WEST RACING, ALEX JOB TEAM FOR FERRARI GT EFFORT

West Racing and Alex Job Racing are joining forces to compete for the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón's GT championship in 2013. The team - Team West/AJR/Boardwalk Ferrari - will make its debut at the season-opening 61st Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida. Bill Sweedler and Townsend Bell will pilot the Yokohama-backed No. 23 Team Ferrari 458 GT in the North American-based ALMS. Their first start in the new car will come a year after they won the GT Challenge class at Sebring.
"I'm happy that we will continue in the GT class of the ALMS through a racing partnership with Eduardo Espindola of West Racing Team," said Job, whose team won the GTC championship in 2013 and fielded a Lotus Evora in GT. "Eduardo has quietly assembled all of the assets required to become a championship-contending race team, and I'm excited that we are combining efforts to help get the team to the front. I am also excited that Yokohama will be with us again this year as well."
"Our efforts to acquire the most competitive car to race for the championship resulted in the acquisition of the Ferrari 458 GT," said Espindola, team principal of Team West AJR/Boardwalk Ferrari. "The car has clearly been one of the all-around leaders in the top echelon of sports car racing around the world. Alex Job has been one of the top sports car competitors. These are the ingredients that make up front running partnerships. Along with our key sponsors and suppliers - including Boardwalk Ferrari, Yokohama, William Rast and Motegi - this represents a unique new chapter for our combined organizations. Bill and Townsend played the key role in forging this potentially long-term relationship with West Racing."
"Our Team West/AJR/Boardwalk Ferrari is comprised of a group of consummate racing professionals," Bell added. "Special thanks goes to our great partners at Motegi Racing who made the introductions that made all of this possible. This team is focused on getting to the top of the podium. The combined team has one of the best records in sports car racing around the world."
"Team West/AJR/Boardwalk Ferrari has been in the works since November of last year," Sweedler said. "Yokohama is back with us as well as our marketing partners William Rast and Motegi Wheels. The team from last year is pretty much intact with several upgrades in key areas. The GT class is the most competitive in the ALMS and we now have a platform that can run at the front."
"Alex Job Racing has proven throughout its history an ability to raise the level of competition and run at the front in any American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón class it races," Scott Atherton, ALMS president and CEO, said. "It's well documented there is no shortage of high profile, fully professional programs in the ALMS GT class for 2013. Given Alex's championship pedigree and the enthusiasm of Eduardo Espindola's West Racing Team, I would expect the Alex Job-led Team West/AJR/Boardwalk Ferrari team to be in the mix for podium finishes and race wins in one of the most competitive GT championships in the world."
The new ALMS season goes green with the 61st Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida on Saturday, March 16. The race will air live starting at 10:45 a.m. ET on SPEED, and ticket information is available through ALMS.com.