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08-05-2004, 08:49 PM
American Le Mans Series History at Mosport Alive with Close Finishes
Steve Schuler 8-5-2004
BOWMANVILLE, ON, Canada - This weekend's Toronto Grand Prix of Mosport will mark the sixth time that the American Le Mans Series has raced at Canada's Mosport International Raceway. The 2.45-mile, 10-turn road racing circuit is one of only five tracks that have hosted ALMS races every year since the formation of the series in 1999.
Racing historian/statistician Steve Schuler takes a look back at the five previous ALMS races at Mosport.
2003 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
The Joest Audi team won the Mosport 2003 ALMS race with Marco Werner and Frank Biela winning a race producing five lead changes among five drivers piloting four cars from four entrants representing three marques and two classes.
Biela and Werner won by two laps overall over the runnerup Dyson Racing Lola EX257-MG LMP675 entry of Andy Wallace and Chris Dyson. Third, also two laps down, was the runnerup LMP900 finisher, a JML Panoz driven by Scott Maxwell and Gunnar Jeannette. Third in LMP900 but seventh overall was the other JML Panoz of Olivier Beretta and David Saelens; this Panoz was second overall when crashed out by Beretta after 109 laps. Biela and Werner started fourth overall and second in LMP900.
James Weaver won the overall pole in the #16 Dyson Lola EX257-MG LMP675 entry and led the first 29 laps of the race. Frank Biela put the #1 Joest Audi R8 in front for laps 30-34 before Gunnar Jeannette led one lap in the #11 JML Panoz. Biela then led laps 36-43 in the #1 Joest Audi before surrendering the lead to JJ Lehto in the Champion Audi R8; Lehto led laps 44-66. Marco Werner led the final 50 laps of the race (67-116) in the #1 Joest Audi.
All told, the #1 Joest Audi led 63 laps, #16 Dyson Lola led 29 laps, the #38 Champion Audi led 23 laps, and the #11 JML Panoz led one lap. Among the drivers, Werner led the most laps with 50 to 29 for Weaver, 23 for Lehto, 13 for Biela, and one for Jeannette.
James Weaver set the overall Fast Lap in the #16 Dyson Lola-MG; the LMP900 Fast Lap was posted by Johnny Herbert in the #38 Champion Audi R8.
Biela previously won the 2001 Mosport ALMS race for Audi.
Andy Wallace and Chris Dyson won the LMP675 class in the 2003 Mosport ALMS race driving the #20 Dyson Racing Lola EX257-MG. Wallace had qualified second overall and in class but a practice crash meant that the car started the race from pit lane. Wallace and Dyson finished second overall, only two laps behind the winning Joest Audi, and 13 laps ahead of the runnerup LMP675 finisher.
Jeff Bucknum's Pilbeam MP91-Willman 6 LMP675 entry finished second in class and 22nd overall. Third in LMP675 and 24th overall, a lap behind the Bucknum entry, was the #16 Dyson Lola-MG of James Weaver and Butch Leitzinger. Weaver won the overall pole and set overall Fast Lap as well.
Chevrolet Corvette Racing won GTS in the 2003 Mosport ALMS race as Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell teamed to take the class at Mosport for the third consecutive year (2001-2002-2003).
Fellows and O'Connell started third in class and 12th overall but finished fourth overall, only four laps behind the overall winners. On the same lap in a very close GTS finish, and fifth overall, was the GTS runnerup Prodrive Ferrari 550 Maranello of Tomas Enge and Peter Kox. Enge and Kox had started 33rd and last overall (seventh and last in the GTS class); Enge set the fastest GTS race lap. Sixth overall and third in GTS, only a lap behind the GTS 1-2 finishers, was the Jan Magnussen/David Brabham Prodrive Ferrari 550 Maranello.
Oliver Gavin won the GTS pole and started ninth overall in the other Corvette but crashed out while leading GTS after 24 laps.
Johnny O'Connell's 2003 GTS win at Mosport was not only his third consecutive GTS win at Mosport but also his fourth ALMS win at Mosport as he won overall in the Panoz LMP in 1999.
Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS drivers Jorg Bergmeister and Timo Bernhard took the 2003 Mosport GT victory. Bergmeister won the GT pole and the duo started 16th overall. Bergmeister and Bernhard finished ninth overall and won the class by one lap over the Risi Ferrari 360 Modena of Ralf Kelleners and Anthony Lazzaro. The Ferrari finished 10th overall, on the same lap with the 3-4-5 GT finishers as the top five GT finishers finished 9-10-11-12-13 within one lap of each other. Marc Lieb and Peter Baron took third in GT in an Orbit Racing Porsche with Lucas Luhr and Sascha Maassen fourth in the other Job Porsche and Robin Liddell and Vic Rice fifth in their PK Sport Porsche. Maassen set GT Fast Lap.
2002 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
In the 2002 Mosport ALMS race, the Johnny Herbert/Stefan Johansson Champion Audi finished second by a lap to the Rinaldo Capello/Tom Kristensen Joest Audi to give the R8 a 1-2. The JJ Lehto/Max Angelelli Cadillac Northstar LMP02 finished third. The Panoz entries finished fourth and fifth with the second Cadillac sixth as three marques and four entrants finished in the top six positions, all within three laps of the winning Audi.
Five drivers racing four race cars for two entrants representing two marques led the 2002 Mosport ALMS race. The #1 Joest Audi led six laps as Frank Biela led the first six circuits from the pole. The #2 Joest Audi led 113 laps, 34 by Rinaldo Capello and 79 by Tom Kristensen. The #8 Cadillac led one lap driven by JJ Lehto and the #7 Cadillac led a lap with Eric Bernard at the wheel.
The lead changed four times among the four leading race cars.
The winning Joest Audi started second. Kristensen set Fast
Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell won GTS in a Chevrolet Corvette C5-R by a lap over their teammates Kelly Collins and Andy Pilgrim. The Corvettes finished seventh and eighth overall, with the class-winning Corvette eight laps behind the overall and LMP900-winning Audi. Third in GTS and ninth overall, three laps behind the GTS-winning Corvette, was the Konrad Saleen S7R of GTS pole winner Terry Borcheller and team owner Franz Konrad. The 1-2 finishing Corvettes started 2-3 in the GTS class. Pilgrim set the GTS Fast Lap.
Jeff Bucknum, Chris McMurry and Bryan Willman won the LMP675 class in the Bucknum Pilbeam MP84-Nissan by four laps over the Melanie Paterson/Ross Bentley Lola B2K/40-Nissan. The Bucknum entry started third in class and finished 11th overall, 14 laps behind the overall-winning Audi. Jon Field won the LMP675 pole in his Intersport Lola EX257-MG and set LMP675 Fast Lap but retired after only 12 laps with engine problems.
Kevin Buckler and Brian Cunningham drove the Racers Group Porsche 911 GT3 RS to a three-lap victory margin in GT over the Orbit Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS of Leo Hindery/Peter Baron; the best-placed Alex Job Porsche 911 GT3 RS entry finished third in class, also three laps down! Lucas Luhr took GT pole with the Job entry while codriver Sascha Maassen set GT Fast Lap. The 1-2 GT finishers started 4-5 in class. The 1-2-3 GT finishers placed 13-15-17 overall.
For the second consecutive year at Mosport, none of the four class polesitters won.
2001 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
The 2001 Mosport race finish saw three marques finish in the Top Three "on the podium" as Audi won with Panoz second and Cadillac third. The other Cadillac finished fourth and a fifth marque, a Riley & Scott Mk IIIC with Lincoln (Ford) power finished fifth as four marques and entrants finished in the Top Five. The sixth through eighth-place finishers were the LMP675-winning Reynard-Judd, the GTS winning Chevrolet Corvette C5R, and the GTS runnerup Saleen S7R as seven marques finished in the overall top eight. The GT-winning BMW in 10th made the total eight marques in the Top Ten.
Mosport 2001 featured four lead changes posted by four drivers and three cars representing three entrants and two marques. The winning Audi led 36 laps, the runnerup Panoz 63 laps, and the Champion Audi led 16 laps.
Winners Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro started second. Pirro set Fast Lap. Audi's Rinaldo Capello took the pole.
