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Thứ Sáu, 20 tháng 9, 2013

USCC: IMSA Announces 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship Schedule

Grand-Am Press Release

Continuing its commitment to revolutionize sports car racing in North America, the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) today announced a 12-race schedule for the 2014 debut season.

9/20/2013 DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Sept. 20, 2013) – Continuing its commitment to revolutionize sports car racing in North America, the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) today announced a 12-race schedule for the 2014 debut season of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship starting with the 52nd running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 25-26.

"We have created a premium schedule for sports car fans, taking our new championship to some of the best road racing facilities in North America," said IMSA CEO Ed Bennett. "Our event lineup also underscores the cooperative spirit of the merger between the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series and the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón (ALMS). The 'best of both worlds' approach, our shared guidepost throughout the merger process, is certainly evident when you look at the 2014 schedule.

"We had many interested parties but for 2014, we only considered facilities from our 2013 Rolex Series and ALMS schedules. That was in fairness to our existing track partners, who have been such strong supporters of both series. The first TUDOR United SportsCar Championship season will feature iconic tracks deeply rich in history. We are very proud of this group of 12 facilities which have been selected for the inaugural season."

Illustrating the post-merger synergy is the fact that the 2014 lineup features four race tracks currently on the Rolex Series schedule, four that are on the current ALMS schedule and four that are on both series' 2013 slates.

In addition, preseason test sessions have been set for Nov. 16-17 at Sebring International Raceway and Nov. 19-20 at Daytona International Speedway. The test sessions will be open to all four classes of cars that will compete in the new championship: Prototype, Prototype Challenge, GT Le Mans and GT Daytona. Session schedules will be announced in the near future.

The 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship schedule rundown:

• Jan. 25-26: Daytona International Speedway … The 52nd running of the Rolex 24 will be perhaps the most significant sports car race in the history of North America, as the debut event for the new championship.

• March 15 Sebring International Raceway … The Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring fueled by Fresh From Florida – North America's oldest sports car race – will be run for the 62nd time. … For the first time since 1998, the Daytona and Sebring endurance classics will be part of the same series and under the same sanctioning (IMSA). … Previously the ALMS' premier event.

• April 12 Long Beach … Longtime ALMS street race again in conjunction with IZOD IndyCar Series. … Prototype and GT Le Mans classes will compete in one of the largest and most important consumer markets (Southern California) for nearly all TUDOR United SportsCar Championship stakeholders.

• May 4 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca … Historic Monterey, California circuit considered hallowed ground for sports car racing. … On both series' schedules this season.

• May 31: Detroit Belle Isle … Also a companion street-race event to IndyCar. … Will feature the Prototype, Prototype Challenge and GT Daytona classes. … The Rolex Series has raced at Detroit the last two years; previously, the ALMS was part of the Detroit weekend. The "Motor City" is home to many of the auto manufacturers participating in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship plus numerous supplier partners.

• June 29: Watkins Glen International … The Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen endurance event in Watkins Glen, New York has been a staple on the Rolex Series schedule. … Event started in 1968 and for many years was part of IMSA's former Camel GT Series.

• July 13: Canadian Tire Motorsport Park … Historic Bowmanville, Ontario circuit – currently amid a massive renovation project – is retained from the ALMS schedule.

• July 25: Indianapolis Motor Speedway … Brickyard Grand Prix will again join the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend for third consecutive year, with Friday-at-dusk finish. … Previous two years was part of Rolex Series schedule.

• Aug. 10: Road America … Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin track has been on both ALMS and Rolex Series schedules. … Hosted historic event this season when both series raced there on the same weekend.

• Aug. 24: Virginia International Raceway … Danville, Virginia track has fervent fan following and an ALMS race next month. … Formerly part of the Rolex Series schedule. … Event will have a combined GT Le Mans/GT Daytona race and another race featuring the Prototype Challenge class.

• Sept. 20: Circuit of The Americas … Spectacular year-old road racing facility in Austin, Texas hosted the Rolex Series in the spring this season and is hosting the ALMS and FIA World Endurance Championship this weekend.

• Oct. 4: Road Atlanta … The Petit Le Mans, traditional 10-hour or 1,000 mile ALMS season finale at the storied Braselton, Georgia road course. … Event will retain its status as a link with the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

With three circuits (Long Beach, Detroit Belle Isle and Virginia International Raceway) on the 2014 schedule not having all four TUDOR United SportsCar Championship classes competing, each class (Prototype, Prototype Challenge, GT Le Mans and GT Daytona) will race 11 times next season.

"This is, without a doubt, the best sports car schedule in the history of North America," said IMSA President and COO Scott Atherton. "When we announced the merger plans last year, we immediately envisioned a dream schedule, one that our industry and, most importantly, our fans would embrace. Although it wasn't easy, we feel like we have arrived at just that. There were so many options to consider and we could have added more events, but we had to ensure that we didn't over-tax our industry. So, we stuck to our plan of going with the 'best of the best' and capped the lineup at 12 events.

