12 Hours of Sebring
TRG Fights Hard For Sebring Finish
News from The Racers Group

Photos © TRG
SEBRING, Fl (March 21, 2010)- Following a solid week of practice and preparation, TRG was struck by a tiny mechanical gremlin that nearly sidelined the team for this epic race. TRG managed to keep the fight going through the 58th Annual Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring to bring home a solid sixth place finish, after having a shock absorber break only 45 minutes into the race. Driving in the No 63 Future Electronics/Freescale Semiconductor/TRG Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car, pilots Henri Richard, Duncan Ende, and Andy Lally exercised patience and heads-up driving to bring the car home in one solid piece.

Qualifying in seventh place, driver Henri Richard kept the car on its paces throughout the first hour of the race, however by 30 minutes in he radioed in with a notable problem on the read end of the car.

“The back end of the car started to feel very unstable through the middle of my stint,” stated Richard. “At first I thought we had a flat tire, but after a few turns I realized it was something else in the back of the car, and just had to drive through it. To drive at a track this fast and bumpy with a problem like that took a lot of patience and precision.”

Not wanting to lose valuable track positioning by taking an extended pit stop to diagnose the problem, the team soldiered on through much of the first half of the race, fighting hard with the eventual GTC class-winning car no. 81.

However, just short of halfway in to the race, driver Andy Lally radioed in that something was further amiss in the back-end. It was discovered that the left-rear sub frame had broken. Pulling the car back in to the garage, the team discovered that the broken and frozen shock absorber likely led to the whole situation.

For Andy Lally, it was an odd problem that is typical of Sebring.

“The moment I got in the car I thought we had a problem with the left rear shock,” stated Lally. “You had to be very careful turning in to the bumpier corners, the left rear just never quite settled. When we took the shock out of the car, it seemed like it was almost frozen, which led to the left rear getting beaten to the point that the sub-frame broke.”

With the car repaired in under an hour, the team brought the car back out on track for a trouble-free second half of the race. Out of contention for the win, the team simply kept to a solid game plan, gaining positions by attrition and smart driving.

For Sebring debutante Duncan Ende, being able to drive a solid number of stints throughout the day was victory in itself.

“This was definitely a race I’ll remember,” stated Ende. “On my first stint we were trying an out-of-the-box tire strategy that made the car really tricky to drive. By time we’d fixed the car and I got back out again, it was already night time. Doing a double-stint at night was one of the coolest experiences I’ve had in a while!”

For Henri Richard, fighting hard and solid teamwork was an accomplishment he is proud of.

“The teamwork and effort from this team was first class all week,” stated the Frenchman, also making his debut. “We had a good car and a trouble free week up until the race started. To fix the car so quickly was a great testament to the team’s desire to get us out as quickly as possible, as everyone wanted a strong finish. This is a great group.”

For Team Owner Kevin Buckler, yet Sebring heartbreak shouldn’t overshadow a strong message from the team.

“Being back at Sebring and running the 12 hours with my friends was great but we sure didn’t deserve this little gremlin,” stated Buckler. “To have a problem like we had was extremely frustrating for everyone as the guys were stellar all week, and they were as meticulous as ever to get the car ready for action. Henri had a great opening stint, and to have felt the shock fail like that, and had the mindset to adjust and drive through it is a credit to his ability and heads-up driving. Duncan did a fantastic job all week and then persevered with a difficult car during the race. It was great to have him back with TRG. Andy did his solid job as always, and it would have been awesome to see how the race would have unfolded with the 81. To have a shock freeze up like that was something none of us had seen before, and it’s too bad it had to ruin our day. The good thing from this weekend, however, was that we realized we’re here, and we can win. We had one of the fastest cars all week and the program was sound. Our team has a ton of experience at these types of difficult events and we were the only team in our class not to have an incident or a penalty. Just the shock….These things happen and now we know just how good our GTC program can be.”

TRG will return to the American Le Mans Series on April 17 at the historic Grand Prix of Long Beach.
 

Genoa Racing Finishes Second in LMPC Class in Saturday's Twelve Hours of Sebring
News from Restart Communication

Photos © Lisa Salazar 2010
SEBRING, Fla. (March 21, 2010) - Saturday's Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring was a rollercoaster ride for Genoa Racing, but the Zionsville, Ind.-based team ended the American Le Mans Series' season opener at Sebring International Raceway on a high with a second-place finish in the LMPC class.