Jan Magnussen led the drivers with 63 laps led over Emanuele Pirro's 36. Champion Audi teammates Johnny Herbert (led 14 laps) and Andy Wallace (led two laps) combined for 16 laps led.
Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell won GTS in their Chevrolet Corvette C5-R. They started fifth in class. Terry Borcheller won the GTS pole in the Konrad Saleen S7R and also set Fast Lap.
Didier de Radigues and Bruno Lambert won LMP675 in the Barbour Racing Reynard 01Q-Judd after starting third in class. De Radigues also set Fast Lap. Claudia Hurtgen won the LMP675 pole in the Roock Lola B2K/40-Nissan.
JJ Lehto and Jorg Muller won GT in the Schnitzer BMW BMW M3 GTR. The GT-winning duo started ninth in class. Their teammate Dirk Muller won the GT pole while PTG BMW M3 GTR driver Boris Said set Fast Lap.
GTS winner Johnny O'Connell and LMP675 victor Bruno Lambert scored their second Mosport ALMS wins (O'Connell won overall and LMP in 1999, Lambert won GT in 2000).
The LMP675 class winners placed sixth overall behind five LMP900 entries and were only four laps behind the overall winners.
The Barbour team scored the first LMP675 class "entrant 1-2" in ALMS history at Mosport in 2001.
For the first time in the existence of four-class competition in the ALMS series, none of the four polesitters won.
The overall and LMP900-winning Audi started second. The LMP675 winners started a then-class-record low third in class. The GTS winners started fifth and last in class; only the 1999 Sebring 12 Hours GTS winner started lower in class, seventh, in GTS history. Lehto and Jorg Muller won GT from ninth starting position; only the 1999 Mosport GT class winners (Cort Wagner and Dirk Muller) won from a lower starting position, 10th, in the history of the GT class.
JJ Lehto and Jorg Muller were followed in GT by their teammates Dirk Muller and Fredrik Ekblom as the Schnitzer BMW GT effort scored its first "1-2" finish.
2000 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
The rain-plagued 2000 Mosport Park ALMS race produced the closest finish in the history of the ALMS series as the Allan McNish/Rinaldo Capello Audi A8 won by only 0.148 second over the JJ Lehto/Jorg Muller BMW V12 LMR. The McNish/Capello duo started third and led 59 of the race's 94 laps; 23 laps of the race were run under yellow.
Six cars (both Audis, both Panoz entries, the Stefan Johansson/Guy Smith Matthews Racing Reynard-Judd, and the Lehto/Muller BMW) led the race, producing nine lead changes. The Jan Magnussen/David Brabham Panoz led 15 laps but crashed out in the rain while challenging for the lead; the Johnny O'Connell/Hiroki Katoh Panoz led one lap but finished eighth overall and fifth in LMP. The polesitting Frank Biela/Emanuele Pirro Audi led 11 laps and was running second when it retired after a crash with 14 laps remaining. Lehto and Muller led seven laps and the Matthews Reynard led one lap but a late-race spin cost it fourth position overall but still resulted in a seventh-place overall, fourth in LMP finish.
The GTS class produced a close finish as well as only a 0.353 second margin separated the winning ORECA Dodge Viper of Olivier Beretta and Karl Wendlinger from the GTS polewinning Chevrolet Corvette C5-R of Ron Fellows and Andy Pilgrim. The margin was the closest in ALMS GTS history.
The Viper and Corvette exchanged the lead throughout the race with Wendlinger passing for the lead late in the race in the Corvette's best performance yet in ALMS GTS competition. The second ORECA Viper driven by Tommy Archer and David Donohue finished on the GTS lead lap only 28.715 seconds behind the class winner as the top three in GTS finished fourth, fifth, and sixth overall.
Barbour Racing's five-win ALMS GT victory streak ended but Porsche's ALMS GT win streak was extended to 10 races with victory by the Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 GT3R driven by Randy Pobst and Bruno Lambert, each scoring their first win in ALMS competition. The duo started from the pole won by Pobst and led flag-to-flag, winning by one lap over the PTG BMW M3 of Hans-Joachim Stuck and Boris Said with the best Barbour Racing 911 GT3R third, driven by Bob Wollek and Sascha Maassen. The top three GT finishers finished 9-10-11 overall. Pobst's pole also ended a five-race Barbour Racing GT pole streak but extended Porsche's GT pole streak to 11 races.
