ALMS 2011 thread

[Shifty]

Honestly, I doubt teh little bit of difference that ILMC imposed in teh first place made much difference anyway...it's mostly due to teh GT1 front splitter and GT1 rear wing anyway....I won't even begin with teh engine/trance placement out of spec.....

[MOTV8]

Teh Milner wrote a piece for Autoweek:

Over already? Time to cap the ALMS season at Petit Le Mans

By: Tommy Milner on 9/26/2011

After three months and six races, the American Le Mans Series season finale is upon us. Coming off of Corvette Racing's win at Le Mans and a strong start to the year, we struggled just a bit in the following races. Some of it was my own fault--Baltimore being a good example of that--and other times just bad luck. That's the way racing goes sometimes.

Despite all of that, our teammates in the No. 4 Corvette C6.R, Oliver Gavin and Jan Magnussen, had some fantastic races and put themselves in the hunt for the drivers' championship. Unfortunately, Team RLL BMW's start to the season was too much to overcome and it clinched the championship on Sept. 17 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Now, with just Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta left to run on Oct. 1, finishing the season competitively--and challenging for the Petit win--would be a big boost for us during the off-season.

Petit Le Mans is going to be an incredibly tough race this year, though. With 53 cars on the grid and championships decided already, everyone will be focused on winning the race and not just trying to bring home some points. We've seen how super-competitive the racing in the ALMS's GT class has been this year, and with the addition at Petit of a few very strong European teams, there will be 10 or 12 cars with a legitimate chance to win. We'll have a better idea of who looks the strongest after testing and practice.

Looking back on the season for a minute, one event that stands out is the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix. The crowds on Friday and Saturday were huge. Grandstands were packed and the Inner Harbor was flooded with people. I got the feeling that there were so many people in attendance who were seeing a race live for the first time, and it seemed like the majority of people had a great time. I was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Northern Virginia, so this was like a home race for me, despite the fact I moved to Florida at the end of last year. I had a couple friends come to the race, which was their first time attending an event like this. Most of them had been to a NASCAR race but this was their first street race, and their first taste of sports cars and IndyCars competing on a street circuit.

These are friends who don't normally follow racing and they were all blown away. It was a great feeling for me to be able to show them what I do and to see them experience an event. But Baltimore in particular really reminded me how much I enjoy being at the racetrack.

In Baltimore, my walk to work in the morning included walking right by the main straight on Pratt Street as the Indy Lights cars screamed by, wide open. It's not often us drivers are able to walk around these tracks and experience what the fans get to experience at each race. Racing is an incredibly visceral experience, and that walk to work was a welcome reminder of why I was hooked on this sport from an early age--and how lucky I am to do something I love.

-and-

This other article is long-winded and verbose, but it's also a scathing and honest look at the the ALMS/ACO train wreck...

The Last Petit Le Mans?

By James Fish

Epoch Times Staff

Since 1998, the North American sports car racing scene has had a season-ending event which sought, in as small way, to rival te Continent’s—the world’s—most prestigious sports car competition, the Le Mans 24 Hours.

This event, Petit Le Mans (literally “small Le Mans—simple and only slightly pretentious) is a ten-hour or 1000-mile multi-class race, with hugely fast and powerful prototypes and barely modified street cars sharing the track in a test of speed and endurance—just like its French counterpart, but less than half the length.

Petit Le Mans ran one year as a stand-alone event, then became the finale for a then-new sports car series, the American Le Mans Series (simple, not too pretentious,) brainchild of wealthy inventor/investor Dr. Don Panoz, who also happened to own the track, Road Atlanta, where the event took place. (Dr. Panoz also holds the lease to Sebring.)

Unlike Le Mans, which is run on a mix of public roads and private sections of track and which shuts down a small portion of France (while attracting perhaps a quarter-million fans) for a few weeks each June, Petit Le Mans (which attracts perhaps half as many fans) has to battle local noise ordinances; it cannot run on Sunday in Bible-Belt Georgia. (In fact, the track’s owner can barely hold off the insistent real-estate developers who want to pay a lot more than the track generates.)

Like its European namesake, Petit Le Mans attracts the best teams from around the world—in fact, most of the teams which contest Le Mans also cross the ocean to do battle in America (an important market for car companies and many other sponsors.) The venerable Sebring 12 Hours and Petit Le Mans are the only truly international sports car races run in North America.

Petit Le Mans, in the few years it has operated, has displaced the once-prestigious Daytona 24 Hours as the second premier North American sports car race, behind Sebring. Daytona has opted to be a purely North American race, featuring slower cars and smaller teams and a lot fewer fans, while Sebring and Petit, both operated by ALMS, have always brought in the best in the sport.

In short, Petit Le Mans almost immediately became as sports-car-racing icon; say “Petit” and aficionados immediately grew reverent. Every fall, fans flocked to Georgia for what was always a fantastic race and a fantastic event—ten hours of excitement, camaraderie, and the sound and fury of the most exotic automobiles on the planet.

And isn’t it always sad to see an icon’s health waning?

International Attack

ACO (Automobile Club de l'Ouest,) the French organization which sanctions Le Mans and the European (and the short-lived Asian) Le Mans series, never much cared for or about its North American cousin. ACO made rules to suit itself and to keep its signature race, the 24 Hours, alive and well. If ALMS was able to live off the crumbs, good for ALMS. If not, eh—the 24 Hours was still strong.

In order to better please the factories which pump more than a billion dollars into the sport (a successful Le Mans car like the Peugeot 908 or Audi R18 might cost half-a-billion dollars to develop and build; a season budget is as much as a top Formula One team’s) ACO devised the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup—a short series which hit every important car market, in order to give the factories maximum advertising exposure.

As its opening move, ILMC co-opted Sebring and Petit Le Mans. Now these races would be joint ILMC-ALMS affairs, which meant the big-budget European teams would win the top spots, and the U.S. teams would lose their best chances for media exposure.

Then ACO teamed up with another French organization, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA)

(how did the French gain a stranglehold on automobile racing anyway?) which controls just about every single auto-related event in the world—except ACO-sanctioned races. The behemoths bred, forming the World Endurance Cup—the ILMC with even more prestige.

WEC, having the clout of basically all the world's auto-racing nobility behind it, began making rules which are crippling ALMS.

WEC went further than ILMC. The new series announced that it would likely drop Petit Le Mans in favor of a race in Bahrain, and would totally take over Sebring. These two races were no longer ALMS races or even joint ALMS-ILMC races. Now they were to be pure WEC races. WEC told Dr. Panoz that starting in 2013, cars from his series (ALMS) would not be allowed to run at his tracks (Sebring and Road Atlanta) in his events (the 12 Hours and Petit Le Mans.)

ALMS, already reeling from mismanagement and media problems, was now reduced to a handful of small races known only to fans of the sport. The ALMS’ best chance to attract new fans, its signature events, were being taken over by a foreign series which wouldn’t even share the track.

Media Difficulties

Top-tier sports car racing is a very expensive sport. Long the domain of the ridiculously rich and the largest factories, the sport is so technologically advanced now that even the world’s largest auto makers have a hard time justifying the expenditure in purely business terms. And rich amateurs—well, the joke goes, “The way to make a small fortune in racing is to start with a large fortune.”

The only way to keep the teams racing is to provide enough media exposure to satisfy sponsors that their contributions are well rewarded as advertising. And here the fracturing of the network and cable TV audiences has really taken a toll.

With hundreds of channels broadcasting to every conceivable niche, reaching a mass audience has become impossible. Most sports-specific cable networks reach 75-125 million viewers, and not all of those viewers are racing fans. Further, some of the sports-specific networks are on a high cable tier—that is, they aren’t in basic Cable, or Sports Pak I or II; viewers have to pay extra to get channels which might only have a few hours of interesting programming a week.

And just about no channel can afford to devote ten or twelve hours to a single event—except for the Olympics. Doing so would be a huge commercial risk; viewers who didn’t like the event would tune out for an entire day. That’s a lot of potential ad revenue lost.

ALMS was almost driven off the airwaves by this issue; with most of its races being almost three hours long, with some four-and six-hour events, and the two season bookends, Sebring and Petit, the series asked too much of the networks. Only NASCAR, major league baseball, and the NFL draw the kind of numbers that merit a three-plus-hour investment (included in here is NASCAR’s pet sports car series, Grand Am, which only survives because of NASCAR dollars and clout.)

ALMS moved to an online/cable/network mix, where races are broadcast live online on ESPN3.com, then edited recaps are broadcast a day later either on network TV (ABC) or on cable (ESPN.)

The problem here is that fans want the highest-quality broadcast (streaming video can be shaky) and advertisers want the largest possible market penetration. Taped, edited sporting events offend real fans, and Internet broadcasts only appeal to hardcore fans.

This media deal has many teams complaining (and some leaving,) because the money just isn’t there.

