Penske Porsches Make Championship Run At Petit Le Mans
October 3, 2008
BRASELTON, Ga. (October 3, 2008) – Three DHL Penske Porsche RS Spyder LMP2 prototypes will be chasing the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) LMP2 driver’s and manufacturer’s championships this weekend in the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta starting Friday.
The DHL Penske Porsche RS Spyder machines, powered by the new high-revving 3.4-liter V8 direct fuel injection (DFI) engine, will be challenging the powerful Acura prototypes for the LMP2 class title in the American Le Mans Series 10-hour Petit Le Mans feature race on Saturday starting at 11:15 a.m. EDT.
ALMS LMP2 – The Points Battle
With only one event remaining in the 2008 ALMS season, the Porsche RS Spyder and Acura LMP2 prototype teams are locked in a close battle for both the driver’s and manufacturer’s titles, with each company holding a slim lead the their respective categories.
The No. 7 Penske Porsche RS Spyder tandem of Romain Dumas (France) and Timo Bernhard (Germany) hold a slim four-point advantage over the Acura duo of David Brabham and Scott Sharp, while Acura holds that same four-point lead over Porsche in the manufacturer’s points. In Thursday’s practice sessions, Dumas/Bernhard were consistently faster than their Acura rivals, topping the class charts during all three sessions.
The Penske Racing team has geared up its efforts to help its drivers and Porsche secure additional points by adding a third DHL Porsche RS Spyder to its stable for the weekend, with an all-IndyCar Series lineup of Helio Castroneves (Brazil) and Ryan Briscoe (Australia) in the No. 5 machine. Also fighting for the manufacturer’s championship will be the No. 6 Penske Porsche of Patrick Long (USA)/Sascha Maassen (Germany).
Porsche factory driver Emmanuel Collard (France) has also been called in as a third driver for the team in case a substitute is needed.
The 2008 Petit Le Mans event will be broadcast live on SPEED TV starting at 11 a.m. EDT. The SPEED coverage will include the first two hours of the event, and will resume at 6:30 p.m. EDT until the conclusion of the race (approximately 9:15 p.m.). The race will be broadcast in its entirety on the ALMS Radio website at www.americanlemans.com, which will also have live timing and scoring.