-
Home
- TV Shows
- TV Schedule
- NASCAR
-
Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Games
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
Le Mans / ALMS
ALMS: Dyson Debuts New Lola In Sebring Testing
Worldwide debut of Lola B12/60 Mazda among the highlights from ALMS testing Saturday at Sebring...
Dyson Racing's new Lola B12/60 Mazda took to Sebring International Raceway for the first time Saturday. (Photo: John Dagys)
After much anticipation and buildup, Dyson Racing’s new Lola B12/60 Mazda took to Sebring International Raceway Saturday, turning its first laps in the worldwide debut of Lola’s new LMP1 contender.
The blue and white No. 016 Lola was among seven American Le Mans Series cars to take to the 3.7-mile airfield circuit today, as part of an unofficial test ahead of next Saturday’s 60th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, the opening round of the ALMS and FIA World Endurance Championship.
Defending P1 co-champion Chris Dyson had the honor of completing the car’s initial laps late in mid-afternoon before handing over to Sebring rookie Steven Kane for the final 15 minutes of Saturday’s session.
In all, around 20 laps were completed, with the best lap time in the 1:55 range, according to Dyson, who was clearly not looking for speed out of the box with the new prototype package.
“The guys have really been hammering since we got the car on Monday,” Dyson told SPEED.com. “I think we're all pleased to get the last hour [of testing] in. The encouraging thing is that everything fundamentally feels very, very good.”
Compared to Dyson’s previous Lola B09/86, the 2012-spec machine features significant aerodynamic updates as well as full-size rear tires on all four corners, a trend started by HPD in 2009 with the ARX-02a.
“You obviously have the wider tires and they have a slightly different construction, which I think is pretty nice,” Dyson said. “My initial impressions are quite favorable. We just have to get everything [dialed in]. The ride heights, etc for the aero correct but the car feels very robust. Just driving it, it felt like home right away.”
While Dyson was the lone P1 car on track today, a trio of P2 cars also completed laps, including both Level 5 Motorsports HPD ARX-03b’s, unofficially posting lap times in the 1:55 and 1:56 range.
Scott Tucker completed 51 laps in the No. 055 HPD, setting a respectable 1:55 on the slippery and green circuit. However, an oil leak kept the defending P2 champion from returning to action in the afternoon.
Teammate Luis Diaz rolled out Level 5’s freshly built No. 95 car around noontime, but it too faced mechanical gremlins, with the Mexican ace only getting a handful of laps in before the 2.8-liter V6 powerplant suffered turbo issues.
“The guys did a great job putting this car together,” Diaz said. “The goal for us was to run the car and see if there was any major problems. We had some problems, but it was good to have them today.
“Everything else felt normal. Unfortunately we couldn't run the car hard to see where it is with setup. But I think with all of the previous testing, I think we have a good idea of where to start.”
Conquest Endurance debuted its new Morgan-Judd P2, with Martin Plowman and David Heinemeier Hansson combining to complete close to 40 laps in the first official running of the heavily revised French-built prototype at Sebring.
The Eric Bachelart-led squad, making the transition from IndyCar, ventured out in the afternoon session, with open-wheel rising star Plowman turning a best time in the 1:56 range, unofficially.
“We had [some] teething problems, electrical things here and there,” Plowman explained. “We're just shaking the car down and are finding a few things. But that's why we were here today and will be back Monday and Tuesday. The good thing is that we don't have any major problems.”
Flying Lizard Motorsports and Green Hornet Racing also took advantage of the seven hours of available track time Saturday, dialing in their GT and GTC-class Porsches in advance of official testing for FIA WEC and ALMS competitors, which gets underway on Monday.
PHOTOS: Sebring Saturday Testing Gallery
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
ALMS
The blue and white No. 016 Lola was among seven American Le Mans Series cars to take to the 3.7-mile airfield circuit today, as part of an unofficial test ahead of next Saturday’s 60th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, the opening round of the ALMS and FIA World Endurance Championship.
