Oschersleben is hosting the season opener of the 2013 ADAC GT Masters this weekend. Two qualifying sessions were held today with some disappointing results for the Audi squad. Six Audi R8 LMS ultra cars are entering the event from three different teams. Prosperia C. Abt Racing is fielding three cars, #26 of R.Frey/M.Winkelhock, #27 of C.Mies/R.Rast and #28 of C.Jöns/C.Mamerow. MS Racing, who are the defending ADAC GT Masters champions, have two Audi cars, #1 of F.Stoll/S.Asch and #100 of D.Dobitsch/A.Patel. YACO Racing is entering a single R8 LMS ultra, #16 of P.Geipel/D.Lunardi.
In the first qualifying session the best ranked Audi was the #28 Prosperia R8 LMS ultra of C.Jöns/C.Mamerow who placed in eighth. All the other cars were far behind, they were respectively classified in 14th (#1 MS Racing), 15th (#27 Prosperia), 16th (#26 Prosperia, 20th (#100 MS Racing) and 22nd (#16 YACO Racing). Qualifying session 1 results are here.
For the second qualifying session things were slightly better. Again the #28 Prosperia Audi of C.Jöns/C.Mamerow was the best R8 LMS ultra and was able to qualify in a fine third place. All the other Audi cars were once again outside of the top 10: 11th (#27 Prosperia), 12th (#1 MS Racing), 13th (#26 Prosperia), 19th (#16 YACO Racing) and 22nd (#100 MS Racing). Qualifying session 2 results are here.
The first race of the weekend is set for tomorrow. A 1-hour sprint event, we wish the best of luck to all three teams and their drivers.
Audi Sport Italia will enter the 2013 Italian GT Championship with two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars, and a strong driver line-up. The team will aim for the 2013 title, after the dramatic finale at Monza last year. Andrea Sonvico missed the title by only a single point, loosing the title to the BMW drivers. Sonvico is back with the team and will share the first Audi R8 LMS ultra with Dindo Capello. The Italian Audi legend will compete in the Italian GT as a full season competitor for first time in years, after focusing on the Le Mans effort with the factory Team Joest. The second car will be in the hands of Alex Frassineti, who also drove for the team last year, and the 2012 Superstars Series champion, Johan Kirstoffersson. The Swedish driver had a great 2012 by winning the Superstars Series, the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship and the Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia. He is not stranger to Audi Sport Italia, the team who built his Audi RS 5 quattro, which entered by his father's team KMS.
The first round of the Italian GT Championship is set for next weekend at Misano. No doubts that Audi Sport Italia will be among the big favorites for the title hunt.
Twelve years already, 25 April 2001 Michele Alboreto passed away at the EuroSpeeday whilst testing the Audi R8 for Audi Sport Team Joest. Just weeks earlier the Italian champion won the 12 Hours of Sebring and was preparing for Audi's assault for Le Mans. Alboreto raced with Audi for three years between 1999 and 2001. He won Le Mans once, back in 1997 with Joest Racing in a TWR Porsche. For sure Audi and motorsport fans in general will never forget him.
Full details about Michele Alboreto's career, including his glorious days in Formula 1 with Ferrari is here.
Circuit Zolder in Belgium hosted the second round of the FIA GT Series last weekend. The main Championship Race on sunday saw an epic battle for the lead, which whent to the checkered flag. The battle was between the Audi R8 LMS ultra (Belgian Audi Club Team WRT) of local hero, Laurens Vanthoor, and the Lamborghini Gallardo (Reiter Engineering) of Slovakian driver Stephan Rozina. Audi didn't win in the end, but here is an extraordinary and very fair fight to the finish line, one of the most exciting GT battles in recent years.
The 41st edition of the Nürburgring 24 Hours is set for May. The ADAC has published the provisional entry list for the demanding enduro event at the legendary Nordschleife. Audi won the 2012 race outright for the first time, an 1-2 Audi R8 LMS ultra victory with Audi Sport Team Phoenix ahead of the privateer Mamerow Racing. This year eight R16 cars will enter the top SP9 class for GT3 racers, entered by five different teams.
