Peugeot Sport: 6 Hours of Imola : In uncharted territory

6 Hours of Imola : In uncharted territory

Three weeks after an epic edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Team Peugeot Total is ready to lock horns with its rivals again. Just like at Spa and Le Mans, the team expects the race to be a 6-hour sprint, on a track that will be new to many of the teams. Two Peugeot 908s are entered to try and extend Peugeot’s lead in the Manufacturers’ standings, driven by Sébastien Bourdais and Anthony Davidson (no.7), and Franck Montagny and Stéphane Sarrazin (no.8).

A six-hour sprint after Le Mans

The 79th edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours is still fresh in everyone’s mind and the 13.854-second gap between the first two cars has already gone down in history. Endurance is currently serving up some thrilling and unique racing, creating a level of interest in the sport never seen before. This can be seen in the viewing figures recorded by Peugeot Sport’s Web TV at Le Mans, with almost a million connections to the www.peugeot-sport.com website. Live coverage will be available again at Imola.

The ILMC season now moves on to Imola, with a six-hour race. Two cars are entered for the race in what promises to be a wide open sprint. “Since the start of the ILMC season, every race has been very hotly disputed”, analyses Olivier Quesnel, Peugeot Sport Director. “We saw at Le Mans that we had to push throughout the entire 24 hours. At Sebring, the top three were separated by just 44 seconds after 12 hours of racing. At Spa-Francorchamps, we claimed a one-two after an incredible fight back; there was only forty or so seconds between our two cars at the end of the race. We fully expect a very closely fought contest throughout the six hours at Imola. That’s why we are entering two Peugeot 908s driven by sprinters. Sébastien Bourdais and Anthony Davidson will team up for the first time in the number 7. Franck Montagny and Stéphane Sarrazin will be back together in the number 8.”

Getting to know Imola

Imola, one of Formula 1’s top circuits, is this year the venue for a round of the ILMC. Peugeot and all the competitors will be making their first appearance at the 4,909-metre long Enzo e Dino Ferrari racetrack, which was redesigned by Hermann Tilke in 2007. One of the challenges facing the teams this weekend will therefore be to define the best set-up for this fast and technical track. “It’s always interesting to experience new tracks", explains Bruno Famin, Peugeot Sport’s Technical Director. “Imola is a high-speed track with a mix of fast, sweeping curves and slower sections. From a technical point of view, it's totally different again from Le Mans, Sebring or Spa-Francorchamps. We come into the event with a basic set-up defined using the data that we have gathered and all the simulation work we have carried out. We hope that the three free practice sessions will enable us to check the set-up. We will also have to contend with more traffic than ever: with 50 cars on a 5km-long track, there is every reason to be a little concerned.”

Peugeot leads the Manufacturers’ standings

With a win and a third place at Sebring, a one-two at Spa-Francorchamps and two cars on the podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where double points were awarded, Peugeot leads the Manufacturers’ standings. The main target for the French brand will be to consolidate its lead and attempt, if possible, to secure a third win in four races.

Follow live coverage of the 6 Hours of Imola on Peugeot Total’s Web TV

Just like at Spa-Francorchamps and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the entire Imola race will be shown live on Peugeot Sport’s Web TV. Footage from behind the scenes, pit stops, onboard camera, the race itself and the real-time positions of the two Peugeots will be available with commentary in French and in English, starting at 11am, Sunday 3 July. Just go to: www.peugeot-sport.com The event will also be covered on: www.twitter.com/peugeotsport www.facebook.com/peugeot.sport www.peugeot-media.com www.peugeot-sport.com www.lemans.org

Practical information:
Sébastien Bourdais and Anthony Davidson will be in the Peugeot 908 no.7 with blue rear-view mirrors. Franck Montagny and Stéphane Sarrazin will be in the Peugeot 908 no.8, recognisable by its white rear-view mirrors.

Schedule for the 6 Hours of Imola:
Friday 1 July 2011
12.15pm – 1.45pm: Free practice
3.15pm – 4.00pm: Media briefing (Peugeot Sport motorhome)
4.30pm – 6.00pm: Free practice
Saturday 2 July 2011
8.55am – 9.55am: Free practice
2.25pm –2.45pm: LMP1/LMP2 qualifying
Sunday 3 July 2011
9.00am – 9.20pm: Warm up
12.00pm – 6.00pm: 6 Hours of Imola

Intercontinental Le Mans Cup standings:
Manufacturers:
1. Peugeot, 103 points
2. Audi, 69 points
Teams:
1. Audi Sport Team Joest, 50 points
2. Team Peugeot Total, 49 points
3. Team Oreca-Matmut, 34 points
4. Rebellion Racing, 26 points

Peugeot in Italy
Peugeot’s Italian subsidiary was created in 1969 and now boasts some 150 sales outlets. In 2010, Peugeot Italy recorded its best ever results with sales of 120,000 vehicles and a market share of 5.6%. In the same year, Peugeot was second in the LCV market with 14,465 vehicles registered (and a market share of almost 8%), thus becoming the leading foreign manufacturer of imported vehicles. This trend has continued in the first half of 2011.

Peugeot Sport.

Development programme confirmed for LMP1 sports prototype Porsche returns to Le Mans in 2014

Development programme confirmed for LMP1 sports prototype

Porsche returns to Le Mans in 2014

Stuttgart. Porsche returns to Le Mans with a works-run LMP1 sports prototype. The first outing of the completely new developed race car is planned for the year 2014. With 16 overall victories, Porsche is the most successful manufacturer in Le Mans. The most recent win was in 1998 with the Porsche 911 GT1.

“Motorsport was always an essential part of the Porsche brand,” emphasises Matthias Müller, President of the Executive Board at Porsche AG. “So for us it was only a matter of time before we returned as a factory to the top league of racing. Porsche’s successes in Le Mans are unrivalled. We want to follow up on this with the 17th outright victory.”

With the RS Spyder sports prototype that was run with great success from 2006 to 2008 by the factory-backed Penske Racing team in the USA and to 2010 by several customer teams worldwide, Porsche has set the benchmark recently in the LMP2 category. “With the RS Spyder we proved that our motorsport engineers in Weissach are at the forefront,” says Wolfgang Hatz, Board Member for Research and Development at Porsche AG. “For instance, we were the first to run a high-revving race engine with direct fuel injection, DFI, setting new standards in performance and efficiency. Recently, with the 911 GT3 R Hybrid, we adopted a completely new drive technology for racing purposes and achieved a considerable reduction in consumption.”

