Friday 21 January 2011

Daytona 24 Hours, USA





Daytona 24 Hours, USA

Seven Porsche works drivers contest the classic in Florida


Stuttgart. Title defender Porsche tackles the Daytona 24 hour race on 29 January with a strong contingent. Traditionally, the long distance classic in Florida is the first highlight of the motorsport season and each year attracts the best pilots from a huge range of international race series to the Sunshine State of the USA. With 22 overall wins, Porsche is the most successful manufacturer in the history of the race on the Daytona International Speedway, where this time seven Porsche factory drivers will compete for customer teams.

The Race

The 24 Hours at Daytona has been run on the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach/Florida since 1966. Lining up on the grid are Daytona prototypes and GT sports cars. The chassis for the prototypes are supplied by specialist manufacturers like Riley. To ensure equal chances, major automobile manufacturers are only permitted to supply engines. This race, as the season-opener to the American Grand-Am Series, has been won by Formula 1 greats like Lorenzo Bandini, Chris Amon and Jacky Ickx as well as US racing legends like Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt and Al Unser.

The circuit

With its 12 corners, the 5.729 kilometre Daytona International Speedway is one of the most famous race tracks in the USA. The 24 hour race is contested on a combination of the oval with banked corners and the infield. The circuit is also the venue for the famed NASCAR Daytona 500 race with over 250,000 spectators annually.

The Porsche drivers

In the prototype class, Porsche works driver Joerg Bergmeister (Germany), who saw the flag here in 2003 as overall victor with the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, shares driving duties with his works driver colleague Patrick Long (USA). Their Porsche-Riley, powered by the ca. 500 hp Porsche six-cylinder engine, is the winning Daytona Prototype from 2009 and is fielded by Flying Lizard Motorsports, the successful Porsche customer team from the American Le Mans Series. Their teammates are Americans Seth Neiman and Johannes van Osterbeek. Two Riley-chassis with Porsche V8-engines are run by Action Express Racing with last year’s winners Terry Borcheller (USA) and Joao Barbosa (Portugal), as well as 2009 winners David Donohue, Darren Law and Buddy Rice from America. Five Porsche works drivers have their sights set on victory in the traditionally fiercely-contested GT class with the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup: Marco Holzer (Germany) and Richard Lietz (Austria) compete for Magnus Racing, Patrick Pilet (France) races for the TRG/Black Swan Racing/GMC Racing squad, Wolf Henzler (Germany) for TRG Racing. Marc Lieb (Germany) gets to drive with a legendary teammate for the Daytona winning team Brumos Racing, which swaps from prototypes to the GT class this year: Hurley Haywood (USA) is the most successful pilot by now in Daytona with five overall and six class wins. On 4 May he celebrates his 63rd birthday. Also manning the 911 GT3 Cup is former Porsche-Junior Martin Ragginger (Austria), two times winner of the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup Jeroen Bleekemolen (Netherlands) as well as the reigning Carrera Cup Germany champion Nicolas Armindo (France).

Comments before the race

Joerg Bergmeister: “I’m feeling very optimistic. The Porsche engine and the Riley chassis go well together. We tested the car in Homestead and Daytona and made great progress there. By the race, the team will be more familiar with the new car and that increases our chances.”
Patrick Long: “With Flying Lizard Motorsports we have one of the best sports car teams backing us, that’s for sure. Our Daytona test helped us a great deal. It makes me confident for the race, also because we’re competing with a chassis-engine combination that has already won at Daytona. It won’t be easy but we are well prepared.”
Marc Lieb: “I last drove in Daytona in 2004. Back then we won the GT class. After such a long break I’m very much looking forward to returning to this fascinating race and to racing for such a time-honoured and successful team like Brumos Racing.”
Wolf Henzler: “Daytona is a real highlight to start the season. The great thing is that you come up against many good drivers from other race series. I won my Daytona debut in 2005 and have come back to race here ever since. Now it’s high time for my second victory.”
Marco Holzer: “I can’t wait for my first race as a Porsche works driver. And it’s even better that it takes place at Daytona. To start the season with such a classic is a great challenge. I really like this track. It’s demanding, but it’s also great fun.”
Richard Lietz: “Great that the season’s finally starting. I’m looking forward to working with Marco Holzer. We worked very well together at the Nürburgring 24 hour race. Magnus Racing is a very professional team. Of course we don’t know how strong the opposition is, but we definitely want to bring home a podium result.”
Patrick Pilet: “I have very special memories of Daytona. In 2008 I drove my first race for Porsche here and right before the start I learned that I would be getting a works contract. That was a huge moment of my career. I can’t wait for the race – in fact I just love racing in the USA. I enjoy the whole buzz, it’s somehow very different and much more exciting than in Europe.”
Hartmut Kristen, Head of Porsche Motorsport: “This race right at the start of the season is a huge challenge for our teams and drivers. It’s particularly appealing that drivers from many different race series come together on neutral ground in Daytona. It’ll be especially exciting to see how our customer team Flying Lizard Motorsports goes out to bat in the prototype class.”

Porsche successes

With 22 overall and 72 class victories, Porsche is by far the most successful manufacturer in the history of the Daytona 24 hour race. The first overall win for Porsche was in 1968 with Vic Elford, Jochen Neerpasch, Rolf Stommelen, Jo Siffert and Hans Herrmann with the Porsche 907. The last win in 2010 went to Joao Barbosa, Terry Borcheller, Ryan Dalziel and Mike Rockenfeller with the Porsche-Riley. In 2003, Jörg Bergmeister, Timo Bernhard, Kevin Buckler and Michael Schrom clinched a sensational overall win with the near-standard Porsche 911 GT3 RS against more powerful Daytona prototypes.

The schedule

The Daytona 24 hour race takes off on Saturday, 29 January at 15.30 hours local time (21.30 CET).

Other interesting facts

- According to statistics, Porsche pilot Hurley Haywood has notched up more than 18,800 laps from his 37 Daytona starts to date and with this has completed almost 110,000 kilometres – that’s far more than two and a half times the circumference of the earth. For this, the Porsche dealer from Jacksonville/Florida has spent 476 hours behind the wheel and used around 1,100 sets of tyres.
- Marking the longest winning streak in the history of the race, Porsche notched up a total of eleven overall victories between 1977 and 1987. Add the class victories to this and Porsche has 21 wins in succession between 1966 and 1987 (in 1974 the race was not contested due to the oil crisis).
- Right behind front-runner Hurley Haywood with five overall wins (1973, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1991) in the all-time list of winners at Daytona are two further Porsche pilots: Rolf Stommelen (1968, 1978, 1980, 1982) and Bob Wollek (1983, 1985, 1989, 1991) with four overall victories.

The Calendar

On the 2011 calendar of the Grand-Am Series are these twelve races in the USA and Canada:

29/30.01. Daytona 24 Hours/Florida
05.03. Miami/Florida
09.04. Birmingham/Alabama
14.05. Alton/Virginia
30.05. Lime Rock/Connecticut
04.06 Watkins Glen 6 Hours/New York
25.06. Road America/Wisconsin
09.07. Laguna Seca/California
24.07. Millville/New Jersey
13.08. Watkins Glen/New York
20.08. Montreal/Canada
17.09. Lexington/Ohio

Info and Fotos: Public Relations Porsche Motorsport/ Autorized and Acreditated Press.

Monday 17 January 2011

Participa en el mejor automovilismo del mundo: Europa a tu alcance.







Pilotos Latinos,
Estan a tiempo de entrar en la carpa grande del automovilismo mundial: Europa.

Te ofrecemos sillas en
equipo Oficial Porsche para competir en :
1- Porsche Super Sport Cup.
2- FIA GT3.
3- GT Masters de Europa.
4- Blancpain Endurance Championship.
5- VLN Nurburgring.

Ademas particpa en las mejores 24 horas del Mundo:
1- 24 H. Nurburgring.
2- 24 H. Spa.

Ademas nuestros Hospitality Service en pista son totalmente completos, desde los racing trailers equipados con cuartos para descanso de los pilotos con aire acondicionado, calefaccion, sistema de HD en LCD pantallas gigantes para el confort, ademas cuentan los trailers con baños con tina y jacuzzi para el confort total de los pilotos.

Contactanos, sera un placer desarollar un sistema profesional al alcance .

A Russian First for FIA GT3 in 2011.



PRESS RELEASE

17 January 2011

A Russian First for FIA GT3 in 2011

Later this year the FIA GT3 European Championship will set another landmark in its 6-year history as Europe’s most successful sportscar championship, when it becomes the first series to stage an international car race in Russia on the 20/21 August 2011.



Situated 300km west of Moscow near the border with Belarus, the 3.362 km/1.9 mile Smolenskring will host Rounds 9 & 10 of the 2011 FIA GT3 European Championship in August, the first races on the 2011 calendar where the series will be the main event. The 15-metre wide, 13 corner race track was designed by Formula 1 circuit architect Hermann Tilke and opened with a round of the European Truck Racing Championship on the 7th August 2010. The circuit layout makes good use of the terrain, with ample overtaking opportunities for sportscars around the 3.3km length which should provide plenty of entertainment for drivers and spectators alike.

