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Audi @Sebring 3
Editorial Wolgang Drheimer
Sebring moments
Sebring 2013
Technical development
Facts & fgures
The circuit
Sebring wins
2000 Tom Kristensen
2001 Dindo Capello
2002 Johnny Herbert
2003 Ral Jttner
2004 Frank Biela
2005 Marco Werner
2006 Ulrich Baretzky
2007 Emanuele Pirro
2009 Allan McNish
2012 Dr. Wolgang Ullrich
Audi in U. S. motor racing
Contact details/Imprint
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Contents
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4 Audi @Sebring
Wolfgang DrheimerMotorsport is part of the Audi DNA and Sebring a unique
place for our company.
Dear motorsport friends:
Audi has been active in
motorsport for more
than 30 years. Whatever
we have tackled in motorsport has ultimately ended with
victories or championship titles. Theyve been frequently
associated with enormous pioneering spirit and techni-
cal innovations. Be it World Rally Championship, DTM or
Le Mans: Audi has written motorsport history over and
over again.
Editorial
Motorsport is part of the Audi DNA.
And for us not just an end in itself. In due course, our
customers benefit from the successes on the racetrack.
Because we attach the greatest value to technology
transfer between motorsport and production. Our
quattro drive, built until now into more than five million
road cars, is only one of many direct examples. The
wealth of experience gathered by our engineers in
motor racing and later incorporated into our road cars
grows every week.
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Audi @Sebring 5
This is especially true for the LMP1
categor y, which, as it currently appears, is eligible to startat this years 12-hour race at Sebring for the final time.
Sebring is a unique place for us: Audis remarkable success
story with sports prototypes began there in March 1999.
At the same venue a year later, we recorded our first vic-
tory in a sports car race. Subsequently, our team has stood
on the top step of the podium on ten occasions. And year
for year, the track at Sebring, which is extremely demand-
ing for both, men and material, was the perfect location
to prepare for the 24-hour race at Le Mans.
This is why we join the grid once again at
Sebring, even though the race is not a part of the FIA
World Endurance Championship (WEC). Through this
event, we wish to thank our motorsport fans in the U.S.
and hope that 2013 is not a final Sebring farewell for us
Wolfgang Drheimer
Member of the Board of Management of
AUDI AG, Technical Development
because we aim to increase our involvement in U. S.
racing over the medium-term. And Sebring cannot bemissed in a racing schedule because Audi has helped to
shape this classic race since 1999. On the following
pages, you can discover this for yourselves by taking a
brief journey in time through our Sebring history.
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6 Audi @Sebring
Sebringmoments
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Audi @Sebring 7
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8 Audi @Sebring
Sebring
moments
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Audi @Sebring 9
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10 Audi @Sebring
Sebring
moments
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Audi @Sebring 11
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12 Audi @Sebring
Sebring
moments
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Audi @Sebring 13
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14 Audi @Sebring
2005
2006
2007
2009
2000
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Audi @Sebring 15
2001
2002
2003
2004
Full
circleSebring 2013Sebring becomes the
home of quattro for the final appearance ofthe LMP1 sports prototypes. The Audi R18e-tron quattro should continue Audiswinning streak in the U.S. endurance classicwhen it contests its first race in the USA.Audi triumphed ten times up to now.
2012
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16 Audi @Sebring
It is both a debut and farewell:
the Audi R18 e-tron quattro
contests the 12-hour race at
Sebring in the USA for the first
time on March 16, 2013. At the same time, it is provision-
ally the final appearance of the fascinating LMP1 sports
cars in the North American endurance classic.
The 13th race at Sebring holds specialsignificance for Audi: due to the ALMS and GRAND-AM
championships merging in the U.S. and the new regula-
tions necessitated by this for 2014, Le Mans Prototypes
of the top LMP1 category are no longer allowed to start
at this traditional event. As a result, events have come
full circle for Audi: in 1999, the brands first sports pro-
totype celebrated its premiere at Sebring now two
LMP1 sports cars with the four rings provisionally con-
test a race here for the final time.
Up to now, Audi has claimed 22 podium
places at Sebring, including ten overall victories. Three
Audi drivers mounted the podium when the brand made
its sports car premiere with the Audi R8R on March 20,
1999. The debut of the Audi R8 at the same venue a year
later presented the brand with its first victory in a sports
car race. Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen is also
the most successful driver ever at Sebring with six victo-
ries. Marco Werner holds the lap record, the trio of Dindo
Capello/Tom Kristensen/Allan McNish the distance
record.
The legendary racetrack on a former
military airfield becomes the home of quattro this year.For the first time since 1989, when drivers like Hans-
Joachim Stuck and Walter Rhrl raced from victory to vic-
tory with the Audi 90 quattro in the IMSA-GTO series,
Marco Werner setthe track record
at Sebring in 2007with the Audi R10
TDI a record thatstill stands today
The 12-hour race at Sebring has been held
since 1952 and becomes the home of
quattro in 2013 for the first time.