Hartmut Kristen, Head of Porsche Motorsport, is already prepared for one of the most challenging development programmes in the company’s history. “We’re looking forward to the task of developing new technologies and to continue on with the success of the Porsche RS Spyder. After the conclusion of our works-supported sports prototype programme in the American Le Mans Series we have kept up with the latest technological advances. Now we will begin with detailed research in order to evaluate the various concept alternatives for our new car. These obviously depend on how the regulations for the year 2014 look in detail. In principle, these regulations are interesting for us because the integration of our hybrid technology in the vehicle concept is one possible option.”

Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood claimed the first overall victory for Porsche in 1970 with the legendary 917 short-tail. The 16th and by now last overall win was secured by Laurent Aiello, Stéphane Ortelli and Allan McNish in 1998 with the 911 GT1. In the years 2008 and 2009, the Porsche RS Spyder sports prototype won the title in the LMP2 category.


Public Relations and Media
Motor and Sports Press
Oliver Hilger

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FIA GT3s First Navarra Run.

24/06/2011 PREVIEW: FIA GT3s First Navarra Run

2011 marks the sixth year of the FIA GT3 European Championship which has continued to attract teams and drivers from across the world resulting in large grids and action packed racing. While this is the second visit to Navarra for the FIA GT1 World Championship this is the first time the FIA GT3 European Championship has travelled to northern Spain. However many of the teams and drivers would’ve raced in the recent Blancpain Endurance Series event held in May.

After wins for BMW and Audi in Portugal, it was Ferrari which made it three different manufacturers in three races to win an FIA GT3 race this season with. Francesco Castellacci took the chequered flag at the end of Round 3 of the FIA GT3 European Championship at Silverstone to give former FIA GT2 Champions AF Corse their first FIA GT3 victory. Federico Leo led from the start from Pole Position and built up a comfortable lead before handing over to Castellacci, who brought the Ferrari 458 home.

In the second race of the weekend it BMW back in charge and a 1-2 for the all Dutch Faster Racing DB Motorsport team with Hoevert Vos taking the chequered flag in the nr35 BMW Z4 after passing his teammate, Harrie Kolen in the nr36 BMW Z4, on the last lap of the race. The victory propelled Vos and Jeroen den Boer to the top of the Drivers Championship, five points ahead of Round 1 winners Edward Sandstroem and Abdulaziz Al Faisal in the Need for Speed Team Schubert BMW Z4. Strong performances in all four races so far by both Need for Speed BMWs has enabled the German team to maintain an 8 point lead over their Dutch rivals in the Team's Championship.

CLICK HERE for Championship Positions after Round 4

For 2011 the Prospeed Competition Porsche 911 GT3 R returns with 2011 GT3 Vice Champion Paul van Splunteren returning, partnered by Belgian driver Maxime Soulet in the car carrying, as reigning Team Champions, the all important ‘number 1’ on the door panels. Prospeed will be running a second car in Spain, the only team to be racing the championship winning Porsche.

Need for Speed Team Schubert returns for a second season with the race winning BMW Z4 GT3, with an almost unchanged driver line up. Claudia Huertgen and Csaba Walter made GT3 history last year by becoming the first car to win with Dunlop tyres at Jarama in Spain, with Huertgen also becoming the first female driver to win an FIA GT3 race. The second car features race winner Edward Sandstroem, who will be joined by Saudi Arabian driver Abdulaziz Al Faisal, who became the first driver from the Middle East to win an FIA GT3 European Championship race in Portugal. Strong performances by both cars has given Need for Speed Team Schubert an 8-point lead in the Team Championship over Faster Racing by DB Motorsport.

Race winner Mike Parisy will return in 2011 with French outfit Graff Racing, but has swapped the Corvette Z06R for the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. PArisy, and co-driver Philippe Giaque secured a podium finish in Round 3 at Silverstone. In total six of the new Mercedes are entered for the season with a second entry from Graff Racing alongside a pair of cars for Gravity Charouz Racing from the Czech Republic and German team Heico Motorsport.

United Autosports return with their pair of Audi R8 LMS. The line up has one change from last year with Mark Patterson being joined by GT4 European Cup Champion Joe Osborne in the nr22 Audi. Sainteloc Racing also return for another season with the Audi R8 and Belgian Audi Club have also entered a pair of cars, one for the Belgian pairing of Enzo Ide and Greg Franchi, with which the Belgian pair won Round 2 in Portugal.

Two teams will run the new Ferrari 458 Italia, including former FIA GT2 Champions AF Corse. The Italian team is running two cars, one for Italian pairing, former British and Italian F3 racer Francesco Castellacci and Federico Leo and British GT front runners Dan Brown and Glynn Geddie. The British MTECH team is the second outfit to run the new Ferrari, with Ireland’s Matt Griffin and Britain’s Duncan Cameron in the nr20 car, which ran well at Silverstone to secure the first top 10 finish for the team in European competition.

LMP Motorsport will be the only team to run the championship winning Aston Martin DBRS9, with the French team boasting three former GT3 race winners – Dimitri Enjalbert, Gael Lesoudier and Maxime Martin, who is also a GT1 World Championship race winner. Lesoudier and Martin took two podium finishes at Silverstone and will be looking for a similar performance in Navarra from the Aston Martin.

German team Fischer Racing return with their race winning Ford GT, with Denmark’s Christoffer Nygaard and Finland’s Mikko Eskelinen looking to build on the strong performances they had together in 2010. Fellow German team Reiter Engineering is running a Lamborghini Gallardo LP560 for reigning ADAC GT Masters Champion and FIA GT3 race winner Albert von Thurn und Taxis who is joined by Austrian driver Nikolaus Mayr-Melnhof in 2011.

CLICK HERE for the provisional entry list for Rounds 5 & 6

CLICK HERE for a lap of Navarra with Christoffer Nygaard

FIA GT3/Press.

FIA GT3s First Navarra Run.

24/06/2011 PREVIEW: FIA GT3s First Navarra Run

2011 marks the sixth year of the FIA GT3 European Championship which has continued to attract teams and drivers from across the world resulting in large grids and action packed racing. While this is the second visit to Navarra for the FIA GT1 World Championship this is the first time the FIA GT3 European Championship has travelled to northern Spain. However many of the teams and drivers would’ve raced in the recent Blancpain Endurance Series event held in May.