To be fair, the ALMS media package is certainly the way of the future. All minor sports and even the most major are realizing the Internet is the best way to get the product to the most specific audience for the lowest price. Problem is, the future isn’t here yet. Until picture quality and reliability equal broadcast TV, casual fans will be disappointed, and until the sport spends enough on promotion to attract viewers and advertisers to the online broadcast, the ‘Net doesn’t make money.

Mismanagement Issues, Financial Pressure

The American Le Mans Series filled a void left by the collapse of other sports car series in North America—sports car racing has long been a boom-and-bust proposition, as the big factories pump in tons of money until one dominates, and then the losers pull out because they aren’t getting return on investment and the winner pulls out because it has all the advertising materiel it needs.

Further, the sport has been plagued by mismanagement; racers are a competitive lot, and not necessarily good businessmen. Squabbles over rules, waivers, purses, cooperation with international series, have led to the demise of many good series.

So have simple economics: the most famous North American series, the original Can-Am, went out of business because Porsche chased out the other factories, but also because of the fuel shortage and the cost of operating a nearly unlimited racing machine with a gigantic engine—plus the cost of hauling the car and crew around the continent to the various races.

ALMS has faced all of these challenges, and has pretty much muffed every one. The series grew slowly in popularity from the turn of the century until it became the premier series in America. Porsche, Audi, Acura, Chevrolet, Dodge, BMW, Ferrari, Aston Martin all were represented. The racing was first-rate and fans loved it.

By 2007 and 2008, the series was tremendously popular and profitable; with factories spending money and advertising their involvement, there was enough for everyone. Grids were full, sponsors were happy, and the series was broadcast on the premier cable racing network. All seemed well.

Two problems were brewing, though.

First, the series, sanctioned by the French body ACO, which operates the Le Mans 24, set rules which didn’t necessarily favor the U.S. market. Porsche was able to win a championship from the unbeatable Audi team using a cheaper car, which caused a lot of complaint; many of the GT teams (cars modified from street cars instead of purpose-built racing cars) got too many rules waivers (“We need to be 50 pounds lighter than the competition because our base design is inherently slower; give us a waiver or we will leave.”)

The tension created was not addressed; ALMS management opted to follow the French standards to the detriment of the U.S. series.

Worse still, ALMS didn’t promote itself. When money was rolling in, it went—who knows where? It didn’t go to the teams (“factory” teams were not allowed to win purses, but the money not claimed by the factories didn’t go to the private teams; the series kept it.)

When ALMS was riding high, it didn’t plan for the possibility that one day things might change; it didn’t maximize the great stuff it had to capture more fans, more teams, and more sponsors; it didn’t push to get the name “ALMS” into every household, the way NASCAR did.

So, when the global economy contracted in 2008 … Porsche and Audi pulled out, Aston went to the European series, everyone else cut back, and suddenly there was no money for promotion. After nearly a decade of growth, the series had nothing to show for it and nothing saved for a rainy day.

No More Petit?

Sebring has been an international motorsports icon since it opened for racing in 1952. That race is safe. The name carries enough clout that it will likely survive whatever political and financial furors upset the rest of racing. The European manufacturers want it as access to the North American market, and the sanctioning bodies want it because of its history and because of its location: the season can start in March in Florida while Europe is too cold for racing.

Further, it is built out of an old airport in an industrial area. Financial pressure to repurpose the land is low.

There will likely always be a 12-hour race at Sebring, so long as people race cars. Sebring seems safe.

Petit Le Mans though, is in a much different position.

With a much shorter history, encroached upon by suburbia, and now stripped of its North American roots or sidelined entirely, the status of Petit is shaky.

Without the prestige of the biggest international teams, can the race survive? Without television coverage, can the race make money for the teams? Will it cost more to race Petit than it pays off in sponsorship exposure? Will the fans still flock to Georgia every fall to see the race, if it is contested by two dozen underfunded teams?

At what point will Dr. Panoz have to say, “Sorry, the race costs too much more to run than it brings in; the real estate developers win.”?

I’d strongly suggest that everyone who has the slightest interest in auto racing consider a road trip next weekend. The 14th—and possibly last—running of Petit Le Mans will start at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 1 at the Road Atlanta racetrack in Braselton, Ga.

[Shifty]

Kinda explains why teh ALMS is bowing to BMW-RLL.....they want Rahal to chuck 'em some bucks..... That also would explain why teh other manufacturers aren't squealing too much about BMW's obvious cheating....without Rahal's ducats, ALMS may be going away.

[MOTV8]

I hate teh French.

There, I said it.

Audi pushes past Peugeot late in Monday testing at Road Atlanta

September 26, 2011 9:54 p.m.

Audi Sport’s Romain Dumas waited until the second-to-last lap Monday to set the fastest time in the second day of testing for the 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda – a 1:08.394 (133.696 mph) lap at Road Atlanta. The Frenchman set the time in the diesel-powered Audi R18 TDI that he will share in Saturday’s 1,000-mile/10-hour race with Timo Bernhard and Marcel Fassler.

Dumas’ time ended what had been a day of dominance for Peugeot Sport Total, which sat 1-2 for most the afternoon.

The No. 7 entry of Sebastien Bourdais, Anthony Davidson and Simon Pagenaud ended Monday second at 1:08.569 (133.355 mph). The second Peugeot of Franck Montagny, Stephane Sarrazin and Alexander Wurz sat third at 1:09.311 (131.927 mph).

“At first we had a problem finding the best setup on the car for the race. But in the afternoon I was very happy with the progress and balance. It felt really good,” Sarrazin said. “Yes the car is new but the track and the job are still the same.

My last three years here have been very good with a runner-up in 2008 and wins in 2009 and 2010.

“Physically the race should not be too difficult because it is a shorter track. But you have to be extremely careful with traffic as it could quickly end your race.”

Petit Le Mans, the final round of the 2011 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón, marks the resumption of a Road Atlanta battle between the two diesel powers that dates back to 2008. Peugeot won the last two years, and both factory teams are back with first-year prototype coupes. The Audi bested Peugeot in June at the 24 Hours of the Le Mans and the French manufacturer is looking for retribution this weekend. The 908 was fastest at Road Atlanta on Sunday with a 1:08.291 (133.898 mph).

In LMP2, Level 5 Motorsports’ Luis Diaz set the quickest lap at 1:13.291 (124.763 mph) in the team’s new HPD ARX-01g. The Mexican star – who is teaming with Scott Tucker and Marino Franchitti – also posted his time two laps from the end of the session.

Level 5 was 1-2 in the class with the second HPD prototype of Tucker, Christophe Bouchut and Joao Barbosa only 0.438 seconds back. Signatech Nissan’s ORECA 03 prototype of Franck Mailleux, Lucas Ordonez and Jean-Karl Vernay was third in class at 1:14.003 (123.563 mph).

Flying Lizard Motorsports, winner of the most recent ALMS round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, was the quickest GTE Pro car at 1:20.251 (113.943 mph). The car of Jörg Bergmeister, Patrick Long and Marc Lieb led a pack of four class cars that were within 0.586 seconds.

Risi Competizione’s Ferrari F458 Italia of Raphael Matos, Jaime Melo and Toni Vilander was next at 1:20.669 (113.352 mph). It was 0.107 seconds ahead of Corvette Racing’s Corvette C6.R of Olivier Beretta, Antonio Garcia and Tommy Milner.

AF Corse’s Ferrari F430 GT of Rui Aguas, Justin Bell and Rob Kauffman was the quickest of the GTE Am cars at 1:21.217 (112.587 mph). It was more than a second clear of Larbre Racing’s Corvette C6.R of Patrick Bornhauser, Gabriele Gardel and Julien Canal.

In LMP Challenge, Genoa Racing’s ORECA FLM09 posted the class-leading time of 1:18.563 (116.391 mph) in the morning session. Jordan Gregor, Bassam Kronfli and Aldous Mitchell are teaming in the car.

TRG’s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup entry of Ben Keating, Jim Norman and Dion von Moltke went quickest in GT Challenge with a lap of 1:25.446 (107.015 mph). Magnus Racing’s Porsche of John Potter and Craig Stanton was second at 1:26.224 (106.049 mph).

The next test session for ALMS cars is set for 2:45-4:45 p.m. Wednesday.

The 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda is set for 11:30 a.m. on Saturday from Road Atlanta. The race will air on ABC at 4 p.m. on Sunday. Live coverage will be available in the U.S. on ESPN3 or outside the U.S. on americanlemans.com.

[Desertdawg]

This should be on our smilie list...

It is done!

[Shifty]

This should be on our smilie list...

It is done!

[MOTV8]

C :Jake: L!!!

Teh massive posting continues...but I'll be glad when this is over and I can retire and go back to surfing pron.

ALMS: Petit Le Mans GT Preview

SPEED.com breaks down this year’s starting field in GT and GTE-Am with a car-by-car look at each entry as well as previewing the GTC contenders...

