DTM 2008 – Hockenheimring II: Audi preview

Audi enters DTM finale with head start

Ingolstadt — It was the most extensive factory programme in AUDI AG motorsport history to date. On

 Sunday, 26 October it could become the most successful ever: If Timo Scheider clinches the DTM title for Audi at Hockenheim, then the brand with the four rings will have won everything there was to win this season.

In June Dindo Capello, Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish scored the third successive victory for the Audi R10 TDI in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Lucas Luhr and Marco Werner won the American Le Mans Series title with the diesel sportscar, Alexandre Premat and Mike Rockenfeller in the European based Le Mans Series.

Audi has also been on the road to success from the very beginning of the 2008 DTM season. The new Audi A4 DTM made a perfect debut in Hockenheim by taking a spectacular one-two-three finish. Since then Audi has not relinquished its hold on the championship lead of the most popular touring car series.

Now, Audi has the chance to successfully defend a DTM title for the second time since 1990/1991. Like Mattias Ekstrom before him, Timo Scheider comes this time to the final race of the year at Hockenheim with a two point advantage. Two different drivers also won the title for Audi at the Hockenheim finale in 1990 and 1991: 1990 with Hans-Joachim Stuck, 1991 with Frank Biela.

This time Audi’s hopes rest on the shoulders of Timo Scheider, who already boasts an impressive record this season: He celebrated two victories with his GW:plus/Top Service Audi A4 DTM. The 29-year old started four-times from pole position, and mounted the podium seven times. Without a jump start at Mugello and an unfortunate tyre choice at the Nurburgring and at Le Mans the German, who lives on the shores of Lake Constance, would have long been champion.

The fans can look forward to a thrilling finale. Advance tickets sales have exceeded 60,000 and, as a result, last year’s record crowd (152,000 spectators throughout the weekend) could even be beaten.

Timo Scheider took pole position at Hockenheim at the start of the season. The championship leader also has good memories of the final race: In 2006 he was the best driver of a year-old car. At the 2007 finale he claimed his first ever DTM podium finish. Now he aims to win his first DTM title and, in front of his home crowd, fend-off Paul di Resta’s attack in the Mercedes-Benz.

Timo Scheider has a two point advantage over his rival. This means that di Resta must finish in front of Scheider — a small but not unimportant psychological advantage for the Audi driver.

As usual ARD broadcasts qualifying and the race live on “Das Erste”. Free practice is shown by www.dtm.tv in the Internet. Audi.tv shows the highlights and background reports. Whoever prefers to watch the eagerly awaited finale at the track can still order tickets from the Audi Ticket-Hotline +49 (0)841 / 8947777 or online at www.audi-dtm.de.

 

Quotes before the DTM finals at Hockenheim

Dr Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): “At the last race at Le Mans we already had the title in our hands until halfway through the race. Unfortunately, we couldn’t fix it. This means there is now a big showdown at Hockenheim. The atmosphere will be fantastic. I’m convinced that the grandstands will be full. We’ll do everything to bring the championship home for Audi.”

Timo Scheider (GW:plus/Top Service Audi A4 DTM #10): “We scored a memorable one-two-three at the start of the season at Hockenheim, and history shows that the final races at Hockenheim have always gone well for me. I’ve actually always finished my years positively there, which is why I’m particularly pleased that the finale is held at Hockenheim. It definitely won’t be plain sailing with just a two point lead over Paul (di Resta), but in fact a battle royal. The many German fans in the stands will certainly act as extra motivation for me.”

Mattias Ekstrom (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #1): “I’m really looking forward to the finale. We won at the start of the season at Hockenheim, which also happens to be my goal for the last race.”

Martin Tomczyk (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #2): “It’s great to finish each season at Hockenheim. The atmosphere is always excellent there. I hope that it stays dry and we will see an exciting championship battle that obviously goes in favour of Audi.”

Tom Kristensen (Audi A4 DTM #9): “Without a shadow of a doubt Hockenheim will be very interesting. There’ll be hoards of spectators there. The championship battle between Timo (Scheider) and di Resta is very close. I personally hope that I can finish the season with a good result. We were always quick this season. My team always gave me a good car; unfortunately we had more than our fair share of bad luck in the races.”

Alexandre Premat (Audi Bank/Shell Helix Audi A4 DTM #14): “It’ll be hard for us at Hockenheim because we’ll have heaviest 2007 car in the field. I want to do a good job again. We’ll see what the weather does. My goal is to take ninth place and therefore be the best driver of a 2007 Audi.”

Mike Rockenfeller (S line Audi A4 DTM #18): “A long season comes to an end for me. The weather at Hockenheim can also be very unpredictable. I would like to continue my run of good form that we’ve seen in the past races, which was particularly good more recently in qualifying.”

Markus Winkelhock (Playboy Audi A4 DTM #19): “Hockenheim is a race where there is always loads going on. It is also my home race and Hockenheim is a circuit that really suits me. I hope that we can win the title with Audi there.”

Oliver Jarvis (Best Buddies Audi A4 DTM #15): “It’s great to be returning to a circuit that I already know. Things ran well for me there at the season opener, I got into the top-eight in qualifying. I hope that I can score a few points.”

Christijan Albers (Audi A4 DTM #21): “We’ll have a pretty tough time with the 2006 cars at Hockenheim. However, it’ll be an exciting final. I hope that Audi can win the title.”

Katherine Legge (Audi A4 DTM #20): “I drove my first DTM race at Hockenheim, which means we’ll be able to see just how we have improved during the season. It’ll be a great final. The spectators can look forward to a really fantastic race.”

Hans-Jurgen Abt (Team Director Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline): “The DTM will see one of the most exciting final races ever. Travelling to Hockenheim with a two point lead is a small cushion, but not really reassuring. As a team we’ll have to try to deliver an absolute top performance. The car can do it. I believe that Timo (Scheider) is also well capable of keeping his cool. It goes without saying that I hope things turn out well for us.”

Ernst Moser (Team Director Audi Sport Team Phoenix): “It’s a shame that the season is already nearly over again! Our team is extra motivated for Hockenheim after the great result at Le Mans. We’ll do everything within our power so that Timo (Scheider) can take the title at the finale and score a few points ourselves as team.”

Arno Zensen (Team Director Audi Sport Team Rosberg): “Hockenheim will certainly be very tense for all concerned. I hope that we can help to bring the championship home. Le Mans went a little disappointingly for us as team, which is why we hope to turn the tide at Hockenheim.”

-credit: audi

 

Actual Standings

 

ALMS – Petit Le Mans – AUDI STORMS TO ANOTHER PETIT VICTORY

 

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.

The victory was sweet redemption for McNish, who crashed the car on the grid formation lap prior to the race. The team got the Scot on track two laps behind the field but was back on the lead lap after a two-hour, 45-minute stint.

“It was more than a good race,” said Pirro, who won at Petit Le Mans for the first time since 2005. “Allan would not have been happy with a normal win. He had to crash the car to make it extraordinary. With team strategy and the yellows we were able to bring the car back. It was a real treat and I was pleased to share the car on this day. It really was a dream race and a lot of people deserve this race.”

Pirro and Capello continued to chip away at the lead before McNish’s final stint. He passed Klien with about 40 minutes left and continued to drive away from the Peugeot. Even getting in position to contend for victory seemed doubtful early on. Capello had a problem with his seat insert, and the car ran hot as the temperature increased during the afternoon in Capello’s stint.

“I didn’t think this afternoon when it got so hot that we had a chance,” he said. “Sometimes you need luck. We didn’t get much luck at the Le Mans Series but we had luck here.”

The climatic moments came as darkness enveloped Road Atlanta. The Audi crew called for two stops late – one for fuel and another for tires. McNish came back in during a late-race caution for more fuel and tires, a move that gave him an advantage during the late-race push.

“This race belongs to the team,” McNish said. “To get 16-17 people from both crews on that and get it repaired when I thought we were out, they did something I didn’t think was possible. No one in our team does the work to finish second. There’s no question in my mind that when we got in the position at the end that I was going to do everything I could do to win this race. If it took us to the top step, then it was just desserts for the team.