After wins for BMW and Audi in Portugal, it was Ferrari which made it three different manufacturers in three races to win an FIA GT3 race this season with. Francesco Castellacci took the chequered flag at the end of Round 3 of the FIA GT3 European Championship at Silverstone to give former FIA GT2 Champions AF Corse their first FIA GT3 victory. Federico Leo led from the start from Pole Position and built up a comfortable lead before handing over to Castellacci, who brought the Ferrari 458 home.

In the second race of the weekend it BMW back in charge and a 1-2 for the all Dutch Faster Racing DB Motorsport team with Hoevert Vos taking the chequered flag in the nr35 BMW Z4 after passing his teammate, Harrie Kolen in the nr36 BMW Z4, on the last lap of the race. The victory propelled Vos and Jeroen den Boer to the top of the Drivers Championship, five points ahead of Round 1 winners Edward Sandstroem and Abdulaziz Al Faisal in the Need for Speed Team Schubert BMW Z4. Strong performances in all four races so far by both Need for Speed BMWs has enabled the German team to maintain an 8 point lead over their Dutch rivals in the Team's Championship.

CLICK HERE for Championship Positions after Round 4

For 2011 the Prospeed Competition Porsche 911 GT3 R returns with 2011 GT3 Vice Champion Paul van Splunteren returning, partnered by Belgian driver Maxime Soulet in the car carrying, as reigning Team Champions, the all important ‘number 1’ on the door panels. Prospeed will be running a second car in Spain, the only team to be racing the championship winning Porsche.

Need for Speed Team Schubert returns for a second season with the race winning BMW Z4 GT3, with an almost unchanged driver line up. Claudia Huertgen and Csaba Walter made GT3 history last year by becoming the first car to win with Dunlop tyres at Jarama in Spain, with Huertgen also becoming the first female driver to win an FIA GT3 race. The second car features race winner Edward Sandstroem, who will be joined by Saudi Arabian driver Abdulaziz Al Faisal, who became the first driver from the Middle East to win an FIA GT3 European Championship race in Portugal. Strong performances by both cars has given Need for Speed Team Schubert an 8-point lead in the Team Championship over Faster Racing by DB Motorsport.

Race winner Mike Parisy will return in 2011 with French outfit Graff Racing, but has swapped the Corvette Z06R for the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. PArisy, and co-driver Philippe Giaque secured a podium finish in Round 3 at Silverstone. In total six of the new Mercedes are entered for the season with a second entry from Graff Racing alongside a pair of cars for Gravity Charouz Racing from the Czech Republic and German team Heico Motorsport.

United Autosports return with their pair of Audi R8 LMS. The line up has one change from last year with Mark Patterson being joined by GT4 European Cup Champion Joe Osborne in the nr22 Audi. Sainteloc Racing also return for another season with the Audi R8 and Belgian Audi Club have also entered a pair of cars, one for the Belgian pairing of Enzo Ide and Greg Franchi, with which the Belgian pair won Round 2 in Portugal.

Two teams will run the new Ferrari 458 Italia, including former FIA GT2 Champions AF Corse. The Italian team is running two cars, one for Italian pairing, former British and Italian F3 racer Francesco Castellacci and Federico Leo and British GT front runners Dan Brown and Glynn Geddie. The British MTECH team is the second outfit to run the new Ferrari, with Ireland’s Matt Griffin and Britain’s Duncan Cameron in the nr20 car, which ran well at Silverstone to secure the first top 10 finish for the team in European competition.

LMP Motorsport will be the only team to run the championship winning Aston Martin DBRS9, with the French team boasting three former GT3 race winners – Dimitri Enjalbert, Gael Lesoudier and Maxime Martin, who is also a GT1 World Championship race winner. Lesoudier and Martin took two podium finishes at Silverstone and will be looking for a similar performance in Navarra from the Aston Martin.

German team Fischer Racing return with their race winning Ford GT, with Denmark’s Christoffer Nygaard and Finland’s Mikko Eskelinen looking to build on the strong performances they had together in 2010. Fellow German team Reiter Engineering is running a Lamborghini Gallardo LP560 for reigning ADAC GT Masters Champion and FIA GT3 race winner Albert von Thurn und Taxis who is joined by Austrian driver Nikolaus Mayr-Melnhof in 2011.

CLICK HERE for the provisional entry list for Rounds 5 & 6

CLICK HERE for a lap of Navarra with Christoffer Nygaard

FIA GT3/Press.

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FIA GT3: Fischer Racing optimistic to GT3-EC-Premiere in Navarra First race of the European Championship at Navarra in Spain

Fischer Racing optimistic to GT3-EC-Premiere in Navarra
First race of the European Championship at Navarra in Spain

Paderborn, 28.06.11 [FIA GT3-Europameisterschaft]
The FIA GT3-European Championship travels to Navarra in Spain this weekend for the third round of the 2011 season. Fischer Racing heads optimistic to the first visit of the European Championship in the north of the Spain, as the team already collected valuable experience with the Ford GT on the new track during a national event last year. The Fischer Racing-Ford GT will be driven in Spain by Mikko Eskelinen (FIN) and Christoffer Nygaard (DNK).

Fischer Racing cannot only build on their experience on the track located between Logroño and Pamplona, but also profits from a recent performance tweak of the Ford GT. The iconic American sports car is allowed to start with less then weight compared to the two previous rounds. “The track suits our car much better then the tracks of the two opening rounds of the European Championship”, Christoffer Nygaard explains. “There are some very tight and slow corners at Navarra, which are well suited for the Ford GT. We are facing a very strong opposition in the championship this year, but we are improving with each race. It will be difficult to claim a podium finish there, but some good points in both races should be possible.”

“I’m really looking forward to Navarra”, Fischer Racing team principal Hardy Fischer says. “In the two opening rounds, the performance applied on our car by the organisers wasn’t entirely correct. Luckily this has been addressed and we are allowed to start with less weight at Navarra. We will see how that will work out, as also some of our competitors are also allowed to race with a changed performance. In Silverstone we started already from the front row and the track at Navarra suits our Ford GT much more, so I’m really looking forward to a good result.”

Both races will be streamed live in the Internet on the series Website www.gt3europe.com <http://www.gt3europe.com> . The races will also be broadcasted LIVE by Pan-European motorsports channel Motors TV. For the latest schedule, please check with www.gt3europe.com


Fischer Racing GmbH
Am Mühlenteich 5e
33106 Paderborn

FIA GT1: Young Driver AMR starts into second half of the season Spanish GT1-round marks halfway point in World Championship

Young Driver AMR starts into second half of the season

Spanish GT1-round marks halfway point in World Championship

Paderborn, 27.06.2011 [GT1 World Championship]

The GT1-World Championship starts into the second half of the

season with this weekend’s sixth round at Navarra in Spain. At the

track located in the north of Spain between Logrono and Pamplona,

Young Driver AMR will once again fight for the podium with it’s two

Aston Martin DBR9 driven by Alex Müller (GER)/Tomas Enge (CZE)

and Stefan Mücke (GER)/Darren Turner (GBR).