John Dagys | Posted September 27, 2011 Braselton, GA

The action-packed GT category has often taken center stage in the American Le Mans Series this year for its variety and close-fought racing. Add in a stacked grid of Intercontinental Le Mans Cup contenders to the already overflowing ALMS variety and you get this weekend’s 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda.

With eight manufacturers represented through 25 total entries among the GT and GTE-Am categories, nearly half of the starting field in Saturday’s 1,000-mile/10-hour marathon will consist of highly competitive production-based machinery.

Split into two categories to conform to ILMC regulations, GTE-Am is essentially a mirror image of GT (or GTE-Pro, as commonly known in Europe) except that each car must be at least one-year-old and have at least one gentlemen driver on-board for a two-driver lineup, or two amateur drivers for a three-driver approach.

While the championship in ALMS was recently decided at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the battle continues in ILMC, which will no doubt add further excitement to the already popular formula.

Browse through SPEED.com’s Petit Le Mans car-by-car preview of the GT and GTE-Am categories as well as looking ahead to what will unfold in GTC.

GT (19 Entries)

Car No.: 3

Team: Corvette Racing

Car: Corvette C6.R

Drivers: Tommy Milner - Olivier Beretta - Antonio Garcia

Dagys says: The perennial favorites in any endurance race, Corvette Racing has been through a rough patch in American Le Mans Series competition since its 24 Hours of Le Mans win in June. It’s been particularly the case for the No. 3 car of regular season drivers Tommy Milner and Olivier Beretta, who haven’t been on an ALMS podium since Sebring.

While the duo, along with Antonio Garcia, claimed a popular class victory at La Sarthe, Milner and Beretta have nothing but bad luck in the regular-length races, most notably suffering from multiple on-track incidents. Returning to a full-length endurance race could be all that’s needed for an end-of-season turnaround.

Car No.: 4

Team: Corvette Racing

Car: Corvette C6.R

Drivers: Oliver Gavin - Jan Magnussen - Richard Westbrook

Dagys says: While the No. 3 machine has arguably yet to put in a flawless performance, Corvette Racing’s sister entry of Oliver Gavin and Jan Magnussen have enjoyed quite the opposite fortunes. With four podium finishes to their credit, including a win at Mosport, the duo sits a comfortable second in the drivers’ championship.

While BMW Team RLL’s Joey Hand and Dirk Muller have already clinched the GT title, Gavin and Magnussen, along with the help of ace Richard Westbrook, will be gunning for a repeat win here, which came in dramatic fashion last year on the final lap. The trio will likely be hoping for a more dominant performance from the No. 4 Corvette C6.R this time around.

Car No.: 17

Team: Team Falken Tire

Car: Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

Drivers: Wolf Henzler - Bryan Sellers - Martin Ragginger

Dagys says: The revelation of the 2011 ALMS season, Team Falken Tire has proven itself to be a legitimate contender on any given weekends. Winners in the rain-soaked Mid-Ohio round and dry street fight in Baltimore, Bryan Sellers and Porsche factory driver Wolf Henzler clearly know how to get the job done.

The big question this weekend will come from Derrick Walker-led team’s long-distance performance, although the No. 17 car was the highest-running Porsche at Sebring prior to running into late-race mechanical issues. This time around, Falken is no doubt a darkhorse pick for the podium.

Car No.: 40

Team: Robertson Racing

Car: Ford GT

Drivers: Andrea Robertson - Melanie Snow - David Murry

Dagys says: After missing the last two races due to budget concerns, local favorites Robertson Racing return to action with a downsized single-car Ford GT program for Andrea Robertson, Melanie Snow and David Murry.

While certainly not contenders for the class win or podium, a top-10 finish would be a fitting send-off, as question marks surround the team’s participation in 2012.

Car No.: 44

Team: Flying Lizard Motorsports

Car: Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

Drivers: Darren Law - Seth Neiman - Marco Holzer

Dagys says: Flying Lizard Motorsports’ No. 44 Porsche sees both Darren Law and Porsche factory driver Marco Holzer unite after splitting the season as team principal Seth Neiman’s co-driver. The trio, who also drove together at the season-opening Twelve Hours of Sebring, could be in contention for a top-10 finish on Saturday if the car stays out of trouble.

Car No.: 45

Team: Flying Lizard Motorsports

Car: Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

Drivers: Jorg Bergmeister - Patrick Long - Marc Lieb

Dagys says: Defending class champions Jorg Bergmeister and Patrick Long finally returned to victory lane last time out at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, breaking an eight-race winless streak which dated back to Monterey last year.

While far back in the championship standings, Bergmeister and Long, joined again by endurance ace Marc Lieb, head in as one of the class favorites for the win on Saturday. Despite the aging Porsche 911 GT3 RSR not particularly having the strength in the sprint races, the rear-engined beast will likely be well-suited for the 1,000-mile/10-hour marathon.

Car No.: 48

Team: Paul Miller Racing

Car: Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

Drivers: Bryce Miller - Sascha Maassen - Emmanuel Collard

Dagys says: On the heels of a season-best fourth place finish on the streets of Baltimore, a similar result this weekend would be considered a win for the Yokohama-shod Porsche outfit.

While bolstered by the addition of Emmanuel Collard to the driving lineup, joining fellow former Porsche factory driver Sascha Maassen and Bryce Miller, the competition in GT is perhaps just too steep to consider this entry a formidable threat for a top-five, let alone a podium.

Car No.: 51

Team: AF Corse (ILMC)

Car: Ferrari F458 Italia

Drivers: Giancarlo Fisichella - Gimmi Bruni - Pierre Kaffer

Dagys says: Winners at the Six Hours of Silverstone, which helped seal the Le Mans Series GTE-Pro title for both drivers and team, AF Corse heads into the final two ILMC rounds of the season eying the coveted ILMC title. The Italian squad currently leads the teams’ championship and also holds a slim advantage over BMW in the manufacturers’ title race.

The ultra-quick driving lineup of Giancarlo Fisichella, Gimmi Bruni and Pierre Kaffer will be tough to beat and is one of the few season-long ILMC entries that will immediately mix in with the leading ALMS contenders. Bruni claimed pole at Sebring in the team’s F430 GT, meaning another pole run with its well-developed F458 Italia is likely in the cards again.

Car No.: 55

Team: BMW Motorsport (ILMC)

Car: BMW M3 GT

Drivers: Bill Auberlen - Dirk Werner - Augusto Farfus

Dagys says: Running under the BMW Motorsport banner for ILMC points, BMW Team RLL will be gunning for its fourth victory of the season to help wrap up the teams’ and manufacturers’ championships in the ALMS.

Drivers Bill Auberlen and Dirk Werner, joined again this weekend by WTCC ace Augusto Farfus, have yet to visit victory lane this season but will undoubtedly be strong, especially as both BMWs have been given back the larger, ACO air restrictor, which brings the M3 GTs back to pre-Mid-Ohio performance levels.

Car No.: 56

Team: BMW Motorsport (ILMC)

Car: BMW M3 GT

Drivers: Dirk Muller - Joey Hand - Andy Priaulx

Dagys says: The sister BMW of newly crowned champions Dirk Muller and Joey Hand, along with ILMC regular Andy Priaulx, is arguably the stronger of the two Bimmers. The trio has enjoyed a remarkable record of endurance race success this year, having scored a class victory at Sebring and a podium at Le Mans with BMW Team Schnitzer.

Another win, to help BMW in their ILMC title chase, could be pivotal before the effort is handed back to Schnitzer to complete the season in China. BMW currently trails Ferrari by a considerable 20 points in the manufacturers’ championship, meaning it could be make or break this weekend, especially with less pressure on the ALMS titles.

Car No.: 58

Team: Luxury Racing (ILMC)

Car: Ferrari F458 Italia

Drivers: Ralph Firman - Francois Jakubowski - David Hallyday

Dagys says: Rookies to international competition, Luxury Racing has been slowly but successfully learning the ropes in its debut season with Ferrari F458 Italias. The French squad, assisted by Risi Competizione in the European events, is on the heels of a season-high second place at Silverstone, although earned by its all-pro No. 59 car.

The Pro-Am driving trio of former F1 driver Ralph Firman, Francois Jakubowski and David Hallyday will unlikely make any dent in the top-10 overall but it’s nonetheless to see both Luxury Ferraris Stateside this weekend after only one made the ILMC season start at Sebring in March.

Car No.: 59

Team: Luxury Racing (ILMC)

Car: Ferrari F458 Italia

Drivers: Stephane Ortelli - Frederic Makowiecki - Anthony Beltoise

Dagys says: Luxury’s all-pro lineup of Stephane Ortelli and Fred “Mako” impressed at Silverstone, leading much of the six-hour race before settling for second in a race of fuel mileage.

This time, it’s one of the few European-based ILMC contenders that could put up a fight for a podium in GT. Don’t count the No. 59 car out from a potential pole, either, especially with Mako at the wheel.

