FIA GT3: Vannelet partira en P4 en el Muehlner Porsche.

FIA GT3: El actual Campeon de la FIA GT3 Gilles Vannelet en uno de los Muehlner Porsche partira en P4 en la primera carrera del fin de semana en Portimao-Portugal, mientras el otro Muehlner Porsche saldra en la ultima posicion debido a un problema mecanico y no pudo clasificar.

Bergmeister and Long compete with Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid in China

Intercontinental Le Mans Cup

Bergmeister and Long compete with Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid in China

Stuttgart. Porsche works drivers Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) and Patrick Long (USA) will tackle the 1,000 kilometre race in Zhuhai/China on 7 November with the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid. This marks the first event in China for the innovative sports car from Weissach, which features two electric motors at the front axle each developing 60 kilowatts to supplement the 480 horsepower combustion rear-engine. The race on the Zhuhai International Circuit, in which the 911 GT3 R Hybrid is not eligible for points, is the third and final round of the newly-inaugurated Intercontinental Le Mans Cup after Silverstone and Road Atlanta.

“It’s a fantastic conclusion to the season to drive this car in China after the race debut on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife,” says Joerg Bergmeister. The Porsche factory pilot was part of the driver crew at the wheel of the 911 GT3 R Hybrid when it demonstrated the potential of its leading edge technology at the 24 hour race on the Eifel circuit and was on course to victory until shortly before the flag. In the American Le Mans Series, Joerg Bergmeister and Patrick Long are on the brink of successfully defending their GT class title with the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR.

The race in Zhuhai is a great chance for Porsche to showcase its “rolling race lab” 911 GT3 R Hybrid - which perfectly embodies the philosophy of ‘Porsche Intelligent Performance’ - to its important market of China. At the same time, Porsche lends its support the new Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, organised by the Automobil Club de l’Ouest (ACO).

The innovative hybrid system of the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid was developed specifically for racing, differing significantly in its configuration and components from conventional hybrid systems. An electric front-wheel-drive with two electric motors supplements the four-litre flat-six at the rear. Under braking, the 911 GT3 R Hybrid converts kinetic energy into electrical energy and stores it in a flywheel. During acceleration, this energy is automatically delivered to the front wheels, supporting the combustion engine. This leads to a reduction in fuel consumption and increases the cruising range on the circuit. Moreover, drivers can manually utilise the stored energy with a boost-paddle on the steering wheel for overtaking. Performance on call.

Porsche Motorsport Press/Para Prensa autorizada y acreditada.

FIA GT3- Rumbo a Portugal con tripulacion Europea.

FIA GT3 Rumbo hacia Portugal con 2 autos Porsche 911 GT3-R, los pilotos seran Taki Konstantinou y Jürgen Häring y en el otro Porsche: Gilles Vannelet y Niki Lanik. 4 pilotos de distintas nacionalidades: Grecia, Alemania, Austria y Francia con un equipo Belga, esto lo hace ser Europeo en toda la extencion de la palabra.

Latin Drivers very happy back to South America-Porsche SSCup.

A great Weekend for the latin-American drivers Guty Michelsen en Ben Lago, they already participate with Muehlner Motorsport in the Porsche Super Sport Cup-Endurance and Sprint, both are very happy and getting back to South America with (each) a nice trophy of Porsche CUP. Congratulations to Guty and Ben, both drivers did a great Job.

Porsche Mobil1 Supercup – Portrait of the champion René Rast

Porsche Mobil1 Supercup – Portrait of the champion René Rast

“It’s important that I have fun”

Stuttgart. René Rast certainly made things riveting to the finish: Only at the final in Monza on Sunday, the 23-year-old German secured the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup title . "That was a tough fight," he said after the last race of the season for the world's fastest international brand trophy series. "I'm very happy to have won the championship. That was my greatest goal."

Last year, in fact, the young German was a contender for the title. The talent was there, only experience was missing. When he celebrated his first victory in Silverstone he had already missed the championship train. Despite clinching five victories in 2009, Rast only took home vice-championship honours. This season he has four wins under his belt and won the title. “If you want to win a championship,” he says, “you also have to know when to hold back. That’s not easy because race drivers always want to win. But this is something I have learned.”

