When Joerg Bergmeister passed Dirk Werner’s BMW just before the last lap at Petit Le Mans he put the Flying Lizard Porsche into second place and took the checkered flag behind the Bruni/Kaffer/Fisichella Ferrari. So, if he finished 2nd, how did Porsche win the race?
It would seem that the Ferrari was running under European/International Le Mans Regulations vs. ALMS Le Mans Regulations. Similar to how the Porsche Hybrid crossed the checkered flag first at Laguna Seca but couldn’t qualify for ALMS point, the same holds true for the Ferrari. As a result, the Flying Lizard team gets first place points.
ALMS Final Manufacturers Standings
Unfortunately, even with the extra points from today’s win thy weren’t enough to overtake BMW. Not only did BMW win the manufactuer’s championship, they took first in the Driver’s and Team competitions too.
Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) in the Flying Lizard Porsche 911 GT3 RSR passed Dirk Werner in the BMW just before the last lap to capture first place at the 14th running of the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta.
Bergmeister, who co-drove with Patrick Long (USA) and Patrick Pilet (France), actually finished behind the Bruni/Kaffer/Fisichella Ferrari on the track, but since that car was only entered in the International Le Mans Series points battle, the Lizards get first place American Le Mans Series points.
“We are thrilled to take first place at the last two races of the season, especially in the fashion that we did. I was close to the BMW several times in the last 20 minutes, but could never get close enough to pass. Finally, after the late yellow flag, with a little more than one lap to go, Werner got caught in traffic and I took some risk and squeezed by him outside turn six. He got back on my bumper, but I was able to hold him off to the checkered flag,” said Bergmeister, who was also pleased that the pass enabled Michelin to earn enough points to capture the GT Tire Manufacturers Championship.
The “pass” and the rest of the race details can be watched today, Sunday, on ABC-TV starting at 4:00 PM Eastern time.
The Race Progression
The Lizards started their march from the fifth-place qualifying position when the Melo/Vilander/Matos Ferrari retired after crashing in morning warm-up before the race. The one of the factory Corvettes broke early in the race and could not continue, and the other factory BMW had several flat tires. Meanwhile, Pilet, Long and Bergmeister kept a steady pace and stayed away from the multiple accidents that littered the 2.54-mile course during the 1000-mile event.
“We stayed with our plan to stay out of trouble so we were in a position to attack at the end. Everyone saw that the plan worked,” said Long, who had clinched the SCCA World Challenge championship in a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car last month.
Patrick Pilet, who was a late replacement for Marc Lieb (Germany) as the team’s third driver, was impressed by the professionalism of his Flying Lizard teammates.
“Everyone here was really focused on finishing first, and, by adjusting the tire pressures constantly during the race to compensate for the changing track temperatures, the balance of our Porsche improved as the race went on. This was a great weekend for me, and I was glad to be part of the Lizard first place,” said Pilet.
Other Porsche 911 GT3 RSR finishers included the Team Falken Tire entry of Wolf Henzler/Bryan Sellers/Martin Ragginger (fourth); the Flying Lizard Porsche of Marco Holzer/Darren Law/Seth Neiman (eighth); and the Paul Miller Racing Porsche of Bryce Miller/Sascha Maassen/Emanuel Collard (11th).
GT Challenge
Jeroen Bleekemolen and his brother Sebastiaan (both The Netherlands), along with team owner Tim Pappas, brought the Black Swan Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car its second straight championship, and Pappas’ second straight drivers title. The Alex Job Racing Battery Tender Porsche of Leh Keen/Brian Wong/Bill Sweedler was second, with Spencer Pumpelly/Duncan Ende/Peter Ludwig third.
Written on September 30th, 2011 at 6:45pm by Pepper Girl
Joerg Bergmeister and Patrick Long take up the 1,000 mile race in Road Atlanta on Saturday from position five on the grid in their Flying Lizard Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, . In qualifying for Petit Le Mans, the final round of the American Le Mans Series, Joerg was only eight-tenths of a second shy of the top GT-class time on the storied circuit in the US state of Georgia. In this race, the five-time Road Atlanta winner shares driving duties with both Patrick Long (USA) and Patrick Pilet (France).
