WAYNE TAYLOR RACING OWNER WAYNE TAYLOR, AND DRIVERS JORDAN TAYLOR, RICKY TAYLOR AND MAX ANGELELLI met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway today. The group discussed the team’s 10th anniversary of its 2005 victory in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Jeff Gordon’s impact in racing, the outlook for this weekend’s 53rd Rolex 24 and other topics. FULL TRANSCRIPT:

WAYNE, YOU AND MAX WON THIS RACE 10 YEARS AGO. DO YOU HAVE ANY SPECIAL THOUGHTS COMING BACK WITH JORDAN AND RICKY DRIVING WITH MAX?
WAYNE TAYLOR: “I didn’t know 10 years would go by so quickly. It was a great year for us. Max and I drove the whole season and started off by winning the Rolex before winning the championship. Now back here for the 10th anniversary since when we won, it would be really nice to win in a different position than as a driver. These two guys (sons Jordan and Ricky) will do a good job and be very competitive. We’ll have to wait and see.”

RICKY, YOU WERE 15 WHEN YOUR DAD WON THIS RACE, AND HERE YOU ARE TRYING TO REPLICATE THAT FEAT. ANY SPECIAL MEMORIES FOR YOU?
RICKY TAYLOR: “Jordan and I had never done a 24-hour race; we were just little guys. We had watched races, and our routine was to jump on the motorhome beds a couple of times, check timing and scoring, and stay up as late as we could. I remember that in the middle of the night, all three drivers were really fast and I thought back to the year before when they were so fast and had some issues. That was the first year where I was thinking about how much could go wrong and that it’s never over until it’s over. It was really nice when nothing went wrong! It was great. 1996 I don’t really remember but 2005 I was a bit more grown up and aware.”

MAX, YOU WERE IN THE CAR WITH WAYNE AND EMMANUEL COLLARD. IT WAS YOUR FIRST ROLEX 24 WIN. ANY SPECIAL THOUGHTS FOR YOU?
MAX ANGELELLI: “That was a great day and a great weekend, and everything went so well. We all really enjoyed it. Emmanuel is here racing this weekend and has a good shot in GTLM. I still have the watch! It was really sweet winning the Rolex 24. The last hour went by fast. Normally it comes down to the last lap. That year we had a really good race and dominated all the way. It was easy and really sweet.”

JORDAN, YOU WERE 13 AT THE TIME. BUT AS TROUBLE-FREE AS THE WEEKEND WAS, YOU REVEALED A STORY ABOUT THE ONLY THING THAT WENT WRONG! ANY THOUGHTS ON THAT?
JORDAN TAYLOR: “Obviously they won the race and we were in Victory Lane taking pictures. Dad gave me the bottle of champagne that was almost full to take back to the crew. I hopped on the golf cart with some friends and were driving back through one of the four-way stops and I got pulled over by a couple of motorcycle cops! They thought I was drinking the champagne, and I was trying to convince them my dad won the race! But they didn’t believe me and then they eventually poured it all out in front of me and called my mom! It’d be nice to win this race and go spray those guys once or twice.”

JEFF GORDON ANNOUNCED HIS RETIREMENT EFFECTIVE AT THE END OF THE SEASON. WHAT DOES HE MEAN TO YOU AND THE SPORT OF AUTO RACING?
WAYNE TAYLOR: We and Max know him, and he actually drove with Max. We got to know him when he drove with us in 2007. He’s such a normal guy and a humble guy; a brilliant driver. He really is a special kind of driver – a standard above most.”

DO YOU FEEL LIKE HE CHANGED MOTORSPORTS BECAUSE OF CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP AND CORPORATE IMAGE?
WAYNE TAYLOR: “I’m not sure. Everyone does it differently. Clearly he is a good marketer. He speaks well and does a lot of things well. His hair is always perfect. I don’t know if he’s changed the sport from that perspective.”

MAX, DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS OF DRIVING WITH JEFF IN 2007?
MAX ANGELELLI: “A true gentleman and a true team player. He was so humble. It was normal, down to earth… he stayed and slept at the same hotel as we did…”
WAYNE TAYLOR: “We actually mocked him for his helmet with the flames! But he was very good with it.”

MAX, THIS IS YOUR SECOND YEAR NOT DRIVING FULL-TIME BUT IN THE TEQUILA PATRON NORTH AMERICAN ENDURANCE CUP EVENTS. HOW HAS THAT TRANSITION BEEN?
MAX ANGELELLI: “I think I have the best of it. I don’t have the amount of pressure that I was used to in the past. I’m enjoying every part of this. Driving with Ricky and Jordan has been beautiful. I’m really enjoying myself.”

WHEN YOU FULLY RETIRE, ARE YOU LOOKING TO BE LIKE WAYNE AND BE A TEAM OWNER?
MAX ANGELELLI: “If I have to end up driving like him, then no! It’s too early yet. I don’t know.”

BEHIND THE SCENES, YOU’VE BEEN WORKING TO HONOR THE INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE 24 HOURS OF LE MANS. ARE THERE ANY UPDATES THERE?
WAYNE TAYLOR: “Obviously, it was great for us (to be invited). But it’s a tremendous amount of work because our car is not eligible to race there. So I’ve spent some time trying to find a car and people. We basically have everything in-hand to send the final entry in Monday. But I have to wait for tomorrow because there is one part of the program that has to work. Tomorrow afternoon I should have a better understanding (of where things stand).”

THE TEAM FINISHED SECOND HERE THE LAST TWO YEARS. IS THAT A PAINFUL OUTCOME AFTER WORKING SO HARD AND HAVING TROUBLE-FREE RACES FOR THE MOST PART?
JORDAN TAYLOR: “These races are so difficult to make it to the end, especially these days with so many cars on the track and so many different drivers. To go 48 hours without going behind the pit wall or having an issue and not winning it is pretty amazing. It speaks to how competitive this series is and how competitive this race is. At the same time, it’s frustrating. Last year we were in great position with two hours to go before someone spun in front of me; I had to avoid them and go off the track. That was the turning point in our race when the No. 5 car got ahead of us. You never really know where you’re going to be until that last lap.”