AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES WELCOMES TOYOTA DECISION

American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón president and CEO Scott Atherton welcomed today's announcement by Toyota regarding their Le Mans Prototype program to be launched in the 2012 season.

"Toyota's decision clearly demonstrates the importance the world's automobile manufacturers place on the relevance of endurance sports car racing in developing future automotive technology solutions," said Atherton. "The announcement that this new LMP1 effort will be based on a hybrid powertrain underlines the fact that the Le Mans rule book not only allows, but strongly embraces the automotive innovations of the future. We welcome Toyota's announcement and we will do all we can to encourage their participation in the American Le Mans Series as soon as this exciting and innovative program is ready."