POMPANO BEACH, FL. (September 27, 2005) - Team ADT Champion Racing will continue their quest for the Team and Manufacturers' Championships in the American Le Mans Series this Saturday at Road Atlanta as part of the 8th annual Petit Le Mans sports car endurance race. The unique format of this race calls  for 1,000 miles (394 laps) or 10 hours, whichever comes first.

Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro, drivers of the No. 2 Audi R8, could also clinch the American Le Mans Series Driver's Championship title this weekend.  Biela/Pirro lead Lola driver Andy Wallace by 18 points with just two races to go. The duo cannot be ousted from the head of the Driver's Championship if they arrive at the finale in Laguna Seca (October 15) with a lead of more than 20 points.

JJ Lehto is on a four-race winning streak at Road Atlanta following his victory with teammate Marco Werner in the No.1 Champion Racing Audi R8 at April's Grand Prix of Atlanta. Lehto has won the last two Petit Le Mans events and also won the 2003 Grand Prix of Atlanta. A win by Lehto/Werner would make them the first drivers in the history of Petit Le Mans to win the race three times in succession.

Team ADT Champion Racing has also won this endurance classic road race twice in succession and could, as a result, score a second hat-trick following wins this year at the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

"I sure would like a win at Petite Le Mans," commented Dave Maraj, Team Owner, Champion Racing. "It would be three in a row for Champion Racing if we won. I think we'll be strong there as we have longer legs than our competition but still we have to race the race."

For Audi it is not only a matter of winning the title with a race to spare.  Petit Le Mans is the last important endurance race of the year and, alongside the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, one of the three sports car highlights. The Audi R8 has never been beaten at Petit Le Mans and, if possible, this successful run should continue at its sixth appearance.

The ninth round of the American Le Mans Series is the 1,000-mile/10-hour Petit Le Mans scheduled for 11:20 a.m. EDT October 1 at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. SPEED Channel will provide live television coverage. Qualifying is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. EDT September 30. American Le Mans Series Radio, and IMSA Living and Timing Scoring will be available at www.americanlemans.com.


DRIVER QUOTES:

TEAM ADT CHAMPION RACING AUDI R8 #1

JJ Lehto (Fin). Age: 39. Born: Espoo, Finland. Lives: Monte Carlo, Monaco:

""I have raced at Road Atlanta four times in an Audi R8 and won Petit Le Mans the last two times so I definitely want to win my third consecutive Petit Le Mans as no one has done it before. Also, it would be nice to win the three most important sports car races in the world: 12 Hours of Sebring, 24 Hours of Le Mans, and Petit Le Mans."


Marco Werner (D). Age: 38. Born: Dortmund, Germany. Lives: Ermatingen, Switzerland:

"For JJ and me the train for the championship has left. For us it's just a question of single successes now. A Petit Le Mans victory would be a good way to get over the bad luck we had recently. First of all, however, we want to make sure that the Audi R8 remains unbeaten at its presumably last Petit Le Mans entry."



TEAM ADT CHAMPION RACING AUDI R8 #2


Frank Biela (D). Age: 40. Born: Neuss, Germany. Lives: Monte Carlo, Monaco:

"Road Atlanta is a very nice circuit for the Audi R8 because normally we can find a very good set-up there. We struggled in April but not we have three very good races behind us. We have the lead in the Championship so we are optimistic. Since Petite Le Mans is such a long race, the last two hours will be the most important and therefore finding a good set-up is of utmost importance. A win would be very welcome!"



Emanuele Pirro (It). Age: 43. Born: Rome, Italy. Lives: Monte Carlo, Monaco:

"April was only our 2nd race and we didn't have a very good set-up and pace. Now, we have had more time in the car and I am confident that we will be better than before. Our target is to finish the race, not to win the race. Petit Le Mans is a very insidious race as it is very physically demanding for the drivers since we have only 2 drivers for 10 hours. It's usually very eventful as passing is also difficult there. I have great memories as I not only won the race there in 2001 but I also won the Driver's Championship by winning Petit Le mans."