“We are actually in a better position ahead of the Corvettes than we expected,” said Joerg Bergmeister, who is the reigning GT champion of the American Le Mans Series with Patrick Long. “That was the fastest lap that we’ve ever driven in Road Atlanta. I’m not surprised that the BMWs are faster than us here because at this race, which also counts towards the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, the Balance of Performance rules from Europe apply and this means an even greater power handicap for us. But I hope that we’re more up with the play during the race than we were in qualifying. Then anything is possible.”
The Falken Tire squad posted the 12th quickest time with Bryan Sellers at the wheel. Bryan shares driving duties of the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR with Porsche works driver Wolf Henzler and Martin Raggineger. American Darren Law, teammate of Porsche factory pilot Marco Holzer (Germany) and Seth Neiman (USA) in the second Flying-Lizard Porsche, secured the 14th grid spot.
Porsche works pilot Richard Lietz clinched the third quickest time with the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR of Proton Competition in the GTE Am class of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, .
“That was a decent lap. Aside from a little understeer it was actually perfect,” said the Austrian who joins forces with Christian Ried (Germany) and Mark Bullitt (USA). “This track reminds me more of the Petit Nordschleife than the Petit Le Mans. It’s my first time here but my teammates and I have almost ten hours to familiarise ourselves with the circuit.”
The 1,000 mile race starts on Saturday at 11.30 hrs local time (17.30 hrs CEST) and is broadcast live in the internet on www.americanlemans.com.
Full GT class Qualifying result
1. Gianmaria Bruni (I), Ferrari F458 Italia, 1:18.669 minutes 2. Dirk Werner (D), BMW M3 GT, + 0.087 seconds 3. Jörg Müller (D), BMW M3 GT, + 0.520 4. Jaime Melo (BRA), Ferrari F458 Italia, + 0.548 5. Jörg Bergmeister (D), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 0.812 6. Johannes van Overbeek (USA), Ferrari F458 Italia, + 0.820 12. Bryan Sellers (USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 2.078 14. Darren Law (USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 2.391 16. Sascha Maassen (D), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 2.878
GTE Am class 1. Rui Aguas (P), Ferrari F430, 1:20.619 minutes 2. Niclas Jönsson (S), Ferrari F430, + 0.261 seconds 3. Richard Lietz (A), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 0.278
In what has turned out to be an incredible weekend for Porsche motorsport fans, Patrick Long and Joerg Bergmeister led the #45 Flying Lizard Porsche 911 GT3 RSR to class victory at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Full story and race results are available after the pictures. If you’re viewing this post via email, you may want to jump to PorschePurist to view the pictures using our slide viewer).
Porsche Scores Third ALMS GT Win in Four Race
Patrick Long (USA) and Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) have led their #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR to the American Le Mans Series GT class victory on the last lap at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca each of the last three years, and this year’s ModSpace ALMS event was no exception.
Also, running for the just the second time in the North America, and only the third time outside of Germany, the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid racing lab made its West Coast debut this weekend. Not eligible for points, the flywheel-equipped 911 GT3 R started from the back of the field, but finished ahead of all the GT class entries by virtue of turning the fastest race laps along with just three pit stops, compared to five or more for the other GT competitors.
“The drivers like to say it’s about the power – the four-wheel-drive and 200 extra horsepower generated from stored braking energy, but the Porsche hybrid racing system is much more than that. It’s generating those things with fewer pit stops and more efficiency. Beating this world-class field of factory GT cars is really something special for us,” said Romain Dumas, French-born Porsche factory driver and former ALMS GT and LMP2 champion.
GT Class
Long and Bergmeister swapped the top spot with the leading Ferraris and BMWs during the entire six-hour event, with Joerg making the final pass with less than 500 yards to go as the leading #62 Risi Ferrari ran out of gas just before the checkered flag. Last year, it was Long passing the #56 BMW late in the race, and, in 2009, it was Bergmeister edging the #4 Corvette right at the finish line.