Phoenix Racing, the defending team champion, will have three cars. Two will be entered as G Drive Racing by Phoenix with the #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra for the 2012 winners Marc Basseng, Frank Stippler and Markus Winkelhock, the fourth driver will be the two-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Marcel Fässler. The #3 for Audi veteran Frank Biela joined by youngsters Christer Joens, Luca Ludwig and Russian driver Roman Rusinov. The third car will be the #4 for the Stuck brothers, Ferdinand and Johannes, joined by Michael Ammermüller and Frank Stippler.
Prosperia C.Abt Team Mamerow, who have a very strong effort with Audi in the ADAC GT Masters, is entering a single car. The #3 Audi R8 LMS ultra will be in the hands of team owner Christian Abt joined by the three fast drivers. René Rast the three time Porsche Supercup champion and 2012 Spa 24 Hours winner. Oliver Jarvis who has already won the 2013 Rolex 24 at Daytona GT class with an Audi R8 GRAND-AM and the 2013 12 Hours of Sebring outright with an Audi R18 e-tron quattro. The fourth driver is Christian Mamerow who finished second last year.
Belgian Audi Club Team WRT is again very busy this year, in both the FIA GT Series and Blanpcain Endurance Series, where they are doing very well. As in 2012 only one car will be entered in the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring, with very strong driver line-up. The #29 Audi R8 LMS ultra will be driven by Laurens Vanthoor, who is leading the FIA GT Series points standing, the 2012 BES champions Christopher Haase and Christopher Mies, the fourth driver is Edward Sandstom. Last year was a first attempt for WRT, but this year WRT are clearly targeting the overall win.
The fourth Audi team is Audi race experience. The effort is run by TKL Motorsport and will have two cars. #14 Audi R8 LMS ultra will have Marco Werner as the leader, joined by Christian Bollrath, Piérre Ehret and Peter Venn. The sister #15 is for the Swiss Audi Sport factory driver and rookie at the event, Rahel Frey, she is sharing the car with Dominique Bastien and Ronnie Saurenmann.
The fifth and final team is Twin Busch Motorsport, a fully privateer effort and a regular team in the VLN Endurance Series. Last year they raced an old spec Audi R8 LMS (ex Abt Sportsline), this year they aquired a brand new 2013 spec R16.
The eight Audi R8 LMS ultra cars will face world class competition from different brands and teams, all of them capable of taking the outright honours. The opposition includes Porsche, BMW, Mercedes-Benz AMG and Aston Martin Racing.
The provisional Nürburgring 24 Hours entry list is here.
First fielding of three Audi R18 e-tron quattro cars
Premiere of a new aerodynamic variant
Last race preparation for the Le Mans 24 Hours
Ingolstadt, April 25, 2013 – Audi is pursuing ambitious aims at round 2 of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) on May 4 at Spa. The version of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro that was victorious at the season opener is to extend Championship leader Audi’s points advantage. At the same time, a new long-tail variant of the hybrid sports car will be tested in Belgium. Audi Sport Team Joest thus wants to optimally prepare for the Le Mans 24 Hours, the pinnacle of the season for the sports prototypes held on June 22 and 23.
Comparison in racing conditions: Two versions of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro that, also visually, can be clearly distinguished from each other will be running at Spa. The winners of the opening round, Loïc Duval/Tom Kristensen/Allan McNish (F/DK/GB), and the current World Endurance Champions Marcel Fässler/André Lotterer/Benoît Tréluyer (CH/D/F), will be starting with the aerodynamic variant that was victorious at Silverstone. It generates optimal downforce for track types such as the 7.004-kilometer circuit at Spa.
The third Audi R18 e-tron quattro, driven by Marc Gené/Lucas di Grassi/Oliver Jarvis (E/BR/GB), on the other hand uses an aero package that has been optimized for the high-speed Le Mans track and can be recognized by its lengthened rear section. The comparison, however, is not focused on absolute lap times. Instead, the team will analyze the time differences to be expected between both models on individual track sectors. In addition, practical aspects of using the second body version will be reviewed and data generated for the fielding in the race at Le Mans.
