Getting ready for 60th 12 hours of Sebring

SEBRING, FL — Test day is complete and all that is left is waiting for the green flag to drop for the 60th running of the 12 Hours of Sebring, this year the kick-off event for the World Endurance Championship.

While there are perceived winners and losers at test day — the times don’t really mean much to anyone since between the the time that test day is run and the green flag drops the track will most likely change at least three times. It will be up to drivers and crews to dial the cars in during speed week.

However, the winner of the test day sessions was Lucas Luhr and the Muscle Milk Pickett Race team. This year the team is running a brand new Honda HPD ARX 03a that had not turned a lap in anger until this session. Luhr’s lap that clocked in at just over 123 mph to top all at the test session. The Audi team was not at the test session nor were any of the other LMP1 teams that are expected to contest the race at Sebring. Most notably missing from the test date is the Peugeot team that quit the series as of mid-February.

One thing that is known is that the Audi team will be bringing two cars the former WWII airfield while Peugeot flicked in at least the next two seasons and their only other competition — competition meaning a manufacturer who can spend euros at the same rate as Audi is the Toyota Team, which will not join the circuit until after the initial race of the series at Sebring. That leaves the Honda the Muscle Milk Picket Racing team to rub a little paint with the Audi team.

 

While in the past teams might have rented the team after the official test session,  WEC rules specifically prohibit any testing after the official winter test session. The Audi team tested earlier — just after the 24 Hours of Daytona and has announced that it will have two cars at Sebring. While the vaunted Audi team will be the prohibitive favorite at the 60th running of the 12 Hours of Sebring, one only has to go back to last year when a privateer Peugeot won the race as the factory teams tripped on their proverbial capes.
Top 10 Results for the fourth test session:

1.  P1      Luhr/Graf/Pagenaud    1:48.192   123.114                  HPD ARX-03a

2.   P2   Tucker/Bouchut/Diaz    1:51.522   119.438                  HPD ARX-03b

3 .  P2   Tucker/Bouchut/Diaz    1:51.714   119.233                  HPD ARX-03b

4.  P2   Companc/Ayari/Kaffer   1:52.134   118.786               Oreca

5. PC   Ende/Cameron/Lewis     1:54.891 115.936                 Oreca FLM09

6.  PC  Junco/Leitzinger/Dobson 1:55.236  115.589           Oreca FLM09

7.  PC  Bennett/Braun                     1:55.431    115.394           Oreca FLM09

8.  PC Guasch/Gidley                     1:58.194    112.696          Oreca FLM09

9.   PC  Downs/Downs/Downs    1:58.549   112.359         Oreca FLM09

10. GT   Beretta/Vilander/Bruni   2:00.532  110.510 63   Ferrari F458 Italia

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