The team was originally scored in third place in class, but early Sunday morning when the final revised rundown was posted Genoa Racing rose to second in class. One of the drivers of the car that originally was thought to have finished second did not have the minimum amount of time required behind the wheel during the event, and that entry was excluded.

Genoa Racing had clawed its way up from a sixth-place starting position in class on Saturday morning to lead the class standings at the halfway point on Saturday afternoon, but a few minutes later J.R. Hildebrand of Sausalito, Calif. whipped backwards into a tire wall off Turn 15 and the car suffered extensive damage to its rear and left side. Luckily Hildebrand wasn't hurt.

The reigning Firestone Indy Lights champion made it back to the pits and then drove the car to the paddock for repairs with its bodywork flapping. The team worked heroically, and about an hour later Hildebrand was back in action, although now instead of leading the class the entry was third in class.

"I was following a pair of GT cars and I don't know if I had pick-up on the tires or what, but as soon as I went on the gas pedal to get around them I instantly lost it," Hildebrand said.

The build-up of rubber debris played a major factor in the team's run.
Hildebrand's co-drivers, veteran Andy Wallace of Oxford, England and the youngest driver in the race, 20-year-old Tom Sutherland of Los Gatos, Calif., both made unscheduled pit stops prior to Hildebrand's crash because of the way the car was reacting to rubber buildup. Salad-plate size globs of rubber were banging around in the car's wheels and the louvers on the car's front fenders until the car's speed increased enough for the rubber to fall away. The v vibrations and the way the debris affected the car's balance were one thing, but the unscheduled pit stops occurred when Wallace was sure he had a flat Michelin tire and Sutherland was convinced a suspension piece had snapped. In both cases the car was fine and the culprit was rubber buildup.

Near the end the team had to deal with electrical problems too. As the live SPEED cameras were capturing Scott Sharp's Ferrari erupting into flames, Wallace lost power, rolled to a stop and had to wait to be towed back to the pits. The pit crew members diagnosed the problem and solved it on pit road.
They also changed the bulbs in the car's headlights, which had burned out and were making it extremely hard for Wallace to see.

"If you slowed down because you couldn't see very well, you got more pick-up on the tires, so it was a double-whammy," Wallace explained.

Sutherland was in the car for the final leg of the journey and he took the checkered after the entry turned its 281st lap of the day, finishing 26th overall at first but then 25th in the final rundown. Sutherland, a junior psychology major at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, is sponsored by ClickAway.

As far as the hourly class race reports went, the bright-red Genoa No. 36 was third at the end of the first and second hour, second for hours three, four and five, and first for hour six. It ran in third place in class the rest of the way until the other team's rules violation vaulted it to second.

The Level 5 Motorsports team of Scott Tucker, Christophe Bouchut and Mark Wilkins won the class by finishing tenth overall with 327 laps complete.

Trailing the Genoa entry was the Primetime-Braille Battery Race Group of Joel Feinberg, Kyle Marcelli and Tom Weickardt in third place with 234 laps complete. Intersport Racing and its drivers, Mitch Pagerey, Brian Wong and David Ducote, were fourth in class with 232 laps complete.

Excluded in the final rundown was the Green Earth Team Gunnar team of Christian Zugel, Gunnar Jeannette and Elton Julian, which was the class's fastest qualifier and the car that originally was thought to have finished second in class and 17th overall with 311 laps completed.

Also excluded for the same type of infraction was a Level 5 Motorsports car driven by Ryan Hunter-Reay, James Gue and Scott Tucker, which completed 224 laps but got no credit for them.

The event was a rollercoaster ride for Genoa Racing during the race and even after the checkered flew, and the same could be said for the preliminary action too. Sutherland had a crash in practice on Monday and the car missed Tuesday's sessions, but the team proved it was one of the ones to beat when it topped the charts in the important Thursday night practice session.

Hildebrand qualified third in class and 11th overall on Friday, but then the car didn't make the minimum weight requirements during the post-qualifying tech inspection so its time was thrown out, and Wallace had to start 33rd in the 34-car field on Saturday morning. He carefully worked his way through the field at the start, however, and had the car in fourth place in class and 11th overall in just 15 minutes.

The next event is April 16-17 on the streets of Long Beach, Calif. It will be televised at 8 p.m. Eastern time April 17 on SPEED.
 