After being the class champions the last two years, 2011 has been a disappointing year for the pair with only one podium finish (Lime Rock) to their credit, so this first win of the season was a satisfying one, according to Bergmeister.
“We have had a very good car on multiple occasions, only to have something bad happen, either our fault or someone else’s,” said Bergmeister, who also won the GT championship in 2008 with Flying Lizard Motorsports and co-driver Wolf Henzler. “We hope to have a similar result at Petit Le Mans, and have some momentum going into the 2012. It is also important that we have a good finish so Porsche can gain maximum manufacturers points,” said Bergmeister.
Long pointed out that the Lizards’ strategy for this race was to protect the car and stay away from the pushing and bumping that had been creeping into the class, but it just didn’t work today.
“During Joerg’s opening stint, there was rough driving right from the start, and we laid back, choosing to let the officials handle the consequences. When things didn’t calm down, we just tried to stay on the track, race hard, and be there at the end, and we put ourselves in position to win with the right amount of fuel, good tires, and a fast car,” said Patrick.
After the race, the #62 Risi Ferrari was penalized 90 seconds for avoidable contact with the Lizard Porsche, which pushed them from third to sixth place.
The other Porsche 911 GT3 RSRs did not have such a good day
The #17 Team Falken Tire Porsche 911 GT3 RSR with Bryan Sellers (USA) and Wolf Henzler (Germany) aboard was hit by a GT Challenge car early in the race, shattering the water pump, crushing the airbox, and bending the chassis. The second Lizard Porsche (Seth Neiman/Marco Holzer was ninth, and the Paul Miller Racing Porsche of Sascha Maassen/Bryce Miller was tenth after shearing the pins to the wheel in the left rear upright.
Although the Dirk Mueller/Joey Hand BMW clinched the driver’s championship, Porsche is still in the running for the top spot in the manufacturers championship.
In GT Challenge, there was another last-lap pass for the win
For this victory, it was the #66 TRG Porsche 911 GT3 Cup of Spencer Pumpelly/Duncan Ende/Peter Ludwig edging the class points leaders Tim Pappas/Jeroen Bleekemolen/Sebastiian Bleekemolen in the #54 Black Swan Racing Porsche to take the win. TRG took a chance on a green flag pit stop late in the race to get new tires and fuel, losing almost a lap to Black Swan, but a yellow flag with 11 minutes to go closed the gap and Pumpelly was able to get by Bleekemolen using the advantage of fresh tires.
Pappas has a 21-point lead going into the last event at Petit Le Mans, with 30 points available for the win.
ALMS Result in GT class
1. Bergmeister/Long (D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 236 laps 2. Müller/Hand (D/USA), BMW M3 GT, 236 3. Melo/Vilander (BRA/SF), Ferrari F458 Italia, 236 4. Sharp/van Overbeek (USA/USA), Ferrari F458 Italia, 236 5. Werner/Auberlen (D/USA), BMW M3 GT, 236 6. Magnussen/Gavin (DK/GB), Chevrolet Corvette, 236 9. Holzer/Neiman (D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 230 10. Maassen/Miller (D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 224
Result GTC class
1. Pumpelly/Ende (USA/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, 222 laps 2. J. Bleekemolen/Pappas/S. Bleekemolen (NL/USA/NL), Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, 222 3. Le Saffre/Faulkner (USA/IRL), Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, 221
Driver’s Points’ standings GT class
1. Dirk Müller, Joey Hand, BMW, 145 points 2. Oliver Gavin, Jan Magnussen, Chevrolet, 110 3. Dirk Werner, Bill Auberlen, BMW, 101 4. Jaime Melo, Toni Vilander, Ferrari, 90 5. Wolf Henzler, Bryan Sellers, Porsche, 77 6. Jörg Bergmeister, Patrick Long, Porsche, 76
When Patrick Long (USA) turned his fastest qualifying lap in the #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, he was pretty happy as the car felt balanced and handled well. But when the crew told him his time, he found out that he was fifth on the grid behind two BMWs, a Corvette and a Ferrari.