"This lineup will have it all – historic road courses, major market street circuits and two of the most spectacular superspeedways in the world, Daytona and Indy. And it also will have the continent's new jewel – Circuit of the Americas. Overall, a dream schedule, indeed."

2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship Schedule

Jan 25-26 Daytona International Speedway
Mar 15 Sebring International Raceway
Apr 12 Long Beach Street Circuit
May 4 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
May 31 Detroit Belle Isle
Jun 29 Watkins Glen International
Jul 13 Canadian Tire Motorsport
Jul 25 Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Aug 10 Road America
Aug 24 Virginia International Raceway
Sep 20 Circuit of The Americas
Oct 4 Road Atlanta

Photo credit: Audi Media

Thứ Hai, 9 tháng 9, 2013

Rolex Series: Fall-Line Motorsports Grand-Am team scores another Top-10

Fall-Line Motorsports Press Release

Monterey, CA (September 9, 2013) - Al Carter and Bryan Sellers drove the #46 B+ Foundation/ Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 GRAND-AM yesterday at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and finished 9^th for the Continental Tire Sports Car Festival in the Rolex Series GT class.

Carter and Sellers drove together for the first time and this driver combination had all the makings for a successful race. However, it was not in the cards and though the drivers drove a good race, the day did not turn out quite as planned.

Carter drove a solid first stint and pitted under yellow at the thirty-minute mark but a problem in the pits as they switched drivers prevented the crew from changing tires. Then, to add to the misfortune, they received a penalty for speeding in the pits and on the 2^nd stop they received another penalty for making contact with a tire upon exiting the pits. But, the improvement in speed is obvious and the #46 scored the 3^rd fastest lap in the GT race.

Over the past two months Fall-Line Motorsports and Audi Sport customer racing have worked in unison to develop the car. For yesterday's race GRAND-AM allowed the team to install a rear diffuser, which added a little more downforce and stability to the car's rear.

Michael Harvey, Team Manager: "Today was a tough day. We had a fast car, but as a collective team made some fundamental errors that didn't allow us to capitalize on our speed. I am proud of these guys and our relationship with Audi Sport customer racing for all their work that has allowed us to finish every racing lap. The Audi R8 GRAND-AM is coming alive and the more we get to know her the better the relationship becomes as we know look forward to Lime Rock."

The final round of the GRAND-AM Rolex Series is September 26-28 at Lime Rock Park.

Fall-Line Motorsports is a premiere builder and fabricator of race cars for all levels of competition. Fall-Line specializes in BMW, Porsche, Audi and other high-performance makes. Fall-Line Motorsports unveiled their Grand-Am team in 2006 and won the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge GS Championship title in 2010. In addition to fielding 3 GS BMW M3's in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Fall-Line also prepares and fabricates cars for other CTSCC teams, SCCA and NASA drivers, track day prepared and high performance street vehicles. www.fall-linemotorsports.com

@FallLineMotors www.facebook.com/Falllinemotorsports

ABOUT AUDI
Audi of America, Inc. and its U.S. dealers offer a full line of German-engineered luxury vehicles. AUDI AG is among the most successful luxury automotive brands globally. Audi was a top-performing luxury brand in Europe during 2012, and broke all-time company sales records in the U.S. Through 2016, AUDI AG will invest about $17 billion on new products, facilities and technologies.Visit www.audiusa.com or www.audiusanews.com for more information regarding Audi vehicles and business topics.

ABOUT THE B+ FOUNDATION: The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation honors the memory of Andrew McDonough. Andrew's mom, dad and sister founded The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation. The overall goal of The B+ Foundation is to "Do Good". During the racing season, Al Carter and Hugh Plumb visit kids with cancer in hospitals before racing events to make a positive difference and keep the "B+" message alive through outreach efforts and talks. The B+ Foundation provides financial assistance to families of children with cancer nationwide. In the last two years, The B+ Foundation awarded over $1,000,000 to families of children with cancer while giving over $500,000 to support research efforts. Information about the Foundation and its activities can be found at www.BePositive.org.

Photo credit: Wes Duenkel Motorsport Photography / Fall-Line Motorsports

Thứ Bảy, 7 tháng 9, 2013

Rolex Series: Sixth in qualifying for Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 at Laguna Seca

By Tarek Ramchani

The Grand-American Rolex Sports Car Series is at Laguna Seca this weekend, the penultimate round of the season. A single Audi R8 GRAND-AM is taking part in the event from Fall-Line Motorsports.

The Audi Sport customer racing team, who joined the GT ranks of the Rolex Series in the second half of the season, is performing well so far at the Californian track. The #46 Audi R8 GRAND-AM, shared by Brayn Sellers and Al Carter, finished tenth in the first practice session, fourth in the second session and fifth in the third session.

