Artwork: Audi R18 e-tron quattro Champion Racing

By Tarek Ramchani

A great Audi R18 e-tron quattro from Forza Motorsport 5. The car carrying the legendary Champion Racing paint scheme.

Champion Racing was very successful and popular team with Audi in the American Le Mans Series and the Le Mans 24 Hours. The team took multiple ALMS titles representing Audi Sport North America and gave the Audi R8 its last ever victory at La Sarthe back in 2005.

This artwork has been made by TheFishE77 at forzamotorsport.net community forums.

Photo credit: TheFishE77 at forzamotorsport.net

Goodbye American Le Mans Series 1999-2013

By Tarek Ramchani

Road Atlanta hosted the last ever race for the American Le Mans Series last weekend. Founded by Don Panoz in 1999, following the successful Petit Le Mans race in 1998, the ALMS changed the world of sportscar racing. Audi took part in this legendary series with great success and memorable moments.

The first ALMS race was the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1999. Audi was there, debuting in sports prototypes with the brand new Audi R8R. A fine third in the end for Audi Sport Team Joest, as they prepared for the Le Mans 24 Hours. It was a single appearance in the series that year, but things would change months later with a full North American assault.

In 2000 Audi decided the enter the full ALMS season. Audi challenged BMW and Panoz with thrilling battles all year long. Wins came with the legendary Audi R8 and in the end it was Allan McNish who won the title. A year later Audi again fielded two factory Audi R8 cars, joined by two privately run cars from Champion Racing and Johansson Motorsport (Arena). Great battles in house at Audi and against the strong Panoz team, Emanuele Pirro took the title in the end. 2002 was the final year for the Audi R8 with a factory effort, Tom Kristensen won the title at the season finale, his last ever full ALMS season. In 2003 the ALMS saw an epic battle between Team Joest and Champion Racing. Both were customer teams, thus it meant that they had equal chances. Breathtaking duels throughout the season with Frank Biela and Marco Werner crowned as champions for Team Joest in the end. In 2004 only Champion Racing represented Audi in the ALMS. That was not a brilliant year for the LMP1 field, with low entries, but fans enjoyed great fights between the Champion Racing Audi R8 and the Lolas from Dyson Racing. Marco Werner and JJ Lehto were the 2004 series champions. 2005 was the final year for the all-conquering Audi R8. Again it was Champion Racing who represented Audi, with a two-car effort this time. Again battles raged between the Audis and the Lolas from Dyson Racing, with Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro the series champions.

For 2006 Audi introduced a revolutionary new weapon, the R10 TDI. The car won the ALMS opener at the 12 Hours of Sebring. The cars then headed back to Europe to prepare for Le Mans. Champion Racing, now a factory team under the Audi Sport North America banner, gave the R8 additional wins during the three ALMS events that followed on from Sebring. The farewell for the legendary Audi R8 was set at Lime Rock with a winning goodbye. The R10 TDI then returned to the ALMS and dominated the P1 field. Audi had great battles with the Penske Racing Porsche RS Spyders from the LMP2 class, fighting for overall wins. Dindo Capello and Allan McNish were the series champions. That was the case again in 2007, with Acura joining Audi and Porsche. 2008 was the final year for Audi as a full season competitor in the ALMS. Titanic battles between the three brands for outright honors that year, with Marco Werner and Lucas Luhr crowned as the series champions for Audi. Petit Le Mans was a magical edition that year, when Audi beat Peugeot in style. At Laguna Seca Audi had three major moments, the last ever Audi race for Emanuele Pirro in LMP, the last ever race for the R10 TDI as a works team and the last ever race for Champion Racing. That ended a great era for Audi in North America. The 2007-2008 seasons are still seen as some of the best periods in the American Le Mans Series.

Since 2009 Audi only took part in the major endurance events, the 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans. In 2009 Audi won at Sebring with the brand new R15 TDI, but they were beaten by Peugeot at a rain-shortened Petit Le Mans. Audi missed Sebring in 2010, but they did race at the Road Atlanta classic, again losing to Peugeot. In 2011 Audi raced in both of the ALMS premier endurance events, with the R15++ at Sebring and the R18 TDI at Petit Le Mans, but again no victories. In 2012 the ALMS, and the newly formed FIA WEC, had a combined event at Sebring. Audi was victorious with the R18 TDI, the first win for the Four Rings in Florida since 2009. This year Audi returned to Sebring. Two factory R18 e-tron quattro cars were entered, preparing for Le Mans and to give a farewell to the ALMS. A fine 1-2 win in the end, a perfect result in front of huge amounts of Audi fans and sportscar enthusiasts.

