Friday, June 24, 2011

United Autosports Seeks Fairer Balancing Of Performance In Spain

  · Anglo-American team hopes for change of fortune in maiden FIA GT3 races at Navarra

The Circuito de Navarra (Spain) located near Pamplona hosts the fifth and sixth rounds of the FIA GT3 European Championship with United Autosports hoping that it will be allowed to compete on “level” terms (July 1-3).

In the opening four events, only once has an Audi R8 LMS claimed a top-three podium result in either qualifying or a one-hour race. In comparison, the BMW Z4, Ferrari 458 Italia, Mercedes SLS and Aston Martin have amassed eight, seven, four and three top-three results which would seem to question the FIA’s Balance of Power restrictions aimed at ensuring close racing.

United Autosports tested at the 2.42-mile Spanish venue in March – although Zak Brown was not present – while all four drivers will be making their race débuts at the relatively new facility.

Provisional Timetable:
Friday 1 July – 1510-1610 Practice; 1830-1930 Practice
Saturday 2 July – 0915-1005 Qualifying; 1345-1445 Race 1
Sunday 3 July – 1015-1115 Race 2
* All times are “local”


#22 Draper Tools – Audi R8 LMS

Joe Osborne (GB). Age: 22. Born: Bedford, GB. Lives: Olney, Buckinghamshire, GB:
“Navarra features high speed, demanding corners combined with slower and technical ones. Turn One is my favorite – flat in fifth gear which tightens to a second gear hairpin. It’s frustrating currently for a driver like me trying to make a career in motorsport. The ‘Balance of Power’ is making me look slow. I brought Draper Tools to United Autosports’ FIA program as a team partner and I can only thank them for their understanding and being patient in terms of waiting for the results we deserve.”

Mark Patterson (USA). Age: 59. Born: Port Elizabeth, SA. Lives: Bronxville, New York State, USA:
“I’ve only tested at Navarra but it seems the track has something for everyone – high speed and technical stuff. Although an Audi R8 LMS won in Portugal, the other top R8 LMS race finishes have been a P9, P14 & P7. In comparison the BMW Z4 has been on the race podium 5 times with Ferrari, Merc and Aston two apiece. The 458 has qualified in the top-three 5 times out of six. I don’t need a math PhD to determine if we [Audi] are competing on a level playing field.”


#23 Legends of Motorsport – Audi R8 LMS

Matt Bell (GB). Age: 21. Born: Newcastle-upon-Tyne, GB. Lives: Barningham, North Yorks, GB:
“The circuit is really nice with some challenging corners without any particularly long straights so it'll be hard work physically. Hopefully the weather will be warmer [than Silverstone] to help our tires but it’s going to take more than a higher ambient temperature to make the Audi R8 LMS competitive. Not only has the R8 LMS lost performance from the end of last year due to BoP measures but the other new cars appear too fast for the GT3 class.”

Zak Brown (USA). Age: 39. Born: Los Angeles, California, USA. Lives: Carmel, Indiana, USA:
“I've never been to Navarra but have heard it’s a fantastic track. I'll have some benefit of having access to my team-mates’ telemetry from our tests there. Our tires definitely suit warm weather conditions. We need a better Balance of Power from the organizers sooner rather than later.”

Richard Dean (GB), Managing Director & Co-Owner of United Autosports:
“We tested at Navarra for two days in March this year with two cars. We did over 400 laps but the ambient temperature was even colder than it would have been at Knockhill in Scotland! I sincerely hope the weather will be kinder to us for the race allowing our Dunlop tires to work a whole lot better than they have in the opening two FIA events. For me and everybody else watching in Portugal and at Silverstone, those four races clearly demonstrated that there are not equally performance balanced cars from all manufacturers competing. So I’m hoping that the FIA were watching too!”


United Autosports
Created in 2009, United Autosports is co-owned by American Zak Brown and Briton Richard Dean, both successful entrepreneurs and international race car drivers. The unique Anglo-American racing team fields GT3 class Audi R8 LMS sports cars from its United Kingdom headquarters in Leeds. It also races a fleet of “Legends of Motorsports” historic racing cars from its US facility in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2011, the team competes in full seasons of FIA GT3 European Championship, Avon Tyres British GT Championship and the “Legends of Motorsports” series. It will additionally contest selected GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series events, the 24 Hours of Spa (Belgium) and Macau GT Cup race (China).

