Dunlop Wins Le Mans Series GT2 Title with Ferrari. Again. Rob Bell Secured His Second Le Mans Series Title by Winning the Final Race on Home Ground, at Silverstone
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THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF DUNLOP MOTORSPORT IN TOUCH [ www.injection.tv ] ISSUE NINE, OCTOBER 2008 Dunlop wins Le Mans Series GT2 title with Ferrari. Again. Rob Bell secured his second Le Mans Series title by winning the final race on home ground, at Silverstone. Bell shared the Dunlop-supported Ferrari with defending American Le Mans Series champion Jaime Melo. His regular co-driver, Gianmaria Bruni, was on FIA GT Championship duty for Ferrari. Bell led away from pole position in the Virgo Motorsport Ferrari 430 GT, running on Dunlop’s GT2 tyre, and never looked back throughout the 1000km race. With four wins from five races, the British driver won the title by five points from Marc Lieb, who drove the Michelin-shod Felbermayr Proton Porsche with Australian Alex Davison. “We have worked very hard with Dunlop over the last two years, and at this point I would be very confident going into any race on Dunlop,” says Bell. “That tyre feels like my little baby, not that I am Casper Elgaard leads Olivier Pla at Silverstone - Pla finished third in LMP2 for Dunlop saying it is all down to me, not at all! I have driven with Dunlop for two years and it is a partnership. They Dunlop, Bell and Virgo Motorsport win are good to work with because they are methodical. They don’t jump into things and I like the way that Dunlop GT2 title as Le Mans Series draws to end works.” Melo normally drives in the The fifth season of the Le Mans team which scored a fifth place at the Le Mans 24 hours in June. American Le Mans Series for the Series brought another title for finish, just one position behind the The hitherto dominant Peugeot Risi Ferrari team on Michelin tyres, Dunlop as Rob Bell secured the title-winning diesel-powered Audi team saw its lead in the drivers' but the Brazilian struggled for grip GT2 crown for the Virgo Motorsport of Alexandre Premat and Mike and teams' titles disappear when at Silverstone. “The problem at Ferrari team. Elsewhere on the grid, Rockenfeller. Nicolas Minassian crashed in Silverstone was that the track was Dunlop's partner teams struggled the second hour, and it lost the Jamie Campbell-Walter and so green and cold that we never to continue their good run of form. manufacturers' title when Stephane Stuart Hall had a reliable race to got the tyres to work properly,” Sarrazin controversially clashed In the LMP2 class, the Quifel ASM fifth in class, sixth place overall explained Bell. “It might have looked with Capello. The Peugeot team team scored its first podium of the behind Verstappen's Porsche. that we had an easy ride, but the season as Olivier Pla and Miguel took 20 minutes to repair the car. balance was the worst that we The pair, and the sister car driven Amaral finished third behind two by Stephen Simpson and Ryan In the GT2 class, Virgo Motorsport had all year. At the Nurburgring, Porsche RS Spyders. In a four the car was the best I have ever Lewis, had mysterious drop in tyre scored its fourth win of the year old Lola, the pair finished sat in considering balance and pressures at the beginning of the year with Bell and Melo, but the just six laps behind the winning consistency. race, but that was quickly resolved. Farnbacher Racing Ferrari finished Porsche of ex-Grand Prix driver Jos “Gimmi is very well regarded, as "We are heartened that they ran third in class to elevate the Dunlop Verstappen and his co-driver Peter is Jaime, and they should be, they the last stage of the race with no team to third place in the teams' are very good drivers. They have van Merksteijn. difficulties and with reasonable standings. performance," said Dunlop's chief both been in the car with me, I After extensive rig testing since "We were able to develop the tyre technician Matthew Simpson. have matched them and that is the the last race at the Nurburgring, every time the car ventured out message I need to send to Ferrari. Team Essex was disappointed to Overall the race was won by the testing tyres," says Simpson. "We My goal for next year is to have a qualify only fourth in the Porsche Audi of Allan McNish and Rinaldo made bigger gains at first and as Ferrari contract. RS Spyder on a circuit which Capello. It was Audi's first win in we homed in the returns were “I haven’t really talked to Virgo about suited the high downforce car. The the series this year, though the smaller, but at the Nurburgring we next year. My goal is that contract. If team took off its third damper