This year he didn’t wait as long to bring home his first victory. On the contrary, he won both races from pole position at the double-header in Bahrain, impressively underlining his title aspirations. Zero points from Barcelona were not so upsetting, as he went on to take victory in Monaco and followed it up in Valencia. The stress that faces the points’ leader at every round of the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup with its top-class grid line-up didn’t cause the Al Faisal Lechner Racing pilot any sleepless nights. He has always managed pressure well. “I tackle every race in a calm and cool-headed way,” he says, “any other way is useless.” His proof: He took up four races from pole position, and he climbed the podium every other time he reached the flag, except from Monza. An impressive track record.

For Rast, the strong competition in the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup was never a problem, but a challenge instead. Even as a kid this approach yielded success: At four years old he contested his first race – with an electric car on a Supermarket parking in his home town of Steyerberg. “My opponents were good and twice my age,” he remembers. “But I still wouldn’t let them win.” After a short detour to Motocross, his uncle put him into a kart as a seven-year-old. From this point on, he worked hard to develop his racing career: In 2003 and 2004 he contested the Formula BMW, in 2005 he won the VW Polo Cup before going on to become vice-champion of the Seat Leon Supercopa in 2006. Rast sat at the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup for the first time in 2007. A year later he won the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland.

“For me the only important thing was to go racing - in beautiful cars, the faster the better. Actually, I wasn’t really interested in the race series,” admits René Rast. And nothing has changed since. “The most important thing for me is to have fun. And if I can make a living out of it, all the better.”

Despite the enthusiasm, René Rast is not one to think about motorsport day and night. “I take it very seriously, of course, but you also have to have a distraction,” he says. At home his distraction is sport, above all cycling and fitness – and playing on the football table at his parents’ place. He likes to go to the movies or meet up with friends. These are the diversions he needs between races. But over the next few months he won’t have too much time for leisure. In January he sits his final exams as an office clerk and for this, he smiles, he has to, “pull one or two text books out of the corner. During the race season, my studies are somewhat neglected.”

Winning the title is perhaps an early reward for passing his examination. In any case, it is a great opportunity to take a look at his successes this year. This is what René Rast says about...

... the 2010 season:
“A great year. I won four races and claimed second once and third twice. And with a new team, at that.”

... the key to his success:
“That was for sure due to our consistency. We were fast at every race and as far as speed was concerned we were always in the top three. In a brand trophy with so many strong drivers like the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup, it’s particularly important to always finish up the front. Without this consistency, you might win one or two races but you’ll never be champion.”

... his best victory:
“It was a huge relief to win the season-opening races in Bahrain. Before the season took off, I was not sure if everything would go as smoothly as I imagined. But from that point on everyone knew I was fighting for the championship, despite being with a new team. In Bahrain I showed in which direction the season would go. And that was very important.”

... his Al Faisal Lechner Racing team:
“A very professional team. Right from the start I got on well with the mechanics and the engineers, although we’d never met before. In preparation for the season we had one day of testing in Bahrain, but you could already see at that point that everything would work very well between us. In fact, we never had any problems. Every driver dreams of such a crew. Walter Lechner and his squad have been in the business for a very long time. That’s probably why they can get used to a new driver so quickly.”

... his strengths:
“I’ve learned that you have to be able to compromise sometimes if you want to win a championship, and be happy with second or third. Okay, a race driver always wants to win, that’s simply part of the package. If you are not first, you get frustrated. But a good race driver is one who keeps his cool in challenging situations and doesn’t do anything stupid, but instead says: Good, now I’ll take these points home for second and third and at the next race I’ll be back in force.”

... his dreams:
“I want to continue racing. To do something you love and make a living out of it is a real privilege and I’m very grateful for this. And for this, I’ll be doing my best in the future, as well.”

Porsche Press / Para Autorizados y Acreditados por Porsche Motorsport Press.

Porsche wins all three championship titles

Le Mans Series, round 5 in Silverstone, Great Britain

Porsche wins all three championship titles

Stuttgart. Reliable technology, faultless driving, perfect teamwork. This is how Porsche won all three championship titles in the GT2-class of the Le Mans Series. With fifth position for Porsche works drivers Marc Lieb (Germany) and Richard Lietz (Austria) in the 911 GT3 RSR at the 1,000 kilometre race in Silverstone they successfully defended the title. The German Felbermayr team under the direction of owner Christian Ried (Germany) celebrated a convincing win of the team title for the first time. And in the fiercely-contested GT2 category with six renowned brands, Porsche secured the prestigious manufacturers’ title. With an excellent second position at the finale, Porsche-Junior Marco Holzer (Germany) and Richard Westbrook (Great Britain) rounded off the perfect race Sunday for Porsche.