Audi R8 LMS
V10 5.2-liter engine, 4 valves per cylinder, petrol direct injection, 365-412 kW (496-560 PS), emission control by two racing catalytic converters, rear-wheel-drive, traction control (ASR), sequential pneumatic activated 6-speed sport gearbox with shift-paddles, Audi Space Frame (ASF) made of aluminum with bolted steel roll-cage, carbon-fiber composite/aluminum bodywork, Dunlop radial tires. Start weight 1,300kg. Limitation at 8500rpm for every gear. Developed by Audi Sport with cooperation from quattro GmbH. Won seven championships across Europe in 2009-2010 plus Spa 24 Hours class victory in début 2009 season and Nürburgring 24 Hours class victories in 2009-2010 and scoring a total 64 victories.


* Bell, Brown, Osborne & Patterson biographies plus team & car profiles are available on the United Autosports website http://www.unitedautosports.com/

A comprehensive library of Editorial Copyright Free photographs can be downloaded at www.flickr.com/unitedautosports/sets


For further information, please contact:
Martyn Pass
Audi UK Sport Press
T +44 1564 824600
M +44 7801 859502
Skype martyn.pass

www.unitedautosports.com
www.audi-press.co.uk

Monday, June 20, 2011

United Autosports’ Duo Continue To Lead British GT Championship Despite Non-Scoring At Brands Hatch

· American Mike Guasch dumped out of two-hour race in opening three minutes
· British duo John Bintcliffe & Jay Palmer finish eighth in difficult conditions

United Autosports’ duo Matt Bell (GB) and Mike Guasch (USA) continue to lead the Avon Tyres British GT Championship despite being unceremoniously bundled out of the fourth round of the series at Brands Hatch (England) today (Sunday June 19).
 
Previous round Snetterton race winners Bell and Guasch looked to build on their 24.5-point series lead going in to the two-hour race but the American, having spectacularly brought his #23 Molecule Audi R8 LMS up from a disappointing 12th place grid position to sixth in just over one lap of the 2.301-mile “Grand Prix” track, was assaulted by the #12 Ferrari at Druids Hairpin on lap two. The Audi R8 LMS, hit from behind, was too badly damaged for the American to continue.

Meanwhile John Bintcliffe (GB) and Jay Palmer (GB) will arrive for the next rounds at Spa-Francorchamps placed 11th in the 10-race series. The British duo recorded a fine eighth – in only their fourth race in the #24 Teknavo Audi – in the 120-minute race featuring changeable weather and track conditions and which saw the weight ballast for the Audi R8 LMS increased by 10kg.

Avon Tyres British GT Championship (after four rounds):
1 Matt Bell & Mike Guasch, 70.5-points
2 Gedie/Gedie, 63.5pts
3 Lester/Simonsen, 58.5pts
11 John Bintcliffe & Jay Palmer, 21pts

Luyendyk & Johansson Shake Down New Audi R8 LMS At Snetterton
Double Indianapolis 500 race winner Arie Luyendyk (NL) and former Grand Prix and IndyCar driver Stefan Johansson (SE) “shook down” the brand new Bell/Guasch Audi at Rockingham (England) last Wednesday. The duo, who both drive for United Autosports in the Total 24 Hours of Spa (July 30-31), completed over 100-laps. The Audi was then on display at a Draper Tools “Meet the Team” event the following day (Thursday) for staff and customers of the team’s partner in Southampton along with United Autosports’ FIA GT3 European Championship driver Joe Osborne who also entertained Draper guests at Brands today.

Upcoming . . .
The fifth & sixth rounds of the FIA GT3 European Championship at Navarra (Spain) on July 2-3. Rounds five and six of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship staged at Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) on July 8-9.

Race (duration 120mins)
Qualifying: 12th #23 Bell, 1m 28.596s; 13th #24 Bintcliffe, 1m 28.610s. Weather: Dry, bright.
Race Result: 8th (#24), +1 lap. Retired (#23). Weather: Damp/cloudy, rain/wet, sun/drying.

Guasch immediately made up five places on his grid position to complete the opening lap on a damp track in seventh and having overtaken the #12 Ferrari for sixth place on lap two, was tagged by the same car at Druids Hairpin. The American’s Audi ended up in the barriers with substantial front and rear bodywork damage.
 
Palmer settled into a steady rhythm as the track began to dry, Jay placed 10th with 15mins on the clock – 50secs off the lead. Palmer remained 10th on 30mins – 71secs down. Heavy rain began to fall minutes later with the Safety Car deployed on 40mins to recover stranded cars with Palmer placed a praiseworthy eighth.

Palmer, who had driven brilliantly considering he had not previously raced on the Brands GP circuit, made his compulsory pit-stop to hand over to Bintcliffe as the race re-started with 70mins to run but the former Audi Sport UK “factory” British Touring Car Championship race winner spun down to 18th place in the difficult conditions at the top of Paddock Hill on his “out lap”.

With an hour to run, Bintcliffe was 11th but was up to seventh place 10mins later. The sun appeared for the last 30mins, the track drying allowing John to set a string of personal fastest laps although Bintcliffe slipped one place to eighth on the penultimate lap as the #11 Ferrari came past on the pit straight.


#23 Molecule – Audi R8 LMS

Matt Bell (GB). Age: 21. Born: Newcastle-upon-Tyne, T&W. Lives: Barningham, N. Yorks, England:
“I’d only driven here once before, in a Ginetta, two years ago. Practice was red flag interrupted and traffic a problem but was P5 in the final practice heading into qualifying so 12th in ‘qually’ was disappointing. We could have and should have been in the top-six but I struggled to get in a clear lap. The track is narrow with few overtaking opportunities so the race was always going to be difficult but hadn’t expected it to be over so quickly! Today was a great shame. We’ll just have to pick ourselves up and move on to the next races at Spa.”
 
Michael Guasch (USA). Age: 53. Born: Palo Alto, California. Lives: Walnut Creek, California, USA:
“I’d previous practice experience in a Ginetta around the ‘Indy’ track but the GP section was daunting to begin with but I steadily got to grips with it. Qualifying down in 12th always meant it would be a battle in the race. It had rained before the race but we decided to start on slicks. I made a number of passes but going into Druids for only the second time, I was on the outside, but the car on the inside just took me out – I can only assume he didn’t see me. The heavy impact shoved me into the barriers and pretty much destroyed the car. I went to the Medical Center but got the all clear. Amazingly we still lead the series.”
 


 #24 Teknavo – Audi R8 LMS

 John Bintcliffe (GB). Age: 45. Born: Bridlington, E. Yorks. Lives: Harrogate, N. Yorkshire, England.
“I went in to qualifying with less than four competitive ‘flying’ laps under my belt from practice after a 15 year break from racing at Brands. Qualifying just outside the top-10 was frustrating but that was down to my lack of laps in the Audi. I spun at Paddock on my out lap having just taken over from Jay – I was on slicks, the track was wet and although I felt I was taking it very gently, the car rotated. For the next four laps I took things very steady and let the car come to me. The weather played a big part today but apart from my embarrassing spin, we dealt with everything that was thrown at us.”

Jay Palmer (GB). Age: 38. Born: Harrogate. Lives: Harrogate & London, England / Barbados:
“The start of the race was fraught but I was intent on keeping out of trouble. I held position and through attrition moved up some places before pitting after the Safety Car period. That was an issue in itself due to a very slow GT4 class Aston Martin trundling around which cost us a lot of time and was most annoying. But taking everything in to account, it was a pleasing result and another race where we’ve claimed some points.”
 
Richard Dean (GB), Managing Director & Co-Owner of United Autosports:
“Qualifying was always going to be ‘busy’ with 31 cars on the track but it was the same for everyone. Matt was unlucky on his new tire run with traffic as was John so we never had the opportunity to show the true pace of the R8 LMS which had a good balance. So we needed luck going into the race and to keep out of trouble but we didn’t get it. The Ferrari turned Mike around and out of the race almost destroying our brand new Audi R8 LMS in the process. Jay and John ran a clean race but unfortunately Jay frustratingly lost time behind a GT4 car that decided to go very slowly during the Safety Car phase which effectively lost the #24 Audi half a lap. We’re still leading the series but now by only seven points.”

