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From speedarena.com Event Features The 3.7 mile track in Sebring, Florida, that plays host to the annual twelve hour race is notorious for making mince-meat out of cars and drivers. Before you can win the race you must finish it and this year only twenty of the thirty-five starters crossed the finish line. Surving the tough track and coming home first in 2006 was one of the brand new Audi R10 diesel powered prototypes driven by Alan McNish, Rinaldo Capello and Tom Kristensen. Of those that did not finish the race was the other Audi and the very promising duo of Penske Porsche RS Spyders. Here’s how things played out.
Dr. Wolfgang Ulrich said after the race: "This has been a very tough race and thus a good test for Le Mans. To get the first victory for a TDI engine after our pole position is fantastic. We showed today what’s in our new sportscar with a diesel engine.” Alan McNish reflects on the accomplishment: "The whole team should be very proud - we have created a little piece of history. In a few years time, people will look back and realize this was a monumental moment, not only in Audi Sport history, but also in motorsport where the first ever diesel engine won an international race. We all worked very hard for this one. While the team was all smiles and high-fives after the race, a few comments from the drivers after getting through with the early runs in the car made it clear that there is room for improvement. Driver Frank Biela after his first two stints: “I was very happy with my first stint, the car was really good. After refueling, I was struggling a little bit. With more laps on the tyres, the car started to oversteer. That was not very comfortable. After going off line to avoid a GT car I spun out of Turn 16, which honestly is quite unusual for me.” So after making history in Sebring, the Audi team sets its sights on France. The 24 hour race at Le Mans is June 17-18th. The R10 will not be returning to the States until after they complete the French epic. Dyson Racing had a promising season opener at the 12 hours of Sebring. The #16 Dyson Lola ended up finishing second in the LMP1 class, and fifth overall. After a very good start, driver Guy Smith was able to get the #20 Lola up to thrid place overall before the car had some computer and overheating issues that forced an untimely retirement. The Dyson team is very happy with their Sebring results, especially considering that there B06/10 had only two months worth of testing before it came to the big race.
Driver Butch Leizinger: “It is amazing how well the team came together for this race. The car was so new and had quite a few problems and not much practice, but they got everything right for the race. We went into this with our eyes open, knowing the challenge we faced with a brand new car. But for the car to run as strong as it has gives everybody a positive boost for the season.” Dyson racing certainly made it clear that they are not going to be sidelined by the Audi juggernaut. Highcroft Racing had a decent early start at the 12 hours of Sebring, but in the end, engine trouble and then a terminal fuel leak forced the team to retire their car after running for 7:04. Driver Duncan Dayton: "A fuel leak put us out. I'm disappointed, but trying to do a 12-hour race was probably pretty ambitious for our first race with this car. I'm proud of how the crew handled adversity and worked so hard. The results don't reflect the skill, good nature and diligent work ethic that they showed." LMP2: If you had bet money on Intersport Racing beating the Penske Porsche goliath, you might have a big paycheck coming your way. Saturday proved to be a big upset for the Intersport team. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the team of Porsche prototypes are very, very quick. In qualifying, the #6 Porsche took top spot for LMP1 and also set a class qualifying record. Come race day, engineering woes would get the best of the two RS Spyders. Thirty five minutes into the race, the #6 Porsche came to the pits to have a new alternator and battery installed. As consequence to that lengthy pit work, the #6 dropped down to 32nd position overall. The team did not give up and drove at break neck speed to eventually catch back up and even take back class lead. Luck was not with the yellow machine on Saturday however, and just 45 minutes from the finish of the race, the car came to a halt on track due to drive train problems. They still managed to place second in the LMP2 class due to the number of laps they were able to complete. "After a very hard fight, we could not capture the last piece of luck to win - but that's racing," said Hartmut Kristen, director of motorsport for Porsche AG. The #7 Penske Porsche was worse off then its sister car. It started off second in class after a good qualifying session, but experienced an early radiator failure that cost a crucial twenty minutes in the team pit. The car would eventually continue the race, and even make up good time to get to the top three in class. Disaster struck in the seventh hour for the #7 car, and a broken input shaft doomed the Porsche to early retirement.
