Yokohama Tire Corporation Off To Strong Start as Sponsor of 2009 Redline Time Attack Series

Three first-place finishes in season-opener at Buttonwillow highlight ADVAN A005^® racing slick and all-new ADVAN Neova^® AD08 ultra-high-performance tire

Media Contact: Kevin Fisher, PCGCampbell, 310/224-4969, kfisher@pcgcampbell.com

FULLERTON, CA (Mar. 31, 2009) - Three first-places finishes highlighted a successful start for Yokohama Tire Corporation's sponsorship of the 2009 Redline Time Attack series during the March 28-29 season-opener at Buttonwillow Raceway in central California. The series, which features purpose-built 600-horsepower race cars and highly tuned street-legal vehicles, awards points and names winners based on which driver achieves the fastest lap time during competition.

Winners in Yokohama Tire-shod cars included:

• Billy Johnson, Unlimited RWD Class, FX Motorsports Acura NSX (on Yokohama ADVAN A005^® slicks), 1:45.516, a new RWD and Unlimited RWD record and besting defending champion and this year's runner up by more than 2 seconds (1:47.992).
• Frank Yeung, Unlimited FWD Class, HPS Acura Integra (on Yokohama ADVAN A005^® slicks), 1:58.717, nearly 3 seconds faster than second place time of 2:01.169
• Dino Tadokawa, Street FWD Class, Mazda/Sony/Yokohama/Oakley MazdaSpeed 3 (on ADVAN Neova^® AD08 tires), 2:00.552, a new Street-FWD record and almost 4 seconds quicker than second-place time of 2:03.8500.

"Great, great start to the Redline Time Attack season," said Mark Chung, Yokohama director, corporate strategy and planning. "We've been looking forward to seeing how the ADVAN A005 will perform during its first year in the Unlimited class and what the all-new Neova AD08 will achieve in the Street Class. Judging by the first race results and two record-breaking lap times, we're stacking up rather well." The ultra-high-performance ADVAN Neova^® AD07 collected two Street Class championships last year and Yokohama is expecting the ADVAN Neova AD08 to continue its success as the series moves to Willow Springs Raceway, Rosamond, California, May 30-31. For more details on the Redline Time Attack, visit http://www.redlinetimeattack.com/.

For more on Yokohama's ADVAN Neova AD08, go to:
http://yokohamatire.com/pressroom/11_17_08.aspx
http://yokohamatire.com/tires/advan_neova.aspx

As a part of its sponsorship, Yokohama will manage a tire contingency program at each race for teams running Yokohama ADVAN^® tires. Additionally, at the end of the season, Yokohama will reward the winner in each of the Street classes a fully-sponsored trip to attend Jim Russell Racing Drivers School's two-day racing course.
http://www.jimrussellusa.com/
http://timeattackblog.com/2009/03/13/redline-time-attack-announces-the-yokohama-street-class-shootout/

Yokohama Tire Corporation is the North American manufacturing and marketing arm of Tokyo, Japan-based The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., a global producer and distributor of premium tires since 1917. Servicing a network of more than 4,500 points of sale in the U.S., Yokohama Tire Corporation offers a complete line of tires, including high-performance, light truck, passenger car, commercial truck and bus, as well as off-the-road mining and construction applications. For more information on Yokohama's extensive product line, visit www.yokohamatire.com. For details on Yokohama's environmental efforts, go to www.ecotreadsetters.com.

Yokohama is a strong supporter of the tire care and safety guidelines established by the Rubber Manufacturers Association and the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration. Details can be found at the "Taking Care of Your Tires" section at www.yokohamatire.com.