American LeMans
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LE MANS: Muscle Milk Forgoes LM24 Entry
Newly crowned American Le Mans Series P1 champions not planning trip to 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2013...
John Dagys  |  Posted November 14, 2012   Chicago, IL
Muscle Milk Pickett Racing will not take part in next year's 24 Hours of Le Mans, following a decision by the team to focus on its ALMS title defense. (Photo: John Dagys)
Despite having shown high levels of interest in returning to the famed twice-around-the-clock enduro, Muscle Milk Pickett Racing has decided to skip next year's 24 Hours of Le Mans and instead focus on its American Le Mans Series P1 title defense.

News of Muscle Milk's decision to forgo the race was revealed Wednesday when the Automobile Club de l'Ouest released the list of automatic invites for the race, including three for ALMS regulars Level 5 Motorsports, Conquest Endurance and Extreme Speed Motorsports.

The Greg Pickett-owned team had declined one of IMSA's three "at large" invites, according to team manager Brandon Fry.

“While we did express interest in participating in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the future, we know how much work goes into not only participating in but also preparing for that race," Fry explained. "While making our plans for the upcoming season, we felt it was best to focus on defending our P1 Championship in 2013, which is why we informed IMSA that going to Le Mans was not part of our plans for next season.”

Muscle Milk Pickett Racing made its one-and-only start at La Sarthe in 2008, with a Lola B07/14 Judd under the CytoSport banner. Pickett, along with Fry were in attendance at this year's race, evaluating the possibility of taking the California-based team to compete in the LMP1 ranks for 2013.

Plans are already in place for Muscle Milk to continue with its P1-class HPD ARX-03a in the ALMS, with both Klaus Graf and Lucas Luhr expected to return as drivers.

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
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