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Audi @Sebring 17
Audi Sport contests a factory event in the USA with a
racecar equipped with four-wheel drive. The Audi R18
e-tron quattro is the first hybrid sports car to win the
Le Mans 24 Hours. Its front wheels are powered electri-
cally and thus make the R18 a special type of quattro.
Audi traditionally uses its involvement
in sports prototypes to test new technologies for future
applications in production cars. The fans at Sebring candiscover this for themselves by visiting an exhibition and
embarking on a journey in time through the brands
sports car era. In addition to the factor y drivers like Tom
Kristensen and Allan McNish who are in action on track,
the former Audi drivers and Sebring winners Frank Biela,
Dindo Capello, Emanuele Pirro and Marco Werner are
also present. In this way, Audi thanks the passionate
sports car fans in the USA for their long-standing loyalty
to the brand. Without a shadow of doubt itll be an
emotional race weekend for us, because Sebring and its
fantastic fans enjoy a special status in both our motor-
sport and LMP history, says Head of Audi Motorsport
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich.
Drivers like Frank Biela have shaped Audi history at Sebring several of them will also attend in 2013
Audi driver TomKristensen is
the races mostsuccessful driver
with six wins to hisname
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18 Audi @Sebring
Vorsprungaccelerated
Audi R8, Sebring 2000
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Audi @Sebring 19
Technical developmentThe Audi R8, which won at Sebring
in 2000, was a technical quantum jump. Since then, Audihas shaped the development in sports prototypes with a raft ofinnovations like no other automobile manufacturer.
Audi R18 e-tron quattro,Sebring 2013
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20 Audi @Sebring
When Audi pre-
sented its Le
Mans project at
the Berlin Velo-
drom in December 1998, former Chairman of the Board
of Directors Franz-Josef Paefgen stuck his neck out a
long way: We compete at Le Mans to win!
The majority ridiculed Paefgen at that
time, as many automobile manufactures had not man-
aged themselves to win the worlds most famous endur-
ance race despite making several attempts. However,
after taking third place on its debut in 1999, Audi man-
aged it a year later and since then eleven times. No
other automobile manufacturer has made such an
impact on the Le Mans 24 Hours and the development of
the technically highly demanding sports prototypes in
the last two decades like Audi.
TFSI just one example of the
successful technology transfer
between motorsport and production.
The Sebring International Raceway
plays a major role in this. From the very beginning, Audi
Sport used the challenging and extremely tough track in
central Florida for testing and for its sports prototypes
to make their race debuts starting with the Audi R8R in
March 1999.
Audi had to raise the car by 15 millime-ters for its race debut, otherwise the front splitter would
not have lasted more than 15 laps around the bumpy cir-
cuit. Although the performance suffered massively as a
result, Audi claimed third and fifth places f irst time out
in the race and the team from Ingolstadt and Neckar-
sulm learnt quickly.
The R8 was unveiled as successor to the
R8R a year later. When Don Panoz, founder of the Ameri-
can Le Mans Series, first laid eyes on the car in Miami, he
was flabbergasted: The R8 is such a technical quantum
jump that Audi will dominate the prototype scene for
years to come! His prediction proved to be correct: at
Sebring, the R8 was over five seconds quicker than the
R8R had been just twelve months before. Audi celebrated
63 wins from 80 starts with it, including six wins at
Sebring. The face of endurance racing changed because
of Audi: despite its speed, the R8 was so reliable that
Le Mans was transformed into a 24-hour sprint and it
was no longer sufficient just to bring a car to the f inish.
Both the Audi R10 TDI and the R15 TDI
also recorded victorious debuts at Sebring. The Audi
R18 TDI only added its name to the winners list last
year however, it was tested like its predecessors at
1998 1998 1999Neustadt in summer 1998: Dindo Capellotests with the first prototype of the
Audi R8
Berlin, December 13, 1998: Audipresents its Le Mans project at the
Velodrom in the German capital
Sebring, March 20, 1999: the Audi R8Rclinches a podium result in the brands
first sports car race
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Audi @Sebring 21
Sebring. Audi Sport Team Joest remains at Sebring the
week after the race again this year to put the latest ver-
sion of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro through its paces.
The cumulative expertise gleaned from
14 years of sports prototypes was put into the first
hybrid racecar to win the Le Mans 24 Hours. Audi deliber-
ately selected this category in order to test new technol-ogies and develop existing ones in motorsport. The com-
bination of direct injection and turbo charging in the Audi
R8 was a prime example of this today it has become
indispensable in sporty Audi production models. Audi
revolutionized endurance racing in 2006 for a second
time with the introduction of TDI engines. VTG turbo-
chargers, downsizing, ultra lightweight design or cur-
rently hybrid and quattro drive: no other automobile
manufacturer can boast such an abundance of innova-
tions.
Through the development of innovative
LMP1 sports cars, Audi accelerates its technical advan-
tage with the aid of motorsport. This will also not dimin-
ish in the future on the contrary: the new regulations,
which come into force in 2014, give the engineers even
more creative latitude, and focus on the subject of
energy efficiency. Audi will do everything in its power to
maintain its leading role and certainly continue testingat Sebring.
2000 2006
2012
2009
The Audi R18 e-tron quattro is the firsthybrid racecar to win the Le Mans 24 Hours
it was also tested at S ebring
Miami, March 11, 2000: Allan McNishdrives the new Audi R8 along Ocean Drive
in South Beach to the Hotel Tides thena week later at Sebring Audi clinches itsfirst victory in a sports car race
Sebring, March 18, 2006: Audi claimsa historic victory in the 12-hour race at
Sebring with the first win for a dieselsports car
Sebring, March 21, 2009: the R15 TDIfollows in the tire tracks of the R8 and
R10 TDI by winning on its debut atSebring
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22 Audi @Sebring
Sebring at high-speed
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Vehicle R8R R8
Engine V8 3.6 T V8 3.6 TFSI
Motor power (approx) 550 hp 610 hp 610 hp 610 hp 550 hp 550 hp
Particularities First sports
car race for
Audi
Debut of Audi
R8 and first
victory for
Audi in a
sports car race
First Sebring
win with TFSI
technology
Fastest Audi driver in
qualifying
Emanuele
Pirro
Frank Biela Emanuele
Pirro
Frank Biela Frank Biela JJ Lehto
Grid position 11 1 1 1 1 1
Time (minutes)
Restrictions imposed by the
regulations
Smaller
diameter air
restrictor for
the engine
Smaller
diameter air
restrictor for
the engine
Narrower rear
wing
Best Audi in the race 3. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1.
Chassis number of race
winning Audi
R8-402 R8-502 R8-602 R8-604 R8-603
Start number of race
winning Audi
78 1 2 1 28
Winners BielaKristensen
Pirro
AielloAlboreto
Capello
CapelloHerbert
Pescatori
BielaPeter
Werner
BielaKaffer
McNish
1.55
1.54
1.53
1.52
1.51
1.50
1.49
1.48
1.47
1.46
1.45
1.44
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Audi @Sebring 23
Facts & figuresR8R, R8, R10, R15, R18 Audi fielded five different
prototypes at Sebring. Technical innovations reduced lap times, the rule makerscontinually dampened performance.
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
R10 R15 R18
V12 5.5 TDI V10 5.5 TDI V6 3.7 TDI
520 hp 650 hp 650 hp 650 hp 600 hp 500 hp 510 hp
First race for
the R10 TDI
and first
victory for a
diesel
powered
sports car
Current
qualifying lap
record
Qualifying
cancelled
grid formed
from the best
times set in
free practice
Debut of Audi
R15 TDI,
distance
record
No Audi entry
at Sebring,
only testing
VTG turbo-
charger
First Sebring
race with a
closed car,
mono-turbo-
charger, 10th
Sebring win
for Audi
JJ Lehto Allan McNish Marco Werner Dindo Capello Tom Kristensen Romain
Dumas
Andr Lotterer
1 1 1 2 2 2 1
Smaller
diameter air
restrictor for
the engine,higher weight
Reduced fuel
tank capacity
Reduced boost
pressure,
smaller
diameter airrestrictor for
the engine,
narrower rear
wing, more
ground
clearance
Reduced boost
pressure,
smaller
diameter airrestrictor for
the engine
Reduced boost
pressure,
smaller
diameter airrestrictor for
the engine,
reduced fuel
tank capacity
Reduced boost
pressure,
smaller
diameter airrestrictor for
the engine,
reduced fuel
tank capacity
1. 1. 1. 3. (1. LMP1) 1. 4. 1.
R8-605 R10-101 R10-202 R15-102 R18-102
1 2 2 2 2
KristensenLehto
Werner
CapelloKristensen
McNish
BielaPirro
Werner
CapelloKristensen
McNish
CapelloKristensen
McNish
* not classified
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24 Audi @Sebring
AcidThe circuit
The track built on a former military airfield incentral Florida is regarded as the ultimate test of endurance for manand machine. Audi has used the circuit since 1999 to test its sportsprototypes. The fans and parties at Sebring are also legendary.
test ...
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Audi @Sebring 25
Typical featuresof every Sebring
winning car: dirt,tire debris andthe remains of
countless insects
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26 Audi @Sebring
The legendary
Zoo at Sebring isan absolute must
see it also lures
the drivers.
Far more than 100,000fans visit Sebring
every year and areunrivalled when it
comes to creativity
Turn 1 at Sebring: a
corner that sets thepulses racing of bothfans and drivers alike
... and big party
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Audi @Sebring 27
If you take a trip, then youll
experience something this
sentence is especially perti-
nent for Sebring: what drivers
and team members of the Audi sports car squad have
witnessed at Sebring since 1999 would fill several
volumes.
Sebring is one of the worlds most fasci-nating car races held on a brutal circuit, which with its
bumps, concrete slabs and generally excessive heat
makes demands of man and machine like hardly any
other. However, Sebring is in keeping with Spring
Break in Florida also a gigantic party.