JaguarRSR Takes Green Flag In Sebring, Cooling Issue Ends Race Early
News from JaguarRSR
SEBRING, Florida (March 20, 2010) — After all the hard work, all the long hours, the JaguarRSR team took the green flag to kick off the 2010 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patron season today in Sebring, Florida.

It was a good feeling for the JaguarRSR team on the 58th Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida grid this morning. The crew stood proudly by the beautiful #75 JaguarRSR XKR GT as the race-day crowds flooded through the open grid taking photos and getting up close to see the anticipated new addition to the series/Sebring event. If looks could kill, that would be an understatement. Ready to start the fight, Paul Gentilozzi was buckled into the driver's seat and took the green flag this morning at 10:30 a.m. ET. The car made a successful start and things were progressing well in the opening laps before a cooling issue occurred about 15 minutes into the race.

"We ran the first few laps and saw the water temperature start to rise," said Paul Gentilozzi, JaguarRSR Principle Partner and co-driver. "We brought the #75 JaguarRSR XKR GT into the pits at that point and did what we were able to do in the pit lane. We tried some things that we knew were possible causes of that issue. We then went back out and ran it a couple more laps. At that point the problem was still there so we decided to bring it back to the truck so that we could have the entire team work on it, because in pitlane you can only have four people working on the car. Once the JaguarRSR crew was able to fully assess the problem, we determined that we were unable to fix it in a satisfactory manner here at the race track in the time allotted. Rather than risk damage to the car, we decided to end the race. It is a very long season; it is a very tough fight for everybody this year. We will head back to the race shop, do the best that we can to address the problem and begin Long Beach ready to fight."

Gentilozzi added, "I can't say enough of how good the JaguarRSR team was. The have worked hard, long hours, week after week, day after day. They put in the time to make this car a better racecar and I think the results showed on track this weekend with the improvement in our times. Never once was there a time where anyone looked like that had any quit in them. Every problem that we have been dealt, these guys have responded to with vigor and excitement about the program and the car. We are just going to keep moving forward, no one is ever going to give up."

The American Le Mans Series returns to North America's premier street event - the Long Beach Grand Prix. Round 2, the Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series at Long Beach will take place April 16-17, a much shorter event in both terms of race prep and duration, consisting of only two on-track days and a race time allotment of only 1 hour and 40 minutes. Gentilozzi and his squad are no strangers to this track, so it should be exciting to see the #75 JaguarRSR XKR GT fly around on the streets of downtown Long Beach, California.
 

JaguarRSR'S Cat Ready to Attack in Sebring 2010 Alms Season Opener
Team ready to put up a fight in a tough 2010 GT battle in the American Le Mans Series
News from JaguarRSR
EAST LANSING, MI (March 15, 2010) - The JaguarRSR race team is set to make its Sebring debut with the JaguarRSR XKR GT this weekend in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patron season opener, the 58th Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Fresh From Florida.

Facing tough competition from factory backed BMW, Corvette, Ferrari and Porsche teams; JaguarRSR enters its first full-season effort in the ALMS. -->M0RE

Old Friends and New Vying for Victory at Sebring
American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón set for 58th run
By Kate Shaw

Photos © ALMS
SEBRING, Florida (March 4, 2010) – The long wait (and we hope the winter too) is over – it’s time for Spring Break and the annual trek south to the 12 Hours of Sebring. True, it has not been so warm in Florida this year as we are wont to see; however, even in our warm clothes we look forward to blooms and green leaves we will not see up here until Le Mans – and a good look at the beautiful cars that have been prepared for our delectation all winter.

Following a successful Winter Test, anticipation and interest are building as we get a look at the initial entry list for the greatest and most demanding endurance race in America. -->M0RE

Jaguar Named Official Car of Sebring
SEBRING, Florida (February 8, 2010) —Jaguar has been named the Official Car of Sebring International Raceway, home of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida. The 58th edition of America’s premier endurance race runs on Saturday, March 20th, kicking-off the 2010 American Le Mans Series season.

A legend of motorsports, Jaguar has a long and successful history in sports car racing. Jaguar first won Le Mans in 1951 with the debut of the C-TYPE, and captured four more wins during the 1950s as well as in 1988 and 1990 at the famous French endurance classic. Jaguar scored its first major victory in North America by winning the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1955.