1999 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
Panoz Motor Sports scored its first 1999 LMP victory, its first win with its LMP roadster, and its first-ever overall 1-2 finish in the 1999 Mosport Park ALMS race.
Four of the six class-winning drivers were first-time winners in ALMS competition.
Jan Magnussen scored his first ALMS win in only his third start, all in 1999. Magnussen also achieved his first pole.
GTS also produced a 1-2 finish as the ORECA Dodge Vipers achieved the feat, with Olivier Beretta and David Donohue winning over their ORECA teammates Tommy Archer and Karl Wendlinger. Beretta and Wendlinger scored their first ALMS wins.
Cort Wagner and Dirk Muller teamed in the Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 RSR to win 1999 Mosport Park GT honors over two PTG BMW M3s. Muller's win was his first in ALMS competition.
LMP cars took the first 10 positions; the GTS 1-2 finishers were 11th and 12th overall. The GT winner finished 16th with the GT runnerup 17th.
The overall victory margin was 15.238 seconds as three LMP cars finished on the lead lap. The ORECA GTS 1-2 finishers were on the same lap, 11 laps adrift of the overall winners. The GT winner achieved a two-lap victory margin, fourteen laps adrift of the overall winners but only three laps behind the GTS winners and one lap behind the third-place GTS finisher.
The overall and LMP polewinning car took victory but the GTS winner came from second GTS starting position and the GT winner started 10th (and last!) in the GT class.
Overall, behind the Ford power 1-2, Judd power finished third, Ford fourth, Ferrari fifth, Porsche sixth, Ferrari seventh and eighth, and Ford ninth and 10th.
Behind the Panoz chassis 1-2, R & S chassis finished third, fourth, and 10th, Ferrari 333SPs finished fifth, seventh, and eighth, Porsche's 911 GT1 sixth, and Lola's B98 ninth.
Steve Schuler 8-5-2004
BOWMANVILLE, ON, Canada - This weekend's Toronto Grand Prix of Mosport will mark the sixth time that the American Le Mans Series has raced at Canada's Mosport International Raceway. The 2.45-mile, 10-turn road racing circuit is one of only five tracks that have hosted ALMS races every year since the formation of the series in 1999.
Racing historian/statistician Steve Schuler takes a look back at the five previous ALMS races at Mosport.
2003 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
The Joest Audi team won the Mosport 2003 ALMS race with Marco Werner and Frank Biela winning a race producing five lead changes among five drivers piloting four cars from four entrants representing three marques and two classes.
Biela and Werner won by two laps overall over the runnerup Dyson Racing Lola EX257-MG LMP675 entry of Andy Wallace and Chris Dyson. Third, also two laps down, was the runnerup LMP900 finisher, a JML Panoz driven by Scott Maxwell and Gunnar Jeannette. Third in LMP900 but seventh overall was the other JML Panoz of Olivier Beretta and David Saelens; this Panoz was second overall when crashed out by Beretta after 109 laps. Biela and Werner started fourth overall and second in LMP900.
James Weaver won the overall pole in the #16 Dyson Lola EX257-MG LMP675 entry and led the first 29 laps of the race. Frank Biela put the #1 Joest Audi R8 in front for laps 30-34 before Gunnar Jeannette led one lap in the #11 JML Panoz. Biela then led laps 36-43 in the #1 Joest Audi before surrendering the lead to JJ Lehto in the Champion Audi R8; Lehto led laps 44-66. Marco Werner led the final 50 laps of the race (67-116) in the #1 Joest Audi.
All told, the #1 Joest Audi led 63 laps, #16 Dyson Lola led 29 laps, the #38 Champion Audi led 23 laps, and the #11 JML Panoz led one lap. Among the drivers, Werner led the most laps with 50 to 29 for Weaver, 23 for Lehto, 13 for Biela, and one for Jeannette.