My team-mates warned me before-
hand that the circuit is very bumpy and physically
extremely strenuous, remembers Audi factory driver
Oliver Jarvis. Even so, my first laps in the Audi R18 were
just incredible beforehand, Id never needed so much
time on a racetrack to get up to speed.
Sebring has ballsy corners like Turn 1
with its near blind entr y or the final corner Turn 17, which
five-time Sebring winner Dindo Capello simply describes
as Hammer: You approach at 275 km/h. The tarmac is
somewhat strange and despite the width, there is only
one fast line. Thats typical of Sebring. Timo Bernhard
had a major accident here while testing last year. Others
like Alexandre Prmat somersaulted over the guardrails.
Audi has tested the safety of its new sports prototypes
on more than one occasion while testing at Sebring by
involuntarily subjecting the cars to crash tests. The wear
and tear on parts during the race at Sebring is also unusu-
ally high.
Whoever visits Sebring always has
something to say: from crocodiles in the lake behind the
teams hotel Inn on the Lake. From the giant alligators
run over on the highway. From the Sebring winner who
was stopped by the Sheriff for exceeding the speed limit
on the way back to the hotel, but escaped his ransom by
signing an autograph. From the asphalt breaking up due
to the heat, and which had to be patched up during the
race. From violent thunderstorms and flooding in the
team awning. From innumerable nightshifts to make
newly developed sports prototypes fit for 12 hours and
more specifically Sebring resistant. From two Le Mans
winners, who tired on the rather monotonous journey to
Sebring and slept in the car. From spare parts in the hand
luggage. Or from the PR man who was arrested on the
way to the Zoo for staging a race in a golf buggy with
Miss Sebring.
The Zoo in the circuits infield is
shrouded in legend. It is Sebrings notorious social dis-
trict, in which the creativity of the fans knows no bounds.
I expect that every team member and every driver was
there at least once, believes Head of Audi Motorsport
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. Its absolutely incredible whathappens there, confirms Allan McNish. Fans run a club
at Turn 10, which you can only enter with a special Club
Card. They have their own restaurant, a bar and build
their own grandstand with scaffolding on which they put
chairs its these fans that make Sebring so special. And
they return ever y year.
It is exactly these spectators that Audi
wishes to give something back to by racing at Sebring in
2013. Secretly everybody probably hopes that it is not a
last farewell.
Also a part ofSebring: prettywomen with lotsof naked skin
Party zone: thefans in the Zoobetween turns 3
and 13 are unique
Typical USA:the fans areeven allowedon the grid
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28 Audi @Sebring
2000
2007
2003
2001
2004
Frank Biela, Emanuele Pirro, Tom Kristensen
Frank Biela, Marco Werner, Emanuele Pirro
Philipp Peter, Frank Biela, Marco Werner
Laurent Aiello, Dindo Capello, Michele Alboreto
Allan McNish, Pierre Kaffer, Frank Biela
2002Christian Pescatori, Johnny Herbert, Dindo Capello
2005Tom Kristensen, JJ Lehto, Marco Werner
2006Allan McNish, Tom Kristensen, Dindo Capello
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Audi @Sebring 29
2009Allan McNish, Tom Kristensen, Dindo Capello
x 1
= Audi
2012Tom Kristensen, Dindo Capello, Allan McNish
Sebring winsAudi has won
the 12-hour race at Sebring no lessthan ten times between 1999 and2012. For each of the ten victoriesthere are interesting stories,anecdotes and facts.
10
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30 Audi @Sebring
After my victorious debut the year
before, 2000 was my first race for Audi and the first for
the Audi R8, which went on to become a legendary and
mega successful sports car. I had tested an interim car
during the winter, half R8R and half R8. The new R8 was
presented to the worlds press on Ocean Drive in Miami
just a few days before testing started at Sebring. I still
remember the headline well, The fastest Cabrio in Miami
Beach.
I was fastest in free practice and wanted
to post a good time right at the beginning of first quali-
fying. But a slower car emerged from the pits; it hindered
me and disturbed my rhythm. I locked the front left
wheel under braking and landed in the tire barrier right
under the watchful eyes of my new boss Dr. Wolfgang
Ullrich ...
Frank (Biela) put the repaired car on
pole position the following day. I took over the car twice
from him in the race, and despite several problems with
the brakes we were able to win the race by a margin of
almost 40 seconds from our sister car. It was the first
victory in a sports car race for Audi and the start of an
incredibly successful chapter for the brand with the four
rings.
I have been lucky enough to win Sebring
six times so far. Another special win was that in 2005,
when I had a hard fight with Allan McNish all the way to
the checker. On this day, our fathers decided while having
a beer that Dr. Ullrich should better put us in the same
car. And this is what happened.
2000Tom Kristensen
The debut of the Audi R8 at Sebring ended with a one-twofinish. Remarkably, it was only Audis third sports car race. The Le Mans recordwinner and six-time Sebring victor reminisces.
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Audi @Sebring 31
Bad hair day: in first qualifying Tom Kristensen landed in thetire barrier with the winning car
A tire failure coststart number 77
crucial time.
