ALMS @ LONG BEACH // RACE RESULTS

Simon Pagenaud collected the win for Patron Highcroft Acura by taking the lead from Adrian Fernandez's factory AMR Lola coupe on the last lap of this weekends American Le Mans Series race on the streets of Long Beach. Emphasizing the ALMS' new rule that hopes to equalize the LMP1 and LMP2 classes, effectively creating one category, Aston Martin and Acura battled it out for nearly 100 minutes. It wasn't until the last 45 seconds of the race, when Fernandez made a mistake that allowed the more nimble but less powerful HPD ARX-01c through. Graf and Pickett took third place ahead of Guy Smith, who brought the Dyson Lola back up to fourth following an off early in the race... [read more]

The battle in the GT class was just as exciting, with the race hinging on the third and final caution.

Both Rahal Letterman BMWs pitted early, as the team chose to run the cars on one set of tires through the race. This gave Tommy Milner and Joey Hand track position and moved them ahead of Wolf Henzler's Falken Tires Porsche. Patrick Long and Gianmaria Bruni also moved up to third and fourth following the pit stop. When the BMWs tires started to fade, Long attacked, followed by the Risi Ferrari and Jan Magnussen in the Corvette GT2.

Long soon found himself ahead of Hand and quickly closed the gap between he and Milner. As Joey Hand dropped further back, Long was looking for ways to pass Milner. Making his move on the back straight, Long moved into P1 with only a few laps remaining. At the wheel of the Corvette GT2, Magnussen, who had made his way to the front of the pack, also got past Milner before the checkered flag waved.

Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series at Long Beach // Complete Results:

1. Brabham/Pagenaud LMP HPD ARX-01c 67 laps
2. Primat/Fernandez LMP Aston Martin Lola + 0.353s
3. Pickett/Graf LMP Porsche RS Spyder + 9.472s
4. Dyson/Smith LMP Lola B09 86 Mazda + 10.903s
5. Julian/Jeannette LMPC Oreca FLM09 + 1 lap
6. Tucker/Bouchut LMPC Oreca FLM09 + 2 laps
7. Hildebrand/Sutherland LMPC Oreca FLM09 + 2 laps
8. Bergmeister/Long GT Porsche 911 RSR + 2 laps
9. Drissi/Davis LMP Lola B06 10 + 2 laps
10. Magnussen/O'Connell GT Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 + 2 laps
11. Auberlen/Milner GT BMW M3 GT + 2 laps
12. Melo/Bruni GT Ferrari 430 GT + 2 laps
13. Mueller/Hand GT BMW M3 GT + 2 laps
14. Sellers/Henzler GT Porsche 911 RSR + 2 laps
15. Sharp/van Overbeek GT Ferrari 430 GT + 2 laps
16. Brown/Cosmo GT Ferrari 430 GT + 3 laps
17. Pagerey/Wong LMPC Oreca FLM09 + 4 laps
18. Beretta/Gavin GT Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 + 4 laps
19. Gonzalez/Leitzinger GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 4 laps
20. Curtis/Sofronas GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 4 laps
21. Sweedler/Kapudija GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 4 laps
22. Bonilla/Marcelli LMPC Oreca FLM09 + 5 laps
23. Robertson/Murry GT Doran Ford GT-R + 5 laps
24. Lewis/Vento GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 5 laps
25. Drayson/Cocker LMP Lola B09 60 + 5 laps
26. Miller/McMullen GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 6 laps
27. Rodriguez/Bieker GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 6 laps
28. Gonzalez/Diaz GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 7 laps
29. Pappas/Bleekemolen GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 7 laps
30. Field/Field LMP Lola B06 10 + 19 laps
31. Richard/Lally GTC Porsche 911 GT3 Cup + 19 laps
32. Gentilozzi/Dalziel GT Jaguar XKRS + 22 laps
33. Law/Neiman GT Porsche 911 RSR + 39 laps
34. Beggs/Baron GTC Porsche 911 GT3 + 61 laps
35. Mowlem/Papadopoulos LMPC Oreca FLM09 + 64 laps

Image: Autoblog
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey