American Le Mans Series

American Le Mans at Lime Rock Preview

With the month of June and the 24 Hours of Le Mans behind them, the American Le Mans Series returns to action for Round Four. Round Four opens with testing July 1st at the Lime Rock Park Raceway in Lakeville, Connecticut for the New England Grand Prix. Race fans will take advantage of the Independence Day holiday to run the race on Monday, July 4th at 3 PM local time. Qualifying will take place on Saturday, July 2nd.

The Lime Rock Park circuit is the shortest track, at 1.5 miles (2.5 kilometers), that the series visits. The course is eight turns, with all except turn two right-handed. With such a short track, the LMP1 cars will lap in the 49-second range and the GT2 at 56 seconds. This means that traffic is often a problem for all drivers at Lime Rock.

Patrick Long (Petersen/White Lighting) commented: “Traffic is my biggest concern at Lime Rock. The track is so fast, and lap times are so quick, that the prototypes are on top of the GT2 cars very quickly. With the elevation changes and narrow circuit you can’t always see them coming. You’ll look in your mirror one second and they won’t be there and they’ll be on your bumper the next. They can get pretty impatient. When they do that is where trouble can start. We’re out there racing our own race and the prototype guys are racing theirs. It can get pretty hairy at times. No one wants to wait because you really don’t have time to wait. But, sometimes patience is the smartest way to go because going for broke you can end your day pretty fast at Lime Rock.”

Last year, Champion Racing’s Audi R8 piloted by JJ Lehto and Marco Werner took the top step of the podium after the two hour, forty-five minute race. James Weaver (Dyson Lola/AER) led the first three laps of the race from pole, and then gave the lead over to JJ Lehto for 43 laps. Weaver retook the lead on lap 48, only to lose the lead again on lap 104 to Marco Werner, who ultimately completed 165 laps of the circuit.

The Lola B2K of Miracle Motorsports, piloted by Ian James and James Gue, won LMP2. GT1 (then GTS) was won by the Corvette C5R of Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta, edging out teammates Ron Fellows and Johnny O’Connell. GT2 (then GT) found the Ferrari 360 Modena of Ralk Kelleners and Anthony Lazzaro take the class victory over the Alex Job Porsche of van Overbeek and Law.

LMP1: Champion Audi and Dyson Square Off

This year’s event finds 23 entrants for the race, 8 of which will make up the two prototype classes. Le Mans winners Champion Audi will field two cars: the first with winning drivers JJ Lehto and Marco Werner, the second with Frank Biela and Emmanuele Pirro. Dyson Racing will counter with Mid-Ohio winners James Weaver and Butch Leitzinger in the number 16 AER-Powered Lola and Chris Dyson and Andy Wallace in the number 20 Lola/AER.

Dyson Racing used the downtime since Mid-Ohio to plan and prepare for the coming weeks’ races. Chris Dyson commented, “We’re all fired up for Lime Rock, and we’re still buzzing over the Mid-Ohio 1-2. Last year Lime Rock was one of our strongest tracks and we expect to be even more competitive there this year.”

Team ADT Champion Audi, fresh from a Le Mans victory, has not had the benefit of off time. Team Public Relations Manager Melissa Grunmah stated, “Per this year’s schedule, it has been a matter of winning one race and immediately preparing for the next race. We have 3 ALMS races in six weeks so until after the Portland race at the end of July, there will be no rest!”

LMP2: BK Motorsports Well-Rested and Well-Tested

Tied for first in points in P2, BK Motorsports returns to the track for their first race since Mid-Ohio in May. Their Courage Mazda has undergone testing during the off-period. Drivers Jamie Bach and Guy Cosmo shared a multi-day test at Putnam Park (Mount Meridian, Indiana, United States) to better familiarize themselves with the mannerisms of the Courage chassis. The team continues to focus on finishing the race first above all else, according to John Doonan of Mazda North America.

Miracle Motorsports will bring their AER-powered Courage C65 with John Macaluso, Chris McMurry, and Jeff Bucknum behind the wheel. Miracle completed testing and installed their paddle-shifting system in the Courage prior to Mid-Ohio and was running in first place in P2 for most of the race until being disqualifed under the maximum driving time rules after 2 hours of the race.

Intersport Racing, which won its first race with the Lola B05/40 chassis at Road Atlanta in April, hopes to return stronger after mechanical trouble at Mid-Ohio and Le Mans. The father-son combination of Clint and Jon Field will be behind the wheel again.

GT1: Corvettes Race the Field and Each Other

Close competition between the two Corvettes at Mid-Ohio brought the on-track victory to the #4 car of Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta after a late pit-stop challenge with the #3 car of O’Connell and Fellows. Both cars pitted at the same time late in the race; the O’Connell/Fellows car was in the pit stall behind and the Gavin/Beretta car and was forced to wait for the #4 car to leave the pits before it could leave. The order was later reversed by an IMSA decision.

Corvette Program Manager Doug Fehan recognizes the competition within the team helps the overall performance. “The two Corvettes do race with each other, but in a controlled environment. We have learned that competition between the crews and drivers helps them to keep a sharp edge. Competition between the No. 3 and No. 4 Corvettes develops discipline and strategy, and prevents the team from becoming complacent during times when the competition in the class is not intense. At the end of the race, however, Corvette Racing is one team, and we celebrate our victories and suffer our defeats as a single unit.”

ACEMCO brings an improved Saleen S7R to Lime Rock. Included in the upgrades are changes to the aerodynamics, engine, and suspension of the Saleen. Drivers Terry Borcheller and Johnny Mowlem will return to the driver’s seat. Borcheller has stayed busy during the off-period driving in the Grand American Series.

The Maserati MC12 has yet to score a victory in the American Le Mans Series. After a third in class finish at Road Atlanta, the team slid to a fifth place finish at Mid-Ohio. No further competition adjustments have been made to the package.

The Carsport America Dodge Viper, with drivers Tom Weickert and Michele Rugolo, will return to Mid-Ohio this year. Last year, the team managed a fourth place finish in GTS.

GT2: Le Mans Podium Reunited

The American Le Mans Series GT2 class has the unique distinction of being the source for all three of the Le Mans GT2 class podium teams. GT2 winners Alex Job Racing (partnered with BAM! Racing for Le Mans), second place team Petersen White Lighting, and third place Flying Lizard, will all return with their normal driver corps this weekend.

Alex Job Racing drivers Timo Bernhard and Romain Dumas, winners at Mid-Ohio, will return in the #23 car with Ian Baas and Randy Pobst in the #24 car.

Petersen White Lighting, second at Le Mans, refreshed many of their car’s components upon arrival at Lime Rock this week. Included were the engine, gearbox, suspension, as well as the body work. Full inspection will be made of the front clip, which was damaged at Le Mans. Unless defects are found, no further repairs will be made to the front clip.

The team has no worries about returning to the sprint race format. Team Public Relations Officer Tom Moore commented, “The team has the same dedication to preparation whether it is a sprint race or an endurance race. The drivers will also just focus entirely on racing hard and fast. After the 24 Hours- and 12 at Sebring before that- the sprint races are actually quite easy to prepare for mentally and physically. “

Flying Lizard returns at Lime Rock with a two-car entry. The #44 car will be anchored by Seth Neiman and Lonnie Pechnik; the #45 car by Johannes van Overbeek and Jon Fogarty. The team finished sixth and seventh, respectively, at Mid-Ohio.

The Panoz team hopes to return to stronger performances after mechanical problems at Le Mans and one DNF and a fourth place finish at Mid-Ohio. Marino Franchitti, who was among the co-drivers for the team at Le Mans, will partner with Bryan Sellers in the #51 car. Sellers had previously been partnered with Scott Maxwell. Bill Auberlen and Robin Liddell will return to pilot the #50 car.

Leo Hindery, Le Mans winning co-driver for the BAM!/AJR partnership, will not be returning to the American Le Mans Series with the BAM! team. In his place, Mike Rockenfeller will team with German driver Wolf Henzler. Henzler, 30, was 2004 Michelin Porsche Supercup Champion and has driven several races this year in the US Speed World Challenge GT Series. Henzler also was the GT Class champion at the 24 Hours of Daytona this year.

-Dennis Murray