The focal point of the spectators’ interest will yet again be the thrilling battle between World Champion Audi and challenger Toyota. In the seven meetings that have taken place since last June, the score is at 4-3 for the sports cars from Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm in the competition with Japan. The Spa 6 Hours will be held on Saturday of the first weekend in May. The TV channel Eurosport will cover selected stages of the race whereas the full racing distance can be watched on audi-liveracing.com on the internet.
Topics of the weekend
- Will Duval/Kristensen/McNish be able to extend their lead of the standings? - How well will the World Champions Fässler/Lotterer/Tréluyer fare? - How will the battle with Toyota develop? - Which manufacturer will travel to Le Mans with a points advantage?
Quotes by the officials
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Head of Audi Motorsport: “As always, Audi will be using the race at Spa as a ‘dress rehearsal’ for the Le Mans 24 Hours in June. Spa is a race track with a character that’s completely different from Silverstone. We thoroughly reviewed the first race of the season and accomplished our tasks in order to be well prepared for the second round of the WEC. Fielding the Le Mans aero variant on the third vehicle that hasn’t been optimized for the lap times at Spa is an important element of the preparation for the 24-hour race.” Ralf Jüttner, Technical Director Audi Sport Team Joest: “The comparison with our competitor will start from scratch again at Spa. We can expect our opponent Toyota to compete with the latest technological update. For the first time this year, we’ll be running with three cars. That means more work for our team. Spa’s a great track and a race that definitely belongs on the WEC calendar. The new Audi R18 e-tron quattro was immediately reliable and fast.” Facts and quotes by the Audi drivers
Marcel Fässler (36/CH), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #1 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Drove the fastest race lap at Spa a year ago - Had to admit defeat at Silverstone by only 3.4 seconds “Spa’s one of my favorite tracks. In the LMP sports car, the circuit is a fantastic challenge. Eau Rouge, Blanchimont and the fast downhill double left-hand turn are particularly nice. Plus I like the ambience in Belgium extremely well.”
André Lotterer (31/D), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #1 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Regards Spa as his ‘home’ track - Is the runner-up in the standings after the 2013 season opener “I grew up in Belgium and went to the track as a child. That’s why Spa is always special for me. It’s a fast track that should be suiting our car well. My two team-mates really enjoy driving there too. I’m hoping for us to be able to reverse the order of the top two results of the Silverstone weekend.”
Benoît Tréluyer (36/F), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #1 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Winner of the 2013 Sebring 12 Hours - The World Champion was the runner-up in Belgium last year “For my team-mate André Lotterer, Spa is a ‘home’ track in a way. We’ll be running for the first time now in this year’s R18 e-tron quattro and the new tires on this track. Of course we’d like to be on the podium again right after Silverstone – ideally on the top though.”
Loïc Duval (30/F), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #2 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Won the Spa 6 Hours in the Audi R18 ultra last year - Leads the standings with his team-mate after the success at Silverstone “I achieved my first victory with Audi at Spa last year. In May, the weather in the Ardennes is often unstable. Together with Allan and Tom I’d like to repeat the success at Silverstone and extend our World Championship lead.” Tom Kristensen (45/DK), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #2 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - The Dane achieved his first victory of the season at Silverstone - Ten years ago, he won at Spa in the Audi R8 “Spa for us drivers, the cars and the teams is a huge challenge. It’s a typical track from a different era with many vertical differences and corresponding compressions, with blind turns and frequently changing weather. The mechanics and all the other team members did an outstanding job at Silverstone. The pit stops and strategy were good. Spa’s our last preparation in racing conditions before the biggest competition of the year at Le Mans.”
Allan McNish (43/GB), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #2 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Achieved the fastest time in qualifying at Spa last year - At the WEC opener in England, celebrated his first victory in an R18 e-tron quattro “I always enjoy driving again at Spa. The track follows the topography in an ideal way. That’s a hallmark of many good circuits. Some of the world’s nicest corners are found at Spa, such as Eau Rouge or Pouhon. The races there are always thrilling, partially due to the weather but also because there are always surprises. The track is rough on the drivers, the car and the tires. In addition, we’re expecting the competition at Spa to be tough due to Toyota. We drivers and our engineers have found a very good rhythm of working together.”
