the fact the cars were so new. So I think we ought to have a good shot this weekend. We’re excited to go there and finish Champ Car off with a great event and hopefully we can do it in a winning way.”