Petit Le Mans 2013 was the last chapter in the history of the American Le Mans Series. Rebellion Racing, with their Lola-Toyota, took the outright win. In the past fifteen years the ALMS gave the fans some of the best sportscar battles in recent memory. There are no doubts that it was the ALMS that boosted sportscar racing, ahead of the European Le Mans Series and even the launch of the FIA World Endurance Championship. Now that the series has been merged with the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series, creating a unified Tudor United SportsCar Championship, it's time to say goodbye to the American Le Mans Series and to thank Don Panoz for these fifteen years of memorable moments.

Photo credit: Audi Media

ALMS 2002: Audi and Tom Kristensen the series champions

By Tarek Ramchani

After two very successful seasons in the American Le Mans Series, Audi would again come back in 2002, as the defending champions with their all-conquering Audi R8 cars. Thrilling battles all season long between the Audis and against the competitive Panoz team and a growing Cadillac effort.

Audi again fielded two cars under the Audi Sport North America banner, managed by the brand's partners Team Joest. For the regular ALMS races the line-ups were Frank Beila and Emanuele Pirro with the #1 Audi R8, and Dindo Capello and Tom Kristensen shared the #2 car. In addition of the two works cars, a single privateer Audi R8 had been entered from Champion Racing.

The 2002 ALMS season consisted of a ten-round calendar. The opening event was the 12 Hours of Sebring, the 50th edition of Florida's classic that year. Audi dominated the event and scored a perfect 1-2 in the end. Dindo Capello, joined for the event by Christian Pescatori and Johnny Herbert, won the race ahead of the customer Audi R8 from team Champion Racing with drivers Stefan Johansson, Jan Lammers and Andy Wallace.

The next event was in California at Sonoma. The race was close to the Le Mans 24 Hours, therefore Audi entered a single factory Audi R8 in event, along with the Champion Racing entry. The new factory Audi R8 cars were in Europe being prepared for Le Mans, thus the Team Joest entry was a 2000 Audi R8, which was borrowed from Champion Racing, the car used by Champion in the 2001 ALMS. It was a very hard race in which Audi was beaten by Panoz for the first time in the season. After the annual break for the Le Mans 24 Hours, and the prefect 1-2-3 win for Audi, the series resumed at Mid-Ohio. Again Audi faced very strong competition from the Panoz cars, yet the German team was able to achieve their second race win of the season. Biela and Pirro took the race win ahead of their team-mates Capello and Kristensen.

Road America was home of the fourth round. There the Audi squad fully dominated the event with a nice 1-2-3 win. After a fierce battle between all three R8s, it was the #2 Audi of Kristensen and Capello that came home victorious. The series then moved to Washington DC, a street course event in which Panoz beat Audi again. The works Audis were second with Capello and Kristensen and third with Biela and Pirro.

The series then crossed the border for two Canadian events. First it was the Grand Prix of Trois Riviéres, with full Audi domination. The R8 cars were first, second and third, with the #2 Audi of Kristensen and Capello as the winning car. The same drivers won again in the next event at Mosport, ahead of the customer Audi from Champion Racing.

Back in America, the eighth round of the season was at Laguna Seca. Another 1-2 Audi victory, with Emanuele Pirro and Frank Biela the race winners. The ninth and penultimate round of the season was in Florida, downtown Miami. Pirro and Biela scored a second straight victory, and again they were ahead of the privateer Champion Audi team. The season finale was the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta. Audi won the event with another 1-2 win, Dindo Capello and Tom Kristensen beat Stefan Johansson and Johnny Herbert, after a titanic battle for race victory.