Excitementall the wayto the flag:
Sebring 2000was marked
by a thrillingduel with the
previous yearswinner BMW
Seat fitting:Sebring 2000
was the firstrace that Tom
Kristensencontested for
Audi
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32 Audi @Sebring
In the thick of the action: Alf,from the TV series with the samename was the Joest teams and itsTechnical Director (R)alf Jttnersmascot in the days of the R8
A special feature of the R8 was its gearbox, whichcould be changed complete with the entire rear
end in less than four minutes
The first customer teams competed
with the Audi R8 during the 2001season. They rounded out the top
four positions for Audi
A stop-and-go penalty justbefore the end of the raceprevented the red R8 fromwinning again
Sebring 2001 was the last race
and final win for the unforgotten
Michele Alboreto.
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Audi @Sebring 33
Ill never forget the 2001 Sebring race:it was Micheles (Alboreto) last race and his last win
before we so tragically lost him in a testing accident. I
will always treasure the picture of him with Laurent
Aiello and myself on the Podium at Sebring.
In 2001, I also took the first of my five
Sebring race wins, which was especially sweet after
having lost a possible victory within sight of the flag due
to brake problems the year before. At that time, I actu-
ally had to steer the car into the pit wall after the race to
stop the car!
I have loads of memories of Sebring. I
drove my first endurance race here in 1999 with Michele
and Stefan Johansson and in fact took Audis first ever
Dindo Capello
The Italian celebrated the first of his five Sebring victorieswith Audi in 2001. However, he also has fond memories of the previous two years.
2001
sports car podium. It was a strange feeling for me:
Michele and Stefan had both raced Formula 1 for Ferrari
and were my idols only a few years before. Suddenly I was
their team-mate.
Ill also remember Sebring for a com-
pletely different reason: it was the first time that I had
ever used a washing machine! Normally I had my overalls
washed at home between races. But after the race in2000 we stayed at Sebring to test and I had to wash my
overalls. Allan (McNish) showed me how to do it another
premiere
By the way, a reminder of Sebring now
stands in one of my Audi Centers in Italy: as a parting
gesture to mark my time as an Audi factory driver, Audi
Sport gave me the original Sebring race-winning car from
2012 on permanent loan nobody could have given me a
better present because Sebring means so much to me.
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34 Audi @Sebring
Customer teamChampion Racing
took second placein 2002
The winners of asizzling battle,
during which thetarmac had to be
repaired in finalthird of the race
2002
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Audi @Sebring 35
Id heard many rumors about Sebring,
about the track, the history and of course about the
notorious infield and its fans. Sebring is very crazy and
yet marvelous at the same time.
It was a fantastic experience to com-
pete for the Audi factory team in 2002 at Sebring and
Le Mans. I knew that I could be successful with this team.
However, I didnt know much about my t wo Italian team-
mates Dindo Capello and Christian Pescatori, and espe-
cially Christian. Both turned out to be lovely blokes who
were great fun to work with. We got on famously and
found a good compromise for the set-up of our Audi R8.
After qualifying, we were all a little
mystified by the big gap in time to the sister car driven
by Frank (Biela). However, the tide turned to our advan-
tage in the race and I could win Sebring on my Audi
debut. We lost time in the early on because the rear sus-
pension had to be repaired after a collision, but this was
the only setback.
Johnny HerbertOn his first outing for
the Audi factory team the ex-Formula 1 driverwon the sizzling battle of 2002 despite arather sleepless night before the race.
Both factory Audis were involved incollisions. While the steering rack had to
be changed on the red R8, the yellowR8 escaped relatively unscathed with just
repairs to the rear suspension
Audi won for
the first time
in 2002 with a
TFSI engine a technology
that also
established
itself in
production
cars.
Race day didnt get off to the best of
starts or bet ter said the night before. I shared my room
with a friend from England and he snored like crazy. The
noise was terrible. I woke him up repeatedly, but he fell
asleep immediately and started to snore again. So, I
grabbed the mattress and a couple of blankets and slept
in the bathroom with the door closed. At least I got some
sleep, but Im sure you can imagine it wasnt the best way
to prepare for an extremely hot 12-hour race, during
which the tarmac even broke up.
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Our first Sebring race with Audi was in
1999. I can still clearly remember telling our electrician
before the race to make sure that the headlights in both
our Audi R8R were correctly adjusted. He laughed at me
and asked: Do you really think that well still be running
when its dark? In the end, I had the last laugh as we
finished third and fifth in Audis first sports car race at
Sebring.
Ralf Jttner
The Audi Sport TeamJoests Technical Director celebrated manyvictories at Sebring. He stood in another pithowever when his team won in 2003.
Joest Audi bests JoestBentley: Audi left itscustomer teams to race theR8 between 2003 and 2005
2003
Small and sweet:the victorious
Joest squad atSebring in 2003 without Ralf
Jttner
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Perfect strategy:Team Boss Reinhold
Joest made his R8 runtriple stints withoutchanging tires thissaved crucial time in
the pits
Tumultuous
celebration: a thrillingbattle between the Audicustomer teams saw
Joest prevai l againstChampion Racing
An additional driver
change just before the
finish denied the
Champion R8 of any
chance of victory.
