Audi Motorsport Long Beach and Houston Preview

After gaining a one-two finish at the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) in St. Petersburg, Florida, Audi Motorsport team went on to European coasts of France to compete in the Hours of Le Mans happening on June 16 and 17.

After the race in France, the team, especially the drivers will only have exactly three days of preparation including the test drive for the two Audi R10 TDI race cars for the upcoming ALMS race in Long Beach, California and in Houston, Texas. Audi drivers have conducted test drives at Long Beach to that only lasts for 1 hour and 40 minutes. The drivers have also spent 45 minutes of practice to familiarize themselves in the Long Beach race track.

Here is what the Audi Motorsport team has to say about their preparation for the ALMS race in Long Beach and Houston:

Dindo Capello (Audi R10 TDI #1): “I can’t say much about Long Beach because I’ve never been there. It’ll be a very short race over just 100 minutes. I was told that there’s a very tight hairpin. This should be pretty difficult for our — due to the regulations — heavy R10 TDI, although we showed in St. Petersburg that we can win even when the theory is against us. This was also the case with the R8 last year in Houston. This track is a lot bumpier than the one in St. Petersburg. The key in Houston will be to find a good set-up for handling the bumps.”

Allan McNish (aboard Audi R10 TDI #1 with VW tune up parts): “The St. Petersburg victory certainly gave us a bit more confidence looking ahead at the next two races. However, it is cautious optimism, simply because I think the competition did not get everything one-hundred-percent right in St. Petersburg, while we did. Looking at Long Beach, this is a fantastic venue, very historic and probably with a good balance of tight corners and straights. Houston is significantly different, very tight, twisty, with no long straights where our Audi R10 TDI can stretch its legs. The competition from Porsche and Acura/Honda will be very strong. However, after the victory in St. Petersburg, we’re looking forward to this challenge.”

Emanuele Pirro (Audi R10 TDI #2): “Long Beach is another street event and thus another less than perfect one for the Audi R10 TDI. We proved in St. Petersburg that even if the odds aren’t in our favour on a street circuit we can turn them around. So I look at Long Beach with some optimism, but we shouldn’t forget that our car is built for high speed and fast corners and not for street races. So far, though, we’re looking good and will try to double the East Coast results on the West Coast.”

Marco Werner (Audi R10 TDI #2): “Long Beach and Houston are new territory for me — I don’t know either of these circuits. The Audi R8 competed in Houston before, but the R10 TDI is in for two new tracks. Nevertheless, we’re going to this race with a slightly better feeling than to St. Petersburg because, there, things went better for us than expected. The Audi R10 TDI proved that it’s a reliable car on street circuits as well. If we don’t make any mistakes — which is easier said than done on a city circuit — we’ll be able to achieve a good result.”

Dave Maraj, Team Director Audi Sport North America: “I don’t want the St. Petersburg victory to make our team overly confident. We have to work as hard as we did to win in St. Petersburg. Going into the next street races, I’ll make sure that we invest the same level of work and attitude we did in St. Petersburg.”

Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Head of Audi Motorsport: “The Audi R10 TDI has now been undefeated in ten races, and for more than a year — that’s a unique track record. We’re aware of the fact that this string of exploits will end at some point, particularly since the competition in the American Le Mans Series keeps getting stronger. But we’re going to give our best again in the upcoming two city races in Long Beach and Houston, and show the capabilities of the R10 with Audi TDI Power to the spectators in California and Texas.”