Laguna Seca Presented By Mazda 09/09/2001   Laguna Seca Preview   © Tom Kjos The American Le Mans Series returns to California for the second time this season and to the Monterey Peninsula's Laguna Seca Raceway for the third time in the three-year history of the series. This is now the penultimate event of the 2001 season, the cancellation of Charlotte having made October's Petit Le Mans the finale. Again, we are coming off a Panoz win, the team's second in three races. At Mid-Ohio they used flawless pit strategy and just enough speed to overcome a mistake-ridden Audi Sport North America effort. Panoz brings the Roadster S to a site at which they showed on-track superiority last year, racing out to an early lead before engine problems left Jan Magnussen and David Brabham spectators at the finish--an Audi win. "We have to keep beating the Audis," predicts / hopes David Brabham. But it's four against two now. After Panoz and the history-making Joest Racing prepared R8s' winning run (see Janos Wimpffen's The Silver Streak, using this link, there are the 2000-model Audis of series regular Champion Racing and Stefan Johansson's Gulf-liveried prototype. The latter is an ELMS regular which returns to North America for the first time since Sebring. The silver Audi Sport North America R8s remain the favorites, but not as prohibitively so as they were earlier in the season. Not only has Panoz beaten them twice, but also Champion Racing's Johnny Herbert and Andy Wallace took a serious shot at the race win at Mosport, only to see their effort come to naught in a tire barrier. Dyson Racing's Riley & Scott Mark III C was impressive in the previous two races, garnering a podium finish at Mid-Ohio, but will skip this race to celebrate their already won Grand Am Championship final at Daytona's season-ending round. Jon Field returns with the Intersport Lola, having missed only Portland and Mosport among the North American rounds of the ALMS this season. The new Lola B2K / 10B chassis that was introduced at Mid-Ohio is reported to be some 35% stiffer than its predecessor. After overheating problems, the Field-driven car ended its day there pasted to the outside of the pit wall, helping to set up the late-race drama that led to the Magnussen-Brabham win. . Intersport may have potential, but when you run only half the race laps, as they did at their home track of Mid-Ohio, it is hard to demonstrate that potential. Cadillac has been a regular participant since Le Mans, and the turbo cars are entered here. This is an effort that can most charitably be described as an extended test. Cadillac has a new chassis in the wings for next year. If they are learning anything from these machines, it has not been particularly apparent on the track. Champion Racing is certainly capable of landing in the podium mix. We've seen too little of the Gulf Audi to know if its development has kept pace with the other LMP 900s in this field. Hardware appears to be more evenly matched than it was at the start of the season, so drivers count all the more. Among those to watch are Kristensen / Capello (Audi Sport), Herbert / Wallace (Champion), and Brabham / Magnussen (Panoz). Dick Barbour Racing re-mixes its driving squad in LPM 675. Milka Duno currently partners Didier de Radigues in the #5 Reynard 01Q Judd in relief of Bruno Lambert. In the #57 sister car, John Graham will be joined by a driver to be announced. A dogged Roock-KnightHawk Racing shows up to challenge again. This team gets an "A" for persistence, but the Lola B2K / 40, underpowered by a Nissan V6, leaves them with little chance, particularly without ace driver Claudia Huertgen. The GTS Konrad Saleen S7R is fast and run by an experienced, professional team. Then raceday comes, and everything that can go wrong does. Not since Sebring does the S7R have an ALMS win. Laguna Seca was the site of the car's maiden voyage in 2000. Perhaps this anniversary will provide the charm they need. Team, driver, and manufacturer championships are all but wrapped up by Corvette. American Viperacing will also be there, this time with veteran racer John Paul Jr. partnering Shane Lewis in the #45 GTS-R. Ex-ORECA star David Donohue couldn't get much out of the ESP Vipers, so it is unlikely anyone else will. The three team battle for GT honors between Alex Job Racing, PTG, and BMW Motorsport continues, as does a four-race ALMS string for BMW. If there is any dominance in this class it has come from one car. The #42 BMW Motorsport M3 in the hands of JJ Lehto and Jörg Müller has run away from the field in the last two races. There has been little to chose between the next five in the field. In race after race, five or six cars have been roped together and trading places from green to checkered flag. We'll hope for more of the same at Laguna Seca. After the six cars fielded by these three teams, the Petersen Motorsports' Porsche is nearly always next in line--literally. Seikel Motorsport, joined by one of Kevin Buckler's Racer's Group Porsches, fills out the RS field. Behind that the second Racer's Group entry adds a third car to the R class normally populated only by Kyser Racing and Dick Barbour's #15 Porsche. This week's trivia quiz. Who is the young ALMS driver who has this stellar 1990's racing record characteristic of Formula 1 racers and better than most? 1991 Monaco F3 winner 1993 Macau F3 winner 1994 German F3 winner 1996 F3000 champion 1997 Formula 1 Test driver 1999 Formula 1 Test driver Answers may be posted in the Racing Talk Forum, under American Le Mans Series, using this link. Copyright ©2000-©2023 TotalMotorSport