Marc Gené (39/E), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #3 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Won the race at Spa on making his Audi debut a year ago - Has celebrated three sports car victories at Spa since 2008 “I’m looking forward to one of my favorite tracks that I’ve won at three times before. For us, it’s the big preparation for Le Mans. The weather’s often unpredictable. For Oliver Jarvis, Lucas di Grassi and me, it’s the only opportunity to adjust to each other in racing conditions. Until now, I’ve only driven the Audi R18 e-tron quattro in tests. I’d like to repeat last year’s victory.”
Lucas di Grassi (28/BR), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #3 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Is starting his third sports car race with Audi - Was the runner-up in the Sebring 12 Hours in March “I’m experiencing my first WEC race in 2013 at Spa. I’ve got fond memories of this legendary circuit from GP2 and Formula 1. There’s no nicer track if you’re running in a fast car. I’ll be starting with two different team-mates than I did at Sebring. We’ll be able to gear up now for the biggest task of the year in racing conditions.”
Oliver Jarvis (29/GB), Audi R18 e-tron quattro #3 (Audi Sport Team Joest) - Celebrated a class victory with Audi at Daytona in January - Won the Sebring 12 Hours in March “My sports car career in Audi’s factory team began a year ago at Spa. We immediately took a podium. It’s a great feeling to return now. After a good race at Sebring I’m traveling to Spa even better prepared than I was twelve months ago. For the first time, I’m running with my two new team-mates. And we’re developing the car with special aerodynamics for Le Mans. That’ll be our personal warm-up for the 24-hour race.”
The Audi drivers at Spa
Loïc Duval (F): * June 12, 1982 in Chartres (F); residence: Tokyo (J); single (partner Gaëlle), one son (Hugo); height: 1.78 m; weight: 70 kg; Audi driver since 2012; Le Mans victories: 0; WEC races: 4; WEC victories: 1; WEC pole positions: 0; fastest WEC laps: 1; best result WEC Spa: 1
Marcel Fässler (CH): * May 27, 1976 in Einsiedeln (CH); residence: Gross (CH); married to Isabel, four daughters (Shana, Elin, Yael and Delia); height: 1.78 m; weight: 78 kg; Audi driver since 2008; Le Mans victories: 2; WEC races: 9; WEC victories: 3; WEC pole positions: 0; fastest WEC laps: 1; best result WEC Spa: 2
Marc Gené (E): * March 03, 1974 in Sabadell (E); residence: Barcelona (E); single, one son (Patrick) and one daughter (Sienna); height: 1.73 m; weight: 69 kg; Audi driver since 2012; Le Mans victories: 1; WEC races: 2; WEC victories: 1; WEC pole positions: 0; fastest WEC laps: 0; best result WEC Spa: 1
Lucas di Grassi (BR): * August 11, 1984 in São Paulo (BR); residence: Monaco (MC); single; height: 1.79 m; weight: 75 kg; Audi driver since 2012; Le Mans victories: 0; WEC races: 1; WEC victories: 0; WEC pole positions: 0; fastest WEC laps: 1; best result WEC Spa: – Oliver Jarvis (GB): * January 09, 1984 in Burwell (GB); residence: Burwell (GB); single; height: 1.80 m; weight: 70 kg; Audi driver since 2008; Le Mans victories: 0; WEC races: 2; WEC victories: 0; WEC pole positions: 0; fastest WEC laps: 0; best result WEC Spa: 3
Tom Kristensen (DK): * July 07, 1967 in Hobro (DK); residence: Hobro (DK); single (partner: Hanne), two sons (Oliver and Oswald), one daughter (Carla Marlou); height: 1.74 m; weight: 72 kg; Audi driver since 2000, Le Mans victories: 8; WEC races: 9; WEC victories: 2; WEC pole positions: 0; fastest WEC laps: 1; best result WEC Spa: 4 André Lotterer (D): * November 19, 1981 in Duisburg (D); residence: Tokyo (J); single; height: 1.84 m; weight: 74 kg; Audi driver since 2010; Le Mans victories: 2; WEC races: 9; WEC victories: 3; WEC pole positions: 2; fastest WEC laps: 1; best result WEC Spa: 2
