Last European stop for the Audi R18 TDI
The 6-hour race at Silverstone (Great Britain) marks the beginning of the final sprint for Audi in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup (ILMC) - the racing series that will become the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2012.
Only one week after the DTM round at Brands Hatch the Audi sports car prototype squad is traveling to the United Kingdom: The fifth of seven ILMC rounds in 2011 is on the calendar at the Grand Prix circuit in Silverstone. Audi Sport Team Joest is again fielding two vehicles of the Le Mans winning Audi R18 TDI featuring ultra-lightweight technology that will be driven by Timo Bernhard and Marcel Fässler (car number "1") and Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish (car number "2").
Audi has fond memories of Silverstone. In 2008 Audi Sport Team Joest triumphed at the last European run of the Audi R10 TDI, winning the champion’s title in the LMS in the process. At the ILMC’s debut last year two Audi R15 TDI cars were on the front row of the grid.
Given that the most recent event, the 6-hour race at Imola, did not go according to plans for Audi Sport Team Joest, with Bernhard/Fässler and Kristensen/McNish taking third and fourth place, there is only one aim for Silverstone: victory.
Since the event at Imola further work on fine-tuning the setup of the Audi R18 TDI has been done in track tests. In addition, it should be easier for the sports prototype powered by an innovative V6 TDI engine to bring its strengths to bear on the British Grand Prix circuit.
With respect to its driver line-up Audi is optimally set for Silverstone. Allan McNish has already won the race three times (in 2004, 2005 and 2008), took the pole position last year and regards Silverstone as his home track. Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen won there in Formula 3000 and in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC). Timo Bernhard and Marcel Fässler, who have been forming a driver pairing since Imola, have been on the podium at Silverstone as well.
The Silverstone 6 Hours will start on Sunday, September 11, at 11:35 a.m., local time. Audi.tv will air a full-length broadcast of the race live on the internet at http://microsites.audi.com/lemans/.