2003 was a strange year for me at
Sebring. We ran a privately entered customer Audi R8 for
Marco Werner, Frank Biela and Philipp Peter. But I wore
a green jacket just like Head of Audi Motorsport
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich because we supported Team Bent-
ley at the other end of the pit lane.
The Joest Audi went on to win narrowly
from the Champion Audi after an extremely exciting
race. I obviously had to stay in the Bentley pit, even when
it was clear that we had no chance of winning and were
four laps behind the two R8 prototypes. But, the closer
we got to the finish the more I cheered on our guys in the
Joest pit and thought about their strategy. It was tough
but funny at the same time.
Weve gone on to celebrate many more
victories at Sebring and at Audi we always viewed the race
as excellent preparation for Le Mans. But it is also a unique
sports car race on an unusual circuit and always with a
good atmosphere. It really is a great pity that we will race
for the last time here with the LMP1 sports cars.
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38 Audi @Sebring
Head of Audi MotorsportDr. Wolfgang Ullrich wasdelighted about a one-two-three finish for hiscustomer teams in 2004
Pierre Kaffercelebrated his firstvictory at Sebringat the wheel of theAudi R8
Never before had a racing car
celebrated five consecutive
victories at Sebring. The Audi
R8 achieved this and even
grabbed a sixth.
The Champion Audi lost nine laps and anychance of victory in the fourth hour after
colliding with a GT car
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It was great to race for the British Audi
importers at Sebring in 2004. Id raced for Audi Sport UK
in the British Touring Car Championship in 1996 and1997. It was always very enjoyable working with the
British guys.
My team-mates at Sebring were Allan
McNish and Pierre Kaffer. I hadnt really driven much
with either of them before. I arrived at the circuit on
Thursday evening from a DTM test and jumped into the
cockpit for the first time for night practice. The two guys
had done a good job with the set-up. The car felt good.
In the end we won comfortably by five
laps if I remember correctly. It was a victorious debut
Frank Biela
The German competed with Pierre Kaffer andAllan McNish for the first time when Audi Sport UK Team Veloqxmade its debut. The trio held a five-lap lead at the finish.
with the R8 for the Audi UK sports car team, and my third
victory in Sebring after 2000 and 2003.
After Id swapped to the prototypes
with Audi, I learnt a lot of new tracks in North America.
They differed enormously and especially Sebring to
those that I knew from my touring car days in Europe. Itwas a great experience, and especially because of the
extremely easygoing atmosphere in the paddock.
The fans could go everywhere, could see
the cars up close and meet the drivers. It was completely
different to anything Id experienced before, and espe-
cially in Germany where everything is much more strict
and less accessible.
Ive always liked this type of motorsport
in the USA. Its nice to know that nothing has changed in
the meantime.
2004
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40 Audi @Sebring
Victory in 2005 was my second at
Sebring. It was a very hard race over the entire 12 hours,
which Tom Kristensen, JJ Lehto and I won by less than
seven seconds from our sister car in the Champion Rac-
ing team. The race was open until the last corner and the
pressure on us all was immense throughout the race.
Marco Werner
The German was oneof the three drivers who presented theAmerican team Champion Racing with itsfirst Sebring win. But he also has fondmemories of his first Sebring race.
Strong line-up: JJ Lehto, Marco Werner and TomKristensen formed the winning team in 2005
Tough business: the two Champion Audis foughtall the way to the final corner for victory in 2005
2005
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Third Sebring win: Tom Kristensenwithstood the pressure from
Allan McNish in the closing stages
But I also have fond memories of my
first race at Sebring in 2003. At that time, I was quite
new to Team Joest and had only previously contested one
race in the Audi R8, namely Le Mans the year before. In
2003, Audi didnt race as a factory in the ALMS and in the
season opener at Sebring the center of attention was on
Bentley and Champion Audi. Our private Joest Audi was
certainly not the favorite for victory, but we still won.
I drove two three-hour stints in the
race. This helped us to save time at the pit stops and to
fight for victory. I had a 15 second lead in my final stint
before this was cancelled by another safety car. From
then on I had to drive every lap of my first ALMS race like
qualifying. My lap times were def initely a big surprise for
many people, especially as I was only a Porsche Super-
cup driver before.
I still hold the qualifying record at
Sebring that I set in 2007 with the Audi R10 TDI. That
was the year of my last victory here. One thing is certain
Ill never ever forget Sebring.
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Martin Winterkorn,
at that time Chairman of the Board of
Management of AUDI AG, waved thegreen flag as honorary starter in 2005.
After 12 hours a mere 6.365 secondsseparated the two Champion Audis of
Allan McNish and Tom Kristensen
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The first race for a
diesel was a pioneering
achievement, the first
victory a piece of
motorsport history.
