Sears Point: Audi race at a glance

ALMS Infineon Raceway: The race at a glance, quotes, results

Audi takes class victory in ALMS thriller

The Audi R8 sports cars of Infineon Team Joest and Team ADT Champion Racing finished first and second in the LMP900 class in round three of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) at Infineon Raceway, California. Both Audi customer teams battled fiercely with the lighter LMP675 prototypes for most of the 2:45-hour distance. With three laps remaining, less than a second seperated the overall winning LMP675 MG Lola from the second place Joest Audi R8, that earlier in the race had suffered a puncture. Johnny Herbert secured the third spot on the podium for Team ADT Champion Racing passing the third place Dallara-MG on the very last corner of the exciting race.

The race at a glance

Weather: dry, very warm

#38 Lehto passes #1 Biela at the start

Lap 1: #16 Leitzinger leads #20 Wallace, #38 Lehto and #1 Biela

Lap 7: #38 Lehto passes #20 Wallace, takes third

Lap 24: #1 Biela moves to third after an early pit-stop of #20 Wallace

Lap 35: Safety Car

Lap 37: All leaders in the pits, #1 Biela hands over to Werner, #38 Lehto to Herbert. Both Audis change tyres and refuel. #1 Werner rejoins as leader ahead of #38 Herbert and #16 Weaver

Lap 40: #38 Herbert touched by #16 Weaver after the restart

Lap 42: #38 Herbert drops to third behind #16 Weaver

Lap 50: #1 Werner leads #16 Weaver by 11.8s and #38 Herbert by 20.5s

Lap 52: Safety Car

Lap 54: #1 Werner has to change tyres because of a rear left puncture, refuels, drops to 4th, #38 Herbert now second

Lap 55: Restart

Lap 56: #38 Herbert drops to third behind #11 Saelens

Lap 57: #38 Herbert complains about tyre problems, stops for tyres and fuel, rejoins in 5th, 1m 22s down, #1 Werner third behind #16 Weaver and #11 Saelens

Lap 62: #1 Werner takes second position from #11 Saelens

Lap 63: #38 Herbert lapped by leader #16 Weaver

Lap 68: #38 Herbert moves to fourth after pit-stop of #11 Saelens

Lap 75: Safety Car

Lap 77: #1 Werner takes lead when #16 Weaver stops for fuel

Lap 81: Restart

Lap 82: Safety Car, #38 Herbert back on lead lap

Lap 84: #38 Herbert takes four new tyres during caution period

Lap 85: Restart, #1 Werner leads #16 Weaver by 0.369s, #38 Herbert in 4th, 19.981s behind

Lap 87: #1 Werner drops to second behind #16 Weaver

Lap 102: #38 Herbert takes third from #27 Auberlen on the very last corner

Audi takes 1-2 victory in LMP900 class, finishing 2nd and 3rd overall

#1 Biela/Werner extend their LMP900 championship lead

Quotes after the race

Marco Werner (Infineon Team Joest Audi R8 #1): "An incredible race on a great track. This race had really everything. A couple of times it was very tight in traffic. I gave everything and drove every single lap like in qualifying. On top of that I had to save fuel at the same time. I put pressure on until the end and was hoping for a chance in traffic. I was twice very close to the MG Lola in the closing stages, but then I had to squeeze in the middle through two GT cars. The MG Lolas were extremely fast here. Despite that I have to say thank you to the Joest team: The crew did a great job."

Johnny Herbert (Team ADT Champion Racing Audi R8 #38): "We lost time on our first stop when the tyre gun jammed. On the very first lap after the second re-start during my stint, it felt like I'd picked up a puncture so I pitted although it transpires it was only 'pick-up'. It took me a while to get in to some kind of rhythm but it came just at the right time. From a championship point of view, it was vital that JJ and I got a podium place today. It was a tough but enjoyable race."

-audi.de-