Allan McNish (GB): * December 29, 1969 in Dumfries (GB); residence: Monaco (MC); married to Kelly, one son (Finlay), one daughter (Charlotte Amelie); height: 1.65 m; weight: 60 kg; Audi driver in 2000, since 2004; Le Mans victories: 2; WEC races: 9; WEC victories: 2; WEC pole positions: 2; fastest WEC laps: 1; best result WEC Spa: 4 Benoît Tréluyer (F): * December 07, 1976 in Alençon (F); residence: Gordes (F); married to Melanie, one son (Jules); height: 1.78 m; weight: 68 kg; Audi driver since 2010; Le Mans victories: 2; WEC races: 9; WEC victories: 3; WEC pole positions: 1; fastest WEC laps: 0; best result WEC Spa: 2
Track length: 7.004 km Race duration: 6 hours Qualifying record on this track: Sébastien Bourdais, Peugeot, 1m 57.884s = 213.892 km/h (May 08, 2010) Race record on this track: Franck Montagny, Peugeot, 1m 59.797s = 210.476 km/h (May 09, 2010) Pole position 2012: Allan McNish, Audi R18 e-tron quattro, 2m 01.579s = 207.391 km/h (May 04, 2012) Fastest lap 2012: Marcel Fässler, Audi R18 e-tron quattro, 2m 01.851s = 206.928 km/h (May 05, 2012)
Marc Gené about the track at Spa
“I love Spa with its unique turns and vertical differences. There’s no other place where you can feel the centrifugal forces within your body as much as you can in Eau Rouge. Spa is the second-longest track after Le Mans and the weather is always changeable in the Ardennes. Eau Rouge remains the greatest single challenge. In Formula 1, due to the smaller engines and lower weight, you run flat-out there but in the heavier sports car Eau Rouge is even more extreme. Good overtaking opportunities exist in La Source, in front of Les Combes, in the double left-hand turn, on the Fagnes passage and in the chicane before the start and finish. The tarmac provides outstanding grip which is why slicks even work well when the track is slightly damp. In 2012, I celebrated my third sports car victory on this track with my team-mates.”
Schedule
Friday, May 3 09:00–11:00 Free practice 1 14:30–16:30 Free practice 2 19:30–20:00 Qualifying LMP1 and LMP2
Saturday, May 4 09:00–09:20 Warm-up 14:30–20:30 6-hour race
PK Carsport is one of the most prestigious and successful sportscar teams from Belgium. The team was revived this year after many years of absence. They have chosen to compete in the Belgian Racing Car Championship with the Audi R8 LMS.
Last weekend Circuit Zolder hosted the first round of the BRCC, a support event to the FIA GT Series. It was a perfect debut for PK Carsport with Audi. They qualified in fifth place. With the 2010 spec R8 LMS (ex Team Rosberg) of Anthony Kumpen, Bert Longin and Maarten Makelberge they won the 90 minutes endurance race, less than five seconds ahead the second placed Porsche 996 GT3-RS from ProSpeed Competition.
Anthony Kumpen, who also raced in the FIA GT Series on the same weekend with Phoenix Racing, was delighted after this fantastic victory: "I am very happy to finish this superb weekend on the highest step of the podium." (quotes sourced from BRCC)
The second round of the BRCC will be in France at Circuit Dijon-Prenois in May, with the three PK Carsport Audi drivers leading the overall points standings.
One of the two new Audi teams for the 2013 ADAC GT Masters season is YACO Racing. The team raced in the German GT series last year with a Reiter Engineering built Chevrolet Camaro GT3, with very mixed result. This year they have decided to switch to the Audi R8 LMS ultra.
A single car will compete in the eight-round calendar. The YACO car will carry the number #16 and will be shared by Philip Geipel and Dino Lunardi. Philip Geipel raced for the team last year with the Camaro. Dino Lunardi is of course the 2011 ADAC GT Masters champion with Alpina BMW, a team who he competed for last year as well.
The opening round of the ADAC GT Masters is set at Oschersleben this weekend. The YACO Racing Audi will be one of six R8 LMS ultra cars entering the event, three from Prosperia C.Abt Racing and two from MS Racing.