The three championship titles in the Le Mans Series demonstrate once again that the best GT cars in the world are built in Weissach. They perfectly continue this year’s success story, in which the Porsche teams already won the 24 hour races at Dubai, Le Mans and Spa-Francorchamps. And in the American Le Mans Series, the 911 GT3 RSR also leads its classification.

“It’s fantastic that we’ve defended the championship title,” said an enthusiastic Marc Lieb, who is the most successful pilot in the Le Mans Series with four championship titles under his belt. “And we’re particularly thrilled that our Felbermayr squad was also rewarded with the team title, because one of the keys to our success was the perfect teamwork of the crew with the pit stops and our strategy. Everything fitted together like cogs in a wheel.” Richard Lietz, for whom this marks his second championship title after 2009, was also delighted. “What a year!” summarised the Austrian. “The fight in the GT2 class was even harder than last year, the Ferraris in particular were unbelievably strong. We had to fight hard at every race from the first to the last minute. In qualifying we were hardly ever the fastest, but thanks to the reliable technology of the 911 and the great teamwork we achieved three victories, and have now crowned the season with all titles for Porsche. We are truly proud of this.”

Lieb and Lietz had taken up the finale from third on the grid and had initially held back in the 45-strong field in order not to take any risks on the way to claiming the title. When the sole remaining rival in the drivers’ classification, the Ferrari with ex-Formula 1 stars Jean Alesi and Giancarlo Fisichella, were thrown well down the field with problems, a huge weight fell from the leading Porsche pair.

Celebrations as well in the pits of ProSpeed Competition. After securing the FIA GT Championship last year with Richard Westbrook, the Belgian crew were new to the Le Mans Series this season. “The adjustment was harder than expected. Everything was new for the team and the drivers,” said Westbrook. “We improved from race to race, but only here at the final did we manage to make a breakthrough.” Heading into the race from fifth, Westbrook and his 22-year-old teammate Marco Holzer gradually worked their way to the front. “Man alive!” sighed the Porsche-Junior at the finish. “I was so nervous but at the same time concentrated. It’s very important for our team to finish the season with such a great result. For me, the most difficult thing in the Le Mans Series was getting used to the faster sports prototypes which weren’t exactly considerate to us drivers from the lower classes in overtaking, while we were busy fighting for positions in our own category.”

For the French IMSA Performance Matmut team, sixth place at the final race was a conciliatory end to a season of mixed fortunes. After clinching third place at the previous round in Hungary, Porsche works driver Patrick Pilet and his French compatriot Raymond Narac again had the podium in sight, but Narac was suffering from a bad bout of the ‘flu. For this reason, the Porsche dealer and gentleman driver from Rouen wasn’t able to follow on with his strong performance from the previous rounds. “Patrick had to do the bulk of the work,” said Narac. “The race was indeed strenuous,” stated Pilet. “But especially because the prototype drivers were very aggressive. Still, it was great fun to fight against our rivals on this super circuit. And our team can be proud, because we were always amongst the fastest in pit stops.”

In tenth, the second Felbermayr squad rounded off Porsche’s winning durability at the final of the Le Mans Series, but were not totally satisfied. “Unfortunately, that was our worst result this season,” said Martin Ragginger. The Austrian joined forces with team owner Christian Ried for the season, with the two regular pilots receiving support at the final from Porsche factory driver Romain Dumas (France). The highlight for the second Felbermayr-911 was second at the season-opener in Le Castellet. But at the end in Silverstone, delight was the overriding emotion: In their first season together in the Le Mans Series, Ried and Ragginger brought home third place in the GT2 drivers’ classification.


Statistics: 5th and final race of the Le Mans Series in Silverstone

Result GT2 class
1. Bruni/Melo (I/BR), Ferrari F430 GT, 147 laps
2. Westbrook/Holzer (GB/D), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 147
3. Bell/Turner (GB/GB), Aston Martin V8 Vantage, 147
4. Mullen/Kirkaldy (GB/GB), Ferrari F430 GT, 146
5. Lieb/Lietz (D/A), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 146
6. Pilet/Narac (F/F), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 145
7. Dumbreck/Coronel (GB/NL), Spyker C8 Laviolette GT2-R, 145
8. Müller/Werner (D/D), BMW M3, 145
10. Ried/Ragginger/Dumas (D/A/F), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 145

