/*ONEIGHTURBO

Great looking entry from Tiger Racing! We’re not big fans of K&N filters around here but we are fans of a K&N branded Porsche! Ha!

With Sebring less than a week away, Tiger Racing”s Paul Brown has been brought in to pilot the No. 96 K&N Engineering Porsche 911 GT3 for the season opener.

Paul is no stranger to the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT series with 44 starts in his career including 19 top-10s and 5 top-five finishes. He took a career-high finish of second at the 1999 Vancouver street race after leading the first half and suffering from a broken transmission. Brown’s experience and demonstrated ability attracted K&N Engineering to the program and the No. 96 Porsche will carry K&N’s signature colors at Sebring.

“I am very excited about returning to World Challenge,” Brown said. “This is where I cut my teeth in road racing, so it’s like coming home.”

Brown’s only previous start at Sebring came in 2001 as a last minute substitute for an injured driver. Brown literally jumped into a Corvette as it rolled onto the track for the presentation lap. With no practice, and having never driven the 3.7-mile track before, Brown managed to charge from 31st to a 15th-place finish.

The new Porsche will be prepped by 911 Design out of Montclair, Calif., where Brown will be teammates with Eric Olberz, who returns for his third year in World Challenge driving the No. 29 Sport Chalet Porsche.

“The guys at 911 Design have been great to work with and have been focused on bringing me up to speed on the GT3,” Brown said. “With the automotive powerhouses of K&N Filters and Eibach Springs behind us and the technical support of ERP Suspension Engineering, this could be a very exciting year.”

“I’ve known Paul for years and he is nothing short of 100 percent focused on driving and being great at it,” Sports Marketing Director for K&N Charles Maier said. “He is a man of integrity in business and simply does what he says he will. When this opportunity came to partner up with Paul, I knew that he would be a good ambassador for K&N in an area of motorsport that we have not been so active in as of late. I personally love road racing and feel that we, as a company, need to continue to mine out solid relationships in this category of motorsports. We wish Paul and Tiger Racing all the best at the season opener, Sebring!”

Along with K&N Engineering, manufacturers of high performance air and oil filters and air intake systems, associate sponsorship includes Tiger Racing, Eibach Springs, ERP Suspension Engineering, JRZ, Roller Hoop, G-Stream and OpalGuy.com.

- SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge