Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca 2010 American Le Mans Series Test

The American Le Mans Series has named G-OIL from Green Earth Technologies as the official motor oil of the series and the sanctioning body, the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). Unlike conventional petroleum-derived motor oils, G-OIL is made from saturated animal fats which have been processed through dehydrogenation. While the stuff may not be good for people to ingest in any significant quantities, the saturated fats apparently make a good lubricant and G-OIL has similar properties to petroleum oils. G-OIL is claimed to be biodegradable and Green Earth sells all its products in fully recyclable containers. The car pictured is the G-OIL ORECA-Courage FLM09 racing car for the newly formed Green Earth Team Gunnar (GETG), driven by Gunner Jeannette whose effort had him finish 14th overall and third in LMPC class. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca 2010 American Le Mans Series Test

The Monterey hills were greeted with a wondrous, but a little chilly, spring day for the third test of the nine race 2010 American Le Mans Series season. The wind blew at times and the day's temperature never hit 70 degrees causing tire adhesion problems for some of the contenders throughout the day. One car even spun as it entered the front straight ready to take a restart, and another overshot the corner entirely and caused a wreck from which it never fully recovered ... from one of many Yellow Flag Caution periods throughout the race.

All in all, the race was hotly contested throughout the six hours until the checkered flag flew and the fireworks from the Mazda bridge, located just past the Start/Finish line, lit up the sky.

This excerpted and edited from American Le Mans Series PDF report -

At 8:18 pm (5h 48m running), Checkered Flag.

Marino Franchitti (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) crosses the line to take the overall victory.

Christophe Bouchut (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) wins in class by 7.105 seconds over Tom Sutherland (#36-LMPC Oreca FLM09).

Joey Hand, who drives the #90 BMW E92 M3 for Rahal Letterman Racing's BMW team, just before the race. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Patrick Long (#45-GT Porsche 911 GT3 RSR) wins the closet battle just 0.365 seconds ahead of Joey Hand (#90-GT BMW E92 M3) and 2.766 seconds ahead of Oliver Gavin (#4-GT Chevrolet Corvette ZR1).

Jeroen Bleekemolen (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) lead flag to flag beating Andy Lally (#63-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) by move than one lap.

Marino Franchitti (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) records his 3rd ALMS win.
Simon Pagenaud (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) records his 7th ALMS win.
David Brabham (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) records his 21st ALMS win.

Christophe Bouchut (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) earns his second ALMS victory.
Mark Wilkins (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) earns his first ALMS victory.
Scott Tucker (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) earns his second ALMS victory.

Joerg Bergmeister (#45-GT Porsche 911 GT3 RSR) now has 31 ALMS wins.
Patrick Long (#45-GT Porsche 911 GT3 RSR) with 17 ALMS wins.

Jeroen Bleekemolen (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) earns his second ALMS victory.
Sebastiaan Bleekemolen (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) earns his second ALMS victory ... and first in the United States.
Tim Pappas (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) earns his second ALMS victory.

American Le Mans Series Monterey Presented Patrón – Race Quotes:

Marino Franchitti (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) “Procedurally this was a great performance for the team. Simon's drive was just a pleasure to watch. David got in and backed us up and got is a bit more of a lead. I knew the Dyson car was a bit of a terrier and I knew I didn't want to let them go. The guys made a great call not to put on new tires right there at the end. I was definitely hanging on for life, it was a bit like drifting or rally driving. It was great to have no damage and keep it together cause the car leaves Friday for Le Mans. So this is great heading to France.” (about the last stop) “Perry, our Michelin guy looked at our tires and said we were good.
Either way I was going to be happy. I knew I'd still have great tires and new tires were still really good. It was a perfect call because I could drive like I wanted to. Michelin was a big part of the win today.”

Simon Pagenaud in the HPD ARX-01c (lower left, black and green) as he brings the car forward through traffic from a start at the back of the pack. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Simon Pagenaud (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) “Thank you to the Highcroft Racing team, they did a fantastic job. The whole crew in the pits did a great job. The opening laps were pretty exciting. Starting at the back you have to find motivation and that was getting to the front. The ending of my stint was really good, the Michelin tires were working really, really good. We went through the traffic very quickly. We got ahead a lot from the first yellow the went out. It is a great team to be part of the operation like HR. Its great to go off to Le Mans where we're looking for the win.”