In qualifying Fall-Line Motorsports showed strong pace. Brayn Sellers and Al Carter took a satisfying sixth place after a very fraught session. This is their best result so far in the demanding Rolex Series GT field with the Audi R8 GRAND-AM. Bryan Sellers, who joined the Rolex Series GT team (he races with Fall-Line in the Continental Tire Challenge), has really boosted the R8 GRAND-AM effort. Bryan Sellers is one of the fastest GT drivers in North America.

It is interesting to note that Grand-Am has recently allowed Audi to use the original 2013 specification rear diffuser of the Audi R8 LMS ultra on the Audi R8 GRAND-AM. No doubts this helped Fall-Line Motorsports to improve with the car, however the team is really working hard and really improving with a car that won Rolex 24 at Daytona earlier this year.

Up ahead pole position in the GT class went to the #57 Chevrolet Camaro GT.R from Stevenson Motorsports. Second was the #31 Chevrolet Corvette from Marsh Racing and third the #63 Ferrari 458 from Scuderia Corsa. The qualifying session results can be seen here.

Photo credit: Audi Media

Thứ Năm, 5 tháng 9, 2013

Rolex Series: Fall-Line Motorsports Grand-Am Rolex team confident for Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

Fall-Line Motorsports Press Release

Buffalo Grove, IL (September 4, 2013) - The Fall-Line Motorsports GT program is coming off a strong finish at Kansas Speedway where just a few short weeks ago the team and their Audi R8 captured a top-5 finish in only their fifth race with the newly-formed GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series team.

This weekend at the Continental Tires Sports Car Festival at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the team aims to improve upon that 5^th place finish and put the #46 B+ Foundation/ Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 GRAND-AM on the podium with the duo of drivers Al Carter and Bryan Sellers teaming up for the two-hour-forty-five minute race.

Carter, who hails from Greenville, Del., has driven the Audi R8 at two previous events this year; first at Watkins Glen and most recently at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He has been extremely busy at the racetrack getting lots of seat time every chance he can get. He recently drove a four-hour endurance race at New Jersey Motorsports Park and then followed it up with the American Le Mans event in Baltimore last weekend.

Bryan Sellers has been equally as busy, racing last weekend against his teammate this weekend in Carter at Baltimore. Sellers drove the Audi R8 for the first time at Kansas Speedway just over two weeks ago and ran very strong, turning the third fastest lap of the race.

As the Fall-Line Motorsports GRAND-AM GT program continues to excel due in part to the support of Audi Sport Customer Racing, the last two races on the 2013 schedule will be their best. Finishing up the season strong and showcasing the performance of the R8 and the talents of the drivers and team has been the short-term objective and the team is determined to meet those lofty goals.

Al Carter: "I am pulling double duty for Fall-Line this weekend, so I am preparing myself for a busy and exciting weekend. Without points as a concern, and Fall-Line having several races with the Audi R8 under their belt, we will be driving hard for a podium finish."

Bryan Sellers: "It will be easy to roll into the race with Al (Carter) and get a good rhythm. We are very familiar with each other as Fall-Line teammates and I am looking forward to driving with him in the B+ Foundation Audi. At Kansas, we learned a lot about the race-ability of the car and where we need to improve that. We have also been afforded a B.O.P. [Balance of Performance adjustment] from GRAND-AM that should improve the racecar. I am looking forward to getting back into the B+ Foundation/Fall-Line Audi and seeing the differences."

Michael Harvey, Team Manager: "Since Kansas the Fall-Line crew has been extremely busy preparing for the last two events of 2013. With great support from Audi Sport Customer Racing we have made great strides in better understanding the package we have and head to Laguna looking to better our 5th place from the last event. I am excited for both Bryan and Al to drive together as we aim for the podium."

The Continental Tire Sports Car Festival-Rolex Sports Car Series at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California is scheduled for Sunday, September 8th at 5p ET and will be broadcast LIVE on Fox Sports 1.

@FallLineMotors www.facebook.com/Falllinemotorsports

Photo credit: Wes Duenkel Motorsport Photography / Fall-Line Motorsports

Thứ Ba, 20 tháng 8, 2013

Rolex Series: Fall-Line Motorsports GT Program earns Top-5 finish at Kansas

Fall-Line Motorsports Press Release

Kansas City, KS (August 20, 2013) - The Fall-Line Motorsports GRAND-AM Rolex GT program is still in its infancy, being "born" less than two months ago ahead of the Watkins Glen race event. This past weekend, however, Mark Boden and Bryan Sellers brought home their Audi R8 in fifth position after running a very strong race and turned the third fastest lap of the 2 hour and 45 minute race, showing the strength of the Audi R8 and the overall Audi Sport Customer Racing program.

Mark Boden started the race after qualifying in 10^th position. He drove a great first stint before handing the driving duties to Bryan Sellers. Boden did a great job keeping the #46 Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 on the lead lap and pit with the rest of the field after 45 minutes of racing. Sellers got in the car and immediately began moving through the field. He quickly got up to speed and was running fourth when GRAND-AM mandated a drive-through penalty for an alleged pass under full course caution and Sellers had to make his way through the field for a second time. He turned the 3^rd fastest lap of the GT field and easily brought home the car in 5^th place. Without the questionable penalty, it could have been a podium but the team and drivers proved that they have the speed to be competitive and all the hard work and determination put in over the past two months is starting to pay off.

Mark Boden: "I thoroughly enjoyed driving the Audi R8 this past weekend. It was really a great experience to drive under the lights on the oval and the car has a ton of power and is a blast to drive. I am really pleased with the progress we have made so far and Bryan (Sellers) showed that we definitely have the speed to contend for podiums."

Bryan Sellers: "I had some very good battles in the Audi. It was great to be back in a GRAND-AM GT car. The racing is great and the cars are all strong in their own sections, which makes it difficult but intense racing. We still have a lot to learn in race trim with the Audi but I think we had a good start. With Mark (Boden) being able to run strong and longer than the other drivers during his stint, we were able to have less fuel time in one of our stops, which jumped us a few positions on track, and from there I was able to pick up a few more and hold strong for a decent finish. Audi is a proven winner in motorsports and the R8 is and will be no different. It is obviously a much different car than they run in their GT3 spec so we have some learning to do but we are getting better every lap. I think the car will win races in a short amount of time."

Michael Harvey, Team Manager: "This was a good day for Fall-line Motorsports and our GT program. It is great to see some reward for all the tremendous effort by all at Fall-Line and Audi Sport Customer Racing as we all continue to become familiar with the car. Bryan and Mark drove a very sensible race to bring the car home in 5th place."

The next stop on the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series schedule Round 11 of 12 held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on September 7-8 in Monterey, CA.

@FallLineMotors www.facebook.com/Falllinemotorsports

Photo Credit: Wes Duenkel Motorsport Photography / Fall-Line Motorsports

Thứ Năm, 15 tháng 8, 2013

Rolex Series: Fall-Line Motorsports Grand-Am Rolex team ready to tackle Kansas Speedway

Fall-Line Motorsports Press Release

Kansas City, KS (August 15, 2013) - The Fall-Line Motorsports GT program rolled into Kansas Speedway earlier this week with high expectations. With just two full events under their belts, the newly-formed Fall-Line GRAND-AM Audi R8 team will contest the SFP Grand Prix at the brand new road course configuration at the Kansas Speedway.

The Kansas track is a high-speed/low down-force track well suited for the R8. Fall-Line is hoping to better last month's top-ten finish at the Indy race which shares similar track performance properties to Kansas. Behind the wheel of the #46 Fall-Line Motorsports entry will be team owner Mark Boden along with his regular Continental Sports Car Challenge driver Bryan Sellers.

Bryan Sellers: "I am really looking forward to driving the Audi R8 GRAND-AM this weekend. Audi and Fall-Line Motorsports teamed together is a great combination. They have both come together with the same goal of having a competitive race package and I'm excited to play a role in it."

Mark Boden: "I am looking forward to my turn to get behind the wheel of our sweet new machine! It is always great to drive with Bryan (Sellers) and I am looking forward to seeing all of the hard work we put into the car the past few months to use. We know that this car had success at Daytona earlier this year so we are hopeful that we can expect similar success this weekend. I am looking forward to the challenge of driving in both series (CTSCC and Rolex) and also racing under the lights! It should be a good weekend."

Michael Harvey, Team Manager:

"Kansas brings many unknowns since it is the first time any series has used the track for major competition. In a short amount of time Fall-Line and our Audi Sport Customer Racing partners have analyzed an immense amount of data and subsequently we anticipate Fall-Line will be competitive. The support we have received from Brad (Kettler) and his team at Audi Sport Customer Racing has been unbelievable as we continue to evolve our racing team's performance."

@FallLineMotors www.facebook.com/Falllinemotorsports

Photo Credit: Wes Duenkel Motorsport Photography / Fall-Line Motorsports

Thứ Bảy, 10 tháng 8, 2013

Rolex Series: Fall-Line Motorsports announcement on the Rolex GT race at Road America

Fall-Line Motorsports Press Release

Elkhart Lake, WI (August 10, 2013)- During practice yesterday at Road America, the Fall-Line Motorsports team made the decision to focus their efforts on conducting additional testing working in conjunction with GRAND-AM and forego the GRAND-AM Rolex Series VisitFlorida.com Sports Car 250 race.

Despite the fact that the Audi R8 race car has celebrated great success around the world in GT3 racing as well as here in the U.S., as they won the Daytona 24 Hour race earlier this year, Fall-Line's Audi R8 GRAND-AM customer racing program was launched only eight weeks ago.

