Series goes from longest race to shortest on the schedule
2011-04-14
Exiting the season opener, Dyson Racing leads the LMP1 standings after finishing sixth with its Lola-Mazda, the highest finish of all full-season ALMS entries. Drivers Chris Dyson and Guy Smith will square off against the Muscle Milk Aston Martin Racing Lola-Aston Martin. Last year, campaigning a Porsche RS Spyder, Muscle Milk’s Greg Picket and Klaus Graf were able to edge out Dyson and Smith for the last podium spot at Long Beach.
In LMP2, Scott Tucker’s Level 5 Motorsports team has entered two Lola-Hondas in the category, with Tucker listed as a driver for each. The 2010 LMPC Champion will pair with Christophe Bouchut in the No. 33 closed-top car and with Sebring LMP2 winner Luis Diaz in the No. 055 machine – an open-top entry.
All eyes will no doubt be on GT, which is embarking on one of its most competitive seasons yet. All the main protagonists hit trouble at Sebring.
Though Joey Hand has already won the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring this year, he has indicated in previous interviews that a win at Long Beach would mean more to him than any other race. He’ll have stiff competition from Flying Lizard, however, which is the only team to win back-to-back races at Long Beach with drivers Long and Jӧrg Bergmeister. Corvette Racing showed at Sebring that it is poised for a comeback this season, and drivers Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta are the only other drivers besides Long and Bergmeister on the entry list with two Long Beach victories. With the trouble that beset both ESM Ferraris at Sebring, the No. 01 and No. 02 remain a wild card for Long Beach.
Though Alex Job Racing has a strong lineup in Bill Sweedler and Leh Keen to defend its 2010 Long Beach victory, it’s hard to bet against the bevy of locals in the class including GMG Racing’s Bret Curtis (Lake Sherwood) and James Sofronas (Newport Beach), plus TRG’s Duncan Ende (Los Angeles) and Mangus Racing’s Craig Stanton (Long Beach). Stanton lives so close to the Long Beach circuit that he plans to bike in every morning.
The Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach begins with practice at 7:15 a.m. (PT) on Friday, April 15. Qualifying, broadcast live on ESPN3.com, will take place later on Friday, at 5:05 p.m. (PT). Round Two of the 2011 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón will go live on ESPN3.com at 4:15 p.m. (PT). Fans outside the U.S. can access live broadcasts through americanlemans.com, which also offers live timing and scoring throughout the weekend. The race will air on ESPN2 on Sunday, April 17, at 5 p.m. (ET). See here for a list of networks carrying the broadcast worldwide. Visit the American Le Mans Series' schedule page for information on tickets and area accommodations. You can follow the Series on Twitter (almsnotes), on our Facebook page and the official YouTube channel.
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