“I got a run on Christian out of Turn 5 and he got caught up in traffic,” McNish said of the winning pass. “You get one opportunity to overtake and you have to take it. I was able to dive in at seven and he couldn’t get a clean line to pass me on the straight.”

McNish and Capello became the first drivers to win at Petit Le Mans for three consecutive years. Audi’s Marco Werner and Lucas Luhr, newly crowned LMP1 champions finished third.

Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe won in LMP2 for Penske Motorsports in their Porsche RS Spyder. Castroneves is the first driver to have won both Petit Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500. He finished 21 seconds ahead of Penske teammates Timo Bernhard and Romain Dumas, who won their second straight drivers championship.

“I have to thank Roger and Tim for letting me be in the car,” said Castroneves, who won in his second Series start. “These guys did an incredible job. Timo and Romain did a great job, and Ryan was awesome. This is a very challenging track and very difficult. It turned out to be a great race for all three cars.”

Saturday marked the first time Briscoe and Castroneves – teammates in the IndyCar Series for Team Penske – shared a car together. It obviously worked out well with Briscoe setting class records in qualifying and the race. The pairing also led overall five times.

“It was a great opportunity given to us by Penske and Porsche,” Briscoe said. “We’ve been really working closely together. It was a great result and great for the whole team. We managed to be the sole P2 cars on the lead lap for a long time before Timo and Romain made a lap up. As we saw last year, the P1 cars are quicker but we can stay with them on the lead lap.”

Penske swept the Petit P2 podium with Sascha Maassen, Patrick Long and Emmanuel Collard finishing third. The victory also gave Penske its third straight team championship in class.

“The year was very special,” Dumas said. “It is an honor to win this championship again. From my point of view, this is the biggest moment for me with Porsche and the RS Spyder. The competition with Acura has not been easy. A lot of people were thinking before this race, ‘What is happening with Penske?’ We worked very hard during the month to increase the level of the car.”

Bernhard and Dumas benefitted from an early retirement of the Patrón Highcroft Racing Acura ARX-01b. After having the car being completely rebuilt following a crash Thursday, Sharp spun the car coming out of Turn 10B and smacked a concrete wall, damaging the rear end beyond repair.

“I felt bad for them but it was only one hour into the race,” Bernhard said. “There was a long race ahead of us and the same could happen to us. With the traffic here, sometimes you need some luck. I really wanted to try to stay focused and bring this home.”

Johnny O’Connell, Jan Magnussen and Ron Fellows won in GT1 for Corvette Racing by six laps to take their second endurance victory of the season. They also won in class at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. The win Saturday gave O’Connell and Magnussen the class championship with their eighth victory.

“It’s a very special win because we won the championship,” said Magnussen, who won his first title. “The race today was hard between the two cars. We were pushing hard on the track and in the pits and everywhere. In the first half of the race we had to push like crazy to stay ahead of the No. 4 car. It was difficult in the daytime and in the nighttime.”

Oliver Gavin, Olivier Beretta and Max Papis finished second in class. The two Corvettes exchanged the lead twice in the pits before misfortune again befell the No. 4 car. A malfunctioning throttle linkage left Gavin crawling around the track before the six-hour mark. It was eerily similar to Sebring where the trio lost laps to a broken driveshaft early on.

“Winning Petit Le Mans is very special. For some reason, this race has never gone our way,” O’Connell said. “For Ron and I, this is our eighth Petit Le Mans and only our second win. We lost the lead on one pit stop but we got it back on the next one. We kept building gaps and I felt like we had things in hand.”

Jaime Melo and Mika Salo followed their GT2 endurance victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with another hard-fought endurance win Saturday in their Ferrari F430 GT. Salo finished just 2.317 seconds ahead of Flying Lizard Motorsports’ Joerg Bergmeister and his Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. The result with Marc Lieb was enough for Bergmeister and Wolf Henzler to wrap up the class championship.