By the end of the season Audi had again defended all three titles. Tom Kristensen won the driver's championship by just two point over teammate Dindo Capello. Audi Sport North America won the team's title and Audi was again the manufacturer champion. 2002 was a very successful year for Audi in the American Le Mans Series, however it was the final time as a full factory effort with the R8. As of the 2003 season, the Audi R8 would be managed by privateer teams only. Audi said goodbye to the ALMS, but the R8 legacy in North America was far from being over.

Photo credit: Audi Media

Artwork: The "Crocodile" Audi R8

By Tarek Ramchani

The American Le Mans Series had a special season finale in the year 2000. The ALMS moved Down Under to Australia, for a race at Adelaide. The event was held on new year's eve, and was called the "Race of a Thousand Years". Audi entered a pair of factory Audi R8 LMP cars. One of them carried a very special livery. The #77 Audi R8 shared by Dindo Capello and Allan McNish had a great paint scheme as a tribute to Australia. The car known as the "Crocodile" Audi R8 won the event in the end.

Here is a great recreation of that stunning livery in Forza Motorsport 4. The design was made by RaptorGhost54 from the French Forza Motorsport community. The result looks great and very close to the real life car.

Photo credit: forzamotorsport.fr

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

ALMS 2001: Audi defended their titles - Emanuele Pirro champion

By Tarek Ramchani

Part two of Audi's legacy in the American Le Mans series, focusing this time on the 2001 season. The year 2000 was a magical season for Audi, winning the driver, team and manufacturer titles. For 2001 the target was to defend the three crowns and bring them back to Ingolstadt.

Big changes for 2001, the driver champion, Allan McNish, had left the series and Audi for Formula One with Toyota. BMW Motorsport left the upper LMP900 class, withdrawing their BMW V12 LMR, and entered the production based GT class. And for the first time since Audi's sportscar program debuted, customer teams fielded the Audi R8. Champion Racing from Florida and Johanson Motorsport (Arena) from the UK, each with a one-car effort. The customer teams were armed with one-year old and ex-factory Audi R8 cars from 2000.

Audi's main challengers were the strong Panoz Motorsports effort along with Cadillac, a factory team from GM Racing. Audi entered two works cars under the Audi Sport North America banner, which were again managed by Team Joest. The #1 Audi for Tom Kristensen and Dindo Capello, and the sister #2 R8 for Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro.

The 2001 American Le Mans Series consisted of a ten race calendar, with two events being held in Europe. The season opener was set at Texas Speedway, Audi won the event with a fine 1-2 victory for the factory team. The race win went to Tom Kristensen and Dindo Capello. The next round was the prestigious 12 Hours of Sebring. Audi dominated Florida's classic with an impressive 1 2 3 4 win. The Audi of Dindo Capello, joined this time by Laurent Aiello and the late Michele Alboreto, won outright ahead of the sister Joest car, whilst the customer teams Champion Racing and Johansson Motorsport finished in third and fourth.

Later the ALMS field moved to Europe for two meetings. The races were combined events between the ALMS and ELMS (new European Le Mans Series). Round 3 was at Donington Park with Audi again dominating. A 1-2-3 win with the #1 Audi R8 of Tom Kristensen and Dindo Capello victorious. At Jarama in Spain for round 4, Kristensen and Capello did it again beating their teammates Biela and Pirro.

After the summer break for the Le Mans 24 Hours, where Audi scored a 1-2 victory, the series went back to North America. Sonoma, California hosted the fifth round of the season. Audi won the event with Capello and Kristensen finishing first. The next event was at Portland with a surprising result in the end. Panoz beat Audi for the first of the season. Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro finished second. For round seven, the series headed up north to Canada, Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro won the race at Mosport. At Mid-Ohio, Panoz again beat Audi. Tom Kristensen and Dindo Capello ended second with the #1 R8. The series then returned back to California at Laguna Seca. Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro won the race, a 1-2-3 for the Audi R8. The season finale was at Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta and again it was an all Audi affair. The factory Audi R8 of Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro won ahead of the customer Audis from Johansson Motorsport and Champion Racing.

