By: Michael Shank Racing
December 21 2016 

Pataskala, Ohio – Michael Shank Racing has revealed the team’s 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship driver pairings as the Ohio-based squad kicks off the year with the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January.

Andy Lally and Katherine Legge will be joined by Mark Wilkins and Graham Rahal in the No. 93 Acura NSX GT3 for the season-opening Daytona event. The team’s second car will see longtime Michael Shank Racing driver Ozz Negri alongside Jeff Segal, Tom Dyer and Ryan Hunter-Reay.

All eight drivers will take part in the annual Roar Before the 24 on January 6-8.

While having participated in both of the November and December tests at Daytona International Speedway, the Roar will mark the first time each car will take to the track sporting a new eye-catching livery.

The two-car Acura effort will feature striking “mirror image” black, grey and white liveries on the Michael Shank Racing NSX GT3 entries. The No. 86 car, representing Acura’s birth in 1986, will have a black nose, with grey cross-hatching giving way to a rear in white. The No. 93 team car, representing 1993, the year HPD was founded, will reverse the color pattern, with a white front transitioning to a black rear deck.

Splashes of orange and green complete the graphic package on both cars.

AERO Advanced Paint Technology™ has been delivering stunning liveries for Michael Shank Racing since 2013 and will once again provide a new livery for both Acura NSX machines. In addition to its aesthetic quality, the AERO paint application also provides a range of other benefits, from weight savings to added protection for the carbon fiber.

“We’ve been fortunate to have the chance to get a lot of laps with our drivers and see how each has their own style and preference for the car, so that was a big help in deciding how we were going to approach the line ups for each car,” said Team Owner Mike Shank. “So I’m happy to have that part of the puzzle figured out. The cars look awesome. The design is very unique, there is a real throwback to Eddie Van Halen’s guitar design that I really appreciate. Dave Marek (Honda's Global Design Chief) came up with the layout and I'm supper happy with it.”

The Rolex 24 At Daytona kicks off the 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship January 28-29 at Daytona International Speedway.

Based in Columbus, Ohio, Michael Shank Racing was formed in 1989 when Mike Shank first began driving racing cars professionally. Shank retired from the cockpit in 1997 to focus his efforts on running the team, which quickly found success in the Champ Car Toyota Atlantic Championship. With several race wins under his belt, Shank was named as Team Owner of the Year twice in four years. Michael Shank Racing joined the Rolex Sports Car Series in 2004 as the team proved as quick in endurance racing as in the sprint formula car format. Michael Shank Racing scored a debut Rolex Series win in 2006 at Miller Motorsports Park, and fans selected the victory as the 2007 Rolex “Moment of the Year.” After opening the 2008 season with a front-row sweep of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the team closed out the year taking wins in the final two races of the year.

The team scored a dramatic victory in the 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona in 2012, and backed that race-winning effort up with a run to third place with the second team entry.

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