"Fall-Line has only two races under their belt with the Audi R8 customer racing program with little to no time to test and develop the race car," said Mark Boden, Fall-Line driver and principal. "The current car configuration does not allow both Fall-Line and its drivers to race at its optimum level delivering the results expected by the team, its drivers, Audi, the series and ultimately our many fans. We need to collectively look and prepare for the bigger picture and develop a package that is worthy to campaign against the other world-class marques and teams in the newly defined series in 2014."

The decision to withdraw from Road America underscores the team's dedication to its drivers and to further develop the customer racing program to campaign for the newly forged 2014 United SportsCar Racing Series GTD Championships.

"Fall-Line Motorsports, like Audi, is a customer driven company and therefore this is the right decision to make," said Michael Harvey, Fall-Line's team manager. "Obviously it's a disappointment to have to withdraw from a race, more so since Road America is considered our home race with our headquarters a couple of hours away.

The Fall-Line Motorsports team, with the support of Audi Sport customer racing, is working with GRAND-AM and looks forward to future races.

Fall-Line Motorsports is a premiere builder and fabricator of racecars for all levels of competition. Fall-Line specializes in BMW, Porsche, Audi and other high-performance makes. Fall-Line Motorsports unveiled their Grand-Am team in 2006 and won the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge GS Championship title in 2010. In addition to fielding 3 GS BMW M3's in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Fall-Line also prepares and fabricates cars for other CTSCC teams, SCCA and NASA drivers, track day prepared and high performance street vehicles. www.fall-linemotorsports.com

@FallLineMotors www.facebook.com/Falllinemotorsports

Photo credit: Audi of America

Thứ Bảy, 27 tháng 7, 2013

Rolex Series: Unfortunate end for the Audi R8 GRAND-AM in the NAEC

By Johan Laubscher

The Grand-Am Rolex Series headed to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, for the Brickyard Grand Prix. This event was the eighth round of the Rolex Series, and more importantly, it was the third and final round of the North American Endurance Championship. Two Audi R8 GRAND-AM teams were again entered in the GT class for this event.

The North American Endurance Championship consists of the three endurance races within the Rolex Series, namely: The Daytona 24 Hours, 6 Hours of the Glen, and the Brickyard Grand Prix (3 Hours). The Alex Job Racing Audi R8 GRAND-AM won the Daytona 24 Hours in January, driven by Filipe Albuquerque, Oliver Jarvis, Edoardo Mortara and Dion von Moltke. This resulted in Audi drivers leading the NAEC standings. Thus a factory Audi R8 GRAND-AM was entered for the six hour event at Watkins Glen, entered under the name of Audi Sport customer racing, run by quattro GmbH and Kettler Motor Werks. The #24 factory Audi was driven by Filipe Albuquerque, Edoardo Mortara and Dion von Moltke, whilst Oliver Jarvis was taking part in the Blancpain Endurance Series that weekend. Watkins Glen also saw the debut of another new Audi team in the Rolex Series, Fall-Line Motorsports, who are entering a single Audi R8 GRAND-AM.

It was a difficult event at Watkins Glen, but even so, the #24 Audi Sport customer racing squad arrived at Indianapolis with a chance at clinching the NAEC title. The factory Audi would only be driven by two drivers this weekend, due to the shorter race duration. These two drivers were Audi Sport Team Rosberg's Filipe Albuquerque and Edoardo Mortara, but Dion von Moltke was on site supporting the team as well. The Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 GRAND-AM was driven by Al Carter and Brett Sandberg.

The factory Audi squad showed excellent pace all weekend, and qualified in third for the three hour event, followed by the Fall-Line Motorsports entry in ninth. Filipe Albuquerque took the green flag in the #24 Audi R8 GRAND-AM and remained within the front battle for the first hour. He was running as high as second for the majority of his stint and things were looking good.

Unfortunately tragedy struck within the second hour. The #94 BMW M3 lost control in the in-field section and collected Albuquerque from behind. The resulting damage ended the #24 Audi’s race and their bid for the NAEC title. The incident can be seen at 2:57 minutes in the highlights video embedded below.

Further back the Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 GRAND-AM soldiered on well and came home for a top ten result, finishing ninth within the GT class. The race was eventually won by the #61 Ferrari 458.

The Brickyard Grand Prix results can be seen HERE.

This event concluded the three-round North American Endurance Championship, but the Grand-Am Rolex Series will now head to Road America for round nine in August.

Photo credit:
Audi of America

Screenshots from Grand-Am on YouTube

Thứ Bảy, 20 tháng 7, 2013

USCR: Audi R8 in GT, what about Daytona Prototypes or LMP2 power?

By Tarek Ramchani

Grand-Am Road Racing, the American Le Mans Series and its series sanctioning body IMSA (International Motorsport Association) has published the classes structures and regulations for the newly formed United Sportscar Series (USCR). The unified North American sportscar series will debut next year at the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

No more LMP1 class in North America, the USCR will have Daytona Prototypes (DP) and Le Mans Prototypes 2 (LMP2) cars for the upper class, the cars that will fight for overall victories. The ALMS GT class will stay as it is now and will be named GT Le Mans (GTLM), using the ACO GTE rules.