The 2001 American Le Mans Series gave Audi great satisfaction. Eight race wins and all three titles were successfully defended. Emanuele Pirro won the driver's title in the #2 Audi R8, followed by his teammate Frank Biela in the standings. Their teammates Dindo Capello and Tom Kristensen were third and fourth respectively. Audi Sport North America again won the team's title and Audi again secured the manufacturer's trophy. Great satisfaction also for the privateers Johansson Motorsport and Champion Racing. Both teams performed very well all season long, and the Johansson Motorsport squad was crowned champions of the ELMS. For 2002, Audi would again join the ALMS, but for the last time as a full factory effort with the R8.

Photo credit: Audi Media

ALMS 2000: Audi arrived in America and beats BMW and Panoz

By Tarek Ramchani

As 2014 is approaching with a new era in North American sportscar racing, with the birth of the United SportsCar Racing, we at the Audi Motorsport Blog start a series of  posts about Audi's era of dominance in the ALMS. A fully detailed review, year by year, of the Ingolstadt brand's successes in the American Le Mans Series. We will cover the period between the years 2000 and 2008, thus meaning only the seasons when Audi took part in the ALMS as a full-season competitor. A great era it was in the US, with multiple championship titles and prestigious race victories.

Audi's legacy in the ALMS started in 1999. Audi Sport Team Joest debuted the new Audi R8R at the 12 Hours of Sebring, the first ever race in the history of the newly formed American Le Mans Series. A two-car effort from Audi with fine third and fifth overall place finishes. Audi would not continue in the ALMS during 1999, Sebring was only a big test preparing for the upcoming Le Mans 24 Hours. BMW won the race outright with their BMW V12 LMR and did the same at La Sarthe later. However things would change in the winter break.

A year later Audi joined the ALMS for the full season and with a brand new weapon: The Audi R8. A car that would dominate sportscar racing for the next six years. The 2000 ALMS season consisted of a 12-race calendar across the United States, Canada and even beyond North America with races in Europe and the finale in Australia.

The great debut of the Audi R8 was set at Sebring. Audi was challenged by arch rivals from BMW Motorsport and the strong Panoz Motorsports effort. In the end Audi scored a fantastic 1-2 victory with the win going to drivers Frank Biela, Emanuele Pirro and the newcomer to Audi...Tom Kristensen.

After Sebring and the successful shakedown of the Audi R8, Audi would not use the car again in North America until after Le Mans. The team took the cars back to Europe to prepare for Le Mans in June. Team Joest switched to the old Audi R8R for the next two ALMS races. The R8R was quick but was beaten by BMW twice at Charlotte and Silverstone. After Le Mans the R8 returned and debuted at home in Germany, at the Nürburgring. The Audi R8 was beaten by the surprising Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S. That would be the only defeat for the Audi R8 that year.

After Le Mans and the magical 1-2-3 victory in the French classic, the Audi R8 was back in America with a two-car effort. The #77 Audi R8 with Allan McNish and Dindo Capello, and the sister #78 car was driven by Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro. BMW and Panoz were strong challengers, as epic battles took place all season long. Despite the competition, the Audi R8 was simply too strong for their rivals. Audi won all eight of the American races post Le Mans.

At Sears Point Allan McNish and Dindo Capello were victorious. Up to Canada the two drivers did it again after a breathtaking battle to the finish line with the BMW V12 LMR of Jörg Müller and JJ Lehto. Moving to Texas Speedway, Audi veterans Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro scored their second victory of the season. At Portland Allan McNish and Dindo Capello were back to victory lane. The same story at Road Atlanta, McNish and Capello, joined by the late Michele Alboreto, dominated the Road Atlanta Petit Le Mans race. Allan McNish and Dindo Capello won a third straight race at Laguna Seca. At Las Vegas, the final American race of the season, Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro were victorious. The season finale was a very special event. The ALMS moved Down Under, with a race at Adelaide on new year's eve, the event called the "Race of a Thousand Years". A very special livery was used for car #77, the "Crocodile" Audi R8. That car won the race with Allan McNish and Dindo Capello.

Audi simply dominated the 2000 American Le Mans Series season. Allan McNish alone won the driver's title ahead of teammate Dindo Capello in second. Audi Sport North America, which was in fact run by Audi Sport Team Joest, won the team's title. Audi won the manufacturer's title as well. BMW Motorsport and their all-conquering V12 LMR were beaten and they decided to leave the LMP900 class at the end of the season. For the year 2001 Audi would come back to defend their titles, with privateers Audi teams joining the field and the ever growing Panoz effort as well.

