Honda Car Forum

In one of the most dramatic wheel-to-wheel battles in this year's American Le Mans
Series, Tony Kanaan and Simon Pagenaud scored an Acura 1-2 LMP2 finish Saturday in the Monterey Sports Car
Championships at the legendary Laguna Seca Raceway.

Kanaan, the 2004 IndyCar Series champion who won the 12 Hours of Sebring last year, held off the young
French star in the last hour of the four-hour sports car extravaganza, winning by just .054 seconds in one of the
closest finishes in ALMS history. The popular Brazilian, who teamed with Detroit winner Franck Montagny in the
No. 26 XM Satellite Radio AGR Acura ARX-01b, took the overall lead on Lap 112, and swapped positions with
Pagenaud several times before taking the checkered flag on Lap 145.

Kanaan's charge to the lead included several encounters with the more-powerful LMP1 Audi of Emanuele
Pirro. Pirro forced his way past Kanaan late in the race to win the overall title.

Pagenaud, driving the No. 66 Panasonic ELS de Ferran Motorsports Acura ARX-01b prototype, took over
the driving chores from team owner Gil de Ferran after the former Indy 500 champion led overall for more than 20
laps in the early portion of the four-hour contest. Pagenaud drove the last 92 laps and established himself as one of
the world's promising sports-car stars with his stellar performance against the veteran Kanaan.

The LMP2 win was the sixth of the 2008 campaign for Acura, season high in the class. Porsche best
Acura by one point in the final LMP2 manufacturers' engine and chassis standings.

The pole-winning No. 9 Patrón Highcroft Acura ARX-01b of Scott Sharp and David Brabham led early in
the race before a power-steering problem forced the car to the pits on several occasions. Late in the race, Brabham
set one of the fastest race laps, but the mechanical troubles held the team six laps backfrom the leader.

The fastest race lap went to Adrian Fernandez in the No. 15 Lowe's Fernandez Acura ARX-01b, as the
Mexican driving star challenged for his team's first ALMS victory. Fernandez, who co-drove with Luis Diaz, fought
with Kanaan and Pagenaud for the lead with an hour remaining, but an electrical problem on the team's final pit stop
forced the Lowe's squad to seventh placeat the finish.

Acura's second season in the American Le Mans Series proved to be very successful with six class victories
including two overall wins [Lime Rock and Detroit] and four overall pole positions.

In 2009, Acura moves to the LMP1 division, with de Ferran Motorsports and Patrón Highcroft Racing set to
campaign the new Acura ARX-02a. Lowe's Fernandez Racing will continue in the LMP2 class for Acura.

Monterey Sports Car Championship (LMP2 Class)

1. AGR XM SATELLITE RADIO ACURA ARX-01b No. 26

2. DE FERRAN PANASONIC ACURA ARX-01b No. 66

3. Penske Porsche No. 7

7. LOWE'S FERNANDEZ ACURA ARX-01B No. 15

9. PATRÓN HIGHCROFT ACURA ARX-01b No. 9

NEXT ALMS RACE:

Event: 12 HOURS OF SEBRING

Track: Sebring International Raceway, Sebring, FL (3.7 miles, 17 turns)

Date: Saturday, March 21, 2009 10:30 a.m. EST

Distance: 12 hours

TV: SPEED-TV, March 21, 10:00 a.m. EST

Acura Contacts:

Tom Blattler, 317-525-5692

T.E. McHale, 310-783-3169

2008 AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES POINTS (LMP2)

Drivers

1. Timo Bernhard, Romain Dumas 197

2. David Brabham, Scott Sharp 163

3. Patrick Long 127

4. Sasha Maassen 115

5. Marino Franchitti, B. Leitzinger 107

6. Guy Smith, Chris Dyson 95

7. Adrian Fernandez, Luis Diaz 84

Manufacturers - Engine - Chassis

1. Porsche - 212 - 212

2. ACURA - 211 - 211

ACURA QUOTES:

FRANCK MONTAGNY (#26 XM Satellite Radio Acura ARX-01b): "This a great way to finish the season. Without the late problem at Petit, we
could have won the last three races. Driving in the American Le Mans Series
has been great fun for me. The series is so competitive and the cars are
great. It was fun to drive with Tony, too. He is a professional and he did a
great job today at the end of the race. This is exciting for me."

TONY KANAAN (#26 XM Satellite Radio Acura ARX-01b): "This
place is special for me. I won my first U.S. race here in Indy Lights in 1996.
And today's race was one of my favorites. The battle with Simon [Pagenaud]
was as good as anything I have done in Indy Car racing. He raced clean and
we swapped positions several times. I love driving these prototype cars.
Winning today was a thrill for me. Franck and I seemed to have a real bond
in driving together. We got along tremendously. To win here was great."

DAVID BRABHAM (#9 Patrón Highcroft Racing Acura ARX-
01b): "The Patrón Highcroft Acura felt really good at the start. Gil [de Ferran]
made a good move in Turn Two, but I was able to hold him off. The tire
pressures were a little too low and we were sliding around quite a bit. Gil got
by me going up the hill in Turn Six. Our car just didn't feel proper with the low
tire pressure. I think some of the cars had a similar problem in the early portion
of the race. We had a tough day with the steering problem for Scott. At
the end, our Acura was very fast. Overall, it was good season for us."

SCOTT SHARP (#9 Patrón Highcroft Racing Acura ARX-01b): "I
jumped in the car after David ran so well. But something was wrong with the
steering in the Patrón Highcroft Acura. The power steering went away and
the car felt like I was driving a truck. It was very hard to drive it. I brought the
car in several times and the team saw that the connection to the power steering
box came loose. It was too bad, because I think our car was fast enough
to run with the other Acuras and Porsches. We wanted to help Acura win the
Manufacturers' Championship."

SIMON PAGENAUD (#66 Panasonic ELS Surround Acura ARX-
01b): "Wow, Tony and I had a quite a race today. I think we passed each other twice. I know we were wheel-to-wheel lap after lap. And
we raced cleanly. No dirty driving at all. We had a car to win today and it took a great drive by Tony to beat us. I feel good about our race
and I hope the fans enjoyed the battle too."

GIL de FERRAN (#66 Panasonic ELS Surround Acura ARX-01b): "I'm
very proud our team today. How about that race at the end? I thought we had a good
race car coming into the race. And I had a great time driving here. Of course, I love
this track. We made a good call on our tire selection. My stint was excellent and it
was fun for me to lead again. But the story for team was Simon's performance. He
and Tony put on a driving demonstration today. This was a good performance for
our team. An excellent way to finish up our first season."

ADRIAN FERNANDEZ (#15 Lowe's Fernandez Acura ARX-01b): "Today
was typical of the season we have had. It doesn't matter if we did the fastest lap
and were fast in the race. At the end of the day, you win races by not having any
or fewer problems than the others. We have already started our work for 2009 and
testing begins in January. Next year will be our year."

LUIS DIAZ (#15 Lowe's Fernandez Acura ARX-01b): "It was a tough race
for us. For me, my stint was complicated. We did the right thing with our tires
[compound] for qualifying but it cost me a little bit on my first stint with the handling of
the car. We got things right for Adrian and he was fast. Our tough luck continued
today. I truly believe we had a car to win. I know we'll be ready to go for 2009."