Peugeot, Audi’s main competition in Europe in the Le Mans Series, will continue the contest in America at the Sebring International Raceway, where Acura and Audi will debut their latest LMP-1 designs.
Peugeot entered a single 908 in last year’s Sebring 12 Hours, finishing eleventh. Peugeot also raced against Audi at the 2008 Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, finishing second.
Peugeot competes directly with Audi in Europe, the only other major auto manufacturer to field a factory LMP1 team there. Audi has consistently defeated Peugeot at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the continent’s premier road-racing event. This year, Peugeot wants to establish itself as the fastest and most reliable car in the series.
Peugeot’s 908HDi, with its 5.5 liter, 700 bhp, all-aluminum, twin-turbo V-12, was often faster than Audi last season, but the Audi R10 proved more reliable.
The addition of two Peugeot’s to Sebring’s starting lineup adds a lot of excitement, as the top three Le Mans Prototype factory teams will all be competing in what will be a preview of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Sebring Will Be Audi’s Only U.S. Appearance
Audi chose the 12 Hours of Sebring because it offers exactly the kind of international competition, the addition of the two Peugeot cars represent. Audi sees Sebring as test-run for the Le mans 24 Hours in June.
Audi has won at Sebring for the last eight years. This year, with a brand new car and brand-new competition, its reign will be challenged.
Audi has a long string of Le Mans wins wit its R8 and R10 prototypes. But Peugeot, runner up all too often, and Acura, new to the LMP1 ranks, both want to show that their engineering and competition skills are first-rank. Victory at Sebring will be a huge boost to whoever wins it.
Audi will bring a pair of its new prototypes to Sebring, where it will face the two Peugeots and two new Acuras in the battle for LMP1 honors.
Audi’s R15 is powered by a 5.5 liter V-10, assumed to use twin turbochargers; however, official data has yet to be released.
Acura Joins the Big Boys
The new Acura, powered by a normally-aspirated, gasoline-fueled 4-liter version of its LMP2 V-8, makes considerably less horsepower than the turbodiesels. But the new Acura showed competitive speed in testing. Simon Pagenaud’s Acura ran a fast lap of 1:44:814, averaging 126.723 mph around Sebring, beating Marco Werner’s standing qualifying record, set in 2007 in an Audi R10 TDI.
Acura also showed it could win overall with its less-powerful LMP2 cars as it did at Lime Rock in 2008.
With a fast car and a reputation for reliability, Acura stands well placed to win LMP1 honors at Sebring, despite the tough competition.
The American Le Mans Series will kick off its eleventh season with the 57th running of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, on Saturday, March 21. The event will mark the one-hundredth race for the American le Mans Series.
The American Le Mans Series will celebrate its 100th race and open its 11th season with the 57th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on Saturday, March 21.
For ticket information, visit http://www.sebringraceway.com/12hr_tickets.lasso
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