The premiere race of the GT1 World Championship at Navarra last

season has already been a success for Young Driver AMR. Starting

from last row into the Championship Race after an issue in the

Qualifying Race, Darren Turner and Tomas Enge fought up to fourth

place and only briefly missed the podium. “We had a good pace at

Navarra last year”, Young Driver AMR team principal Hardy Fischer

recalls. “This year we have to take the little bit different performance

of the cars into account and also the warmer ambient temperatures.

But I’m still cautiously optimistic. After the last round our mechanics

made a big effort and rebuilt the No. 8 car. I hope we can score good

points with both cars and move further up in the team championship.”

The first part of the season brought much joy for the Young Driver

AMR team. In four of the five races, Young Driver AMR finished on

the podium and also claimed the victory in the Qualifying Race of the

most recent round in England. For the second part of the season,

Young Driver AMR is well positioned in the team- and the driver

championship. Young Driver AMR is third in team points, only three

points behind the second placed team. Stefan Mücke/Darren Turner

and Alex Müller/Tomas Enge are currently fifth and sixth in the drivers

ranking, only 14, respectively 17 points behind the leader.

Driver quotes before the race:

Alex Müller (#7 Young Driver-Aston Martin DBR9): “Navarra is a

nice new track. After we won the Qualifying Race at Silverstone and

finished second in the Championship Race, I travel quite optimistic to

Spain. Of course, after our recent success we have to carry some

success ballast, but we will cope with that. Last year we saw that the

track wasn’t too bad for the Aston Martin, but this year we have also

to consider the temperatures, which will come into play. One year

ago, the Navarra round was in autumn. This year we will be faced

with much warmer temperatures in the heat of the summer. It would

be great, if we will be able to score another podium at Navarra. But a

fourth or fifth place would also be a ideal result, as we can reduce the

success weight for the following rounds and further fill up our point

score.“

Tomá! Enge (#7 Young Driver-Aston Martin DBR9): “We had quite

a good race at Navarra last year. But this season it’s very difficult to

predict, as the date of the race moved from October to July. It’s very

hot down there and it will certainly be the same for the race. So we

are not really sure if we will have the same performance with the car

then last year, considering the very high ambient temperatures. After

our success in the last round, we also have success ballast in the car.

Young Driver AMR GmbH

Max-Planck-Str. 3a

D-33104 Paderborn / Germany

phone: +49 5254 93 06 295

email: info@youngdriver-amr.com

www.youngdriver-amr.com

I hope that we will avoid any troubles during the race and score some

good points.”

Stefan Mücke (#8 Young Driver-Aston Martin DBR9): “I don’t know

Navarra quite well. Last year we had an issue during free practise

and couldn’t start into the race. So I’m lacking a bit experience on that

track. Our team principal Hardy Fischer gave us the opportunity last

year to race a GT3-car at that track, but you can only hardly compare

that to a GT1-machine. So I guess I will need some laps in the free

practise to come up to speed. At Navarra, it will certainly be very

difficult, but last year’s race of our sister-car showed that’s it’s

possible for us to score a good result there. At the last race in

England, we had some very bad luck, but this means also that we

don’t have any success ballast in the car. Navarra is a very technical

track. It’s narrow and twisty with many first and second gear corners.

It’s very important for a good lap time to drive very clean there.”

Darren Turner (#8 Young Driver-Aston Martin DBR9): „We had a

very tough weekend at Silverstone with the No. 8 car and have to

leave that behind. Luckily our sister car had a good weekend there

and scored a podium finished, which helped Young Driver AMR in the

team championship. We are now looking forward to Navarra. Last

year, we didn’t had a too bad race there. During the Championship

Race, we went from last to fourth, which was a pretty good result.

Navarra is the start into the second half of the season and our main

objective is not to loose too much ground on the championship

leaders. I hope for a clean race, then we will have a fair chance to

collect a good amount of points. Last year we saw at Navarra that the

track layout favours a little bit the rear-engined cars. But this season

our Aston Martin DBR9 proved to be an allround car, which is fast on

any kind of tracks. So we should be reasonable competitive in Spain.“

###

Follow GT1 World:

Both races and the qualifying are streamed live in the internet with

English commentary at www.gt1world.com/gt1tv

Timetable:

Friday 1st July

13:00 - 14:20 FIA GT1 World Championship Free Practice

16:20 - 17:40 FIA GT1 World Championship Pre-Qualifying

Saturday 2nd July

11:15 - 12:15 FIA GT1 World Championship Qualifying

16:45 - 17:45 FIA GT1 World Championship Qualifying Race

Sunday 3rd. July

09:00 - 09:30 FIA GT1 World Championship Warm Up

13:45 - 14:45 FIA GT1 World Championship Championship Race

Young Driver is on Twitter

Follow all the action @YoungDriverAMR

Young Driver AMR GmbH

Max-Planck-Str. 3a

D-33104 Paderborn / Germany

phone: +49 5254 93 06 295

email: info@youngdriver-amr.com

www.youngdriver-amr.com

Schedule GT1-World 2011

24. – 25. March Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi (VAE)

08. – 10. April Zolder (B)

06. – 08. May Algarve, Portimão (P)

13. – 15. May Sachsenring (D)

03. – 05. June Silverstone Supercar 2011 (GB)

01. – 03. July Navarra (E)

15. – 17. July HTTT Paul Ricard, Le Castellet (F)

02. – 04. September Ordos (CN)

21. – 23. October Curitiba (BR)

05. – 06. November San Luis (ARG)

About Young Driver AMR

Young Driver AMR was founded by Hardy Fischer and his friend and

long-time associate Jan Struve in late 2009 and is representing Aston

Martin as one of only two teams in the FIA GT1 World Championship

with two Aston Martin DBR9. The abbreviation AMR in the team

name stands for Aston Martin Racing, Young Driver AMR is the only

official German partner team of Aston Martin Racing. Young Driver

AMR is a sister-team of Fischer Racing and based in Paderborn. In

it’s first racing season 2010, Young Driver AMR took three victories in

the FIA GT1 World Championship and finished on the class podium in

it’s first ever outing in the legendary 24 hours of Le Mans in France.

Young Driver Press.

