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Kelly Collins joins The Racer's Group for Sebring

Kelly Collins to Drive Mobil One 12 Hours of Sebring with TRG Sonoma, CA -- February 27, 2003 - The Racer's Group announced today that longtime sports car star Kelly Collins will join the team for the 12 Hours of Sebring, driving the ...

Kelly Collins to Drive Mobil One 12 Hours of Sebring with TRG

Sonoma, CA -- February 27, 2003 - The Racer's Group announced today that longtime sports car star Kelly Collins will join the team for the 12 Hours of Sebring, driving the #66 New Century Mortgage/The Racer's Group Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. Collins last drove a Porsche in 1999, when he and Cort Wagner teamed to win both the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring. For the past four years, he has been a Corvette works driver, where he has many podium finishes, including wins at Petit Le Mans, Road America, Trois-Rivieres, and Laguna Seca, and two second place finishes at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He joins Porsche factory driver Patrick Long, who begins his first full season of American Le Mans racing, and Cort Wager, 1999 ALMS GT Driver's Champion.

Collins was enthusiastic about being back in a Porsche. "I'm just happy to have a rear view mirror and a motor behind me again!" he said. "This is a great situation for all of us to be in -- Cort and I have been friends forever, going all the way back to his days as a student of mine. We've been very successful teammates, we won the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring together in 1999, and I'm thrilled to be teammates again with him in such a good, competitive car. Patrick Long is also a friend and former student of mine, which I suppose makes me the old guy in the car. It's fantastic to run a car with my friends, and what's better is that we're all from California. It's going to be good to put the American back into American Le Mans! I'm very thankful to New Century Mortgage and The Racer's Group for the opportunity they've given us to run such a high-profile, professional racing effort with a team of this caliber."

Team owner Kevin Buckler said, "We are really excited and honored to have Kelly on board, his experience at this track and in a multitude of GT cars will definitely add a major strength to our team for this event. We've also known each other for a long time and the chemistry among he and our team is fantastic -- that's a very important element of a winning effort."

"We at New Century Mortgage are thrilled that TRG has chosen Kelly Collins as the 3rd driver for the race team at Sebring and Petit Le Mans. Kelly, being one of the premier GT car drivers over the last decade, solidifies the lineup and gives the team an excellent opportunity to start the year out standing on the podium. We are pleased to have a driver and person of Kelly's caliber representing the New Century Brand," said Patrick Flanagan, President of New Century Mortgage.

The Mobil One 12 Hours of Sebring will be run on March 20, 2004, and will be broadcast on Speed Channel.

New Century Financial Corporation, a publicly traded Company listed on NASDAQ (ticker symbol "NCEN"), is a leading nationwide specialty mortgage banking company that, through its subsidiary, New Century Mortgage Corporation, originates, purchases, sells and services residential mortgage loans secured primarily by first mortgages on single family residences.

The Auto Gallery, located in Los Angeles, California, specializes in selling Porsche, Ferrari, Audi and Maserati automobiles. As one of Southern California's largest sports car dealerships, the Auto Gallery has an extensive inventory and is the United States' largest Maserati dealership.

The Racer's Group is a manufacturer and distributor of high performance Porsche parts, an engine and chassis building and tuning facility, a full service Porsche prep facility, and a professional race team. Additionally, they provide electrical and mechanical engineering services, driver development and "arrive and drive" services. The Racer's Group is based at Infineon Raceway, formerly Sears Point Raceway, in Sonoma, Calif.

For the latest TRG news and pictures visit www.theracersgroup

-alms-

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