Brand-new RS5s battle back on Sunday at Monza in 2012 V8 Superstars opening

Audi Sport Italia Press Release

After eventful Saturday, Sweden's Johan Kristofferson clinches rookies' standings in round 1 and Audi Sport Italia's star Gianni Morbidelli picks up fifth place in Race 2 after vying for podium

When Audi Sport Italia's hauler unloaded two brand-new RS5s at noon on Friday at the famed Italian venue, cars were kind of smelling fresh paint and shiny bodywork. But no mileage under their belts meant that on Saturday teething troubles hindered both Gianni Morbidelli and Johan Kristoffersson, spoiling their plans to put in as many laps as possible in order to overcome their lack of familiarity with the latest Audi weapon for the up-and-coming V8 Superstars series, based on production-based beefy sedans and coupes. Audi Sport Italia runs and operates Morbidelli's RS5.

The former F-1 driver was sidelined in Qualifying due to a wiring loom problem, while Kristoffersson  -- whose car is run by Sweden- based KMS -- managed to clinch a spot on Row 7 in spite of drivetrain trouble. With both RS5s reeling it was Thomas Schoeffler's turn to roll. He's to wait until Imola to make acquaintance with his own MTM Motosport-run RS5, but the surprising 19-year old German, in a one-off outing in a RS4 seat was able to improve the quickest lap set last season by such a model by nearly eight tenths of a second, clinching a spot on Row 6 -- the best Audi man on Race 1 starting grid. None the less the summer-like Italian Saturday also provided a ray of hope for the Audi tent: Kristoffersson set the third fastest time in Free Practice 2, the only trouble-free spell available to either new car driver. The Swede was only six tenths of a second off the quickest AMG Mercedes.

Race 1 confirmed that the KMS RS5 will be a force to be reckoned this season, as at the start the driver from Arvika, Sweden grabbed a Top10 spot on the opening lap and moved up the field until he caught the tail of Mika Salo's Maserati Quattroporte, putting enough pressure on the Italian car to force the former F-1 driver to go wide at the first corner on lap 11. The fifth spot was more than enough to enable the Swede to hoist the silverware reserved for the best rookie. In spite of moving from the last row Morbidelli scythed through the field at the start and on lap 11 had already climbed to a promising 11th place. A 4-lap safety-car spell form lap 4 to lap 7 bunched up the field together, and Morbidelli rallied further as the green flag was waved, clinching at the checker a pretty good seventh place. Schoeffler, in the old RS4, had to bide his time and wound up 12th, in spite of creepy drivetrain noise looming in the final minutes.

Early in Race 2 vibrations and a puncture urged Schoeffler to stop in a run off area to avoid further damage to the MTM RS4. Kristoffersson managed to put in even less laps, as he too stopped on the circuit when a plume of smoke trailed his KMS RS5. Nonetheless Morbidelli's RS5 proved that it was his time to get the spotlights, and starting form the front row on the reversed grid effortlessly joined a spectacular fray for P3 alongside Mika Salo's Maserati and Mercedes duo Andrea Larini and Nico Caladarola. By mid-race Morbidelli got past them all and even looked set to mount a chase to the leading AMG Mercedes C63. Sadly a much anticipated dog-fight between former F-1 drivers failed to materialize as pacesetter Tonio Liuzzi could take some respite for a quick full course caution. But the remaining two laps frustrated Morbidelli's effort as pick-up problems hampered the Pesaro-born ace. Morbidelli managed to cling on to a fifth place at the finish line, whilst Liuzzi claimed his maiden V8 Superstars win. The former Red Bull Junior is now second in the drivers' point standings five points adrift of leader Massimo Pigoli, who won Race 1 in his XF Jaguar and was runner-up the afternoon. Morbidelli is currently sixth, 25 points down the order, whilst Kristofferson is also in the Top10 at eigth 29 points behind Pigoli.

INTERNATIONAL SUPERSTARS SERIES

Round 1 - Monza, April 1, 2012

1. Massimo Pigoli (Jaguar) 13 laps 28.35.422 average speed 180.014 kph

2. Andrea Larini (AMG Mercedes) + 0.414s

3. Tonio Liuzzi (AMG Mercedes) +1.243s

4. Thomas Biagi (BMW) + 3.671s

5. JOHAN KRISTOFFERSSON (AUDI RS5) + 3.699s

../..

7. GIANNI MORBIDELLI(AUDI RS5) + 7.010s

../..

12. THOMAS SCHÖFFLER (AUDI RS4) + 34.137s

INTERNATIONAL SUPERSTARS SERIES

Round 2 - Monza, April 1, 2012

1. Vitantonio Liuzzi (AMG Mercedes) 13 laps 26:58.452 average speed 179.476 kph

2.  Massimo Pigoli (Jaguar) + 1.153s

3. Francesco Sini (Chevrolet) + 1.602s

4. Thomas Biagi (BMW) + 3.190s

5. GIANNI MORBIDELLI (AUDI RS5) + 3.219s

../..

Ret. JOHAN KRISTOFFERSSON (AUDI RS5)

Ret. THOMAS SCHÖFFLER (AUDI RS4)

INTERNATIONAL SUPERSTARS SERIES 2012

Drivers Points Standings:

1. Pigoli 39 points; 2.  Liuzzi 34 pts.; 3. Biagi 22 pts.;

4. Larini 21 pts.; 5. Sini 15 pts.; 6. MORBIDELLI 14 pts.; 7. Caldarola 11 pts. 8. KRISTOFFERSSON 10 pts.; 9. Salo 8 pts.; 10. Gabellini 5 pts.; ../.. 18. SCHÖFFLER 2 pts.

WHAT'S NEXT:

Race 3 and 4 - Imola (I) April 22nd, 2012.

 

Photos by Audi Sport Italia

Good warm up for WRT and JWS Audi R8 LMS teams - VdeV

By Johan Laubscher

Earlier in the year Audi fans saw some clues from the Belgian W Racing Team regarding a specific French championship. The WRT team took part in the V de V series test days at Dijon and rumours surrounding a few WRT V de V race participations emerged. V de V is a French championship for a variety of different race cars which compete in both sprint and endurances races across Europe.

The opening round of the V de V series took place in Spain at the Catalunya circuit for a 6 hour endurance race on the weekend of April 1st. Originally a total of four Audi R8 LMS cars had been entered for the race. Two from WRT and one from both JWS Racing and AB Sport Auto. Despite four cars on the original entry list only two cars would ultimately take part. One car from WRT driven by François Verbist, Yves Weerts and Kurt Mollekens and one car from JWS driven by William David and Jean-Marc Quintois. The WRT team had originally planned two cars, one for the team bosses to have some fun in and the other to be driven by more rapid drivers, but in the end only one car took part in an event deemed to be more for fun and preparation than for out right results. The JWS Racing entry was also aimed for preparation. This was the first race meeting for the JWS Racing team and their goal was to use the race to prepare for the 2012 French GT Tour season.

Both teams qualified very well for the race with WRT claiming class pole followed by JWS second in class, 4th and 6th overall respectively. The race got underway in very warm conditions with some great racing. JWS unfortunately retired early on lap 6 after an on-track incident. The team was very disappointed but they are fully focused on their next race, the season opener of the French GT Tour. WRT soldiered on in the 6 hour race which served as a good warm up for the team’s busy 2012 season, ahead of their FIA GT1 debut one week after this event. WRT finished the 6 hour endurance race in 4th position overall and 2nd position in class.

The 6 hours of Catalunya served as a good warm up for the both JWS Racing and WRT teams. We will soon see both teams and their R8 LMS cars in action again in various other races around Europe and in the case of WRT, around the world as well.

Photos by JWS Racing

More Information:

JWS Racing FB page

W Racing Team FB page 

V de V website

WRT # 8 Audi R8 LMS and JWS #38 Audi R8 LMS

JWS Racing #38 Audi R8 LMS

Audi unlucky season opener at Nordschleife's VLN

By Tarek Ramchani

The VLN Endurance Series started yesterday at the world famous Nordschleife. Three Audi R8 LMS race cars entered the first round of this unique sportscar championship.

A single brand new Audi R8 LMS ultra was entered by Phoenix Racing the #5 car of Oliver Jarvis and Rene Rast. The other two cars were older Spec R8 LMSs. The sister Phoenix #15 for Frank Stippler, Christopher Haase and Markus Winkelhock. Team Raeder Motorsport entered the third car with Frank Biela, Thomas Mutsch and Christian Hohenadel. 