Le Mans Series, round 3 / Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, round 4 in Imola/Italien Porsche pilots keen to improve ranking in the championship

Le Mans Series, round 3 / Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, round 4 in Imola/Italien

Porsche pilots keen to improve ranking in the championship

Stuttgart. For the first time, the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari circuit in Imola hosts a round of the Le Mans Series on 3 July. As one of the six Porsche teams contesting the GTE Pro sports car class, title defenders Marc Lieb (Germany) and Richard Lietz (Austria) are determined to climb to the top of the podium. The Porsche factory pilots contest the race, which is also classified as a round of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, in a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR fielded by the Felbermayr-Proton team.

The race

The six hour race in Imola is new on the calendar of the Le Mans Series and the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup.

The circuit

The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari is situated between Bologna and Ravenna and is mostly known by race fans for its famous corners like Tamburello, Rivazza and Acque Minerali. On the 4.933 kilometre Formula 1 circuit, the Grand Prix of San Marino was contested until 2006.

The Porsche drivers

Aside from the title defenders Marc Lieb and Richard Lietz, three other Porsche works drivers contest the GTE Pro class with the latest Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. Wolf Henzler (Germany) shares driving duties with Patrick Pilet (France) for the IMSA Performance Matmut team, with Marco Holzer (Germany) driving for ProSpeed Competition. His team mate is Belgian Marc Goossens. Three Porsche 911 GT3 RSR in the 2010 specification start in the GTE Am class, where only one professional race driver is permitted per car. In the Proton Competition cockpit is Porsche works driver Patrick Long (USA), as well as Porsche Cup winner Gianluca Roda (Italy) and team owner Christian Ried (Germany). The 911 GT3 RSR fielded by IMSA Performance Matmut is manned by Frenchmen Raymond Narac and Nicolas Armindo, the overall winner of the 2010 Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland. At the wheel of the sister 911 GT3 RSR of Felbermayr-Proton, Horst Felbermayr Junior is confirmed as a driver.

Quotes before the race

Hartmut Kristen, Porsche Head of Motorsport: “It’s no secret that we’re very unhappy about the imbalance through the Balance of Performance. Particularly for the Proton team, preparing for the Imola race was very tough because they had to get two cars running after they were virtually destroyed in Le Mans. You can only have the greatest respect for the team’s efforts and the will to fight.”
Marc Lieb: “We haven’t started the season as we had imagined. So that makes us even more determined to try to make the most of our chances in Imola. We are eager to show that we are in a position to fight at the top. With a good set-up and the right strategy we should manage this.”
Richard Lietz: “With 50 competitors it’ll be very tight, but maybe we can use that to our advantage. In any case, we’re going to attack and try to get ahead. It’ll certainly be six very interesting hours.”
Wolf Henzler: “After the first two races didn’t go so well for us we’re hoping to finally make a breakthrough in Imola and bring home a good result. We’re aiming for the podium. The team is incredibly motivated and working hard. It’s time that these efforts were rewarded with a good result.”
Marco Holzer: “I can’t wait for the Imola race. I’ve never driven there before, only tested. Imola is a gorgeous circuit. For us the focus is on doing our best, bringing home points and improving our position in the championship.”
Patrick Pilet: “I know this track and it’s not easy. The long straights make it necessary to find a good set-up compromise between high speed and decent handling.”
Patrick Long: “To drive in Imola straight after the 24 hour race on the Nürburgring is an extremely interesting challenge. I’m looking forward to it and hope to assist my team mates to secure a good result and as many points as possible.”


The Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

The most successful GT race car of 2010 competes this season with some improvements. The output of the four-litre, six-cylinder boxer engine has increased to 455 hp (335 kW). Priority in the further developments was given predominantly to the newly-designed aerodynamics at the front and rear.

The schedule

The six hour race takes off on Sunday, 3 July, at midday. The qualifying session for the GTE classes takes place on Saturday from 13.55 to 14.15 hours.

TV tip

Eurosport 2 broadcasts the beginning of the race on Sunday from 12.00 to 13.00 hours and the final two hours live.

The Le Mans Series

Contested for the first time in 2004, the Le Mans Series (LMS) is open for sports prototypes and GT vehicles. The regulations are based on those of the Le Mans 24 hour race. Five six-hour races are contested this season throughout Europe.

GTE-Pro class: This most popular class amongst car manufacturers (previously known as the GT2 class) is traditionally the best supported: Slightly modified standard sports cars with up to 500 hp and a minimum weight of 1,245 kilograms.
GTE-Am class: Like the GTE Pro, but with the 2010-vehicle specifications. Moreover, the regulations stipulate that each vehicle must have one professional driver at the most.
LMP1 class: Sports prototypes with up to 750 hp and a minimum weight of 900 kilograms.
LMP2 class: Sports prototypes with ca. 440 hp, GT-class homologated engines and a 825 kg minimum weight.
FLM class: Prototype brand trophy series for the ORECA FLM 09.

All race cars start together but are classified separately according to the class. Points are only allocated for placings in each class. Championship titles are awarded for drivers, manufacturers and teams in all five classes. Claiming the title in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010, Porsche works driver Marc Lieb is the most successful pilot in the series.


Public Relations and Media
Motor and Sports Press
Oliver Hilger

Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, round 6 in Nuremberg Next season highlight on the street circuit in Franconia

Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, round 6 in Nuremberg

Next season highlight on the street circuit in Franconia

Stuttgart. Just a few days after the greatest Porsche race in history, the next season highlight on the calendar awaits pilots of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland. On 3 July, they contest round six of the season on the Norisring in Nuremberg. The 2.3 kilometre circuit around the famous stone grandstand is loved by drivers and fans for its special flair that is reminiscent of the Monaco Grand Prix. Sean Edwards travels to the region of Franconia in Bavaria as the new points’ leader of Germany’s fastest one-make race series. Driving for the Team Deutsche Post by tolimit, the Briton snatched the lead with fourth place at the Porsche Carrera World Cup on the Nürburgring. He also profited from the fact that the previous points’ leader, Nick Tandy, went home empty-handed after an accident.

For Edwards, the trip to the circuit in the Eifel paid off double: With his fourth place he also moved to the top of the points’ table in the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup. Claiming seventh on the Nürburgring, Jeroen Bleekemolen from the Netherlands defended his second place in the Carrera Cup Deutschland. With this, the two tolimit pilots head to the unique street race with a one-two in the drivers’ classification.

