Circuit Of The Americas Next Stop For The ALMS

With three stops left in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón season, Circuit of the Americas should provide some great on-track action. Texas is about to become the epicenter of the global sports car racing community. Circuit of The Americas in Austin, which played host to GRAND-AM earlier this year, welcomes the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón and the FIA World Endurance Championship Sept. 19-22.

The ALMS schedule is down to its final three events. Klaus Graf and Lucas Luhr have clinched the P1 championship but elsewhere nothing is settled. The additional class battles likely won’t be decided until October’s Petit Le Mans finale at Road Atlanta.

Corvette and BMW continue to battle for GT class honors with Chevy teammates Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner holding a 94-92 point edge over Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen. BMW Team RLL’s Dirk Muller has scored 86 points.

Team RLL has added Bill Auberlen to its No. 55 entry at Circuit of The Americas. Auberlen shared the GT class winning Turner Motorsport BMW when the Rolex Sports Car Series competed at the course in early March.

Andy Lally, coming off Sunday’s Rolex Series GT victory with Magnus Racing at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, joins Patrick Dempsey in the No. 27 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. Lally earned the 12 Hours of Sebring pole in the car in the spring and was second in class with Dempsey in the ALMS Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca round.

The revolutionary DeltaWing coupe, which underwent a successful two-day shakedown earlier this month, will make its competitive debut in Austin. The coupe, designed by Simon Marshall and built by Elan Motorsports Technologies, is an evolution of the open-top spyder version of the DeltaWing and conforms to the 2014 ACO/FIA regulation that prototype cockpits be enclosed.

Driver Katherine Legge was encouraged by the coupe’s performance but admitted the closed cockpit initially was a challenge.

“It’s slightly different visually with the closed cockpit, the pillars and the curved windscreen, but you get used to it pretty quickly. We’re really positive and psyched for the race at Circuit of The Americas.

“I’ll be excited to see everyone’s reaction. It’s going to be attention-grabbing.”

The DeltaWing will be among cars eligible to compete in the 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, the IMSA-sanctioned merger of GRAND-AM and ALMS debuting with next year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona.

The Sept. 21 ALMS event will be taped for next-day broadcast at 1 p.m. ET Sept. 22 on ESPN2. The 3:45 to 6:30 p.m. CT event also will be streamed live on ESPN3.

The WEC’s six-hour race is set for 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT on Sunday, Sept. 22 with flag-to-flag coverage provided by FOX Sports 1. The 28-car entry includes American drivers Kevin Weeda and Chris Dyson. GRAND-AM veteran Paul Dalla Lana of Canada is slated to compete in a LMGTE Pro class Aston Martin Vantage V8.

Three-day tickets for the International SportsCar Weekend at Circuit of The Americas are still available for $79 and allow guests the option of sitting in a reserved seat or viewing the action from one of the spacious general admission areas positioned around the 3.4-mile racetrack. Students and military members can purchase three-day tickets for $49 when they present a valid student or military ID at the Circuit Ticket Office. Children 12 and under receive free admission when accompanied by a ticketed adult. To purchase tickets or parking, visit www.circuitoftheamericas.com.
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