Rob Austin Racing faced a very hard British Touring Car Championship weekend at Donington Park. Both Audi A4 NGTC cars of Rob Austin and Will Bratt were extremely unlucky with very mixed results in all three races. Here is a selection of great photos from Donington Park by our friend Phill Laughton.
Prosperia C.Abt Racing will enter a third additional Audi R8 LMS ultra for the 2013 ADAC GT Masters. The car will be shared by Audi regulars Rahel Frey and Markus Winkelhock.
Rahel Frey will debut in the top German GT series and in the team as well. The Swiss factory Audi driver is having a very busy 2013 season with the Audi R8 LMS ultra. In addition to the ADAC GT Masters she is racing in the Blancpain Endurance Series for Belgian Audi Club Team WRT and in the Asian based Audi R8 LMS Cup.
During 2011 Markus Winkelhock competed at selected events in the ADAC GT Masters, with the Swiss Novidem team. He and Rahel Frey will both be debuting with Prosperia C.Abt Racing. He is also taking part in the Blancpain Endurance Series for team Phoenix Racing. Markus Winkelhock is of course the reigning FIA GT1 World Championship champion and the 2012 overall winner of the Nürburgring 24 Hours with Audi.
Both drivers are joining a world class effort at Prosperia C.Abt Racing, the other two cars are in the hands of René Rast/Christopher Mies and Chrisitan Mamerow/Christer Jöns. The ADAC GT Masters season opener is set at Oschersleben next weekend. No doubts that Prosperia C.Abt Racing will be among the big favourites.
The latest issue of the X15 Magazine has just been released. It features a diverse spectrum of motorsport coverage, including this month: Audi's victory at Silverstone, Super GT, Rallycross, F1, V8 Supercars and much more.
This issue of X15 contains a number of Audi related features including news of the FIA WEC at Silverstone, the new DTM DRS system, BTCC and more.
As has been the case in recent months, the Audi Motorsport Blog has once again contributed to a small amount of content in the latest X15 issue.
We thank the X15 editorial staff for publishing this content and providing another excellent online magazine issue.
The magazine is well worth the read as it is filled with great content, from cover to cover.
LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 22, 2013)- In yet another wild round of the Pirelli World Challenge, GMG’s James Sofronas came away from yesterday’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach with his second consecutive victory of the season.
“Wow, I am the luckiest guy in the world,” stated Sofronas. “I never want to see bad luck take anyone out, but at the same time it was a huge coup for us to win at our home track. We probably didn’t have the fastest car, but somehow Lady Luck gifted us another one today.” With the entire GMG organization being based just 30 minutes south of the famed Long Beach street circuit, Sofronas came in to the weekend looking to really deliver in front of his clients, family, and friends. Qualifying the car on pole position, today’s race was anything but smooth for the Newport Beach resident.
As the green flag fell for the series’ signature standing start, Sofronas’ no. 14 Mobil 1 / Children’s Tumor Foundation Audi R8 LMS had a solid run headed in to the first turn, but was no match for the Volvo S60 and Cadillac CTS-V.R entries, who have spent several seasons refining their ability to launch from a standstill. With the field settling in to its pace for the opening laps, Sofronas was in a familiar top-five position behind the leading no. 9 Volvo of Alex Figge and no. 3 Cadillac of Johnny O’Connell.
As the race progressed, Sofronas established a comfortable pace in third, however the Audi did not appear to have anything for the two leaders in front of him. The race nearing the end, Sofronas appeared to simply settle in to a third-place run, opting to preserve the car and focus on valuable championship points.
However, with four laps to go, the race would take a chaotic turn. Headed in to the first corner, a major mechanical failure on the rear end of race leader Alex Figge would send the no. 9 Volvo in to a dramatic spin down the corner’s escape road. With GTS driver Andy Lee incurring an unrelated accident simultaneously, the race would fall under caution.
With Figge out, Johnny O’Connell assumed the lead, with Sofronas now in second. A significant amount of track cleanup would be required and it was expected that the race would stay under caution until the end, thereby gifting O’Connell the victory.
With the Cadillac team on the cusp of their first victory in the 2013 season, a bizarre change of fortune would occur. As Figge’s Volvo suffered from its rear-end failure, pieces of debris from the car punctured the trailing Cadillac’s radiator, meaning O’Connell was losing water fast as his car circled during the final caution laps. With Sofronas not allowed to pass under caution, the Californian simply had to spend the final laps watching a smoking O’Connell limp his way to the finish.
However, with only a half-lap left, O’Connell’s engine finally gave up entirely, with the Cadillac driver being left with no choice but to pull over and get out of his retired car. Sofronas would cruise home to victory in the final five corners, literally taking the lead on the last lap, and under caution.
Furthering his championship point lead, Sofronas took his fifth career victory and second at Long Beach. “I absolutely hate it for Johnny and Alex, they were both the class of the field,” stated Sofronas. “However, everyone at the team deserved this. The guys put a lot of time in to making a great appearance at our home race, and we couldn’t have had a better result. We have such great momentum for Austin, but first I want to enjoy today with my family.”
Also finishing in the same position he started was Los Angeles-native Duncan Ende. However, much like Sofronas, Ende’s path to finishing where he qualified was not exactly easy. When the race started for Ende’s no. 24 Merchant Services Ltd. / STANDD Audi R8 LMS, a mechanical issue at the start would slow the car significantly for the opening lap. Driving with a handicap that essentially held back the cars overall speed, Ende found himself languishing at the back of the field by time he approached his second lap.
By time his second lap began, the issue had cleared itself, forcing Ende to once again fight his way from behind. Ende made impressive work of the field in front of him, steadily gaining position lap-by-lap, eventually finding his way to fourth at the finish.
“That was probably the hardest I’ve ever driven to finish where I started,” stated Ende, who took his first-ever Long Beach podium yesterday during his race in the American Le Mans Series. “We had a bit of an issue at the start and that really held me back, but luckily the issue cleared itself out. We had quite a few little hiccups during the course of the race, but somehow our good luck matched our bad to finish where we started. We’re one step closer to a podium, and I think the race in Austin should suit us well.”
Also taking his first top-five of the season, Bret Curtis would represent well for his home race. After being penalized for a rules violation at the start, Curtis joined Ende in making a brilliant come-from-behind drive in his no. 32 Spectra Resources / United Steel Supply Audi R8 LMS to finish fifth.
“The car next to me began to lurch forward during the standing start, and it tricked me in to doing the same,” stated Curtis. “As soon as I realized the race hadn’t started I immediately stopped the car, but it was too late. Once the race got going, I was actually happy with everything. We ran some really fast times, and chipped away at everyone in front of us. A top-five after all of that is a great finish, so I’m pretty happy.” Rounding out the team’s GT entries were drivers Brent Holden and Alex Welch. Holden had his career best finish in the Pirelli World Challenge, driving a steady and fairly quiet race to put his no. 44 machine in seventh. Welch was well-positioned to take a top-five, if not better, before a gearbox issue would relegate the Colorado-native to 12th.
For the team’s lone GTS driver, Bill Ziegler, another error free run would net the Floridian a 14th place finish. Driving the no. 95 Swisher Pontiac Solstice, Ziegler’s primary goal was to continue with the car’s development and have a solid run.
“It was a pretty steady race for us,” stated Ziegler. “With the yellows we learned a lot about how the car is with tire cycles. If we’d had a couple more laps I think we could have had a couple of the guys ahead of us, but we’ve definitely progressed with the program.”
While there is some celebration within the entire GMG organization, the party can’t last for long as they prepare for their next round just a few weeks away. Shipping out to the brand new Circuit of the Americas facility in Austin, Texas, the entire Pirelli World Challenge paddock is set for an exciting new venue in partnership with the Australian V8 Supercars series.
Television highlights of today’s victory at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach can be seen on Sunday, May 5, at 2:00PM on NBC Sports Network.
The series fourth and fifth rounds at Circuit of the Americas will take place on May 18 and 19.
Audi legend Walter Röhrl was reunited again with the Sport quattro S1 E2. The German driver was at Rallye Lavanttal two weeks ago. Here is a great photo gallery from the event by our friends at race-action.com.