Nick Tandy’s accident on the Nordschleife relegated the Konrad Motorsport pilot from Great Britain back to third in the points behind Bleekemolen. “The guy in front of me suddenly slowed down when he saw the yellow flag. I had no chance to brake. I didn’t want to hit him so I veered to the inside, hit the kerbs and lost grip,” said Tandy explaining the situation. “Obviously I was very disappointed, but now I’m looking forward to the Norisring. I aim to take back the lead.”

Martin Ragginger is another driver keen to maintain contact with the front-runners in Nuremberg. Competing for Schnabl Engineering, the Austrian, who finished eights at the Porsche Carrera World Cup, sits 18 points shy of Tandy in fourth overall. He shouldn’t, however, take his eye off the rear vision mirror. Two strong contenders, Jaap van Lagen (Land Motorsport) in fifth and Nicki Thiim (Hermes Attempto Racing) in sixth, are breathing hard down his neck. The Dutchman saw the flag at the rain race in Spielberg in first. The Dane won convincingly at round four on the Lausitzring.

Thanks to the 20 points awarded for his historic win at the greatest Porsche race of all time, René Rast (Germany, Förch Racing) has moved up the points table to rank seventh. Last year's winner and title defender Nicolas Armindo (France, Hermes Attempto Racing) will not be competing. Instead, he contests the Le Mans Series in Imola which runs on the same weekend.

TV station Sport1 broadcasts the race live and televises race highlights, interviews and reports in the ‘Carrera Cup Magazin’ on 8 July from 23.30 hours to midnight. Moreover, the official website of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland shows the race live on www.porsche.de/carreracup.


Drivers’ classification after 5 of 9 races
1. Sean Edwards (GB), 78 points
2. Jeroen Bleekemolen (NL), 74
3. Nick Tandy (GB), 70
4. Martin Ragginger (A), 52
5. Jaap van Lagen (NL), 48
6. Nicki Thiim (DK), 41

Team classification after 5 of 9 races
1. Team Deutsche Post by tolimit, 124 points
2. Konrad Motorsport, 90
3. PZ Aschaffenburg Uwe Alzen Automotive, 47


Public Relations and Media
Motor and Sports Press
Oliver Hilger

Nürburgring 24 hour race Brilliant Porsche triumph on the Nordschleife Stuttgart. It was one of the most exciting and dramatic 24 hour races at the N

Nürburgring 24 hour race

Brilliant Porsche triumph on the Nordschleife

Stuttgart. It was one of the most exciting and dramatic 24 hour races at the Nürburgring. And it finished with a triumph for Porsche: In front of 220,000 spectators lining the legendary Nordschleife, Porsche works drivers Marc Lieb (Germany), Timo Bernhard (Germany), Romain Dumas (France) as well as Lucas Luhr (Switzerland) won the 39th running of the long distance classic in the Eifel with the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR and relegated their strong opponents from BMW, Mercedes and Audi to finish down the field.

For Porsche and the Porsche Team Manthey, this marked the fifth victory at the traditional race in the last six years – likewise for Timo Bernhard.

With the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR - the world’s most successful GT race car of the last years - the Porsche quartet snatched the lead on Saturday at 23.25 hours and held on to it to the flag. What followed were 16 hours and 35 minutes at the head of the field, 108 consistently fast and faultless laps under immense pressure on one of the toughest race tracks on earth – this speaks volumes about the reliability of the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR and for the skill of the pilots. The new distance record set with a total of 156 laps and 3,958.968 kilometres underlines the superb effort of the winners and their team.

“We already knew before the start that we could only win if we worked together as a team, from the drivers through to the mechanics. And this worked very well for the entire time,” Timo Bernhard said. Indeed, aside from the usual tensions on the track, there was just one truly critical situation – strangely enough in the pits. Lucas Luhr: “During a pit stop the petrol pump didn’t work. Fuel simply didn’t come out. So we had to push our car back to another pump and in doing so lost almost a minute.”

The Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid also gave an impressive performance, even though its second start at the 24 hour classic did not yield the anticipated top result. Fielded by Porsche Team Manthey with Porsche works drivers Joerg Bergmeister (Germany), Richard Lietz (Austria), Marco Holzer (Germany) and Patrick Long (USA), the innovative race car with its ground-breaking drive concept finished an impressive 28th after a breathtaking chase through the field, 17 laps behind the winner.

Showing its true potential, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid moved into the lead on Saturday about four hours after the start. But a broken flange in the differential sent it into the pits for repairs, which cost six laps to the leader. But the trouble wasn’t to stop there: After a good seven hours, the same problem struck again necessitating a second unplanned pit stop. This time repairs took 40 minutes. With a ten-lap gap to the front-runners, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid rejoined the race in position 105. Clocking lap times which were sometimes faster than those at the front, it ploughed through the field to rank 23rd. However, on Sunday morning the vehicle’s charge was interrupted yet again: While lapping a slower competitor, Patrick Long was nudged and spun at high speed in the Flugplatz passage. In the pits, however, no damages to the vehicle were found.

Manned by Porsche factory pilot Wolf Henzler (Germany) as well as Peter Dumbreck (Great Britain), Martin Ragginger (Austria) and Sebastian Asch (Germany), the Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by Falken Motorsports took up the race on intermediate tyres. This proved to be a good decision. Wolf Henzler made up several places before pitting after two laps once the rain had stopped to change to slicks. An engine change in the first quarter of the race robbed the team of all chances for a better result. At the flag, the Falken quartet occupied 49th. The swift lap times that the 911 GT3 R yielded after the long repair phase were, in this case, a poor consolation. “It was somewhat frustrating to drive such great times and yet be so far down the field,” said Wolf Henzler. “Still, considering these times, the mood in the team is good. It gives us a lot of motivation. Despite everything, we’re taking home a wealth of experience from the Nürburgring.”

After a trouble-free early phase under difficult conditions, the Porsche 911 GT3 R, which Manthey Racing ran parallel to the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, was taken out of the race after a good two hours. The team wanted to concentrate on just one car. A perfect strategy that was rewarded with victory. And as Timo Bernhard crossed the finish line with the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, the Eifel at last showed its true sunny colours.