James Weaver set the overall Fast Lap in the #16 Dyson Lola-MG; the LMP900 Fast Lap was posted by Johnny Herbert in the #38 Champion Audi R8.
Biela previously won the 2001 Mosport ALMS race for Audi.
Andy Wallace and Chris Dyson won the LMP675 class in the 2003 Mosport ALMS race driving the #20 Dyson Racing Lola EX257-MG. Wallace had qualified second overall and in class but a practice crash meant that the car started the race from pit lane. Wallace and Dyson finished second overall, only two laps behind the winning Joest Audi, and 13 laps ahead of the runnerup LMP675 finisher.
Jeff Bucknum's Pilbeam MP91-Willman 6 LMP675 entry finished second in class and 22nd overall. Third in LMP675 and 24th overall, a lap behind the Bucknum entry, was the #16 Dyson Lola-MG of James Weaver and Butch Leitzinger. Weaver won the overall pole and set overall Fast Lap as well.
Chevrolet Corvette Racing won GTS in the 2003 Mosport ALMS race as Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell teamed to take the class at Mosport for the third consecutive year (2001-2002-2003).
Fellows and O'Connell started third in class and 12th overall but finished fourth overall, only four laps behind the overall winners. On the same lap in a very close GTS finish, and fifth overall, was the GTS runnerup Prodrive Ferrari 550 Maranello of Tomas Enge and Peter Kox. Enge and Kox had started 33rd and last overall (seventh and last in the GTS class); Enge set the fastest GTS race lap. Sixth overall and third in GTS, only a lap behind the GTS 1-2 finishers, was the Jan Magnussen/David Brabham Prodrive Ferrari 550 Maranello.
Oliver Gavin won the GTS pole and started ninth overall in the other Corvette but crashed out while leading GTS after 24 laps.
Johnny O'Connell's 2003 GTS win at Mosport was not only his third consecutive GTS win at Mosport but also his fourth ALMS win at Mosport as he won overall in the Panoz LMP in 1999.
Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS drivers Jorg Bergmeister and Timo Bernhard took the 2003 Mosport GT victory. Bergmeister won the GT pole and the duo started 16th overall. Bergmeister and Bernhard finished ninth overall and won the class by one lap over the Risi Ferrari 360 Modena of Ralf Kelleners and Anthony Lazzaro. The Ferrari finished 10th overall, on the same lap with the 3-4-5 GT finishers as the top five GT finishers finished 9-10-11-12-13 within one lap of each other. Marc Lieb and Peter Baron took third in GT in an Orbit Racing Porsche with Lucas Luhr and Sascha Maassen fourth in the other Job Porsche and Robin Liddell and Vic Rice fifth in their PK Sport Porsche. Maassen set GT Fast Lap.
2002 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
In the 2002 Mosport ALMS race, the Johnny Herbert/Stefan Johansson Champion Audi finished second by a lap to the Rinaldo Capello/Tom Kristensen Joest Audi to give the R8 a 1-2. The JJ Lehto/Max Angelelli Cadillac Northstar LMP02 finished third. The Panoz entries finished fourth and fifth with the second Cadillac sixth as three marques and four entrants finished in the top six positions, all within three laps of the winning Audi.
Five drivers racing four race cars for two entrants representing two marques led the 2002 Mosport ALMS race. The #1 Joest Audi led six laps as Frank Biela led the first six circuits from the pole. The #2 Joest Audi led 113 laps, 34 by Rinaldo Capello and 79 by Tom Kristensen. The #8 Cadillac led one lap driven by JJ Lehto and the #7 Cadillac led a lap with Eric Bernard at the wheel.
The lead changed four times among the four leading race cars.
The winning Joest Audi started second. Kristensen set Fast
Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell won GTS in a Chevrolet Corvette C5-R by a lap over their teammates Kelly Collins and Andy Pilgrim. The Corvettes finished seventh and eighth overall, with the class-winning Corvette eight laps behind the overall and LMP900-winning Audi. Third in GTS and ninth overall, three laps behind the GTS-winning Corvette, was the Konrad Saleen S7R of GTS pole winner Terry Borcheller and team owner Franz Konrad. The 1-2 finishing Corvettes started 2-3 in the GTS class. Pilgrim set the GTS Fast Lap.
