WILLY T. RIBBS SET TO RETURN FROM RETIREMENT IN BALTIMORE GRAND PRIX

Ribbs Will Return To Cockpit After A 10-Year Hiatus

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (August 24, 2011) - Legendary race-car driver Willy T. Ribbs, the winningest African- American driver in history, has been coaxed out of retirement by his friend and business partner Chris Miles of Starting Grid, Inc. to compete in the Firestone Indy Lights round of the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix on Labor Day weekend.

“I wanted to honor Willy the best way I knew how,” said Miles, fellow principle at Willy T. Ribbs Racing. “To me, I don't think a lot of people remember what Willy meant to minorities who aspired to be involved in the motorsports industry. Having him race in Baltimore is my way of saying, ‘Thank You!’ ”

Miles’ company, Starting Grid, Inc., facilitates opportunities for minority participation within all facets of the motorsports industry. Through a partnership with American Honda, Starting Grid, Inc. facilitated the formation of Willy T. Ribbs Racing. The team debuted this past May in the Firestone Indy Lights Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with driver Chase Austin.

A key emphasis behind Ribbs’ coming out of retirement is to garner additional exposure for Starting Grid, Inc.’s diversity initiatives, in hopes of securing additional funding for Willy T. Ribbs Racing moving forward.

"I know the naysayers may believe that this is actually a conflict of interest, and that Willy doesn't need to negate the further development of Chase Austin and Starting Grid's newest driver, Wyatt Gooden, but that could not be further from the truth,” continued Miles. “This is truly a celebration of Willy's accomplishments and talent, and his active participation is very necessary for us to receive this exposure for our continued growth."

Although Ribbs needed a bit of a nudge, it wasn’t too difficult for Miles to convince him to return (‘mount a comeback’ suggests that this is intended as more than just a one-off). Ten years in retirement certainly wasn’t enough to erase Ribbs’ need for speed.

“Even though I have been out of the car for 10 years, I have never ‘officially’ retired,” said Ribbs. “Chris said he got the idea for me to race again when he heard Wally Dallenbach say during an IndyCar broadcast that he was going to drive a Lights car in Edmonton. For whatever reason, Wally didn’t do it, but the more Chris kept talking to me, the more I got pumped up about racing again, and Baltimore is the perfect place to do it. I’m sure the consensus will be that I should not be racing against these young guns, but as Chris reminded me - when the [Sprint] Cup boys come down and race in the Trucks and Nationwide Series, no one seems to mind. So I told Chris, ‘Done deal, I’m in!’ ”

The Firestone Indy Lights race will take place in Baltimore, Maryland on Labor Day Weekend, over a 2.4-mile temporary street circuit with 12 turns. With a large urban population, Baltimore is the ideal market for Ribbs to  1 come out of retirement. Ribbs’ presence on the track will be a benefit to fans, as well as up-and-coming racers that will have an opportunity to compete against a world-class driver.

About Willy T. Ribbs Racing:

Throughout the course of his 25-year distinguished career in professional auto racing, Willy T. Ribbs achieved many firsts, including honors as the winningest African-American driver in history. In 1991, he became the first African-American to qualify and compete in the Indianapolis 500, doing so with a CART/Indy Car Championship team co-owned by entertainer, Bill Cosby. Ribbs established other firsts by becoming the initial African-American to compete in NASCAR’s Winston Cup series, and test for a Formula 1 Grand Prix team. He earned two "Driver of the Year" titles while driving for such racing icons as Dan Gurney, Jack Roush and Derek Walker, and won Europe’s Formula Ford Dunlop Championship early in his career. Willy T. Ribbs Racing partnered with Starting Grid and Brooks Associates Racing to field a Firestone Indy Lights entry for young African-American rookie driver, Chase Austin, at the wheel of the No.75 car (Ribbs’ former car number) in the 2011 Firestone Freedom 100 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. http://www.willytribbs.com/

About Starting Grid & Chris Miles:

In 1994, New Albany, Indiana native Chris Miles founded Starting Grid in an effort to help diversify the motorsports industry by developing and implementing motorsports programs that have crossover appeal while capitalizing on ever-growing interest from minority demographics. Following stints racing professionally in open-wheel competition and as an instructor for the Richard Petty Driving Experience, Miles turned his attention to television, where he combined his love of motorsports with entertainment. Among his many accomplishments were becoming the first African-American to host a national racing magazine show; “Inside CART” that aired on both FOX Sports Net and ESPN2, as well as taking honors as an award-winning producer for his “Black History Month” vignettes created in 2004 for SPEED TV. For more information, please visit Starting Grid, Inc. online at http://www.startinggrid.com.

About the Firestone Indy Lights;

Entering its 10th season under INDYCAR sanction, the Firestone Indy Lights is an essential stepping-stone for drivers and teams striving to compete in the IZOD IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500. Run in conjunction with IZOD IndyCar Series events, the Firestone Indy Lights' 13-race schedule features seven races on road courses/street circuits and six races on ovals, including the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. For more information, please visit the Firestone Indy Lights online at http://www.indycar.com.