A few people predicted it, but most were surprised to see Intersport Racing with the LMP2 win and a second place overall finish at the end of the 12 hours. Although they were the defending LMP2 champions, they trailed behind the Penske Porsche team in nearly all of the practice sessions. Intersport was forced to start from the pits at the end of the grid after they could not finish a qualifying lap due to a tire puncture. Jon Field, team owner and driver: "I made a good start from the back of the grid, overtaking as many people as possible but making sure I stayed out of trouble at the same time! It was an awesome race and I enjoyed every minute of it! We drove our own race and we played catch up with the number 1 Porsche all day. In the end, they broke down trying to catch us. This is a great win, probably the best that we've ever had as a team.” Driver Liz Halliday: "This is a magic day for the team and I want to applaud Jon and Clint for doing such an awesome job in giving Porsche a run for their money. It wasn't an easy drive today, but I loved every second of it -- and what an honour to drive the car to the chequered flag in the final stint of the race. The team and the mechanics worked hard all week and they really deserve this result. Today we beat Porsche fair and square which, as a privateer team, is a major achievement." Liz also made history to become the highest ever finisher of any female driver in the history of the Sebring 12 Hours. Coming home third place in class was the Zytek powered Lola of Binnie Motorsports. They went about their race quietly and quickly, staying out of trouble and defeating the Sebring course to be there at the end. Having just acquired their Zytek engine before Sebring, finishing on the podium was a real achievement for a quality team. The Courages of Barazi-Epsilon and BK Motorsports both ran into their share of trouble during the race. Barazi-Epsilon fought an engine misfire which slowed them, but allowed them to still come home in fourth while the Mazda-powered car of BK Motorsports suffered an overheating problem in hour 9 which required them to retire. They had been running a strong and steady pace most of the race, staying close to the top of the charts until their retirement left them in a 22nd overall and 5th in class final position.
GT1: Last year the Aston Martin team won a victory at Sebring, much to the chagrin of the Corvette boys. Corvette racing sought to even the score on Saturday. Aston Martin got a pair of very solid qualifying laps and took the one and two starting spots for GT1. Come race time though, the Corvette team was flying around the track with a vengeance, and spent the first forty-six minutes of the race nipping at the tail pipes of the green Astons. After that Ron Fellows in the #3 Corvette passed Darren Turner in the #007 DB9 for the class lead. The #4 Corvette eventually took the class lead when the #3 Corvette had to serve a penalty for a pit lane speed violation. The battle continued right up until the end of the race. Max Papis in the #3 C6-R missed the class podium by a narrow .637 second margin. Corvette chief engineer Tom Wallace: "The last 10 laps with Max and the Aston Martin were just sensational," he said. "The guys drove their hearts out and this team is unbelievable. The only thing that could have been better would be to get in the car and drive!" "It was a brilliant victory because this is the 50th year of racing for Corvette, a heritage that began here in Sebring with a win in 1956," said Gavin, who notched this third Sebring title. "We're absolutely delighted." "The car ran super fast, and we didn't have any problems at all," Beretta reported. "We just refueled and put on new tires, and we got the trophy as a team."
The Aston Martin team was far from disappointed, and put both of their cars in the points. Prodrive Chairman, David Richards: “What can I say? Tomas’ final stint was just impeccable. Twenty minutes behind the wheel in those situations - he defied all logic staying out there in front and did a superb job, he really proved his talent. The car hasn’t missed a single beat. The pit stops have been stunning at every turn and the drivers have done a great, great job. We’ve still got a lot more development to do to get the maximum out of this car and these tyres but overall it’s a very positive result.” Stéphane Sarrazin: “I’m very happy we’re on the podium. We didn’t win but we know there are more improvements to come with the new tyres and we did a good job. The team was very strong; we made no mistakes and finished with a very positive result. At the beginning it was difficult and we had to change the set-up a bit to get a better balance. I’m very pleased with the way the car felt at the end, I think there’s more performance to come.” The performance of the Saleen S7sR was a bit disappointing.. The number 25 Saleen was 74 laps behind the leader, and the number 26 Saleen retired early due to gearbox issues. Neither placed in the points GT2: Multimatic Motorsports Team Panoz clinched the GT2 victory in the No. 50 Esperante, but the competition was very intense. Ferrari, Porsche and BMW all fought hard for the win. The Esperante eventually pulled off the victory, but first, second and third place in GT2 all finished within one lap of each other! During the first half of the race, the GT2 field was constantly flip flopping positions, and it wasn’t until the later half of the race that the Esperante began to pull away. The car led for 178 out of 320 laps.