“Two of the most storied names in motor racing have joined together to form an ideal marketing partnership,” stated Sebring Raceway President and General Manager Tres Stephenson. “We look forward to working with Jaguar to forge a solid long-term relationship.”

“Jaguar is excited to enter the very competitive American Le Mans Series and return to Sebring, where we have a great history,” added Richard Beattie, Jaguar North American Executive Vice President for Marketing and Sales. “With a competition record in the U.S. reaching back to 1938, it is important that we compete at the highest levels of motorsport.”

As part of the agreement, the circuit’s Pit Tower has been named the “Jaguar Tower,” honoring the marque’s heritage at Sebring. During the 1950s and ’60s, the race control tower of the circuit’s original pit structure was also named the “Jaguar Tower.”

“We are pleased to bring back this legendary landmark,” added Stephenson. “The Jaguar name adds even more prestige and tradition to our historic facility.”

The new RSR Jaguar XKR GT will make its Sebring debut in March. The car took its first green flag last October in the American Le Mans Series finale at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and is set for a full-season championship effort in 2010. Paul Gentilozzi, Principal Partner of JaguarRSR, has a stellar record at Sebring including a class victory in 1992 and the overall pole position in 1994.

It also has been invited to compete at this year’s running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in GT2.

Mike O’Driscoll, Managing Director of Jaguar Cars said: “Our designers and engineers have taken the best of our standard road-going XKR. With Paul Gentilozzi’s motorsport expertise, we've created a first-class competition car.

“Motorsport has always been important to the Jaguar brand,” he added. “Our domination of Le Mans in the 1950s was a foundation on which the company was developed. As we look to the future with our new range of high-performance ‘R’ branded cars, we aim to make the Jaguar brand synonymous with motorsports once again.”

Sebring is America’s oldest road racing circuit, established in 1950. Since 1952, Sebring’s 12-hour classic has attracted the world’s best sports car racing teams.

The American Le Mans Series will open its 12th season with America’s greatest sports car race, the 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida from March 17-20. The green flag will fall at 10:35 a.m. on Saturday, March 20 with live coverage on SPEED. For ticket and accommodation information, see sebringraceway.com.

The annual American Le Mans Series Winter Test is scheduled for February 22-23, also at Sebring International Raceway.

You can follow the Series on Twitter (almsnotes) and on our Facebook page and the official YouTube channel.

Fernandez, Aston Martin Heading to Sebring
2009 LMP2 champion also to drive factory entry at Long Beach
and Le Mans...plus more?
BRASELTON, Georgia (February 1, 2010) — Adrian Fernandez and Aston Martin Racing vaulted into the list of favorites to win the 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida with the Mexican star joining forces with the UK’s premier endurance team for America’s greatest sports car race. The partnership, announced Monday, will see Fernandez drive a works Aston Martin-powered prototype at Sebring, Long Beach and Le Mans in 2010 with the team looking at additional races worldwide following the 24 Hours.

Sebring will mark the first time a prototype with an Aston Martin V12 engine has competed in the American Le Mans Series. The marque has a rich heritage in endurance racing including a victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1959. Its main concentration has been on GT cars since 2005 when it re-entering the sport but returned to prototypes at the factory level in 2009.

Fernandez, an official Aston Martin works driver for 2010, won the American Le Mans Series’ 2009 LMP2 championship with teammate Luis Diaz. The two won eight times in Lowe’s Fernandez Racing’s Acura ARX-01b, and Fernandez claimed three pole positions and four fastest race laps.

“This is another fantastic development to America’s most demanding sports car race,” said Scott Atherton, President and CEO of the American Le Mans Series. “The return of Adrian Fernandez and his hard-charging style is tremendous and certainly newsworthy by itself. Adding Aston Martin Racing - one of the truly iconic brands of sports car racing - to the event with one of its closed-top LMP1 Lola prototypes only adds to the anticipation we and the rest of the sports car world have for the start of the 2010 season. This is yet another reason why 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida will be a monumental battle in all four classes.”

In addition to his success in the American Le Mans Series, Fernandez’s open-wheel career included three victories in the Indy Racing League and a 13-year stint in American open-wheel racing.

“We are looking forward to a great season of racing and we hope to have another strong showing at Le Mans,” AMR team principal George Howard-Chappell said. “I’d like to welcome Adrian to the team, I’m sure with his experience he will be a great addition to our driver lineup.”

