Shank Racing quickest in 'Roar Before the Rolex 24'

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Michael Valiante ran the fastest lap of the day in the No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford Riley, leading the opening round of Grand-Am testing Saturday at Daytona International Speedway.

Valiante ran a lap of 1:41.760 (125.943 mph) to lead the first day of the three-day session in preparation for the 47th running of the Rolex 24 at Daytona on Jan. 24-25, the opening round of the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series.

Casey Mears

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"The car is working real well, and the team has been phenomenal," said Valiante, who will be running his first race with Michael Shank Racing, co-driving with A.J. Allmendinger, John Pew and Ian James. "The team is working well together in the short amount of time I've been here, and they've made it real easy for me to come in and drive the car. We've been working well since the first test here in October."

Scott Pruett led the opening session with a lap of 1:42.163 (125.459 mph) in the No. 01 TELMEX Target Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Lexus Riley. While Pruett is seeking his fourth career and third consecutive overall victory in the Rolex 24, Ganassi Racing is going for a fourth consecutive triumph.

"It's always nice to pick up after a winning season," said Pruett, who won a second Daytona Prototype championship last season. He will be joined by defending co-champion Memo Rojas and Juan Montoya.

Dario Franchitti was part of the 2008 winning Ganassi lineup. For 2009, he shifts to the No. 02 entry, co-driving with Target Chip Ganassi IndyCar Series teammate Scott Dixon and 2007 Indy Lights champion Alex Lloyd. Dixon is the defending Indianapolis 500 winner and IndyCar Series champion.

David Donohue led the evening session, waiting until the closing minutes to run a lap of 1:42.217 in the No. 58 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley co-driven by Darren Law and Buddy Rice.

A total of 49 cars -- 20 Daytona Prototypes and 29 GT -- participated in the opening day's testing, with 52 teams filing entry for the event.

The "Roar Before the Rolex 24" continues Sunday with practice for the Rolex Series and Grand-Am KONI Sports Car Challenge from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. The test concludes Monday, with practice from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Spectator admission is $10 both days, and includes access to the Sprint FanZone and Grand-Am garage areas.

• Also on Saturday, Childress-Howard Motorsports announced its driver lineup for the 2009 Rolex 24. Sprint Cup Series driver Casey Mears and IndyCar Series regular Danica Patrick will join three-time Rolex 24 winner Andy Wallace and Rob Finlay in the No. 2 Pontiac Crawford.