Audi will be represented in the GT Daytona (GTD) class. The Audi R8 GRAND-AM will enter the combined class of Rolex Series GT cars and ALMS GTC cars (an all-911 GT3 Cup field). Big changes for the class next year, as it will become a Pro-Am division. IMSA will introduce a driver categorization system, similar to what the FIA uses in both the FIA WEC and Blancpain Endurance Series. Therefore the possible Audi teams in USCR will not be able to field a full-star line-up like they did at this year's Rolex 24 at Daytona, where Audi took the GT class honors. A clean border will be set between the two GT classes. GT Le Mans will mostly be open for factory teams and full pro drivers, whilst GT Daytona will be a home mostly for privateers and gentlemen drivers.

In addition to the Audi R8 GRAND-AM, we have to wait and see if any Audi "possibilities" arise for a move into the upper classes, either DP or LMP2. Audi welcomed the merge of the Rolex Series and the American Le Mans Series into the new United SportsCar Racing. In the last few months there were a lot of rumours and speculation about a possible Audi effort in Daytona Prototypes. It is not a secret that America is a very big market for Audi, and the Ingolstadt brand always wants to fight for overall wins. The USCR will be a top series in international sportscar racing and an Audi DP car, for that target market, would make sense.

Another possibilty is to see Audi as an engine supplier in the LMP2 class. If this happens it will not affect only the USCR but also the FIA World Endurance Championship. The idea of having Audi powered cars in LMP2 is great, no doubts. Who would not like to see TFSI powered machines at Le Mans, Sebring, Daytona and across the globe in FIA WEC? However, the recent changes at the head of the Research and Development (R&D) at Audi AG may bring some new orientations for racing commitments in North America. Anyway and whatever Audi may choose, if they decide to enter the USCR, will be part of the Audi Sport customer racing program. Therefore such an effort will only be in the hands of privateer and independents teams. It will be hard to see Audi fielding a factory team with a Daytona Prototype, and even harder to see the Four Rings using a chassis from another manufacturer with "only" Audi power in LMP2.

The above is of course only speculation, only time will tell what Audi's possible programs for the United SportsCar Racing could be.

Photo credit: Audi of America

Chủ Nhật, 14 tháng 7, 2013

DTM, GRAND-AM and Super GT: identical regulations in 2017

DTM Press Release

DTM in Europe, Super GT in Japan and a new series in the USA to be established under the guidance of GRAND-AM will be staging touring car races to entirely identical technical regulations on three continents in 2017. Prior to the DTM round at the Norisring in Nuremberg, this goal was agreed by representatives from the motorsport federations, the series’ promoters and the car manufacturers already represented in the series, Audi, BMW, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Toyota. In line with the co-operation agreements between the three series, the common Steering Committee, responsible for the maintenance and the joint development of the regulations, assembled for the first time in Nuremberg.

“We have agreed upon the goal that in 2017, all manufacturers will be racing to absolutely identical regulations. That is a very important step. Moreover, we agreed that the Steering Committee will be governing the regulations and developing them in this spirit”, said Hans Werner Aufrecht, chairman of the board of DTM rights holder and promoter ITR e.V. and the host of this historic meeting at the Norisring.

For the road towards the joint regulations in 2017, everyone involved in the Steering Committee have defined a clear road map. “We are very happy that we are able to start a new chapter in the history of motorsport with this first step,” said Masaaki Bandoh, chairman of Super GT promoter, GT Association, which will already be using parts of the regulations that were developed for the DTM in 2012, from 2014 onwards. “Development of the cars from Honda, Nissan and Toyota is to be finalised by the end of this month. For the fifth Super GT round in Suzuka on August 16th, we have planned to put all the cars on display and show them to the media and the fans,” said Bandoh.

The new series planned by GRAND-AM is to run at events of the future United SportsCar Racing series. “In the new United SportsCar Racing series, we have some great tracks like Daytona, Sebring or the Circuit of the Americas in Austin. We will be racing at some great tracks,” Ed Bennett, president of GRAND-AM, who is still in the construction process of the new series, announced. Bennett will host the next meeting of the Steering Committee, which is to assemble at least every six months. “We have planned to have a rotation between our three regions. Accordingly, the next meeting will be held in the USA at the occasion of the Daytona 24 Hours at the end of January, 2014,” Bennett said. After that, the next meeting will follow in the summer of 2014 at the 1,000 kilometre race in Suzuka.

Underneath the Steering Committee, a Technical Working Group was established at executive level. “Of course, there also were different opinions in our first meeting. However, we have the same goal and we try to find solutions for detailed questions. The Technical Working Group will be assist the Steering Committee and will be made up of technicians who will find these solutions,” said Dr. Gerd Ennser, board member automobiles of the Deutsche Motor Sport Bund (DMSB).