Photo credit: Audi Media

Video: The legend's last race was victorious - Audi R8

By Johan Laubscher

The Audi R8 LMP will forever be a legend. After six years of competition the old girl was still competitive, and running at the front in international sports car racing. The car won a staggering 63 races from 80 starts, making it one of the all time great race cars. 

Its eightieth, and final race, was at Lime Rock during the 2006 ALMS season. It was the last official race for the R8 in an international sports car series before the permanent introduction of the Audi R10 TDI. At the final race the R8 competed in a very special livery that had a list of all the drivers that had won in a R8, all the tracks at which it had won and all the championships and Le Mans titles. The race was extremely exciting as Allan McNish and Dindo Capello battled with much faster and newer machinery from the opposition. Despite the opposition’s speed, the Audi R8 soldiered its way to the front and closed of its racing career in the only way this car knew how, by winning.

Below is the full race broadcast from Lime Rock 2006, the Audi R8’s last race and victory. This video is part of an exciting series of videos on the official ALMS YouTube channel, where they are posting full race broadcasts from the past, well worth a look. Enjoy the race:

Photo credit: Audi Sport Communication / Media

Gallery: Best of 12 Hours of Sebring by lendurance.co.uk

By Tarek Ramchani

Audi won the 12 Hours of Sebring overall for the eleventh time. A fantastic 1-2 victory for Audi Sport Team Joest with the Audi R18 e-tron quattro. The #1 Audi of Benoit Treluyer, Oliver Jarvis and Marcel Fassler ahead of the sister #2 machine of Allan McNish, Tom Kristensen and Lucas di Grassi. This was the last time ever for Audi Sport at Florida's classic with an LMP1 car. The new formed United SportsCar Racing which will replace the ALMS and the Rolex Series won't use anymore the top LMP1 class.

Our friends from the lendurance.co.uk have a great coverage on site for what was Audi's goodbye to the American Le Mans Series. Here a selection of great photos by Nick Busato one of the talented photographers at the British based sportscar website.

Photo credit and more information:
lendurance.co.uk official website
lendurance.co.uk on Facebook
Nick Busato official website

Another historic success for Audi

Audi Press Release 

•          First triumph of a hybrid race car at Sebring
•          One-two victory of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro on U.S. debut
•          Fässler/Jarvis/Tréluyer win endurance classic

Ingolstadt/Sebring, March 17, 2013 – Another historic racing success for Audi: The Audi R18 e-tron quattro’s victory marked the first ever of a hybrid race car at the Sebring (Florida) 12 Hours in the history of the U.S. endurance classic. 

On the – provisionally – last running of the LMP1 sports cars that feature sophisticated technology at Sebring, Audi Sport Team Joest achieved a commanding one-two victory. Right from the start, the two Audi R18 e-tron quattro cars set the pace, during the entire race an Audi was at the front of the field made up of 42 prototypes and GT sports cars. The third-placed Lola-Toyota was trailing the winner by five laps at the finish.

For twelve hours, the two Audi R18 e-tron quattro cars fought a fierce duel for victory and repeatedly overtook each other in close battle. In total, the lead between the two R18 cars changed 20 times. A damaged under-floor of car number “1” that was ultimately victorious caused some headaches for Audi Sport Team Joest. The necessary repairs could be performed without any major time loss during caution periods though.

In the thrilling duel between the team’s two cars the current Le Mans winners and World Endurance Champions Marcel Fässler (CH) and Benoît Tréluyer (F) plus Sebring newcomer Oliver Jarvis (GB) prevailed by a narrow margin. All three celebrated their first Sebring triumph. For Jarvis, after the GT success with the Audi R8 GRAND-AM at the Daytona 24 Hours, this marked the second victory at a classic U.S. endurance race.

With a gap of only 7.679s, Lucas di Grassi (BR), Tom Kristensen (DK) and Allan McNish (GB) completed the Audi one-two result. A 60-second time penalty due to a collision with a slower sports prototype had been imposed against the 2013-specification Audi R18 e-tron quattro shortly before the end of the third hour.