“It was really hard,” Melo said of the race. “To win Le Mans and Petit Le Mans is great for the whole team. It was a very difficult race. We had to move to the back of the field at one point and we had to push hard to get back on top. The car was working very well and comfortable to drive. It made it easier for us to do it.”

Tafel Racing’s Dirk Mueller and Dominik Farnbacher placed third in their Ferrari.

Salo had to weather a stuck throttle and a broken drink system during his stint. It was a refreshing change considering some of the horrible luck Risi has had this year. After winning eight times last year, this was only the second victory in the Series for the team.

“Yes we won but it doesn’t completely make up for the bad luck this year,” Salo said. “We knew since the first day how quick the Flying Lizard guys and the Porsches were. Our car worked very well and we had to work hard. It was a really nice fight.”

Henzler and Bergmeister have finished on the GT2 podium in every event this year except St. Petersburg in March. Four class victories helped give Bergmeister his third championship and Henzler his first.

Flying Lizard also won its first team championship.

“This is unbelievable,” Henzler said. “I can’t describe it. Flying Lizard has tried for so many years. With the support of Joerg, the team and Porsche, we never had any issue throughout the year.”

Bergmeister also won championships in 2005 and 2006 with Petersen Motorsports/White Lightning Racing.

“It’s the first time for the Lizards, so it is like a first time,” Bergmeister said. “The team was really ready to win the championship. To have it both the team and driver makes it doubly special.”

In the debut of the Green Challenge, the Penske entry of Long, Maassen and Collard were the prototype winners. In the GT category, the Corvette of O’Connell, Magnussen and Fellows were victorious for General Motors.

The cars had the best scores for overall performance, fuel efficiency and environmental impact.

The final round of the 2008 American Le Mans Series is the Monterey Sports Car Championships from Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The four-hour race into darkness is scheduled to start at 2:45 p.m. PT on Saturday, October 18. NBC Sports will air the race from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, October 19. XM Satellite Radio will air the race from 4 to 8 p.m. ET on the same day. American Le Mans Radio will have live coverage on americanlemans.com, which also will feature Live Timing & Scoring.

-credit: alms

Final results 

ALMS petit le mans 2008 part1

See the rest of the Petit Le Mans here 

Audi takes surprise Silverstone win and title

 

2008-09-14 - By John Dagys - Motorsport.com

Heading into Sunday’s season-ending Le Mans Series race, Team Peugeot Total was the odds on favorites for taking LM P1 top honors. Wins in all four of the previous races this season gave the French Lions a comfortable margin over their German rivals. The two Peugeot 908 HDi-FAPs had the pace to beat the Audi R10 TDIs, but they instead faltered at the worst possible time. Call it racing or call it luck, but Audi Sport Team Joest pulled through to claim victory in the Silverstone 1000km, also snatching the championship away from Peugeot in dramatic fashion.

#1 Audi Sport Team Joest Audi R10 TDI: Allan McNish, Rinaldo Capello. Photo by Diego De Col.

Allan McNish and Dindo Capello co-drove their No. 1 Audi to the team’s maiden Le Mans Series victory, but how they landed on the top step of the podium was the story of the race. Capello overcame a collision with the Stephane Sarrazin’s No. 8 Peugeot in the second hour, rebounding from a two-lap deficit thanks to the misfortunes of others.

“I believe that Dindo and I deserve this victory, and so does everyone in the team,” McNish said. “We fought hard this year. For Dindo and me things weren’t always going as well as they should have. We had incidents when we were in the position to win races. I think 24 hours ago nobody would have expected Audi to win the race and the manufacturer’s and drivers’ title.”

The first contender to fall by the wayside was the championship-leading No. 7 Peugeot of Nicolas Minassian and Marc Gene. Minassian, who had suffered a spin at the start of the race, worked his way back up to third by the end of the first hour. However, the Frenchman crashed out in a major way only 80 minutes into the race. His car nearly toppled over following contact with a LM GT2 Porsche on the Hangar Straight, a move he admittedly said was his mistake.