Aston Martin was the first major international factory team to enter Sebring in 1953. It finished second place overall (and won its class) that year in the 12 Hours with Reg Parnell and George Abecassis driving a DB3. Aston Martin DB3S finished fourth overall and won class in 1956 with Carroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori driving.

Aston Martin won at Le Mans three years later with its DBR1. It returned to Sebring with a GT1 victory in 2005, 49 years after its previous Sebring win. The British manufacturer, wildly popular with its UK base, also was the GT1 champion at Le Mans in 2007 and 2008 with its DBR9.

The American Le Mans Series will open its 12th season with America’s greatest sports car race, the 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida from March 17-20. The green flag will fall at 10:35 a.m. on Saturday, March 20 with live coverage on SPEED. For ticket and accommodation information, see sebringraceway.com.

The annual American Le Mans Series Winter Test is scheduled for February 22-23, also at Sebring International Raceway.

12 Hours of Sebring

Intersport Racing Attacks LMPC Class at Sebring 12 Hour
News from C2Group

Photos © John Thawley 2010
SEBRING, Florida (March 23, 2010) — With the remains of the team's LMP1 car on a trailer back to Dublin, Intersport Racing prepared to take on the new American Le Mans Series LMPC class. With an all-new car and driver line-up, the team took the grid with an eye on completing the 58th running of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Fresh from Florida. The driver line-up of David Ducote, Mitch Pagerey and Brian Wong fell just 50 minutes short of their 12 hour goal when the car succumbed to mechanical issues.

Throughout the 12-hour battle, Intersport's crew put up a relentless battle working through gearbox issues and other mechanical developments that appeared as the race endured. Like all LMPC teams, Intersport found themselves fixing as opposed to replacing as there was not an abundance of spare parts available for the Oreca FLM09. Not to be denied, the entire team, drivers and crew alike pushed on in championship fashion.

"Nothing can prepare you for the meat and grind that comes with running 12 hours at one of the toughest and hardest tracks in the world," said co-driver, Brian Wong. "Sebring is a true test of man vs. machine as I quickly found out. The toll that the car takes and the beating that the driver endures is like no other race I've experienced. From a personal standpoint though, my race was perfect. I learned so much, and feel I gained a lot of respect from my team and other drivers.

"Mitch [Pagerey] had stated the race with a single stint," continued Wong, "followed by David [Ducote] who did another single stint. I was third, doing a double stint. Seconds before the car came in, I was nervous, excited, and optimistic… all at the same time. But once I got buckled in and out on track, racing and driving instances took over.

"I had never driven a race longer than a couple of hours, so Sebring proved to be a huge learning weekend," noted Wong. "And, not only for me, but for Intersport Racing and this new LMPC car. With mechanical issues forcing the car behind pit wall several times throughout the 12 hours, our team and drivers never gave up. All of the guys at Intersport racing worked their butts off to get to the end."

"A new LMPC car and new team and drivers provided for quite a few challenges throughout the week," noted David Ducote. "The Intersport team, however, really stepped up and into the breach. They did an outstanding job. We overcame several mechanical issues over 12 hours and our drivers were able to remain competitive throughout the race. Everyone is extremely confident that we have the right ingredients for a great season. We all are looking forward to the next race."

"Twelve hours later, we are all starting to work well together," laughed Mitch Pagerey. "It was great working with my co-drivers, and I felt very little fatigue. Brian [Wong] is a great asset to our team and I am truly impressed with him. The team is very good and I'm going to work as hard as I can to step up and meet the challenge we've put upon ourselves.

"The toughest part of driving these new LMPC cars is the car seems extremely sensitive to changes," added Pagerey. "Add to that the razor sharp margin for driver error, and it makes for a lot of excitement in the cockpit. In the end it was good though, and I didn't experience any issues in or with traffic.”

"I was a bit surprised at some of the LMPC teams employing veteran elite drivers," Mitch said. "Brian and I will have our work cut out for us in order to get competitive. I know the team is working hard for Long Beach to find a setup that will allow us to drive the car harder with a little more confidence."

As reported earlier, the No. 37 AER-powered Lola B06/10 LMP1 race car got airborne and flipped several times on the straight between Turns 9 and 10 of the 3.7-mile, 17-turn Sebring International Raceway circuit while testing for the race. It has since been determined the car experienced a failure to the right rear suspension while traveling in a straight line. Jon Field, who was driving the car, was taken to Highlands Regional Medical Center following the accident. He was released a few hours later with no reported injuries.