In 14 races at Sebring with Le Mans prototypes, this marked Audi’s eleventh overall victory. Eight times the brand with the four rings celebrated one-two results. The premium manufacturer’s tally reflects 24 podium places. Ten times an Audi started from the pole position – more often than any other manufacturer in the history of the race that has been held since 1952. The Audi R8, the R10 TDI and the R15 TDI each celebrated victorious debuts at Sebring. With the first victory of a diesel sports car in 2006 and now the first triumph of a hybrid race car Audi achieved two historic victories. Audi took the first podium and the first win at a sports car race at Sebring as well. In addition, Audi regularly used the track in Florida to prepare for the Le Mans 24 Hours.

This time, Audi Sport Team Joest will again stay at Sebring after the race for tests with the Audi R18 e-tron quattro that has been subjected to further development. It still remains to be seen whether or not there will be a future for Audi at the U.S. endurance classic. After the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) and the GRAND-AM Series merged to form the new “United SportsCar Racing” series no LMP1 sports cars will be permitted to run anymore as of 2014.

U.S. fans will be able to see the Audi R18 e-tron quattro soon again in the United States nonetheless. On September 22, the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) will visit the Circuit of the Americas in Austin (Texas).

Quotes after the race

Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “That was a perfect finale! I’m very happy about this one-two victory in a race in which both of our cars battled against each other all the way to the finish and delivered a fantastic show to the many fans. The entire squad worked hard, so winning after a long twelve hours is the sweetest reward. After victories with TFSI and TDI technology, Audi on clinching the win today with a hybrid car has continued the success story at this race.”

Ralf Jüttner (Technical Director Audi Sport Team Joest): “This is an outstanding result for what has at least provisionally been our last run here at Sebring. I’m happy about this one-two victory at which either of our two teams would have deserved first place. In the beginning, both cars were running on different strategies. At some point in time they were nearly in parallel and at the finish not even ten seconds apart. We’ve been enjoying the atmosphere here at Sebring with brilliant weather and unique fans. This victory is a nice reward for the whole squad some of whom worked through the whole night before the race and then delivered perfect pit stops for twelve hours straight.”

Marcel Fässler (Audi R18 e-tron quattro #1): “Celebrating Audi’s last race here at Sebring with a victory is simply fantastic. It was an incredibly close race in which both cars would have deserved to win. In the end, we were the slightly more fortunate ones. The pole position yesterday, victory today, great team-mates – things couldn’t be any better today.”

Oliver Jarvis (Audi R18 e-tron quattro #1): “What a start into the 2013 season! This isn’t a dream; it’s a lot more than that. Winning with Audi at Daytona already was an incredible experience. But now an overall victory on my first run at Sebring on top of that is more than I’d ever dared to hope for. A huge thank you to Audi and to Marcel (Fässler) and Ben (Tréluyer) – they’ve been the best team-mates I could imagine.”

Benoît Tréluyer (Audi R18 e-tron quattro #1): “We won the last race of the LMP1 sports cars at Sebring – we’re very proud of this. I think that the fans witnessed a thrilling race in which we had to give one hundred percent to beat our sister car. For us the American dream has come true today. Thank you to Marcel (Fässler) and Oliver (Jarvis) fora great week here at Sebring. Normally, André (Lotterer) is part of our team as well – I’m sure that he’d have been on top of the podium here too.”

Lucas di Grassi (Audi R18 e-tron quattro #2): “This was my first 12-hour race, my first race in the dark and my first run at Sebring – the podium position is a brilliant conclusion of the weekend. It was a very close race with a few incidents and a controversial penalty. More would have been possible for us but as far as I’m concerned the joy about the second place with Audi outweighs anything else.”

Tom Kristensen (Audi R18 e-tron quattro #2): “It was a memorable, tough and fast race. We had the chance ourselves to win today – but we didn’t make it. So, ‘well done’ to the guys from the ‘sister car’ and all other winners here at Sebring. Aside from our second place I’m taking a lot of memories home with me from all the years and the fastest race lap on today’s farewell. It’s for a man who has given me the passion for motorsport.”

Allan McNish (Audi R18 e-tron quattro #2): “What a fantastic race! We arrived here with Audi in order to say goodbye to our fans at Sebring with a thrilling performance – and I believe we managed to do that. It was a fierce battle from the first to the last lap. I’d like to congratulate the team of our ‘sister car.’ On a very personal note, I’m absolutely pleased with the race. Some of my stints were the best I can remember in the past few years.”