Stephane Ratel, Chairman of the SRO Motorsports Group, said: “We are extremely pleased that the FIA GT3 European Championship will be the first international series for cars to compete in Russia and this represents another important step for the Championship and for SRO. Smolenskring is brand new; having only opened last August and the circuit certainly looks like it will present some excellent opportunities for good, close racing. The opportunity to race in Russia, one of the most important markets in the world for luxury and sports brands, was very welcome indeed. The GT3 races in August are just the first step in the relationship we have with the Russian promoters, with plans to take the GT1 World Championship to Russia in 2012.”

Oleg Petrikov, CEO Smolenskring: “We are very pleased that Smolenskring will host the FIA GT3 European Championship in 2011 and for the first time Russian spectators can watch an international race of such high level live. We hope that teams and drivers will like our circuit and layout of the track and all guests and spectators receive unforgettable emotions. It’ll be a good prize for all people involved in the building of the circuit. It’s not always easy to be the first and we have huge volume of organization work ahead, but we and our partners from SRO are sure that everything will be done well and together we will create a good platform for the GT1 World Championship in 2012.”

The 2011 FIA GT3 European Championship will take place over six double header events across Europe starting in Portugal on the 7/8 May at the Autodromo do Algarve. The first four events will be with the FIA GT1 World Championship before finishing the season as the headline series with two events at the Smolenskring in Russia and finishing at Zandvoort in The Netherlands in October. As well as competing against some of the best up and coming sportscar drivers in the world, the overall champions will join a very elite group of European title holders, with Michelin also providing a €150,000 award to move up to the FIA GT1 World Championship in 2012.

2011 FIA GT3 European Championship
7/8 May Portugal Algarve
4/5 June Great Britain Silverstone
2/3 July Spain Navarra
16/17 July France Paul Ricard
20/21 August Russia Smolensk Ring
15/16 October Netherlands Zandvoort

Info and Foto: FIA GT3 Press.

Tuesday 4 January 2011

Alineacion completa para 24 H. Dubai 2011.


MUEHLNER MOTORSPORT:
24h de Dubai: La alineacion completa formada por Mark J. Thomas, Henri Moser, Jerome Thiry, Armand Fumal y Gilles Vannelet tendran la responsabilidad de llevar al Muehlner Porsche a un podium. esperamos buenos resultados. Bernhard Muehlner.

The world’s greatest Porsche race


The world’s greatest Porsche race

One of the most spectacular sprint races ever:


At the Porsche Carrera World Cup on 25 June, 2011, up to 200 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup racers will line up on the Nürburgring Nordschleife watched by more than 200,000 spectators. The world’s greatest Porsche race takes place just prior to the start of the 39th ADAC 24 hour race and runs over a distance of six laps (152,268 km). The Porsche Carrera World Cup forms the season highlight of Porsche’s 18 brand trophy series worldwide. This race counts as a competition round towards several championships, including the Porsche Carrera Cups in Germany, Scandinavia, France and Italy.

The field will be divided into two classes: The Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with 3.6-litre engines from 2007 to 2009 model years (400 to 420 hp) as well as the 3.8-litre versions of the 2010 and 2011 model years (450 hp). Each class is classified separately. All competitors must provide proof of their considerable track experience. For all Nordschleife rookies, an intensive two-day training course will take place in the week leading up to the event with former Porsche works driver Sascha Maassen as the head instructor.

“Since its market launch in 1998 we have built over 2,000 units of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car for competition in our 18 Porsche one-make championships around the world,” explains Porsche’s head of motorsport, Hartmut Kristen. “With the Porsche Carrera World Cup on the northern loop of the Nürburgring, we aim to offer yet another highlight to our brand trophy customers all over the globe. Racing in the Nürburgring Long Distance Championship, the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup never fails to underline its excellent aptitude for the world’s longest and most difficult races. I’m sure that this race will be an unforgettable experience for all pilots and spectators at the track.”

Over the last years, the success story of Porsche Motorsport has been closely tied to the Nürburgring. From 2006 to 2009, the Porsche team, Manthey Racing, won the 24 hour race on the Nordschleife four times in a row. In May this year, the innovative Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid held the overall lead for more than eight hours at Germany’s most popular automobile race. From the ten races on the VLN Nürburgring Long Distance Championship calendar this year, a Porsche 911 won nine times.

Info and Foto/ ADAC 24 Hour Race site.