Jeff Bucknum, Chris McMurry and Bryan Willman won the LMP675 class in the Bucknum Pilbeam MP84-Nissan by four laps over the Melanie Paterson/Ross Bentley Lola B2K/40-Nissan. The Bucknum entry started third in class and finished 11th overall, 14 laps behind the overall-winning Audi. Jon Field won the LMP675 pole in his Intersport Lola EX257-MG and set LMP675 Fast Lap but retired after only 12 laps with engine problems.
Kevin Buckler and Brian Cunningham drove the Racers Group Porsche 911 GT3 RS to a three-lap victory margin in GT over the Orbit Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS of Leo Hindery/Peter Baron; the best-placed Alex Job Porsche 911 GT3 RS entry finished third in class, also three laps down! Lucas Luhr took GT pole with the Job entry while codriver Sascha Maassen set GT Fast Lap. The 1-2 GT finishers started 4-5 in class. The 1-2-3 GT finishers placed 13-15-17 overall.
For the second consecutive year at Mosport, none of the four class polesitters won.
2001 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
The 2001 Mosport race finish saw three marques finish in the Top Three "on the podium" as Audi won with Panoz second and Cadillac third. The other Cadillac finished fourth and a fifth marque, a Riley & Scott Mk IIIC with Lincoln (Ford) power finished fifth as four marques and entrants finished in the Top Five. The sixth through eighth-place finishers were the LMP675-winning Reynard-Judd, the GTS winning Chevrolet Corvette C5R, and the GTS runnerup Saleen S7R as seven marques finished in the overall top eight. The GT-winning BMW in 10th made the total eight marques in the Top Ten.
Mosport 2001 featured four lead changes posted by four drivers and three cars representing three entrants and two marques. The winning Audi led 36 laps, the runnerup Panoz 63 laps, and the Champion Audi led 16 laps.
Winners Frank Biela and Emanuele Pirro started second. Pirro set Fast Lap. Audi's Rinaldo Capello took the pole.
Jan Magnussen led the drivers with 63 laps led over Emanuele Pirro's 36. Champion Audi teammates Johnny Herbert (led 14 laps) and Andy Wallace (led two laps) combined for 16 laps led.
Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell won GTS in their Chevrolet Corvette C5-R. They started fifth in class. Terry Borcheller won the GTS pole in the Konrad Saleen S7R and also set Fast Lap.
Didier de Radigues and Bruno Lambert won LMP675 in the Barbour Racing Reynard 01Q-Judd after starting third in class. De Radigues also set Fast Lap. Claudia Hurtgen won the LMP675 pole in the Roock Lola B2K/40-Nissan.
JJ Lehto and Jorg Muller won GT in the Schnitzer BMW BMW M3 GTR. The GT-winning duo started ninth in class. Their teammate Dirk Muller won the GT pole while PTG BMW M3 GTR driver Boris Said set Fast Lap.
GTS winner Johnny O'Connell and LMP675 victor Bruno Lambert scored their second Mosport ALMS wins (O'Connell won overall and LMP in 1999, Lambert won GT in 2000).
The LMP675 class winners placed sixth overall behind five LMP900 entries and were only four laps behind the overall winners.
The Barbour team scored the first LMP675 class "entrant 1-2" in ALMS history at Mosport in 2001.
For the first time in the existence of four-class competition in the ALMS series, none of the four polesitters won.
The overall and LMP900-winning Audi started second. The LMP675 winners started a then-class-record low third in class. The GTS winners started fifth and last in class; only the 1999 Sebring 12 Hours GTS winner started lower in class, seventh, in GTS history. Lehto and Jorg Muller won GT from ninth starting position; only the 1999 Mosport GT class winners (Cort Wagner and Dirk Muller) won from a lower starting position, 10th, in the history of the GT class.
JJ Lehto and Jorg Muller were followed in GT by their teammates Dirk Muller and Fredrik Ekblom as the Schnitzer BMW GT effort scored its first "1-2" finish.
