Posted (02/05/2011) -
A marathon drive at the end of the race assisted Wayne Nonnamaker in securing the Bob Akin Sportsman Award at the 2011 ROLEX 24 Hours. For the last 2 ½ hours of the race, Wayne drove the #42 Mazda RX-8 solid without a break. This significant time behind the wheel along with a strong 7th place by Team Sahlen, was enough to see Wayne easily outpace fellow Sportsman competitor John Potter in the end results.
“Even though I had been training quite extensively before this race, I could certainly feel all those laps at the end. Anytime you get to win a prize like this at prestigious track as Daytona International Speedway, it’s certainly an honor. And to achieve this 2 years in a row is fantastic. I think it says a lot about the whole Team Sahlen crew that I could even come close to having a chance to achieve this mark.” – shared Wayne Nonnamaker
Will Nonnamaker added - “It is fantastic that Wayne was able to secure the Bob Akin Sportsman Award for the 2nd straight year. To be honest, Wayne is very laid back in nature, and was rather nonchalant in his desire to close out the race with a double stint. But the team in the pits had been doing the math, and we knew that he had a chance. So we kind of insisted he be a little selfish to see if he could reach the prize.
“Will was able to win the Bob Akin Sportsman in the initial year of the Award in 2005. Then I came oh so close in 2007. It would be neat to see the Nonnamaker name on the plaque again this year. It’s a long year and a lot can happen, but this is good result to start the year off with.” – shared family patriarch Joe Nonnamaker
Bob Akin Sportsman Award - GT Class points after ROLEX 24 Hours
- Wayne Nonnamaker 497
- John Potter 393
- Steven Bertheau 375
- Joe Nonnamaker 338
- Will Nonnamaker 337
- Gunter Schaldach 294
- Joe Sahlen 284
- Paul Dall Lana 262
- Emil Assentato 249
- Ben Keating 249
The 2011 Team Sahlen GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 is supported by Mazda, Mazdaspeed, HRPWorld.com, Cool Shirt, Racetech Seats, BBS, Racing Print Media, Alcon, Mothers Polish, EMCO, TheRaceSite.com, Western New York Flash, Grassroots Motorsports, Castrol Oil, Holliday Canopies, ASC Industries, Muscle Milk, Iannetti Design Ideas, CM Racing