False start: instead of starting from poleposition, the Audi R10 TDI with startnumber 2 started from the pit lane
Will it or wont it hold? Head of AudiMotorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich lookscritically at the V12 TDI engine
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Audi @Sebring 43
2006
Sebring 2006 was one of the most
stressful yet exciting races that I have ever experienced. It
was our first race with the diesel and Id broken my foot afew weeks before while skiing. I negotiated with the doc-
tors that then should operate on me as soon as possible.
After a day and a half they threw me out of the hospital
because my bed was covered in documents and my lap-
top they argued that it is a hospital and not an office ...
So, I travelled to Sebring with my
crutches, which was anything but pleasant at the race-
track. The entire week was quite stressful for us. We had
to change engines several times. It was only later that we
discovered that it was just sensors that were mounted
incorrectly. Our top manager Professor Martin
Ulrich BaretzkyThe Head of Engine Development will never
forget Sebring 2006: the first race for a diesel sports car was full ofperilous hurdles but still ended with a historical victory.
Winterkorn really tore a strip of me for this sloppiness,
even though this was not part of my responsibility.
After the warm-up, we had to change
the heat-exchanger on the car that should have started
the race from pole position. Normally, you need three
hours for this, but we had just one and a half hours and
managed it just in time. Dindo Capello chased after the
field from the pit lane and was already up to second
place behind the leading sister car after 30 minutes.
The telemetry hadnt worked on the
leading car since the beginning of the race. This is why we
couldnt see that the coolers were blocked and the engine
overheated. After about four hours we had to stop. The
drivers were devastated and completely down, but to
compensate they won at Le Mans.
In spite of all the problems, we still
managed to get the car that started from the pit lane to
the finish and win the race and, in doing so, write motor-
sport history with the first win for a diesel-powered
sportscar. Ill never forget this!
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Sebring 2007 made amends for the bad
memories from the previous year. I dearly wanted to win
when our diesel sports car made its world premiere as I
had on the debut of the Audi R8 in 2000. Unfortunately,
we had a technical problem and retired, which made thevictory even sweeter in the 2007 season.
Marco Werner set a qualifying lap
record on the way to putting our car on pole position. A
record that still stands today. However, we didnt just
Emanuele Pirro
The Audi R10 TDI recordedits second consecutive Sebring victory despiteseveral performance concessions to the lighterLMP2 cars of the competition.
The final part of the race wasvery long for Marco Werner:the German was bursting togo to the bathroom ...
2007
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46 Audi @Sebring2009
The lead changed hands 22 times
between Audi and Peugeot during
the fastest Sebring race of all time.
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Audi @Sebring 47
The race at Sebring in 2009 was
incredibly intense. It was the R15 TDIs race debut. The
R8 and R10 TDI had both won their first races at Sebring.
To repeat this was hard, because everything was new
the car, the concept and the aerodynamics. We were up
against strong, aggressive competition and especially
our old friends from Peugeot.
It was nail biting from the first to last
lap. There was a lot of overtaking, the lead exchanged
hands many times Peugeot overtook us, we got past
Peugeot. We fought like crazy for t welve hours. We had
to make every pit stop count and every strategy call by
the team. The race was decided in the last two or three
hours. I have to say they were possibly the best couple of
hours Ive ever driven. I extracted the absolute maxi-
mum from the car, which was perfectly suited to this
track at the time.
The R15 TDI was the best car that Id
ever driven around Sebring, the balance, feel and con-
trol. I could make the car do exactly what I wanted, and
so this car also celebrated a debut win at Sebring.
The race fans at Sebring are like nowhere
else in the world. They have incredible enthusiasm. They
dont just come to watch a legendary race; they want to
be a part of it.
I remember in 2011 when an open-top
bus with the shape, design and colors of our Audi R10 TDI
from a few years previously appeared in the paddock.
Things like this only happen at Sebring.
Allan McNish
The Scotsman was akey to success in many an Audi victory atSebring and especially when the R15 TDIwon on its debut in 2009.
Command center: the smallest
strategic mistake would havemeant defeat in 2009
The Audi R15 TDI was Audis lastopen sports prototype
Allan McNish drove a great race in2009 at the start as well as in theclosing stages
The Audi R15 TDI with its innovativeaerodynamic concept was unveiled to thepublic at Sebring
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48 Audi @Sebring
Reinhold Joest, who had competed him-
self at Sebring, told us that the race in Florida is the best
preparation for Le Mans. It was good that we listened to
his advice. Sebring was always the perfect dress rehearsal
for the new season and for the 24-hour race at Le Mans.
Dr. Wolfgang UllrichThe Head of Audi
Motorsport has led the brand with the fourrings to all its ten Sebring wins so far and
these in just 13 races.
Turn 1 Club: customers and guests fromAudi of America could follow the 2012 race
from rather unique hospitality facilities atthe end of the start-finish straight
Downsizing: 2012 was thefirst Sebring race with thecompact V6 TDI engine
2012
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Audi @Sebring 49
Dindo Capello receivedthe original race-
winning car from 2012
on permanent loan tomark his retirement as
Audi factory driver
The Audi R18 TDI was in a class ofits own on its Sebring debut
Sebring 2012 was the beginning of
a new era: it was the opening race
of the new FIA World Endurance
Championship (WEC).
