4 May -
ADT/Champion Racing
proudly and successfully flew the
“Star & Stripes” in France today. The Pompano Beach, Florida-based
team set the fifth fastest time in warm-up trials for the annual 24
Hours of Le Mans endurance sportscar race.
Emanuele Pirro swept its “customer” Audi R8 around the 8.62-mile
circuit at an average speed of over 135mph in a time of 3min
39.077. 56-cars were “invited” to participate in two, four-hour
test sessions held in sunny and warm weather
conditions. Champion Racing, a regular competitor in the American
Le Mans Series, was one of 15 American teams present.
Pirro will be partnered by JJ Lehto
and Stefan Johansson in the actual round-the-clock race staged on
14-15 June. The was set fastest time set by the Bentley of Tom
Kristensen/Guy Smith/Rinaldo Capello (3:34.820).
 Stefan
Johansson (46), of
Sweden: “Mission accomplished! We had a very productive day, went
through many evaluations concerning fuel and tires which should bode
well for us in the race.”
JJ Lehto
(36), of Finland: “We followed a specific program that we needed to
accomplish during the day. All the drivers are happy with our car.
We can return in June with a very good car for the race.”
Emanuele Pirro (41), of
Italy: “I am quite happy. The track was never clear for us to set
a really fast lap. Importantly, we have gathered important
information for race.”
Brad Kettler,
Technical Director: “We made progress throughout the day and feel
in general it was a successful test. We worked through aero, fuel
and tire issues and ended up with a what I believe to be a very
competitive car that offers good fuel economy and can triple stint
its tires – I’m satisfied.”
Rod Bymaster,
Motorsport Manager for Audi Sport North America: “I think the test
session went well. We anticipated the Bentley cars to be fast but
now the real race comes. Most importantly, we’ve got the fuel
mileage advantage and the easy repairability factor of the Audi
R8s.”
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