Backstretch Motorsports

The battle that everyone expected at Petit Le Mans powered by the Totally New MAZDA6 lived up to its billing. Audi remained unbeaten at Road Atlanta as Allan McNish, Dindo Capello and Emanuele Pirro spotted the field two laps at the start of the race but came back for a stunning victory in the 11th annual 1,000-mile/10-hour endurance classic.

McNish and his Audi R10 TDI crossed the finish line 4.512 seconds ahead of Peugeot’s Christian Klien and the Peugeot 908 HDi that he drove with Stephane Sarrazin and Nic Minassian. A record weekend crowd of 113,000 witnessed the week-long fight between the top two powers in sports car racing.

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All four classes set qualifying records Friday at Petit Le Mans powered by the Totally New MAZDA6, highlighted by Stephane Sarrazin’s run to the overall pole position for Saturday’s 1,000-mile/10-hour endurance classic at Road Atlanta. Sarrazin’s time of 1:06.242 (138.039 mph) nipped Audi Sport North America’s Allan McNish by 0.085 seconds as the battle between the two marques intensified even more.

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Traffic at Mosport International Raceway did little to faze Audi Sport North America’s Lucas Luhr and Marco Werner on Sunday as they drove to their third straight overall American Le Mans Series victory in the Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport. Luhr crossed the finish line 21.392 seconds ahead of teammate Emanuele Pirro as Gil de Ferran ran out of fuel on the last lap while leading in LMP2. That sent David Brabham and Scott Sharp to their fourth class victory of the season.

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Audi Sport North America’s Dindo Capello made Mosport International Raceway the fastest circuit in the American Le Mans Series with a stunning lap time of 1:04.318 (138.116 mph) in qualifying Saturday for the Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport. Capello smashed his own previous record at the track by 1.735 seconds, one of 10 cars to go under last year’s pole time.

Audi swept the front row with its two diesel-powered Audi R10 TDIs. Marco Werner was just 0.094 seconds behind his teammate as Audi asserted itself for the first time on the weekend. The top five cars qualified within 0.525 seconds of each other.

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VOICES OF MOSPORT INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

Prototype pilots Lucas Luhr and Chris McMurry are looking forward to the speed and exhilaration of racing at Mosport.
The only thing American Le Mans Series drivers love more than a fast circuit are two consecutive ones. That’s what the field is in for this weekend in Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport at historic Mosport International Raceway. The 2.459-mile, 10-turn circuit rivals Road America - the previous Series stop - as the fastest on the schedule, and the enthusiasm of the Mosport fans makes the Series’ only annual Canadian stop one of the highlights of the season.

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Audi scored its second straight 1-2 finish in the American Le Mans Series with Marco Werner and Lucas Luhr scoring a 2.463-second victory in their diesel-powered Audi R10 TDI over the sister car of Marcel Fässler and Emanuele Pirro. Werner passed race leader David Brabham on Road America’s long frontstretch for the lead with 20 minutes left to win the Generac 500 presented by Time Warner Cable at Road America.

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Will the fourth time be the charm for Lucas Luhr? Audi’s German factory driver certainly hopes so. Luhr earned his fourth career pole position at Road America on Friday and was the fastest overall qualifier for the Generac 500 presented by Time Warner Cable. His lap of 1:46.935 (136.277 mph) gave him a 0.41-second margin over Andretti Green Racing’s Franck Montagny.

Luhr will drive in Saturday’s four-hour race with Marco Werner with the duo having won three overall races and the last five LMP1 rounds. They comfortably lead the class championship by 58 points over Audi teammate Emanuele Pirro. Luhr hasn’t won from pole position at Road America after three previous fast qualifiers.

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Two races in the American Le Mans Series
First start on 9 August at Road America (USA)

Ingolstadt – The Swiss racing driver Marcel Fässler (32) gets the chance to contest two races in the American Le Mans Series with the Audi R10 TDI. The former DTM driver starts at Road America (9 August) and Detroit (30 August) for Team Audi Sport North America as team-mate to Emanuele Pirro.

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Audi returned to its dominating style at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course with a 1-2 finish in the Acura Sports Car Challenge on Saturday with Lucas Luhr and Marco Werner taking the first overall victory for the R10 TDI since April. Luhr crossed the finish line 7.717 seconds ahead of teammates Emanuele Pirro and Dindo Capello.

Luhr drove the last 1:55 with the same set of Michelin tires and one more stop for fuel. Werner started fifth on the grid but moved up to third on the first lap, was second on the third lap and took the lead for good when Werner passed pole-sitter Gil de Ferran’s Acura ARX-01b a minute later.

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Gil de Ferran won his third straight pole position at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Friday…seven years since his last. The storybook debut season for De Ferran Motorsports continued with de Ferran’s first pole in the American Le Mans Series, a record-breaking 1:07.969 (119.596 mph) for the Acura Sports Car Challenge.

De Ferran’s Acura ARX-01b led a second straight overall sweep of the front row for Acura in a home race before thousands of Honda and Acura employees and guests. The two-time CART and former Indianapolis 500 winner qualified 0.224 seconds ahead of Patrón Highcroft Racing’s David Brabham, who sat on the pole a week ago at Lime Rock and won the race overall with Scott Sharp.

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