Sebring is a unique racetrack. Hard and
demanding for both man and machine whoever sur-
vives this 12-hour race without problems is usually well
equipped for every other challenge. This is why Sebring
has been a fixed date on our sports car calendar every
since our sports car program started in 1999.
The first victory is always the sweetest.
I can still vividly remember the launch of the Audi R8 in
Miami Beach in March 2000, and how we won the race at
Sebring only a week later. It was just fantastic, particu-
larly as it was only our third sports car race after Sebring
and Le Mans in 1999. It was also the start of an incredi-
ble winning streak for the Audi R8, which ultimately took
63 wins in 80 races.
For me, the worst year was 2010 when
we decided during development of the R15 plus not to
race at Sebring for logistical reasons. I was theredespite this and must say it was hard to watch the race
without Audi participation. It was even harder than the
defeat in 2011 when we were fast, but unlucky with
both cars. In 2012, we succeeded in taking the brands
tenth victory when we raced a closed LMP at Sebring for
the first time.
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50 Audi @Sebring
Back inthe USA
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Audi @Sebring 51
Audi in U.S. motor racingRaces in North America have always
played an important role in Audis successful motorsporthistory. The brand returns to the racetracks in this importantmarket with the R8 GRAND-AM.
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52 Audi @Sebring
Back in the USA: Audi signals
the return to U.S. motor-
sport through greater com-
mitment from Audi Sport
customer racing North America in the GRAND-AM series.
The USA gains increasingly in impor-
tance for Audi. In the 2012 financial year, the brand with
the four rings increased its sales in this essential market
by 18.5 per cent to 139,310 automobiles. As a result,
Audi is growing significantly quicker than the entire mar-
ket in the United States. The comeback in U.S. motor-
sport should support this trend.
Win on Sunday, sell on Monday Audi
has mimicked this slogan originating from the USA
repeatedly in the past: during the rally era in the 1980s,
the brand triumphed three times in the famous PikesPeak hill climb in Colorado with the Audi quattro. Walter
Rhrls record run with the spectacular Audi Sport
quattro S1 remains unforgotten. He was the first driver
to storm up the summit in less than eleven minutes.
In 1988, U.S. racing legend Hurley Hay-
wood won on Audis closed circuit debut in the Trans-Am
Series with the Audi 200 quattro. Audi grabbed the head-
lines a year later as a newcomer claiming seven victories
in the IMSA-GTO Series. Audi made a lasting impression
with its sports prototypes in the American Le Mans
Series (ALMS) between 2000 and 2008: Audi won the
LMP1 championship title nine times in succession, just as
often as it has the Petit Le Mans race at Road Atlanta
and the 12 hours of Sebring ten times so far.
The further developed Audi R8 GRAND-AMcelebrated a one-two finish in the GT class atthe 24-hour race at Daytona in January
Audi won the championshiptitle nine times in successionin the LMP1 category in theAmerican Le Mans Series
Based on the GT3version, the AudiR8 GRAND-AMwas developedspecifically for theU.S. market
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Audi @Sebring 53
Audi of America used the American
Le Mans Series and motorsport to inspire invited dealersand guests for the brand. The call from dealers in the
USA for a return to U.S. motorsport gains intensity ever
since Audi switched its factory program with sports pro-
totypes to the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).
The first step now follows in the GT
class of the GRAND-AM series, which merges with the
American Le Mans Series in 2014 to form a new U.S.
sports car series and therefore gain increasingly in
importance.
Based on the successful Audi R8 LMS
GT3 customer racing racecar, quattro GmbH developed a
special U.S. version for the GRAND-AM series. Following
initial outings in the 2012 season, many details of the
The Audi brand is
growing particularly
strongly in the U.S.market the motorsport
activities should
strengthen this trend.
It must be love: the enthusiasm for thebrand with the four rings and its producesknows virtually no limits in the USA
near 500 hp mid-engine sports car were revised to great
effect. In January, the Audi customer teams Alex Job
Racing and APR Motorsport claimed a one-two finish in
the GT class with the Audi R8 GRAND-AM in the 24-hour
race at Daytona.
By racing at Daytona, we wanted to be
sure that anybody who contemplates racing in the GT
class in the GRAND-AM series thinks about the Audi R8,
says Romolo Liebchen, Head of Audi Sport customer rac-
ing. We achieved exactly this goal thanks to the strong
performance and fantastic result.
Audi Sport customer racing North
America will support customer teams that choose the
Audi R8 GRAND-AM for example, with competitive
drivers as was the case at Daytona. What the future
holds in the USA remains to be seen. I think that Audi
should not be satisfied with f ighting for class victories,
said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich at
Daytona. This was never our strategy.
Audis successful motorsport history in
the USA started with several wins at thefamous Pikes Peak hill climb
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