United Autosports
Created in 2009, United Autosports is co-owned by American Zak Brown and Briton Richard Dean, both successful entrepreneurs and international race car drivers. The unique Anglo-American racing team fields GT3 class Audi R8 LMS sports cars from its United Kingdom headquarters in Leeds. It also races a fleet of “Legends of Motorsports” historic racing cars from its US facility in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2011, the team competes in full seasons of FIA GT3 European Championship, Avon Tyres British GT Championship and the “Legends of Motorsports” series. It will additionally contest selected GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series events, the 24 Hours of Spa (Belgium) and Macau GT Cup race (China).

 
Audi R8 LMS
V10 5.2-liter engine, 4 valves per cylinder, petrol direct injection, 365-412 kW (496-560 PS), emission control by two racing catalytic converters, rear-wheel-drive, traction control (ASR), sequential pneumatic activated 6-speed sport gearbox with shift-paddles, Audi Space Frame (ASF) made of aluminum with bolted steel roll-cage, carbon-fiber composite/aluminum bodywork, Dunlop radial tires. Start weight 1,300kg. Limitation at 8500rpm for every gear. Developed by Audi Sport with cooperation from quattro GmbH. Won seven championships across Europe in 2009-2010 plus Spa 24 Hours class victory in début 2009 season and Nürburgring 24 Hours class victories in 2009-2010 and scoring a total 64 victories.

 
* Bell, Bintcliffe, Guasch & Palmer biographies plus team & car profiles are available on the United Autosports website http://www.unitedautosports.com/

 
A comprehensive library of Editorial Copyright Free photographs can be downloaded at www.flickr.com/unitedautosports/sets

 
For further information, please contact:
Martyn Pass
Audi UK Sport Press
T +44 1564 824600
M +44 7801 859502
Skype martyn.pass

 
www.audi-press.co.uk

Thursday, June 9, 2011

United Autosports Aims For Back-To-Back British GT Championship Victories

· Bell & Guasch look to consolidate early championship lead
· Bintcliffe & Palmer aim for another top-five finish after multi-year race lay-off


The fourth round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship staged at Brands Hatch (England) on Sunday June 19 sees United Autosports bidding for back-to-back wins.

Matt Bell (GB) and Michael Guasch (USA) earned the team its maiden victory last month when the Anglo-American pairing swept their #23 Molecule Audi R8 LMS to victory at Snetterton (England) which earned them a 24.5-point series lead after three rounds of the 10-race series United Autosports is contesting for the first time.

The John Bintcliffe (GB) and Jay Palmer (GB) #24 Teknavo Audi collected fifth place at Snetterton in only their third race at the wheel of their R8 LMS. Due to business commitments, both have been away from motorsport in recent years, but are quickly adapting to the V10-engined R8 LMS and in races featuring pit-stops for driver changes for the very first time in their careers.

Like the previous event at Snetterton, the Brands race staged on the 2.301-mile “Grand Prix” track, will be of a two-hour duration. The #23 Molecule Audi R8 LMS will be “held” for an additional 20secs “success penalty” during its mandatory driver change pit-stop.

Avon Tyres British GT Championship (after three rounds):
1 Matt Bell & Mike Guasch, 70.5-points
2 Jones/Jones, 46pts
3 Gedie/Gedie, 41pts
9 John Bintcliffe & Jay Palmer, 15pts

Provisional Timetable:
Saturday – 0935-1035 Practice; 1255-1355 Practice; 1745-1815 Qualifying
Sunday – 1000-1010 Warm-up; 1550-1750 Race
* All times are UK “local”


#23 Molecule – Audi R8 LMS

Matt Bell (GB). Age: 21. Born: Newcastle-upon-Tyne, T&W. Lives: Barningham, N. Yorks, England:
“United Autosports gave Mike and I a stunning racecar in the previous race at Snetterton which allowed us to score our maiden BGT race win. I was delighted to reward everyone in the team with that result but we’re hungry for more of the same success and where better than the next race at Brands and another two-hour race which again should suit our Audi ideally. I’ve only previously been around the Brands GP track in a Ginetta and it’s a great track.”