Then, just 20 minutes later, Capello and Sarrazin collided while fighting for second place, sending both cars into the gravel trap. While both drivers limped their cars back to the pits for repairs, Sarrazin’s Peugeot lost over 13 laps due to damaged suspension pieces, whereas Capello’s Audi only needed a fresh set of tires.

The incident dropped Capello two laps down, but he and McNish slowly worked their way back up the leader board during the middle stages of the race. What looked to be a runner-up finish turned into a surprise win when the then-leading No. 2 Audi of Mike Rockenfeller and Alexandre Premat suffered suspension failure with just 23 laps remaining. While Audi’s young guns rejoined, they were 5 laps down and out of reach for the win.

Capello was there to pick up the pieces, cruising to a two-lap victory over the second-placed Charouz Racing System Lola B08/60 Aston Martin to take Audi’s first Le Mans Series win in three years. It was also he and McNish’s first win since their 24 Hours of Le Mans triumph in June.

	Race winner Allan McNish and Rinaldo Capello and Le Mans Series 2008 Champions Alexandre Prémat and Mike Rockenfeller celebrate with Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich and Audi Sport Team Joest team members. Photo by Audi AG.

“After the accident with Stphane Sarrazin, in which I feel – 101 percent – that I was not at fault, I thought that this race was over for us as well,” Capello said. “But we never gave up. Seasoned drivers, an experienced team and a great car make for a good combination to win a race which – just like Le Mans – seemed to have been lost already on paper. This race showed that people with a lot of will power and commitment can make the seemingly impossible possible. That’s why Allan and I are proud to be part of this fantastic team.”

Rockenfeller and Premat rebounded from late-race suspension failure to finish fourth, enough for them to secure the drivers’ title. The newly crowned champions didn’t win a race this year, but showed that consistency does indeed pay off. Sunday’s event was the only time the duo failed to finish on the podium all season.

“I always believed that we could make it – and now it’s come true,” Rockenfeller. “In a championship you’ve got to consistently score good points and we did that at the first four races. And today we scored the necessary points as well. Of course we’d have liked to win this race. But I’m extremely happy that our ’sister car’ clinched this exploit here for Audi.”

On top Rockenfeller and Premat’s drivers’ title, Audi walked away with the teams’ and manufacturers’ championships as well, thanks to non-points placing Peugeots. What looked to be a tough fight heading in turned out to be a test of survival for the R10 TDIs.

“We’re proud to have won the Le Mans Series straight in our first year against such strong rivals,” said Dr Wolfgang Ullrich, head of Audi Motorsport. “Maybe we dreamt that we’d be going home from here with race victory and the championship title but it was hard work. The whole team did a great job. The pit stops and the strategy were very good and the boys drove a constantly fast pace.”

#7 Team Peugeot Total Peugeot 908 HDi FAP after the crash of Nicolas Minassian on the Hangar Straight. Photo by DPPI.

The No. 8 Peugeot of Sarrazin and Pedro Lamy finished 19th overall, 11th in P1, whereas the Minassian-driven No. 7 example retired early on. The worst-case scenario indeed came true for Peugeot.

Stefan Mucke and Jan Charouz in the Charouz Racing System Lola Aston Martin recorded their best finish of the year in second, after leading a portion of the early stages. With their second podium finish of the year, the Czech team takes home top gasoline-powered P1 honors, finishing fifth in the championship.

“We not only confirmed the fact that we are fastest petrol car today but we also beat three turbo diesels, they did various mistakes,” Charouz said. “We put in consistent lap times with Stefan and it was very important. One slower car damaged the bodywork when I was overtaking him but fortunately it was not a serious problem. It was one of the biggest races for me and I am very happy that we pleased Czech fans with such result.”

The No. 16 Pescarolo Sport Judd of Jean-Christophe Boullion and Romain Dumas completed the podium in third, holding off the championship-winning No. 2 Audi in the closing laps. It marked the French privateer’s first podium finish of the season.

Van Merksteijn Motorsport capped off a dominating season in LM P2 with another class win, its fourth of the season. Jos Verstappen and Peter van Merksteijn drove their No. 34 Porsche RS Spyder to a fifth place overall result, coming home four laps ahead of the competition.

“From the beginning onward, the car felt really good,” Verstappen said. “There were no problems at all. We were able to do very quick lap times. For me, it was a really challenging race and track. It’s a shame the season is over because the car is so much fun to drive. It’s been fantastic.”

The Dutch team, though, didn’t have everything go their way this weekend. On Friday, Verstappen crashed the RS Spyder, requiring a rebuild overnight. But the very next day, the ex-Formula One driver put the purple and white machine on pole. And in the race, he put in another impressive drive.

	#34 Van Merksteijn Motorsport Porsche RS -Spyder: Jos Verstappen, Peter Van Merksteijn.Photo by Alessio Morgese.

“Jos drove so fast, I was able to sleep a little when I got in the car!” van Merksteijn joked. “I drove a little bit cautious because we had such a large gap. We won, and I’m really happy. The team is really good and one of the best in the field. The car is one of the best too. You can see that by the difference between the LM P2 and LM P1 cars, as we’re right up there.”

The No. 27 Horag Racing Porsche of Didier Theys, Fredy Lienhard and Jan Lammers came home second, matching their best finish of the year at Spa. The Swiss team also earned the season-long Michelin Energy Endurance Challenge, which awards an automatic entry to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Lienhard, though, will not be part of the action next year, as the veteran Swiss racer announced his retirement from racing this weekend. He topped off an impressive 40-plus year run in motorsports with a runner-up finish today.

“It’s been a long time, 40 years,” Lienhard said. “I’ve had so many good experiences and challenges. The present I got on my birthday today from my teammates and the Horag team couldn’t be more valuable. I’m so happy and I would like to thank everyone who is engaged in this beautiful series and track.”

Tomas Enge and Antonio Garcia drove their Team Modena Aston Martin DBR9 to victory in LM GT1, outpacing the pole-sitting IPB Spartak Lamborghini Murcielago of Peter Kox and Roman Rusinov throughout the 1000km enduro. It was the British team’s third victory of the season, but still not enough to claim the class championship.

“As we had said before the start our aim was to win and then wait for result of our biggest competitors,” Enge said. “They scored points so we did not get the title. Three wins out of five races is pleasant, especially today’s one. Team Modena is based in Silverstone and it is always great to win at home.”

The championship went to Luc Alphand Aventures’ Guillaume Moreau and Patrice Goueslard, who steered the team’s No. 72 Corvette C6.R to a third place finish in the race. With their win today, Enge and Garcia wound up runner-up in the standings.

#96 Virgo Motorsport Ferrari F430 GT: Jaime Melo, Robert Bell. Photo by Alessio Morgese.

LM GT2 honors went to Rob Bell and Jamie Melo in the Virgo Motorsport Ferrari F430 GT. It was the small British team’s fourth victory of the season and second consecutive class championship. Bell once again celebrates as sole GT2 drivers’ champion, as regular co-driver Gianmaria Bruni had other driving commitments this weekend and did not score points.

“Its not just the result today, it’s the culmination of two years hard work,” Bell said. “For sure we have the best tires at the moment in Dunlop, but it’s not happened overnight. It’s been two years development to lead to a good consistent tire that can produce a good lap time. Everyone at Virgo has worked towards that.”

Runner-ups, both in the race and standings, was the No. 77 Team Felbermayr-Proton Porsche 997 GT3 RSR of Marc Lieb and Alex Davsion. Pierre Ehret, Pierre Kaffer and Anthony Beltoise in the No. 90 Farnbacher Racing Ferrari rounded out the podium Sunday, finishing third.

While the Le Mans Series season comes to another memorable close, it won’t be the end of the year for many competitors. A number of European teams will be making the trip to the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in October for the 1000-mile/10-hour American Le Mans Series enduro. The likes of Peugeot and others will be crossing the pond to take on America’s finest, in what’s rapidly becoming a classic event on the international sports car racing scene.

Race results

2008 Driver final standings