Points’ standings GT2 class
Drivers
1. Marc Lieb, Richard Lietz, Porsche, 87 points
2. Jean Alesi, Giancarlo Fisichella, Toni Vilander, Ferrari, 66
3. Martin Ragginger, Christian Ried, Porsche, 55
4. Gianmaria Bruni, Jaime Melo, Ferrari, 50
5. Patrick Pilet, Raymond Narac, Porsche, 47

Manufacturers
1. Porsche, 159 points
2. Ferrari, 156
3. Spyker, 38
4. BMW, 37
5. Aston Martin, 30


Facts and Figures

This is 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 the rules of the Le Mans 24 hour race. Five championship rounds are contested this season on circuits throughout Europe. The races run over a distance of 1,000 kilometres, with the eight hour race in Le Castellet as the only exception.

The starting field consists of two different sports vehicle categories: Sports prototypes and standard sports cars. They are divided into four classes:
LMP1 class: Sports prototypes with up to 750 hp and a minimum weight of 900 kilograms (petrol vehicles) or 930 kg (diesel vehicles). Power to weight ratio: approx. 1.2 kg/hp.
LMP2 class: Sports prototypes with around 440 hp and an 825 kilogram minimum weight. Power to weight ratio: approx 1.8 kg/hp.
GT1 class: Considerably modified standard sports cars with up to 600 hp and a minimum weight of 1,200 – 1,250 kilograms.
GT2 class: Slightly modified standard sports cars with up to 460 hp and a minimum weight of 1,145 kilograms. The Porsche 911 GT3 RSR competes in this class.

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 four classes. Porsche works drivers Marc Lieb and Richard Lietz won the GT2 driver’s title in 2009. In 2008, Porsche won the LMP2 title for drivers, manufacturers and teams.
PRESS Porsche Motorsport/Acredited Autorized Members.

Pilotos Latinos cumplieron en Spa-Francorchamps.

Un gran fin de semana tuvieron los pilotos de Peru Gustavo "Guty" Michlesen y de Brazil Ben Lago quienes participaron con Muehlner Motorsport en la Porsche Super Sport cup en la pista de Spa-Francorchamps.
Para ambos fue la primera vez en participar en una pista tan rapida como lo es Spa-Francorchamps y en un Porsche 911 Gt3 CUP S.
Los resultados hablan por si solo:
El Equipo Muehlner Motorsport gano la primera carrera del sabado en la Porsche Super Sport Cup (Sprint) al mando de Taki Konstantinou, despues de haber partido 2 de los Muehlner Porsches de la Pole y P2 respectivamente.
Cabe destacar que el piloto Peruano Guty Michelsen mejoro increiblemente su performance de manejo cada vez que hizo contacto con el auto, en la primera carrera del sabado partio de la P34 de 45 autos, y terminando P28 absoluto con mejoras sustanciales de tiempo por vuelta, ya para la segunda carrera Guty mas afianzado en el auto y pista lograba terminar de P16 de 45 autos, una gran escalada en tiempos y logrando bajar sus primeros tiempos en un margen muy aceptable, el piloto Michelsen regresa a su pais muy motivado y las puertas quedan abiertas en Muehlner Motorsport y ademas regresa a su natal Peru, con 2 trofeos de P2 y P3 de categoria. Gran triunfo Guty!!!!.
Mientras que el piloto Brazileño Ben Lago participaria en la Porsche Cup Endurance, carrera de 2 horas de duracion, cabe resaltar tambien el merito de Ben, que hizo un carreron bajo lluvia y manejo solo las 2 horas, el perfromance del equipo y la concentracion y buen manejo de Ben en lluvia lo vieron cruzar la meta en P1 de su categoria, tambien Ben regresa a su natal Rio de Janeiro con un bello trofeo de la Porsche Motorsport.
Ambos se portaron a la altura, disciplina, profesionalismo y humildad, las claves del exito y acompañados de uno de los mejores equipos del mundo en materia Porsche: Muehlner Motorsport.
En esta Porsche Cup participan grandes talentos de Porsche Motorsport, pilotos que participan en la Mobil1 y la Super Cup, no es una Copa de Senior Drivers y es avalada totalmente por Porsche Motorsport, Mobil1, Michelin y Veltins.
Estamos muy contentos de todo el fin de semana y esperamos con los brazos abiertos a los pilotos Latinos que deseen probar suerte en el mejor automovilismo del mundo: El Europeo.