Right from the start it was obvious the race would not be easy at all. The Porsche GT3-R cars dominated the early stages of the race battling with each other ahead of the field. The Audi cars had to chase and catch up. The #5 Phoenix was the best from the Audi camp racing in the top 5 overall in the first part of the race. Later the first disaster came, the #15 Phoenix car crashed while it was in the lead overall. A few minutes later and it was the turn of the #44 R8 LMS from Raeder Motorsport to crash. Bad luck didn't stop hitting the Audi squad and the #5 Phoenix Audi crashed as well. In less than 30 minutes all three cars faced crashes in very rainy weather and a very wet race track. The race was later red flagged with heavy fog on the track, making it impossible to continue. Victory went to the #19 BMW Z4 GT3 from BMW Team Schubert.

Audi was unlucky in the top SP9 class, but did dominate the SP4T class. A 1-2 victory for Raeder Motorsport with their Audi TT-RS. The #272 TT-RS finished as the best Audi car in an amazing 8th overall, ahead of many top GT3 cars.

The season opener wasn't easy for Audi overall. We all hope that the other nine rounds will be better for the Audi R8 LMS. Team Phoenix Racing and Raeder Motorsport will do the full season in VLN. Mamerow Racing and the Audi race experience will join for a part time effort and selected events.

Photo Credits: Norbert Kratz and Julian Schmidt

Audi Sport Italia RS5 - positive debut at Monza

 By Johan Laubscher

The debut of the Audi RS5 in the Italian Superstars championship has been one that the fans have been waiting to see for a very long time. Two of the new RS5 race cars debuted at the first round of the 2012 Superstars season at Monza and the cars did not disappoint.

The first long awaited photos of the car landed on the internet on the Friday of the race weekend and there was immediately a buzz surrounding the look of the new RS5. Some love it, some hate it, but you have to admit it has an extremely aggressive appearance. Two of the new cars were ready and were driven by Italian Gianni Morbidelli (Audi Sport Italia) and Swede Johan Kristoffersson (Kristoffersson Motorsport). The third RS5 was not ready in time for the Monza event and the third driver Thomas Schöffler (MTM Motorsport) drove one of the older RS4 cars.

The weekend got off to a rocky start in practice with the new cars having quite a few problems. Johan Kristoffersson did show the potential of the car in free practice 2 by setting the third fastest time. Thomas Schöffler had strong showings in the old car an even qualified 11th. Qualifying was a disaster for the RS5s with no Audis in the top 10, both RS5 cars had difficulties.

Johan Kristoffersson #46 RS5 leads Gianni Morbidelli #45 RS5 during race 1

As race day dawned Audi fans feared for a bad day, but these fears were unnecessary. All three Audis stormed into the top 10 in race 1. The Audi front being led by Johan Kristoffersson and a charging Gianni Morbidelli who had started at the back of the grid. Johan held his own in his debut race to finish fifth and Morbidelli finished in seventh. Schöffler was in the top 10 for most of the race but dropped to twelfth in the closing laps.

Race two saw Gianni Morbidelli charging at the front in a battle for the lead. He held second position for the closing phases of the race, but right at the end of the race Gianni Morbidelli lost second place and eventually finished in fifth. However he was clearly one of the fastest cars on the track, backed up by his lap time figures. Both his teammates unfortunately retired from race 2.

The new RS5 has silenced the critics, the car clearly has potential and its 4.2 V8 engine can more than hold its own with the big V8 monsters in the Italian Superstars series. A very strong race debut and Audi fans are looking forward to the next round of the series set for Imola on the 22^nd of April.

Cover photo by Stefano Ciabattoni
All other photos are hosted at Superstars.it

More Information:

Audi Sport Italia FB fans page 

Superstars Series FB page 

Superstars Series website 

Video highlights of race 1

Video highlights of race 2

Gianni Morbidelli #45 RS5 (Audi Sport Italia)

 Johan Kristoffersson #46 RS5 (Kristoffersson Motorsport)

Thomas Schöffler #47 RS4 (MTM Motorsport)

Another Audi R8 LMS ultra debut and another victory - Japanese Super GT

By Johan Laubscher

The latest generation GT3 racer from Audi is quickly picking up where its predecessor left off. The original R8 LMS started winning races straight out of the box and the new R8 LMS ultra is doing exactly the same.

Less than a week after the R8 LMS ultra had its debut race and debut win in Malaysia the R8 LMS ultra lined up in the land of the rising sun. Two Audi R8 LMS ultras and two older R8 LMS cars were entered for the opening round of the 2012 Japanese Super GT series at Okayama. The Super GT is the top motorsport category in Japan and is well known for being a very competitive environment consisting of two race classes, GT500 and GT300. The 4 Audis all compete in the GT300 category.

The two new Audi R8 LMS ultras were fielded by GAINER and äpr racing while the two older cars, which will be upgraded to ultra spec later in the season, were fielded by Hitotsuyama Racing.

The first race of the Japanese GT season had a lot of Audi headlines. Firstly it would be the German marque’s long awaited debut in the Japanese series and also the debut of a certain star lady racer. The #21 R8 LMS from Hitotsuyama Racing would see Cyndie Allemann’s debut in the series alongside teammate Akihiro Tsuzuki. Cyndie’s arrival in the series has sparked a lot of media interest surrounding the Swiss race driver.

Qualifying was a bitter sweet affair with the #11 GAINER Audi in 3rd and the #21 Audi of Allemann and Tsuzuki in 12th. The other two Audis placed lower down the grid. 
  

GT300 race start

The 300km race would see some very exciting racing which became very physical towards the end of the race. The battles for the lead were very tight in both the GT500 and GT300 classes. The GAINER R8 LMS ultra was amongst the GT 300 front runners all race long and endured a fantastic battle for the lead with the #911 Porsche 911. As the race drew to a close all eyes were fixed on the GT500 lead battle which went straight down to the line. In the background the #11 GAINER Audi R8 LMS ultra crossed the line to a well dissevered GT300 race victory. A brilliant debut race for the new car. The other Audis also had a strong showing with 3 of the 4 cars finishing in the top ten.

Victory in the debut race has shown the potential of the car yet again, and the R8 LMS cars will be a force to be reckoned with for the rest of the season. The next race of the season is set for the 500km race at Fuji on the 4th of May 2012.   

Audi Results:

1st - #11 Audi R8 LMS ultra - GAINER - Tetsuya Tanaka and Katsuyuki Hiranaka

8th - #30 Audi R8 LMS ultra - äpr racing - Yuki Iwasaki and Yuya Sakamoto

9th - #21 Audi R8 LMS - Hitotsuyama Racing - Cyndie Allemann and Akihiro Tsuzuki

18th - #20 Audi R8 LMS - Hitotsuyama Racing - Michael Kim and Hideki Noda

 

Full Results HERE

 

More information:

Motorsport.com

Hitotsuyama Racing Website

Hitotsuyama Racing FB page

RacerBook FB page

DIXCEL JAPAN FB Page

GAINER Wesbite

äpr racing website

Photos by Eric Gilbert and hosted at Motorsport.com

Race highlights Video:

   

  #11 Audi R8 LMS ultra - GAINER - Tetsuya Tanaka and Katsuyuki Hiranaka

#30 Audi R8 LMS ultra - äpr racing - Yuki Iwasaki and Yuya Sakamoto

#21 Audi R8 LMS - Hitotsuyama Racing - Cyndie Allemann and Akihiro Tsuzuki

#20 Audi R8 LMS - Hitotsuyama Racing - Michael Kim and Hideki Noda

Audi R8 LMS Strong Qualifying at Okayama's Super GT

By Tarek Ramchani

Japan's Super GT has started, round 1 is at Okayama circuit. Four Audi R8 LMS race cars are there in the GT300 class.

First time out and already the R8 LMS showing a strong pace in the class. The #11 GAINER DIXCEL R8 LMS ultra of Tetsuya Tanaka and Katsuyuki Hiranaka got a stunning third in class behind the two leading Porsche 997 GT3 RS cars. Not bad for a debut in the extremely fought GT300 division. Next in a 12th spot is the #21 ZENT Audi R8 LMS of team Hitotsuyama Racing shared by Cyndie Allemann and Akihiro Tsuzuki. The car got a strong pace just missing the Q3 session for the top 10. The other two Audi R8 LMS cars struggled. The #30 IWASAKI MODA KUROCO äpr racing R8 is only 18th in class. The second car from Hitotsuyama Racing the #20 Racerbook Audi R8 LMS is last.

The Okayama race is a 300km race. Starting in third is a great debut for the Audi R8 LMS ultra in the top Japanese motorsport series. We are all hoping for strong performances from the four cars and why not the class win, fingers crossed for the race.