Intersport Racing is appreciative of the support from Lola, AER, Dunlop, Lenco Mobile and other long-standing partners. In addition, the team extends a heartfelt thank you to the Sebring International Raceway safety crew. Their response and professionalism is among the best in the business and made a bad situation easier to cope with.

Lastly, Intersport Racing thanks our supporters and fans for all of the well wishes we received over the last several days.

The Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach is the second round of the 2010 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón. The race, set at the historic Long Beach street circuit, is scheduled for 4:40 p.m. PT on Saturday, April 15 with coverage on SPEED set for 8 to 10 p.m. ET. Live radio coverage will be available on American Le Mans Radio presented by Porsche – a production of Radio Show Limited – as well as Sirius and XM.
 

Victory for Muscle Milk Team CytoSport at 12 Hours of Sebring
Greg Pickett returns to victory lane at Sebring 23 years later
News from Muscle Milk Team Cytosport
SEBRING, Fla. (March 20, 2010) - They say good things come to those who wait, and it was true for Muscle Milk Team CytoSport on Saturday as the team went on to take the LMP2 class victory in the prestigious Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida.

While the Muscle Milk squad may not have had long to wait to score its first American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón victory, winning in its first race of the season, it was thanks to their patient approach at the 12 Hours of Sebring that they came out as the LMP2 class winners.

The victory is a special one for the entire Muscle Milk Team CytoSport, not only because it's the team's first but because it was scored in its first race of its first full season of American Le Mans Series competition and, it was achieved at one of the most difficult races known to man and machine.

Additionally, if scoring its first win wasn't enough, the victory also made them the first privateer team to win a race in the US in the fan-favorite Porsche RS Spyder. And the firsts don't end there. The win was Klaus Graf's first Sebring victory and Sascha Maassen's first in the Porsche RS Spyder at Sebring.

It was also Maassen's fifth victory at the 12-hour race and his 30th career win in the ALMS. As for Greg Pickett, it was a return to the winner's circle as the Trans-Am legend, who won the GTO class at Sebring in 1987.

The race started out with the same approach the team had all week, with patience and cautiousness. Starting second, the Porsche RS Spyder, driven by Pickett, fell to third in the opening laps but quickly returned to its second place in class when the Dyson Racing Mazda encountered difficulties and entered pit lane.

Pickett who was putting in consistent lap times completed his double stint handing the driving duties to Klaus Graf about two hours in to the 12-hour event. Already one lap behind the LMP2 class leaders, Graf was quickly catching up to the Highcroft Acura but had to make a pit stop for fuel only, thanks to the superb performance of the Michelin tires.

While coming in to the pits, Graf went over the pit lane speed limit and had to serve a stop and go penalty, costing him some precious time on the leader.

With Graf completing his double stint he handed the reins to Porsche ace Sascha Maassen. Once again, Muscle Milk Team CytoSport settled into the race with no issues whatsoever arising.

By the halfway point, the team was sitting second in class, and fifth overall but was two laps down to the LMP2 leaders.

With about three hours and 30 minutes to go in the race, the team had fallen five laps to the leaders, but remained patient knowing that there was still a lot of racing to be done.

As it is in racing, reversal of fortunes happens quickly. Within about 10 minutes the team had made up their laps on the leaders and then some after the Highcroft Acura remained in pit lane with electrical problems.

Muscle Milk Team CytoSport took the LMP2 class lead with about three hours and 20 minutes to go in the race and never looked back. At one point the Muscle Milk squad had built a six-lap lead on the second place Highcroft car.

With its first ALMS win now in the books, Muscle Milk Team CytoSport return to their home base in Benicia, California as they prepare for round two of the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón, the 36th annual Long Beach Grand Prix, which takes place April 17, 2010.
 

Robertson Racing gears-up for Sebring 12 Hours
News from Robertson Racing
March 12,2010 - The distinctive curves of a Ford GT will once again grace Sebring’s concrete-paved test of endurance next week when Robertson Racing contest the American Le Mans Series season curtain raiser in Florida.