Michael Guasch (USA). Age: 53. Born: Palo Alto, California. Lives: Walnut Creek, California, USA:
“Despite having a pit-stop ‘success’ penalty of 20secs at Brands I believe that if we can qualify well again and hang with the leaders in the opening part of the race, our Audi should come on strong in the latter stages and be in with a good shot of a podium again. I’ve never previously driven on the GP circuit but have spent time on the simulator learning it so that I’m prepared for when I arrive.”



#24 Teknavo – Audi R8 LMS

John Bintcliffe (GB). Age: 45. Born: Bridlington, E. Yorks. Lives: Harrogate, N. Yorkshire, England.
“The key element for Jay and I in achieving a good result at Brands will be to hit the ground running in that we claim a good qualifying position. Then there is no reason why we cannot be challenging at the front in the race.”

Jay Palmer (GB). Age: 38. Born: Harrogate. Lives: Harrogate & London, England / Barbados:
“I’ve never raced on the Brands GP circuit but it looks great. I thoroughly enjoyed the two-hour race at Snetterton and John and I will be aiming for another top-six race result.”

Richard Dean (GB), Managing Director & Co-Owner of United Autosports:
“We won the last BGT race so we’ll arrive at Brands on a high. But we also know that we need to be on our very best form, drivers and team personnel, to be in with a chance of achieving back-to-back wins. None of our drivers have done many, if any, racing laps on the Brands GP circuit. Matt and Mike are a strong pairing – they raced with us in the FIA GT3 series last year so they have experience of the Audi R8 LMS and this kind of two-driver GT racing. For Jay and John, who have both come back to racing after multi-year lay-offs, they’re having to learn the car, the circuits again and races featuring pit-stops, so for them to achieve fifth at Snetterton last time out was a tremendous performance.”

United Autosports
Created in 2009, United Autosports is co-owned by American Zak Brown and Briton Richard Dean, both successful entrepreneurs and international race car drivers. The unique Anglo-American racing team fields GT3 class Audi R8 LMS sports cars from its United Kingdom headquarters in Leeds. It also races a fleet of “Legends of Motorsports” historic racing cars from its US facility in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2011, the team competes in full seasons of FIA GT3 European Championship, Avon Tyres British GT Championship and the “Legends of Motorsports” series. It will additionally contest selected GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series events, the 24 Hours of Spa (Belgium) and Macau GT Cup race (China).

Audi R8 LMS
V10 5.2-liter engine, 4 valves per cylinder, petrol direct injection, 365-412 kW (496-560 PS), emission control by two racing catalytic converters, rear-wheel-drive, traction control (ASR), sequential pneumatic activated 6-speed sport gearbox with shift-paddles, Audi Space Frame (ASF) made of aluminum with bolted steel roll-cage, carbon-fiber composite/aluminum bodywork, Dunlop radial tires. Start weight 1,300kg. Limitation at 8500rpm for every gear. Developed by Audi Sport with cooperation from quattro GmbH. Won seven championships across Europe in 2009-2010 plus Spa 24 Hours class victory in début 2009 season and Nürburgring 24 Hours class victories in 2009-2010 and scoring a total 64 victories.

* Bell, Bintcliffe, Guasch & Palmer biographies plus team & car profiles are available on the United Autosports websitebsite http://www.unitedautosports.com/

A comprehensive library of Editorial Copyright Free photographs can be downloaded at www.flickr.com/unitedautosports/sets

For further information, please contact:
Martyn Pass
Audi UK Sport Press
T +44 1564 824600
M +44 7801 859502
Skype martyn.pass

www.audi-press.co.uk

Monday, June 6, 2011

United Autosports Out In The Cold At Home Silverstone FIA GT3 Races

  • Unseasonably cold weather thwarts Anglo-American team’s glory bid
  • Famous English venue proves to be a difficult track for Audi R8 LMS teams
“Flaming June” it was not at Silverstone (England) for United Autosports’ “home” FIA GT3 European Championship races of the year this weekend (June 4-5).

Consequently the unseasonably low ambient temperatures which decreased as the three-day event went on, wrecked any hopes the Anglo-American team had of scoring top finishes on “home soil”. Its Dunlop tires, normally excelling in the latter stages of the hour-long races as opposed to short qualifying runs, were unable to generate the necessary heat required for optimum grip leaving the drivers powerless.