Defending P1 co-champion Chris Dyson had the honor of completing the car’s initial laps late in mid-afternoon before handing over to Sebring rookie Steven Kane for the final 15 minutes of Saturday’s session.
In all, around 20 laps were completed, with the best lap time in the 1:55 range, according to Dyson, who was clearly not looking for speed out of the box with the new prototype package.
“The guys have really been hammering since we got the car on Monday,” Dyson told SPEED.com. “I think we're all pleased to get the last hour [of testing] in. The encouraging thing is that everything fundamentally feels very, very good.”
Compared to Dyson’s previous Lola B09/86, the 2012-spec machine features significant aerodynamic updates as well as full-size rear tires on all four corners, a trend started by HPD in 2009 with the ARX-02a.
“You obviously have the wider tires and they have a slightly different construction, which I think is pretty nice,” Dyson said. “My initial impressions are quite favorable. We just have to get everything [dialed in]. The ride heights, etc for the aero correct but the car feels very robust. Just driving it, it felt like home right away.”
While Dyson was the lone P1 car on track today, a trio of P2 cars also completed laps, including both Level 5 Motorsports HPD ARX-03b’s, unofficially posting lap times in the 1:55 and 1:56 range.
Scott Tucker completed 51 laps in the No. 055 HPD, setting a respectable 1:55 on the slippery and green circuit. However, an oil leak kept the defending P2 champion from returning to action in the afternoon.
Teammate Luis Diaz rolled out Level 5’s freshly built No. 95 car around noontime, but it too faced mechanical gremlins, with the Mexican ace only getting a handful of laps in before the 2.8-liter V6 powerplant suffered turbo issues.
“The guys did a great job putting this car together,” Diaz said. “The goal for us was to run the car and see if there was any major problems. We had some problems, but it was good to have them today.
“Everything else felt normal. Unfortunately we couldn't run the car hard to see where it is with setup. But I think with all of the previous testing, I think we have a good idea of where to start.”
Conquest Endurance debuted its new Morgan-Judd P2, with Martin Plowman and David Heinemeier Hansson combining to complete close to 40 laps in the first official running of the heavily revised French-built prototype at Sebring.
The Eric Bachelart-led squad, making the transition from IndyCar, ventured out in the afternoon session, with open-wheel rising star Plowman turning a best time in the 1:56 range, unofficially.
“We had [some] teething problems, electrical things here and there,” Plowman explained. “We're just shaking the car down and are finding a few things. But that's why we were here today and will be back Monday and Tuesday. The good thing is that we don't have any major problems.”
Flying Lizard Motorsports and Green Hornet Racing also took advantage of the seven hours of available track time Saturday, dialing in their GT and GTC-class Porsches in advance of official testing for FIA WEC and ALMS competitors, which gets underway on Monday.
PHOTOS: Sebring Saturday Testing Gallery
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
ALMS
FIA WEC Six Hours of Spa
LATEST HEADLINES: AUTO-RACING
-
MILLER: Carpenter's Simply A Great Story
Regardless of what his detractors might say, Ed Carpenter's mighty… -
V8: Whincup Dominates Austin 400
Red Bull Racing Driver wins three of the four 100km sprints in V8… -
INDYCAR: Newgarden Fastest Sunday Indy 500 Qualifier, Legge Completes…
Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing's Josef Newgarden led Sunday's final… -
V8: Red Bull's Whincup On A Roll At COTA
Jamie Whincup takes pole for V8 Supercar Races 15 and 16, Live! on… -
V8: Nissan Coming To Grips With New Altima
John Dagys explores Nissan's new factory venture in V8 Supercars… -
GT: O'Connell, Aschenbach Win Saturday's WC GT, GTS Races At COTA…
Johnny O’Connell led all the way to win Saturday’s Pirelli… -
V8: COTA Saturday Notebook
John Dagys explores some of the storylines from Saturday’s… - More News
