Erstwhile NASCAR aspirant Bill Lester will return to his roots as a sportscar racer in 2008 after signing a season-long deal to join Southard Motorsports in the Grand-Am Rolex series.

Lester spent several years trying to break into NASCAR, competing mostly in the Craftsman Truck Series, but will join Grand-Am veteran Shane Lewis in the #3 Lexus Riley for the full 2008 campaign, beginning with the Rolex 24 at Daytona later this month.

“I am excited to be back here, essentially in my roots,” Lester said, “I started racing sportscars at the amateur level in the mid 1980s. I've had a lot of great experiences and opportunities, but I've always felt comfortable in racing a sportscar. It's like riding a bike.

"I now have the good fortune of joining this team with Shane. One of the things I've realised this weekend was that Shane and I are very similar in what we want out of the car. Our driving abilities tend to complement each other.”

Southard Motorsports is the second longest running Grand-Am team, and said that further announcements regarding its line-up should come in the next two weeks. No other drivers tested this weekend, but many have been in discussion.

“Bill is on for the season and we are very pleased,” team owner Steve Southard said, “It's going to work for us this year. Bill is a very talented driver and, believe me, I've seen a him on the track this weekend and his talents are considerable.”

additional reporting by Lynne Huntting