Nevertheless the #22 Draper Tools sports car of Joe Osborne (GB) and Mark Patterson (USA) was the second-highest Audi R8 LMS in both one-hour races around the 3.67-mile “Arena” Grand Prix track.

Upcoming . . .
The fourth round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship. A two-hour race staged at Brands Hatch, Kent (England) on June 19 which Matt Bell (GB) & Mike Guasch (USA) start as championship leaders after winning the last race at Snetterton. Fifth & sixth rounds of the FIA GT3 European Championship at Navarra (Spain) on 2-3 July.


Race 1 (Saturday, duration 60mins)
Qualifying: 19th #22 Patterson, 2m 06.259s; 22nd #23 Brown, 2m 06.990s. Weather: Dry, cloudy.
Race Result: 15th (#22) +51.477s P1; 21st (#23) +70.767s. Weather: Dry, sunny, cool.

Patterson and Brown lined up 19th and 22nd respectively on the 27-car grid – both frustrated when cool morning conditions did not help generate heat in to the temperature sensitive Dunlop tires during the 20-minute qualifying session. Both dropped places during the hectic start with Patterson, who had incredulously been hit before the green light, was back in to 19th by the fourth lap while Brown lay 26th after a harmless spin at Becketts on lap eight.

Mark, having set his personal best time the previous lap, and Zak pitted from 19th and 23rd positions respectively with 33mins to run, Osborne and Bell resuming in 23rd and 24th positions separated by less than seven seconds.

With 10mins remaining Osborne moved up to 18th – a mysterious handling imbalance severely handicapping Bell’s pace in 21st. Joe was the quickest car in the field on the final lap, as his Dunlop tires came into their own, enabling him to take the checker in 15th – one position and less than five seconds behind the best placed Audi, Osborne having set the eighth fastest lap time in the race – with Bell 21st.


Race 2 (Sunday, duration 60mins)
Qualifying: 12th #22 Osborne, 2m 04.230s; 22nd #23 Bell, 2m 5.020s. Weather: Dry, cloudy, light rain.
Race Result: 16th (#22) +69.334s P1; 17th (#23) +82.508s. Weather: Dry, overcast, cool, breezy.

Osborne started from row six – the second best-placed Audi R8 LMS – with Bell on the 12th row but optimistic further suspension changes overnight would solve the handling issue on the #23 Audi. A multi-car accident at the first corner moments after the green light resulted in a 10min Safety Car period – Osborne making up two places despite being forced wide to miss the carnage with Bell, who ran over on-track debris, 19th.

Osborne was embroiled in a five-car dice over seventh at the re-start while Bell, enjoying a more consistent balance, impressively moved up to 15th prior to pitting at mid-distance – five places behind Osborne.

Patterson resumed 13th but Zak coasted to a standstill on his out-lap, a full ignition re-set getting the American underway almost immediately but having slipped back to 21st. Further woes afflicted the #22 Audi when Patterson was forced wide dropping to 18th – one place ahead of Brown with 16mins remaining.

At the checker, Patterson and Brown claimed 16th – a spin on the penultimate lap costing Mark a place – and 17th respectively – both United Autosports’ Audi sports cars recording some impressive lap times in the closing stages culminating, once again, with each driver setting their best laps at the finish.

#22 Draper Tools – Audi R8 LMS
Joe Osborne (GB). Age: 22. Born: Bedford, GB. Lives: Olney, Buckinghamshire, GB:
“I had a lot of work to do in Race One but just got my head down. The tires came in towards the very end and I managed to claw back some places which was encouraging. I was reasonably happy with my qualifying performance on Saturday, claiming P12 although it could have been a top-eight but I lost out in traffic on what was looking to be my quickest lap. I was close to getting wiped out at the start of the second race with the first corner accident, having to go way off onto the run off area. It’s frustrating as we [Audi] shouldn’t be in a position whereby the R8 LMS is fighting for positions in midfield – it would seem that the Balance of Power is not right.”

