IMSA: Petit Le Mans October 1-4, 2014

[954Stealth]

This is the last race of the IMSA 2014 season!

OTHER EVENTS:
IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge - 1 race
Cooper Tires Prototype Lites - 2 races
Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo - 2 races
Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA - 2 races
Mazda MX-5 Cup - 2 races

A Couple of facts about the race:
•10 hours of racing
•First run on October 10, 1998
•Class winners of this event receive an automatic invitation to the following year's 24 Hours of Le Mans


Preview:
" The Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda (French for little Le Mans) is a sports car endurance race held annually at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, USA. It uses the rules established for the 24 hours of Le Mans by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), which are slightly modified if necessary, mainly to allow additional cars to compete.

The race was founded by Road Atlanta owner Don Panoz and first run on October 10, 1998 as part of the IMSA season. The 1999 edition was one of the original events of the American Le Mans Series.

In 2014 it all comes down to a ten-hour showdown at Road Atlanta! The inaugural TUDOR United SportsCar Championship and Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup season finale at Road Atlanta’s Petit Le Mans Powered By Mazda will be one of the most exciting weekends in history. Over 50 entries in four different classes of competition will take the green flag on Saturday, Oct. 4, for a ten-hour battle into the night.

The Prototype class includes LMP2 entries and Daytona Prototypes such as the Ford Riley that won at Sebring and Long Beach and the Corvette DP that won the season opening Rolex 24. Two GT classes will include Corvette, Porsche, Ferrari, BMW, Aston Martin, and SRT Viper teams. The Prototype Challenge class rounds out a very competitive series that promises to make this year’s Petit Le Mans a true classic."





SCHEDULE:





56 Entries for the Petit Le Mans: http://sportscar365.com/imsa/tusc/56...petit-le-mans/

GTLM, GTD Points Battles Going Down to the Wire: IMSA.com

[954Stealth]

Since its what the kids call "throwback Thursday" lets have a look at this 458 that ran in the 2012 Petit Le Mans

[RllyDrvrIX]

who's broadcasting this live?

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by RllyDrvrIX

who's broadcasting this live?

I'm pretty sure it is Fox Sports

They also have a stream:
http://www.foxsports.com/speed/stream/tudor

[954Stealth]

Petit Le Mans: miss it and risk missing one of the best races this year

By: Steven Cole Smith, Editor in Chief, Motorsport.com
The 10-hour endurance race starts Saturday, but action starts on Wednesday.

"On October 4, this first TUDOR Championship season ends with what promises to be a blockbuster event – the Petit Le Mans Power by Mazda, a tradition in the American Le Mans Series since 1998 that was wisely included in the combined series. As always, it will be held at the historic Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, a challenging, viewer-friendly road course that contains the modern conveniences, packaged inside an “old school” track that has the look and feel of some of the great road courses from around the world.

How so? Because Road Atlanta, built in 1970, isn’t one of those sterile, cookie-cutter, “You can sit here, but you can’t sit there” kind of places. Drive across the bridge, and you are literally inside the tree-filled facility, and you can drive or walk to dozens of excellent vantage points all over the 12-turn, 2.54-mile track. The massive infield is mostly raised, so you can look down on large portions of the track, and in a race like Petit Le Mans – a grueling 10 hours, with 54 cars on the entry list in four classes – count on there being action everywhere."



Red the rest here: http://www.motorsport.com/tusc/news/...is-year-456873

[Sebringjetta]

Think bmw stands a chance. .. or will SRT run away with it ???

[DieGrüneHölle]

SRT, its done.

[954Stealth]

GT Le Mans - COTA saw a significant swing in the Drivers' Championship, with SRT Motorsports' Jonathan Bomarito and Kuno Wittmer taking over the lead, with a seven-point margin over Corvette Racing's Antonio Garcia. Bomarito and Wittmer can clinch the title by finishing third or better.

Nine additional drivers remain mathematically eligible, although unlikely unless both the No. 93 Viper and No. 3 Corvette hit trouble early and do not achieve the 45-minute minimum driving time needed to score points.


While the Teams' Championship shows SRT Motorsports out front, there's a two-way tie for the lead in the Manufacturers' Championship between Dodge and Porsche. Chevrolet and BMW each trail by eight points meaning it's likely a two-horse race, with the highest-placed manufacturer taking the spoils.

GT Daytona - Dane Cameron holds a four-point lead over Alex Job Racing's Cooper MacNeil and Leh Keen, with the AIM Autosport duo of Townsend Bell and Bill Sweedler trailing by a further three points. While an additional eight drivers are mathematically in the hunt, it will likely come down to the drivers from these three teams.

The same is the case for the Teams' Championship, with Turner Motorsport also having a four-point lead over AJR, with AIM in third. Three points separate Porsche from BMW and Ferrari in the Manufacturers' Championship, with any of the three automakers able to walk away with the title on Saturday evening

(Full article here: http://www.foxsports.com/motor/story...le-mans-092814 )

[Flying Ace]

SRT running strong in latter half of season. But balance of power adjustment (if it happens) can help RLL.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

Since its what the kids call "throwback Thursday" lets have a look at this 458 that ran in the 2012 Petit Le Mans

That's a great wrap/paint

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

That's a great wrap/paint

I thought so too! It's really eye-catching and rare to see a Ferrari in livery like that

[E9TOU]

I really hope BMW is more competitive next season. Is the debut of a new GT car based on the M3/4 totally out of the question?

[954Stealth]

It looks like NGT has now withdrawn from the race...

One of their drivers, Bamber, went over to Porsche NA to race GTLM instead of GTD. He was to share the car with Christina Nielson. Since the NGT Porsche is not going to race, she has now transferred over to Aston Martin and TRG-AMR so you'll see her in the #007.