Result Nürburgring 24 hour race

1. Lieb/Bernhard/Dumas/Luhr (D/D/F/CH), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 156 laps
2. Müller/Farfus/Alzen/Lamy (D/BRA/D/P), BMW M3 GT, +4:23.7 seconds
3. Basseng/Fässler/Piccini/Stippler (D/CH/I/D), Audi R8 LMS, - 1 lap
4. Stippler/Hennerici/Haase/Winkelhock (D/D/D/D), Audi R8 LMS, - 1
5. Ekström/Scheider/Werner/Abt (S/D/D/D), Audi R8 LMS, - 2
6. Heyer/Jäger/Bleekemolen/Seyffarth (D/D/NL/D), Mercedes-Benz SLS, - 3
7. Arnold/Margaritis/Brück/Frankenhout (D/D/D/NL), Mercedes-Benz SLS, - 3
8. Farnbacher/Simonsen/Seefried/Melo (D/MC/D/I), Ferrari F 458, - 4
9. Abbelen/Schmitz/Kentenich/T. Bergmeister (D/D/D/D), Porsche 911 GT3 R, - 4
10. Weiss/Kainz/Jacobs/Krumbach (D/D/D/D), Porsche 911 GT3 R, - 5
28. J. Bergmeister/Lietz/Holzer/Long (D/A/D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid, - 17
49. Henzler/Ragginger/Dumbreck/Asch (D/A/GB/D), Porsche 911 GT3 R, - 24


Public Relations and Media Motor and Sports Press Oliver Hilger

Audi celebrates class victories on the Nordschleife

Audi celebrates class victories on the

Nordschleife

• Audi R8 LMS once again best GT3 sportscar in 24h race

• Basseng/Fässler/Stippler third overall

• Audi TT RS best front-wheel drive car and SP 4T class winner

Ingolstadt/Nürburg, June 25, 2011 – The Audi R8 LMS was once again class

winner on its third outing in the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring. The mid-engine

sportscar from AUDI AG won the GT3 car class for the third time in succession

and, like last year, finished third overall. The Audi TT RS also impressed in front of

the 250,000 spectators: the quattro GmbH development demonstrator took the

checkered flag in 14th position overall and won the SP 4T class as best frontwheel

drive car in the field of 202 cars.

In a thrilling finale, the Audi R8 LMS #14 of Audi Sport Team Phoenix driven by Marc

Basseng/Marcel Fässler/Frank Stippler passed the Mercedes SLS, class leader at that

time, 43 minutes before the finish when it to pit with a technical problem.

Christopher Haase/Marc Hennerici/Markus Winkelhock (Audi Sport Team Phoenix)

and Mattias Ekström/Timo Scheider/Marco Werner (Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline)

completed the Audi one-two-three in the GT3 class after taking fourth and fifth

positions overall at the finish.

The dream of a first overall victory for the brand in the endurance classic in the Eifel

was, however, not fulfilled. The GT2 cars of Porsche, BMW and Ferrari were superior

to the GT3 cars during the 39th running of the 24-hour race. “Qualifying had already

signaled that our R8 LMS with the current balance of performance is not the fastest

car,” explained Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “This was confirmed

in the race. Furthermore, none of our four factory cars made it through the race

completely without incidents.”

Start number “14”, the best placed Audi R8 LMS at the finish, lost around four

minutes due to a loose front splitter just before 21:00. Early on Sunday morning the

Communications Motorsport

front splitter was changed , which meant an additional time loss of 2m 50s. Despite

this, Basseng/Fässler/Stippler could still move up to third place.

In the opening stages of the race the second Audi Sport Team Phoenix Audi R8 LMS

with start number “15” had contact which necessitated a quick repair. On Sunday

morning Markus Winkelhock lost time in traffic because the high beam flash did not

function and he was unable to warn the slower cars of his approach. The problem

was solved after changing the steering wheel. Christopher Haase, Marc Hennerici

and Markus Winkelhock dropped behind the sister car at the end on Sunday

afternoon due, in part, because they lost time twice during refueling.

Mattias Ekström, Timo Scheider and Marco Werner held second place overall at

times during the night in the Audi R8 LMS #16 entered by Audi Sport Team Abt

Sportsline, before Marco Werner was the innocent victim in a collision at 4:53 in the

morning and in which the front end of the R8 LMS was badly damaged. The repair

took just five minutes but threw the #16 out of the leading group.

The second Audi R8 LMS from Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline (#17) lost 20 minutes

at the start of the third hour after a relay loosened and paralyzed the R8 LMS

sportscar’s on-board electronics. After rejoining the race in 66th position Christian

Abt, Christer Jöns, Luca Ludwig and Christopher Mies had scythed their way back up

to eighth overall when Luca Ludwig became a victim of the ensuing drizzle and

slipped off the track in the “Quiddelbacher Höhe” track section at 3:34. Repairs to

the damage rear end cost 40 minutes. Start number “17” still managed to move up

to twelfth position from 18th. As a result, all four factory R8 sportscars that started

saw the checkered flag.

Audi race experience could also celebrate crossing the finish line: the Audi R8 LMS

#28, in which professional race driver Frank Schmickler shared cockpit time with

Audi driving experience customers, finished a remarkable 18th overall after a

completely trouble-free race. The second R8 LMS had an accident as early as the

eleventh lap after a tire failed at the “Tiergarten” section. Driver Chris Vogler was

uninjured.

There was also joy and sorrow at Raeder Motorsport which fielded a brace of Audi TT

RS on behalf of quattro GmbH. Despite a tire failure at the start of the race and a

collision on Sunday morning, Michael Ammermüller, Frank Biela, Jens Klingmann

and Martin Tomczyk made the finish as the best front-wheel drive car in an excellent

14th position overall and, in doing so, convincingly won their class in the

development demonstrator. Christian Hohenadel/Jimmy Johansson/Miguel Molina

Andrea Piccini lost 75 minutes in the second TT RS early on due to a faulty wastegate

valve on the turbocharger and more time just before the end of the race because of a

gear shift problem.

Audi Motorsport

24 Hour Nurburgring: Comments after the race at the Nürburgring Ingolstadt/Nürburg, June 26, 2011 – The dream of overall victory in the 24-hour race a

Comments after the race at the Nürburgring

Ingolstadt/Nürburg, June 26, 2011 – The dream of overall victory in the 24-hour

race at the Nürburgring was not fulfilled for Audi. The R8 LMS remains, however,

unbeaten in the GT3 class. The comments after the race.

Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “Our four Audi R8 LMS ran

perfectly from the technical point of view and we also had very good performance in

our class. Unfortunately two of our cars were struck by accidents. Even so, repairing

the cars took a lot of time. We were always close to a podium finish, we fought to

the bitter end and actually finally achieved this in the final 45 minutes. It was a

fantastic team performance and advert for the reliability of the R8 LMS. We have

three cars in the top five and all four cars raced without any technical problems

worth mentioning.”