Mark Patterson (USA). Age: 59. Born: Port Elizabeth, SA. Lives: Bronxville, New York State, USA:
“I qualified P19 for Saturday’s race which was the best I could manage. Amazingly I was hit three corners before the race had even started which caused me to be slow away at the green light and then I had to be a little careful until I knew if the car had been damaged. It wasn’t a particularly rewarding stint which gave Joe a lot to do when he took over. Having driven the Audi on full tanks on Saturday, I enjoyed Sunday’s race far better. Joe handed me over a nice racecar. Unfortunately I had a spin near the end.”

#23 Legends of Motorsport – Audi R8 LMS
Matt Bell (GB). Age: 21. Born: Newcastle-upon-Tyne, GB. Lives: Barningham, North Yorks, GB:
“We tested at Snetterton before we came here and the Audi R8 LMS was excellent but here, the handling has not been good. We’d made an overnight change to the suspension set-up on Friday resulting in the back end being too loose for me in qualifying on Saturday so we reverted back to the previous set-up for Race One but the handling was still not to my liking. Further changes were made for Sunday’s race and it was more consistent but not perfect. I made a good start but then had to stand on the brakes to avoid the opening corner accident. With the cool conditions, the opposition’s Michelins didn’t drop off in terms of grip as much as normal while our Dunlop tires, didn’t give us a second half of the race advantage that they normally give us.”

Zak Brown (USA). Age: 39. Born: Los Angeles, California, USA. Lives: Carmel, Indiana, USA:
“Frustrated – no other word sums up how Matt & I feel, and the entire team for that matter, feel after this weekend. With United Autosports coming off recording its first outright win [British GT Championship] combined with us racing here at Silverstone for a second time, we expected to be very competitive this weekend. The set-up clearly didn’t suit the conditions we’ve had over the past three days. Our Dunlop tires excel as a race progresses but they need the ambient temperature to be warm. At Silverstone, it got colder each day so we couldn’t enjoy the advantage that we normally enjoy as a race progresses. We therefore qualified poorly and I’m afraid that continued in to both races when we had one of those days in the office that is best forgotten. We all have bad weekends, this was ours, and all we do now is look ahead to the next races and hopefully some hotter weather!”

Richard Dean (GB), Managing Director & Co-Owner of United Autosports:
“Although the weekend was a huge disappointment to everyone in the United Autosports team, we will learn from the experience for future races. The cold ambient temperature in both races negated the advantage our Audi R8 LMS has of being easy on its tires as well as the actual performance of our Dunlop tires from the mid-race stage. We now look forward to an upturn in fortune in Spain next month and replicate the success we are enjoying in the British GT Championship.”


United Autosports
Created in 2009, United Autosports is co-owned by American Zak Brown and Briton Richard Dean, both successful entrepreneurs and international race car drivers. The unique Anglo-American racing team fields GT3 class Audi R8 LMS sports cars from its United Kingdom headquarters in Leeds. It also races a fleet of “Legends of Motorsports” historic racing cars from its US facility in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2011, the team competes in full seasons of FIA GT3 European Championship, Avon Tyres British GT Championship and the “Legends of Motorsports” series. It will additionally contest selected GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series events, the 24 Hours of Spa (Belgium) and Macau GT Cup race (China).

Audi R8 LMS
V10 5.2-liter engine, 4 valves per cylinder, petrol direct injection, 365-412 kW (496-560 PS), emission control by two racing catalytic converters, rear-wheel-drive, traction control (ASR), sequential pneumatic activated 6-speed sport gearbox with shift-paddles, Audi Space Frame (ASF) made of aluminum with bolted steel roll-cage, carbon-fiber composite/aluminum bodywork, Dunlop radial tires. Start weight 1,300kg. Limitation at 8500rpm for every gear. Developed by Audi Sport with cooperation from quattro GmbH. Won seven championships across Europe in 2009-2010 plus Spa 24 Hours class victory in début 2009 season and Nürburgring 24 Hours class victories in 2009-2010 and scoring a total 64 victories.

Bell, Brown, Osborne & Patterson biographies plus team & car profiles are available on the United Autosports website http://www.unitedautosports.com/

A comprehensive library of Editorial Copyright Free photographs can be downloaded at  www.flickr.com/unitedautosports/sets

For further information, please contact:
Martyn Pass
Audi UK Sport Press
T +44 1564 824600
M +44 7801 859502
Skype martyn.pass
www.audi-press.co.uk