Results

1 Fässler/Jarvis/Tréluyer (Audi R18 e-tron quattro) 364 laps in 12h 00m11.638s
2 di Grassi/Kristensen/McNish (Audi R18 e-tron quattro) + 7.679s
3 Prost/Heidfeld/Jani (Lola-Toyota) - 5 laps
4 Graf/Luhr/Dumas (HPD-Honda) - 6 laps
5 Beche/Cheng/Belicchi (Lola-Toyota) - 10 laps
6 Tucker/Franchitti/Briscoe (HPD-Honda) - 18 laps
7 Tucker/Hunter-Reay/Pagenaud (HPD-Honda) - 19 laps
8 Kimber-Smith/Zugel/Lux (Zytek) - 22 laps
9 Cheng/Guasch/Ostella (ORECA) - 28 laps
10 Marcelli/Cumming/Johansson (ORECA) - 28 laps

Photo credit: Audi Sport Media

Audi wins the final LMP1 Sebring 12 Hours

By Johan Laubscher

Audi Sport Team Joest has won the 2013 Sebring 12 Hours. A 1-2 finish after a very long race. Victory went to the #1 driving crew of Marcel Fässler, Benoît Tréluyer and Oliver Jarvis in the 2012 Audi R18 e-tron quattro. The #2 squad of Lucas di Grassi, Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish finished second in the 2013 Audi R18 e-tron quattro.

The 2013 Sebring 12 Hours marked the end of an era. The American Le Mans Series was born at Sebring in 1999 and every year since the Le Mans category cars have competed in North America. 2014 heralds a new era as the ALMS and Grand-Am are merging to form the new United SportsCar Racing series. The new series will combine the existing categories, but LMP1 will be omitted. Thus 2013 was a very special Sebring 12 Hours as it would be the last appearance of the LMP1 category in this classic endurance race. This added significance to the race meant that Audi dearly wanted to win their LMP1 swansong at Sebring.

Race week itself got underway with testing sessions from Monday until Wednesday. Audi Sport Team Joest completed the test sessions steadily, working on race setup. The official practice sessions began on Thursday and the Audis established themselves at the top of the time sheets. Their pace continued into qualifying with Audi taking a 1-2. A mere 0,009 seconds separated the two cars with Marcel Fässler taking the pole ahead of Allan McNish.

A sunny day greeted Sebring on raceday. The 61st Sebring 12 Hours got the green flag at 10h45 local time and the two Audis headed into the distance. The #1 maintained the lead during the first hour. The second hour saw the lead change under braking as #2 passed #1 at the old hairpin. The race began settling into a rhythm with both Audis seesawing between themselves, each loosing and gaining time due to various incidents. A few brief off track moments combined with a 60 second stop-and-go highlighted the opening sequence of the race.

Various safety car sessions ensured that the two Audis remained on the lead lap and in close proximity to eachother. The battle between the two Audis carried on into the afternoon as both cars circulated closely and even traded paint on occasion. The strategies of the two cars eventually became separated, as both crews were determined to go for the win. 

The inter Audi fight continued unabated through the afternoon and into the night, with both cars racing each other on the lead lap. The intensity of the racing suggested that there were no team orders. A loose floorboard had developed on the #1 car, causing sparks on the ground, but it did not effect the performance and the battle with their teammates continued. They traded places during the pit stop sequences, and as the final hour approached the pattern had settled with #1 leading #2, by approximately ten seconds. 

As the race entered the final hour the cars were in sight of each other, and it was a straight fight between Benoît Tréluyer in #1 and Tom Kristensen in #2. The racing became intense in traffic as both cars had near misses. It was certainly a race, as both drivers were going for that special final ALMS Sebring victory. 

The battle continued into the final minutes of the race. Ultimately the final pit stop allowed Benoît Tréluyer to gain a cushion and he held off Tom Kristensen, leading home an Audi 1-2 finish. This was Audi's eleventh overall victory at Sebring, and a perfect swansong for Audi's LMP1 Sebring legacy. 

Photo credit: Audi Sport Media