David Brabham (#1-LMP HPD ARX-01c) “The last couple of races here have been pretty good. Last year we won the championship here. I cant say enough about the team, today was an absolutely flawless demonstration of endurance racing. Everything happened out there and we made no mistakes in the pits. My teammates performed perfectly. This is the way to head off to Le Mans with this momentum.”

Joerg Bergmeister (#45-GT Porsche 911 GT3 RSR) “It was definitely a bit more relaxing this year. Especially last year being chased down by Jan. I knew Patrick would do a good job because he has been good all week long. There were some who thought it wouldn't work out because the BMW was charging but I knew that Patrick would work it out and pull away. The car was working well all day long. It was a good race.”

Patrick Long (#45-GT Porsche 911 GT3 RSR) ”Laguna Seca has been special. It was always the race we finished up. And of course last year we finished with a literal and figurative bang. This year not quite as exciting but still exciting none-the-less. We had a call if we were going to play for points or go for the win. On the restart Joey left a bit of an open door and I took it 3 wide through 11. Then it was all about running because I knew Joey wouldn't be happy. We came from P8 and worked our way through a very competitive field. We know Risi had a hard day so unfortunately they were in the mix with everyone else in the end because they were so
tough this weekend. I cant say enough about the competitiveness in all the classes in this Series. So many cars on the lead laps at the end and its just tough.”

Scott Tucker (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) “I don't know if there is a secret. I have great co-drivers and a great team. Our manager has a great mind and these guys make it easy for me. They do a great job behind the scenes. “

Mark Wilkins (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) “We had to push really hard to keep up front. Christophe drove a great stint, so did Scott to keep the car up there. Level 5 gave us a great car at Sebring and they did here. We knew if we could run to the end we'd be right there.”

Christophe Bouchut (#55-LMPC Oreca FLM09) “Its a nice feeling to win again here. It was a great race, this time we had to fight really hard until the end. The car was working really well. We had no problems at all. I just pushed the car to the maximum to keep our positions.”

Sebastiaan Bleekemolen (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) “It feels great. Joroen said, we came here to win. We have a race Monday morning and we fly back home. This track is really sandy, it is the most difficult of the track. There was a car who went off at turn 4. An LMP went off and you couldn't see the track. But every driver knows this course so it's fun to drive when everyone is so familiar.”

Tim Pappas (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) “This is pretty cool. We came out for Long Beach without much preparation. We had a difficult, frustrating race. We went home and worked hard and practice. All the guys at Black Swan are great. The Bleekemolen brothers come over and it was a great race. We didn't put a tire off and made zero mistakes in the pits so that turned out to a race win.”

Jeroen Bleekemolen (#54-GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) “I know the guys are great. We had a great start in Long Beach but some things went wrong, today it went really right. Its great to get the win and hopefully move up in the championships.”

Falling back into Spring, this race will rest for at least another year. It was good to be back so soon, now on to Le Mans, then the second have of the North American Tour begins.

... notes from The EDJE

Bobby Rahal ... a multiple team owner with a couple of problems at ALMS

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)


Bobby Rahal ... a multiple team owner with a couple of problems at ALMS

Bobby Rahal, glad to hear his son, Graham Rahal made the nine car Shoot-Out to get into the IRL field for one of the set 33 positions in the field at the 2010 Indianapolis 500 yesterday, flew in to the Monterey area from Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama to oversee the activities of his Rahal Letterman BMW M3 GT ALMS team. What greeted him was the following bit of damage to the #90 driven by Dirk Mueller ... at the time of this posting, it is unknown if the car will make the field.

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

This excerpted and edited from an ALMS track report PDF -

At 10:31 am, Dirk Mueller (#90-GT BMW E92 M3) into the pits with damage to the right front, right rear, and rear end of the car. Apparently the car spun with contact but was able to drive back to the pits. This will be a big repair for the car before the race. There are left-over BMW parts near the tire barrier coming out of turn 6, it looks like this is where the incident occurred.

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

... and the curtain is drawn.

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)



UPDATE: It's just like ... it never happened!


Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

Work completed and it is time to grid the cars! To see a YouTube of the exciting last minutes of the six hour test, CTRL-CLICK photo above to launch video. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2010)

This excerpted and edited from BMW News & Reviews -

The BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team fought to its third consecutive podium (four total for the season) with a second place finish by the No. 90 M3 GT of Joey Hand and Dirk Müller in today’s six-hour American Le Mans Series race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

After leading the bulk of laps going into the closing stage of the race, Hand was passed on the final restart to finish second, a bittersweet ending to a day that began with a crash in morning warm-up and an immediate rebuild of the No. 90 machine by the BMW-RLR crew. Bill Auberlen and Tommy Milner finished eighth after a late-race punt dropped the No. 92 M3 down the order. The duo led the GT class twice during the day.

The six-hour race dealt competitors a total 10 caution periods and the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team played every opportunity to its benefit. Splitting strategies on the third yellow flag near the two-hour point, the team pitted the No. 90 M3 GT for fuel with rest of the class and elected to keep the No. 92 M3 on track and gain position. It paid off with the GT lead for Milner, who had replaced starting driver Auberlen just past the one hour mark.

When Milner was hit by a competitor and forced to the pits, Hand took over the lead from his teammate. The race gave fans a roller coaster ride through four more caution periods before the four hour mark as the M3 GTs ebbed and flowed at the front of the GT field based on the differing fuel and tire strategies.

In the fifth hour, the No. 90 M3 GT took the lead with some thirty minutes remaining, but in the final caution period of the race, Hand’s safe lead evaporated and the team was eventually forced to settle for second place.
Reference Here>>

... notes from The EDJE

Scott Sharp Makes Jump To Race Team Owner/Driver

Extreme Speed Motorsports to compete with a Ferrari F430 GT in the GT2 Class in the American Le Mans Series 2010 season. Left to right: Scott Atherton, President and CEO of the American Le Mans Series, Scott Sharp, Owner/Driver Extreme Speed Motorsports, and Ed Brown, Driver Extreme Speed Motorsports [ctrl-click to launch introduction video]. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Scott Sharp Makes Jump To Race Team Owner/Driver

On Saturday, October 10, 2009, Scott Sharp announced that he will become an owner of a new race team to compete in the hotly contested GT2 Class in the American Le Mans Series for the 2010 season.

Sharp joins a growing number of modern era drivers who look to extend their career in motorsports by transitioning into the phase of team ownership while continuing to drive for at least a season. Other successful notable contemporary drivers who at one time, or another, raced against Scott, include Michael Andretti (IRL), Adrian Fernandez (ALMS), and Gil de Ferran (ALMS) ... who just drove his last professional race as a team owner/driver to win against Adrian Fernandez by .4 seconds here at MAZDA Raceway Laguna Seca.

The team will race under the name of "Extreme Speed Motorsports" and have as its first named driver, Ed Brown, with a teammate drivers yet to be signed. They will field a Ferrari F430 GT and the car will carry sponsorship from the Patron Spirits Company.

An excited Scott Sharp, Owner/Driver Extreme Speed Motorsports (left), and Ed Brown, Driver Extreme Speed Motorsports (right) just before the announcement of the new team to compete in the GT2 Class of the American Le Mans Series. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

This excerpted and edited from Americam Le Mans Series -

SHARP CREATES NEW GT2 TEAM FOR 2010
Extreme Speed Motorsports to field Ferrari for Ed Brown

Champion race car driver Scott Sharp, who has made his mark everywhere from Trans-Am and Champ Car to IndyCar and the American Le Mans Series, announced Saturday his latest venture in motorsports. The Patrón Highcroft Racing star has created and will own a new race team called Extreme Speed Motorsports that will compete in the American Le Mans Series’ GT2 class.

The team will race a Ferrari 430 GTC and be sponsored by The Patrón Spirits Company (Tequila Patrón) and supported by Ferrari Corse Clienti. Sharp has also named the team’s first driver - Ed Brown, currently a Patrón GT3 Challenge by Yokohama driver and American Le Mans Series GT Challenge class driver with ORBIT Racing. Co-drivers will be announced at a later date.
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Sharp has scored three victories with teammate Brabham for Patrón Highcroft Racing in the 2009 American Le Mans Series and also contested this year’s Indianapolis 500 aboard a Patrón-sponsored entry.

Team sponsor Patrón is a longtime supporter of motorsports, and brings a popular presence at American Le Mans Series races.
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“We’re excited and proud to associate the Tequila Patrón name with Extreme Speed Motorsports and Ferrari,” commented Matt Carroll, Patrón’s Chief Marketing Officer. “Our association with motorsports, and the iconic brands and top-notch teams in this premier racing series, fits perfectly with our ultra-premium Patrón brand. We’re looking forward to another great season in 2010.”