Car No.: 64

Team: Lotus Jetalliance (ILMC)

Car: Lotus Evora

Drivers: Oskar Slingerland - Martin Rich - Kasper Jensen

Dagys says: Lotus’ new GTE-spec Evora makes its North American debut, with two of the factory-assisted sportscars set to embark on their first-ever Petit Le Mans.

Run by Austrian squad Jetalliance, the semi-works effort isn’t likely to make a lasting impression, especially with an uninspired driving lineup in the No. 64 entry. A finish would be an accomplishment after a recent string of reliability woes.

Car No.: 65

Team: Lotus Jetalliance (ILMC)

Car: Lotus Evora

Drivers: James Rossiter - Johnny Mowlem - David Heinemeier-Hansson

Dagys says: The No. 65 car, usually run as an all-pro lineup, features tech mogul David Heinemeier-Hansson, who made his ALMS debut last month at Road America in a GTC Porsche. The Dane, who drove the No. 64 car at Silverstone, joins ILMC season regulars Johnny Mowlem and James Rossiter in what’s no doubt the strongest of the two Lotus entries.

However, stacked against the likes of BMW, Porsche and Ferrari, it’s unclear how this tiny and still underpowered car will perform around the high-speed 2.54-mile Road Atlanta circuit.

Car No.: 98

Team: JaguarRSR

Car: Jaguar XKR

Drivers: PJ Jones - Rocky Moran Jr. - Shane Lewis

Dagys says: Despite having seen a recent string of improvements, the Paul Gentilozzi-led JaguarRSR outfit has still struggled up against the seasoned veterans in GT. The Michigan-based team returns to Road Atlanta, hoping for a turnaround in fortunes after mechanical and incidents have knocked its two Jaguar XKRs out of the running on most occasions.

A finish in the grueling endurance race, as the No. 99 machine led by Bruno Junqueria achieved at Sebring, could bode well heading into a planned 2012 return for the British marque.

Car No.: 99

Team: JaguarRSR

Car: Jaguar XKR

Drivers: Bruno Junqueria - Kenny Wilden - Ian James

Dagys says: The team’s No. 99 entry, considered the stronger of the two, is still unlikely to make a lasting impression on the field. Flashes of brilliance, including Junqueria’s fastest lap in GT at Mosport, has proven to not make enough significant headway in the team’s ultimate goal of podiums and eventual victories.

Car No.: 01

Team: Extreme Speed Motorsports

Car: Ferrari F458 Italia

Drivers: Scott Sharp - Johannes van Overbeek - Dominik Farnbacher

Dagys says: Returning to the site of their first podium and hot on the heels of a third place finish at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, all of the ingredients for Extreme Speed Motorsports to make a powerful impact this weekend are there. With season regulars Scott Sharp and Johannes van Overbeek joined again by Dominik Farnbacher, the German completes a potentially winning lineup.

The No. 01 Ferrari F458 Italia has also made significant strides through the season, which bodes well heading into the team’s second longest race of the year. Another podium is certainly in the cards, if not a potential maiden win.

Car No.: 02

Team: Extreme Speed Motorsports

Car: Ferrari F458 Italia

Drivers: Ed Brown - Guy Cosmo - Rob Bell

Dagys says: ESM’s sister Prancing Horse is unlikely to fight for top honors, or even the podium, but the ever-improving duo of Ed Brown and team leader Guy Cosmo, joined again by GT ace Rob Bell, will likely be in the hunt for a top-10, if its Ferrari F458 Italia does not run into any reliability woes.

Car No.: 062

Team: Risi Competizione

Car: Ferrari F458 Italia

Drivers: Jaime Melo - Toni Vilander - Rafa Matos

Dagys says: One of the few cars carrying a 0 in front of its ALMS season-long number due to a number conflict with an ILMC entrant, Risi Competizione is another one of the contenders for the class win, although inconsistent runs by Jaime Melo and Toni Vilander have caught the duo and the Houston-based squad out of the championship hunt this season.

The duo came close to nailing down their second victory of the season at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca but Melo ran out of fuel on the last lap after making an aggressive maneuver on the No. 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche of Jorg Bergmeister, which resulted in the Ferrari getting demoted to sixth place in class.

Following a scrap in qualifying at Baltimore and now the recent series of incidents in Monterey, will the Flying Lizard and Risi Competizione rivalry continue? And could it have an effect on the outcome of Saturday’s race?

On the driver front, Risi adds open-wheel ace Rafa Matos to the lineup, which could play to their benefit.

GTE-Am (6 Entries)

Car No.: 50

Team: Larbre Competition (ILMC)

Car: Corvette C6.R

Drivers: Patrick Bornhauser - Julien Canal - Gabriele Gardel

Dagys says: Comfortably ahead in the ILMC teams’ championship, aided by their 1-2 finish at Le Mans, Larbre Competition could lock up the GTE-Am title this weekend with a bit of luck. Nonetheless, the No. 50 machine, the third Corvette C6.R in this year’s field, heads in as one of the favorites.

The Jack Leconte-led crew have proven to be one of the most professional privateers in the business. And with drivers Patrick Bornhauser, Julien Canal and Gabriel Gardel, combined with the strength of the V8-powered beast, Larbre could end up with its second major endurance victory of the season.

Car No.: 57

Team: Krohn Racing (ILMC)

Car: Ferrari F430 GT

Drivers: Tracy Krohn - Nic Jonsson - Michele Rugolo

Dagys says: Winners at Sebring, Krohn Racing may not yet be mathematically out of the championship hunt, but a disappointing performance at Sebring certainly didn’t help matters. As one of only two U.S.-based teams competing in the ILMC, the Georgia-based squad will be looking for another home victory, literally in their backyard, as their shop is located adjacent to Road Atlanta.

As the GTE-Am team with the most experience around the 2.54-mile circuit, Tracy Krohn, Nic Jonsson and Michele Rugolo could have the heads up on the competition. And a win before ending the season in China could bode well as the team works on their 2012 plans.

Car No.: 60

Team: Gulf AMR Middle East (ILMC)

Car: Aston Martin Vantage

Drivers: Fabien Giroix - Roald Goethe - Michael Wainright

Dagys says: Having returned at Silverstone after suffering a massive accident at Le Mans, the Dave Price-led Gulf AMR Middle East crew could be fighting for a podium, after what’s no doubt been a rough entry into international competition. Drivers Fabien Giroix, Roald Goethe and Michael Wainright managed to record the team’s first points of the season last time out. Another finish would be a top priority yet again.

Car No.: 61

Team: AF Corse (ILMC)

Car: Ferrari F430 GT

Drivers: Rob Kauffman - Rui Aguas - Justin Bell

Dagys says: One of the more interesting lineups in this year’s field, two-thirds of AF Corse’s No. 71 driving squad from Le Mans returns in a GTE-Am class Ferrari F430 GT. Portuguese veteran Rui Aguas and MWR co-owner Rob Kauffman line up alongside SPEED’s very own Justin Bell.

Bell, who worked the pit lane during this year’s twice-around-the-clock French classic for SPEED, interviewing Michael Waltrip on multiple occasions, will take the place of the NASCAR star for the 1,000-mile/10-hour endurance classic.

On paper, this entry could be one of the wild cards, especially with former Le Mans winner Bell at the wheel.

Car No.: 62

Team: CRS Racing (ILMC)

Car: Ferrari F430 GT

Drivers: Pierre Ehret - Phil Quaife - Roger Wills

Dagys says: In CRS Racing’s penultimate race as a race team before it shifts focus entirely towards customer support of McLaren’s new MP4-12C, the British squad will be looking to go out on a high note. Although its driver lineup, led by hot shoe Phil Quaife and endurance veteran Pierre Ehret, isn’t likely to get the job done while up against some stiff competition.

Car No.: 63

Team: Proton Competition (ILMC)

Car: Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

Drivers: Richard Lietz - Christian Ried

Dagys says: Known more commonly as Team Felbermayr-Proton, the German squad owned by Christian Ried could be one of the picks for the race win, and most certainly the pole, with reigning Le Mans Series co-champion Richard Lietz at the wheel.

Runner-ups in the ILMC teams’ championship thanks to a series of strong runs by fellow Porsche factory driver Patrick Long, the No. 63 entry could still take top honors in the title, although a long shot.

GTC (7 Entries)

With “only” 53 cars allowed to take Saturday’s start, and 57 on the entry list, a handful of cars will be headed home before the green flag drops on the race. Given the way the rules play out, four of the six GTC cars entered are “locked in” to the race.

All those which have completed in every race weekend to date - both TRG Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars as well as the championship-leading Black Swan Racing entry of Tim Pappas and the No. 23 Alex Job Racing machine - are safely in the race, given they complete the required night-time practice laps for each driver and qualify within 110 percent of the class pole sitter.

