The Twelve Hours of Sebring is North America’s longest running endurance race; this weekend will be the 62nd running of the famed event which takes place in central Florida. It has long been popular with European teams and drivers as Sebring International Raceway can punish a racing car like no other track in the world. If a car can survive once around the clock at Sebring, there’s a very good chance it will survive twice round the clock in France. Indeed, both Porsche and Audi LMP1 hybrids could last week be seen pounding round the 3.74 mile track in a closed testing session.
The facility sits on the site of Fort Hendricks - a World War II airbase that was used as a training ground for American B-17 bombers. Part of the circuit uses the old concrete runway and taxiway, which makes up some of the roughest and bumpiest sections of racing surface used in modern day racing. It’s part of what makes Sebring such a physical and mental challenge for man and machine alike.
This weekend more than 10% of the 200+ drivers due to take part in Saturday’s race are regulars to the FIA World Endurance Championship or the European Le Mans Series, and there are many other familiar names and faces too. Most notably, the GTLM category (equivalent to the WEC’s LMGTE Pro class) features Porsche AG Team Manthey drivers Jörg Bergmeister, Patrick Pilet and Marco Holzer, as well as several drivers who will be seen at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in Ferrari and Porsche factory entries – Giancarlo Fisichella, Matteo Malucelli, Richard Lietz and Nick Tandy to name a few.
In GTD (similar to LMGTE Am), Filipe Albuquerque swaps his Audi R18 e-tron quattro for an Audi R8 LM and the Portuguese driver will be racing alongside Paolo Ruberti, Gianluca Roda, Marco Cioco and Matt Griffin who are all racing Ferrari 458 Italias in the category. Also present in GTD will be Paul Dalla Lana – who will be driving in the WEC with Aston Martin Racing – as well as drivers such as Patrick Dempsey and Michele Rugolo who will be present at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
There is no longer an LMP1 category of racing in North America, but the two prototype classes in the TUDOR United Sportscar Championship will have among their driver line up former WEC champions Enzo Potolicchio (who this year will be in the LMGTE Am 8Star Motorsports Ferrari entry), Martin Plowman and Tom Kimber-Smith plus David Heinemeier Hansson who has recently been announced as part of Aston Martin Racing’s all-Danish line up in the LMGTE Am No.95 entry.
Also in the Prototype (P) class reigning LMP2 World Champions Oak Racing will be competing with a single Morgan-Nissan with Olivier Pla and Alex Brundle. French manufacturer Oreca will also be repreented with the no6 Muscle Milk Pickett Racing in the Prototype Class and also with 10 FLM09 entries in the Prototype Challenge (PC) class.
It will be a fast and furious 12 hours of racing in Florida on Saturday, just as it will be in all the 6-hour races due to take place in the 2014 FIA WEC and most especially in the third round of the Championship, the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June.
Fiona Miller
Photos: 1) SEBRING INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY (SEBRING, FLORIDA, USA), 12 HOURS OF SEBRING, ROUND ONE OF THE 2012 FIA WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP - the Audi R18. 2) Porsche AG Team Manthey's Patrick Pilet; 3) AF Corse's Marco Cioci.
