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Press Release

Dec. 21, 2007

Toyo Tires Supports Three Teams in the 30th Euromilhoes Lisboa Dakar 2008

OSAKA, JAPAN - December 21, 2007 - TOYO TIRE & RUBBER Co., LTD. (President and CEO: Yoshio Kataoka) hereby announces its decision to provide off-road tire support to three teams entered in the 30th Euromilhoes Lisboa Dakar 2008 Rally, to be held from January 5 (Saturday) to January 20 (Sunday), 2008.

Toyo Tire & Rubber will be supporting the following teams:

Tecnosport Italia (driver: Kenjiro Shinozuka)
Team Dakar USA (driver: Robby Gordon)
Team Dakar USA (driver: Ronn Bailey)
Pro System Racing (driver: Eric Vigouroux).

Each team will be supplied with TOYO OPEN COUNTRY M/T tires, specially tuned for Dakar conditions. Kenjiro Shinozuka has worked with the company this year to further improve the performance of these tires underscored by Robby Gordon's performance in last year's Dakar Rally. The teams of Toyo Tire & Rubber will be looking to gain a top placing this year.

Commonly known as "The Paris-Dakar Rally" and held on a stage across the European and African continents, Euromilhões Lisboa Dakar is a rally raid event that has been contested every year since 1979. Three classes of vehicle - car, motorbike, and truck - compete on a course that traverses several thousand kilometers through the Sahara desert with few settlements or aid stations along the way. This harsh journey, taking more than two weeks to complete, has earned Dakar the title of "the toughest race in the world." The year 2008 marks the 30th anniversary of the rally and a return to its origin a grueling route through the desert regions of Mauritania is set with which drivers have to struggle.

Toyo Tire & Rubber will be operating a blog featuring extensive information on the Dakar Rally. It can be accessed at the following URL during the event.

 
Team Driver* Vehicle
Tecnosport Italia Kenjiro SHINOZUKA
(Jean-paul FORTHOF)
NISSAN PATHFINDER 4.0 T1
Team Dakar USA Robby GORDON
(Andy GRIDER)
Hummer H3
Team Dakar USA Ronn Bailey
(Kevin HEATH)
Hummer H3
Pro System Racing Eric VIGOUROUX
(Alexandre WINOCQ)
CHEVROLET TROPHY-TRUCK
*Brackets ( ) designate co-drivers.

 

 

 

Toyo Tire Corporation
Corporate Communications Dept.
Hyogo Head office Telephone: +81-72-789-9100 Facsimile: +81-72-773-3272