European-based Intercontinental Le Mans Cup competitors on their way to Sebring to kick off the new seven-round global sportscar championship...
ILMC cars were loaded into a 747 cargo plane for the trans-Atlantic journey to the U.S. (Photo: ACO)
With practice for the 59th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring beginning in just over a weeks’ time, teams have begun descending upon the historic 3.7-mile Florida airfield circuit for the American Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup season-opener.
While the Audi and Peugeot factory squads have already arrived at Sebring and are beginning to set up, the journey for the majority of the ILMC competitors began on Tuesday when their cars were loaded into a Boeing 747 cargo plane for the trip across the Atlantic.
Organized by the ACO’s transport partner, Cars Company, nine cars and spares packages were packed into the jumbo jet for the 4,500-mile flight from Luxembourg to Atlanta. After clearing customs, the cars will then be loaded onto transporters for the final 500-mile journey to Sebring International Raceway.
Teams that took advantage of the ACO’s travel package included OAK Racing (Pescarolo-Judd), Team ORECA Matmut (Peugeot 908 HDi-FAP), Rebellion Racing (Lola B11/60 Toyota), Signatech Nissan (Oreca 03 Nissan), Luxury Racing (Ferrari F458 Italia), AF Corse (Ferrari F430 GT) and Gulf AMR Middle East (Aston Martin Vantage).
It's a busy week as some of the ILMC competitors will also be taking part in the European-based Le Mans Series official test at Paul Ricard on Friday and Saturday. While using separate cars at the test, drivers and crew will fly directly to Sebring following the two-day test to kick off race week activities.
In addition to the factory diesels, a few European-based teams have been in Florida since last month’s Sebring Winter Test, including Larbre Competition (Corvette C6.R) and CRS Racing (Ferrari F430 GT).
U.S.-based teams Level 5 Motorsports (Lola Honda Coupe) and Krohn Racing (Ferrari F430 GT) will also take part in the seven-round global championship, as well as BMW Motorsport (BMW M3 GT), which has tasked BMW Team RLL to handle its entries for the season-opener.
While testing is scheduled for early next week, practice is scheduled to kick off Thurs., Mar. 17, with SPEED.com providing comprehensive coverage all week long from Sebring.
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at askdagys@gmail.com
While the Audi and Peugeot factory squads have already arrived at Sebring and are beginning to set up, the journey for the majority of the ILMC competitors began on Tuesday when their cars were loaded into a Boeing 747 cargo plane for the trip across the Atlantic.
Organized by the ACO’s transport partner, Cars Company, nine cars and spares packages were packed into the jumbo jet for the 4,500-mile flight from Luxembourg to Atlanta. After clearing customs, the cars will then be loaded onto transporters for the final 500-mile journey to Sebring International Raceway.
Teams that took advantage of the ACO’s travel package included OAK Racing (Pescarolo-Judd), Team ORECA Matmut (Peugeot 908 HDi-FAP), Rebellion Racing (Lola B11/60 Toyota), Signatech Nissan (Oreca 03 Nissan), Luxury Racing (Ferrari F458 Italia), AF Corse (Ferrari F430 GT) and Gulf AMR Middle East (Aston Martin Vantage).
It's a busy week as some of the ILMC competitors will also be taking part in the European-based Le Mans Series official test at Paul Ricard on Friday and Saturday. While using separate cars at the test, drivers and crew will fly directly to Sebring following the two-day test to kick off race week activities.
In addition to the factory diesels, a few European-based teams have been in Florida since last month’s Sebring Winter Test, including Larbre Competition (Corvette C6.R) and CRS Racing (Ferrari F430 GT).
U.S.-based teams Level 5 Motorsports (Lola Honda Coupe) and Krohn Racing (Ferrari F430 GT) will also take part in the seven-round global championship, as well as BMW Motorsport (BMW M3 GT), which has tasked BMW Team RLL to handle its entries for the season-opener.
While testing is scheduled for early next week, practice is scheduled to kick off Thurs., Mar. 17, with SPEED.com providing comprehensive coverage all week long from Sebring.
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at askdagys@gmail.com
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