October 15, 2015

Toyo Tires® Teams with Flying Lizard in Quest for Glory at the USAF 25-Hours of Thunderhill™

CYPRESS, CA – Toyo Tires® is teaming up with Flying Lizard Motorsports to take on the longest endurance race in North America, the USAF 25-Hours of Thunderhill™ (25-Hours.) Held December 5- 6 at Thunderhill Raceway Park in Northern California, the 25-Hours is the premier road racing event held annually by the National Auto Sport Association (NASA.)

Toyo Tires has enjoyed the distinction of being the Official Tire of NASA for 13-years, and recently extended its agreement with NASA through 2020. In the past three years, Toyo Proxes tires have earned an impressive 25 podium finishes in the 25-Hours, but an overall victory has proven elusive. With the goal of an overall win, Toyo is partnering with the highly-acclaimed Flying Lizard Motorsports from Sonoma, CA. The team entry for the 25-Hours is the Toyo Tires / Flying Lizard R8 LMS equipped with Toyo® Proxes® slicks.

Flying Lizard crew chief, Tommy Sadler, has participated in the race several times, from both the crew side as well as a driver. He has logged a total of four wins, three of them overall. The 25-Hours will provide an opportunity for the team to push their Proxes slicks to the limit, highlighting their performance in endurance road racing arena. It will also provide valuable data for future development.

“We are honored to partner with Flying Lizard Motorsports for this event. As one of the most well- known and successful teams in , their experience and professionalism are second to none,” said Marc Sanzenbacher, senior manager, motorsports, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. “We are confident that the industry leading performance of our Toyo Proxes race products are a perfect match for the Audi R8 LMS, as both tires and racecar have proven themselves in numerous endurance racing events worldwide.”

“We are very proud to announce this partnership with Toyo Tires for the 25-Hours of Thunderhill. Flying Lizard has had many successes in several different series over the years, but have never won the Thunderhill event as a team entrant,” said Darren Law, program manager, Flying Lizard Motorsports. “As a leader in the performance tire industry Toyo Tires has had many successes in racing events worldwide. It has been a great experience working with them over the past few months in preparation for this event.”

The driver lineup for the Toyo Tires / Flying Lizard Audi R8 LMS will be announced mid-November.

During the USAF 25-Hours of Thunderhill, Toyo Tires will also have their VIP hospitality rig on-site to provide food and services for qualified racers competing on Toyo Proxes tires. Check out http://nasa25hour.com/ for details.

To learn more about the competition-proven Toyo Tires products such as the Proxes® RS1™ full-slick; the Proxes® RR, Proxes® R888™ and Proxes® RA1™ DOT-competition tires; and the 200-treadwear Proxes® R1R™; log onto www.toyotires.com.

About Toyo Tires®

Established in 1966, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. represents the innovation, quality, performance, and excellent service that Toyo Tires has delivered worldwide for 70 years.

The company offers a complete selection of premium replacement tires for nearly every make and model including light trucks, SUVs, high performance cars and luxury vehicles as well as the M-Line for commercial trucks. Consumer product lines include the popular Open Country® tires for light trucks and SUVs; Proxes® ultra-high performance tires; Versado® tires for luxury passenger cars; Celsius® variable conditions tires; and the value line of Extensa® passenger car tires. Many of the tires are built in the United States at their state-of-the-art factory in Bartow County, Georgia.

For more information log onto www.toyotires.com and connect with the community at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Google+.

About Flying Lizard Motorsports

Since its inception in 2004, Flying Lizard Motorsports has become an iconic team in the world of sports car racing. The California based team has celebrated six driver and team championships, as well as competed internationally at the 24 Hours of Le Mans eight times. The Lizards burst on the American Le Mans Series scene in 2004, competing in the GT class until 2012. In 2013, the team moved to the GTC class, still competing in legendary events such as the and 24 Hours of Daytona. In 2014, the team expanded its program to include running two Audi R8 LMS in the TUDOR Championship, and in 2015, again expanded the program to include two in Club racing, and two McLaren 650S GT3s with K-PAX Racing in the World Challenge series. No matter the race series or race car, Flying Lizard Motorsports has proven to be a championship contender in sports car racing. For more information, visit lizardms.com. For additional photos and all behind-the-scenes updates, check us out on Facebook, twitter and Instagram.

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Media Contact: Jay Jones, TMC 949-851-6313, [email protected] Toyo Media Site: http://media.toyotires.com/