“We made a setup change before the qualifying session, and the results were very good. My lap was perfect, and we have a great car for the six-hour race tomorrow. The fact that others could go faster when we made no mistakes speaks to regulations that are outside of our control,” said Long, who, along with Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) are seeking their second podium and first win of the season. The pair have won the American Le Mans Series GT driver’s championship the past two years, with Bergmeister earning a co-championship in 2008 as well.
Team Falken Tire
The #17 Team Falken Tire Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, which has won two of the last three ALMS GT events, was qualified by Bryan Sellers (USA) , who said the team has been faster in the race than in qualifying all year, so their ninth position on the grid was not a great concern.
“Over the race distance, our car seems to work into its best set-up, and our tires seem to come into their own later in the race,” said Sellers.
His co-driver, Wolf Henzler (Germany), agreed, adding that the change in track temperature for qualifying made a lot of choices a guessing game.
“The track surface has been cold ever since we arrived in Monterey, but for qualifying, we had sunny and warm, so our setup was not perfect,” said Henzler, who has an ALMS GT championship to his credit (with Bergmeister in 2008).
The Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid 2.0
This latest version of Porsche’s GT racing laboratory, is running thrace “unclassified” as there are not rules in place for hybrid race cars yet, but the car, which captures energy from braking, stores in on a flywheels, and uses it on demand through electric motors on the front axle, turned a time which would have put it third on the GT grid. Because the car was not allowed to participate in qualifying, driver Romain Dumas (France) – a multi-time ALMS champion himself – is looking for more laps at Laguna before he can draw any conclusions.
“We have improved in each session – we just wish we had more track time,” said Dumas. “Of course, the great advantage of this car is the extra power with electric four-wheel-drive, but you have to modify your usual driving style. I haven’t driven the car this year, so I am getting used to both the hybrid system and the Laguna track,” said Dumas.
His co-driver, Richard Lietz (Austria), said the car will start at the back of the field since it is unclassified, but he is not concerned as the race is six hours long.
“We want to show the public that a hybrid can be fast and fun to drive as well as efficient,” said Lietz.
Other Porsche GT qualifiers
The #48 Paul Miller Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RSR of Bryce Miller (USA) and Sascha Maassen (Germany) – tenth; and the #44 Flying Lizard entry of Seth Neiman (USA) and Marco Holzer (Germany) – 12th.
The ALMS GT Challenge class for matched Porsche 911 GT3 Cup racers
Jeroen Bleekemolen (The Netherlands) earned his ninth pole in 14 races (over two years) in the #54 Black Swan Racing Porsche he will share tomorrow with car owner Tim Pappas (USA).
“We were struggling in the first few practice sessions, but the team kept working on the setup and we had a great car for qualifying,” said Bleekemolen, who can help Pappas maintain his points lead in GTC even though Jeroen cannot win the title because he missed several races.
Black Swan Racing Sweeps GTC
It was a Black Swan Racing sweep of the GTC front row as Damien Faulkner (Ireland) qualified the Green Hornet/Black Swan Racing Porsche in the second position in the car he will share with Peter LeSaffre (USA). Third was #66 TRG Porsche of Peter Ludwig/Spencer Pumpelly/Duncan Ende (all USA).
Watch what happens when Jeroen Bleekemolen takes his GTC class Porsche on an off-track excursion during qualifying for last weekend’s ALMS Baltimore Grand Prix. Talk about keeping cool and staying on top of things.
What’s even more amazing is that even after all this, he goes on to secure pole position and then win the race in his division! If the video above doesn’t show in your email simply click on Jeroen Bleekemolen loses tire and still wins race.
Team Falken Tire and drivers Bryan Sellers and Wolf Henzler captured an impressive victory in their Porsche 911 GT3 RSR this weekend at the 2011 Inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix, round seven of the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón season. In what turned out to be a heavy fought street fight around the Inner Harbour of Baltimore, the Falken Tire squad took their second GT victory of the year in front of a sold out crowd in what will no doubt become a marquee event in the ALMS schedule. Story continues after the pictures below. For the best viewing options, visit our site to review using the “lightbox” feature that allows you to scroll through the photos.
