McNish, Audi Start Strong in Sebring Testing

Allan McNish in the Audi R18

Audi Sport Team Joest’s Allan McNish set the best time of Monday’s opening test for the 60th Anniversary Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. The three-time winner of America’s greatest sports car race set a time of 1:47.187 (125.612 mph) in the Audi R18 he will share with Dindo Capello and Tom Kristensen.

McNish led a trio of Audis at the top of the time sheets Monday afternoon. The R18 of Marcel Faessler, Andre Lotterer and Benoit Treluyer sat just 0.667 seconds back. The reigning Le Mans 24 Hours winners were ahead of Timo Bernhard, Romain Dumas and Loic Duval; their car set a best time of 1:48.294 (124.328 mph).

This year’s Sebring race marks the opening round of the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patr¢n and the new FIA World Endurance Championship. Muscle Milk Pickett Racing’s HPD ARX-03a of Klaus Graf, Lucas Luhr and Simon Pagenaud led the ALMS contingent at 1:50.231 (122.143 mph) – good enough for fourth on the day

Level 5 Motorsports, the defending P2 champion at Sebring and in the ALMS, was quickest in class with its HPD ARX-03b prototype. The car of Scott Tucker, Luis Diaz and Ryan Hunter-Reay turned a lap of 1:52.055 (120.155 mph) that put it nearly 1.5 seconds ahead of the sister car.

The second Level 5 HPD of Tucker, Christophe Bouchut and Joao Barbosa was at 1:53.538 (118.586 mph) and sat 0.782 seconds clear of Greaves Motorsports’ Zytek-Nissan.

In GT, Luxury Racing went quickest with its Ferrari F458 GT. The car – driven by Frédéric Makowiecki, Jaime Melo and Jean-Karl Verne\ay – posted a lap of 2:00.830 (111.429 mph) and led two of the ALMS’ stalwarts by 0.632 seconds.

Flying Lizard Motorsports’ Porsche 911 GT3 RSR of Jörg Bergmeister, Patrick Long and Marco Holzer set the second-fastest time in the class at 2:01.155 (111.130 mph). Corvette Racing’s Corvette C6.R of Oliver Gavin, Tommy Milner and Richard Westbrook was third, just 0.307 seconds behind their Porsche rivals.

Dempsey Racing led Prototype Challenge with a lap of 1:55.540 (116.531 mph) in the ORECA FLM09 driven by Henri Richard, Duncan Ende and Dane Cameron. Performance Tech’s trio of Anthony Nicolosi, Ricardo Vera and Raphael Matos was just 0.187 seconds back; PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports’ trio of Ken Dobson, Butch Leitzinger and Rudy Junco was third at 1:55.917 (116.152 mph).

Luxury Racing also held the top spot in GTE Am with the Ferrari of Pierre Ehret, Dominik Farnbacher and Francois Jakubowski setting a time of 2:02.893 (109.559 mph). Team Felbermayr-Proton’s Porsche 911 GT3 RSR of Christian Ried, Gianluca Roda and Paolo Ruberti sat second and just 0.377 seconds behind the class-leading Ferrari.

In GT Challenge, Green Hornet Racing’s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup of Peter LeSaffre, Damien Faulkner and Sebastiaan Bleekemolen went fastest at 2:06.899 (106.100 mph). That time put the Green Hornet racer 0.256 seconds ahead of NGT Motorsport’s trio of Sean Edwards, Henrique Cisneros and Carlos Kauffmann.

Alex Job Racing’s Porsche of Cooper MacNeil, Leh Keen and LP Dumoulin was a further 0.325 seconds back.

Tuesday’s testing is set to begin at 11:50 a.m. ET.

Results

Quotes

Ricardo Gonzalez, Greaves Motorsport
No. 41 Zytek Z11SN-Nissan (LMP2)
It’s hard to setup the car when there is traffic like this on the circuit and we are stopping and starting. You have a lot of to play with to help the car be easier to drive and go faster. But at the same time there are many things that can have you take the car the other direction. You need to break the barrier inside you to get the right amount of speed and balance. I did 15 laps at Silverstone before we came here, so this is the first time I’ve had a long stint in the car. There is still room for growth, for sure. To get a clean lap here is very difficult and can be frustrating. But at the end of the day it is the same for everyone.

Martin Plowman, Conquest Endurance
No 37 Morgan-Judd (P2)
“This is very different, for sure. It would have been good to get some time in the car before this week to get familiar but this is OK. It feels really good to be back in a race car. This is a very nice car to drive. You can push it to the limit and not worry about getting out of shape; I did that a couple of times. Turns 1 and 17 take a lot of local knowledge. I was still trying to figure out the right line throughout the day."

Dindo Capello, Audi Sport Team Joest
Audi R18 (LMP1)
“It is very difficult with the traffic. There are more cars that Petit Le Mans last year but also the track is longer. I would say it will be the same difficulty. The more challenging part here at Sebring is that you go off line much more than Road Atlanta, and the pickup is much worse – dirt, grass and other bits on the tires. It’s very difficult to get that pickup off the tires."

Steven Kane, Dyson Racing
Lola B12/60-Mazda (P1)
“Lola always produces a good car and from all the figures we have seen through the winter it is going to be a great performer. Everybody has been commenting on how fantastic it looks and from a driver standpoint, it has good comfort and functionality in the cockpit. I did two laps on Saturday to get familiar with the car and I was waiting to experience all the bumps people talk about and to be fair, did not think is was as bad as I thought it would be. I am looking forward to getting out there and doing more laps. This is my first time here and am really glad to be here at such a famous circuit during such a race famous weekend."

The 2012 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patr¢n begins with the 60th Anniversary Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida on Saturday on March 17. The race, set for 10:30 a.m. ET, will be broadcast at noon March 18 on ABC and shown live on ESPN3.