Although 41 years has passed since Ford’s supercar last claimed the 12 Hours laurels, the GT40 remains as synonymous with America’s most prestigious sportscar event today as it did in 1969 when Jacky Ickx and Jackie Oliver took the chequered flag at the wheel of their Gulf-liveried machine.

For David Robertson, team owner and driver of the Doran-built, Roush V8-powered GT that will line-up alongside 35 other hopefuls, it’s a point in history that still resonates today.

“I love Sebring and racing there, especially as it’s such an important part of motorsport history,” said David, who will partner wife Andrea and David Murry in the squad’s #40 Doran Ford GT. “I’m just thrilled to be a part of that place. I love everything about it. Your pulse quickens just pulling in knowing what’s gone on there for the past 58 years. It’s just an exciting place. It’s also neat to have the Ford connection, what with the GT40 winning there in the 1960s. You see it in the car. You look at it and can’t help but remember that great era of endurance racing.”

While it’s unlikely that Robertson Racing’s GT2 contender will emulate that last outright victory, the team has still been hard at work over the winter to make the 21st century version as competitive as possible, despite the swathes of manufacturer-backed entries that make the ALMS GT2 class one of the most competitive and diverse in world motorsport.

“We’ve made a lot of progress on the aerodynamic side, especially with the rear wing and the bottom of the car at the back,” said David. “We’re still trying to optimize the wing profile, given the unusual shape of the high rear deck. We’ve tested two wings during the winter test last month. There’s also a new splitter as we look to optimize the car’s balance. Internally we’ve also made some changes which have sped up the process of replacing damaged parts during the race, which is obviously an important area of endurance racing. Our next area of intense focus will be engine horsepower.

“A full factory effort has a lot more resources than we do which can be channeled into optimizing the small things that all add up to a half second here and there. So, at present, we’re realistically racing against the owner/drivers and privateers and every now and then, when we make an improvement, we move up a little bit. Our greatest asset as we develop the car has been our very clever group of people. This year, we will have more access to CFD models and wind tunnel time to assist them. You will see continuing development as the season progresses.”

Sebring itself meanwhile remains as credible a challenge as it did four decades ago thanks to the circuit’s schizophrenic-like layout.

“Some of the turns are very rough as they’re made up of the original concrete squares from the old runway, while others are smooth. I suppose there’s always going to be a compromise to be found between ride height and spring stiffness thanks to the long, smooth sweeping turns and the bumps. It poses an equal challenge to driver and engineer. Fortunately we’ve got a lot of smart people like Chief Engineer Lee Penn and our very experienced driver Dave Murry who are enormously knowledgeable when it comes to set-up work.”

That set-up work begins next Monday with the first test session, before a week of free practice and qualifying culminates in the 58th running of the Sebring 12 Hours 10.30am local time on Saturday.
 

Flying Lizard Ready for ALMS Season Opener at Sebring;
Lieb and Lietz Round out Driver Roster for the 12-Hour Endurance Classic
News from Flying Lizard Motorsport
SONOMA, Calif. - (March 4, 2010) - Following a successful test at Sebring, Flying Lizard returns to Florida next week for the kickoff of the 2010 American Le Mans Series season: the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. In the No. 45 Lizard Porsche, defending ALMS GT2 champions Jörg Bergmeister and Patrick Long will be joined for Sebring by Marc Lieb (Germany). In the No. 44 Porsche, Seth Neiman and Darren Law will team with Richard Lietz (Austria). Lieb and Lietz, both Porsche factory drivers, are teammates in the 2010 Le Mans Series and are defending LMS 2009 GT champions (both with the Felbermayr-Proton team).

"We're thrilled to have Marc and Richard join us at Sebring," commented Flying Lizard chief strategist Thomas Blam. "Marc has driven with the Lizards at long races for several years, and he's had tremendous success with us: winning Sebring in 2008, Petit in 2007 and numerous other podiums. Jörg, Patrick and Marc will certainly make a powerful trio. Richard drove with us at Sebring in 2008 in the No. 46 Porsche and proved to be a good fit with the team. We have our work cut out for us this year in GT as we set out to defend the team and drivers' championships. Having consistent guest drivers whom we know well will help reduce the complexity of the Sebring equation."

The 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring will get the green flag on Saturday, March 20, at 10:30 a.m. ET with live coverage on SPEED TV. Flying Lizard will broadcast its team radio live during the race. For race schedule and details see www.lizardms.com