Fall-Line Motorsports has also withdrawn their recently acquired Audi R8 LMS. Scuderia Corsa has also withdrawn a 458italia.

With the 3 withdrawals, the GTD field for the Petit Le Mans now stands at 20

[954Stealth]

(Oct. 1, 2014 by BMW Motorsport)

Ready for the grand finale.

BMW Team RLL will end the 2014 United SportsCar Championship season at this Saturday’s Petit Le Mans race at Road Atlanta, in Braselton, Georgia. In a departure from the previous year’s events, this year’s race will be run as a ten-hour race – not 1,000 miles.



BMW Team RLL will be racing to finish in a top-three position in the GTLM class Manufacturer championship, as well as ending the season with all regular season drivers with a top-five place in the Driver points.

With sixth and seventh place finishes at the last round at Circuit of the Americas, BMW is fourth in the Manufacturer points, with eight points separating the top-four manufacturers. Bill Auberlen and Andy Priaulx are fourth in the Driver points. Team mates John Edwards and Dirk Müller stand fifth. The number 55 and 56 BMW Z4s stand fifth and sixth respectively in the Team points.

Joey Hand will rejoin BMW Team RLL for Petit Le Mans before completing his third DTM season. Co-driving with Auberlen and Priaulx, the trio will be looking for the same success they had earlier in the season, with a second at the Daytona 24 Hours and a third at the 12 Hours of Sebring. Dirk Werner will co-drive with Edwards and Müller in the number 56 car. The trio also raced together at Daytona and Sebring this season. BMW Team RLL will also be racing for the programme’s 50th podium finish

[Sebringjetta]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

SRT running strong in latter half of season. But balance of power adjustment (if it happens) can help RLL.

keeping my fingers crossed

[Patrón]

Originally Posted by E9TOU

I really hope BMW is more competitive next season. Is the debut of a new GT car based on the M3/4 totally out of the question?

I know Turner is campaigning the M6.

[fcman]

So pumped, I'll be there Friday and Saturday

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by Patrón

I know Turner is campaigning the M6.

I thought they used to race a M6 GT?
Are they going for it again?

[954Stealth]

Since we're on the subject of TMS, this was just released:

TURNER BMW SET FOR 10-HOUR QUEST FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP
For Immediate Release



Braselton, GA – October 1st, 2014 – As the 2014 Tudor United SportsCar Championship season quickly comes to an end with just one race remaining, Turner Motorsport holds onto the GTD class Championship lead by just four points.

In two short days, the No. 94 BMW Z4 of Dane Cameron and Markus Palttala will take the green flag for the 17th annual Petit Le Mans on the 2.57 mile, 12-turn road course at Road Atlanta. The 10-hour grueling endurance race remains the single obstacle between the No. 94 BMW of Turner and the 2014 Tudor Championship GTD title.

“Petit is about winning a Championship, not just the race. We want to be in front of the No. 555 Ferrari and No. 22 Porsche at the end of 10 hours,” explained strategist Don Salama. “We need to avoid risk at all costs to stay on the lead lap, evaluate our position at 7 hours, and play a full sprint race game if need be.”

With the top three teams separated by nine points heading into Petit, the competition remains extremely tight and the Championship remains open for anyone to win. With that said, Turner Motorsport could clinch the title with a second place or better finish.

In addition to the team and driver standings, the manufacturer title remains up for grabs as Porsche leads by just one point over BMW and Ferrari.

“This is a big weekend for us at Road Atlanta,” said Dane Cameron. “Four points is not much of a lead heading into a 10-hour race. Anything can happen and the title will certainly come down to the final stint. We have all the ingredients to win this title, we know what we need to do, now we just need to execute a clean race and make it happen.”

To assist in the effort this weekend, Turner Motorsport has brought on a third driver to the line-up. Christoffer Nygaard will join Cameron and Palttala in the team’s 10-hour quest for the championship. Nygaard currently competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

“We are happy to add Christoffer (Nygaard) to the team. He will be the perfect complement to Dane and Markus and a great asset to have for this long 10-hour race,” commented Will Turner. “He has a ton of GT endurance experience so it’s just what we needed.”

With the driver lineup set, the Turner team will begin practice on Thursday in preparation for Petit Le Mans on Saturday. Thursday’s practice will mark the first time on track here at Road Atlanta since last October during the team’s first test with the new BMW Z4 platform.

Petit Le Mans kicks off Saturday, October 4th at 11:00am ET. The first four hours of the race can be watched LIVE on IMSA.com. Beginning at 3:00pm ET the race can be seen on Fox Sports 2 LIVE. On Sunday, October 5th a condensed version of the race broadcast will be televised on Fox Networks. Please check your local listings as markets vary.

CTSCC:
On Friday, Michael Marsal and Tom Kimber-Smith will compete in the final round of the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge at Road Atlanta.

Riding the momentum from the second place finish at Circuit of the Americas, the duo will look to add their third podium to the season in the No. 97 GS class M3.

“Overall it’s been a great season for Tom and I. We started off on a high note with a podium at Daytona and battled some mid season setbacks but have come out even stronger these last couple races. I have a lot of confidence in our team and car this weekend so I hope to jump back up on that podium,” said Michael Marsal.

The final Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race can we watched LIVE on IMSA.com Friday, October 3rd at 1:15pm ET. The broadcast will be on television Sunday, October 12th at 12:00pm ET.

[954Stealth]

Live timing: http://scoring.imsa.com/


The numbers will start to fill in shortly

[954Stealth]

Lambo ST live stream

http://squadracorse.lamborghini.com/en/live-usa

[954Stealth]

Night practice starts at 7:30, there should be some live feeds up