and pair with Tom Kristensen also won just had fantastic tyres." I get that, and they say go and race arrived at the British track with a in Argentina, I will race in Argentina. well-balanced car. "I would love to race with Jim [McWhirter, team owner of Virgo Casper Elgaard qualified fourth, Motorsport] again, but there are but a broken hub during the race other opportunities out there.” quickly dropped the Dane, with John Nielsen, down the order and for the first time this season, they finished off the podium. However, they were still classified second in the LMP2 title standings after five 1000km races. In the LMP1 category, Dunlop Rob Bell, champion was represented by the Creation The Farnbacher Ferrari finished third, and took third in the LMS teams' standings 2 Nicolas Terol won the hurricane-shortened 125cc race from Pol Espargaro and Stefan Bradl Dunlop stuck on 199 250cc Europe draws first blood in wins as Ike wreaks havoc Red Bull Rookie's showdown Dunlop's tally of race wins in the 250cc Stefan Bradl filled the third podium slot, Hurricane Ike may have caused scheduling and British teenager taking the podium category remains stuck on 199 after the having worked his way up from 14th on the problems at Indianapolis, but the Red Bull places. last remnants of Hurricane Ike struck the first lap, whilst championship leader Mike di Rookies were able to hold their Europe The American Rookies will be looking to Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Meglio could only finish 10th, but still retains versus the US challenge before the weather better the Europeans at the return match MotoGP weeiend, forcing the cancellation a 25 point lead over his nearest challenger, broke. race – at Valencia on October 26, but it of the 250cc race. Simone Corsi. Race day started with a match race was nice to see 20 Dunlop caps on the Rain with tropical intensity and high winds After two hours of heavy rain, the weather between the top ten from the European Red Indianapolis podium as the two teams came not only stopped the 250cc race, but also had improved enough for the MotoGP race Bull Rookies Cup and their counterparts together to receive their medals! cut short both the 125cc and MotoGP to go ahead. Nicky Hayden and Valentino from the American series - all on identical Meanwhile in Europe, the Suzuki Endurance races. No fewer than 52,000 spectators Rossi battled hard before the Italian opened Dunlop shod 125cc KTMs. Racing Team won the 71st edition of the watched the Saturday qualifying sessions a six second lead. The race was stopped Bol d'Or at Magny Cours. Vincent Philippe, in bright sunshine, and 91,000 attended with seven laps remaining as the storm A race long battle between 13-year-old Matthieu Lagrive, and Julian Costa finished race day at the Brickyard despite the broke again, handing Rossi his 69th win to Hayden Gillim of the USA team and Sturla six laps clear of the opposition to win the forecast of bad weather. A 4.2km road beat Giacomo Agostini's 30-year record. Fagerhaug from Norway ended when Gillim Endurance Racing title for the fourth time circuit was constructed in the infield of the crashed out two laps from the finish. in a row. Their SERT team-mates William famous oval while of course using the main The storm caused the advertising hoardings The European team filled the first five Costes, Guillaume Dietrich and Olivier Four straight, with its strip of bricks marking the and the safety air fence to become places, with a Norwegian, South African were second in the 24 hour race. start and finish line. dislodged, leaving the orgainsers with no choice but to cancel the 250cc race. Dunlop The track had dried sufficiently for all 36 will have to wait until the next GP, at Motegi 125cc riders to opt for the Dunlop slick in Japan to achieve its landmark win. tyres, but after 17 laps the rain strted, and the race was stopped. Nicolas Terol and Pol Espargaro had battled together throughout, and although Espargaro was leading when the red flags went out, Terol had been ahead at the end of the previous lap and so was declared the winner. The Red Bull Rookies met at Indianaplis and will have a rematch at Valencia Terol leads Espargaro at Indianapolis 3 DTM – Audi’s Timo Scheider goes to the penultimate race of the season at Le Mans on October 5 with a seven point lead over Mercedes' Paul di Resta after two close races betwen the two drivers. Scheider won the British round at Brands Hatch at the end of August, fractionally ahead of di Resta, but the positions were reversed in Barcelona mid-September. In the warmth of the Spanish sun, Scheider made a better start than the pole-sitting won at Albacete on September 21.