Photos hosted at http://www.motorsport.com/

Two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars form spearhead at the Nürburgring 24 Hours

Audi Press Release

• Audi Sport Team Phoenix with two vehicles at Eifel marathon
• A total of five teams with seven Audi R8 LMS ultra cars on the grid
• Audi R8 LMS has been best GT3 car three times in succession

Audi has selected a new strategy for the 2012 24-hour race at the Nürburgring (May 19/20). After three consecutive class victories the factory line-up this year is concentrated on Audi Sport Team Phoenix that will be putting two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars with seven seasoned endurance racers on the grid. In addition, four customer teams are relying on Audi’s updated GT3 sports car at Germany’s major endurance race.

Exclusive appearance at the home race: For the first time, Audi Sport Team Phoenix will be representing Audi’s colors at the 24-hour race in the Eifel as the only factory team. Ernst Moser’s squad based in Meuspath in the immediate vicinity of the Nürburgring is fielding two new Audi R8 LMS ultra cars. One of the vehicles will be driven by the Germans Marc Basseng, Christopher Haase, Frank Stippler and Markus Winkelhock. The second GT3 sports car will be shared by the Le Mans winner and Audi factory driver Marcel Fässler (CH), and the two Germans Christopher Mies and René Rast plus Frank Stippler, who has been nominated for both cars.

“2012 is marked by numerous conflicting events for Audi Sport,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “They include the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring, which coincides with the DTM round at Brands Hatch in Great Britain. We were looking for the best way to simultaneously contest both events and believe that we’ve found it. Due to its successful history at this race and the fact that it’s at home at the Nürburgring Audi Sport Team Phoenix was a logical choice for us. In combination with the customer teams, Audi is again showing a strong presence at the Nürburgring 24 Hours this year.”

Beyond the factory commitment, the Audi R8 LMS ultra is proving its attractiveness as a customer sport race car in fierce competition yet again. Four teams are placing their trust in a total of five of the race cars from Audi Sport customer racing: Mamerow Racing, Raeder Motorsport, Team WRT and Audi race experience.

As long-standing Nordschleife experts, Mamerow Racing and Raeder Motorsport are bringing valuable experience to the track. Peter Mamerow’s team has clinched numerous class and overall victories at the Nürburgring endurance race. The successes achieved by the team of Martin and Nicolas Raeder last year included class victory at the Nürburgring 24 Hours and a VLN overall victory with the Audi TT RS. This year, both teams are relying on the powerful GT3 sports car with the four rings for the first time. The car’s final performance rating by the regulations is still pending. 

Team WRT is a newcomer to the Nürburgring, but the team of Vincent Vosse has been intimately familiar with the Audi R8 LMS for two years. Last year, it won the Spa 24 Hours and the Blancpain Endurance Series with it. In the Belgian team, Oliver Jarvis (GB) is sharing the cockpit with Andrea Piccini (I), Edward Sandström (S) and Allan Simonsen (DK).

Audi race experience is competing at the Nürburgring 24 Hours for the second time and fielding two R8 LMS ultra cars. For the first time, the team will be putting a separate line-up on the grid. One vehicle will be driven by the four international professional racers Warren Luff (AUS)/Alex Yoong (MAL)/Florian Gruber (D)/Luca Cappellari (I). In the second car, three customers of Audi race experience will be taking turns at the wheel with the three-time Le Mans winner Marco Werner.

“With Audi Sport Team Phoenix as the spearheading squad and the four customer teams Audi should be very well set for the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring this year,” says Romolo Liebchen, Head of Audi Sport customer racing. “I’m convinced that our customers, as well, will have perfect chances of being in contention for victory with the R8 LMS ultra. At Audi Customer Sport, we will do everything to provide optimum support to the customers.” 

The Audi teams at the 2012 24-hour race at the Nürburgring

Audi Sport Team Phoenix

Marc Basseng/Christopher Haase/Frank Stippler/Markus Winkelhock (all D)
Marcel Fässler (CH)/Christopher Mies (D)/René Rast (D)

Mamerow Racing

Michael Ammermüller/Christer Jöns/Armin Hahne/Christian Mamerow (all D)

Raeder Motorsport

Frank Biela/Christian Hohenadel/Luca Ludwig/Thomas Mutsch (all D)

WRT

Oliver Jarvis (GB)/Andrea Piccini (I)/Edward Sandström (S)/Allan Simonsen (DK)

Audi race experience

Warren Luff (AUS)/Alex Yoong (MAL)/Florian Gruber (D)/Luca Cappellari (I)
Marco Werner/Christian Bollrath/Pierre Ehret/Peter Venn (all D)