When the Audi R8 LMS competes at the 12-hour race at Bathurst this weekend, it will as the title defender. Audi celebrated a one-two result on the legendary Australian race track at the beginning of the 2011 season. This year, Team Phoenix Racing and United Autosports are set on battling for overall victory with two R8 LMS cars each - and the two race cars fielded by the DTM-winning team from the Eifel are causing a stir even before the event.
A kangaroo and a spider: The two Audi R8 LMS from Phoenix Racing unmistakably stand for Australia’s wildlife. The black GT3 race car designated as number "1" displays the typical yellow road sign with the marsupial on its flanks. And the graphics of the white number "2" show a Redback spider and its web. This brings back fond memories to Audi fans. On December 31, 2000, Dindo Capello and Allan McNish won the "Millennium Race" at Adelaide, Australia, in an Audi R8 sporting the now legendary crocodile design.
The entertaining exterior though is not designed to - and should not - mislead anyone about the high ambitions pursued by the run as two prominent driver teams supported by Audi Sport customer racing - Audi’s customer sport department - and Audi Australia are to drive for overall victory yet again. Like last year, the home round to the Australian trio is about fighting for a great honour. Mark Eddy, the current Australian GT Champion in the Audi R8 LMS, is sharing the cockpit of car number "2" with Australia’s touring car legend, the three-time V8 Supercar Champion Craig Lowndes, and Warren Luff. Lowndes set the fastest race lap last year in the Audi R8 LMS, Luff achieved the fastest time in qualifying.
Two of the three winners from last year - the German Christopher Mies and Darryl O’Young from Hong Kong - are at the wheel of car number "1." Their new team-mate Christer Jöns (Germany) is making his debut in Australia.
For Phoenix Racing, the fifth continent is new territory as well whereas the field of "endurance racing" is not. The German team proved its marathon qualities by achieving two overall victories at the Nürburgring 24 Hours and one at the Spa 24 Hours as well as numerous other podium places and class victories. In addition, Ernst Moser’s squad that has been part of the program from day one and a long-standing partner of quattro GmbH knows the R8 LMS inside and out.
Australian driver Mark Eddy who started from Pole Position at last year's Bathurst 12 Hour is looking to go one step ahead of last year.
"Last year we had a nice battle between the two Audi R8 LMS. It was an exciting race all the way to the end. The car was very reliable and fast. It felt good on a wet and dry track and was easy to drive! We three Australians would now like to finish one place farther in front after the close outcome last year. But this year the competition with the international teams and even more makes in the field is even tougher."
Teammate and fellow Australian Craig Lowndes is looking forward to returning to mountain for Audi.
"I’m happy to be returning to Bathurst with an Audi and fighting for victory again. The battle with our team-mates a year ago was fantastic. Our driver team only missed victory by a very small margin. It’ll be great to work with Warren and Mark again. The fact that we’ve driven together before is a great help. Perhaps that’ll put us ahead of the competition a bit. I’m also looking forward to the Audi R8 LMS. The car is wonderful. On a track like Bathurst, it seems like it’s exactly made for the winding sections up on the hill. The R8 LMS is a good-natured car. It allows you to run your stints in a gentle and consistent way. The competition will even be a lot tougher this year. But it’s not a sprint. You’ve got be in contention at the end. I’m expecting good chances for the three of us being able to make that happen."
United Autosports also heads down under to race one of its Audi R8 LMS GT3 cars in the spectacular Armor All Bathurst 12 Hour race on February 24-26 with a trio of top drivers tackling the classic GT endurance event in Australia.
US-based South African Mark Patterson will share cockpit duties with Hong Kong’s Frank Yu and Hong Kong-based Frenchman Alain Li, and while none of the drivers have raced at Bathurst before, each has always harbored the dream of competing in this race.
Bathurst is the third winter pre-season race - after Dubai and Abu Dhabi - to be contested by the Anglo-American Leeds-based team. United Autosports makes its début at the circuit, the Australian track having been made famous for its spectacular Touring Car races, and the Armor All Bathurst 12 Hour GT event will test both men and machine to the limit around the awesome 6.213 km-long roller-coaster Mount Panorama circuit.
The Audi is a proven 24-hour race winner, having won last year’s Spa 24 Hour race, the 2011 Blancpain Endurance Series, and not to mention last year’s Bathurst 12 Hours.
Patterson, Yu and Li have all raced the United Autosports Audi with great success on several occasions and have taken many podiums between them. All three are experienced long-distance drivers and know exactly what it takes to succeed at this level. As the Armor All Bathurst 12 Hour gets underway on February 26, the whole team is confident of making its mark in this historic event.
Phoenix Racing is meeting strong rivals in the GT3 class at Bathurst. A total of 33 cars will be on the grid, including an Audi R8 LMS from United Autosports. The Anglo-American customer sport team is competing for the first time with the native South African Mark Patterson, the Franco-Chinese Alain Li and Frank Yu from Hong Kong at the 12-hour race.
For the fans and the drivers, the 6.213-kilometre race track at Mount Panorama is a dream. The roller-coaster circuit features a 170-meter vertical difference, includes 23 turns, makes for high suspense with its unusual radii and barriers close to the track and is considered the home of Australian motorsport. It is also the venue of the annual Bathurst 1000 race which Craig Lowndes has decided in his favour as many as five times.