But those in question, including the No. 77 Magnus Racing effort, which has three podiums to its credit this season, and the No. 11 JDX Racing, head into qualifying on Friday with a bit of tension, not knowing if they’ll make the show.

With both Black Swan and TRG essentially locked in the field, the championship battle will likely go down to the wire. Pappas currently holds a 19-point lead over TRG’s Spencer Pumepelly and Duncan Ende, while the Boston-based Black Swan crew enjoys an even-slimmer seven-point cushion over Kevin Bucker’s powerhouse two-car squad in the teams’ championship.

-and, as if that wasn't enough already-

Corvette Racing at Petit Le Mans: The Long and Winding Road Atlanta

by CORVETTE RACING on SEPTEMBER 26, 2011

Corvette Team Seeks Repeat GT Victory in American Le Mans Series Season Finale

BRASELTON, Ga., Sept. 26, 2011 – Corvette Racing’s twin Compuware Corvette C6.R race cars have completed thousands of laps since the team’s debut in 1999, but the one that stands out is the last lap at Petit Le Mans in 2010. After more than nine hours of racing, Corvette driver Oliver Gavin caught and passed the class-leading Ferrari within sight of the final corners. As the fuel-starved Ferrari faltered, Gavin swept past to score Corvette Racing’s eighth win at Petit Le Mans.

Now Corvette Racing is targeting its ninth Petit Le Mans title and its 11th win at the classic Road Atlanta circuit on Saturday, October 1. Scheduled to run for 10 hours or 1,000 miles – whichever comes first – Petit Le Mans is the third jewel in the Triple Crown of endurance racing. Corvette Racing notched a podium finish in the season-opening Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, and won the GTE Pro class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June. The most successful team in ALMS history is seeking to wrap up the 2011 season with a repeat victory on the classic 2.54-mile, 12-turn road course.

“I vividly remember those final laps at Road Atlanta last year,” Gavin said. “I was having a dialogue with my engineer, Chuck Houghton, over the radio, and I could tell from his voice that he was sweating the fuel numbers. It was going to be very close for us; he was telling me to save fuel, telling me the gaps to the cars in front and behind. It was one of the most intense couple of laps I’ve had in a race car.

“I can still see the Ferrari now, weaving from side to side to pick up the last drops of fuel,” he recalled. “It was all a blur when I went by him. I took the checkered flag, but it wasn’t until I’d reached Turn 3 that Chuck finally told me that we’d won the race. The tone of his voice told me that we’d managed to pull off an amazing victory!”

A repeat at Petit Le Mans is just the kind of challenge that Corvette Racing relishes. The race, which is also the penultimate round of the International Le Mans Cup, has attracted a topflight field that includes the Audi and Peugeot factory LMP1 teams and additional factory-backed GT teams. With 58 entries, including 19 cars in the production-based GT class, the task will be formidable.

“Petit Le Mans is a brutal race every year, regardless of how many cars are competing,” said Gavin, who will share the No. 4 Corvette C6.R with Jan Magnussen and Richard Westbrook. “Whether it’s the weather, the surface, the nature of the track, the number of cars, it always turns up something unusual. It’s going to be a battle just to get through the race. Petit Le Mans is always an epic event.”

American Tommy Milner will make his first appearance with Corvette Racing at Road Atlanta with teammates Olivier Beretta and Antonio Garcia in the Le Mans-winning No. 3 Corvette C6.R. Milner recognizes the challenges: “The track is a lot of fun to drive by yourself, but it’s very tough when you add in fast prototypes,” the American noted. “It’s going to be packed in the pit lane and it will be tight out on the track. The goal is to have a clean race and not get caught up in someone else’s accident. That’s going to be difficult with all of the traffic, so you have to put yourself in the best position possible for the duration.”

The race will start at 11:30 a.m. and end in darkness. The sun will set at 7:20 p.m. at Road Atlanta, and nightfall will present special problems for the GT class drivers.

“The Audi prototypes in particular have a very aggressive lighting package, and if they flash their lights, you have no depth perception and can’t judge the distance to the car behind you,” Gavin explained. “The first part of the track has a lot of changes in direction; you’re trying to keep an eye on the racing line while watching everyone behind you at the same time. That’s when Corvette Racing’s spotting system with the crew chiefs watching out for us is priceless.”

In spite of the dangers and difficulties, Road Atlanta is held in high regard by the Corvette crew. “It’s a real race track,” Milner declared. “It’s one of the classic race circuits, like Mosport, Watkins Glenn, and Road America. It’s a track with character.”

Corvette Racing’s next event is Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga., on Saturday, October 1. The 10-hour or 1,000-mile race will start at 11:30 a.m. ET. Live video coverage will be available on ESPN3.com in the U.S. and americanlemans.com for international users. ABC will televise Petit Le Mans on Sunday, October 2, at 4 p.m. ET.

[MOTV8]

Hey Shifter, tell your Ford-fan buddy it's not looking so good...

ALMS: Robertson Searching For 2012 Funding

David Robertson says “50/50 chance” of returning to American Le Mans Series GT grid next year...

While the turbulent economy has impacted many teams up and down the American Le Mans Series paddock, it’s proven to be even more difficult for some of the privateers. Case in point with Robertson Racing, which has competed for the last four years out of its own pockets, but have struggled in finding sponsorship to keep its pair of self-developed Ford GT’s on the track.

Despite scoring a podium finish in its 24 Hours of Le Mans debut earlier this year, the husband-and-wife-owned squad has been on the sidelines for the past two races due to lack of funding, as team team owner David Robertson explains to SPEED.com.

“The reality is very simple,” he said. “We started this thing in 2007 with money that I made selling my interest in several businesses. I budgeted a certain amount of it to have fun racing. That pile of money has been spent. It was basically spent finishing Le Mans. So the question is what do you do next?”

David and wife Andrea competed in two additional ALMS races together following their Le Mans before the retired airline pilot decided to step out of the No. 40 machine to make way for accomplished GT racer Melanie Snow, whose arrival formed the first all-female driving squad in the ALMS in over a decade.

Despite its unique lineup, aimed at sparking interest in and outside of the racing community, the Road Atlanta-based squad ended up sitting out the Baltimore and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca races due to lack of funding.

This weekend’s Petit Le Mans, which sees the return of a single Ford GT for the hardworking squad, could be its last in professional sportscar competition if a deal is not struck for 2012.

“We’ve had a pretty aggressive sponsorship-seeking program going on,” David explained. “We funded a couple more races with money that I frankly intended for other purposes. But we’re doing that while we aggressively look for sponsors.”

With the 2009 ALMS GTC co-champion Snow again joining Andrea Robertson and David Murry behind the wheel this weekend, the Robertson’s are hopeful that a strong performance could help them find the necessary resources to keep the program going into next year.

But despite being in negotiations with several unique funding concepts for 2012, David admitted there are no guarantees, giving 50/50 odds of an ALMS return. Plan B, he said, could see he and Andrea shift gears to HSR competition with their pair of Ford GTs, which are ACO homologated through the end of next year.

“If we can make [an ALMS program] work next year, that’s a better deal,” David said. “It would keep everyone working and we could really have some fun. We have all of these great people. The economy is not going to magically revive itself. It matters for everyone and it all could be solved by [sponsorship].”

Mebbe they can get Falken to foot teh bill again...? Hate to see 'em hang it up.

[Shifty]

And so teh exodus begins....

[MOTV8]

ALMS: Audi Quickest In Wednesday Petit Le Mans Test

Romain Dumas puts No. 1 Audi R18 TDI on top for second consecutive test session at Road Atlanta...

Audi Sport Team Joest led the way in Wednesday's test session at Road Atlanta as American Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup teams prepare for Saturday's Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda.

The No. 1 Audi R18 TDI of Romain Dumas laid down a 1:09.550 lap time early in the two-hour session, edging out the No. 8 Peugeot 908 of Franck Montagny by a mere 0.091 seconds.

Tom Kristensen's No. 2 Audi wasn't far behind in third, as the eight-time Le Mans winner turned a 1:09.875 lap time, just over two-tenths slower than his teammate's best time.

With the No. 7 Peugeot of Anthony Davidson, who makes his return to the wheel since breaking his collar-bone in August, slotting in fourth, it was another factory diesel sweep of the top positions.

The Sebring-winning No. 10 Team ORECA Matmut Peugeot 908 HDi-FAP was fifth, ahead of the best gasoline-powered LMP1, the No. 6 Muscle Milk AMR Lola-Aston Martin of Klaus Graf in sixth.

Graf's 1:11.919 lap time was just over two seconds slower than Dumas' best in the No. 1 Audi.

JK Vernay made a late charge to top the time charts in LMP2, as the reigning Indy Lights champion turned a 1:13.852 in his No. 26 Signatech Nissan Oreca 03 Nissan on the final lap of the session.