The #51 Esperante was not so fortunate. Just 2:36 into the race, the car lost power and had to retire. "This is an outstanding start for this program, I am just so proud of everybody involved," Multimatic Vice President and Motorsports Technical Director, Larry Holt said. "Don and Danny Panoz have entrusted us with this program and to start the season with a victory – especially at such a tough race like Sebring is outstanding. I was confident we had the speed, but the reliability the car showed is a real credit to our guys on the crew. David, Scott and Sebastien did a brilliant job, and it feels great to be leading the championship after the opening round. "It would have been nice to have had two cars running strong at the finish, but Sebring can be a real car breaker. Gunnar and Tom showed they have the pace to challenge strongly this year and it's a real pity for Bruno he didn't get more laps in his first sports car race. We had a great battle against Porsche, Ferrari and BMW but the Panoz Esperante again showed it is an outstanding car both on the road and on the track." Flying Lizard Motorsports had 2nd and 4th place finishers in the GT2 class with two Porsche 911 GT3s. Johannes van Overbeek, the No. 45 driver said, "The Ferrari and the Panoz were very impressive today. They outpaced us, but we were able to hold on through the race with Porsche's reliability and durability and a bit of luck on our side. Both of our car crews did an outstanding job in preparing and running the cars. Their near perfect pit stops, along with inspired strategy, clearly made a difference." Driver Marc Lied: "What a fantastic race--Panoz, Ferrari and Porsche all in the top three of a 12-hour race and all three finishing on the same lap. The three of us were within 30 seconds of each other in the last 10 minutes.” The Risi Competizone team featuring the new Ferrari F430 came in third for GT2. The world saw the debut of the latest Ferrari sports racing car, this week, along with the team debut of a very gifted young driver, Jaime Melo,” says Team Managing Director Giuseppe Risi. “We’re delighted with the overall mechanical performance of the car and the Michelin tyres were superb. It’s been very satisfying debut for the F430GT.”
Chief Engineer Rick Mayer was also impressed by the new Ferrari F430GT, commenting: “We only had the car for a couple of days before we went to Sebring. Our team did a great job of preparing the car at short notice. We had no reliability problems whatsoever. It’s very solid, dependable and fast new race car.” Both BMW M3s qualified in the middle of the pack, and both ended up retiring from the race with gearbox problems among other things. Overall: Twelve hours after starting out on their endeavor to make history, Audi No. 2 driven by Tom Kristensen, Allan McNish and Rinaldo Capello drove through the start finish line under fire work lit skies to become the winner of the 54th annual twelve hours of Sebring. In doing so, they made motorsport history: the first diesel powered sports car to win an endurance event. The R10 still has very big shoes to fill from the R8. Never in a single race had an R8 engine failed. The R10 had engine problems on the first race of the season. No doubt Audi is a little nervous about that one, but they have a good amount of time until Le Mans. Penske Porsche proved that they are very quick, that much is fact. In practice and qualifying, they were nearly untouchable in the LMP2 class, and even beat out the R10 Audi for second overall a time or two. Altough they took second place in LMP2, they had the potential to do a heck of a lot more. This was a good test and eye opener for the team, but this is the regular season now. They need to get the engineering problems fixed quickly. The yellow American Steamroller kept on a rollin at the 12 Hour race, and proved that even with a 121 pound handicap on the C6R to even up the playing field, the Corvette still has what it takes to get the job done. The team has a ton of momentum coming off the past few seasons. Look for this team to keep up its stellar performance. However, with all the great stories in the top three classes, GT2 looks to be a real barn burner in '06. The battle between Pazoz, Ferrari and Porsche is sure to keep all eyes on this class while BMW and the upcoming Lexus are surely not going to sit back and let those three steal the spotlight. As always, Sebring starts off the new year with a bang. This year it was one of history as Audi and diesel fuel took the spotlight. However, the ability for the smaller teams to take the fight to larger ones was more than evident and should be an excellent glimpse in to the 2006 American Le Mans Series season. Thank you for another great year Sebring, now on to Houston. © Copyright
2002 Speed Arena |
