In its acquisition of the Grand-American Road Racing Association, NASCAR saw the opportunity to help a series with an exciting road-racing product gain broader mainstream exposure through the marketing and media infrastructure the stock car racing organization already has in place.

On Thursday, NASCAR Holdings, the legal entity that includes NASCAR and other subsidiaries, agreed to acquire Grand-Am, which was formed in 1999 and operates six racing series, the best known of which are the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series and the Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series.

The Rolex series kicks off its season with the Rolex 24 at Daytona, a 24-hour endurance race on the road course at Daytona International Speedway. Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Kyle Petty, Bobby Labonte, Juan Pablo Montoya, Kurt... // SportingNews.com