2000 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
The rain-plagued 2000 Mosport Park ALMS race produced the closest finish in the history of the ALMS series as the Allan McNish/Rinaldo Capello Audi A8 won by only 0.148 second over the JJ Lehto/Jorg Muller BMW V12 LMR. The McNish/Capello duo started third and led 59 of the race's 94 laps; 23 laps of the race were run under yellow.
Six cars (both Audis, both Panoz entries, the Stefan Johansson/Guy Smith Matthews Racing Reynard-Judd, and the Lehto/Muller BMW) led the race, producing nine lead changes. The Jan Magnussen/David Brabham Panoz led 15 laps but crashed out in the rain while challenging for the lead; the Johnny O'Connell/Hiroki Katoh Panoz led one lap but finished eighth overall and fifth in LMP. The polesitting Frank Biela/Emanuele Pirro Audi led 11 laps and was running second when it retired after a crash with 14 laps remaining. Lehto and Muller led seven laps and the Matthews Reynard led one lap but a late-race spin cost it fourth position overall but still resulted in a seventh-place overall, fourth in LMP finish.
The GTS class produced a close finish as well as only a 0.353 second margin separated the winning ORECA Dodge Viper of Olivier Beretta and Karl Wendlinger from the GTS polewinning Chevrolet Corvette C5-R of Ron Fellows and Andy Pilgrim. The margin was the closest in ALMS GTS history.
The Viper and Corvette exchanged the lead throughout the race with Wendlinger passing for the lead late in the race in the Corvette's best performance yet in ALMS GTS competition. The second ORECA Viper driven by Tommy Archer and David Donohue finished on the GTS lead lap only 28.715 seconds behind the class winner as the top three in GTS finished fourth, fifth, and sixth overall.
Barbour Racing's five-win ALMS GT victory streak ended but Porsche's ALMS GT win streak was extended to 10 races with victory by the Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 GT3R driven by Randy Pobst and Bruno Lambert, each scoring their first win in ALMS competition. The duo started from the pole won by Pobst and led flag-to-flag, winning by one lap over the PTG BMW M3 of Hans-Joachim Stuck and Boris Said with the best Barbour Racing 911 GT3R third, driven by Bob Wollek and Sascha Maassen. The top three GT finishers finished 9-10-11 overall. Pobst's pole also ended a five-race Barbour Racing GT pole streak but extended Porsche's GT pole streak to 11 races.
1999 RACE HIGHLIGHTS
Panoz Motor Sports scored its first 1999 LMP victory, its first win with its LMP roadster, and its first-ever overall 1-2 finish in the 1999 Mosport Park ALMS race.
Four of the six class-winning drivers were first-time winners in ALMS competition.
Jan Magnussen scored his first ALMS win in only his third start, all in 1999. Magnussen also achieved his first pole.
GTS also produced a 1-2 finish as the ORECA Dodge Vipers achieved the feat, with Olivier Beretta and David Donohue winning over their ORECA teammates Tommy Archer and Karl Wendlinger. Beretta and Wendlinger scored their first ALMS wins.
Cort Wagner and Dirk Muller teamed in the Alex Job Racing Porsche 911 RSR to win 1999 Mosport Park GT honors over two PTG BMW M3s. Muller's win was his first in ALMS competition.
LMP cars took the first 10 positions; the GTS 1-2 finishers were 11th and 12th overall. The GT winner finished 16th with the GT runnerup 17th.
The overall victory margin was 15.238 seconds as three LMP cars finished on the lead lap. The ORECA GTS 1-2 finishers were on the same lap, 11 laps adrift of the overall winners. The GT winner achieved a two-lap victory margin, fourteen laps adrift of the overall winners but only three laps behind the GTS winners and one lap behind the third-place GTS finisher.
The overall and LMP polewinning car took victory but the GTS winner came from second GTS starting position and the GT winner started 10th (and last!) in the GT class.
Overall, behind the Ford power 1-2, Judd power finished third, Ford fourth, Ferrari fifth, Porsche sixth, Ferrari seventh and eighth, and Ford ninth and 10th.
Behind the Panoz chassis 1-2, R & S chassis finished third, fourth, and 10th, Ferrari 333SPs finished fifth, seventh, and eighth, Porsche's 911 GT1 sixth, and Lola's B98 ninth.