Joining the race in seventh place, Dirk Werner made a thrilling charge to take the lead in the closing minutes and give BMW its first TUDOR United SportsCar Championship victory in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) class in Saturday’s Tequila Patrón Sports Car Showcase at Long Beach.
Bill Auberlen started the winning No. 25 IHG Rewards Club BMW Z4 GTLM from the pole, but lost the lead on the opening lap as Giancarlo Fisichella charged from third to first in the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari F458 Italia. The Ferrari added to its lead when Pierre Kaffer took over at the midway point of the 100-minute race – while the BMW fell back due to a miscue during refueling.
“Without a yellow flag, we know it’s going to be a long day,” Auberlen admitted from the pits.
Without the benefit of a caution period in the 100-minute race on the 1.968-mile street circuit, Werner put his head down. Driving a car carrying the paint scheme of BMW Motorsport’s first U.S. victory at Sebring in 1975, Werner caught Kaffer on the 68th lap and made the pass for the lead in Turn 9. With the Ferrari’s tires going away, Werner cruised through the final 11 minutes, winning by 2.911 seconds over Kaffer.
Hopes for a double podium for BMW went away when Lucas Luhr briefly went off course in the No. 24 IHG Rewards Club BMW started by John Edwards. That allowed Antonio Garcia to take third in the No. 3 Corvette Racing Corvette C7.R started by Jan Magnussen. A year ago, the pair gave the new Corvette model its first victory at Long Beach, launching a four-race winning streak.
Fred Makowiecki took fourth in the No. 911 Porsche North America Porsche 911 started by Patrick Pilet, followed by the BMW of Luhr and Edwards.
The entire TUDOR Championship event was run under the green flag – including the race, qualifying and Friday’s two practice sessions.
The Tequila Patrón Sports Car Showcase at Long Beach will be televised on FOX Sports 1 on Sunday, April 19, beginning at 4 p.m. ET.
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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