Baselton - October 1, 2007
Marco Werner drives record-lap at Road Atlanta
The Audi R10 TDI has written another piece of motorsport history: In
qualifying for the "Petit Le Mans” race at Road Atlanta (US state of
Georgia), Marco Werner drove a record-lap with the 650-hp
diesel-powered sportscar. The German beat Allan McNish’s track record
from the 2000 season by almost 1.5 seconds.
Audi R10 TDI first and third on the starting grid
This means that for the first time in the tenth running of the famous
American endurance race, a diesel-powered sportscar will start from pole
position. Dindo Capello recorded the third fastest qualifying time overall
with Team Audi Sport North America’s second Audi R10 TDI.
Following heavy rain in the morning, the track was dry again for qualifying,
but extremely slippery. Marco Werner and his crew tackled these
conditions best. The top spot kept swapping between the Audi and the
fastest LM P2 Porsche before Werner finally clinched the pole. He
ultimately won a thrilling qualifying battle by 0.133 seconds.
The Audi Sport North America team especially cheered this pole position
as the #2 Audi R10 TDI had been badly damaged in a huge high-speed
accident in Turn 1 the day before caused by a left rear puncture. Thanks to
the strong passive safety of the R10 TDI, Emanuele Pirro remained
unhurt apart from a concussion.
Friday morning, the crew had to repair the Audi R10 TDI a second time
following an aquaplaning accident.
The race at Road Atlanta starts on Saturday at 11:15 a.m. local time (5:15
p.m. in Germany) and runs over a distance of 1000 miles or a maximum
of 10 hours. Audi is unbeaten in seven Petit Le Mans starts. Last year’s
winners Dindo Capello and Allan McNish could prematurely clinch the LM
P1 Drivers’ title on Saturday.
Quotes after qualifying
Dr Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport)
"It’s nice having taken the first Petit Le Mans pole position for a diesel.
Qualifying was close and exciting. But our boys have earned this pole
position because they worked hard for it. Of course I’m happy about this
result. Now we have to get the best set-up from all the data we have
collected in order to have a consistent fast pace in the race.”
Emanuele Pirro (Audi R10 TDI #2)
"This pole position is good for our motivation. The race is so long that it
does not give you any advantage starting from pole position. But it is very
important for everybody after all the problems we went through here. It
was my turn for qualifying, but I stepped down because I did not feel so
well after my accident yesterday. I’m happy that Marco (Werner) did such a
fantastic job. It’s a good start for tomorrow.”
Marco Werner (Audi R10 TDI #2)
"This pole position was quite unexpected for me because it was not my
turn to qualify here. On top of that I married two weeks ago – and people
say marriage and getting children makes you lose a second... I’m glad
that’s not the case! But let’s get serious: I did not drive so much here
before qualifying. Also we gambled a bit with the set up, but this worked
out well. With little fuel in the tank, Road Atlanta is really something
special and I enjoyed that. Thanks to the team and Audi: Our car had two
accidents and everybody really worked hard. This pole position is for the
boys!”
Dindo Capello (Audi R10 TDI #1)
"I had big understeer in qualifying which was surprising. Right hand
corners were particularly difficult and at the moment it’s a bit of a mystery.
I pitted and swapped the tyres over which made the handling better in the
faster sections but was still losing too much time in the slower corners.
The race, I hope, will be another story once we’ve solved this problem.
I’ve already won Petit outright three times and a fourth victory here would
be very satisfying for me.”
Allan McNish (Audi R10 TDI #1)
"We’ve experienced a difficult few days in terms of changeable weather
conditions so I don’t think any team is 100% prepared. However, Audi has
a lot of experience in this race although in some respects, because the
track has been recently re-surfaced, it can be considered ‘new’. Our
qualifying times show that our car wasn’t quite dialled in perfectly
although the #1 Audi had been quickest in most of the other sessions
and I’m confident we’ll get it sorted out for the race. It’s a long race and
I’m expecting a hard battle – especially looking at the times of the Penske
Porsches.”
Dave Maraj (Team Director Audi Sport North America)
"I’m very happy with our qualifying positions. It’s the first Petit Le Mans
pole for Diesel Power – and this after the huge accident in practice
yesterday. Thankfully Emanuele (Pirro) was uninjured. That car’s crew did
a great job to give Marco (Werner) a good car for qualifying. The times
weren’t ultra quick because of the track conditions after this morning’s
rain. As more rubber is laid, the race will get faster. So far so good but the
race will be hard.”
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