Scott Atherton, President and CEO of the American Le Mans Series added, “The announcement of this new team fulfills the vision we had when we launched the Patrón GT3 Challenge by Yokohama. This is especially gratifying because it involves individuals who have participated with us at other levels of competition, and are ready to do battle now in the Series’ most competitive class.

“When we created the GT Challenge class, it was designed so those drivers could progress to GT2. Clearly that’s what has happened in this case, and it is evidence that the plan is working. Ed and Scott form a unique team. They are the perfect pair to be the first to announce a venture of this type. I suspect this is only the first example of a new American Le Mans Series program growing out of the IMSA and Series ladder system."
Reference Here>>

The American Le Mans Series opens its season in 2010 with the 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida on March 20.

... notes from The EDJE

That's MAZDA Raceway ... Laguna Seca!

From left to right: SCCA staffed track condition flagging stand, logo'd Start/Finishline bridge, front straightaway, turn #1, starters perch/stand, pits, and paddock area at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca featuring the green & white liveried, P2 Dyson Racing, biobutanol fuel, MAZDA MZR-R powered, BP sponsored, Lola B09 86 #16 coupe, driven by Guy Smith and Chris Dyson. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

That's MAZDA Raceway ... Laguna Seca!

This weekend, in the hills straddling the agricultural Salinas Valley and the tawny digs of the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Valley, and Pebble Beach, a motorsports marathon of contests will be held. The event is called the Monterey Sports Car Championships, presented by Patron and a total of seven races will be run, much to the delight to the sophisticated fans who will gather.

The headline of the contests is the American Le Mans Series which are prototype full-bodied alternative fuel cars that require a driver change during the running of the race. There is even one car that is a .... HYBRID - that's right, a hybrid that will reach speeds of about 185mph or even a little better.

This event is the last race of the championship series for the 2009 season and it will also be the last professional competitive race for the premier driver/owner of de Farran Motorsports, Gil de Farran.

Many people who come to the track here in the countryside just off of the Pacific Ocean and southwest of San Francisco refer to it as "just" Laguna Seca but that would be wrong. Without the MAZDA at the Raceway ... only one race would be held for all of the series of races to be contested are either supported directly by MAZDA, have engines supplied for the cars, or have a chief competitive team in the field. Further, MAZDA is the only Japanese automobile manufacturer to ever win the 24 hours of Le Mans ... the most famous endurance motorsports race in the world!

For the record, Gil de Ferran qualified his Chaparral-White liveried #66 XM Radio, Acura (in honor of the team owner, car designer Jim Hall ... the person responsible for bringing Gil to IndyCar and the United States at the beginning of his career) in P1 on a last lap heroic effort that ended up breaking something in the suspension of the car while Gil was cutting through the infamous Corkscrew turn (formally the Rainey Curve).

Ariel photograph of the layout at the MAZDA Raceway Laguna Seca. The Start/Finish line is at the bottom with the highest elevation of the track is located toward the upper left corner just as the track turns a sharp left at the "Corkscrew" surrounded in California Oak trees. Image Credit of Photo hanging on wall: Edmund Jenks (2009)

If you have never been to MAZDA Raceway Laguna Seca, the initial thing that impresses the first time attendee (especially if one was a fan and was familiar with the track due to watching races on TV) is the elevation changes throughout the course and that from certain vantage points around the track, one can see the competition for about 60% to 70% of the total course ... this is highly unusual for a dedicated road course that features many turns.

Follow Fernandez chasing de Ferran for one lap late in the timed four hour season ending event from a vantage point near the Red Bull Energy Center at MAZDA Raceway Laguna Seca. Video Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Gil de Ferran rode into the sunset with a victory in his final race Saturday to "bookend" his American professional racing career, while Patrón Highcroft Racing had its own special ride as well at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca to close the 2009 American Le Mans Series.

Gil de Ferran and Simon Pagenaud won the Monterey Sports Car Championships presented by Patrón after the retiring Brazilian legend's thrilling duel with Adrian Fernandez in the final 30 minutes of the four-hour classic.

The Patrón Highcroft Acura finished second in class and third overall, more than enough to secure the LMP1 driver championship for David Brabham and Scott Sharp, and the team title for Patrón Highcroft. The championships were the first for all.

... notes from The EDJE