The German Automaker, Audi, has officially announced that it will be participating in the endurance championship. The Audi R8 Grand-AM will be entering the 6 hrs at Watkins Glen race which is a part of the entire endurance championship. The championship is going to be held this weekend. Under the Schedule of Grand-AM two cars will be entering the endurance racing representing Audi, quattro GmBH which is a factory team and Fall Line motorsports which is a customer racing team.
These two Audi R8 Grand-AM cars will be entering the endurance championship at Watkins Glen aiming for victory which is a part of the Grand-AM schedule. The 6 hours going to be held this weekend is a comeback for Audi R8 Grand-AM. It had emerged victorious in Daytona 24 Hours which was held earlier this year. With this some of the winning drivers will also be entering the race. The Portugal driver who took the flag at Daytona, Felipe Albuquerque along with Eduardo Mortara and Dion Von Moltke will be taking the grid in car number 24. Watkins Glen is a new field for these drivers except for Dion Von Moltke who has experienced this field before. For the new comers it will, definitely, be a big challenge.
The other team, Fall Lines Motorsports, is making its debut in this championship at Watkins Glen. They will take the grid in their car number 46 R8 Grand-AM. Director of operation of Audi customer racing at Audi of America, Brad Kettler has said that “We are very pleased to have Fall-Line Motorsports join our R8 customer-racing program and are optimistic about the future of customer-racing in the U.S. Fall-Line brings a lot of great experience with them and we look forward to jointly seeking a spot on the podium as we go forward.”
The principle of team Fall- Line Motorsports, Mark Boden, has said that “The Audi sports car legacy and its knowledgeable and experienced support staff are an obvious choice for us to help further evolve our team and we’re proud to represent the ‘four rings’ synonymous with sports car and endurance racing,”
The drivers for the Fall Line Motorsports will include its current driver Al Carter, Charlie Putman and Charles Espenlaub. These 3 drivers also represent the team in the Continental Tyres Sports Car Challenge series. The team won the 2010 series for the Fall Line Motorsports. They will now be trying their luck at Watkins Glen.
The R8 Grand-AM has a V10 5.2 litre, naturally aspirated engine. The engine has been tested for efficiency and durability. The car needs assistance after 12,000 miles when running at racing speeds while the other competitive vehicles need assistance after 5000 miles. All Audi cars are tested near Nurburgring in order to optimize their speed, durability and efficiency of the cars.
The 2014 R8 has a V10 plus engine offering an output of 550 hp. The acceleration from 0 to 60 mile/hour is in a matter of 3.3 secs. It has a 7 speed dual clutch transmission as well as a 6 speed manual transmission.
The event will be broadcasted on the 30th of June at 11 am EST. We all hope that the success trail for Audi continues at Watkins Glen as well.
