Portland, July 29, 2005
Team ADT Champion Racing claimed the second row for tomorrow's
Portland Grand Prix race on the 1.944-mile, 12 turn Portland International
Raceway. Even though both cars practiced and qualified faster than last
year's recorded times, it still wasn't enough to nudge the Dyson Team
from the front row. Marco Werner - Audi R8 # 1- pulled out all the stops
during the twenty-minute session and qualified a respectable third. The
sister car driven by Frank Biela - Audi R8 # 2 - was just three tenths
behind Werner and will line up on the outside of row two.
With five races left in the ten race American Le Mans Series, Werner and
his teammate JJ Lehto are a slim three points ahead of the second Team
ADT Champion Racing Audi R8 piloted by Frank Biela and Emanuele
Pirro. Both teams realize the closeness of the competition not only
between the two car Audi R8 squad, but also against their biggest rival,
Dyson Racing.
The Portland Grand Prix is set for Saturday afternoon at Portland
International Raceway. The race will be broadcast live on SPEED
Channel from 8 to 11 p.m. EDT Saturday, the first time an ALMS race has
been broadcast in prime time. American Le Mans Radio and Live Timing
and Scoring will be available at www.americanlemans.com.
Driver Quotes
JJ Lehto
"It will be up to tires this weekend. We saw that Dyson is very strong
especially since they tested here recently. So they have more information
and more knowledge for this race than we do. Our car is as good as it
can be. That was the maximum we could do for one lap. I think that we
will be better during the race."
Marco Werner
"I tried everything today. It's difficult here. The grip level is very low and
therefore it is difficult for me to push and find a little bit more time. We are
happy that we are third and I'm sure we can do better tomorrow."
Frank Biela
"I think everybody expected the Dyson team to be the fastest here this
weekend. There is not much we can do about that. The car does feel
good though. We are well sorted out and we'll see how it works out
tomorrow. I will think tonight how we can find three tenths by tomorrow!"
Emanuele Pirro
"So far I am quite happy as we have had constant progress throughout
the weekend. Frank did a very good job in qualifying. The car set-up is
good and last race we won starting from fourth position as well. So I am
optimistic but also cautious. This is a race where traffic, speed and
incidents will count even more than normal. I reckon it will be a very tough
and never ending competition."
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