It bumped the No. 33 Level 5 Motorsports HPD ARX-01g of Christophe Bouchut, who had set the quickest lap of the session at the time.

Level 5's sister No. 055 entry was third in class.

In GT, the No. 062 Risi Competizione Ferrari F458 of Jaime Melo led the way. The Brazilian, fresh from last weekend's Six Hours of Estoril, posted a 1:20.102 in his Prancing Horse, edging out the No. 4 Corvette Racing C6.R of Oliver Gavin by 0.029 seconds.

Gimmi Bruni was third and quickest of the ILMC contenders in his No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari, ahead of the No. 55 BMW Motorsport BMW M3 GT of Bill Auberlen. The No. 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche rounded out the top-five.

The No. 61 AF Corse Ferrari F430 GT of Rui Aguas was quickest in GTE-Am, thanks to the Portuguese driver's 1:21.196 lap time that would have put him tenth on the GT time charts.

CORE autosport led a 1-2 in LMPC, with the No. 06 Oreca FLM09 of Gunnar Jeannette setting a 1:17.298 lap time. Jeannette edged out teammate Ryan Dalziel by 0.297 seconds.

GTC was topped by the No. 54 Black Swan Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.

There were only three red flags, despite a considerable 55 cars taking time over the two-hour session. The No. 40 Robertson Racing Ford GT and No. 64 Lotus Jetalliance Lotus Evora had a coming together in Turn 1 early on, while the No. 44 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche and No. 58 Luxury Racing Ferrari had separate incidents that brought out another stoppage.

Official practice gets underway Thursday morning.

Petit eye candy:

http://dlstatic.speedtv.com/imageserve/07g71j11SB1DR/575x459.jpg?fit=scale&background=000000

http://dlstatic.speedtv.com/imageserve/0cDgcxT8f08EK/575x459.jpg?fit=scale&background=000000

http://dlstatic.speedtv.com/imageserve/09Pq26N6yT3i9/575x459.jpg?fit=scale&background=000000

http://dlstatic.speedtv.com/imageserve/0d81ap8b1r2Jq/575x459.jpg?fit=scale&background=000000

[Shifty]

[Shifty]

Hear any truth to teh rumor that CR might be racing ILMC/WEC next year?

[MOTV8]

Hear any truth to teh rumor that CR might be racing ILMC/WEC next year?

I remembered posting something WAY back....post #21 on first page of teh thread...what did you hear?

[MOTV8]

Qualifying today! Between the stock market and this sh!t my ADD is kicking my ass....

PAGENAUD PUTS PEUGEOT ON TOP IN PETIT LE MANS NIGHT PRACTICE

Another closely fought session between French manufacturer and Audi

Simon Pagenaud and Peugeot Sport Total struck back Thursday night with the fastest time in the day’s third practice for the 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda. The young Frenchman set a lap of 1:09.027 (132.470 mph) on the final lap of the two-hour practice at Road Atlanta in the diesel-powered Peugeot 908 that he will share with Sebastian Bourdais and Anthony Davidson.

Peugeot is looking for a third straight overall victory in the 1,000-mile/10-hour classic that also serves as the final round of the American Le Mans Series presented by Patrón. Pagenaud’s time was a scant 0.080 seconds faster than Audi Sport Team Joest’s Romain Dumas in the first of Audi’s R18 coupes. Stephane Sarrazin in the second Peugeot was third at 1:09.186.

The top three cars were within 0.159 seconds, setting the stage for an epic qualifying session Friday afternoon.

In LMP2, Jean-Karl Vernay set the fastest time of 1:13.864 (123.795 mph) in Signatech Nissan’s ORECA 03-Nissan that he will share with Franck Mailleux and Lucas Ordonez. The young Frenchman was 0.957 seconds quicker than Level 5 Motorsports’ Marino Franchitti in his HPD ARX-01g. The ORECA-Nissan was the class pole-winner at Sebring, but Level 5 won the 12 Hours in a Lola-Honda.

Christophe Bouchut was third quickest in P2 on Thursday at 1:15.942 (120.408 mph) in the second Level 5 HPD.

BMW Motorsports’ Augusto Farfus set the pace in GTE Pro with a lap of 1:19.747 (114.663 mph). Driving the BMW M3 GT that he will share with Bill Auberlen and Dirk Werner, Farfus went 0.280 seconds quicker than Risi Competizione’s Toni Vilander in the team’s Ferrari F458 Italia. Dirk Müller in the second BMW M3 GT finished third in class at 1:20.109 (114.144 mph).

The top eight cars in the class were within 0.625 seconds.

It was just as close in LMP Challenge with the four fastest cars separated by only 0.824 seconds. CORE autosport’s Gunnar Jeannette set the class’ fastest time of 1:17.982 (117.258 mph) on his second to last lap in the ORECA FLM09 that he will drive with Ricardo Gonzalez and Rudy Junco. Intersport Racing’s Kyle Marcelli finished the session second-quickest at 1:18.573 (116.376 mph) with Genoa Racing’s Jordan Grogor just 0.009 seconds behind the young Canadian.

The LMPC title battle between Genoa and CORE will be a focal point of Saturday’s race.

Nic Jonsson went quickest in GTE Am for Krohn Racing on the home track for the driver and his team. Jonsson’s lap of 1:21.637 (112.008 mph) came on his last lap in the Ferrari F430 GT that he will drive with team owner Tracy Krohn and Michele Rugolo.

The gap back to second-place Rui Aguas was a narrow 0.080 seconds in another Ferrari – this one from AF Corse. The CRS Racing F430 GT was third-fastest in the class with Tim Mullen’s lap of 1:22.382 (110.995 mph).

TRG’s Spencer Pumpelly was the fastest driver in GT Challenge, he will share the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with Duncan Ende and Peter Ludwig. Pumpelly’s lap of 1:25.472 (106.982 mph) gave him a 0.374-second gap back to Magnus Racing’s Craig Stanton. Dion von Moltke, driving the second TRG Porsche, set the third-fastest time in class with a 1:26.076 (106.232 mph).

Friday’s final practice session for Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda is set for 10:15 a.m. ET. Qualifying will begin at 2:55 p.m. ET.

-and did you see this? -

DELTAWING LE MANS ASSAULT WILL RIDE ON MICHELIN TIRES

Highcroft, Michelin seek to continue successful partnership

The Highcroft Racing-run entry was announced by the Automobile Club de l’Ouest in June as the successful applicant to occupy “Garage 56” for 2012 – the additional entry reserved for new and unique automotive technologies.

The DeltaWing sports car concept was unveiled today at Road Atlanta as the world's biggest sports car teams prepared for the final round of the 2011 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón - the 10-hour/1,000-mile Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda.

Highcroft's Duncan Dayton revealed the striking red DeltaWing concept with Scott Clark, Chief Operating Officer, Michelin Americas Small Tires.

Michelin is no stranger to working with Highcroft Racing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the American Le Mans Series. The Danbury, Conn.-based team pioneered the use of wide front tires on the LMP1-championship winning Acura ARX-02a in conjunction with Michelin in 2009.

The world’s leading tire manufacturer was also a team partner in Highcroft’s 2010 ALMS championship win as well as its second place run at this year’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida – a race where the Highcroft squad carried a livery promoting the French manufacturer’s latest high performance road tire, the Michelin Pilot Super Sport.

For the DeltaWing project, Michelin will design and develop unique tires for the car. The front tires on the DeltaWing are only four inches wide while both front and rear tires will be fitted to 15-inch rims (compared to 18 inches on traditional LMP1 sports cars).

“To have Michelin on board for the Project 56 DeltaWing program is a real privilege for everyone involved,” said Dayton, Highcroft Racing founder.

“Highcroft Racing has a had a great relationship with Michelin in the past through our Acura/HPD program and we worked very closely together in developing the large format front tire on the ARX-02a.

“With Michelin’s direct input and incredible engineering expertise, we are thrilled to welcome them as a partner for the DeltaWing program.

“For our designer Ben Bowlby to be able to work with the Michelin engineers and have them design these unique tires for the DeltaWing is an amazing opportunity for us.”

Michelin and its partner teams have won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the past 14 years in succession.

Designed by Ben Bowlby, the DeltaWing car features half the weight, half the horsepower and half the aerodynamic drag of a traditional sports car.

Targeting extreme automotive efficiency – gaining maximum performance for minimal use of natural resources – the Project 56 consortium behind the project will now aim for a similar reduction in the amount of tires required to contest the event.

“The initial announcement of the DeltaWing at Le Mans drew tremendous interest around the world, and not just from race fans,” said Nick Shorrock, Director Competition, Michelin.

“The car is very different. People look at this car, say ‘How will this turn?’ and they recognize that there are some very interesting ideas at work. We look forward to being part of the answer.”

The Project 56 consortium features Dayton’s Highcroft Racing running the test and race program, Ben Bowlby and DeltaWing Racing Cars designing the unique entry, Dan Gurney’s All-American Racers building the initial prototype and American Le Mans Series founder Don Panoz providing the unique lightweight R.E.A.M.S. bodywork material and acting as a key advisor.