Henzler took the green flag in his #17 Porsche machine in the fifth position and managed to wiggle through carnage in Turn-1 of the narrow 2.04-mile circuit, picking up two positions in the process. The German driver immediately started reeling the leaders in showcasing the speed and grip of his specifically engineered Falken Tires. After putting the pressure on the leaders for many laps, Henzler pulled a daring outside pass for the lead around Turn-1 and got the position, for the rest of he stint he maintained a quick pace until Lap 35 when Team Falken Tire, operated by Walker Racing, brought him in for his one and only pit stop for new Falken tires, a full tank of fuel and a driver change.
The Team Falken Tire pit crew, lead by crew chief Nico Castellaccio, performed the quickest pit stop in the GT field and sent Sellers out on his way with one hour to go in the race. After a restart Sellers took advantage of contact between the top two running GT cars, picked up the lead in Turn-1 and never looked back. He led the remainder of the race and took the checkered flag for the second time this year.
Full Race Results
Result class GT 1. Henzler/Sellers (D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 71 laps 2. Müller/Hand (D/USA), BMW M3 GT, 70 3. Magnussen/Gavin (DK/GB), Chevrolet Corvette, 70 4. Maassen/Miller (D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 70 5. Werner/Auberlen (D/USA), BMW M3 GT, 70 6. Melo/Vilander (BRA/SF), Ferrari F458 Italia, 70 8. Law/Neiman (USA/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 68 11. Bergmeister/Long (D/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 56
At the wheel of the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR fielded by Flying Lizard Motorsports, Porsche works driver Patrick Long (USA) secured the third quickest time in qualifying on the new street circuit of Baltimore – but still has to take up round seven of the American Le Mans Series on Saturday from the back of the GT field. The reason: In one of his fast laps, he bumped a Ferrari which was blocking the racing line in front of him in first gear on a cool-down lap. Due to this incident, the race steward decided to exclude both drivers from the qualifying.
“You can’t be running in first gear on the racing line in a qualifying session that lasts only 15 minutes. It’s simply not fair to the others when you block the racing line if you’re not going to go at racing speed,” said Patrick Long.
His works driver colleague Joerg Bergmeister (Germany), who shares driving duties in the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, said:
“It’s a shame to be excluded. In the short time we were out on the track today our pace was improving from lap to lap and Patrick’s third quickest time is proof that we are well prepared for the race. Now we have to be patient and keep out of trouble so that we can push through the field again. The track is very bumpy and there are only a few overtaking possibilities. It’s going to be very difficult.”
After Wolf Henzler (Germany) posted the quickest time in free practice with his Falken Tire Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, the Porsche works driver and Mid-Ohio winner secured the seventh grid spot in qualifying. Because of the disqualifications, he now takes up the race in the US state of Maryland from the third row with his teammate Bryan Sellers (USA). Bryce Miller (USA), who teams up with Sascha Maassen (Germany), drove the eighth quickest time in the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR run by Paul Miller Racing.
“From the very first lap that we drove in Baltimore, we were very pleased with our car,” commented Wolf Henzler. “Unfortunately, we got stuck twice in qualifying behind a GTC car which is a good nine seconds slower than us, and the Ferrari that Patrick experienced problems with also prevented us from turning a quick lap. Still if we manage to overtake some cars despite the heavy traffic our chances look good for the race. “
ALMS Round 7 Qualifying result
GT class 1. Dirk Werner (D), BMW M3 GT, 1:31.362 minutes 2. Jan Magnussen (DK), Chevrolet Corvette, + 0.588 seconds 3. Joey Hand (USA), BMW M3 GT, + 0.648 4. Tommy Milner (USA), Chevrolet Corvette, + 0.862 5. Wolf Henzler (D), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 1.410 6. Johannes van Overbeek (USA), Ferrari F458 Italia, + 2.799 8. Bryce Miller (USA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 3.247
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