Panoz Back on the Podium
THE X-FACTOR GRAND PRIX OF SONOMA, SEARS POINT RACEWAY
Panoz Back On The Podium
David Brabham and Jan Magnussen took their second podium placing of the season in today's 2.45 hour race in the sunny Sonoma region of California.
Running in the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster S cars for the first time since last year, the duo fought a close run battle with their competitors from Audi and finished in 3rd place ahead of the privately-run Champion Audi. They previously finished 3rd at the opening round of the American Le Mans Series in Texas.
The rumble of the 6-liter V8 engines was welcomed back by team and fans alike, and the #50 car ran without problems all weekend. The other Panoz, car # 51, did not fare so well however.
Franck Lagorce had completed just 20 laps of the race before mechanical failure prevented him from continuing. The Frenchman had made up two places at the start of the race and was running well in a strong 5th position when the car lost all drive. A broken driveshaft was later found to be the cause.
David Brabham: "It was great to be back in contention again right from the start. Our rivals have been developping their cars all season and we have basically just dusted the LMP-1s off so this result is even more rewarding. Our target was the Champion Audi and we had a great battle with them all the way through. I had to be really aggressive in traffic to stay ahead at times but I loved it! It was good to be racing again."
Jan Magnussen: "We were close all weekend, not just to our rivals but between our two cars. Everyone at Panoz has been very pumped up, looking forward to running the old cars again, and I'm sure that we will get closer still to Audi next time."
Franck Lagorce: "It's not been my weekend on the track! I'm disappointed not to have been able to finish because it is my first race in the American Le Mans Series and I am very happy to be part of the team and the Series. I've worked well with Klaus and our engineer, Rick Mayer, all weekend and I'm not worried about future races because we have a good car and great team. We were nearly there this weekend and we will be there next time."
Klaus Graf: "It's great to be back in the US, racing in front of good crowds and in the Californian sunshine. We were competitive all weekend and there's a good spirit in the team with the return of the LMP-1s. We know we can push our rivals and there's a long way to go until the end of the season."
Results:
1 1 Capello/Kristensen Audi Sport North America 107 laps
2 2 Biela/Pirro Audi Sport North America 107 laps
3 50 Brabham/Magnussen Panoz Motor Sports 106 laps
4 38 Wallace/Herbert Champion Racing Audi 105 laps
5 3 Fellows/O'Connell Corvette Racing (GTS) 97 laps
6 4 Pilgrim/Collins Corvette Racing (GTS) 97 laps
7 42 Lehto/J Muller BMW Motorsport (GT) 96 laps
8 6 Said/Stuck PTG BMW (GT) 96 laps
9 43 D Muller/Ekblom BMW Motorsport (GT) 95 laps
10 10 Auberlen/Jonsson PTG BMW (GT) 95 laps
Ends
For further information contact Fiona Miller at Panoz Motor Sports on +44 7770 371 332 or email to fiona@panozmotorsports.com