“When you think of success at Le Mans from a tire manufacturer’s perspective, Michelin is an absolute standout. They have won the race overall 14 times in a row so for us to be able to go to that track which has such unique requirements for a tire is a huge advantage,” Dayton said.

“Michelin’s ability and experience in running multiple stints – 2,3,4 or even 5 stints this year on the same set of tires is unique and their experience is something we are going to rely on heavily.”

Michelin has significantly extended the wear rate of its tires and reduced the number of tires used by its technical partner teams by over 20 percent in just the past three years.

“The DeltaWing is the ultimate efficient race car with half the weight, half the aerodynamic drag and half the horsepower of a traditional LMP1 car. In developing our partnership with Michelin, we hope to use half the number of tires as well,” Dayton said.

Michelin is the first key technical partner announced as part of the new project. Construction of the new car is underway at All American Racers, and Highcroft expects to test the DeltaWing for the first time later this year.

[MOTV8]

More Petit eye candy from Thursday's sessions:

http://photos.americanlemans.com/0353/PL1_6058.jpg

http://photos.americanlemans.com/0353/PL1_6260.jpg

http://photos.americanlemans.com/0353/PL1_6438.jpg

http://photos.americanlemans.com/0353/PL1_7644.jpg

http://photos.americanlemans.com/0353/PL1_6756.jpg

[Shifty]

I hope this am's practice isn't any indication of how it's gonna go....

[MOTV8]

Bimmer's flexing their less-restricted muscles, that's all. I hope they both get run over by Peugeots. ALMS: Audi Leads Incident-Filled Practice 4 Tom Kristensen tops time charts in final practice prior to qualifying for the 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda... The No. 1 Audi Sport Team Joest R18 TDI of Tom Kristensen led the way in the final practice before qualifying for Saturday's Petit Le Mans. Kristensen nailed down a best lap of 1:10.179 in his diesel-powered machine, edging out the No. 7 Team Peugeot Total 908 of Anthony Davidson by 0.168 seconds. The No. 1 Audi of Romain Dumas wound up third, ahead of the No. 8 Peugeot driven by Franck Montagny. Steven Kane was the quickest of the gasoline-powered LMP1s in sixth overall, only 1.328 seconds slower than Kristensen's best time. The 60-minute session ended early following a heavy accident by the No. 89 Intersport Racing Oreca FLM09 of David Ducote, who spun in Turn 1 before getting clobbered by David Murry in the No. 40 Robertson Racing Ford GT. Both cars sustained extensive damage, which brought the checkered flag out 12 minutes early due to extensive cleanup required. It's unclear if both will take part in any further activity this weekend. In LMP2, the No. 26 Signatech Nissan Oreca 03 Nissan of JK Vernay led the way, while Dirk Muller led a BMW 1-2 in GT. Krohn Racing (GTE-Am), CORE autosport (LMPC) and Black Swan Racing (GTC) were quickest in their respective categories. The stop-start session saw two additional red flags, the first for the No. 11 Performance Tech Oreca FLM09, which ground to a halt on track, while Pierre Ragues suffered an accident at the wheel of the No. 15 OAK Racing Oak-Pescarolo Judd that brought out the second stoppage. Qualifying is scheduled to get underway at 2:40 p.m. ET. Top ten in GTE all within just .78 seconds, but yeah the vettes sitting 5th and 10th doesn't make me dance a jig....also surprised the Larbre vette could only manage 4th in GTE AM.

[MOTV8]

Can't believe it. Not that the vettes sit 8th and 9th, but that Bruni in a 458 was able to knock the Bimmers off pole.

[Shifty]

Can't believe it. Not that the vettes sit 8th and 9th, but that Bruni in a 458 was able to knock the Bimmers off pole.

Tommorow better not be teh suck....

[Shifty]

CORVETTES TO START EIGHTH AND NINTH IN PETIT LE MANS

Corvette C6.Rs Qualify Quicker Than Last Year's Pole in Fiercely Competitive GT Field

2011-09-30

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BRASELTON, Ga., Sept. 30, 2011 - The qualifying times for Saturday's Petit Le Mans, the season finale of the American Le Mans Series, are a testament to the intense competition in the GT category. Corvette Racing's twin Compuware Corvette C6.Rs qualified more than a second quicker than they did in 2010, and both were under last year's pole-winning time. In spite of this step up in performance, the Corvettes are slotted eighth and ninth on the GT grid for the 10-hour/1,000-mile race.

Jan Magnussen qualified the No. 4 Corvette C6.R with a fast lap at 1:19.586 (114.895 mph) and will start eighth in the GT category. Tommy Milner was a heartbeat behind at 1:19.619 (114.847 mph) that put the No. 3 Corvette C6.R ninth in the class. Gianmaria Bruni captured the GT pole in the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia with the category's fastest lap at 1:18.699 (116.190 mph). For comparison, last year's pole-winning time was 1:19.889.

"That was the absolute maximum, the fastest we've gone since we arrived, and it was good enough for eighth," said Magnussen. "That's not satisfying at all, but that's what we've got. We gave it our best. The competition is very strong, and it's going to be a long, hard race. I think we have a good race car, and in the areas where we need to race people, we're strong."

Magnussen turned his quickest time on his fourth flying lap around the 2.54-mile, 12-turn circuit. Milner completed three laps, then pitted for a suspension adjustment. He then posted his best time on his seventh lap.

"We've been really good all week long, just trying to make the car incrementally better," Milner said. "We had some understeer that we wanted to dial out of the car, but in qualifying we went a little too far. I came in for a quick change, went back out, and set a decent time.

"The car felt really good, I could have improved a little, but this track is just so tough to get everything right," Milner noted. "I'm not unhappy. We're only a tenth of a second away from P5. We've had great race cars all year long, and I'm looking forward to a great race tomorrow."

With 53 cars scheduled to start the race, the track will be packed and the racing frantic. "It's going to be crowded," Magnussen observed. "Up front there's a vicious battle between the leading prototypes, and in our category there is a battle for second in the championship. There are many European teams that want to do well in the ILMC. It's going to be wild."

Corvette Racing scored its eight victory at Petit Le Mans last year after the race-winning No. 4 Corvette C6.R qualified sixth.

"We're not happy with the Corvettes' qualifying positions today, but we're very proud of the team," said Corvette Racing engineering director Doug Louth. "We left nothing on the table - both drivers said the cars were very good, the best they've had all week. The drivers and engineers have made great progress through the week. Today's qualifying was all that we have right now with the regulations as they are."

Petit Le Mans, which will run for 10 hours or 1,000 miles, will start at 11:30 a.m. ET on Saturday, October 1. Live video coverage will be available on ESPN3.com in the U.S. and americanlemans.com for international users. ABC will televise Petit Le Mans on Sunday, October 2, at 4 p.m. ET.

Petit Le Mans GT Qualifying (Top 10):

Pos./Car No./Drivers/Car/Time

1. 51 Fisichella/Bruni/Kaffer, Ferrari 458 Italia, 1:18.699

2. 55 Auberlen/Werner/Farfus, BMW M3 GT, 1:18.786

3. 56 Mueller/Hand/Priaulx, BMW M3 GT, 1:19.219

4. 062 Melo/Vilander/Matos, Ferrari F458 Italia, 1:19.247

5. 045 Bergmeister/Long/Pilet, Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 1:19.511

6. 01 Sharp/van Overbeek/Farnbacher, Ferrari F458 Italia, 1:19.519

7. 59 Ortelli/Makowiecki/Beltoise, Ferrari 458 Italia, 1:19.539

8. 4 Gavin/Magnussen/Westbrook, Corvette C6.R, 1:19.586

9. 3 Beretta/Milner/Garcia, Corvette C6.R, 1:19.619

10. 02 Brown/Cosmo/Bell, Ferrari F458 Italia, 1:19.705

[MOTV8]

Can't believe it. Not that the vettes sit 8th and 9th, but that Bruni in a 458 was able to knock the Bimmers off pole.

Tommorow better not be teh suck....

They're "strong" where they "need to race" "people" at says Mags.

Does that mean they'll be tough to pass when getting lapped or what....???

Corvettes Eighth And Ninth In Class For Petit Le Mans

Written by Michael Trusler – September 30, 2011

Corvette Racing have qualifed eighth and ninth in class for the Petit Le Mans this weekend, despite an improvement of over a second from last year.

The two C6.R’s also set times that were under that of last years pole time, but both found themselves stuck in eighth and ninth places.

Jan Magnussen qualified the No.4 C6.R eighth with a fastest lap of 1.19.586, while Tommy Miller in the No.3 car set a time of 1.19.619.