“With the new regulations, we have the great chance to achieve a cost reduction and the possibility to put our Japanese races on a global platform,” said Yoshiki Hiyama, secretary general of the Japanese Automobile Federation (JAF).

The first meeting of the Steering Committee in Nuremberg was attended by Masaaki Bando, Junichi Tsuda (both GTA), Yoshiki Hiyama (JAF), Hideo Sato (Honda), Shoichi Miyatani, Toshikazu Tanaka (both Nissan) and Keizo Takahashi (Toyota) from Japan, Ed Bennett (GRAND-AM) and Jim France (NASCAR) from the United States and Hans Werner Aufrecht and Michael Bernard (both ITR), Hans- Joachim Stuck, Dr. Gerd Ennser, Christian Schacht (all DMSB), Jens Marquardt (BMW), Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Audi) and Toto Wolff (Mercedes-Benz) from Germany.

In the autumn of 2012, DTM and Super GT had signed a co-operation agreement for the adoption of the technical regulations. Another licensing and co-operation agreement of the ITR e.V. with GRAND-AM and the US motorsport federation International Motor Sports Association followed in March, 2013.

Photo credit: DTM / Super GT / Grand-Am

Thứ Năm, 11 tháng 7, 2013

Q&A: Interview with Dion von Moltke - Daytona 24 Hours winner

By Johan Laubscher

Dion von Moltke has been a very busy race car driver in recent years. The young South African has been seen in a variety of race cars, including the Audi R8 GRAND-AM in North America. He was seen in the #51 APR Motorsport Audi during 2012, and most recently in the factory Audi Sport customer racing R8 GRAND-AM at Watkins Glen. His highlight of the season, without a shadow of a doubt, was when he won the Daytona 24 Hours (GT class) in the Alex Job Racing R8, sharing the car along with his teammates Filipe Albuquerque, Oliver Jarvis and Edoardo Mortara.

During 2012 we at the Audi Motorsport Blog spoke to Dion following a trip back home to South Africa, and published an interview featuring his 2012 season with the #51 APR Audi R8 GRAND-AM. We have recently caught up again with Dion following the Six Hours of the Glen, for another short Q&A, this time featuring his Daytona 24 Hours victory and the 2013 season.

1) First off, please describe how it felt winning the Daytona 24 Hours and collecting your Rolex.

To put into words the emotions and feeling I had walking up onto the top step of the podium and collecting my Rolex watch along side my teammates and having our whole team in front of me was definitely the most emotional experience I have ever had. Motorsports is not often looked at as a team sport but to win the Rolex 24 Hour at Daytona it takes a mammoth effort from every single person on a team, and our team at Alex Job Racing and Audi Sport Customer Racing went into battle with us and were flawless for the entire 24 Hours. Since our win at Daytona I haven’t actually really been able to sit back and reflect on what happened because I have been flat out working on the next race and trying to get back behind the wheel of an Audi.

2) How did the closing minutes of the race feel, when Albuquerque was leading the race with the do-or-die fuel strategy?

That was the most heart stopping gut wrenching time of my life to sit there and have no control over what was happening. Olly Jarvis, Edo Mortara and I were all locking arms around one another yelling at the TV scream as we watched Filipe put in an amazing stint to hold off everyone for the last hour. The strategy the team came up with was absolutely genius, between our race engineers Greg Fordhal and Jürgen Jungklaus and our data engineer Pat Fraccalvieri they came up with the best strategy of anyone on the lead lap at the end. As drivers we were trying to do the math of what gap we would need over second place to pit for a “splash-and-dash” at the end and still come out in the lead. As we pitted we thought we had no chance to come out still in the lead, but as Filipe came out just infront of second place and still in the lead we all though two things, “We might not be the best mathematicians, and oh my god we might actually win this thing!” There is a great youtube video filming the us drivers standing arm in arm yelling obscenities at the TV screen where you can just see the emotions pouring out of us for the final 2 laps. I still get Goosebumps just writing about these moments I will never forget.

3) Describe the synergy in your driving crew at the Daytona 24 Hours, it was certainly an international mix with drivers from South Africa, Portugal, Italy and Britain.

I have always said chemistry is always the most important thing in building a team, and I believe that was our greatest strength throughout the entire event. The first time I really got to meet any of them was on the test days under a month before the race and we all immediately got along well with one another as well as with the entire team. In our debrief sessions our feedback was almost exactly the same to what we wanted or needed out of the car to improve. Also when it came to something as important as seat position we all were willing to compromise a little bit to find the best possible solution for all four drivers, it is these little key things that were so important.

4) How did it feel racing alongside the factory drivers from Audi, who were all spread among the four Audi R8 cars at Daytona?

Just seeing my name alongside Albuquerque, Jarvis, and Mortara was something special. Every driver dreams of becoming a factory driver and driving along side them was great. Throughout the event you learn what has made them each so successful and you try to learn and implement those specific things to your own career and build upon it.

