It has long been said that a craftsman is only as good as his tools, and whether they be a mechanic, an engineer or a fabricator, the craftsmen that keep the machines at Rahal Letterman Racing in peak racing form will now have a new line of quality tools to help them do the job.

The Ohio-based team, which campaigns cars in the IndyCar Series and the American Le Mans Series, announced today that it had reached a sponsorship agreement with Bessey Tools North America that will see the tool manufacturer provide its state-of-the-art fabrication equipment to the Rahal Letterman Racing team.

“We are always looking for ways to improve productivity throughout the organization and bringing in Bessey Tools will help us do that,” said team co-owner Bobby Rahal. “Providing our guys with the best tools and processes for doing their job as well as possible will pay dividends throughout the shop and most importantly, on the race track.”

Bessey Tools is one of the world leaders in clamping technology and in recent years has developed a wide array of cutting and fabricating devices as well. The partnership will play a major role in advancing the fabricating capacity in the RLR shop, which designs and creates a number of mechanical pieces for its Indy Cars as well as its ALMS Porsche.

When asked to comment on the professional affiliation with Rahal Letterman Racing, Mark Morrison of Bessey Tools had this to say “We are delighted, as a key player in the clamping and cutting tool industry, in our affiliation with the Rahal Letterman Racing team. As leaders in our respective fields this kind of teamwork makes perfect sense.”

The Rahal Letterman Racing squads will be back in action next week as the IndyCar Series heads to Watkins Glen for the July 8 Camping World Watkins Glen Grand Prix. The ALMS cars will head north for their next outing, July 7 at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut.

About Rahal Letterman Racing: Rahal Letterman Racing, based in Hilliard, Ohio and co-owned by three-time IndyCar Champion and 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal and CBS LATE SHOW host David Letterman, has been competing for more than a decade compiling 19 victories, 30 poles and one series championship (Bobby Rahal in 1992 in CART) and an Indianapolis 500 championship (Buddy Rice in 2004). In 2007 Rahal Letterman Racing will campaign two cars in the Indy Racing League’s IndyCar Series driven by Jeff Simmons with sponsorship from the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council and Scott Sharp with sponsorship from The Patrón Spirits Company and partner with Andersen Racing to run two entries in the Indy Pro Series. Additionally in 2007 Rahal Letterman Racing made its debut in the American Le Mans Series by entering a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR in the GT2 category. Bell Microproducts will serve as the primary partner for the ALMS entry, which will be driven by veteran sports car drivers Ralf Kelleners and Tom Milner.