“That was the absolute maximum, the fastest we’ve gone since we arrived, and it was good enough for eighth,” said Magnussen. “That’s not satisfying at all, but that’s what we’ve got. We gave it our best. The competition is very strong, and it’s going to be a long, hard race. I think we have a good race car, and in the areas where we need to race people, we’re strong.”

Magnussen turned his quickest time on his fourth flying lap around the 2.54-mile, 12-turn circuit. Milner completed three laps, then pitted for a suspension adjustment. He then posted his best time on his seventh lap.

“We’ve been really good all week long, just trying to make the car incrementally better,” Milner said. “We had some understeer that we wanted to dial out of the car, but in qualifying we went a little too far. I came in for a quick change, went back out, and set a decent time.

“The car felt really good, I could have improved a little, but this track is just so tough to get everything right,” Milner noted. “I’m not unhappy. We’re only a tenth of a second away from P5. We’ve had great race cars all year long, and I’m looking forward to a great race tomorrow.”

There will be 53 cars at the start of the Petit Le Mans and this is a worry for Magnussen.

“It’s going to be crowded,” he observed. “Up front there’s a vicious battle between the leading prototypes, and in our category there is a battle for second in the championship. There are many European teams that want to do well in the ILMC. It’s going to be wild.”

Engineering Director Doug Louth was not satisfied with the performance of his cars, but proud of the team effort.

“We’re not happy with the Corvettes’ qualifying positions today, but we’re very proud of the team,” he said. “We left nothing on the table – both drivers said the cars were very good, the best they’ve had all week. The drivers and engineers have made great progress through the week. Today’s qualifying was all that we have right now with the regulations as they are.”

BAAZZZIIINNGG!

-and-

NO CHINA FOR CORVETTE RACING— Despite giving hints of a possible factory effort at this year’s Six Hours of Zhuhai, Corvette Racing program manger Doug Fehan confirmed to SPEED.com the Pratt & Miller squad will not be heading to China for this year’s Intercontinental Le Mans Cup season-finale.

Fehan, though, hasn’t ruled out mounting an effort in GM’s No. 1 market in 2012. He said that GM’s sportscar program for next year will likely be announced in the next month.

-and-

Wired News Feature on Corvette Racing

[MOTV8]

Gonna slip this in before any race blurbs...

ALMS: Petit Le Mans Friday Notebook

Reactions from the ALMS "State of the Series" address

ALMS CLASS STRUCTURE REMAINS UNCHANGED FOR 2012 — Despite the low car counts in LMP1 and LMP2 triggering rumors of returning to a possible combined LMP category for 2012, as well as potential talk about a GT-Am class, ALMS President and CEO Scott Atherton confirmed the current five-class structure will remain unchanged for next year.

In talking to series’ stakeholders during the annual “State of the Series” address, Atherton admitted the car counts in both premier prototype categories are “unacceptably low” but he is confident of new LMP2 programs that are in the pipeline. SPEED.com heard of one possible new/returning effort that could join Level 5, although it’s not yet confirmed.

Atherton said that no changes will be made to GTC, despite the European-based Le Mans Series adding their own GTC class for not only Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars, but also Ferrari 458 Challenge cars and potentially Lotus Evora GT4 machinery.

“We’ve considered a number of options there, including following the example similar to what Patrick [Peter] has done,” Atherton said. “We have analyzed and discussed the pros and cons and every scenario we could come up with. We made a three-year commitment to the GTC category. Next year is year three. That doesn’t announce anything.

“Because of the success with it... there has been, and I think there will continue to be, a steady upwardly mobile group. There’s people who enter our sport in that category and then find themselves progressing forward. I think you’ll see GT entries that would have come from GTC next year.”

ALMS‘ RENEWED PARTNERSHIP WITH ACO — While it may have come as a surprise to some, the ACO and IMSA announced its continued partnership Friday, which will see the continuation of the Le Mans branded championship in North America. But as ALMS President and CEO Scott Atherton explained to SPEED.com, the renewal wasn’t necessarily a painless process.

“[ALMS founder Don Panoz] and I flew to Paris the Monday after Baltimore and spent a full day into the night and came away with what I believe was the framework of what ultimately we ultimately resulted in. That was followed up with more phone calls and more emails and more face-to-face meetings once they got into town here. It’s been a long process but it’s the best agreement we’ve ever had with them.”

Founded in 1999, the ALMS was the first Le Mans-sanctioned championship outside of the 24-hour race itself. The LMEO-owned Le Mans Series soon followed in 2004, although arguably has not yet enjoyed the level of success of its American counterpart.

“We’ve really matured together,” Atherton added. “The first agreement was drafted when no series existed. So there were just [painful] details about branding, trademarks and protecting the brand. This was the first time the ACO had let their brand go to anyone else. I think over time, we’ve shown a very respectful [relationship].

“I think we’ve done as much to build the Le Mans brand as anybody. Now that they’ve lost their own brand identity in the World Championship, they even said to us that we’re the only element outside of Le Mans itself that is still building the Le Mans brand.”

The length of the new “long-term” agreement has not been disclosed, but it’s understood to be at least three years, giving the ALMS a stable platform for the future.

PETIT LE MANS WEC ROUND UP IN AIR — While confirmation that Sebring will open the 2012 FIA World Endurance Championship season, the ACO has yet to decide on whether the Petit Le Mans will be part of the new global sportscar championship as well. (I hate the French, just so you know. - Dean)

It’s known the ACO is evaluating an option in Brazil to host the second North/South American WEC round for 2012. But even if that happens, ALMS boss Scott Atherton admits that the 1,000-mile/10-hour Road Atlanta enduo may still be a viable option for European teams, even if it’s not part of the WEC calendar.

“If it’s determined for entry restrictions and there’s no way we could conduct a major event and have some or any of our full-season competitors not involved, then I would say we’d position it to make it as attractive as possible to WEC-type teams, even though it wouldn’t technically be a WEC race,” he said. “I believe we have the support of the ACO to do just that.”

The entire 2012 WEC schedule is expected to be released at Zhuhai in November, but ILMC director Frederic-Henry Biabaud told SPEED.com to expect key events to be confirmed sooner.

PEUGEOT ON VERGE OF ILMC TITLE — Team Peugeot Total heads into Saturday’s Petit Le Mans needing only to score 13 points to clinch its second consecutive Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. The French manufacturer, which has amazingly won 12 out of the last 14 races its entered dating back to Sebring 2009, currently holds a 45-point margin over diesel rival Audi in the title race.

With the odds that the champion could be crowned prior to the Six Hours of Zhuhai season-finale in November, Peugeot Sport technical director Bruno Famin explains the China-bound 908s could see some significant developments if they in do fact lock up the title here.

“Our main objective here is to win the championship here, so we could arrive in China with a clear mind and no pressure,” Famin explained. “[We would then] be able to take some technical risks with some new developments in order to have a little bit more performance and fight against Audi, which would most likely do the same.”

Famin, however, has ruled out Peugeot’s highly anticipated hybrid from making its debut. Work on the battery-based diesel-electric hybrid continues on the dyno and is now expected to be on track sometime next year.

BALANCE OF PERFORMANCE ADJUSTMENTS — The return of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup has resulted in some significant changes in the balance of performance for American Le Mans Series competitors this weekend. Season-long ALMS P1 cars, except for the AutoCon Lola B06/10 AER, revert to smaller air restrictors run prior to Mid-Ohio, while Dyson Lola B09/86 Mazdas have additionally been given a 15 kg weight increase.

On the GT side, the BMW M3 GTs go back to the ACO-enforced larger air restrictor (IMSA had reduced the size at Mid-Ohio), while teams running E10 fuel no longer have to run the 10 kg of additional ballast. Corvette’s larger fuel tank restrictor, introduced at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, remains in place for this weekend, however.

In the Challenge categories, LMPC cars go back to a 60 mm-sized air restrictor, a reduction of 10mm, while GTC cars remain unchanged from the last round, which saw the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars with a slightly reduced air restrictor as well.

GT TIRE WAR — While the drivers and teams’ championships have already been decided in the American Le Mans Series’ GT category, the title race in the tire manufacturer championship heading into Saturday’s Petit Le Mans is a dead heat between Michelin and Dunlop. Both are even on 154 points a piece.

Despite only having a single team with BMW Team RLL, Dunlop has outscored the usually dominant Michelin squads of technical partner teams in four of the eight races this year. And deciding the championship should be relatively straight forward tomorrow. The class winner, provided it’s not a Falken or Yokohama-shod car, would also take home the title for their tire partner.

Now, I'm not saying nuthin' about any vettes to avoid any jinxing, but let's say you're Jaime Melo. You got your million dollar red Ferrari and a whole team prepped to run a 10 hour enduro. Yet, you manage to wad it...on the warm up lap...

And I wonder what fried Jaguar smells like?

[Shifty]

[Shifty]

Sweet Jeebus! If this race has any more full-course cautions, I'm gonna take a nap...

[Shifty]

#3....