Marc Basseng (Bilstein Audi R8 LMS #14)

“I’m very happy that Marcel Fässler, Frank Stippler and I rigorously implemented

our program. We planned to survive the opening stages and the night without

problems or collisions. We managed this. In the morning we then had a car with

which we could really attack. All three of us drove excellent double stints. This was

one of the reasons why we were able to move forward little by little and ultimately

took third place at the end.”

Marcel Fässler (Bilstein Audi R8 LMS #14)

“Two incredible weekends in the space of two weeks now lie behind us. On the one

side the 24 Hours of Le Mans and on the other the 24-hour race here around the

Nürburgring-Nordschleife. They were both very emotional moments. I gave

absolutely everything during each of my double stints this weekend. We were only a

little more circumspect when running during the night. It was great fun to drive this

car. The podium result is just reward for everybody who worked in the background to

provide us with top equipment.”

Frank Stippler (Bilstein Audi R8 LMS #14)

“That was hard work! The pace was extremely fast and the competition very strong. I

think there were 20 cars from many different manufacturers on the grid which were

Communications Motorsport

Jürgen Pippig

Telephone: +49 (0)841 89 34200

E-mail: motorsport-media@audi.de

www.audi-motorsport.info

Eva-Maria Veith

Telephone: +49 (0)841 89 33922

E-mail: eva-maria.veith@audi.de

2/4

capable of winning. I think third place this year should be judged very highly. Last

year we would have annoyed about this. However, this learning curve was a necessity

to make the next step for the following year.”

Christopher Haase (Audi Sport performance cars R8 LMS #15)

“One of the greatest races that I have ever contested in my life. It was in fact a 24-

hour long sprint race and very interesting because of this. You can’t afford to make a

mistake and must nevertheless extract the maximum. This is exciting, but is also a

lot of fun. We started 18th and finished fourth. On top of this we were second in

class. Audi Sport Team Phoenix did a first class job. We did everything right which is

why we can be more than just satisfied.”

Marc Hennerici (Audi Sport performance cars R8 LMS #15)

“The start of the race was quite difficult for me. I couldn’t feel the rain tires well

enough on in the drying conditions, which is why I lost some time. However, the

guys from Audi Sport Team Phoenix worked perfectly and made incredible pit stops.

Audi showed that it had prepared exceptionally well for this race. The car ran

smoothly from the technical point of view. All the cars made it through to the finish.

When all is said and done we can be satisfied: we are the best GT3 team, third

overall. It’s a little disappointing however that we gave our all but were without a

chance in the fight for overall victory. We want to attack again, but under new

circumstances.”

Markus Winkelhock (Audi Sport performance cars R8 LMS #15)

“After last year a podium finish was my goal again this year. But it was a turbulent

race in which we had difficulty with oversteer in our R8. For this reason we must

acknowledge that our sister car was quicker and overtook us. Otherwise we also had

a trouble-free race, and made it through without incident. We can be satisfied with

fourth place as a result.”

Mattias Ekström (E-POSTBRIEF Audi R8 LMS #16)

“We had a really good rhythm at the start of the race and I was convinced that we

would fight for overall victory this weekend. But then several small incidents –

technical and with competitors on the track – threw us off course. We lost touch and

never really got back within striking distance. Fifth place overall and third in class is

scant consolation as we came here to win.”

Timo Scheider (E-POSTBRIEF Audi R8 LMS #16)

“Everything started well, but then came the collision during the night, which was

annoying, but it’s exactly this that makes the 24-hour race what it is. As a result of

3/4

hard work and a great discipline we fought our way up to fifth place again. We can

be pleased with this and it’s at least just reward for the hard work done by the guys

in the pits. We’ll not give up and hopefully get another chance to be at the very

front here once again.”

Marco Werner (E-POSTBRIEF Audi R8 LMS #16)

“The pace was good and it was fun to fight for second place overall at times on

Sunday morning. Unfortunately I had an accident. I smashed into a Mercedes when

three cars appeared in front of us which were more or less at a standstill on the

track. I’m really sorry for the guys. Third overall would have been much better. Now

we can be pleased with the smaller things like third in class …”

Christian Abt (PlayStation Audi R8 LMS #17)

“I’m very disappointed. It’s still my great dream to win this race once for Audi and

now things didn’t work again. The weekend was still a lot of fun. Congratulations to

my team mates Luca (Ludwig) and Christer (Jöns) for such a strong performance and

especially Christopher (Mies) for recording the fastest race lap for an Audi R8 LMS.

The three guys were really chomping at the bit; they never let their shoulders drop

and made a fantastic impression. I hope we can compete again with this line-up.”

Christer Jöns (PlayStation Audi R8 LMS #17)

“Apart from our two small incidents everything was positive and the race was really

great fun. The car was an absolute dream. We found a good pace. It’s a shame that

we dropped down at the beginning because of such a small thing. The Phoenix squad

nevertheless claimed a podium for Audi.”

Luca Ludwig (PlayStation Audi R8 LMS #17)

“The result is certainly not what we had hoped for. Twelfth place is really a little

disappointing. But we lost two laps at the start due to a small relay problem. During

the night I unfortunately slid off the track in the wet as I was on my first lap on

slicks. It cost us several laps. I’m really very sorry for the entire team which had

worked fantastically. It just shouldn’t have happened. I hope that we get another

chance.”

Christopher Mies (PlayStation Audi R8 LMS #17)

“Obviously I’m not at all satisfied with twelfth place, particularly as we were the

fastest car in the field for much of the time which or second fastest race lap also

shows. When you think that we started twice from the back due to our technical

problem at the start and the collision later on, then this is at least a little consoling.

That was hard work and shows were could have finished.”

4/4

Hans-Jürgen Abt (Team Boss Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline): “We came here

with the goal of winning the race – which is why the result is a little disappointing

for us. The minor defect to start and the contact which both cars suffered during the

night robbed us of any chance we had. However, our team worked hard to force its

way to the front again. We can be extremely satisfied with the team performance.

That all four cars reached the finish shows the reliability of the R8. But as Team Boss

I would have liked to mount the top step of the podium.”

Ernst Moser (Team Boss Audi Sport Team Phoenix): “It was exactly as expected:

whoever makes the fewest mistakes wins this race – and this was Olaf Manthey’s

team. Congratulations. Each of the four Audi R8 LMS had its own hard luck story. All

the cars made the finish, which should never be taken for granted on the

Nordschleife. However, the little difficulties cost any chance of victory this year

because the competition was just too strong. When all is said and done we are

pleased with class victory and the third step on the podium.”

The

Audi Motorsport.