5) From the outside it looked like there was a good team spirit amongst the four Audi cars entered by AJR, Rum Bum and APR. How did the cohesion feel amongst the four teams from your perspective?

Absolutely! We all worked very, very closely together. We would share all information between the cars and drivers. We would have meetings that would include engineers and drivers from all the cars together and speak about what was working or wasn’t working as a group and formed a strategy to continue to improve. The massive amount of workload put in by everyone at Audi Sport Customer Racing as well as all the teams was the biggest reason the success we were able to have.

6) A brief description of your season so far after the Daytona 24 win in January.

Since Daytona it has been the most hectic season I have ever had with the biggest workload in and out of the car. The business side of racing, is the actually the biggest part of being a racecar driver but it’s something that unless you’re involved in the industry. Since Daytona I have signed to drive with Flying Lizard Motorsports for the rest of the season in ALMS which has been fantastic, they are one of the best teams in sportscar racing internationally so it has been an honor to work with them. On the Grand-Am side I have been able to find last minute rides for a race in most of the races which has been really nice. I have already done more races this year than I normally do for the entire season so the extra seat time is very nice to have and also something as a driver you need to adjust to. With the extra racing and traveling you need to manage the off weeks a little bit differently and really attack the fitness end to continue to improve and push yourself during them.

7) You have recently been re-partnered with Mortara and Albuquerque for the remainder of the North American Endurance Championship, when did this program get finalized, shortly after Daytona or was it a more recent endeavour/decision from the team?

From my end it was actually very last minute. I actually found out I would be racing in the car the week of the race. In racing as a driver you learn that the old saying “Stay ready so you don’t have to get ready” is extremely important and true.

8) Describe how the Watkins Glen weekend went for you and the #24 Audi crew.

It was the first time any of us drivers had even sat in the Audi R8 Grand-Am racecar since our last laps at Daytona International Speedway, so to show up with extremely limited testing and qualify top five and have a car to win the race speaks so much to how good our engineers and crew are at Audi Sport Customer Racing. Throughout the race we didn’t have things fall our way, in fact we just had some really bad luck when it came to timing of the yellows that really cost us a potential win there. The competition in Grand-Am is extremely fierce and every team has the potential to win so you really need things to fall your way as well as preform at an extremely high level. We had the crew and car to win the race but we didn’t make it happen which is frustrating but we’re all working hard to come back stronger!

9) The #24 Audi R8 GRAND-AM has been entered as a factory team, under the name of Audi Sport customer racing. How does it feel being part of this team for the NAEC, and how has the team been put together from the people at Kettler Motor Werks?

As a driver the best scenario you can have is when you show up for a race and you know you are driving for the best team in the paddock and with Audi Sport Customer Racing I have that. You realize straight away working with everyone there as well as with Brad Kettler and everyone he has at Kettler Motor Werks what has made them all so successful over the last decade in motorsports.

10) Will we be seeing you in the Audi Sport customer racing Audi R8 GRAND-AM at Indianapolis for the final NAEC round?

Not sure if I will be in the car there or not yet.

11) This year you are racing in both ALMS and Grand-Am. Which one is most demanding, and how do they differ with approach for the driver?

Actually as a driver the two series have become quite similar and are both extremely demanding. The main difference between the two series is in ALMS I race in the GTC class with Flying Lizard Motorsports and in the class everyone has the same spec Porsche 911 Cup Car and the changes you can make are extremely limited compared to Grand-Am. This puts a huge emphasis onto the drivers in the car truly becoming even more important as well as a team that really focuses on all the very small details to get absolutely everything out of the car you can. The difference on speeds as well in ALMS between the prototypes and GT cars are also much greater so that means you tend to spend more time looking in your mirrors and it also makes it a little tougher to judge traffic as often you will look in your mirror and see absolutely no one behind you and then all of a sudden three corners later they’re diving up the inside of you.

12) Following the completion of the NAEC, where else can we expect to see you racing this year?

Well I will be racing the rest of the season in the American Le Mans Series for Flying Lizard Motorsports. That is my main focus for the rest of the year and as of now the only thing certain I have on the calendar. I am still working very hard to get back behind the wheel of an Audi more full time.

13) You have now had a full 2012 season in an Audi with APR, a Daytona 24 Hours victory and a factory drive in the NAEC. Are there any possibilities of seeing you going over to Europe to race one of the Audi R8 LMS ultra cars for a guest drive, and possibly becoming an Audi factory driver in Europe?

That would be fantastic as I would love to be doing some racing in Europe but as of now my main focus is over here in the U.S. If I had an opportunity to race some in Europe, especially as a Audi Factory Driver, I would be on the plane there the day I got the call!

We at the Audi Motorsport Blog thank Dion for taking the time to complete our questions, and we wish him the best of luck for the rest of the 2013 season. Here's to seeing him back in victory lane very soon.

Dion also thanks his sponsors for their continued support