DEFENDING CHAMPS CORVETTE FIVE SECONDS FASTER; HARD DAY'S WORK FOR TEAM CADILLAC
LE MANS, May 5, 2002 – Team Cadillac and defending Le Mans GTS Champions, Corvette Racing, had their first test on the revised and slightly longer Le Mans track during the official Open Test today. On a cold Sarthe track both teams spent the day looking for the best possible set-up for the June 24-hour race, something which was not always easy. The Corvettes ran consistently faster than a year ago, while both Cadillacs chased a good set-up for most of the day. Between today and the race in June, Team Cadillac will go back to the USA to continue its comprehensive test program, while Corvette Racing will participate in the Sears Point ALMS race on May 19.
Defending GTS Champions, Corvette Racing, were more than happy with their day's work. "All six drivers were capable of running laps well under four minutes in race trim, which is five seconds faster than we were capable of doing last year," Program Manager Doug Fehan said. "Today's performance exceeded our wildest expectations, so I'm satisfied with all the good work done by everybody."
Last year's GTS winner Ron Fellows was equally pleased: "We had a bunch of problems in the beginning of the day, but the crew knew exactly what to do, so all in all it wasn't a big deal. We had a component failure in the gearbox, so that's something to look at, but once that was repaired we were running like clockwork. I'm already looking forward to June." The team is actually that well prepared that the six drivers will go from Le Mans to the Persian Gulf to visit the US Fifth Fleet for a week!
Over at Team Cadillac people were more guarded. "I expected we would be closer," Cadillac LMP Project Manager Jeff Kettman said. "We chased the handling all day long. The crew worked hard and the cars were prepared well, while all the previous issues we had, like the starter and the flywheel, were gone. But the car just wasn't as responsive as it should be. We'll have a long look at the data and test as much as we can between now and June."
Le Mans 24 Hours – Open Test 2002 ALMS – Final times
| 1. |
Capello/Herbert/Pescatori |
Audi R8 |
3m30s296 |
| 2. |
Montagny/Sarrazin/Johansson |
Dallara-Judd |
3m32s168 |
| 3. |
Biela/Kristensen/Pirro |
Audi R8 |
3m32s578 |
| 4. |
Krumm/Peter/Werner |
Audi R8 |
3m33s180 |
| 5. |
Bailey/Blundell |
MG Lola EX257 (1st LMP675) |
3m33s414 |
| 6. |
Wallace/Leitzinger/Van de Poele |
Bentley EXP Speed 8 |
3m34s556 |
| 7. |
Lammers/Coronel/Hillebrand |
Dome-Judd S101 |
3m34s690 |
| 8. |
McGarrity/Kane |
MG Lola EX257 (2nd LMP675) |
3m35s348 |
| 9. |
Beretta/Johansson |
Dallara-Judd |
3m35s826 |
| 10. |
Cottaz/Derichebourg/Bjork |
Courage-Judd C60JX |
3m35s899 |
| 16. |
Collard/Bernard/Lehto |
Cadillac Northstar LMP 02 |
3m39s818 |
| 17. |
Angelelli/Taylor/Tinseau |
Cadillac Northstar LMP 02 |
3m39s872 |
| 23. |
Knight/Hawkins/Dayton |
MG Lola EX257 (3rd LMP675) |
3m48s326 |
| 26. |
Enge/Menu |
Ferrari 550 Maranello (1st GTS) |
3m52s070 |
| 28. |
Bouchut/Rosenblad/Chereau |
Chrysler Viper GTS-R (2nd GTS) |
3m55s901 |
| 29. |
Fellows/O'Connell/Gavin |
Chevrolet Corvette C5-R (3rd GTS) |
3m56s660 |
| 30. |
Pilgrim/Collins/Freon |
Chevrolet Corvette C5-R (4th GTS) |
3m56s802 |
| 36. |
Buckler/Bernhard/Luhr |
Porsche 911 GT3-RS (1st GT) |
4m10s081 |
| 38. |
Liddell/Demeroutis/Masarati |
Porsche 911 GT3-RS (2nd GT) |
4m12s400 |
| 40. |
Montermini/Garbagnati |
Ferrari 360 Modena (3rd GT) |
4m13s754 |
|
