Stuttgart. With a complete triumph for Porsche the American Le Mans Series for 2006 drew to a close in California’s Laguna Seca. After the Stuttgart sports car manufacturer had already clinched the manufacturers and team championship titles in the LMP2 class with the RS Spyder, Porsche factory drivers Sascha Maassen (Belgium) and Lucas Luhr (Monaco) claimed the drivers title in a fiercely-contested season-final.
The exciting four hour race thrilled spectators with tough fights for positions and many changes of the lead. On the demanding track close to Monterey, where the Porsche RS Spyder celebrated its successful racing premiere one year ago, Porsche achieved its seventh class victory of the season for the RS Spyder thanks to drivers Lucas Luhr and Romain Dumas (France). Their RS Spyder with starting number 7 gave an exceptional performance, even fighting for overall victory in the dramatic season-final. Having secured the best time during testing and a good position in qualifying, the Weissach-developed and Penske Motorsports-run prototype led the field several times ahead of the more powerful LMP1 vehicles.
In the second RS Spyder with starting number 6, Sascha Maassen and Timo Bernhard (Germany) secured second place in the LMP2 class. With this result, Lucas Luhr and Sascha Maassen jointly won the drivers title in the LMP2 category. The pair had shared the cockpit of an RS Spyder in the opening races of the season .
“With the drivers title we have reached all the goals we had set for ourselves for the first season with the RS Spyder,” said Porsche’s head of motorsport Hartmut Kristen. “This has been an incredibly successful year for the entire team, and at the same time a great motivation for potential customer teams to compete with the RS Spyder in 2007 with our support. The past season was the most interesting in the history of the American Le Mans Series, especially for the spectators, and it’s the best thing that could happen to the series, because it secures its future.”
Wolfgang Dürheimer, board member for R&D at Porsche, who came to Laguna Seca to wish them luck, pointed out the importance of Penske Motorsports and tyre partner Michelin’s contribution to the success. “Roger Penske has written another successful chapter of Porsche motorsport history together with us.” In particular, he emphasised the double victory of the RS Spyder against the higher-classed LMP1 competitors at Mid-Ohio in May, where Porsche achieved a premiere in the history of the American Le Mans Series.
Joerg Bergmeister made Porsche’s triumph perfect in Laguna Seca, clinching the GT2 class title after an inspired chase. At the wheel of a Petersen Motorsports/White Lightning Racing 911 GT3 RSR, the winner of 2005 finished second together with Patrick Long (USA) and grabbed the title from his Porsche colleague Johannes van Overbeek (USA), who had led the series since the opening round in Sebring. Bergmeister has already won the American GrandAm Series this year and is now the first driver to clinch the championship titles in both series.
Porsche also won the manufacturers title in the GT2 class. This as well is a first: By now no manufacturer succeeded in winning two classes within one season in the history of the American Le Mans Series.
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